Coverage
Mitchell’s WWE Raw Results & Report! (6/5/23)
WHOA~ OH~ OHHH~!
Will The Judgment Day truly run Monday nights?
In his first defense of the NEW World Heavyweight Championship, Seth Rollins defend against Damian Priest! Will this be the Visionary’s Judgment Day?
OFFICIAL RESULTS
- Women’s Money in the Bank Ladder Match Qualifier: Becky Lynch VS Sonya Deville w/ Chelsea Green; Becky wins and advances to MITB.
- Kevin Owens w/ Sami Zayn VS GUNTHER w/ Imperium; Gunther wins.
- Ronda Rousey & Shayna Baszler VS Kayden Carter & Katana Chance; Ronda & Shayna win.
- Ricochet VS Shinsuke Nakamura; Nakamura wins, by disqualification.
- Women’s Money in the Bank Ladder Match Qualifier: Zoey Stark w/ Trish Stratus VS Natalya; Zoey wins and advances to MITB.
- Indus Sher w/ Jinder Mahal & Cedric Alexander & Shelton Benjamin; No Contest.
- WWE World Heavyweight Championship: Seth Rollins VS Damian Priest; Rollins wins and retains the title.
PLAY BY PLAY
Seth Rollins heads to the ring!
Fans cheer as The Visionary, in a suit as shiny as his World Heavyweight Championship, swaggers down the ramp. And of course, Rollins revels in the fans singing “WHOA~ OH~ OHHH~!” Rollins then gets the mic to tell Hartford, Connecticut, “Welcome to Monday Night Rollins!” Rollins has to tell us, that one week as World Heavyweight Champion has been a non-stop partay~! But in the midst of it all, Rollins got to thinking, “When was the last time we had a Heavyweight Championship match right here live on Raw?” And he had to go into the Way Back Machine, because it has been nearly two years!
Fans boo that it’s been that long, but Rollins says he though to himself, “Two years is too damn long.” So what he did is that he went to the Twitterverse, and he put out the challenge for the world title right here tonight in Hartford! And that open challenge was answered by the Judgment Day’s Damian Priest. Fans boo but Rollins says, “I gotta be honest with you guys. I’m kinda psyched about it.” And he is psyched because he said he wanted all the fights and to fight the best. Love ’em or hate ’em, Dominik Mysterio, Rhea Ripley, Finn Balor & Damian Priest are as good as it gets. And Rollins looks forward to the match here tonight to show us all that as good as they are, they just ain’t him!
Because Rollins is a Visionary! Rollins is a Revolutionary! But wait, here comes the Judgment Day. Finn & Priest go down the ramp and Rollins asks them why! Why are they coming out here now while he’s saying all these nice things about them and then they interrupt. Wait, wait, there’s only two of them so where are Dom & Rhea? Are they sneaking in from the fans? Are they making out under the ring? Ew, never mind. But Priest tells Rollins that Dom & Rhea have their own business to worry about. And Rollins should only be worrying about Priest. Wait, just Priest? But it’s not just Priest, cuz Finn is here so…
Rollins knows they’re boys, but do they do everything together? Does Finn hold the door open for Priest when they go to nice restaurants? Or maybe on the playground, do they hold hands going down the slide? Or what about going to the bathroom? Does Finn- Finn stops Rollins there. Mr. Funny Man with the funny clothes and the funny dance and the funny jokes and everyone loves Seth Freakin’ Rollins~! And everyone just loves to sing his song~! They do, though. Well, no one is gonna love seeing Priest beating Rollins and taking the title from him tonight! Fans boo and Rollins smiles, but Priest says he has to be honest. He does think Rollins is a deserving champion.
Rollins’ resume speaks for itself. Everyone he’s been int he ring with, he’s beat. But so has Priest. Tonight, that World Heavyweight Championship… Well, Rollins making an Open Challenge, as foolish as it sounds, he has a set. Priest appreciates that. Because Priest didn’t think he’d get this opporutnity, so he’ll take it. And he will not fall. Priest wants to be clear: he doesn’t need Dom, Rhea or Finn ringside to beat Rollins for the title. Oh, is that so, big man? Rollins likes that! But to be honest, Rollins knows that if it’s just them, Priest doesn’t stand a chance. So what does Priest say he puts his money where his mouth is?
