Last week the WWE was dominated by the death of Paul Bearer, and the role his sad passing played in the storyline between The Undertaker and CM Punk. Steps were also made to finally bolster the card for Wrestlemania, even though the two participants of the show's probable main event were nowhere to be seen. This week, it was the turn of Triple H and Brock Lesnar to take the spotlight, as their bloody feud continued to rack up the intensity before their clash in New Jersey. Elsewhere, two more matches were added to the undercard to finally give Wrestlemania a bit more depth, while the first foundations were laid for others. It was another hit and miss week in general, with Monday Night Raw ranging from an awful opening to a commendable final hour. The matches that are put on TV remain mind numbingly predictable though, and if this is supposed to be building up towards Wrestlemania, then WWE are falling a long way short of their target.
Triple H vs Brock Lesnar (No Holds Barred, Triple H puts his career on the line)
WWE appear to have got into a routine of alternating between the three 'main events' each week on Raw to give them an equal bearing. This week was the turn of Brock Lesnar vs Triple H in the spotlight. Two weeks ago Triple H challenged Brock to a match at Wrestlemania, then on last week's Raw Brock decimated the New Age Outlaws before Paul Heyman announced that he and his client would be on this week's Raw to answer the challenge. A contract signing was arranged for Raw, a bizarre addition that creative seem to feel the need to throw into a feud every so often. Triple H would have to sign the contract for a match with Brock at Wrestlemania on the condition that he accepted a stipulation of their choice, without knowing what it was before signing. Heyman as always did a magnificent job of pushing The Game's buttons, with some particularly well aimed jabs about Stephanie McMahon, Hunter's real life wife. This took Triple H over the edge, managing to fight off Heyman's security detail and then punish Heyman with a few slaps across the chest. Eventually The Game signed the contract, which brought out Brock. Lesnar came out looking as crazed as ever, smashing a steel chair on the ramp and making his way to the ring, before thinking twice when Tripe H produced his favourite equaliser, the sledgehammer. The brawl never happened, with Heyman talking Brock down before announcing the stipulation for their match at Wrestlemania: it will be a No Holds Barred match, and Triple H's career will be on the line. The No Holds Barred stipulation is no great surprise really, especially as their Summerslam match was essentially one in all but name anyway. I assume it will mean an excuse for Hunter to get his sledgehammer involved, while Brock will be able to unleash his full force. The added edge that Triple H's career will be on the line should make this more interesting, but really it just makes it all the more obvious that Triple H is going to take the win. If Triple H was going to let anybody retire him, I am sure he would insist on it being someone worthy of his ego, such as HBK or The Undertaker, not a part-timer like Brock. Brock will probably push Triple H all the way, making it look more and more likely that The Next Big Thing is going to end The Game's career, with every pinfall having an added bit of intrigue, before eventually Triple H will heroically battle out and spring a surprise victory, much like John Cena did against Brock at Extreme Rules. Prediction: Triple H will restore his pride and save his career by beating Brock.