By Graham "GSM" Matthews WWE Champion John Cena def. World Tag Team Champion Edge (Non-title) The classic feud between Cena and Edge dominated the better part of 2006, so it was perfect that they closed out the year by having them go up against each other one final time. They can always be counted on for a quality contest and this was another great matchup from the two longtime rivals. It was also fitting to open Tribute to the Troops with Cena since he has become such an integral part of the event over the past decade. CM Punk def. Shelton Benjamin Punk was only months into his WWE run, and as part of the ECW brand, I would have never guessed that he would be invited on the Tribute to the Troops tour. That said, I was pleasantly surprised to see him a part of the event and in a match with Benjmain. The two had fun chemistry each other, but it's a shame Benjamin didn't mean more at the time and was instead toiling in the undercard on the Raw brand.
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By Graham "GSM" Matthews Mr. McMahon Addressed the Troops It's only fitting that the Chairman of WWE kicked off the annual event and express his gratitude to the troops, regardless of whether his on-air character was a heel or a babyface at the time (I honestly can't remember). Say what you will about the man being "out of touch" or what have you, but he really does go above and beyond in giving back to the troops with these shows and going overseas when they aren't obligated to. Granted, they no longer go overseas for the event and instead travel to bases here in the United States, but it might be because there's no longer as large of a presence over there as there once was. Either way, it's always an enjoyable event and this was a heartwarming promo from McMahon to start the show. World Tag Team Champion Big Show def. Carlito In addition to being hilarious, Carlito was was such a slimy character that he was the perfect choice to go one-on-one with Big Show because he could escape all of his offense. He did that for a portion of this match, but Show mostly squashed Carlito, which was fine because the crowd got a kick out of it. These two would later enter a feud over the World Tag Team Championship going into WrestleMania 22. By Graham "GSM" Matthews Hulk Hogan Addressed the Troops Hogan's appearance was a pleasant surprise and it must have been a treat for those in attendance. It also might have been the first time where Hogan was on a WWE program and didn't plug anything. It wasn't long before The Miz interrupted who had a cheesy albeit enjoyable exchange with John Cena. The subsequent brawl between the faces and heels set up the multi-man main event nicely. It had a Raw feel to it, but at least it was relatively harmless. The Usos def. Gold and Stardust I grew tiresome of seeing these two teams work together after a while during the fall, but it's been long enough since they last clashed that I didn't have a problem with it. They worked a fun tag team match which isn't too surprising given their great chemistry. The match didn't have much meaning behind it, but it was a nice way of kicking off the in-ring portion of the show. By Graham "GSM" Matthews Daniel Bryan def. Bray Wyatt by Disqualification This match was over before it even started, as the interference from Luke Harper and Erik Rowan caused it to go to a disqualification no more than a minute into the bout. That was probably for the best since it appears WWE is saving Bryan vs. Bray for down the road, and it could be a marquee matchup if built to correctly. Doesn't this count as Bray's first loss in singles competition to date? Daniel Bryan and CM Punk def. Luke Harper and Erik Rowan by Disqualification We saw the same match at Survivor Series, so it was much of the same from the two teams. That isn't to say that it wasn't a solid tag team outing while it lasted, though. Bray Wyatt getting banned from ringside only to return and cause the match to go to a DQ was odd, but it help set up the subsequent six-man tag match also involving John Cena. Speaking of such, I found it refreshing that not a single person booed Cena upon his entrance. It is not everyday something like that happens. |
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