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Mitchell’s WWE Raw Results & Report! (3/20/23)

Monday is ImPAULsive!

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The Road to WrestleMania gets even bigger!

On the same night Roman Reigns returns to Raw, Logan Paul hosts a special edition of his talk show, with The Miz as special guest!

OFFICIAL RESULTS

  • Austin Theory VS Montez Ford; Theory wins.
  • Omos w/ MVP VS Mustafa Ali; Omos wins.
  • Dominik Mysterio w/ Damian Priest VS Johnny Gargano w/ Dexter Lumis; Dom wins.
  • Bayley w/ Damage CTRL VS Rhea Ripley; Rhea wins.
  • Chad Gable w/ Otis VS Ricochet w/ Braun Strowman; Ricochet wins.
  • Chelsea Green & Piper Niven VS Asuka & Bianca Belair; Asuka & Bianca win.

PLAY BY PLAY

Kevin Owens is here!

The fans fire up as the Prizefighter heads to the ring, but it turns out, he’s not alone! SAMI ZAYN is here, too! The best frenemies reunited on SmackDown, so they’re rolling together here on Raw! Fans sing Sami’s song and then cheer for “SAMI! SAMI!” Kevin says, “I think they like you.” Fans then chant for “KO! KO!” Sami says, “Sounds like they like you, too, pal.” Kevin appreciates them cheering, and Sami says it feels really, really, really good to come out here on the same page with Kevin again. And he didn’t get a chance to say this last week, but Sami says he gets it.

After Elimination Chamber, for weeks Sami came up to Kevin, talking about not being friends and working together, he had it wrong. He thought of it as a business transaction, and that’s not how they’ve done this. They’ve needed each other their whole careers, whether as friends or enemies, they’ve always used each other to get to the next level, and they did it as brothers. Kevin says Sami is right about that, but here’s something Sami might not understand. For 20 years, Kevin’s been Sami’s biggest fan. Whether fighting each other or fighting alongside each other, Kevin’s been Sami’s biggest fan. Whenever he would be asked who is the best wrestler he’s been in the ring with, he’d say Sami Zayn.

So for the last six months, it was frustrating to see Sami in the Bloodline, being held under Roman’ Reigns’ thumb, when the truth is, Sami is better than all of them! He outgrew the Bloodline right away! Kevin knew it, the Bloodline knew it, and the FANS knew it! Kevin couldn’t take seeing Sami stay under Roman. But Sami got through to Kevin, and Kevin realized it was time to get over that and take down the Bloodline together. Sami says they both know what comes next. They look to the WrestleMania sign! And here come the Usos! Jimmy & Jey glare right at Sami & Kevin, and they have mics of their own to speak their minds.

Fans boo but Jey says, “Look at ’em! You see what I see?” Jimmy sees ’em, Uce. That right there is a backstabber! Sami, what you whispering about? Kevin’s Sami’s biggest fan, they like you, too! You two are just gonna backstab each other! They’re the kind of family that cuts at each other’s throats! Sami says they’re gonna talk about family with cutthroats and backstabbers, we all know it is Jey’s dream to get back at Roman Reigns! Jimmy says Sami’s the only one dreaming! Wake up! The two of them staring at the Mania sign like something’s gonna happen there. Nothing’s gonna happen there. NOTHING!

Kevin says let’s just cut to the chase. We all know where this is going, what they’re thinking. And by the sound of it, the fans are thinking the same thing! There’s only one way to settle this, and only one place to do it: The Grandest Stage of Them All! Jimmy & Jey as brothers VS these brothers, Kevin & Sami, for the Undisputed Tag Team titles at WrestleMania! Fans chant “YES! YES! YES!” Jimmy says the Usos are the greatest team in the world! Kevin & Sami don’t deserve anything! They’ve been on the same page for three minutes. The Usos have been down since day one! There won’t be a title match at WrestleMania!

Jey says, “To be honest, though… This might be our one shot to put this, uh, Sami Zayn & Kevin Owens problem in the dirt. So yeah! Brother VS Brother at WrestleMania! WE ACCEPT!” In fact, why wait? The Usos rush the ring and the brawl is on! Kevin has Jimmy. Jey has Sami, but Jimmy POSTS Kevin and Sami TOSSES Jey! Jimmy then runs in to TOSS Sami! Sami throws hands, the Usos mug Sami, but Kevin CLOBBERS Jimmy into the timekeeper’s area! Now the Canadians mug Jey! They put Jey in the ring, Jey runs, into a SUPERKICK! And then Sami sets up, HELLUVA- NO, Jimmy bails Jey out!

Fans boo but the Usos regroup and grab chairs! But refs rush out, and a SUV pulls up backstage. The rest of the Bloodline arrives! Solo Sikoa & Paul Heyman get the door for the Tribal Chief, Roman Reigns! Kevin & Sami dare the Usos to do something, but the Usos retreat to regroup with the Bloodline. But the match is made all the same! Will the Bloodline stand or crumble in Hollywood?

 

Austin Theory VS Montez Ford!

The Now United States Champion didn’t like all the jokes made at his expense, and he took it out on Angelo Dawkins. But will he be able to do the same to the other half of the Profits? Or will A-Town go down this close to WrestleMania?

Raw returns and Ford makes his entrance. Dawkins sees him out to the ramp then falls back, as Ford did for Dawkins last week. The bell rings and Theory circles with Ford. Fans chant, “We Want The Smoke!” Ford and Theory tie up, Theory headlocks, but Ford powers up. Theory holds on tight, but Ford tries again. Ford gets free, but Theory runs him over! Theory does the running man then says, “All Day.” Fans boo but Theory talks trash on Ford. Ford ties up with Theory, headlocks back, but Theory powers out. Ford leaps over Theory, then CLOBBERS him! Fans fire up while Theory is dazed. Ford says, “You Can’t See Me!”

Ford stalks Theory, but Theory throws body shots and haymakers! Theory CHOKES Ford on the ropes! The ref counts, Theory lets off, but Theory storms up to bump Ford off buckles. Theory stomps away on Ford, the ref counts, but Theory lets off at 4. Fans boo but Theory soaks it all up. Theory then brings Ford up, but Ford turns things around and gives all those stomps back! Theory dodges the haymaker to kick and whip, but Ford reverses and follows to LARIAT! Theory stands, Ford clotheslines Theory up and out! Fans fire up, and Ford TOSSES Theory over the barriers! Fans fire up more as Ford celebrates with them and Raw goes to break!

Raw returns again and Theory has Ford up top, but Ford fights back with body shots! Ford ROCKS Theory, Theory holds onto ropes to stay up, but Ford CLAWS his face then DECKS him! Ford stands up to CROSSBODY! Both men are down and fans fire up! Theory and Ford stand, Theory storms up but Ford counter punches! And again! Ford rallies with big clotheslines, then he dodges to UPPERCUT! Ford hits a BIG back suplex, to a handspring, “You Can’t See Me!” STANDING MOONSAULT! Cover, TWO! Theory survives but Ford has the fans behind him. Ford waits on Theory to stand, and then clinches, but Theory elbows free!

Theory brings Ford in, Ford wrenches out and ROCKS Theory! Theory rebounds to BOOT! Ford ENZIGURIS in return! Theory staggers, but he still fireman’s carries! Ford slips free to DDT! Theory bails out and sputters, but Ford kips up to then FLY!! Direct hit at the ramp and St. Louis is thunderous! Ford puts Theory back in, climbs up the corner, and FROM THE HEAVEN- NO, Ford has to roll through as Theory moves! Somersault SHOTGUN! Theory calls his shot, fireman’s carries, A-TOWN DOWN!! Cover, Theory wins!

Winner: Austin Theory, by pinfall

One miscalculation from Ford and Theory pulls out the victory! But as close as this was, will Theory find himself struggling against the living legend that is John Cena?

Theory gets the mic to say, “He didn’t believe in me, and now he does. And John, you don’t believe in me. But at WrestleMania, you will!” Theory points to the sign, will WrestleMania belong to The Now?

 

The Bloodline regroups in the private suite.

The Usos sit with Roman, and he says that wasn’t the best start to the night. Are they good? They’re good. Well, it looked like they took a beating. Well, yeah, a few shots. But y’know what? Nothing can hurt Jimmy or hit him harder than being torn away from his brother. Nothing! And then having to sit here and answer to it like it’s his fault! Is Jimmy standing up to Roman? “I will never forgive Sami Zayn for this.” At Mania, the Usos got him. Roman sure hopes so. He really does. “Wise Man!” “Yes, My Tribal Chief?” “Bring me Adam Pearce.” “Yes, My Tribal Chief.” Heyman heads out, as do Jimmy and Solo, but Roman tells Jey to stay.

Jey sits closer with Roman now, but what will the Tribal Chief have to say to him?

 

Raw returns as Roman and Jey continue to sit.

Roman says, “It’s been a minute. Haven’t seen you. Haven’t heard from you. I got to beg your brother to get some answers. And now you’re back, making decisions. In order to make decisions, you gotta be part of the Bloodline. Are you with us? Are you Bloodline? Are you still my family?” Jey says he is with Roman. He is Bloodline, Uce. The two look at each other, eye to eye, and Roman says, “I hope so. So I’ma let you do you. I’ll see you later.” Jey nods and goes to stand up, but then Roman puts a hand on his knee. “I love you.” Jey goes, and Heyman returns. “My Tribal Chief.” “Yes, Wise Man?” “Did you find out the answers you were looking for?” Roman says yes.

 

BREAKING NEWS for WrestleMania!

As first announced on SmackDown, there will be two Fatal 4 Way Tag Team showcase matches! While the women’s division is competing for their spots, the four men’s teams are decided! The Street Profits VS The Viking Raiders VS The Alpha Academy VS Braun Strowman & Ricochet!

Backstage interview with Adam Pearce.

Byron Saxton is with the WWE Official, and asks for some insight about this showcase matches. Yes, this is a great opportunity to showcase the best tag teams in the men’s and women’s divisions, and- Chelsea Green asks to talk to the manager. Hi, Chelsea, it’s him, Pearce. Then Chelsea wants him to know that she just made matching gear for herself and her tag team partner, Carmella, but Carmella isn’t available tonight! Yes, he knows, so- So he’ll have no problem to agreeing to this new tag partner she found, someone who has no love lost for Bianca Belair and Asuka. In comes Piper Niven!

Chelsea introduces Piper, and says she will help Chelsea destroy the competition. Talk to whoever you have to in order to make this official. For what feels like the thousandth time, Pearce is the one. He is the general manager, he makes things official, and he- Well if he’s so official, then go ahead and make it official that these two are in the Women’s Fatal 4 Way Showcase! That’s what he was in the middle of doing! Oh! Finalizing? Do you know who she is?! She is Chelsea green, she is a star, and you do not want to make her angry. Don’t make her go on social media and at WWE to put her on blast. Or worse, walk him! Put her in! ‘Kay, bye.

Pearce sighs, but at the very least, Chelsea and Piper are going to see if they’re a worthy duo against the EST and the Empress of Tomorrow.

 

It’s a tale of the tape!

“WrestleMania has played host to some of the biggest collisions in WWE history. And this year, two titans are set for a colossal showdown.” Brock Lesnar has used his natural physical gifts for roughly 20 years. He is 6’3″ and 285 pounds, with a wingspan of 81 inches, Lesnar has the ultimate tools to deliver suplexes and the F5. So it is no surprise that he has achieved so many accolades: seven-time WWE Champion, three-time Universal Champion, two-time Royal Rumble winner. He even dominated the octagon to become UFC Heavyweight Champion. It is clear that Lesnar is capable of decimating anyone he’s faced.

But he’s never faced someone like Omos. The Nigerian Giant’s sheer size made him a spectacle upon arrival. 7’3″, 416 pounds, making him dwarf even Khali, Kane and the Undertaker. The 87 inch reach gives him a foot of advantage over the average boxer, and his 14.5 inch hands are twice the size of a normal man’s. Omos has already cemented himself as a force of nature in the WWE. These two have all the components to overwhelm the ordinary competitor, but they’re both far from ordinary. This will be a battle unlike any other, on the only stage big enough to contain them!

 

Omos w/ MVP VS Mustafa Ali!

If that tale of the tape wasn’t enough for you, then prepare to see the Nigerian Giant in action! Will the Beacon be broken this close to WrestleMania?

The bell rings and Ali tries to reason with Omos. Ali believes in positivity now, and he will win with a smile on his face. Omos SHOVES Ali all the way to the corner! Omos talks trash on Ali, then CLOBBERS him! Ali flounders and Omos roars. Dolph Ziggler is watching backstage, he is not impressed by Ali’s overenthusiasm. Omos drags Ali up to MOUNTAINTOP SLAM!! Cover, Omos wins!

Winner: Omos, by pinfall

MVP gets the mic and says the Nigerian Giant fears no man, animal or beast. But Brock Lesnar will learn to fear the Nigerian Giant at WrestleMania! But will The Beast be able able to build Suplex City on the huge foundation that is this mountain?

 

Security knocks on Logan Paul’s door.

Logan Paul and his entourage head out, and Miz walks over for a handshake. Miz was hoping to go over the questions for tonight, since Logan will surely want have him, this year’s host of WrestleMania, as his guest on ImPAULsive TV tonight. Yeah, no, hard pass. Logan leaves Miz hanging and heads to gorilla, but will he regret showing up on Raw tonight?

 

Logan Paul heads to the ring.

Fans are torn as “the Maverick” is ready to host the Raw debut of his talk show. “EY YOOO, ST. LOUIS~! Ladies and gentlemen, let’s get a little ImPAULsive, shall we?” Logan knows last week, Seth Rollins said that the fans don’t want Logan here. Well too bad because tonight, you’re in HIS house! ImPAULsive TV, baby! Boo all you want, but here’s the reality, y’all. He doesn’t have to be here. He doesn’t. He’s made his millions off his name and his brands, but he’s here because he loves it. He hears you, and sadly, y’all don’t love him. Maybe two people do: his dad, who he dragged to St. Louis, and that kid who had the “Drink Prime” sign. Much love, kid.

But the rest of y’all, no matter how many times he gets on the mic for their entertainment, no matter how many of these “superstars” he beats up, the fans will never respect him. But guess what? He doesn’t care! It isn’t his fault you DORKS refuse to see the amount of talent standing in front of you! Logan is a 360 degree entertainer, there is nothing he can’t do, there is no seat he can’t fill, there is no person on this roster he can’t compete with. Whether you like him or not, yes, he IS that good. That’s why he didn’t invite anyone to be his guest tonight. Because he can do it all! And did you think any of his celebrity friends would come to a place like St. Louis?

