December 10 , 2012 Monday Night RAW results The December 10 , 2012 Edition of RAW is a Professional wrestling television show of the WWE ' s RAW brand , which took place on December 10 , 2012 at Prudential Center in Newark , New Jersey . Summary . Never one for subtlety , Dolph Ziggler kicked off Raw in Newark , N . J . ' s Prudential Center atop a giant ladder with his Money in the Bank briefcase suspended over his head , proclaiming himself to be " right where he belongs " : the top of the world . But self - aggrandizement wasn ' t the only thing on Ziggler ' s mind for once . The Showoff came to Newark armed with a barrage of verbal barbs for his WWE TLC : Tables , Ladders & Chairs opponent , John Cena . Ziggler had few kind words to say about WWE ' s resident " golden boy " or their Ladder Match that would see Ziggler ' s coveted contract up for grabs , but he did issue a bold prediction for the 10 - time WWE Champion : " I ' m going to be the proverbial coal in your stocking , " The Showoff sneered , vowing to outlast the Cenation leader at TLC before cashing in on Big Show and going on to become the greatest World Heavyweight Champion of all time ! There was at least one Superstar who found that statement to be a shameful thing indeed . Ziggler hadn ' t even caught his breath when Sheamus ' music thundered through the Prudential Center and The Celtic Warrior made his way to the ring . " Congratulations , you ' re finally taller than everyone else , " Sheamus said to Ziggler up on his perch before affirming he would defeat Big Show in their Chairs Match for the World Title , Cena would prevail over Ziggler and the endgame of it all would be Cena vs . Sheamus for the World Heavyweight Title . Enter Big Show , who was clearly in no mood for any of this . " BLAH BLAH BLAH , " the giant bellowed . He didn ' t exactly mince words when he addressed The Celtic Warrior . " I would like nothing better than to come to the ring right now and smear your ignorant , Irish immigrant face all over the side of my hand . " Sadly , the No Contact Clause issued by SmackDown General Manager Booker T prevented this from happening , but Show had a few words for Ziggler , should The Showoff prevail against Cena and attempt to redeem his contract against Big Show at TLC : " I ' ll knock you out , too . " Sheamus , as always , wasn ' t fazed by Big Show ' s threats . " Where ' s your Christmas spirit , fella ? " The Celtic Warrior asked , reminding the giant of last Friday ' s SmackDown when he used Ricardo Rodriguez as a human projectile to — his words — leave Big Show ' s " chestnuts roasting on an open fire . " And as for that pesky legalese that prevented Sheamus from rumbling with the giant ? The Irishman had that covered , too . " Just because I can ' t have contact with you , doesn ' t mean I can ' t have contact with someone else , " Sheamus snarled , setting his eyes on The Showoff and tipping over the ladder to send Ziggler crashing , chestnuts - first , into the top rope . Another week , another meeting of the minds between Mr . McMahon and Managing Supervisor Vickie Guerrero . And like previous weeks , it ' s safe to say Vickie wasn ' t exactly thrilled with the results . To be fair , this one started out a bit better for Vickie than usual , with Mr . McMahon complimenting her on the night ' s main event ( John Cena vs . Big Show ) . But in the spirit of making Raw truly " monumental , " The Chairman floated an idea before the Managing Supervisor : What if Sheamus were put into action in a second main event ? Vickie agreed , but it was safe to say she wasn ' t exactly thrilled when Mr . McMahon picked this match as an appropriate contest for Dolph Ziggler to be entered into . All was well and good , but still not monumental enough . What about a third marquee match ? Vickie agreed , and devilishly floated AJ Lee as a possible combatant . The Chairman was all for that , but when Vickie drew a blank on a potential opponent , Mr . McMahon got a devilish glint of his own : " Let ' s make it monumental : VICKIE GUERRERO ! ! ! ! " The Chairman bellowed , leaving Vickie stupefied as R - Truth gallivanted out for his contest against Wade Barrett . With Intercontinental Champion Kofi Kingston and U . S . Champion Antonio Cesaro scouting at the commentary booth and sniping at each other when the mood struck ( still no love for Cesaro ' s satchel ) , Truth and Barrett went at each at a breakneck pace . The Englishman looked to end the contest quickly , trying to make an example of Truth in front of Kofi , who seemed unimpressed by Barrett ' s relentlessness . And while Barrett seemed to have Truth ' s number throughout the contest , Little Jimmy ' s big buddy eventually pulled