For the World Heavyweight Championship in the main event tonight, Priest is to leave his crew in the back. And truth be told, definitely leave the Prince in the back, he doesn’t do too well in fights against Rollins. Rollins pokes Finn in the shoulder, referencing the barrier bomb that took him out. Finn tells Rollins doesn’t decide how this goes down! But Priest says it’s cool. Priest accepts that stipulation. But at the end of the night, Priest will be the NEW World Heavyweight Champion. And Rollins will just go down in history with one of the shortest reigns ever. Rollins laughs and says he loves it! Rollins VS Priest, 1v1, no Judgment Day!
But any way you slice it, this title reign is already longer than Finn’s! See ya in the main event! Rollins struts away, but will he face punishment for poking fun at the Prince?
Women’s Money in the Bank Ladder Match Qualifier: Becky Lynch VS Sonya Deville w/ Chelsea Green!
The Man has some bones to pick with Trish Stratus & Zoey Stark, but she also wants to get back to the top of the mountain. Will Becky begin that #BigTime climb here tonight? Or will the Pride Fighter get the better of a distracted opponent?
Raw returns as The Complaint Department makes their entrance. The bell rings, Sonya and Becky circle, but Chelsea distracts Becky with trash talk. Sonya rushes in, Becky dodges, and Sonya stops from hitting Chelsea! Becky then catches Sonya but Sonya fights off the clinch. Becky fires forearms and a SOBAT, then she kicks at Chelsea, But Sonya throws Becky by her hair! Sonya dribbles Becky off buckles, stomps a mudhole in, but lets off as the ref counts. Sonya soaks up the heat and stalks Becky to a corner to smother Becky! The ref counts, Sonya lets off and she snapmares Becky into a chinlock.
Sonya grinds Becky down but fans rally up. Becky fights up, but Sonya throws her by her hair again! Becky stands on Becky’s hair, drags her up and ROCKS her with a forearm. Sonya fires forearms, has Becky on the ropes, but Becky elbows back! Becky goes to a corner, BOOTS Sonya, then LARIATS! Fans fire up as Becky rallies and CALF KICKS! Becky rolls, fans fire up, and Becky runs in to clothesline! And JUMP KICK! And then clinch for the BECKSPLODER! Fans fire up again and Becky runs corner to corner but Sonya dodges. Becky elbows her again, goes up, and CROSSBODIES! Cover, TWO!
Fans rally for Becky, but here comes Trish! And Zoey, too. They distract Becky and Sonya waistlocks. Becky switches, Sonya switches, repeat! They go around and around but Becky gets Sonya for a REVERSE DDT! Cover, TWO! Becky hurries after Sonya but Sonya bails out. Becky is annoyed now that she has even more pests to worry about, and Raw goes to break.
Raw returns again and Sonya has Becky on the top rope. Becky resists so Sonya throws body shots. But Becky throws those back! They brawl, Sonya brings Becky up top, and hits a SUPERPLEX! Chelsea cheers, Sonya covers, TWO! Becky is still in this, to the chagrin of Chelsea, Zoey and Trish. Fans rally up as Becky rises, and she goes to Sonya. Sonya throws the first forearm, but Becky gives it back! Sonya throws another, but Becky gives it back! They go back and forth, faster and faster, and Becky gets the edge! Sonya shoves Becky, Becky comes back with BIG forearms! Sonya bails out, Chelsea hurries, but Becky builds speed!
Becky WRECKS Sonya with a dropkick! Then she goes out to fetch Sonya into the ring. Chelsea storms up and BOOTS Becky while the ref is distracted! Chelsea puts Becky in for Sonya’s KNEE!! Cover, TWO!! Becky survives and Chelsea is furious! Sonya thinks of what she has to do, and she tells Becky, “Who do you think you are?” Sonya stands Becky up, pie faces her, then brings her up again. But Becky throws body shots! Sonya throws forearms, Becky kicks then ENZIGURIS! Sonya goes to a corner, Becky runs in but Sonya puts her on the apron. Becky ROCKS Sonya, then DECKS Chelsea!
