Back For Seconds

Well, after watching the hot garbage that was the 2004 Great American Bash, it’s only appropriate that I chase it with something worse:

The 2005 edition of The Great American Bash.

The show took place on July 24, 2005 and was the first Smackdown PPV post-Draft Lottery. Why is this important, you ask? During that draft lottery, Smackdown got their heart ripped out of their chest.

Instead of the draft being done in one night (as was done in 2002 and 2004), the ten selections (five to Smackdown, five to RAW) would be spread out over a few weeks. On June 6, the first draft pick was a game-changer. John Cena, the WWE Champion and Smackdown’s franchise player, was heading to RAW. RAW would also get Kurt Angle, Carlito, The Big Show, and Rob Van Dam, while Smackdown got former world champions Chris Benoit and Randy Orton, as well as Muhammad Hassan and Davari, Christian, and on June 30, world heavyweight champion at the time Batista. The June 6 move of John Cena (and Smackdown’s move from Thursday to Friday later that summer) effectively made Smackdown the B-show, and for nearly a month, was without a world champion to call its own.

The show itself, emanating from the HSBC Arena in Buffalo, New York, featured eight matches, three of them for championships. John “Bradshaw” Layfield, thought to be the new Smackdown champion, is instead #1 contender to Batista’s World Heavyweight Championship. Rey Mysterio and Eddie Guerrero had yet another classic battle, and in a bout with dark clouds and controversy circling over it, The Undertaker took on Muhammad Hassan.

So… is the show any good? Let’s find out:

From Sean Carless at thewrestlingfan.com:

Although there was several bright spots here and there, apparently, this was not a well received PPV on any level. Buyrates are looking grim, and it’s said that Vince himself was furious at the Main Event. But he should have known better than to book it. To me that's like shooting yourself in the face, then being pissed off when it actually hurts. But hey, whatever.

Ok, not a promising start. Larry Csonka (no relation) in a 2006 review of the show for 411mania.com:

This PPV blew. It featured below average-to-average matches, and no payoff. The TNA shows at this time were blowing it away, which made this even worse. The GAB felt like my wallet was getting raped, as well as my love of wrestling. In the end, I genuinely feel ripped off after this PPV, and only buy it if you are into S&M.

Maybe Scott Keith will say something nice: 

Sure, the SMURF system has a good backstory, but really when you have a main event like JBL v. Batista, you can only truly express yourself by quantifying your hatred with red hot pokers.

Wow... rating a show based on a hot poker system. Hardly inspiring confidence. KB’s Wrestling Reviews:

Headline is “So Boring I Have No Witty Title”. And this little sentence before the review: “You can tell this show is weak: the sponsor is WWE.com.”

Think I better grab some caffeine for this one. Can I say anything nice about GAB 2005? Find out later.

Poster looks awesome though.