off a shocker when he rolled up Barrett for the 1 - 2 - 3 , leaving Kofi to pick the bones by planting Barrett with a crossbody for good measure . What ' s a little shoulder injury between friends ? Pundits questioned the fate of Team Rhodes Scholars following Cody Rhodes ' nasty - looking shoulder injury at the hands of Kane a couple of weeks ago , but it turns out that was just a little road bump for the braniac buddies . Rhodes made his triumphant return to the ring Monday alongside Sandow , shaking hands like old school chums and showing off a glorious new mustache to boot . The duo had even more reason to crow when all was said and done , as Team Rhodes Scholars found themselves sitting pretty yet again after outlasting three other tag teams to earn the right to face Rey Mysterio & Sin Cara at WWE TLC in a Tables Match for the No . 1 contenders ' spot to the Tag Team Championships . Vying for the honor alongside Rhodes & Sandow were The Usos , Primo & Epico and The Prime Time Players . The Usos struck first , systematically dismantling Primo & Epico and sending the former champs to the showers with a dynamic , coordinated attack . Primo & Epico ' s dismissal from the contest brought in Titus O ' Neil , who wasted no time going to town on Rikishi ' s freewheeling progeny with his signature power strikes . The Players ' dominant streak was short - lived , though , as The Usos rallied back , eventually pinning Darren Young to send the mouthy musclemen packing . This brought in a fresh Team Rhodes Scholars , who went back to their time - honored strategy of divide and conquer by splitting the twins up . Sandow in particular was on the warpath , unleashing the Elbow of Disdain and summoning Cody to finish the job . The Usos rallied quickly , though , flooring Cody and setting him up for a frog splash . But Cody countered the move with knees to the midsection , executing Cross Rhodes to punch his and Sandow ' s tickets to WWE TLC . Divas Champion Eve didn ' t exactly seem concerned going into her match against Alicia Fox in the Prudential Center . But the first lesson of competition is to never sleep on your opponent , and Eve ' s cavalier attitude nearly led to a shocking upset at the hands of the fantastic Miss Fox . Alicia attempted to take advantage of Eve ' s cockiness by unleashing a slew of wild cartwheels and headscissors that used Eve ' s own momentum against her . The strategy culminated in an acrobatic back - bridge suplex into a two - count and a bone - crunching backbreaker that nearly put Eve down for the count . The champion rallied nicely , though , knocking Alicia off the turnbuckle when she went for a top - rope strike and planting her with a neckbreaker to seal the victory . And to the victor , as always , go the spoils . In this case , it was a photo op , with Eve summoning the ringside photographer to snap a portrait of the champion mugging over what was left of her fallen challenger . 386 days and counting , and WWE Champion CM Punk is still all about realness . Specifically , the realness of his knee injury and subsequent surgery , which Punk and his pal Paul Heyman addressed onstage at the Prudential Center . " This injury is 100 percent real , " The Second City Saint insisted , bemused at the idea he would fake an injury to avoid giving Ryback another title opportunity . Punk wasn ' t ready to concede anything of the sort to Ryback , instead insisting the injury was the result of the heavy workload that came along with defending the WWE Title for 386 days and , despite the setback , he would be at WWE TLC . Paul Heyman echoed his champion ' s statement , slamming the authenticity of other , lesser champions who would refuse to defend his title as often as Punk did . He also had particularly venomous words for The Rock , who he claimed lost his edge and would instead summon a stunt double ( " some poor schmuck " as Heyman so loquaciously put it ) to go through the table in his stead . The injury was a testament to Punk ' s fortitude and his continued status as the WWE Champion and The Best in the World . As for the " vocal minority " who insisted Punk should be stripped of the title , The Voice of the Voiceless cried foul on that , too . Rattling off a laundry list of his vanquished foes as evidence , Punk claimed he earned the right to keep his title and would continue to do so , should he end up facing The Rock at the Royal Rumble . " He will fail , " the champion vowed before taking his leave , Heyman in tow and his title safe , at least until day 387 . Nobody but nobody tosses Dolph Ziggler off a ladder and doesn ' t have to answer for it . That , at least , seemed to be The Showoff ' s mentality heading into his grudge match against Sheamus on Raw . Ziggler came out swinging in the bout ' s opening moments , battering The Celtic Warrior about the ring and unleashing a series of wicked strikes and elbows to the Celtic cranium of the World Title No . 