Cyber Sunday 2008: The Fans Pick Austin, Batista Wins Gold, and WWE Ends an Experiment

Mysterio and Kane benefit from removing the disqualification problem that hurt their No Mercy match. Rey uses a kendo stick, chair, and stop sign to create openings against the much larger opponent, while Kane repeatedly slows him with power and tries to turn the weapons back against him. The match has a few strong size-versus-speed counters, especially when Mysterio escapes powerbomb positions and uses the ring steps to change momentum. Kane still controls enough of the middle to make the comeback feel earned. Rey eventually drives Kane into the steps, adds several chair shots, hits the 619, and follows with the springboard splash for a clean pin. It is energetic and logically booked, but the rivalry never produces the emotional intensity needed to make the stipulation feel truly dangerous.

Bourne's fan-selected title shot gives the match immediate freshness because Hardy has to work against speed rather than size. Bourne attacks with standing moonsaults, kicks, hurricanranas, and sudden aerial counters, forcing Hardy to wrestle a quicker pace than in his Mark Henry defenses. Hardy keeps the match grounded whenever possible and gradually turns Bourne's risk-taking into openings. The crowd responds strongly to Bourne's near falls because the challenger feels new enough that an upset would be believable. The finish protects that momentum. Bourne misses Air Bourne after Hardy moves, and the champion immediately capitalizes with the Twist of Fate for the clean pin. Hardy gets another credible defense, while Bourne loses through one costly mistake rather than being overwhelmed. It is one of the night's best complete matches.

Morrison and Miz against Cryme Tyme is a conventional tag match that benefits from established chemistry and a crowd that already understands both teams. JTG takes the extended punishment while Morrison and Miz use quick tags and cheap positioning to control the pace. Shad's hot tag supplies the expected power burst, and the match becomes more engaging once all four men start breaking the usual tag structure. The finish keeps the heels appropriately slippery. Miz, despite not being the legal man, attacks Shad's knee behind the referee's back and creates the opening for Morrison's Moonlight Drive. The result advances Morrison and Miz without making Cryme Tyme look helpless. There is nothing especially innovative here, but the work is clean and the ten-minute runtime gives the teams enough space to build a real match.

The match is essentially a comedy segment with a bell. Honky Tonk Man wins the fan vote by a narrow margin over Roddy Piper and Goldust, dances before the start, and immediately pulls the audience into the joke built around Santino's Honk-A-Meter. Once the wrestling begins, almost nothing develops. Santino cheap-shots Honky, Beth Phoenix trips the challenger, and the referee calls for the disqualification after barely more than a minute. The title therefore stays with Santino, while Piper and Goldust arrive afterward so the three legends can beat him down and give the crowd the nostalgia payoff. The segment accomplishes its entertainment goal, but it is impossible to treat the bell-to-bell portion as a meaningful championship match. The post-match comedy is the entire attraction.

Undertaker and Big Show improve on their No Mercy encounter by giving the rivalry a stipulation that fits their size and pace. Show controls long stretches with punches, chair shots, and a chokeslam through the announce table, while Undertaker keeps surviving the count and gradually forces the match into more desperate territory. The physicality matters because Big Show's knockout win at No Mercy established that Undertaker can actually be stopped. Here, Undertaker repeatedly absorbs the same weapons and strikes before finding a different route to victory. Hell's Gate becomes the decisive weapon, choking Show unconscious and leaving him unable to answer the ten count. The match is not fast, but it is appropriately punishing and gives Undertaker a satisfying revenge result without making Show look weak.

Triple H and Hardy follow their No Mercy match without simply copying its structure. Hardy again wrestles with urgency, but this time he pushes the pace earlier and forces the champion into more counters around the Swanton Bomb. Triple H uses veteran timing to survive the bursts and keeps steering the match back toward the Pedigree. The crowd remains deeply invested because Hardy's loss at No Mercy has made another near victory feel plausible rather than repetitive. Hardy lands one Swanton and climbs for another, choosing extra damage instead of the cover. That gamble costs him. Triple H recovers, catches Hardy coming down, and turns the movement into a Pedigree for the clean pin. The finish reinforces Hardy's biggest weakness without making him inferior, keeping his championship chase alive for the next stage.

The main event is as much about Austin as it is about Batista and Jericho, which is exactly what the fan-vote concept demands. Jericho immediately tries to exploit normal championship rules until Austin announces that a count-out or disqualification will cost him the title. From there the match mixes conventional heavyweight wrestling with referee chaos involving Shawn Michaels, JBL, Randy Orton, and Austin himself. The interference is excessive, but the crowd is completely engaged because every appearance connects to an existing Raw rivalry. Batista survives the confusion, catches Jericho, and lands the Batista Bomb while Austin recovers in time to count three. The title change feels enormous in the building even if history makes it brief. As pure wrestling it is merely good; as a Cyber Sunday finale it works extremely well.