Becky CLOBBERS Chelsea, RAMS her into barriers, and then RAMS her in again! The Hot Mess gets tossed AGAIN! Sonya goes out but Becky TOSSSES her, too! Becky RAMS Sonya back into barriers, the ring count is climbing, but Becky RAMS Sonya into more barriers! Becky puts Sonya in at 8 of 10 and fans fire up as she storms up, to MAN- NO, Sonya gets free, rolls Becky up, TWO! DISARM-HER! But Sonya flails, fights around, and shoves Becky into ropes! Then she pushes Becky down for a cover, and Chelsea holds Sonya’s feet on the ropes! TWO!!! Becky escapes and the Complaint Department can’t accept that!
Sonya drags Becky up, throws forearms and body shots, then fast hands from all sides! Sonya aims from a corner, goes up, and leaps, but Becky catches her! MANHANDLE SLAM!! Cover, Becky wins!!
Winner: Becky Lynch, by pinfall (advances to MITB)
Even against Big Time odds, Becky wins a spot in the ladder match! Zoey Stark has her own match later tonight, will The Hunter be able to keep up with her prey?
Backstage interview with Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn.
Byron Saxton walks over to the Undisputed Tag Team Champions and asks them their take on what we saw on Friday Night SmackDown. Sami says he isn’t the type to say, “I told you so,” which Kevin scoffs at. But Sami says it is nice to see the Usos do what they should’ve done months ago, Well, Jimmy is, we still have to see what Jey will do. Though, not really their problem anymore. But then Imperium walks over. Ludwig Kaiser says they’re right about one thing: The Bloodline isn’t their problem. But as long as they are the tag team champions, Imperium IS their problem.
Kevin asks if they learned anything from last week. They aren’t supposed to show up unless someone call for them! No one here said their name! They broke the unwritten rule! Doesn’t Ludwig have some turtleneck shopping to do? But then Gunther walks up. Kevin asks him what, and Gunther tells “Mr. Owens” that he needs to control his temper. He lacks discipline. Gunther is a disciplined man, and it looks like he must teach Kevin discipline. Oh, well, guess what? Kevin has a solution: a ring with thousands of people ready to watch Kevin kick Gunther’s ass! Let’s go do that! Kevin storms off towards gorilla, Sami goes with him. Is this really happening now?!
Kevin & Sami head to the ring!
Yes, this IS happening now! The Prizefighter goes right into the ring, the Great Liberator following behind. Will management greenlight a match with Der Ring General?
Kayden Carter & Katana Chance speak.
“There’s no greater freedom than being underestimated.” When you bring the party and have as much fun as they do, people will think you don’t have the talent to back it up. Kayden is an NCAA champion and a collegiate hall of fame point guard while Katana is a Division I gymnast with 18 YEARS experience, and the first woman ever to conquer the American Ninja Warrior warped wall. They were the longest reigning NXT Women’s Tag Team Champions, and did things no one had ever seen before. Their dynamic is unmatched. And to the fans, no matter who you or where you come from, when you’re with KC Squared, they bring the party and everyone’s invited.
Kevin Owens w/ Sami Zayn VS GUNTHER w/ Imperium!
Raw returns and Kevin is ready. Imperium makes their entrance because this match is on! Will Kevin’s temper cost him? Or will it be just what he needs to bring down the most dominant WWE Intercontinental Champion of the 21st Century?
The bell rings, the two tie up, and go around. They break, tie up again, and Gunther puts Kevin in a corner. Kevin turns it around but Gunther turns it back. The ref counts, the two break, and then they go again. Gunther headlocks, hits a takeover, and fans rally, “Fight, Owens, Fights!” Kevin fights up, Gunther keeps the headlock on, Kevin powers up, but Gunther holds on tight. Fans rally and Kevin fishhooks Gunther! Kevin powers out, but then Gunther runs him over! Kevin just comes back for more, but Gunther wrenches an arm. Gunther grinds that shoulder, but Kevin rolls and gets the ROPEBREAK!
The ref counts, Gunther lets go, and Kevin SLAPS him! Kevin fires off forearms, headlocks in return, but Gunther powers up and out. Kevin RAMS Gunther but Gunther stays up, so Kevin just fires off fast hands! Kevin has Gunther in a corner, fires off, but lets off as the ref counts. Gunther kicks low, puts Kevin in the corner, but Kevin avoids the chop to CHOP! Kevin fires off more haymakers, the ref counts, but Kevin UPPERCUTS! Kevin runs, but into a BOOT! And GERMAN SUPLEX! Gunther watches Kevin bail out, but Sami is there to coach Kevin up. Kevin clutches his head, Gunther goes out, but Kevin GAMANGIRIS!
