Arena Report - Conseco Fieldhouse

The Great American Bash will be coming to you live tonight from the Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. With several huge matches on the card including World Champion Rey Mysterio vs. King Booker, Batista vs. Mr. Kennedy and a WWE first, the Punjabi Prison Match, The Great American Bash promises to be a must-see event. But Indy is certainly no stranger to must-see WWE events.

Indianapolis fans last saw the SmackDown Superstars on Nov. 15 last year when RAW invaded the Conseco Fieldhouse during an Interpromotional Street Fight between Batista and Edge. With suspicions of RAW Superstars trying to sabotage the fight, Theodore Long prevented Eric Bischoff from entering the building. Long, though, was no match for Chris Masters who placed him in the Master Lock, and along with Bischoff, sped off in his limo tricking Mysterio, Matt Hardy and JBL to give chase. This allowed Kane and Big Show to enter the arena undetected. Unmatched, Batista was laid out with a double chokeslam as a warning to the SmackDown Superstars that RAW was ready for battle.

SmackDown also wowed the Indianapolis fans back on July 25, 2002, when Chris Jericho and Edge chose to settle their differences in a brutal Steel Cage Match. Both men scaled the cage from every angle trying to outwit and outlast their opponent, but in the end it was Edge who prevailed, slipping by Jericho, beating him to the floor. Before Edge could celebrate, the Anti-Americans ran down to the ring and continued to attack an already bloody Edge. John Cena and Mysterio ran down in Edge's defense, landing a double dropkick to Test and finishing off Christian. Jericho, outmanned, snuck cowardly away from the cage leaving Edge, Mysterio and Cena to celebrate.

The Conseco Fieldhouse is also the arena where fans watched live on the Titantron during RAW, on July 14, 2003, as Kane sat down with Jim Ross at the WWE Headquarters to conduct an interview on his feelings about being unmasked. As the interview progressed, Kane was becoming noticeably irritated with JR's line of questioning and doused him in gasoline to set him ablaze. Stone Cold Steve Austin ran down to the ring to plead with Kane not to go through with his actions, but the fans watched on in horror as Kane lit the match and tossed it onto a screaming JR.

The Great American Bash will be the first pay-per-view The Conseco Fieldhouse will host, but it is not the first time Indianapolis has hosted a WWE pay-per-view. On April 5, 1992, the Hoosier Dome was honored to host one of the largest events in sports-entertainment history -- WrestleMania VIII. In the anticipated WWE Championship Match, champion Ric Flair was set to take on Randy Savage. Ric Flair, living up to his name of being the dirtiest player in the game, distracted the referee allowing Mr. Perfect to drive a steel chair into the abdomen of Savage. Flair then secured his patented Figure-four leg lock on Savage for several minutes until referee Earl Hebner kicked Flair's hand forcing him to release the hold. Savage used the disturbance to hit Flair with a rollup pinfall to win the WWE Championship.

Ground was broken for The Conseco Fieldhouse on July 22, 1997. A little more than two years later on Nov. 6, 1999, the arena opened its doors hosting the Boston Celtics vs. the Indiana Pacera. Replacing the Market Square Arena, The Conseco Fieldhouse holds 18,345 people, and while it is most noted for being home to the NBA's Indiana Pacers and the WNBA's Indiana Fever, it has also hosted major boxing events like Vernon Forrest vs. Sugar Shane Mosley and Roy Jones Jr. vs. Richard Hall. Billboard artists such as Bruce Springsteen, John Mellencamp, Tim McGraw, Faith Hill, Dixie Chicks, Britney Spears and even Luciano Pavarotti have also graced the stage at Conseco Fieldhouse.

Tonight for the first time ever in the history of the Western World, The Great Khali will meet Undertaker in a Punjabi Prison Match, and The Conseco Fieldhouse will be the only arena in North American history to claim that privilege. What will become of Undertaker? Will Mr. Kennedy prevail over the enraged Batista? Will Rey Mysterio successfully defend his World Championship against the malicious King Booker and his royal subjects? Tune in to The Great American Bash tonight at 8/7 CT on pay-per-view to find out.

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