WWE Vengeance was a 2006 professional wrestling event put on by World Wrestling Entertainment. It was the 8th Vengeance event, the 7th event of 2006 and the 199th event overall in the alternate WWF timeline. It was also exclusive to the Smackdown brand of WWE. Emanating from the Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Illinois, the main event was a World Heavyweight Championship match between Rey Mysterio and King Booker. Other matches on the card included Bobby Lashley defending the US Title against Mark Henry, the Motor City Machine Guns facing Chuckie and Vito of The Wiseguys in a #1 contenders match for the tag titles, and the return of the Animal Batista as he faced JBL after a lengthy absence due to injury.
This would be the last appearance of Tazz as a color commentator for the company, as he would be replaced by JBL after this event and eventually be released from the company.
Prelude[]
Since winning the King of the Ring tournament in May, Booker T had adopted the haughty royal persona of "King Booker." Turning heel in the process, Samckdown's Resident Royal had sought to consolidate power over his Kingdom, along with his wife "Queen Sharmell", his royal advisor William Regal, and his "Knight of the Round" Mark Henry. Standing in the way of their royal domination was the World Heavyweight Champion, Rey Mysterio, whom King Booker had immediately entered a feud with following Judgment Day. Mysterio had repeatedly teamed with Chris Benoit to fight against this Royal Court, even winning the tag titles at one point, only to lose them to Regal and Henry on an episode of Smackdown. King Booker was set to receive a World Heavyweight Title Shot at Vengeance, and promised to make the "plebian" Mysterio bow before him.
Another person challenging the rule of King Booker was United States Champion Bobby Lashley, the man whom Booker had defeated (through underhanded means) to win the crown in the first place. Lashley had attempted to wrest the crown away by using the US title as a barganing chip, but ran afoul of King Booker's newly appointed Knight of the Round, Mark Henry. The World's Strongest Man had fired Tony Atlas as his manager in aligning with King Booker's court, and was now positioned to challenge the "would be usurper" for his US title to bring it to royalty.
Nunzio (formerly nown in the 90s as Little Guido of the Full Blooded Italians) had made his return to WWE as a member of a new trio called The Wiseguys. Teaming with Vito LeGrasso and Chuck Palumbo, Vito and Chuckie had so far run roughshod in the tag team division on Smackdown. Though the titles weren't on the line as of yet, the Italian duo were set to face former WWE Tag Team Champions The Motor City Machine Guns for the right to challenge for the Tag Team Titles at a future date.
Late in 2005, Batista had suffered a torn triceps injury that put him on the shelf for several months. Vignettes advertising the Animal's return had begun airing in the middle of June, drawing the attention of John Bradshaw Leyfield. JBL had dismissed Batista as yesterday's news and had intended to finish off the Animal personally.
Event[]
Coming Soon...
Results[]
| No. | Results | Stipulations | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mr. Kennedy d. Kevin Thorn w/Ariel by Disqualification | Singles Match | 8:20 |
| 2 | Brian Kendrick d. Paul London by Pinfall | #1 Contendership Match for the Light Heavyweight Title | 15:29 |
| 3 | The Wise Guys [Chuckie & Vito] w/Nunzio d. The Motor City Machine Guns [Alex Shelley & Chris Sabin] by Pinfall | #1 Contendership Match for the WWE Tag Team Titles | 12:00 |
| 4 | Montel Vontavious Porter d. The Miz w/Hardcore Holly by Pinfall | Singles Match | 9:23 |
| 5 | Bobby Lashley (c) d. Mark Henry w/William Regal by Countout | Singles Match for the WWE United States Title | 11:20 |
| 6 | Batista d. John Bradshaw Leyfield by Pinfall | Singles Match | 13:46 |
| 7 | King Booker w/Queen Sharmell d. Rey Mysterio (c) by Pinfall | Singles Match for the World Heavyweight Championship | 18:37 |
Aftermath[]
King Booker would immediately enter a prolonged feud with Batista over his newly won World Heavyweight Title, while the former champion would seek revenge on his former friend, the newly turned heel Chris Benoit, who had cost him the title in the first place. Booker's first title defense would be against The Undertaker on Smackdown, but that match would be interrupted by the returning Randy Orton, who was seeking revenge from his Wrestlemania loss. As previously stated, JBL would temporarily retire from in-ring competition and become a color commentator alongside a returning Michael Cole, as Jim Ross returned to his Raw commentary spot for the time being. Joey Styles would assume a backstage role with the company before leaving in early 2007.