I'm back again today for the final stop before WrestleMania X-Seven, No Way Out. This show features three big grudge matches, as scores are settled before the "Grandest Stage of Them All". The match most people remember this show for is the Three Stages of Hell match between Triple H and Stone Cold Steve Austin, a brutal encounter that served as the final chapter of their feud that dates all the way back to the fall of 1999. The build up to that match was one of the two heated storylines on WWF television, with the other being the ongoing strife in the McMahon family, as Stephanie continued to grow more and more jealous of Trish, while Vince tried to hold everything together. Those two women face off here, in a match that many thought had the potential to be an absolute disaster given their lack of in-ring experience. However, neither of those matches, despite the copious amounts of build both had received, were going on last on this night. That honor went instead to the rematch between Kurt Angle and The Rock for Angle's WWF Championship. The build to this one was nowhere near as intense or riveting, as both men traded some weak verbal barbs, with their previous match at No Mercy almost entirely ignored. It's fair to say that while Angle and Rock both had the ability to put on a compelling main event, the decision to have them go on last seemed incredibly dubious. Regardless of that, this was certainly a very stacked card, as the WWF looked to keep building hype in advance of one of their biggest shows in history.
- No Way Out 2001 comes to you from the Thomas & Mack Center in Paradise, Nevada, just outside of Las Vegas. It's the home of the UNLV Runnin' Rebels, and has managed to find some relevance in the wrestling and MMA scene, hosting a couple UFC and Pride events, in addition to the finals of the WWE's first Mae Young Classic. The crowds around the Vegas arena tend to be great, and this one was certainly no exception, although it would be extremely difficult to find a WWF crowd that wasn't red hot around this time.
- Our opening contest is a Hardcore title match, as Raven defends against the Big Show. Neither man gets much of an opportunity to fight each other before some of the various other members of the hardcore division run in to cause chaos. Billy Gunn pins Raven to win the belt, but Hardcore Holly and Steve Blackman take out Gunn, allowing Raven to sneak in and win it back. A mighty chokeslam from Show puts Raven down again, as the big man walks out with the belt, providing a massive challenge to everyone else in the division to take it away from him. This was fine, very typical of the chaotic, multi-man hardcore matches you would see during the title's existence. I like the idea of putting the belt on Big Show, as his size and pure dominance eliminates the possibility of millions of title switches, at least in theory. In practice, though, he somehow only ended up holding the belt for less than a month, which is incredibly stupid.
- Chris Jericho is a marked man as Intercontinental Champions, as former rivals X-Pac and Chris Benoit are gunning for his gold, with Benoit joined by Radicalz ally Eddie Guerrero. Jericho defends in a very intense fatal four way here, as all four guys knock absolute lumps out of each other. Predictably, the alliance between Benoit and Guerrero falls apart, and the match really picks up down the stretch once everyone is fighting each other. Jericho manages to escape with his belt after rolling up X-Pac, ending a very solid match.
- While Stephanie McMahon and Trish Stratus may lack experience in the ring, the fans in attendance absolutely did not care. It's clear that the storyline between the two was extremely over, and to give credit to Stephanie and Trish, they did a great job selling just how much they hated each other. My favorite spot was Trish, sitting on the top turnbuckle, lifting Steph off the ground to choke the life out of her, which looked absolutely brutal. Commissioner William Regal, who made this match, then comes out to interfere, but can't figure out whom Vince wanted him to help win between his daughter and his mistress. Regal initially lays out Stephanie, allowing Trish to make the pin, but before the three count is made, he puts Stephanie's leg on the bottom rope. Stratus is furious, slapping the Hell out of Regal, who finally makes up his mind, taking her out with the Regal Cutter, figuring that Vince would prefer a McMahon win. I thought all of this was extremely entertaining, especially Regal's role in the storyline, as he seemed so genuinely conflicted making an incredibly tough call. Look, I know there are some problems with this storyline, like the infamous angle where Vince humiliated Trish by making her crawl around the ring and bark like a dog, plus most wrestling fans just don't care about McMahon infighting anymore, as it has been done to death since then. But this is one of my favorite WWE storylines ever, with so many moving parts and incredibly well-crafted characters with very believable motivations. This match should not have worked for a multitude of different reasons, but it was one of my favorites on the night.