“Two words: Get real!” They’d be outta here quicker than the St. Louis Rams! Oh, sorry, the LA Rams! In fact, he’s looking to joining the Rams back in LA when he challenged “your hear,” Seth Rollins, to a match at WrestleMania, April 1st, Logan’s 28th birthday. Happy birthday to himself, he gets to kick some ass. But jokes aside, the match will be great. Rollins is top three in the business. But Logan was talking with his brother, Jake, and Jake made a good point. It is hard to be afraid of a guy named “Seth.” Seths are nice guys. Seth Rogan, Seth Curry, though he’s not as good as Steph Curry, but hey.

And maybe, if Rollins hadn’t started this beef, they could’ve been friends! But now, Logan just wants to see himself knock Rollins out again. Actually, can we do that? Can we get a replay of him knocking Rollins out? It was two weeks ago, Rollins gave Miz a superkick and then Logan hit his One Lucky Punch. Do you guys like Rollins? Let’s see that again. Oh, so good! Rollins looked so dumb. Okay, one more time! Put some production value on it. BOP! SMACK! WHAM! Beautiful! Like watching Picasso paint. Logan could see that all day! But then Logan’s mic gets cut? Logan isn’t sure what’s going on here. Did the production team not get the mics right?

Fans cheer that Logan can’t be heard, but he just trades mic. But wait! Rollins is in the production truck! He “apologizes” to “Mr. Paul” about that. He isn’t sure what’s wrong. Logan’s audio isn’t working, the video isn’t working. What could the problem be? HAHAHAHAHAHA! Now the real question, Logan, is how on Earth are we gonna save this terribly awful episode of ImPAULsive TV? Any ideas? OH! Rollins has one. HAHAHAHAHA! “BURN IT DOWN~!” See you soon, Logan! HAHAHAHA! Rollins struts all the way from the truck to gorilla, in a leopard print outfit, too. Logan mocks the fans singing as tone deaf.

Rollins heads to the ring and fans sing more, “OH~ OHH~ OHHHH~!” Logan says St. Louis can’t keep a football team and they can’t keep a tune. And Rollins’ outfit is stupid. Rollins stands with Logan in the ring as fans sing, has the mic, but then TACKLES Logan! The two brawl, spill out of the ring, and Rollins throws hands! Refs rush in, as does Adam Pearce! Fans want to “LET THEM FIGHT!” and the two get loose! They COLLIDE, and then Rollins TACKLES Logan over the announce desk! Logan scrambles away, but Rollins trips him on the desk!! Logan lands hard, Rollins wants more, but security drags him away!

Rollins rips up Logan’s set, and hurries up the corner! He SUPER CROSSBODIES onto the security! But Logan hits ONE LUCKY PUNCH!! Logan laughs more than Rollins and he takes his leave. Logan says that’s another one, so third time will be the charm. Will Logan get another lucky punch at WrestleMania? Or will Rollins finally burn this “tourist” down?

 

Dominik Mysterio w/ Damian Priest VS Johnny Gargano w/ Dexter Lumis!

“Ex-Con” Dom keeps pushing his father, Rey, to fight him, but Rey has not caved in. Will the “pathetic, punk-ass kid” take out his frustrations in this match tonight? Or will Johnny Wrestling slap some sense into one smartass before handling another at Stand & Deliver?

The bell rings and the two circle. They tie up, Dom gets around but Gargano wrenches to a wristlock. Gargano avoids the body shot to WRING Dom’s arm, then wrenches it again. Dom headlocks, Gargano powers out, and things speed up. Gargano hurdles, drops and CLOBBERS Dom! Dom flounders but Gargano puts him in a corner. Gargano climbs up to rain down fists! Fans count as Gargano goes WAY past ten! Gargano lets off and fans fire up, but Dom kicks Gargano in the ribs! Dom RAMS into Gargano in the corner, Gargano pushes past, but Dom whips him corner to corner. Dom runs in but Gargano goes up and over to schoolboy KICK!

Dom staggers, Gargano RANAS him out of the ring! Fans fire up, Gargano builds speed and DIVES! Direct hit at the ramp! Fans fire up but Gargano clutches his ribs. Gargano stands, Priest coaches Dom up, but Gargano brings Dom around. Dom RAMS Gargano into steel steps! Dom then RAMS Gargano into the barriers! Fans cheer Gargano on but Dom fireman’s carries to SNAKE EYES! Gargano falls to the mat and Dom soaks up the heat as Raw goes to break.

Raw returns and Dom taunts Gargano while tearing away the rib tape. Dom drags Gargano up, gives some Latino Heat, then suplexes for Uno Amigo! And then Dos Amigos! Fans boo but Gargano fights the third! Gargano suplexes Dom into buckles! Both men are down and fans rally up for Johnny Wrestling. Gargano stands, he fires hands on Dom, blocks a kick, then spins Dom to CLOBBER him! Gargano rallies with more clotheslines, then he ducks ‘n’ dodges to OVERHEAD Belly2Belly! Fans fire up and Dom goes to the apron. Gargano avoids the shoulder to KICK Dom! But Dom HOTSHOTS Gargano!

Dom hurries up to SLINGSHOT- NO, Gargano avoids the senton! SLINGSHOT SPEAR! Cover, TWO! Dom survives but Gargano keeps his focus. Dom wants mercy now? Fans boo and Gargano storms up, but Dom sends him into buckles! Roll up, feet on the ropes! The ref notices in time and calls off the count! Dom argues with the ref, but Gargano SUPERKICKS Dom down! Cover, TWO!! Dom survives and Priest is relieved. Gargano drags Dom up, Dom throws body shots, but Gargano ROCKS Dom with a forearm! Dom ROCKS Gargano back, the forearms go back and forth! Gargano gets the edge, but Dom drop toeholds him!

Fans boo but Dom dials it up, only for Gargano to duck the 619! DISCUS LARIAT! Scoop and LAWN DART! Gargano aims from the corner, SUPERKICK!! Cover, TWO!!! Priest is relieved again but Gargano puts Dom up top. Gargano CHOPS and ROCKS Dom, then climbs up after him. Gargano CHOPS away on Dom, then stands him up. Dom throws body shots in return just as furious! Dom CLUBS away on Gargano, then SUPER GOURD BUSTERS! Dom adjusts to FROG SPLASH onto Gargano’s back! Cover, DOM WINS!

Winner: Dominik Mysterio, by pinfall

Priest celebrates with Dom, and Dom pulls it out on an NXT Triple Crown winner! But Dom isn’t done, as he gets the mic. Fans boo, but Dom says, “Last Friday night on SmackDown, my good for nothing father denied my challenge once again to a match at WrestleMania. But you know what, Jefe? I’m not gonna stop until I get what I want. And at the end of the day, I know that this Friday night on SmackDown in las Vegas, the entire Mysterio family will be there live. So I believe that’s the same family that blocked my number, kicked me outta the group chat, and wanted nothing to do with me. But that’s okay, because the Judgment Day group chat is much better.

“But I think I figured out a way to get you to accept my match, and that’s gonna be when I say hi to mom and ask for her permission for you to face me at WrestleMania. That’s if you have the balls to get them out of her purse.” Dom insults his father, but will he regret dragging the rest of the family into this?

 

The Usos and Solo talk backstage.

Then Heyman walks over and asks if they’re waiting on the Tribal Chief. Because he’s waiting on them to go to the jet. The seafood has been delivered. Shrimp, lobster, mahi mahi. Roman is so proud of all of them, they can take the rest of the night off and indulge. So they can go eat? Okay! Wait, not Solo. Roman needs to talk with Solo. Solo walks back into the suite with Heyman, and Jey says aight. No mahi mahi for Solo. Will the Usos not be needed for what Roman has planned later tonight?

 

Edge speaks.

“If you push me, I will not just resist. I will throw you through a wall. Finn, I am a hostile man. I keep it caged so I can be the man I’ve become so I can function in society. But inside the cage… Well, that’s caged no more. I won’t apologize for it, I won’t fight it, I will lean into it, I will revel in it, I will savor it. Finn, you have no idea what I’m capable of inside Hell in a Cell, you have no idea what goes through your soul when that steel door slams shut behind you. But I do. I’ve been baptized inside the cell by the Deadman himself! The cell has become my one friend, my partner, my cathedral of pain. It rewards me for the streak that runs through me.

“You cannot become what you need to become by remaining what you are. Finn, you and I are two men who clearly understand that, so I grasped what you meant when you said that Hell couldn’t handle your demons.” Edge laughs, and says, “The scriptures, they say, ‘Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil!’ Well, I never have. Because I’m the evil in the valley. So leave Finn at home. Bring your demon… To meet the devil. He’d like to meet him.” Edge has a sinister smile, what will happen when the Rated R Superstar and the Prince unleash it all in one final battle?

 

Rhea Ripley heads to the ring.

Judgment Day is coming for WrestleMania, and that includes the Eradicator going after the SmackDown Women’s Championship. Rhea gets the mic and has the music cut. Fans rally for “MAMI! MAMI!” and Rhea is amused. “Last Friday, Charlotte, she said that I needed to be a champion. She said that I needed to be a star. And y’know, I actually agree with those statements. But the one thing I don’t agree with is living in the past. Charlotte doesn’t wanna accept her future, and that is why she keeps talking about what happened three years ago at my first WrestleMania, when we stepped into the ring one-on-one for the first time.

“Back when I was trying to make a name for myself and earn respect. Now Charlotte, she thinks that she’s the leader of the Women’s Division. But leaders, they actually respect others. And Charlotte, after that match, I knew that you didn’t respect anyone. I knew that you didn’t respect me. And to be honest, I don’t think that you ever will. Because I make you question the respect you have for yourself. When you hear the name ‘Rhea Ripley,’ you question everything. Don’t ‘What’ me, you’re all pathetic.” Fans boo but Rhea smiles. Rhea says that she brings out all the deepest insecurities that Charlotte tries to mask as confidence.

Rhea says that Charlotte knows that every single time they’ve gone to war, Rhea’s gotten up and kept going, because that is what she does. And what Charlotte does is try to keep people down. But not her! Charlotte, you have to admit that it is time. “You’re done! You’re washed. It’s over. It’s over and you have to go home, where you mean absolutely nothing. Because without the WWE, you are nothing.” Fans boo but Rhea says she doesn’t care about Charlotte’s insecurities, or if she respects Rhea. “Because at WrestleMania, I will become a champion, and I will be the biggest star here in the WWE!”

“And Charlotte~… My little Charlotte, when you see me holding your crown above your head… You’re gonna know that all your insecurities are true. I don’t need you to respect me. But you will fear me.” Wait, Damage Control is coming out here now? Bayley tells Rhea, “Earlier, when you were talking about leaders, I was waiting for you to mention my name. Because, Rhea, I do respect you. We all respect you! Anyone that puts Charlotte Flair in her place has the utmost respect from Damage Control. But um, if you needed any tips on how to beat Charlotte, you could’ve just asked your Role Model, because I did beat Charlotte in my first WrestleMania.

“And I’m pretty sure you saw what we did to Trish Stratus! We-” Rhea cuts Bayley off there and says she doesn’t need any help from them. Well, Bayley thought Rhea might say that. Because Rhea has gotten so cocky! Rhea this, Rhea that, everyone is talking about Rhea dominating the roster! Well guess what/ Raw is THEIR show, so DMG CTRL will show her what Bayley means. Rhea laughs. This is HER show? Mate, Rhea isn’t ring ready, but if one of them wants to get her out of her ring, go ahead. Um, well, ding dong, guess Bayley will be the one, since she’s dressed. Then bring it.

Pearce is backstage, he tells the ref to make this official now. The ref rushes out, Bayley VS Rhea is ready to go, after the break!

Bayley w/ Damage CTRL VS Rhea Ripley!

Raw returns and the bell rings for this match to begin. Rhea and Bayley circle, tie up, and Bayley waistlocks. Bayley ducks the elbow, gets a leg, but Rhea gut wrenches! Bayley fights free, goes after an arm, but Rhea shoves her away. Bayley shoves Rhea, and she says, “You think you’re so strong and cool, huh?!” But Rhea shoves back! Bayley pie faces Rhea, but Rhea just gets mad! Bayley wants her to take it easy but Rhea fires off in the corner! Rhea whips corner to corner, Bayley hits buckles hard, then Rhea runs in and fires off more forearms! Rhea whips Bayley into the corner again, runs in, but is put on the apron.

Bayley ROCKS Rhea and HOTSHOTS her! Kai & Sky fire up as Bayley runs side to side to SHOTGUN Rhea off the apron! Rhea staggers, Bayley runs in, but Rhea blocks the daredevil dropkick! Rhea shoves Bayley away, but Bayley grabs an arm to YANK Rhea into the post! Rhea staggers, Bayley storms up, but Rhea SHOVES her into barriers! Rhea goes up, and she CANNONBALLS onto Bayley! Kai & Sky back off, Rhea puts Bayley in the ring, and Rhea pushes Bayley to a cover, TWO! Rhea stalks Bayley, CLUBS her on the back, but Bayley throws body shots. Rhea blocks boots, carriers Bayley out to then RAM her into the corner!

Rhea snapmares, and KAMI-GOYES!! Cover, TWO!?! Bayley survives and Rhea is annoyed, but Rhea drags Bayley up to whip her to ropes. Rhea ROCKS Bayley in the back! Rhea dusts herself off and says this is HER ring. Rhea shoves and CLUBS Bayley again! Bayley staggers, Rhea whips her again, but Bayley ROCKS Rhea back! Bayley CHOPS away on Rhea, puts Rhea in a corner, then runs in, only for Rhea to catch her! Atomic FACEBUSTER! Rhea runs, stomps, and then drags Bayley up. Bayley fights the pump handle, Sky distracts, and Kai claws Rhea’s face! Bayley trips Rhea, high stacks, feet on the ropes! TWO!!

Rhea survives DMG CTRL playing a bit of number games a la Judgment Day, but Bayley hits a SAIDO! Cover, TWO! Wait, here comes Becky Lynch! The Man leads the legendary Lita and Trish Stratus out, with a HUGE bag of popcorn between the three of them. Is the Big Time trio just here to watch the show? We’ll see, after the break.

Raw returns again and Bayle waits on Rhea to rise. Rhea stands, Bayley reels her in, BAYLEY2BELLY!! Cover, ONE?!?! Rhea shocks Bayley and even Becky is surprised. Bayley huffs and puffs and reels Rhea back in, another BAYLEY2BELLY!! And then a short arm- NO, Rhea dodges to atomic FACEBUSTER! But Bayley avoids the basement dropkick! Bayley runs to REGAL KNEE! Rhea is dazed, Kai & Sky fire up, and Becky keeps munching popcorn. Fans cheer Becky but Bayley drags Rhea up to fire forearms. Rhea fires them back! The forearms go back and forth, Bayley gets the edge, but Rhea shoves her away.