Kevin CHOPS Gunther, Gunther BOOTS back! Gunther RUAMS Kevin into the barriers and makes it all shake! The ref checks Kevin but he’s okay to continue. Gunther drags Kevin up to APRON BACK SUPLEX! Gunther stands tall while fans boo, and Raw goes to break.
Raw returns again and Gunther covers, TWO!! Kevin survives whatever damage has been done during commercial and Sami is relieved. Replay shows it was a countered Swanton Bomb. Gunther paces around, then stomps Kevin. Gunther brings Kevin up but Kevin punches the legs! Kevin runs, but into a scoop and SLAM! Gunther gets Kevin’s head with his feet, NECK TWIST! Fans boo but Imperium soaks it up. Gunther taunts Kevin, stands on him at the ropes, then steps off as the ref counts. Kevin sputters but Gunther stands on his hands! Gunther CLUBS Kevin, CLUBS him down, then traps the arms for a seated neck wrench.
Kevin endures as Gunther leans on the hold. Sami and the fans rally, Kevin fights up, and Kevin throws haymakers! Gunther BOOTS right back! Cover, ONE?!? Kevin SLAPS Gunther, Gunther BOOTS Kevin back down! Sami is worried but Gunther stomps Kevin around more. Gunther talks trash on Kevin, eggs him on, pie faces him, then even taunts Sami. Fans still rally for Kevin, and Kevin comes back to ROCK Gunther! And again! Gunther CHOPS, and CHOPS, and CHOPS! Kevin falls over and Imperium cheers. Gunther huffs and puffs as he paces around Kevin, and he even taunts Sami again.
Gunther stomps Kevin, grabs the legs, and turns Kevin over onto his side to stand on his head! Then Gunther steps over for the BOSTON CRAB! Kevin endures, fights his way forward, but Gunther shifts right into an STF! And then into HAMMER ‘N’ ANVIL ELBOWS! And then a CROSSFACE! Kevin endures, pries at the grip, but he can’t see with the forearms in his face. Fans rally, Kevin fights back up, and he throws body shots. Kevin is free, and he CHOPS! Gunther CHOPS Kevin back down! Gunther seethes while Sami stresses out again. Gunther drags Kevin up, reels him in, and suplexes, but Kevin blocks!
Kevin throws body shots, fisherman’s and lifts, but Gunther slips free! LARIAT!! Gunther paces around while fans boo, and Gunther drags Kevin up. Short arm LARIAT! Gunther eggs Kevin on, taunts Sami and the fans, and then drags Kevin back up. Sami rallies as hard as he can and the fans join in. Gunther short arm LARIATS, but Kevin stays up! Kevin gives LARIAT after LARIAT in return! Gunther LARIATS, Kevin LARIATS, and again! Gunther gets around to GERMAN SUPLEX! Kevin flounders up to his feet, Gunther runs in, but into a GERMAN SUPLEX from Kevin!! Fans fire up while both men are down!
Sami is also fired up and he coaches Kevin. Kevin goes to ropes, drags himself up, and staggers around. Kevin goes to Gunther to throw a forearm but Gunther gives it back! Kevin forearms again and again but Gunther CHOPS! Kevin drops to a knee, Gunther STOMPS Kevin’s head! Gunther taunts Sami again, but Sami says Kevin can take him. Gunther gives Kevin toying kicks and eggs him on again. Gunther drags Kevin up but Kevin SUPERKICKS! And SUPERKICKS! Gunther wobbles, into a third SUPERKICK! Gunther is down in a corner, Kevin CANNONBALLS! Cover, TWO!! Gunther survives and Sami can’t believe it!