1 contender . Sheamus shook off Ziggler ' s opening volley quickly , forcing Ziggler into a corner and hitting Mr . Money in the Bank with a series of uppercuts . The Celtic Warrior looked to capitalize on the taped - up leg of The Showoff , but Ziggler gamely withstood the Irishman ' s onslaught before Sheamus forced the fight to the outside and knocked Ziggler to the ground with a running axe handle . Ziggler found an opening when he hit Sheamus with a leg drop face driver off the steel steps , bouncing The Celtic Warrior ' s head off the ground before forcing him back into the ring and locking Sheamus up in a sleeper hold . The Celtic Warrior wouldn ' t go — although a brutal strike from Ziggler sent him tumbling outside the ropes nearly seemed to do the trick when Sheamus came up looking wobbly and punch - drunk . Despite a late - game rally by Sheamus , Ziggler kept the advantage , attempting to score a cheap win by using the ropes for leverage before the referee stopped the count . The unsportsmanlike maneuver seemed to light a fire under Sheamus , who snatched Ziggler out of the air and strung him up in the ropes , hailing forearm clubs on The Showoff ' s chest and setting up for the battering ram . A winded Ziggler rallied yet again , trading blows with Sheamus atop the turnbuckle before hauling The Celtic Warrior off the post and planting him with a top - rope facebuster that somehow failed to keep him down for three . What followed was a non - stop flurry of the two Superstars ' signature moves , with Ziggler writhing free of White Noise and the Cloverleaf , Sheamus dodging the leg drop face driver and finally going for the Brogue Kick . . . which Ziggler ducked in a display of veteran quickness . The Showoff rolled outside the ropes with Sheamus in hot pursuit , bringing the contest to an unceremonious conclusion when he nailed Sheamus in the gut with a steel chair . Looking to end the bout with a statement of his own , Ziggler rolled Sheamus back into the ring and prepared to go to town with the chair , but The Celtic Warrior sprang up and let loose with a furious Brogue Kick that Ziggler blocked with the chair before making himself scarce . In the end , The Celtic Warrior stood tall in victory , but it seemed as though , to a certain degree , the damage had been done . Rolling in a set of bright blue wheels that would cost a less opulent man his annual salary , Alberto Del Rio strolled into Newark with victory on his mind . But The Mexican Aristocrat didn ' t exactly waltz away with a notch in the win column , as he met a tough test in the form of a Broski from just across the river : Zack Ryder . Only a quick drive from his native Long Island , N . Y . , and with his dad and broskis watching from the front row , Long Island Iced - Z came out swinging against Del Rio , who he ' s had several matches with over the months . The Ultimate Broski drew on his experience to put an early hurting on The Essence of Excellence , pounding the former WWE Champion with forearms and locking him up in a headlock . Del Rio found his rhythm quickly , though , stringing Ryder up in the ropes and unleashing an enzuigiri on the back of the " Internet Champion " that swung the momentum of the contest back in his direction . Del Rio continued to work on Ryder ' s back and arms , hitting the " Internet Champion " with a tilt - a - whirl backbreaker and landing a second enzuigiri on Ryder ' s arm . Long Island Iced - Z would not be felled quite so quickly , though , escaping from each of Del Rio ' s pinfall attempts and withstanding The Mexican Aristocrat ' s vicious submission attacks before sending Del Rio over the ropes and creating separation to catch his breath . The respite was enough to get Ryder back in the match , but Del Rio was ready when Ryder attempted the Broski Boot . Del Rio dodged the kick and rolled The Ultimate Broski over into the Cross Armbreaker , forcing him to submit and sending Del Rio home happy . How could AJ Lee vs . Vickie Guerrero have gone better for the former Raw General Manager ? Let us count the ways : For starters , the guest referee for the highly hyped bout was none other than Brad Maddox , who donned the zebra stripes yet again despite going rogue while officiating the WWE Title Match at Hell in a Cell . That didn ' t exactly kick things off on a positive note for AJ , who seemed to think the fix was in before Maddox even called for the opening chime of the ring bell . Number two : Vickie came to play in this