WWE Unforgiven, Cleveland, OH
This is a request via Ko-fi. This is a scramble match for the WWE championship, held by HHH. I have never watched this match or this show, in fact. I think the only thing I’ve seen from this show is the Shawn-Jericho unsanctioned match. This starts with two men, then another man enters every five minutes. Pinfalls and submissions can occur throughout, and at the end of 20 minutes, the last man to score a fall is the WWE champion.
We start with Jeff Hardy and Shelton Benjamin, who is the U.S. champion at the moment. All these years later these two met again on Smackdown for the U.S. title just recently. Benjamin with a go-behind and a rollup for one right off. Hardy with a rollup for one. C&E, Shelton into a side headlock. Hardy lifts him, but Benjamin blocks being suplexed over. Benjamin off the ropes, shoulder puts Hardy down. Shelton covers, gets two.
Hardy goes over off the ropes, then rolls Shelton up for two. Right hand from Hardy. Benjamin rammed into the top turnbuckle. Sunset flip in the corner from Hardy gets two. Side headlock takeover from Benjamin. He holds onto that for a minute. Hardy stands it up, punches his way out with shots to the body. Benjamin misses the whipping heel kick, but Benjamin hits a buckle bomb. Cover, two.
Stomps from Shelton, punches, knees, more stomps. Suplex from Benjamin for two. Chinlock from Benjamin now. Benjamin with knees into the back and more stomps. Cover gets two again. Shelton brings Hardy back up, goes for a back suplex, but Hardy shifts his weight and gets two. Clothesline from Hardy, a little clumsy, but a cover gets one. Scoop slam from Jeff, then a legdrop. Cover gets two.
Hardy with a sling blade-like clothesline and now Brian Kendrick enters the match, with Ezekiel Jackson at his side. This is Kendrick’s first WWE title match and maybe was his last? I don’t know. I would look it up but it’s past 3 am and I don’t wanna. Benjamin goes for a German suplex off the apron to the floor, but Kendrick forearms Shelton down.
Kendrick with a kick to Hardy, rushes over and covers for two. Kendrick with a jumping forearm shot for two. Another kick, another kick. Kick to the spine. Kendrick with shoulders in the corner. Kendrick misses a charge in the corner, Hardy sets him for a power bomb but throws him over face-first to the mat — cover, 2, 3. Jeff Hardy is interim WWE champion. It didn’t go down in the history books as counting, but hey.
Benjamin back in, Hardy with forearms for him. Kendrick out to the floor. Suplex from Hardy gets two. Forearms from Shelton, and a big right hand puts Jeff down. Cover gets two. Hardy sent into the corner, Hardy avoids another guy’s charge and rolls Benjamin up for two.
Twist of Fate is blocked by Shelton, who hits Paydirt! Slow to cover — he gets two but Kendrick breaks the pin for whatever reason. Doesn’t really matter, it’s not like the match would actually end there. Sliced Bread #2 on Hardy! 1, 2, 3, Brian Kendrick is WWE champion! Kendrick celebrates as the clock counts down to the next entrant.
The fourth man in is MVP. Kendrick alone in the ring waiting on MVP to enter. MVP ducks a clothesline, lands some forearms, sends Kendrick off the ropes and hits a pancake move. Hardy back in, he gets taken down quickly and knocked back to the floor. Benjamin back in. Kendrick dumped to the floor by MVP. Knee to the jaw from MVP on Benjamin.
MVP setting for the Drive-By, but Kendrick cuts him off with a heel kick. Hardy back in to hit Kendrick and mock his dancing and celebrating. Benjamin knocked into MVP, both down in the corner, and Hardy slams his feet down into Benjamin’s chest. Cover gets two, Kendrick breaks.
Hardy sent out. Kendrick with a forearm to Benjamin, a kick after, another kick. Kendrick with a boot choke against the ropes, but he runs into a Samoan drop from Benjamin! MVP covers Benjamin, though, and Kendrick breaks another pin. Kendrick takes over again, but gets taken down by Benjamin. Hardy still dead on the floor somewhere.
Benjamin sets for a power bomb on Kendrick, gets him up, but Kendrick punches and ranas out of the move. Right hand from Kendrick to MVP, they trade shots, MVP gets the better of it, being the heavier hitter. Kendrick reverses a whip and hits another leg lariat.
Triple H enters with five minutes left in the match, Brian Kendrick still the interim WWE champion. Hunter enters and clotheslines Benjamin out, then drops Kendrick with one, too. Right hands to MVP. HHH with a knee to the face of MVP, then ducks Kendrick, who hits MVP. Spinebuster on Kendrick, MVP thrown out of the ring. Pedigree to Kendrick! Cover, two, three, HHH is interim champion.
Four minutes left and Shelton Benjamin sneaks in on HHH from behind. They spill to the floor and fight it out. HHH whipped into the ring steps. Jeff Hardy is back on the scene! He finds MVP and throws him back into the ring. HHH and Shelton are down outside, Kendrick is down near the apron. Twist of Fate on MVP! Cover, 2, 3, Jeff Hardy is interim champion again.
Sliced Bread #2 doesn’t land on Hardy, then a front sitout suplex from Hardy on Kendrick. Jeff going up top, HHH crotches him from the outside. You look at the ring and it’s impossible to tell what Hardy was even gonna do. Another Pedigree on Kendrick, HHH is champion again with two minutes left.
Hardy with the swanton on Kendrick! Cover, two, three, Hardy gets it back. HHH with a pedigree attempt on Hardy, Hardy fighting it off and he backdrops HHH out to the floor. Slingshot somersault plancha from Hardy to HHH! MVP attacking Kendrick in the ring, puts him up top.
One minute left. Kendrick fighting MVP off on the turnbuckles. Shelton Benjamin SPRINGS into the frame and they hit an actual cool tower of doom type spot. Hardy back in, Whisper in the Wind on MVP! 30 seconds to go! Hardy up top — swanton on Benjamin! But Hardy can’t capitalize.
HHH sneaks back in. Pedigree on MVP! HHH staggers to cover, he gets it at literally one second left, and he keeps the title leaving the match.
Rating: 3/5. The first 15 minutes are OK. The opening period between Hardy and Benjamin is practically useless, a weird little five minutes of largely mat crap meant to simulate the early portions of a normal match, but it’s not at all a normal match. Once Kendrick gets in it picks up really nicely, because he’s the clear shining star of this match in many ways. Benjamin has some moments, Hardy is really good, MVP does next to nothing in the match at all. HHH’s entrance picks it back up again, particularly because it means there are just five minutes left, and everything becomes dramatic. The HHH-Hardy feud of the time was pretty great, some of the best stuff either man did in their careers, and the moments between them are good. The clear fan favorite among the paltry attendance for this show (just over 8,700, reportedly, with a good deal of that comped) was Hardy, with Kendrick maybe in second place ahead of The Game The Cerebral Assassin. They executed the finish really well to where it legit hit at the last possible second and didn’t feel contrived and didn’t get fucked up. Those last five minutes make this match what it is, for whatever that’s worth. It’s not a great match or anything particularly memorable, I wouldn’t say, but the rapid fire stuff at the end is really good and it’s worth a watch.
Tape Machines Are Rolling 
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