Hartford declares “This is Awesome!” and Kevin goes back to ropes. Gunther gets up, but he stops the Stunner with a SLEEPER! Kevin snapmares free, but Gunther SHOTGUNS! Gunther drags Kevin back up, reels him in, but Kevin fights free! Gunther CHOPS, Kevin ROCKS, repeat! Kevin kicks, fisherman BUSTER!! Cover, TWO!! Gunther survives, there’s a reason he’s a champion. But Kevin goes up a corner and Sami cheers him on. But Gunther rises to CHOP first! Gunther climbs up after Kevin, for a SUPER HALF HATCH SUPLEX!! Cover, TWO?!? Gunther just hurries back up the corner!
Fans boo but Gunther SPLASHES onto knees!! Kevin hurries up top again, Sami and the fans are thunderous, SWANTON BOMB!! Direct hit this time, cover, TWO!!! Gunther survives and no one can believe it! Kevin drags himself up and the fans are thunderous as he aims. But Vinci gets up! Sami YANKS him down! Sami fires off on Vinci, but Ludwig goes after him, too! Kevin goes after them, they brawl with Imperium! Ludwig runs into the ring, Kevin dodges to STUNNER! But Gunther rolls Kevin up! GUNTHER WINS!
Winner: Gunther, by pinfall
Sami is stunned, but the fans boo. Der Ring General’s soldiers save him from what was looking like his first loss in months! Will the Undisputed Tag Team Champions get their revenge on Imperium soon enough?
Backstage interview with Matt Riddle.
Cathy Kelley is with The Bro, and he is tired of seeing Gunther cheat week after week. Without Ludwig or Vinci, Gunther would NOT be champion this long. But then Ludwig storms over to say that is a disgrace! How dare Riddle talk about Gunther like that! Watch your mouth. And what is Ludwig gonna do about it? Ludwig turns that around and asks what Riddle is gonna do about that. Don’t poke him, bro. Ludwig does it on purpose, so Riddle TOSSES him! And he gets Vinci in an ANKLE LOCK! Refs and producers rush in to stop this, but Riddle tells Vinci to send a message to Gunther for him! Will the Stallion stampede over Imperium to get at the gold?
Backstage interview with Ronda Rousey & Shayna Baszler.
Byron Saxton is with the NEW WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions, and says considering their close friendship, what does it mean to be the new tag champions together? The Queen of Spades says this was destiny. They manifested this over a decade ago, even before they were done fighting int he Octagon. Last week, they tortured and maimed three other teams at the same time and finally become WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions. The Baddest Woman on the Planet says it is past time they legitimize these belts. The Women’s Tag Division will no longer be an afterthought with them at the helm.
In fact, they invite any team with the figurative balls to take them on! And in walk KC Squared. If they want a challenge, look no further. They are “The Life of the Party,” Kayden & Katana. They’re here to make a statement. And what better way to make an in-ring debut than against the Baddest Team on the Planet? Ronda asks when we got to Munchkin Land. This is Hartford, but seems that’s close enough. But ladies, Ronda is impressed with the “stupidity.” To think they made it this far being that dumb. Shayna doesn’t think this is stupidity. Stupidity isn’t always ignorance. This is their first time on Raw, they didn’t know. This is kinda like bravery.
But the thing that takes care of bravery so quickly is the sound of your own ligaments being torn off. Ronda says baptism by fire it is. They’ll let Pearce know KC Squared has a death wish. See you out there. Will the party be over after this one?
Ronda Rousey & Shayna Baszler VS Kayden Carter & Katana Chance!
Raw returns as KC Squared make their entrance. The teams sort out and Shayna starts against Kayden. They circle, tie up, and Shayna puts Kayden in a corner. The ref counts, Shayna lets off but then sits Kayden down, and pats her on the head. Kayden is annoyed but she stands up and ties up with Shayna. Shayna puts her right back in the corner, lets off again, but Kayden turns things around to sit Shayna down! Kayden says kiss this and Shayna storms up. Kayden gets around, O’Conner Roll, ONE but Kayden springboards to basement dropkick! Tag to Katana, they whip and trip and basement dropkick Shayna! Katana slingshot SENTONS! Cover, ONE!!
Shayna gets up and hurries to her corner, Ronda tags in. Fans boo but Katana smiles as she steps to Rowdy Ronda. Ronda dares Kayden to get in, she’ll take them both on. Kayden obliges, but then Ronda boots her down! Katana fires hands but Ronda throws her! Ronda fireman’s carries Kayden but Katana kicks her low! And BOOTS her to a corner! Kayden runs in, is put on the apron and Ronda elbows her down. Ronda dodges Katana to SHINING WIZARD, and then HANGING ARMBAR! The ref counts, but Kayden SUPERKICKS Ronda down! Shayna hurries to Ronda’s side while KC Squared regroup.
