LAFAYETTE, La. -- With WWE Champion John Cena not in attendance at Raw, Bobby Lashley cleared a hurdle in his path to The Great American Bash by once again getting the best of King Booker and Mr. Kennedy.

Lashley and The King kicked off Raw in a one-on-one battle, one requested by King Booker after Lashley beat his time last week to claim the WWE Championship Match at The Great American Bash. But just when it looked like Lashley would be victorious, Mr. Kennedy hit the ring and attacked, drawing a disqualification. Kennedy and King Booker assaulted Lashley, but were interrupted by Jonathan Coachman, who had a little announcement:

"Lashley deserves a fighting chance, so he's going to get it. Tonight, it will be Mr. Kennedy & King Booker vs. Bobby Lashley and a partner of his choice. And Lashley, after the way you speared John Cena, if you can't find a partner, it will be a Handicap Match."

Kennedy & The King were confident that Lashley would never be able to find someone to go to battle with him. However, much to their dismay, Jeff Hardy strutted to the ring right before the main event, joining forces with the powerful former Army sergeant.

Thanks to a little help from his friend, Lashley was victorious at the end of Raw for the second week in a row. With Hardy and King Booker battling on the outside of the ring, Lashley nailed Kennedy with a thunderous spear to gain the winning pinfall, spoiling The King's earlier prophecy that he and Kennedy would be victorious.

With less than two weeks remaining until The Great American Bash, it appears as if Lashley is on a roll. But even though Cena wasn't in attendance (he was in Los Angeles to appear on CNN's Larry King Live), he told our fans watching Raw that he would be there live next week in Corpus Christi, Texas to deal with his challenger.

"I'll call that spear last week competitive intensity…but I'll also address Bobby Lashley next week," Cena announced. "Lashley never lost the ECW Title; therefore, he feels he should still be a champion. There are two dogs and only one championship, and at The Bash we'll find out who the real champion is."

Cena later added that "I've stood toe-to-toe with the biggest and the baddest. What's gotten me this far is my never-say-quit attitude and my perseverance. I look forward to my next challenge. Bobby Lashley's got his hands full."

All is quiet on the WWE Championship front for now, but based on the actions and words of the challenger and the champion, things may get volatile deep in south Texas on the final Raw before The Great American Bash.

Check out Lashley's Dominate t-shirt...