Bayley avoids the boot, ROCKS Rhea, but Rhea BACK ELBOWS! Fans fire up as both women stagger, and Bayley ELBOWS Rhea in the corner! Bayley waits on Rhea, runs back in, SUNSET FLIP- NO, Rhea stays up! Rhea drags Bayley right up, BOOTS her right down, and then has a wild look in her eyes! Rhea drags Bayley by the legs, into the PRISM TRAP!! Bayley endures the inverted cloverleaf, reaches out for Kai & Sky, ROPEBREAK! The ref counts, Rhea lets go at 4, and Bayley bails out. Rhea drags Kai up instead! Sky freaks out, but Bayley POSTS Rhea’s head! But here come Becky and the legends!

Kai & Sky brawl with Trish & Lita, but Trish & Lita toss them aside! Becky scares Bayley back into the ring, into a HEADBUTT from Rhea! And then RIPTIDE!! Cover, Rhea wins!

Winner: Rhea Ripley, by pinfall

Becky says that’s too bad for Bayley, it was so close. But Rhea is rolling down the Road to WrestleMania, will she rip the Queen down off her throne?

 

Chad Gable is looking for Otis.

No one’s seen him, it feels like last week. Wait, Otis is getting a spa day? Coach, this is a manicure. Okay, he has been busy with his modeling, but guess what! Gable got them into the WrestleMania Men’s Fatal 4 Way Tag Team Showcase! Wow, really? Yeah! And tonight, Gable is up against one of their opponents in Ricochet. Ricky? Yes! And Otis knows Braun will be out there, so Gable needs his number one guy! Let’s go! But Maxxine Durpi walks in. Otīse’s mani looks marvelous! And now, she’s scheduled him for a session with one of the world’s greatest hand photographers. She sent some samples and the photographer says he MUST work with Otīse!

Maxxine says this is a pivotal moment for Otise’s career! Gable says the models have a match with the Good Brothers, though. Actually, that was postponed. Unfortunately, Mace overexposed his cheeks during a shoot in Mykonos. None of that make sense. When you’re beautiful, you don’t have to make sense! Gable wouldn’t know since he’s so “horrifically middle class.” Now, Otīse, come along, they’re late for the photog. Otis is torn between his coach and his manager. Otis says, “Coach, let’s ride.” Gable’s happy but Maxxine can’t even. Will the Alpha Academy win big tonight on the road to the showcase?

Chad Gable w/ Otis VS Ricochet w/ Braun Strowman!

Raw returns and “SHOOOOSH~! Shoosh, please.” Gable makes his entrance,  his number one guy by his side, though admiring his clean hands and trimmed fingernails. The bell rings and and the circle. Ricochet waistlocks, Gable wrenches out and wristlocks, but Ricochet slips through to wrench and wristlock back. Gable rolls, spins, drop toeholds, and floats to a facelock. Ricochet rolls but Gable rolls with him. Ricochet slips free but Gable gets him again. Ricochet slips free again and backs away, and Gable says, “A Thank Yew!” The two reset, tie up again, and Gable headlocks.

Fans rally, Otis admires his hands, but Gable hits a headlock takeover. Ricochet headscissors, Gable kips free and roles reverse as Ricochet headlocks for the takeover and Gable headscissors. Gable holds on tight, Ricochet rolls and turns Gable over to then slip free and float to a facelock. Gable wrenches to wristlock, whips, but Ricochet reverses. Gable goes up and sunset flips, TWO! Ricochet hurries in, Gable dodges but Ricochet rolls off Gable’s back. Ricochet rolls under, handsprings to headscissor, then he DROPKICKS Gable down! Fans fire up, Ricochet runs in, but into a throat chop! Gable goes up, but Ricochet GAMANGIRIS!

Ricochet UPPERCUTS Gable, climbs up after him, and fires off hands! Ricochet then stands on the very top, to SUPER- NO, Gable blocks the Steiner! Gable brings Ricochet up, fireman’s carries, but Ricochet throws elbows! Gable still lifts Ricochet, and SLAMS him down! Gable then adjusts up top, leaps, FLYING LARIAT! Cover, TWO!! Ricochet survives but Gable is still in control as Raw goes to break.

Raw returns again and Gable is back up top, to MOONSAULT! Ricochet moves, Gable lands on his feet, and Ricochet BOOTS him away! Ricochet then somersault SHOTGUNS Gable down! Fans fire up, Gable goes to a corner, and Otis coaches him up. Ricochet stands, runs in, and CHOPS! Ricochet whips Gable corner to corner, Gable reverses but Ricochet goes up and over and UPPERCUTS! Ricochet roars, RAMS in, bumps Gable off buckles and ROUNDHOUSES him away! SPRINGBOARD LARIAT! Fans fire up more and Ricochet STANDING SHOOTING STARS! Cover, TWO!!

Gable is still in this but Braun tells Ricochet he still has this. Fans rally up, Ricochet waits on Gable, then he fireman’s carries. Gable fights free but Ricochet elbows! Ricochet swings, into a backslide! Roll through, LA MAGISTROL! TWO!! Ricochet trips Gable, jackknife bridges, TWO as Gable bridges up! Gable spins this around, Crucifix Lift into a Canadian Rack, CLIFFHANGER DDT! Cover, TWO!!! Ricochet survives, Braun is relieved but Otis is worried! “This is Awesome!” as Gable gets a leg but Ricochet boots him away. Gable ducks the leg lariat, and catches the leap into an ANKLE LOCK!!

Ricochet endures, rolls, sends Gable away and SUPERKICKS! Gable wobbles, into a V-TRIGGER! Ricochet suplexes, but Gable slips free to DRAGON SUPLEX! Bridging cover, TWO!!! Ricochet escapes by nanoseconds and fans fire up again! But wait, Maxxine comes strutting out to fetch Otis. Otis doesn’t wanna go but Maxxine says the photographer is waiting. Gable is stunned that Otis is leaving! Gable O’Conner Rolls, CHAOS- NO, Ricochet slips out to SLICED BREAD! Fans fire up again as Ricochet goes up top! SHOOTING STAR PRESS!! Cover, Ricochet wins!

Winner: Ricochet, by pinfall

The One and Only adds to his highlight reel, and he is rolling down the Road to WrestleMania! Will he and Braun do even bigger in the showcase? Who will #GetTheseHands?

 

Chelsea Green & Piper Niven VS Asuka & Bianca Belair!

The Hot Mess was almost in a pickle without the Fabulous Princess of Staten Island. But she was lucky to find a Scottish Viper willing to take on the Empress of Tomorrow and the RawEST Women’s Champion. Will Chelsea & Piper show Pearce that they’re worthy of the WrestleMania showcase? Or will Asuka and Bianca showcase why they’re the top two women on Raw?

Raw returns and both Chelsea & Piper are already ringside. Asuka makes her entrance now, and the teams sort out. Bianca insists she’ll start, and Chelsea sneaks up behind her to waistlock! Bianca switches, ripcords and CLOBBERS Chelsea! Bianca handsprings and Asuka makes the tag before the MOONSAULT! Bianca says no, that wasn’t the plan, but Chelsea gets away to tag Piper! They rush in, but Asuka and Bianca both dodge! Asuka CLOBBERS Chelsea and Bianca DROPKICKS Piper! Piper & Chelsea bail out, Asuka and Bianca stare down despite being tag partners. Fans cheer, the ring count starts, and Raw goes to break.

Raw returns again and Chelsea has Asuka down in a chinlock. Fans rally as Asuka endures, and Asuka throws body shots. Chelsea CLUBS Asuka, whips her to the corner, but Asuka uses that to HIP ATTACK Piper! Asuka BOOTS Chelsea, dodges her, then CODE BREAKERS! Tag to Piper, she runs up but Asuka dodges to SOBAT! Piper HEADBUTTS! Piper scoops, Asuka fights free, but Piper elbows her away. Bianca tags in, RAMS into Piper, then jumps up and over to fire off forearms! Fans fire up, Pipers shoves back, but Bianca dodges to DROPKICK Piper! Chelsea runs in, but Bianca spins her to a BIG suplex!

Bianca kips up and St. Louis fires up! Bianca RAMS Into Piper, climbs up, and fans fire up as Bianca rains down fists! Bianca gets seven but Piper slips free. Bianca kicks Piper away, goes up an dover then spins Piper around. Fans fire up but Piper is too much to suplex! Piper suplexes, Bianca slips free, and Bianca BOOTS from the corner. Bianca goes up to CROSSBODY! Cover, Chelsea breaks it! Asuka BUZZSAWS Chelsea! Asuka throws Chelsea out, Piper whips Asuka but Asuka reverses, only to send Piper into Bianca! Asuka runs in, Piper dodges, and Bianca caches the hip attack! Bianca and Asuka argue, but Piper runs in!

Bianca pushes Asuka aside and Piper hits buckles! Bianca drags Piper up into the torture rack! Fans fire up as we again see a MASSIVE KISS OF DEATH!! Cover, Bianca & Asuka win!

Winners: Bianca Belair & Asuka, by pinfall

But then Asuka CLOBBERS Bianca! And HEEL KICKS her! The Empress is not playing nice anymore! She waits on Bianca to get up, and she SLIDING KICKS Bianca down! Asuka wants the title back, will Bianca NOT be ready for WrestleMania?

 

Roman Reigns heads to the ring.

The Tribal Chief has Paul Heyman and Solo Sikoa with him, and St. Louis is torn between cheers and jeers. Roman raises the belts, the pyro goes off, and then the Undisputed WWE Universal Champion, his Wise Man and his Enforcer continue down the ramp. They get in the ring, and Roman raises the belts again for the second round of pyro. Paul Heyman holds the belts for Roman, then hands over the mic. Roman says, “St. Louis! ACKNOWLEDGE ME!” But wait! “Wrestling has more than one… royal family.” Cody Rhodes is here! Roman is annoyed as the American Nightmare makes his entrance, with his own pyro!

Cody makes his way into the ring, gets his own mic, and fans cheer as he steps to Roman. “Normally, I would say, ‘So, St. Louis, what do you wanna talk about?’ But I think I know what you want to talk about. Because I’ve heard you talk about it. The warning to me about staying out of personal, Bloodline business. I’ve heard you talk about that. I’ve heard Mr. Heyman say that you’ve got a problem. Specifically, a Cody Rhodes problem. And I would love it if you could define for me what you mean by ‘problem.'” Cody cuts Heyman off, because he wasn’t talking to Heyman. “Mr. Heyman, sir, take a step back. I am talking to the Tribal Chief.”

Fans are torn again while Roman considers what to say. “Well, let’s get this straight. You’re not the problem. What you represent, now that’s the problem. Y’see, Wise Man, he’s what we used to be. He’s like our fathers. He’s a ‘professional wrestler.’ What we used to be. See, I’m a fighter. Which in turn has allowed me to be the mega star around here. And you come in here and you say all these things that you’re gonna do, when we know you’re not gonna do ’em, because look at your track record. Let’s look at it. You didn’t wanna do the Stardust thing, so what happened? You ran away.

“And what happened? You ran away, you started a company and a promotion you couldn’t get over in… and then you ran away! And then you came here, exactly!” Fans rally for Cody but Roman says, “And he got over, and his body quit on him as his little pec went pop. You’re not cut out for this. You keep talking about finishing the story? ‘April 2nd, I’m gonna finish the story.’ No, you’re not. April 2nd is just a moment, is like an opportunity, it’s like a lotto ticket for you. Your moment is on April 3rd, because when you wake up, you’re gonna have to look in the mirror. And then you’re gonna have to confront that adversity again.

“Not like you used to, because when you look in the mirror, I want you to make a choice, and I want that choice to be one your dad can be proud of. Otherwise, you’re just gonna do what you always do, and run like a little b*tch.” Cody says, “Okay, okay. Run, run away. So for those out here, these little Nightmares, if you’ve got the weight belts, if you’re somebody who likes the Undesirable to Undeniable tale, you have to know that what Roman’s saying is true. I did run away. Business broke my heart, I met adversity, and I ran away. I don’t hear a lot of people complaining, though, because what I did while I ran away was make it so 100% of every locker room can make a lot more money, so I’m not really worried about it.

“In addition to that, you’re calling me what our fathers were, ‘wrestlers?’ Man, I tried. I started here at 20 years old. WWE born and bred, I wanted to be a superstar. Sometimes, I still wanna be a superstar. But maybe that’s the truth. Maybe inside, I am just a runaway, violent, like-the-taste-of-blood-in-my-mouth professional wrestler!” Fans cheer that and Cody says to make it clear here and now, “nobody needs to bring up my father one more time, because if I hear it again, I’m absolutely gonna vomit. He’s not coming to this ring to give a Bionic Elbow. My brother works elsewhere. The only thing that you’re gonna see at WrestleMania is me.

And Roman wants to talk family? Here’s someone they may not know: Cody’s “mean ass Cuban mother, who in this moment, you know what she would tell me? ‘Knock that boy out. And while he’s laying there, hit him again for good measure.'” Talking about April 3rd, and what it means for Cody. Let’s talk about what that could mean, and will mean, for Roman Reigns. April 3rd,m Tribal Chief wakes up to remember what it’s like to lose. he’s gotta wake up without his titles that mean the most in their world. And when that happens, here’s what else happens: Jey is gonna leave Roman. And then Jimmy will leave Roman, too.

So no Usos? Guess what happens next? Solo, who has been glaring at Cody all night! Let Cody tell Solo something he had to find out as a second generation flanked by the champion. You think you’re ready? You’re not! Solo will leave, too. And when that happens, Paul Heyman, well, he just becomes an advocate again. And there you will be: A Roman with no more Reigns, a Chief without a Tribe. Fans fire up behind Cody on that one, and Roman goes from smirk to scowl. Roman drops the mic, pushes past Cody, but Solo stares Cody down. Cody dares Solo to go! “Say when!” Heyman points this out to Roman and Roman is confused.

Roman shouts for Solo to follow suit, but Cody says, “It’s like I said: I knew you weren’t ready.” Solo throws off his towel, roars, but Cody BOOTS him first! Solo gets back up, fires up again, but Roman makes him stop! Fans chant, “You’re Not Ready!” as Solo obeys and leaves. Roman lets Cody have this one, but will everything the American Nightmare said become reality after WrestleMania?


My Thoughts:

A really good Raw, with an awesome ending. Great stuff out of the Bloodline all night, as always, but especially the dynamic of how the Bloodline really is crumbling. The Usos take it upon themselves to make the tag title match, and the way Jimmy was talking was a great little teaser that he was upset with Roman but then just put it on Sami. Roman talking with Jey alone, then keeping Solo with him later, he might be starting to distrust the Usos. And then that promo segment to end the night was great stuff, from Roman referencing AEW to Cody telling everyone to shut up about Dusty Rhodes, to Solo confronting Cody against Roman’s wishes. Roman’s tyrannical hold on his family is only going to bring everything Cody said to life, and that is amazing use of irony in this story.