Katana helps Kayden get up, CROSSBODY on Shayna! Katana TORNILLOS Ronda! Fans fire up as the underdogs are standing tall! Katana drags Ronda up and into the ring, but Shayna storms up. Shayna grabs Katana’s bad arm to HOTSHOT it! Ronda hits an arm-drag! Ronda then gets Katana up, puts her in the corner, and tags Shayna. They double whip, SAYANAGI and SLIDING KNEE! Cover, TWO! Shayna twists the arm and wrist of Katana, but Katana endures. So Shayna isolates the arm, lets her hair down, and STOMPS the arm! Shayna taunts Kayden while staying between her and Katana.
Shayna gets Katana and CLUBS away on her! Shayna whips, runs in, but Katana BOOTS her away! Katana BOOTS Ronda, too! Shayna ROCKS Katana, back suplexes, but Katana lands on her feet! Katana slips under, hot tag to Kayden! Kayden rallies on Shayna, DYNAMIC DROPKICK to the corner! Kayden whips, Shayna reverses but Kayden wheelbarrows, victory rolls, and SUPERKICKS! Fans fire up with Kayden and she runs, to BOOT WASH Shayna! Shayna ends up on the apron, Kayden drags her back in, HEATSEEKER! Cover, TWO!! Kayden stays focused as she drags Shayna up.
Shayna elbows free, Ronda tags in! Ronda BOOTS Kayden down, rolls to the fireman’s carry, but Katana tags in! Kayden slips free, baits Ronda in and POSTS her! Kayden drags Ronda out, Katana goes up, but Shayna storms over! Katana BOOTS her away! HIGHLIGHT REEL!!! Cover, Shayna drags Katana off!!! But Kayden DROPKICKS Shayna for it! KC Squared was so close but Katana isn’t giving up yet. Katana climbs back up, leaps, CROSSBODY! Cover, TWO!! Ronda gets up, blocks a kick, and has an AKNLE LOCK! Katana reaches out, but Ronda drags her from ropes! Katana rolls to send Ronda into buckles!
Katana hits a CODE BREAKER! Shayna hurries to tag in, and she storms up, but into an ELBOW! Kayden tags in before Shayna KNEES Katana down! Kayden rolls Shayna, TWO!! Shayna KNEES Kayden, and SAIDOS!! Kayden flops and Shayna drags her up, into the KIRAFUDA KLUTCH!! Kayden is caught, she taps! Shayna & Ronda win!
Winners: Ronda Rousey & Shayna Baszler, by submission
The new kids on the roster came within moments of beating the champs, but close is only good with horseshoes and hand grenades. Will the Baddest Team on the Planet continue to dominate the Women’s Tag Division?
Bronson Reed finds Ricochet at gorilla.
“If it isn’t little lucky Ricochet,” says the Colossal Aussie. Bronson wants Ricochet to help him do the math on this. Two weeks ago, Bronson ragdolls Ricochet around the ring, beats him, and yet Ricochet gets in the MITB ladder match and not Bronson. Someone must really like Ricochet here. Ricochet says he has no idea what Bronson means by “lucky.” Ricochet earned his spot at MITB when he beat The Miz. And didn’t Bronson have a qualifier? What happened there? Oh, right, Shinsuke Nakamura ended the undefeated streak when he pinned Bronson one-two- Okay, okay. But Bronson dominated Nakamura, until-
Until Nakamura won. The King of Strong Style walks in, but Bronson claims Nakamura got him on a bad night and they all know it. Next time, it’ll be a very different result. Bronson leaves, and Ricochet gives Nakamura his props for handling that man. But tonight, and at MITB, Ricochet isn’t giving Nakamura anything but an L. Big talk, Ricochet. But let’s see if he can prove it tonight. Ricochet says, “Gambate <Give it your best.>” Will the King of Flight prove he can beat the King of Strong Style?
Johnny Gargano speaks.
