[2000-08-13-WCW-New Blood Rising] Booker T vs Jeff Jarrett

[soup23]

This match feels really played out. I guess Jarrett earlier in the night attacked and slam Booker’s leg in a car door Arn and Larry Z style. The brawling here is one of the better interactions these two have had but I would like to see more selling of the leg from Booker. Jarrett works it over but then Booker comes back and is running around. We do get the guitar shot as a counter for an ax kick and a ref bump because this is a WCW main event. Booker wins with the Book End but doesn’t get much of a reaction. This ends a pretty awful PPV on a decent note. **1/2

[GSR]

Booker is hobbling to the ring, wearing a knee brace and selling Jarrett’s attack on it from Monday night. ‘Double J’ is on him as soon as he steps through the ropes, kicking away at that knee. Booker counters a flying bodyscissors with a powerbomb for two, as the commentators think his best chance to win this is to finish it early. He clotheslines Jarrett over the top rope to the outside and whips him into the guardrail. Missile dropkick fails to connect and Booker’s clutching his knee. ‘Double J’ wraps the knee around the ring post and then hits it with a steel chair. Boston crab, but Booker is able to fight his way to the ropes for the break. Double clothesline and both men are down. Spinebuster by ‘the Book’ for two. Axe kick, spinneroonie but as Booker gets to his feet a swinging arm takes out referee ‘Slick’ Johnson. As he checks on him ‘Double J’ grabs the guitar and when Booker goes for the Harlem sidekick, Jarrett breaks it over his head as he’s mid-air. Figure Four, and despite the commentary team’s belief that he won’t be able to power out due to that knee, he again manages to get to the ropes. Jarrett refuses to break the hold continuing to apply the pressure, and it’s only when Johnson reaches the count of four does he finally do so. Booker collapses to the outside and ‘Double J’ collects the World title belt. Johnson is out trying to help ‘the Book’ to his feet when Jarrett runs at them with the belt, Booker ducks and he clobbers Johnson instead. ‘Book End’ off the apron through a table to the floor! A second referee is out and Jarrett is able to drape a foot over the bottom rope on the subsequent pin attempt. Chair shot over the head of the replacement official by Jarrett, ‘the Stroke’ on the chair however there’s no-one to count the pin. Charles Robinson sprints down the aisle, slides into the ring but Booker gets a shoulder up at the last split second. An ugly swinging neckbreaker onto the chair by Booker and this time its ‘Double J’ only just kicking out. ‘Book End’ and that’s finally enough to put his opponent away as Booker retains the World title.

 

This started off promising but went downhill fast towards the end with all the ref bumps. The opening one where a Booker swinging arm took Johnson out looked particularly soft. I thought Booker was doing a good job at selling that knee, then he would forget about it and do ‘Book Ends’ off the apron through a table to the floor and the like! Solid match overall despite my misgivings about the final third or so.