Really good first match from Theory and Ford, and Theory winning again is fine, he needs the momentum going into WrestleMania. Theory has a decent promo calling out Cena, but it’s too bad R-Truth is still hurt from his appearance on NXT from a few months ago. R-Truth would make the perfect third person to face because of how John Cena is Truth’s childhood hero. Good tale of the tape vignette, and of course Omos wins in a squash of Ali. Really good promo from Edge to call out Finn, and this establishes that we are definitely getting some kind of new form of Demon Balor at WrestleMania to really make the Hell in a Cell match be that Hollywood horror movie.

Good match from Dom VS Gargano, but I am really surprised there were no shenanigans (that we saw on TV) that helped Dom win that one. Though I suppose Gargano being less than 100% is the technicality here. Good promo segment from Rhea, though something just felt off about it. Maybe her trying to be menacing killed the tempo of it. But very interesting move to have Rhea VS Bayley happen. I give them kudos since it was Heel VS Heel, even with Rhea being a fan favorite, and it was a halfway decent excuse for Becky, Lita & Trish to show up. Rhea winning is two birds with one stone, as Team Big Time also gets to stand tall compared to DMG CTRL.

The Men’s Fatal 4 Way Showcase just being decided seems a little unfair, but at the same time, this shows that WWE did not handle the women’s tag division well in Vince’s time and HHH just hasn’t been able to build it up in the time he’s had control. Profits VS Viking Raiders VS Alpha Academy VS Ricochet & Braun is a really good group, but I would’ve liked if other teams were given a chance. Ricochet VS Gable was an awesome match, just as the fans said, but it’s really wild how this was just a vehicle for the Otis/Otīse story. Good stuff in that story, though, with Otis torn between Gable and Maxxine. I have a feeling MMM has a part to play in the men’s showcase to keep Alpha Academy from winning and bringing us to Gable fighting to keep Otis in the Academy.

And speaking of the showcase, good promo from Chelsea with Pearce to Karen it up about being in the match. Not sure what happened with Carmella, hopefully she’s okay, but good adlib to bring Piper into things. Good tag match with Chelsea, Piper, Asuka and Bianca, and Piper being in the match, we of course got the strongEST KOD spot once again. And after toying with Bianca, it was about time Asuka went after Bianca. No more playing the Tweener line, she’s coming for gold! This is gonna come down to the go-home math next week, but their Raw Women’s Championship match could probably go either way.

My Score: 8.7/10


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Coverage

Mitchell’s WWE Raw Results & Report! (3/18/24)

Talk about a Big Time Raw!

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Will The Man be the Last Woman Standing?

Becky Lynch and Nia Jax want to finally put this to an end, so tonight on Raw, it will be a Big Time Last Woman Standing match! Will the Irresistible Force force the WrestleMania 40 match to change?

OFFICIAL RESULTS

  • Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship Ladder Match Qualifier: #DIY VS The Creed Brothers; DIY wins and advances to WrestleMania.
  • Candice LeRae & Indi Hartwell VS Kayden Carter & Katana Chance; Candice & Indi win.
  • Dominik Mysterio w/ JD McDonagh VS Ricochet; Ricochet wins.
  • Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship Ladder Match Qualifier: The Awesome Truth VS Indus Sher; The Awesome Truth wins and advances to WrestleMania.
  • Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship Ladder Match Qualifier: The New Day VS The Alpha Academy; The New Day wins and advances to WrestleMania.
  • Last Woman Standing: Becky Lynch VS Nia Jax; Becky wins.

PLAY BY PLAY

Jey Uso is here!

North Carolina State University fires up and bounces along with Main Event Jey, and Pat McAfee plays a dangerous game standing on the armchairs! From Bret VS Owen to Matt VS Jeff, we’re about to get Jey VS Jimmy in the third-ever Brother VS Brother WrestleMania grudge match! Jey gets the mic as fans chant “YEET! YEET! YEET!” Jey welcomes us to Monday Night Raw, and wants us to check this out. He knows his brothers are somewhere in the building. He knows The Bloodline’s in the building. He knows how the Bloodline rolls! SO Big Brother Jimmy, where you at?! Where you at, Uce!?

Jey waits for someone to show up somewhere, and the crowd spots them first! Fans boo as Jimmy & Solo make their way from the back of the stands. Jimmy gets a mic and goes to the apron while Solo paces around the outside. Fans chant “YEET! YEET! YEET!” again as Jey puts the sunglasses aside. The Usos stare each other down, the fans now chant “UCE! OH! UCE! OH!” Jey wants to say something, hesitates, but then says these two would always get to it but they always knew how to shake right back to this. But now it’s different. Regardless of what happened, the bad blood between them, Jey misses his brother. He does.

Jey knows Jimmy will say what he wants, but Jey doesn’t talk to him no more, doesn’t ride with him no more, doesn’t even see him no more! Jimmy can just come back. Jimmy says he never left! He protected Jey! Jey’s so dumb, he can’t see it! Jimmy is protecting Jey! It was Jey’s idea to leave The Bloodline, but Jimmy helped because he is Jey’s brother. So yeah, Jey leaves, and what happens? Lil’ Bro becomes the BIGGEST star on the Raw roster! Lil’ Bro becomes the top merch seller! Lil’ Bro goes off to become a tag team champion without Jimmy, but with CODY RHODES!? Who left who, Uce?

Jey forgot Jimmy! Everything Jey did that was big was cuz of Big Bro Jimmy! Everything! So listen loud and clear. The biggest moment in Jey’s career, the BIGGEST moment, is because of Jimmy! Jimmy stares Jey down, but Jey says no. Jey’s biggest moment in his career is going to be his dream match at WrestleMania 40: Jey VS Jimmy, and Jey knocks the yeet out Jimmy’s ass! Jey DECKS Jimmy, DECKS Solo off the apron, but then Jimmy SUPERKICKS Jey down! The fans boo but now Solo storms in and looms over Jey. Solo drags Jey up so Jimmy can look him in the face and tell him that Jey needs to get it right! JIMMY made Jey!

But here comes Cody Rhodes! The fans fire up as Cody DECKS Jimmy, then gets in to springboard and CODY CUTTER Solo!! The American Nightmare said he was gonna be a Bloodline Hunter, and he made sure they didn’t take out Jey! Cody tells The Bloodline it is only a matter of time before they lose it all at WrestleMania! Will Jey prove that younger or older doesn’t matter when he is the BETTER brother?

 

Adam Pearce is on the phone.

He’s telling Nick Aldis to stop being a hypocrite, telling Pearce to keep his roster in check when this is happening. But then Paul Heyman walks over and Pearce says he’ll call Aldis back. Pearce then asks Heyman what was all that, and Heyman says he owes Pearce an apology. He is sorry. That was not authorized by The Final Boss nor The Tribal Chief, and certainly not by Heyman. Jimmy & Solo went into business for themselves so Heyman apologizes. But listen, Pearce knows that there have been flight delays all day. Even private jets like theirs. Heyman is barely even dressed for TV, let alone has his make-up!

Pearce says those two were ready. Yeah, well, they got in on a different flight. But Roman Reigns is a chief of his word. Those two are already gone, out of the arena, and Pearce has Roman’s word. Call his bluff, put out a search party. Pearce knows Heyman is here on official business, which Heyman will handle, and then be gone. That is it. But when Heyman does his official business… everyone will be caught off guard. “And Mr. Pearce, sir, that’s not a prediction. That’s a spoiler.” The Wise Man heads out and calls Roman, but just what is Heyman teasing?

 

Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship Ladder Match Qualifier: #DIY VS The Creed Brothers!

Unlike SmackDown’s mini-tournament, Raw and Adam Pearce say it’s win and you’re in! Tommaso Ciampa & Johnny Gargano want one more shot at Judgment Day, but so do Julius & Brutus! Will the Sicilian Psycho & Johnny Wrestling prove that when it comes to Mania Moments, you gotta do it yourself? Or will the Creeds be bringing golden tickets to the Diamond Mine?

Raw returns as The Creeds make their entrance. The teams fist bump to show respect, then the teams sort out. Julius starts against Ciampa, they circle and tie up. They’re in a deadlock, Ciampa goes for a waistlock but Julius facelocks. Julius wrangles Ciampa to the mat, flips him over, ONE, and Ciampa keeps moving. They trade facelocks, gator roll, and Julius gets another lateral press. ONE, but Julius gator rolls Ciampa around. Ciampa fights up, puts Julius on ropes, and the ref counts. Ciampa lets off, then CHOPS! Julius shoots in for the takedown! Julius has a leg, Ciampa fights but Julius turns him for the ANKLE LOCK!

Ciampa scrambles to the ROPEBREAK, and Julius lets off cleanly. Ciampa bails out, shakes it off, and he gets back in. They go again, Julius hits a fireman’s carry takeover! Tag to Brutus, and Julius feeds Ciampa to another fireman’s carry takeover! Brutus cording holds but Ciampa endures. Ciampa fights up, but Brutus facelocks. The fans rally as Brutus switches and rolls Ciampa. Ciampa fights up, headlocks, then ROCKS Brutus! Brutus DECKS Ciampa, then whips him to ropes. Ciampa ducks ‘n’ dodges, tag to Gargano! Ciampa slides, CHOPS, Gargano LARIATS and Ciampa JAWBREAKERS! Wrench and LARIAT!

Julius runs in, Gargano kicks and Ciampa gives him the boost for SLICED BREAD! The Creeds bail out, but DIY DOUBLE PLANCHA! Down go the Creeds, and DIY applaud and pat themselves on the back. The fans fire up and Raw goes to break.

Raw returns again and Ciampa has Julius in a chinlock. The fans rally, Julius fights up to throw body shots, but Ciampa hits a back suplex! Julius lands out of it, but Ciampa elbows him away. Ciampa drop toeholds Julius, gets legs, but Julius BOOTS Ciampa away! Hot tags to Gargano and Brutus! Brutus rallies on DIY, TOSSES Gargano, then blocks Ciampa’s kick to get under and POWERBOMB him! Brutus sees DIY regroup, then he runs in to SPLASH them both! O’Conner on Ciampa, but Gargano runs up! NORTHERN LIGHTS! Brutus has a DOUBLE BRIDGE, TWO!! Tag to Julius and he gut wrench SLAMS Brutus on Ciampa!

Brutus helps Julius flip up and over to SPLASH onto Ciampa! Cover, TWO! The fans rally up as Julius drags Ciampa up. Ciampa throat chops! A bit dirty but Ciampa wants that win! Ciampa storms up on Julius, but Julius basement stalling suplexes!! The fans are thunderous, Gargano runs in, but Brutus intercepts! Brutus suplexes Gargano now, stalls, and then the Creeds SLAM and kip up! Then they both STANDING MOONSAULT! Cover, TWO! Ciampa stays in this for DIY but the Creeds keep cool. Julius stomps Ciampa, tags Brutus, and they KNEE Ciampa around! Then they DOUBLE GUTBUSTER! Ciampa sputters but Brutus tags Julius in.

Julius drags Ciampa up, tags Brutus back in, and Brutus climbs. Julius Electric Chair Lifts, but Gargano makes the save! Gargano ROCKS Julius, Brutus ROCKS Gargano! Ciampa BOOTS Brutus, Gargano swings on Julius but is sent into Ciampa! Ciampa pushes Gargano back so he can ELBOW Julius! DIY set up again but Brutus stops the Sliced Bread! Julius DECKS Ciampa, KNEE into the WIDOWMAKER! Julius scrapes Gargano out, Brutus POUNCES Ciampa over the desk! Pat fires up with Brutus and so do the fans! The Creeds say they run this now, and then Brutus drags Ciampa up while Raw goes to break.

Raw returns again and Julius has Ciampa in a chinlock. Ciampa fights up, and he JAWBREAKERS free! Ciampa ELBOWS Brutus down, BOOTS Julius, then runs up, only for Julius to catch him and toss him back! But then Ciampa catches Julius for a REVERSE DDT! The fans fire up while both men are down and crawling! Hot tag to Gargano! Gargano slingshots to KICK Julius, then he CLOBBERS Brutus! ENZIGIRI for Julius, then he runs to DOUBLE KNEE Brutus! BULLDOG LARIAT COMBO! The fans fire up with Gargano while Julius ends up in another corner. Gargano runs in but is put on the apron!

Gargano GAMANGIRIS Julius, SUPERKICKS Brutus, then SLINGSHOT SPEARS Julius! Cover, TWO! Julius survives but Gargano puts him in a corner. Gargano CHOPS, then hoists Julius up top. Tag to Ciampa, Ciampa CHOPS Julius while Gargano DIVES onto Brutus! Ciampa CHOPS Julius again, goes up top, and fireman’s carries! Ciampa then tucks Julius in for the SUPER AIR RAID CRASH! Cover, TWO!! Julius survives again and shocks Ciampa! The fans are just as stunned, but Ciampa and Julius sit up. Ciampa stands, and he CHOPS! And CHOPS! Julius sits back up as Ciampa puts some stank on the CHOP!

Julius brings the straps down! Julius fires a forearm, Ciampa hits back, and the fans fire up as the shots keep going! They go faster and faster, harder and harder, meaner and meaner! The fans fire up as this just turns into a brawl of haymakers and SLAPS! Ciampa then gets around, ripcord and HAYMAKER! ROLLING- TACKLE from Julius! And then the ANKLE LOCK!! Ciampa reaches out, moves around, but Gargano runs up! Julius kicks him, then gets him up with one arm to POWERBOMB! Then it’s back to the ANKLE LOCK on Ciampa! Brutus gets in to get Gargano for an ANKLE LOCK of his own!

The fans are thunderous as DIY endures! Ciampa and Gargano fight, turn things over, SICILIAN CROSSFACE and GargaNO Escape!! The fans are thunderous as The Creeds power up and lift both DIY! They fireman’s carry, then TOSS DIY into each other!! The fans are thunderous as Julius goes up to MOONSAULT onto Ciampa! Brutus MOONSAULTS, too! Cover, TWO?!?! Ciampa survives and the fans are loving this! Julius tags back in, Brutus climbs up! “This is Awesome!” as Julius Electric Chair Lifts Ciampa! But Ciampa VICTORY ROLLS to get under the Brutus Ball!! Cover, Brutus tips it! Gargano TOSSES Brutus then SUPERKICKS Julius!! Ciampa has the cover, DIY WINS!!

Winners: DIY, by pinfall (advance to WrestleMania)

Julius can’t believe it! He kicked out at 3.1, but a loss is a loss! And for the first time ever, DIY is going to Mania! Will Philadelphia soon be historic for a DIY championship victory?

 

Judgment Day meets backstage.

Rhea Ripley is with Dominik Mysterio, Finn Balor & JD McDonagh, but also Andrade. Dom says he’s always liked Andrade’s style, but things have changed since the last time he was in the WWE. The Judgment Day runs Raw now. Rhea says yeah, and they don’t extend invitations to just anyone. Judgment Day is very exclusive. JD says very exclusive. But if Andrade continues to impress them, they’ll see about making things happen. And Finn says he just heard that Andrade has a match next week, so the Judgment Day will be watching him. Sounds good. See you next week. But then in steps Damian Priest.