- Time for something completely different, as Triple H and Steve Austin go to war in a singles match, a Street Fight and a Steel Cage match. The first two falls are solid, but nothing that truly stands out. Austin manages to catch Hunter with a Stunner to go up 1-0, before "The Game" levels the score by avoiding a second Stunner, blasting Austin with his trusty sledgehammer and getting a three count with the Pedigree. There are some highlights to be found here, and the crowd is really into it, but it's the cage portion that turns this one from good to great. Both men take chunks of flesh out of the other with a barbed wire wrapped 2x4, before trading some narrow near falls off of their finishers. The actual finish is a classic, as Triple H hits a slegehammer shot on Austin while Stone Cold connects with a swing of the 2x4, both weapons hitting the head of the opponent at exactly the same time. Austin falls to the mat first, and even though Hunter is pretty much out of it, he just happens to fall on top of Austin, securing the decisive three count. This was the perfect way to end this grudge match, as after 40 minutes of brawling, they were so well matched that the only difference was who fell first. Triple H getting the win makes all the sense in the world, as Austin won the Rumble and didn't need this, he was already guaranteed the 'Mania main event spot. I can understand if some people may not enjoy this match, as it is very long and most of the action doesn't stand out from some of the other matches they've had together. That being said, I thought this was a great way to settle this long-running feud, as the constant brawling and weapon shots, rather than feeling like cheap diversions, instead helped to sell just how much they hated each other. A lot of long Triple H matches these days are incredibly dull and seldom worth watching, so it's very fun to go back to a time when his contest could be so reliably good.
- Those last two matches were a pretty incredible high, so it's clearly time to head straight into the gutter. Over the past few months, The Kat has been combating Right to Censor over her right to appear nude on television, and she's now found an ally in the horniest man to have ever existed, Jerry Lawler, who is fighting on her behalf. Just to make this clear, Jerry Lawler, who is shoot married to Stacy "The Kat" Carter, is fighting for the right to see her tits. If he loses, she is forced to join the RTC against her will. So The Kat will either become an actual stripper or she will become the property of what is being portrayed as a cult. That is extremely f***ed up in so many ways, and I just need to move on. In case you care, Lawler lost to Steven Richards, so The Kat is a slave now, I guess. WTF is this.
- The Dudley Boyz and Edge and Christian have been involved in quite a few famous matches involving tables and chairs, but it's fair to say that their triple threat tables match also involving the Brothers of Destruction is not one of them. There are no big bumps or insane table spots to speak of here, as the most interesting part of the match was Rikishi and Haku running in to attack Undertaker and Kane, as the two teams were engaged in a very brief feud. Bubba and D-Von put Christian through a table with a 3D.
- Main event time, as Kurt Angle defends the WWF Championship against The Rock. Before the match can really get going, Big Show interferes, attacking the referee and hitting a Chokeslam on both competitors, as he was angry about losing his number one contender's match to Rocky a couple weeks prior. Angle attempts to capitalize by making a cover, but Rock kicks out, so Kurt applies the ankle lock. It's here where the match finally starts to feel like a main event, as Angle is absolutely ferocious, trying to snap Rock's ankle while cussing out his challenger. The crowd goes ballistic as both men trade near falls, as Angle narrowly kicks out of a People's Elbow before shoving Rock into an exposed turnbuckle and coming so close to retaining with an Angle Slam. This entire few minutes was terrific, as the drama and intensity just built and built. The Rock Bottom connects, and it seems like Angle is done for, but he somehow kicks out again while the crowd flips out, certain that was it. A second Rock Bottom spells doom for Kurt, as The Rock finally gets his revenge for the loss at No Mercy and recaptures the WWF title, just in time for a showdown at WrestleMania with Steve Austin. I thought the finisher kickouts risked getting a little ridiculous at points, especially Kurt's kickout of the Rock Bottom, that was unnecessary. Still, it added a ton of drama to this match which was desperately needed considering the poor build, so I can't fault the booking, this was the only way to make this one feel like a true main event.
9/10
No Way Out 2001 is another quality piece of the build towards WrestleMania X-Seven, that delivered well on all three hyped matches. The best was definitely Austin-Triple H, though the main event had it's fair share of drama and Stephanie and Trish was way better than it had any right to be. The rest of the card was very mediocre, and the mess involving The Kat, Jerry Lawler and Right to Censor is best left buried deep in the past, never to be mentioned again. This one is worth checking out if you've seen the Rumble and WrestleMania, which most fans have, as it provides a great bridge between the two more well known shows.
Next time on Henry's Pay-Per-View Reviews: I've already covered WrestleMania X-Seven, so I'm going ahead to Backlash 2001, which covers the aftermath of one of the most famous shows in wrestling history.
- Henry
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