match , and what her wrestling style lacked in form , it certainly made up in ferocity . The Managing Supervisor unleashed a straight - up mugging on AJ , raining stiff punches on AJ with extreme prejudice and leaving the former GM reeling for the first half of the contest . Just as the abuse was reaching its fever pitch , AJ stormed back , making mincemeat of the Managing Supervisor and finally leaving her staring at the lights before making the cover . . . Only Maddox refused to make the count , leaning nonchalantly against the ropes while AJ fumed over Vickie ' s prone body . The former GM ' s attempt to confront the rogue ref led to disaster , as Vickie rolled AJ up from behind and Maddox sprang into action , counting three and handing Vickie the victory . Needless to say , AJ did not take this well , melting down in the middle of the ring before dismantling the announce table , tossing chairs about the ringside area and , as a final point of emphasis , slapping Justin Roberts square in the face . Like we said , AJ ' s night ( not to mention Justin ' s ) could have gone better . As it turns out , Kofi Kingston and Antonio Cesaro sniping at each other on commentary can ' t hold a candle to the damage they can do to each other in the ring . Before defending their respective titles at WWE TLC , Cesaro and Kingston put on a Champion vs . Champion clinic in the Prudential Center , unleashing a barnburner of a contest that culminated in a hard - fought win by the Star - Spangled champion . After a few opening words for the denizens of New Jersey ( he was about as complimentary as you ' d expect ) , Cesaro took it to Kingston early on with a flurry of mat - based wrestling attacks that looked to tire " The Wildcat " early on . Kofi countered with his own high - flying offense , but Cesaro answered back with raw strength , grounding the Intercontinental Champion and attempting to strong - arm him into defeat . Cesaro countered nearly every single one of Kofi ' s offensive sequences with brutal efficiency , dodging the Boom Drop and reversing a turnbuckle charge by Kofi with a boot straight to his face . Kofi bounced back with a highlight - reel - worthy attempt at a rollup pin , but Cesaro made the champion pay with a brutal double - leg takedown followed up with a spinebuster and a very European uppercut to the back of Kofi ' s head that nearly turned " The Wildcat " into a smear on the canvas . But Kofi finally found his separation when the U . S . Champion reverted to showboating . Kofi took flight with a top - rope crossbody and nearly earned the pinfall with an SOS before Cesaro reached the ropes to break up the count . With Cesaro reeling , Kofi climbed the turnbuckle to take flight again , but Cesaro caught Kingston in midair , spinning the Intercontinental Champion into a backbreaker before executing the Neutralizer for the win . As it turns out , Kofi Kingston and Antonio Cesaro sniping at each other on commentary can ' t hold a candle to the damage they can do to each other in the ring . Before defending their respective titles at WWE TLC , Cesaro and Kingston put on a Champion vs . Champion clinic in the Prudential Center , unleashing a barnburner of a contest that culminated in a hard - fought win by the Star - Spangled champion . After a few opening words for the denizens of New Jersey ( he was about as complimentary as you ' d expect ) , Cesaro took it to Kingston early on with a flurry of mat - based wrestling attacks that looked to tire " The Wildcat " early on . Kofi countered with his own high - flying offense , but Cesaro answered back with raw strength , grounding the Intercontinental Champion and attempting to strong - arm him into defeat . Cesaro countered nearly every single one of Kofi ' s offensive sequences with brutal efficiency , dodging the Boom Drop and reversing a turnbuckle charge by Kofi with a boot straight to his face . Kofi bounced back with a highlight - reel - worthy attempt at a rollup pin , but Cesaro made the champion pay with a brutal double - leg takedown followed up with a spinebuster and a Very European Uppercut to the back of Kofi ' s head that nearly turned " The Wildcat " into a smear on the canvas . But Kofi finally found his separation when the U . S . Champion reverted to showboating . Kofi took flight with a top - rope crossbody and nearly earned the pinfall with an SOS before Cesaro reached the ropes to break up the count . With Cesaro reeling , Kofi climbed the turnbuckle to take flight again , but Cesaro caught Kingston in midair , spinning the Intercontinental Champion into a backbreaker before executing the Neutralizer for the win . First off : that suit . Loving it . Nicely done . Second , The Miz certainly