The Punisher says hello to El Idolo, and El Idolo says hello to Senor Dinero. Andrade heads out, will he quite literally win his way into the club? But as for Priest, Finn asks him what he was up to. Priest was getting a closer look at that DIY VS Creeds match. DIY won, but whatever, they can handle those guys. But JD, they thought he could handle Ricochet last week, and run the gauntlet, and then go to WrestleMania to bring even more gold back to Judgment Day. JD says he did he belonged in there. But also, he battered Ricochet, who got lucky at the end there. Right, Finn? Finn hesitates, and Rhea says Priest is right on this one.

Ricochet made a fool out of JD! A fool? Yes. A fool? Yes. That’s why tonight, Dom will make it right. Right, Dom? Yeah, Mami. Let’s go talk to Pearce to make it official. Dom & JD head out, and the others are confident Dom’s got this. But does he, though? Or will the One and Only have two wins over Judgment Day in as many weeks?

 

Candice LeRae & Indi Hartwell VS Kayden Carter & Katana Chance!

The Poison Pixie certainly lived up to that name last week when she bullied Maxxine Dupri as part of beating her and Ivy Nile last week. Will Candice’s toxic tongue strike again? Or will the party not be stopped by her harsh vibes?

The teams sort out and Candice starts against Kayden. Candice rushes up, Kayden gets around and O’Conner Rolls, TWO! Kayden springboards to basement dropkick! Cover, TWO! Kayden stalks Candice, Candice ELBOWS her away then tags Indi. Kayden dodges Candice to SUPERKICK, but Indi BOOTS Kayden! Cover, TWO! Indi drags Kayden up, tags Candice back in, and they mug Kayden. Candice CLUBS away on Kayden, fires off furious fists, then covers. TWO, and Candice grows frustrated already. The fans rally, Candice steps up but Kayden avoids the senton! Tags to Katana and Indi! Katana blasts past Indi, comes back and BULLDOGS!

Katana keeps moving, ducks ‘n’ dodges, then SHOTGUNS Indi to a corner! The fans fire up as Katana stomps away on Indi! Indi shoves Katana, Katana runs corner to corner to A-LIST LARIAT! Katana shoves Indi down, runs up, but into a back suplex! Katana lands out, but her leg jams! The ref and Kayden check, then the ref keeps Indi back. Indi says okay, and she stays by Candice. But Candice tags in to WRECK Kayden! And she SLAMS Katana’s leg into the post!! HALF CRAB and DEEP! Katana taps, Candice & Indi win!

Winners: Candice LeRae & Indi Hartwell, by submission

Candice smiles and celebrates with Indi, but Indi doesn’t want to. Candice says a win is a win, but just what is going on in her toxic mind?

 

Cody Rhodes makes his way to the ring.

NC State fires up again as The American Nightmare walks down the ramp, and this time the fans can sing along with the song, “WHOA~ OH~!” Cody gets his pyro then gets the mic. “In less than three weeks time, I will stand opposed for the second year in a row, in the main event, with the lights on brightest, I will challenge for the WWE Undisputed Championship, against the greatest champion in all of sports, The Tribal Chief, Roman Reigns. And this Friday on SmackDown, Roman and I are going to have a little conversation, if you will. But there are… complications. Factors, elements, combustible elements, namely… The Rock.”

Fans boo but Cody says The Rock took to Instagram on Friday, and followed it up with “extremely entertaining” concert. Too bad The Rock didn’t wanna be here tonight. Something Cody took from the Instagram post: The Rock referred to himself as “Our Favorite Heel.” A bit of an inside term, but we’re not dumb, we know that means he’s the “bad guy.” Cody has known Heels. Bobby Heenan, Arn Anderson, Michael Hayes, “Superstar” Billy Graham, “The Nature Boy” Ric Flair! Fans “WOO~” and Cody says he doesn’t think The Rock is a Heel. He’s just an assh*le. The fans go nuts hearing that!

Cody doesn’t want Rock getting upset, he doesn’t want the “seven bucks team” to get upset, he doesn’t want anyone getting emotional. Cody knows how Rock feels about emotions, he poked fun at Cody tearing up at discussing “finishing the story” with good friend, Michael Cole. There’s no crying in pro-wrestling, Jimmy Dugan, we get it. But hasn’t The Rock been crying behind the scenes this whole time? Once that hashtag came out, once fans chanted something else, The Rock cried to his buddies on the TKO board and said “Hey, this is gonna be some good PR for The Rock! I need to save WWE!” God knows, look at this house. They sure needed “saving,” huh?

The fans cheer but Cody says Rock wanted great PR. Until it wasn’t. TKO said OMG yes, put on the Gucci shirt, get those muscles looking big. It’s because they are Yes People, they are enablers, they won’t dare tell The Rock like it is, so Cody’s going to. Cody tells The Rock, “You’re a lot of things. You’re a lot of wonderful things. You are the Braham Bull, you are The Great One.” Cody still has shoes with The Rock’s logo on it! The Rock is the only guy Cody honestly feels is a Mount Rushmore wrestler. But he is also a terrible salesman, a carny succubus, and for those who don’t get what that means, The Rock is “a whiny b*tch!”

Fans lose their minds again but Cody says The Rock has been convinced otherwise. But don’t think that for two seconds this locker room needs The Rock more than The Rock needs it! That’s a rule of wrestling, nobody is bigger than the business! And sure, Cody brought up his mom, so it is fair game for The Rock to use that. But Cody knows The Rock’s mom. Here’s what Cody will tell us about The Rock’s mom. She is a wonderful lady, salt of the earth, she helped Cody chop Kevin in a dark match. Cody has nothing but respect for The Rock’s mom, something The Rock should’ve echoed back towards Cody’s mom.

But see, The Rock was talking about whipping Cody, handing a bloody weight belt to Cody’s mom, and normally someone as powerful as The Rock, Mama Rhodes would tremble. But The Rock doesn’t know Cody’s mom. Cody was more scared than she was, because she ain’t scared of nothing. This is the same woman who once jumped out of her chair at a Willie Nelson concert and beat up an undercover cop! She ain’t afraid of The Rock! Cody has been asked, April 6th, biggest tag match of all time, Rock & Roman VS Cody & Seth. Seth Rollins, the World Heavyweight Champion, a man The Rock should respect because that man has carried The Rock’s company!

How will Cody get past that match? How will April 7th look? Will it be a fair fight? Cody can tell us honestly… He doesn’t know. Cody does not know if it will be Bloodline Rules or not. Hell, he might not #FinishTheStory. “But Dwayne… What do you know? How can you be so sure of your own self, right?” The Rock hasn’t been in the ring in real action in years! April 6th, the bell is gonna ring, and what happens then? Is The Rock gonna bring The Great One, the hero we all had growing up? Is he bringing that #BigDwayneEnergy? Or is it gonna be LDS, Little D*ck Syndrome?! The fans chant “L D S! L D S!”

Cody says The Rock has referred to himself as The Final Boss. Kudos for that nickname, maybe he really is that. Maybe Cody is too naive to see it. But at WrestleMania, Cody doesn’t think The Rock will be The Final Boss. At WrestleMania, he’s just Roman’s side chick. But then ladies and gentlemen, his name is Paul Heyman, and he serves as The Wise Man to Your Tribal Chief, the reigning! Defending! Undisputed! WWE Universal Heavyweight Champion, Roman… Reigns! And as Special Counsel to the Bloodline, Heyman is here to say to Cody that the ideals that Cody and Heyman share are far greater than the interests on which they conflict.

By example, don’t you hate it when someone comes out to demand an apology? Not that Cody’s done that, but Heyman is still going to do that. Heyman came out here with some “friends” of his, and he apologized. For a Wise Man, that was pretty freakin’ stupid. One: because it didn’t work. Two: because it was just dumb. And for that, Cody, to you and the fans, Heyman humbly apologizes. Cody says whoa, whoa, whoa. He didn’t ask for an apology, and he certainly knows Heyman wants permission to be in the ring. Heyman is a Hall of Famer starting this year, if he wants into the ring, be Cody’s guest.

Heyman thanks Cody for that but he’s fine on the apron. He carries with him a message from The Tribal Chief, Roman Reigns. Talk about Heels… You may think of Heyman anything negative you want, and that might be understanding the obvious. Heyman is not trustworthy, but Roman is a chief of his word. Heyman assures that this Friday on SmackDown, Roman will be face to face with Cody. American Nightmare, Tribal Chief, challenger and champion. And when they are face to face, there will not be a single other member of The Bloodline in sight. Except for Heyman, but he is no physical threat.

Heyman holds the title belt, the beads, whispers things in Roman’s ear, such as his love and respect. But Cody has Roman’s word that if he shows up on SmackDown, Roman will show up alone. Cody says Roman shows up alone, no Bloodline outside of Heyman, it’s a deal. They good? Heyman has some jet lag, he forgot one little point. And don’t boo him, he’s talking to Cody! Cody says yes they’re booing, and he’s about to go full Homelander and rip Heyman’s throat out if he doesn’t get to the point. Fans like the reference. Heyman composes himself and says if Roman Reigns shows up alone this Friday on SmackDown, then Cody must show up to SmackDown alone, too.

Cody steps closer to Heyman and Heyman is a bit nervous. Cody tells Heyman, “Deal!” They shake hands, and Heyman smiles. The Wise Man negotiated a purely one-on-one meeting between his Tribal Chief and American Nightmare, but can we trust Heyman was telling the truth about Roman telling the truth?

 

Nia Jax speaks.

“You know what I’ve realized? Becky Lynch has never beaten me. And after tonight, she never will. Because after I break her face again, I will be taking her spot at WrestleMania. I will finish business with Rhea Ripley, and not only will I walk out the Last Woman Standing, but I will become Women’s World Champion.” The Irresistible Force is ready for the Big Time, but will she A-Nia-late her?

 

Cody Rhodes returns backstage.

And Jey says there he go! But real quick, Cody can’t be going to SmackDown alone. Cody says he gave them his word. But The Bloodline isn’t gonna play fair! They’re all gonna be there! If Cody needs Jey, Jeys’ got him. Cody hears that, but he knows what he’s dealing with. They shake hands and Jey heads out. Will Cody be able to have that fair, one-on-one meeting? Or does Jey have a point about The Bloodline?

 

Dominik Mysterio w/ JD McDonagh VS Ricochet!

It seems Pearce agreed to the idea that Dirty Dom should try and clean up The Irish Ace’s mess. Will Dom be able to get revenge on Ricochet? Or will Ricochet be the One and Only person holding their head high tonight?

Raw returns and Dom has made his entrance. The bell rings, Dom and Ricochet circle, and they tie up. Ricochet waistlocks, Dom fights the lift and grabs ropes. The ref counts, Ricochet lets off, but Dom ELBOWS him away! Dom fires hands, soaks up the heat, then storms up, but into haymakers! Ricochet CHOPS, kicks then flexes on Dom. Ricochet whips, Dom reverses, but Ricochet goes up and over. Ricochet ducks ‘n’ dodges to then handspring back elbow! The fans fire up while Dom bails out! JD is there to coach Dom up, but Ricochet runs in! JD gets Dom to safety, but Ricochet handsprings to hero land!

The fans fire up, Ricochet then goes to ropes to TORNILLO PLANCHA! Direct hit on Dom and Ricochet tells JD to back off. Ricochet puts Dom in, Dom distracts the ref, but JD grabs Ricochet’s leg! Ricochet kicks JD away, but then Dom WRECKS Ricochet with a dropkick! Dom soaks up the heat and Raw goes to break.

Raw returns again and Dom has Ricochet up top. Dom climbs but Ricochet throws body shots! The fans rally behind Ricochet as he sends Dom staggering. Ricochet hops down as Dom comes running back, and Ricochet GAMANGIRIS him away! Ricochet then springboards, but Dom trips him up! Ricochet flops to the mat, then Dom kicks and FACEBUSTERS! Cover, TWO! Ricochet is still in this and JD argues the count. Dom looms over Ricochet, scuffs him around, then mockingly cheers him on. Fans boo but Dom brings Ricochet up. Dom gives some Latino Heat, then suplexes! Uno Amigo, but fans boo.

Dom gets Ricochet up but Ricochet suplexes Dom instead! And then fireman’s carry, DYNAMITE KICK! Cover, TWO! Dom is still in this and JD coaches him but the fans rally for Ricochet. Ricochet stands, storms up on Dom, but Dom shoots around to roll him up! With tights! TWO, Ricochet blocks a kick and KICKS Dom down! Ricochet hurries up top, the fans fire up, but Ricochet has to bail out of the 450 as Dom moves! Dom runs in again, but into a SUPERKICK! JD gets on the apron, so Ricochet triangle jump DROPKICKS! But then Dom DROPKICKS Ricochet onto ropes! Dom dials it up but Ricochet ducks!

Dom spins around, into the RECOIL!! Cover, Ricochet wins!

Winner: Ricochet, by pinfall

But then JD runs in! Ricochet dodges, goes up and around, BOOTS JD away, then BOOTS him again! Ricochet even flips up and out of the ring at the same time! Ricochet gets the better of Judgment Day again, just how disappointed is Mami going to be in her Latino Heat this time?

 

Sami Zayn is backstage.

He finds Chad Gable and wants to talk with him. Last week’s match, that was an honor. Sami hasn’t been pushed like that in a long time, it could’ve gone either way. Gable says yeah, it was great. Thanks. Is Gable alright? Yeah, he’s fine. Kinda feels like not… Gable says he’s fine, so leave it at that. C’mon, man, how many years have they known each other? Sami knows when something’s bothering Gable, so he should just say it. Gable says look, last week, the WrestleMania opportunity, the whole thing, it just meant more to him. Sami says he’s been hearing Gable say that for weeks, and it is really unfair.

Does Gable really think he’s the only one this title opportunity matters to? Sami has a family, too! Sami’s kid cries when Papa loses a match, too. Sami has people he’s let down and is trying to make proud. After all the years put into this, Gable can’t tell Sami what matters more because he doesn’t know Sami like that. Gable has Sami calm down, and says he knows all that. But it isn’t all about that. Then what is all this? Gable says Sami can’t beat Gunther. Gable then leaves, and Sami is at a loss for words. Is this bitter side of Gable only going to get worse as we go down this Road to WrestleMania?

 

Adam Pearce is in the ring.

Raw returns with the GM by a table, and he welcomes us to a contract signing to make official the Intercontinental Heavyweight Championship for WrestleMania! The fans cheer, and Pearce introduces first, the challenger, Sami Zayn! The Great Liberator makes his entrance and the fans sing along with his song. Sami still looks troubled by what Gable said just moments ago, but he still high-fives fans and gets in the ring. Then Pearce introduces the longest reigning Intercontinental Champion of all time, Der Ring General, GUNTHER! The fans boo as Gunther walks in, having reached Day 647!

