Eddie Guerrero vs. JBL for the WWE Championship

Following his victory over Kurt Angle at WrestleMania XX, WWE Champion Eddie Guerrero found John Bradshaw Layfield as the next challenger to his throne. With Angle moving on to become General Manager of SmackDown, he appointed JBL the winner of his Great American Award, earning Layfield a chance to become WWE Champion at Judgment Day.

The two men stared each other down, and Guerrero came out of the gate blazing. The champion hammered JBL with everything he had, sending the challenger scurrying from the ring. They brawled outside the ring and JBL tried to walk away from the match, but the champion knocked him down to prevent an escape.

They continued to brawl outside the ring and into the announcers' table, and JBL was able to gain control. However, once they got back inside the ring, Guerrero hammered away at him again, regaining control. JBL bailed to the floor once more, but when Eddie tried a plancha, the challenger caught him and nailed a fallaway slam on the floor.

Following more brawling on the floor, JBL backdropped Eddie onto the Spanish announce table to take control. Back in the ring, Guerrero recovered and went for the Three Amigos, but JBL was able to counter. Eddie was then able to avoid the Clothesline from Hell, but in the ensuing fracas, the referee was knocked down, and the match spilled out to the floor again.

Outside the ring, JBL nailed the champion with a steel chair, busting him wide open. JBL took control and mercilessly pounded the cut, and after getting back in the ring, the challenger nailed a Clothesline from Hell. However, the referee was still out, so no count was made. A new referee came down and JBL tried the Clothesline from Hell again, but Guerrero ducked, and the new referee took the brunt of the move. JBL was able to hit a powerbomb as the first referee came to, but Guerrero kicked out of the pinfall.

JBL then grabbed a Sleeper Hold trying to make Eddie pass out, but the champion would not go down. Eddie escaped the Sleeper and groggily tried a Frog Splash, but the challenger moved out of the way. JBL then went outside the ring, throwing a steel chair and the WWE Championship into the ring. As the referee cleared the chair away, JBL tried to hit Eddie with the championship, but Guerrero ducked and gave JBL a low blow. Guerrero then grabbed the gold and nailed JBL, but the referee saw this action and called for a disqualification.

After the bell rang, Guerrero continued his assault, nailing JBL with chairs and the WWE Championship, busting the challenger open in the process. Referees eventually separated the two, but the damage had been done. While JBL won the match, the disqualification meant that Guerrero retained the WWE Championship.