came to play for the latest installment of " Miz TV , " unleashing his most provocative barrage of questions yet in no less an endeavor than an attempt to drive a wedge between the newly reunited Team Rhodes Scholars . Damien Sandow kicked off the interview with his typical smarminess , condemning Miz ' s foray into the world of late - night TV . " The only thing worse than you having your own talk show is the ignoramuses that actually watch it ! " " Team Rhodes Scholars is a shining beacon of light , " Rhodes said , having lost none of his swagger in his time off . " Amidst a sea of Neanderthals , Damien Sandow and I are a revelation . " Miz wasn ' t buying it . " I ' m sorry , I ' mustache ' you a question , " Miz said , eying Cody ' s controversial new scruff . " Did you really grow that piece of fur on your upper lip or did Damien ' s beard rub off on you ? " I ' ve heard of hugging it out , but kissing it out ? That ' s team unity right there . " Miz wasn ' t done yet , though . Like any true provocateur , The Awesome One went straight for Cody ' s jugular , implying Sandow claimed to be the better of the two who carries Cody on his back . The controversial line of questioning nearly led an apoplectic Sandow to put hands on The Miz , but Cody defused the situation nicely , damning Miz , his TV show and his outfit ( " dressed like Colonel — damn — Sanders " were the exact words ) before putting " Miz TV " to its end and storming off . We can ' t even begrudge Miz for getting in a few extra words at Team Rhodes Scholars ' expense after they vacated the stage because there wasn ' t a single bit of physicality and both Miz and his set managed to escape unharmed throughout the entirety of " Miz TV . " We know . It ' s a miracle . Resuming their brutal rivalry from the summer , John Cena and World Heavyweight Champion Big Show collided in an earth - shaking contest in the Prudential Center that saw the Cenation leader notch a disqualification victory amid a scene of unimaginable chaos . With Dolph Ziggler sitting at commentary , Cena came out swinging against The World ' s Largest Athlete and that strategy worked about as well as you ' d expect , with the giant showing no ill effects after the Cenation leader ' s opening sequence . The two strongmen took turns slugging each other for the majority of the contest before Cena made his big play , reversing Big Show ' s chokeslam into a DDT and showing off his agility in an attempt to slow down the giant ' s momentum . Big Show countered with a power move of his own , wrapping the 10 - time WWE Champion in an iron - tight bear hug and forcing Cena toward the mat . The Cenation leader kept his footing , however , breaking Show ' s lock and looking to lock in the STF before Big Show booted him through the ropes . The giant continued his onslaught on Cena , hauling him into the barricade and nearly earning a win by count - out . Cena stormed back into the ring at the last minute but found himself immediately cut down by a Big Show clothesline . Show eventually forced Cena into a corner with bad intentions on his mind , and the giant gleefully pancaked a prone Cena with a top - rope splash . Unwilling to stop at just one , though , Show dragged Cena across the ring and attempted an encore , but Cena rolled out of the way and executed the Attitude Adjustment to put Big Show on his back . Before he could make the cover , though , catastrophe struck . Seth Rollins stormed the ring from cover of the crowd , swarming Cena ( and giving him the win via disqualification in the process ) as his Shield cohorts Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns quickly followed suit . As Big Show joined in the onslaught , fire erupted from the stage and Team Hell No sprinted down to the ring to even the odds . Dolph Ziggler was next in the fray , tilting the scales back away from Cena and company and bringing out Sheamus to level the playing field yet again . The Celtic Warrior made a beeline for Ziggler , accosting The Showoff out of the ring and into the crowd while Cena speared Big Show through a table propped up against the turnbuckle . The Shield , however , continued their mangling of the Tag Team Champions , but the Newark crowd seemed to know salvation was close at hand . As chants of " FEED ME MORE ! " boomed through the Prudential Center , Ryback ' s music hit and the beast himself marched down to the ring , tossing a ladder into all three members of The Shield and joining in the chaos as Raw faded to black off a scene of unimaginable chaos : bodies , boots , fists , kicks , punches , monsters , goat faces , Irishmen , champions , contenders , showoffs , thugs and , of course , tables , ladders and chairs . Oh my .