Gunther smiles as Sami watches him make his way down the ramp and into the ring. Pearce says we know how this works, but Gunther says before we proceed, let us call this what it is: the most important contract signing for the most important match in the history of this championship. And why, why, why is the challenger dressed no better than any of the bums in the audience? Fans boo but Sami just shrugs that off. Sami gets a mic to say that Gunther keeps sitting there all smug, and it’s really starting to piss Sami off. Gunther thinks this is just another day at the office, that he’ll steamroll through Sami like any other contender.

But with all respect to Gunther, he really has. He has beaten everyone that has come his way, and has done it on his own. Gunther doesn’t believe Sami can do it. A lot of people didn’t believe Sami at many points in his career. They didn’t believe he’d even make it to WWE, let alone win championships and main event a WrestleMania. And if you ask The Usos, they didn’t believe Sami would be one of the guys to end the longest tag title reign in WWE history, but he did! And one year later, he will make history again by ending the longest Intercontinental title reign in WWE history! Sami signs his part and pushes the contract over to Gunther.

The fans cheer Sami on but Gunther waits it out. Gunther tells Sami, what Sami should do is listen to his new friend, Gable. Gable doesn’t believe Sami can win. The people here cheer Sami, they probably even love Sami. But even they don’t believe Sami can win. And y’know, when Gunther looks Sami in the eyes, and if Sami was honest with himself, even Sami doesn’t believe he can win. So what Sami is doing right now is standing on Gunther’s doorstep and begging him to get the beating of a lifetime on the Grandest Stage of Them All! So whatever Sami has to do, from training to believing, just keep doing that. Because at WrestleMania, Sami’s dreams will meet reality.

Gunther grins and signs his part, and it is now official! Gunther then stands, title on his shoulder, and takes his leave. The fans boo, but then Sami tells Gunther to wait. Gunther steps back inside to hear Sami as Sami turns around. Gunther looks in Sami’s eyes and believes Sami doesn’t believe? Sami stands to get in Gunther’s face and dares him to look again. Get a good long look, because these are the eyes of the man who will take you down at Mania! The fans fire up, and now Sami leaves first. Gunther still just grins, but will Sami use a Helluva Kick to wipe that smile off his face?

We follow Sami as he storms backstage, right past DIY and The Awesome Truth. Truth asks what’s up with Sami, but The Miz says that is the mindset of WrestleMania right there. That’s what they need. DIY wishes Awesome Truth luck. Awesome Truth knows DIY is into the ladder match, and they are gonna have their own qualifier. Miz & Truth just need to beat… Indus Sher. Jinder Mahal tells Veer & Sanga to warm up for the match. They head out, and Truth says he feels sorry for whoever has to face those guys. Miz stares at Truth, and he has DIY hold off. Miz will explain. The Awesome Truth heads to gorilla, their match is next!

Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship Ladder Match Qualifier: The Awesome Truth VS Indus Sher w/ Jinder Mahal!

Miz wants a remix of the theme song but Truth says to just follow his lead. NC State knows what’s up, but will the Awesome Truth finally reach the top of the tag division 13 years after they first teamed? We’ll see, after the break!

Raw returns as Indus Sher makes their entrance, the Modern Day Maharaja by their side. The teams sort out and Truth starts against Sanga. The fans echo “WHAT’S UP?!” but Sanga roars! Truth is scared now so he tags Miz. Truth fires Miz up, Miz runs up and dodges Sanga to fire off haymakers! Miz kicks, whips, but Sanga blocks! Sanga whips and CLOBBERS Miz! Jinder nods as Sanga then scoops Miz and brings him over. Veer tags in, Sanga SLAMS Miz, then Veer ELBOW DROPS! Indus Sher say “NAMASTE!” but the fans say “WHAT’S UP!?” with Truth. Veer HIP DROPS Miz, then looms over him.

Veer eggs Miz on, drags him up with shoulder claws, and then steps over Miz for the neck wrench! Miz endures as Veer still digs a claw into his shoulder. The fans rally for Miz, Miz fights up and throws body shots! Miz reaches out but Veer knees low! Veer SHOVES Miz to the corner, runs in, but Miz BOOTS! Miz ELBOWS Sanga, but Veer catches him! Veer puts Miz back int he corner, but Miz ducks the boot to tag Truth! Truth dodges Veer and starts up the shoulder tackles! Truth gets around Veer to SPIN-OUT BOMB! The fans fire up as Truth shouts out Cena with “You Can’t See Me!” Truth runs to Five Knuckle Shuffle!

Jinder is not happy now as Truth fireman’s carries! But Veer slips free! Truth drop toeholds to the STF!! The fans fire up but Sanga stomps Truth! Miz fires off kicks on Sanga, then body shots! Truth joins in, they mug and whip Sanga, to DOUBLE DROPKICK! Sanga staggers around, Veer runs up, but into a full nelson! Truth and Miz combine for a SKULL CRUSHING LIE DETECTOR!! But Sanga whips Miz away! Miz WRECKS Jinder with it, but Sanga runs up! Sanga knocks Miz down, Miz anchors Sanga, Sanga ELBOWS Truth, Truth falls onto Veer for the cover! Awesome Truth wins!!

Winners: The Awesome Truth, by pinfall (advance to WrestleMania)

The fans fire up, and Truth doesn’t even realize what happened! Miz celebrates with Truth and Truth puts it together! They’re now one of the six in the ladder match! Will this combination of teamwork and luck be just what they need to take those titles from Judgment Day?

 

Sami confronts Gable now.

Sami tells Gable to tell him why. Why what? Why does Gable think Sami can’t beat Gunther? Well you just saw why! With Gunther, it isn’t just physical, it is mental. Sami made his career out of being the underdog that crawls his way out of any hole he’s in, right? Just like last week! Sami found the window of opportunity to get out of a bad situation any time he can. Gunther’s on a different level! You gonna sit and wait for that window to appear? It doesn’t happen with Gunther! He’s a different beast, a different animal. If Sami doesn’t change his mentality, then he can’t beat Gunther. Gable leaves Sami with a lot to think again. Is there a way Sami can change enough to defeat Der Ring General?

 

CM Punk speaks.

“Do I plan at being in WrestleMania? WrestleMania is in Philadelphia, what’re the first four letters in Philadelphia? Phil. You can’t have WrestleMania Philadelphia without Phil. Whether I’m invited or uninvited, Punk will be there.” And next week in Chicago, Punk returns to Raw! Will the Second City Saint find a way to be part of the biggest WrestleMania ever?

 

Drew McIntyre is here!

The Scottish Terminator, or as his new shirt says, “The Savior of WrestleMania,” makes his way to the ring, NC State a bit torn about seeing him. But then Seth Rollins is here, too!? McIntyre is upset but the fans sing along, “WHOA~ OH~ OHH~!” as The Visionary struts his way out. Rollins swaggers right past McIntyre in his green storm pattern suit, and steps into the ring first. McIntyre frowns as he follows Rollins in, and sits in a corner. The fans continue to sing, which Rollins revels in for a moment. Rollins has the mic to then say, “RALEIGH, NORTH CAROLINA~! Welcome to Monday Night Rollins~!

“And Drew, hah, sorry, I didn’t even see you there. I was too busy, uh, y’know, soaking up the spotlight, right?” McIntyre has a mic to say, “Alright, here we go.” Here goes what, Drew? McIntyre says no, no, get it all out of your system, he knows Rollins has more! McIntyre can stay in the back while Rollins enjoys the spotlight, because after WrestleMania, that spotlight’s all McIntyre’s. Hey, hey, c’mon. Rollins is here with an honest cause. Rollins doesn’t like McIntyre, he thinks he’s stupid, a hypocrite, has said a lot of dumb things lately, but Rollins is here to admit that one thing McIntyre said is absolutely right and he wants to say it to McIntyre’s face, right here in Raleigh, in front of the fine people.

Now, they always say the first step to recovery is the hardest, so bare with Rollins. He has been working on this all week, but… “My name is Seth Freakin’ Rollins, and I’m a spotlight junkie.” The fans chant “Spotlight Junkie!” and also sing, but McIntyre says everything is just a joke to Rollins, isn’t it? Look at Rollins! He’s a parody of himself at this point. But honestly, McIntyre doesn’t care. He tried reasoning, he gave the answers, and now he only cares about their match and the world title. And you wanna know the real punchline, funny man? “What?” McIntyre says they say that because they’re happy McIntyre sidelined Punk, thanks for remembering!

But the punchline is when McIntyre beats Rollins for that title. The fans chant for “C M PUNK!” but McIntyre says don’t be ridiculous. Punk’s waiting until next week to return because he’d never show up in a place like Raleigh. The fans boo but McIntyre says see, they’re booing Punk! Punk is only getting off his couch to be at his local arena. Rollins tells McIntyre to shut up already. Oh, seems McIntyre got Rollins’ attention. Rollins takes off the sunglasses to say yeah, McIntyre has his attention. Because this isn’t a joke! When Rollins says he is a junkie, it isn’t a joke! He’s been doing this for 20 YEARS! Just like McIntyre!

And every time Rollins comes out of the curtain, that’s his fix. And it gets better and better every single time. Rollins comes out here, lays it all on the line, and it just gets better and better! When he hears the fans sing the song so loud, Rollins can barely speak, “WHOA~ OH~ OHH~!” That’s Rollins’ fix! That is the spotlight he craves, and y’know what? Rollins wants the spotlight as bright as it can possibly be. So yeah, McIntyre’s been busy online entertaining people with memes, so he hasn’t been listening to Rollins. So Rollins will get this through McIntyre’s thick skull: Night One, Rollins takes the biggest star in Hollywood and his side chick, and makes them his b*tches!

Then on Night Two, the biggest spotlight possible will be shined down on McIntyre and Rollins and the World Heavyweight Championship! McIntyre says all hail the savior, Seth Rollins! This is what McIntyre wanted! The passion and desire, not the stupid laughing and dancing. Rollins had McIntyre all the way to the finish. Rollins has done this 20 years, just like McIntyre. They’ve given their lives to this industry, and that is what the title is about! The wrestlers’ title, the workhorse championship! Rollins had McIntyre with him until he mentioned the bigger spotlight and how Rollins pins one of the biggest stars in the world.

Why can’t it just be about Rollins’ hard work to make that title, and all of McIntyre’s hard work to get this chance? Why can’t that be the reason they’re getting the biggest spotlight!? Rollins has had his priorities all backwards, McIntyre has been giving him all the answers. McIntyre said he is over the BS, and all he cares about is Rollins making it to the ring on Night Two. And if Rollins can’t walk, then McIntyre will wheel him down. If not, McIntyre will carry Rollins down. At Mania, McIntyre doesn’t get the moment he deserves. He gets the moment he has bloody EARNED. The fans do cheer that!

Rollins smirks and says, “Ah, Drew. There it is. That’s right, you wanna call me a spotlight junkie, but you want the spotlight just as bad as I do, don’t you? You’re an addict, just like I am. And you’ve been begging for spotlight for the past four years, because you won the WrestleMania main event. You did, back in 2020, in an empty warehouse. And all we’ve been hearing from Drew McIntyre for the past four years was how that wasn’t good enough. You’ve been whining and complaining and bitching and moaning that you deserve better, that you deserve more. The problem is, Drew, when everybody came back around, and the lights got bright again, what happened? You fumbled the ball.

“And that’s the difference between you and me. When the lights are the brightest, I shine, baby. I shine bright. And at WrestleMania 40, the lights are gonna be as bright as they have ever been. And you are gonna find out you are not as good as you think you are.” Rollins drops the mic, but this time McIntyre smirks. The verbal battle continues, but who will put their money where their mouth is once this one finally happens?

 

Becky Lynch speaks.

“I’m a wanted woman, and I don’t even have the title. Yet. But we’re less than three weeks away from WrestleMania, so why would I risk it all? Because I don’t know anything else. All I know is taking risks. All I know is fighting. And all I know is tonight, I’m gonna be the Last Woman Standing.” Becky is fired up to finally do what she hasn’t done in the most extreme way possible. Will she be the immovable object to Nia’s irresistible force?

 

Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship Ladder Match Qualifier: The New Day VS The Alpha Academy!

Kofi Kingston & Xavier Woods have been W, W, E, World, Tag, Team, CHAMPIONS~, but they’ve never been a part of a title match as big as this Six Pack Ladder challenge! Will they look to be part of history once again? Or will Akira Tozawa & Otis say “A THANK YEW~!” for this golden opportunity?

Raw returns as the Academy makes their entrance. The teams sort out and Woods starts against the tree trunk, Otis. The fans rally for “NEW! DAY ROCKS!” Otis and Woods tie up, but Woods kicks low then headlocks. Otis powers up and out then runs Woods over! Otis storms up on Woods, GUT RAMS him back down, then brings him back up. Otis GUT RAMS Woods again, then runs to CLOBBER Woods! Otis swivels his hips, the fans echo “Oh~ yeah!” Otis tags Tozawa and the Academy mugs Woods. Tozawa brings Woods around but Woods CHOPS! Woods tags Kofi, he and Kofi double whip Tozawa but Tozawa holds ropes!

Tozawa fires hands, dodges Woods then BOOTS Woods down! Kofi kicks low, whips Tozawa to a corner, but Tozawa BOOTS Kofi away! Tozawa goes up to FLYING RANA! The fans fire up as Tozawa sees New Day regroup outside. Tozawa runs to DIVE! Direct hit on both New Day, and Otis joins in for “A THANK YEW~!” The Academy stands tall as Raw goes to break.

Raw returns again and Tozawa fights a chinlock. Tozawa reaches for Otis but Woods back suplexes. Tozawa lands out to then DROPKICK Woods down! The fans rally as Woods and Tozawa crawl, hot tags to Otis and Kofi! Otis CLOBBERS Kofi, CLOBBERS him again, then whips him to ropes. WRECKER ELBOW! Woods runs in, Otis dodges, to LARIAT! Otis sees Kofi leap off the corner, and catches him for a WORLD’S STRONGEST SLAM! Otis rips the shirt off, winds up the hips, and then starts up the CATERPILLAR! ELBOW DROP! Cover, TWO! Kofi survives but Otis hurries to step on him! Tag to Tozawa, and Otis goes up!

Otis VADER BOMBS but FLOPS as Kofi moves! Tozawa hurries up top while Kofi SUPERKICKS Otis! Kofi turns around into the CROSSBODY from Tozawa! Cover, TWO! Tozawa SUPERKICKS Kofi but Woods tags in! Woods GAMANGIRIS Tozawa, then steps in to TORNADO DDT! Cover, TWO! Tozawa toughs it out but Woods grits his teeth as he goes to the corner. Woods climbs, but Tozawa rises! Tozawa throws body shots, Woods CLUBS Tozawa! Tozawa throws more hands and climbs up! The fans rally as they brawl up top! Tozawa brings Woods up but Woods fights the lift! Woods throws body shots in return!

Woods shifts position to get under Tozawa for a fireman’s carry! But then Tozawa pops up to SUPER STEINER!! Tozawa rips off his shirt, climbs back up top, SUPER SENTON!! Cover, Kofi breaks it! The fans fire up but Otis drags Kofi out! Otis whips Kofi at steps, Kofi goes up and jumps off the steps to TORNADO DDT to the floor! Kofi hurries back up to the apron but Tozawa SCREW HIGH KICKS him down! Tozawa dodges Woods, pop-up, but Woods blocks the rana to then SPINNING POWERBOMB! Woods sees the WrestleMania sign, hurries up the corner, and he tightrope walks! LIMIT BREAK ELBOW!! Cover, New Day wins!

Winners: The New Day, by pinfall (advance to WrestleMania)

The New Day are the ones saying A THANK YEW~ as they put their names down for the Six Pack Ladder Match! Will they once again climb to the top of the WWE Tag Team Division and bring home those championships?

 

Liv Morgan confronts Becky Lynch.

Becky asks if she’ll have to watch out for Liv as well. Well, you should always #WatchMe, but no, not tonight. Nia is all Becky’s. Liv just wants Becky to kick Nia’s ass. Liv leaves, will Becky kick ass and then some?

 

Cody walks with his dog, Pharaoh, backstage.

Rollins finds him and brings up Friday. One on one? One on one. Rollins nods and says he loves Pharaoh’s bandanna. The Visionary trusts the American Nightmare can handle himself, but will we be able to trust The Tribal Chief?

 

Last Woman Standing: Becky Lynch VS Nia Jax!

From the origins of “The Man” in WWE to the aftermath of Elimination Chamber: Perth, these two have battled, but never as brutally as this! They’re able to go anywhere and do anything, but who will be the Last Woman Standing this close to WrestleMania 40?

The bell rings and the two rush in! Becky DROPKICKS Nia and Nia goes to a corner. Becky runs in but Nia puts Becky on the apron. Becky ROCKS Nia, goes up a corner, then leaps to MISSILE DROPKCIK! Nia stumbles and tumbles out of the ring, so Becky WRECKS her with another dropkick! Becky then goes to the apron for a FLYING FOREARM! Nia stays up, Becky tries again, but Nia dodges! Fireman’s carry and Nia POSTS Becky, to then SAMOAN DROP her into barriers! The ref counts as Becky is down, but she stands at 4 of 10. Nia CLOBBERS Becky and wants the count! The count climbs but Nia is impatient.

Nia clears off the desk, Becky stands at 5 of 10, and she leans against barriers. Becky comes back with body shots and haymakers, but Nia ROCKS her with a forearm! Becky staggers away as Raw goes to break!

Raw returns and Becky is bringing out a table! The fans fire up as Becky sets that up ringside. There’s been a lot of chaos during the break according to commentary, from chairs to kendo sticks to even a copy of Becky’s book, The Man: Not Your Average Average Girl! But Nia storms over to stop Becky and SMACK her off the desk! Nia puts Becky in the ring, takes that table for her own and sets it up. The table doesn’t cooperate and fans boo, but Nia goes for chairs instead. She slides those in the ring, Becky manages to stand at 7 of 10, and she grabs at those chairs. Nia ditches the table, it just doesn’t wanna work.

Nia storms in but Becky JAMS her with a chair, SMACKS her with it, then clinches! Nia fights the slam, fireman’s carries Becky, and FULL METAL SAMOAN DROPS!! Becky writhes from hitting chairs but Nia looms over her. Nia soaks up the heat as she counts along. Becky flounders to ropes and drags herself up at 7! Nia sits a chair up, fans want a table, but Nia scoops Becky. Becky slips around to a SLEEPER! Nia RAMS Becky into buckles again and again until Becky lets go. But then Becky BULLDOGS Nia off the chair! Nia is down for the count now, and Becky leans against ropes to stay up herself.

Nia stirs at 5, stands at 8, but Becky is up top! Becky leaps, into a CHAIR SHOT! Nia SMACKS Becky again and again and again! The fans boo but Nia finally stops. Nia puts that chair aside and goes out to get some kendo sticks! Nia puts those in, but Becky grabs one! Nia snatches it from her to SMACK! And SMACK! And SMACK! Becky sputters and staggers, Nia clinches and scoops! Nia SLAMS Becky onto chairs! Then Nia runs to drop the leg, brother! Nia wants the count and the count begins! Becky sputters as we reach 5 of 10. Becky grabs that kendo stick but Nia SMACKS Becky with a chair! And again!

Nia kicks Becky around, then uses the chair to take a seat on Becky’s body!! The fans boo as the count begins, but Becky SMACKS Nia with the kendo stick! And again and again and again, even in the butt! Nia stands up, into more shots! Becky stands and she fires away until Nia scurries out of the ring! Becky pursues but Nia CLOBBERS her! Nia pulls the steel steps apart now, and takes that top half to RAM Becky down! Becky flounders, Nia hauls her up and puts her in the ring. Becky’s on the apron and Nia takes aim! Nia runs up, APRN LEG DROP only gets apron! Becky avoids disaster, then has Nia by the steps! DDT onto the steel!

Nia is down again and the count begins. Nia stirs at 5 of 10, sits up at 6, but Becky SMACKS her off steps! Nia falls over again and the count resets. Becky hurries to go looking for things while Nia rises again. Becky has a new table! The fans fire up as Becky gets that in the ring. Nia stands at 7, staggers after Becky, and Raw goes back to break.

Raw returns once again and Nia mugs Becky against barriers! Nia puts Becky on a table, and surprise! There’s a ladder set up now! Nia climbs the ladder?! She also demands Pat support the ladder. But Becky gets off the table so now Nia has no reason to be up there. Nia storms after Becky, but gets a FIRE EXTINGUISHER BLAST!! The fans fire up as Becky cools Nia off, then JAMS her with the canister! Becky puts Nia in the ring, and there’s a table waiting in a corner! Becky lines up the shot, and runs in, but Nia SAMOAN DROPS Becky through the table!!! Both women are down in the wreckage and the count begins!

Nia flounders away from the wreckage but she still needs to stand. Nia is up at 5, and she isn’t satisfied with this! She drags Becky all the way to another corner and puts her in the drop zone! Nia climbs up, for the A-NIA-LATOR!! Nia shouts for the count, the count begins, and Nia storms around as she points to the Mania sign. Becky is still down at 5 of 10, only starts stirring at 7, and she slumps out of the ring to stand up! Nia is furious, goes out after Becky, and kicks things aside to keep after her. Nia asks if Becky’s vision is blurry. Nia fireman’s carries Becky up the steel steps and along the apron, aiming for that other table!

The fans freak out but Becky fights with elbows! Becky CLUBS away on Nia and the fans are thunderous! Becky then clinches, for a MANHANDLE SLAM through the table!!! Both women are down int he wreckage again, and the count begins! Becky sits up at 4 while fans are still losing their minds! We pass 5 of 10, then 7! Nia sits up at 8 and stands at 9! But then she slumps back over! The count starts again, Nia flounders around and stands at 5. Becky goes up the ladder! Becky sees Nia approaching the desk, and then SUPER MAN’S LEG DROP through the desk!!! The fans lose their minds again while both men are down in more wreckage!

The count is 5 of 10! Becky flounders and crawls, drags herself up at 9, but Nia is still down! BECKY WINS!!

Winner: Becky Lynch

The Man conquers truly one of the most intense challenges in her career! But then here comes one of the most intense champions! The fans fire up as Rhea Ripley makes her way out, Women’s World Championship in hand. She goes right to the ring and looks at Becky. Rhea “congratulates” Becky for winning, but then Becky gets in Rhea’s face! The fans fire up, and now there are no obstacles in the way of Mami VS The Man! Who will be the champion after WrestleMania 40?


My Thoughts:

A great Raw right here, though the in-ring action kinda dipped down until that awesome Last Woman Standing main event. This is one of the times I wish they’d done picture in picture so we as the TV audience could see even more action. Great win for Becky, of course, but I also like that Becky had a moment with Liv just before, and of course she had a moment with Rhea to close out the night. Great promos with Sami and Gable that also blended into the contract signing from tonight. And I suppose Gable has a point that Sami, the comeback kid, can’t do that when Gunther has an arsenal of moves that would be “finishers” given all the different ways Gunther has won over the years.

And speaking of that contract signing segment, I really liked the segue they did in following Sami so that he’d cross paths with Awesome Truth at gorilla and we’d get their segment going into their match. WWE has been doing some really creative stuff in this newest era where Vince is truly out and apparently even Kevin Dunn has moved on. Awesome Truth had a really fun but also really quick tag match with Indus Sher, and then New Day VS Alpha Academy was solid stuff, but DIY VS Creeds was such an awesome match. For a moment, I thought Creeds were gonna take this one but DIY still found a way, and I like that DIY is in. Honestly, I’m liking that the HHH favorites are getting in, because we also have New Catch Republic on the other side that can still win into the match.

Judgment Day had good stuff tonight, too. Good group promo with Andrade to tease El Idolo possibly joining, but who knows if he does. Depends on how things go for Priest. He was watching the qualifiers, he’s not worried, but maybe he should be. Granted, he still has the MITB briefcase, he could go from losing the tag titles to taking the world title, who knows how the Judgment Day’s story is going to go as we move past Mania. Dom VS Ricochet was a really good match, and Ricochet winning was the right move to keep this feud going. I think there’s going to be Ricochet VS McDonagh next week as a rematch from the gauntlet, that’ll be great stuff, too.

Candice’s Heel turn slow burn continues as she takes advantage of the “hurt” leg. Indi also does a good job of being very conflicted about this. There’s a WWE YouTube exclusive where Ivy Nile confronts Candice so that’ll be a match, and then maybe when Candice again goes too far, Indi steps in and we get a match of Candice VS Indi at some point. Good little update promo from CM Punk, he’ll have a great homecoming moment in Chicago, but also probably McIntyre coming after him. McIntyre had a great promo segment with Rollins, and with all these continued moments where the other person gets the mic drop moment, it feels like McIntyre has to win the title.

And of course, great stuff with the Bloodline story even on Raw. Jey and Jimmy have great promos in their confrontation, and of course it turns into a brawl. Good segue from that to Heyman being here, and Heyman confronting Cody during Cody’s great promo segment. Cody really went off on The Rock, that was some wild stuff. But the supposed promise of “one on one and no one else aside from Heyman” might be kept, and we get a strong promo segment on SmackDown in a foreshadowing of the fair-and-square 1v1 match. Or it is a trap and that’s more a foreshadowing of Bloodline Rules where they can do whatever they want. Guess we’ll have to wait and see.

My Score: 8.9/10


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Mitchell’s NJPW New Japan Cup Results & Report! (3/18/24)

The semifinals are here!

Published

on

We’re just one step away from the Cup!

Cold Skull faces The Fierce Warrior, and Gene Blast faces The King of Darkness, and when the smoke clears, we will have our New Japan Cup finalists!

OFFICIAL RESULTS

  • Boltin Oleg & Shoma Kato VS Zack Sabre Jr. & Mikey Nicholls; ZSJ & Mikey win.
  • Six Man Tag: El Desperado, Tomohiro Ishii & Togi Makabe VS Just5Guys; Just5Guys win.
  • Tanga Loa & Ryusuke Taguchi VS Great-O-Khan & Callum Newman; Loa & Taguchi win.
  • Six Man Tag: YOSHI-HASHI, Toru Yano & Hiroyoshi Tenzan VS Bullet Club; Bullet Club wins.
  • 8 Man Tag: Shota Umino, El Phantasmo, Hikuleo & YOH VS The House of Torture; Shota, ELP, Leo & Yoh win.
  • Six Man Tag: Los Ingobernables de Japon VS The United Empire; LIJ wins.
  • 2024 New Japan Cup Semifinals: Yota Tsuji VS EVIL; Tsuji wins and advances to the finals.
  • 2024 New Japan Cup Semifinals: SANADA VS Hirooki Goto; Goto wins and advances to the finals.

PLAY BY PLAY

2024 New Japan Cup Semifinals: Yota Tsuji VS EVIL w/ Dick Togo!

The Gene Blast overcame the tricks Ren Narita tried, but that’s because the House of Torture was saving all the good stuff so they could slay the Rampaging Dragon. Will the deck be even more stacked to make sure Everything is Evil’s? Or will Yota be one step away from LIJ VS LIJ at Sakura Genesis?

Well, Dick is making his way out here, but where is Evil? Oh, there he is. No tricks just yet it seems. But then Yota DIVES onto Evil! The fans fire up but Dick attacks Yota! Dick whips, Yota stops himself, and then scoops Dick for a BACKBREAKER! The fans fire up and Yota wants the bell. The ref says yes, ring the bell, and this is on the record! Yota stomps and CLUBS Evil, then whips, but Evil reverses! Yota hits railing, and then Evil whips him into more railing! Evil CHOKES Yota against the railing, Yota fights back, but the ref gets knocked aside! Evil puts Yota in so he and Dick can stomp away!

The fans boo but here comes the rest of the House already! Narita, Yujiro, Kanemaru and Jack all stomp away on Yota, but here come Bushi & Hiromu! It’s a replay of yesterday as LIJ fights off the House, but the numbers are still against them! The ref rushes in to tell everyone to stop! Evil shoves the ref out of the ring, Yota fires off on him, but Evil CLAWS Yota’s eyes! The House CHOKES LIJ, but the ref says stop! The bell rings, but what is the decision!? NO CONTEST!?

No Contest

What does this mean!? Someone has to advance, right? The finals aren’t until the 20th, how can there be a no contest? The House started this, where’re the consequences?! Yota gets up but Evil TOSSES him back out! LIJ regroups and Yota asks for a mic. Yota tells Evil that he’s sick and tired of this! They ARE gonna finish this match! The fans like the sound of that! All the refs come out, including Red Shoes, to discuss how this will be handled. For starters, they tell all the extras to get outta here! LIJ is cool with that, and Hiromu tells the House to come along. Evil says fine, and Jack, Kanemaru, Narita, Yujiro and even Dick reluctantly exit.

The announcement is officially made, and the bell rings! Yota and Evil rush in, Evil kicks low but Yota CLUBS away on Evil! Evil CLAWS the eyes! Evil kicks, runs, RAMS, but Yota rebounds to run Evil over! Then run and SPLASH! Cover, TWO! Yota fires up and the fans are with him! Evil bails out but the fans rally for Yota. Evil wants Yota to stay back, then he slides in, only to slide right out! Yota runs out after Evil, but Evil kicks him! Evil RAMS Yota into the timekeeper! Abe-san and his table go flying! Evil gets the mic to tell Yota that this is what he gets! The fans boo but Evil tells them off, too! Evil stomps Yota then soaks up the heat.

Evil unties the blue buckle pad himself, then waits in the ring. The ref checks Yota and the fans rally up again. The Young Lions help Abe-san while Yota drags himself up. Yota slides in, the fans cheer, but Evil pulls on Yota’s hair! Evil wrenches the hair, then wrenches it again! And again! Evil CLUBS the hair! The ref reprimands but Evil just dusts off his hands. Evil covers, but the ref refuses to count! Evil is furious but he’s the one up to no good! The ref still says no, so Evil stands on Yota’s head. The fans rally up, Yota rises, and he grins as he winds up to ROCK Evil with a forearm! And ROCK him with another!

Yota ROCKS Evil again, but Evil whips him into the bare buckles! Yota falls and the ref reprimands about the missing buckle pad. Evil stomps Yota, covers, TWO! The fans cheer but Evil is annoyed. Evil scuffs Yota, taunts him, and drags him up. Evil CHOPS, Yota drops to his knees, but Evil stands him back up. Evil CHOPS again and Yota grits his teeth as he drops to his knees! Evil stands Yota up again, to fake the chop to CLAW the eyes! The ref reprimands, Evil lets off, and then Evil stands on Yota in a corner. The ref counts, Evil lets go of the ropes but that’s not the problem! Evil steps away, drags Yota up but claims he’s dead weight.

The ref checks, Evil stands Yota up and wrenches an arm. Evil whips Yota into a corner, runs in, but into a BOOT! Evil runs in again, blocks the boot, but Yota brings Evil in for the STOMP! The fans fire up while Yota rests on the mat. The fans rally up and Yota rises again. Evil’s in the corner, runs out, but into the BACKBREAKER! COMPLETE SHOT! STOMP! The fans fire up again as Yota stands back up. Yota runs, to CURB STOMP!! Yota roars and the fans fire up again! Evil flounders while Yota aims. Yota runs in, but the ref is used as a shield! Evil kicks Yota low, then uses the ref in MAGIC KILLER!

All three men are down while the fans rally up again. Evil stands, he brings Yota up, and the ref also rises. Evil whips Yota into the bare buckles, then clotheslines him in! Then FISHERMAN BUSTER! Cover, but Evil lets off?! Evil wants to torture Yota but it’s hard to say if Yota is still even in this. Yota opens his eyes, rises up, but Evil fireman’s carries! DARKNESS FALLS! Cover, TWO!! Yota survives, the fans fire up, but Evil is furious! Evil slashes his throat and vows to end this now! Evil drags Yota up, spins him around, but Yota fights the STO with elbows! Evil kicks low, whips again, but Yota stops from hitting buckles!

Evil runs in, Yota dodges and Evil hits the buckles! SUPERKICK!! Both men are down again and the fans fire back up! We’re only ten minutes into this new match but this is on top of the madness from earlier. Evil drags Yota up, but Yota ROCKS Evil! Evil fights Yota’s fireman’s carry and CLUBS him, but both men wobble. Evil LARIATS, but Yota stays up! The fans fire up but Evil swings to LARIAT again! Yota drops to a knee, but he grins through the pain! Evil says alright, and he throws off his elbow pad. Evil runs to LARIAT! Yota grits his teeth to stay up! V-TRIGGER! Yota brings Evil in, suplexes, ORANGE CRUSH! Cover, TWO!!

Evil is still in this but the fans rally behind Yota again. Yota rises, drags Evil up, and then goes to the corner. Yota goes up and up and Evil moves the ref into the way! The ref takes the FLYING CURB STOMP!!! And now the House returns! The fans boo as Kanemaru, Dick, Yujiro, Narita & Jack all stomp away on Yota again! The fans tell them to go home, again, but these guys don’t care! They just put one out on Yota. They whip Yota to a corner, then DIck runs in to ELBOW! Kanemaru ELBOWS! Yujiro BOOTS! Jack SPLASHES! Narita ELBOWS! Then they snapmare and set Yota up! Dick climbs for the DICK CHOP!!

The fans boo but the House applauds their own dirtiness. But here come Bushi & Hiromu again! But they just get mugged again! They set Hiromu up for the DICK CHOP, while Bushi gets a JACK CHOP! The House then slithers away before a replacement ref rushes out here. Evil drags Yota up, winds up and runs, to LARIAT!! Cover, TWO!!! Yota survives and the fans are thunderous! Evil is at a loss for words, but he slashes his throat! He vows to end it for real, and he reels Yota in. EVERYTHING IS- Yota flips through!? And HEADBUTTS!! The fans fire up as Yota reels Evil in for a fireman’s carry! 70 CROSS!! Cover, TWO!!

Evil survives the swinging spinebuster and the House cheers! Yota drags himself to a corner, drags himself up with the ropes, and roars as he takes aim! Evil rises, but Yujiro distracts! Dick runs in, but gets a V-TRIGGER! The ref sees Dick, but misses the LOW BLOW! Then Evil RAMS Yota into the ref! That’s the second ref this match! Narita gets his push-up bar! The others set Yota up, but here comes SHINGO TAKAGI! The Rampaging Dragon has seen enough, and he’s still pissed from yesterday as it is! He dodges Narita to PUMPING BOMBER! Kanemaru & Yujiro kick Takagi, double whip, but he DOUBLE PUMPING BOMBERS!!

Jack gets in, but he gets ELBOW, JAB and YUKON LARIAT! Evil runs up but Takagi SWATS Evil’s lariat to JAB! Then feed to Hiromu’s SUPERKICK! Hiromu & Takagi set Evil up for Bushi’s BLACK MIST!! Evil can’t see, the PUMPING BOMBER turns him inside-out!! The fans are thunderous as LIJ helps Yota up! Red Shoes hurries out here, and Yota aims at Evil! GENE BLASTER!!! Cover, Yota wins!!!

Winner: Yota Tsuji, by pinfall (advances to the finals)

The House of Torture ran out of tricks, and now there is light at the end of the tournament! Will Yota do LIJ proud and bring home the Cup?

 

2024 New Japan Cup Semifinals: SANADA VS Hirooki Goto!

One down, one to go. Yota Tsuji has made it through, now we see who joins him in the finals! Will the Cold Skull or Fierce Warrior be the one that steps closer to former glory?

The bell rings and the fans duel between “GO-TO-O!” and “SA-NA-DA!” Red Shoes measures the levels, and it seems to slightly favor Goto. Goto and Sanada circle, tie up, and are in a deadlock. Goto gets some leverage to put Sanada against ropes, but he lets off slowly. Goto pats Sanada on the shoulders and the fans cheer. The two reset, circle again, and tie up again. It’s another deadlock, but again Goto finds a way to put Sanada on ropes. Sanada turns things around, lets off slowly, and also pats Goto on the shoulders. The fans applaud and the two reset again. They feel things out, knuckle lock, then move to a clinch.

They fight for control, Sanada starts pushing Goto towards a corner but Goto slips away. They feel things out, knuckle lock again, then break. They tie up collar ‘n’ elbow, Goto waistlocks, but Sanada wrenches to wristlock. Goto rolls, wrenches, wristlocks, but Sanada spins, wrenches, only for Goto to roll! Goto gets a leg to trip Sanada up, and he has a toehold. Sanada fights back with a chinlock but Goto pulls on the leg. Sanada uses his free leg to hook Goto into an ARMBAR, but Goto clasps hands! Goto moves around, pops free, then headlocks. Sanada fights up, Goto grinds the headlock, but Sanada throws body shots.

Sanada powers up and out, but Goto runs him over! The fans rally as things speed up, and Goto counters hip toss with hip toss! Goto runs and he clotheslines Sanada up and out! The fans fire up and Goto slides out after Sanada. Goto stomps Sanada, drags him up, then CLUBS him on the neck! Sanada staggers, Goto CHOPS him, then kicks him, then CLUBS him! Goto whips but Sanada stops himself from hitting railing! Goto runs in but Sanada drop toeholds him into the railing! Goto goes down in a heap, but Sanada opens the gate. Sanada brings Goto through, then to the crowd! PILEDRIVER to the bare floor!

The fans are stunned but Red Shoes reprimands. Sanada leaves Goto behind and slides into the ring. The fans rally for Goto as the ring count begins. Goto crawls at 5 of 20, finds his way to ringside at 10, but still hobbles and crawls. He stands at 17 to slide in! The fans cheer, but Sanada stomps Goto. Sanada drags Goto up, CLUBS him on the neck, then brings him back up to CLUB him again. Goto CHOPS! And CHOPS! Sanada eggs Goto on so Goto CHOPS again! Goto whips, Sanada reverses to RUSSIAN LEG SWEEP! Cover, TWO! Sanada keeps cool and sits Goto up into a chinlock. Goto endures and the fans rally again.

Goto kicks forward, reaches out, but Sanada cranks on the hold! Goto keeps fighting, and has the ROPEBREAK! Sanada lets go cleanly, but then he stomps Goto while he’s down. Sanada then stands Goto up to CLUB him on the neck. Goto CHOPS in return! And CHOPS, and CHOPS, and has Sanada in a corner! Goto CHOPS again, then whips corner to corner. Goto runs in, but Sanada BOOTS first! Sanada runs, Goto follows, and Goto LARIATS Sanada down! The fans fire up and Goto rises, clutching his neck. Goto stands Sanada up to fire off forearms, then he whips corner to corner. Goto runs in, MURAMASA!

Sanada wobbles, into the SAIDO! Cover, TWO! The fans fire up while Goto grits his teeth. Goto drags Sanada up, fireman’s carries, but Sanada fights free! Sanada waistlocks, Goto throws elbows, then runs. Sanada hurdles, hurdles, and DROPKICKS! Goto tumbles out of the ring, Sanada PLANCHAS him down! The fans fire up and Sanada encourages them to get louder. The fans get louder and Sanada appreciates it. Sanada then goes back for Goto, brings him up and puts him in the ring. Sanada fireman’s carries but Goto throws elbows! Sanada turns around into Goto’s fireman’s carry, but then slips out into the dragon sleeper!

But Goto arm-drags free! Sanada kicks low, runs, but Goto follows! Sanada dodges this time, runs again, but Goto still follows! Sanada sidesteps this time, but Goto holds ropes to avoid the hurdle! Goto runs in, but Sanada fireman’s carries! T K O! Cover, TWO! Goto is still in this and the fans rally up! Sanada goes up the corner, ROUNDING BODY- NO, Sanada has to land out as Goto moves! Sanada runs in, but into the fireman’s carry! USHIGOROSHI! Both men are down and the fans fire up again! They cheer on “GO-TO-O!” but the “SA-NA-DA!” chants are still there. Red Shoes checks them both, and both men slowly rise.

The two crawl towards each other, and Goto fires a forearm! Sanada shakes his head, eggs Goto on, so Goto throws another! Goto eggs Sanada on, so Sanada fires a forearm! Goto fires a forearm back, and the two stand. Sanada UPPERCUTS! Goto comes back to forearm! Sanada UPPERCUTS again, and Goto drops back to a knee! The fans rally, Goto stands again, and he forearms! UPPERCUT, forearm, repeat! Goto growls, fires a flurry of forearms, and he ROCKS Sanada! Sanada drops to his hand and knees but Goto powers up! Goto KICKS but Sanada blocks! Goto fires more forearms, then waistlocks, but Sandaa fights free!

Sanada runs, but Goto fireman’s carries! And he throws Sanada into the dragon sleeper! But Sanada turns around and suplexes, for MAGIC SCREW! Both men are down again and the fans fire back up! Sanada roars as he rises up, and he aims from a corner. Sanada wants Goto to get up, and Goto sits up, into the SHINING WIZARD! Sanada then dragon sleepers, for the SKULL END!! Goto endures, flails, reaches out, but he’s caught in the body scissors! Goto fights around but he’s fading! The fans rally, Goto’s hand drops! Sanada lets him go to then climb! ROUNDING BODY PRESS! Cover, TWO!!

The fans fire up as Goto survives but Sanada storms around. Sanada drags Goto up, reels him in and clinches, but Goto slips free to shove Sanada away! Sanada forearms, ROLLING- HEADBUTT from Goto! The fans fire up and duel, and Goto drags Sanada up. But Sanada breaks free! Goto HEADBUTTS again! Sanada falls back down and Goto steadies himself. Goto roars, the fans are with him, and Goto sits Sanada up. Goto runs to PENALTY KICK! Shoutout to Shibata and the fans fire up more! Sanada grits his teeth as he sits back up but Goto takes aim! BUZZSAW! And then he hauls Sanada up to dragon sleeper! G T- BACKSLIDE COUNTER! TWO!!!

Sanada and Goto hurry up, Sanada dodges to O’Conner BRIDGE!! TWO?!!? Goto escapes and shocks everyone! Sanada resets, runs in, SHINING WIZARD!! The fans are thunderous as Sanada roars and drags Goto back up! Clinch and DEAD- NO, Goto slips around to ripcord and fireman’s carry! G T W!! Cover, TWO?!?!? Sanada survives but Goto is all fired up! The fans are thunderous as Goto dragon sleepers for G T R!!! Cover, GOTO WINS!!!

Winner: Hirooki Goto, by pinfall (advances to the finals)

Don’t call it a comeback, Goto’s been here for years! Sanada’s hopes of being IWGP World Heavyweight Champion again have been delayed, how long must he wait for another chance?

As for Goto, he’s going back to the New Japan Cup Finals for the first time since 2016, and his seventh overall! But before he can get the mic to speak, Yota makes his way back out here. Yota steps into the ring and he gets the mic first. Yota tells Goto, “In order to open the door to a new era, we must do this.” The fans applaud that, and Yota continues by asking Goto, “Are you ready?!” Yota drops the mic at Goto’s feet, and Goto stands up to speak. “I also have something I want to show you. As a three-time New Japan Cup Champion, I will show you my strength.” The fans like the sound of that!

The Fierce Warrior stares down with Gene Blast, a true generational showdown on the horizon! Will Goto return not juts to former glory, but finally ascend to top of NJPW? Or will Yota make it LIJ VS LIJ for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship?


My Thoughts:

A great semifinal round for this tournament, with quite a surprising main event. Sanada VS Goto was great stuff, and while I felt Sanada wasn’t winning the Cup, I didn’t think he’d be out this round. Yota VS Evil was rather creatively put together, too. I did not think the House would get so involved that at first it was a No Contest but then they restart under a ringside ban. Takagi making sure Yota won was good stuff, too, maybe we can get Takagi VS Evil for the NEVER Openweight Championship if they’re not gonna circle back to more Shota Umino VS House of Torture stuff.

Goto VS Yota is going to be great stuff, and Goto is clearly a top utility guy. He’s had so many New Japan Cup finals appearances, certainly among the most ever, but I don’t think he gets a fourth Cup win against Yota, one of the “new era Musketeers” that NJPW clearly loves. Yota VS Naito is definitely the title match for Sakura Genesis.

My Score: 8.9/10


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