“At first glance, it’s easy to label me as the underdog. People have always taken one look and thought they understood me. But what I possess is something they can’t measure. I was a kid from Cleveland, Ohio with a dream. And I traveled around the world for over ten years to live that dream. I finally got a tryout at NXT, and I was told there was no place for me there. Five years later, I was the face of that brand. Now I’m a staple of Monday Night Raw. So go ahead, underestimate me. That is where I thrive. I might not be the biggest, but I work tirelessly at my craft. And I do it in my own special way. The Johnny Gargano Story is just getting started.”
Ricochet VS Shinsuke Nakamura!
Raw returns and Nakamura makes his entrance. The bell rings and the two circle. They tie up, Nakamura headlocks, grinds, but Ricochet throws body shots. Ricochet powers out, Nakamura runs him over, and things keep moving. Ricochet arm-drags Nakamura, Nakamura headscissors, but Ricochet kips free. Nakamura hits a headlock takeover, Ricochet headscissors and holds right. Nakamura moves around, pops free, but Ricochet ducks the Penalty Kick to kip up, handspring and headscissor! Things keep moving, Ricochet rolls off Nakamura back but Nakamura blocks a kick to CLUB the leg!
Nakamura runs, but Ricochet DROPKICKS him out of the ring! Ricochet builds speed but runs into a GAMANGIRI! Nakamura gets back in the ring, goes up a corner, but Ricochet GAMANGIRIS in return! Nakamura tumbles out, Ricochet builds speed again, and he FLIES! Direct hit at the ramp and he lands on his feet! Fans fire up with Ricochet as Raw goes to break.
Raw returns again and Nakamura has Ricochet in a chinlock. Ricochet reaches for ropes but Nakamura knees low. INVERTED EXPLODER, but Ricochet lands on his feet! Ricochet dodges Nakamura to handspring and back elbow! Both men are down and fans rally up. Nakamura stands first but Ricochet ROCKS him! Ricochet shoves Nakamura to a corner, runs in and RAMS into him, then smacks him off buckles and KICKS him away! Ricochet then springboards to FLYING LARIAT! Fans fire up and Ricochet SHOOTING STARS! Cover, TWO! Ricochet keeps cool and he taunts Nakamura a little.
Nakamura sits up, and Ricochet kicks, but Nakamura ducks it! Nakamura kicks but Ricochet ducks it! Ricochet kicks, Nakamura blocks it, and Nakamura ducks the enziguri but not the HEEL KICK! Ricochet runs corner to corner, SPLASHES Nakamura, then goes again, only to hit buckles! TOP SHELF KNEE! Nakamura gives Ricochet GOOD VIBRATIONS, but Ricochet shoves him away. Nakamura runs back in, he blocks boots and puts Ricochet in the ropes! SLIDING GERMAN! Fans fire up with Nakamura and he slides back in, but Ricochet Tiger Wall Kicks! Ricochet ducks the roundhouse but not the WHEEL KICK!
Nakamura reels Ricochet in, INVERTED EXPLODER! And then from the corner, Nakamura aims and “YAO~!” KIN- V-TRIGGER!! Ricochet runs to RECOIL!! Fans fire up with Ricochet and he goes to a corner. Nakamura anchors as foot but Ricochet CLUBS him down. Ricochet climbs, but Nakamura ROCKS him first! Nakamura climbs up, but Ricochet fights him with body shots. Ricochet throws a haymaker, Nakamura forearms, and they go back and forth! But here comes BRONSON REED!! Ricochet jumps away but Bronson SPLASHES Nakamura!
Winner: Shinsuke Nakamura, by disqualification
But Bronson then CLOBBERS Ricochet! And SPLASHES Nakamura again! Fans boo as Bronson puts Nakamura int he drop zone, but Ricochet jumps onto him! But Bronson RAMS Ricochet into the buckles, and then SPLASHES Nakamura again! And then Bronson CLOBBERS Ricochet! Now Ricochet is put in the drop zone, and Bronson climbs! TSUNAMI!! Bronson grins as he stands over both men, fans want that splash “One More Time!” Bronson says no, he’s good. Will the Colossal Aussie find his way into the MITB Ladder match one way or another?
The Alpha Academy talk backstage.
Otis is proud of Maxxine Dupri’s roundhouse kick to Sarah Logan last week. Maxxine thanks Otise for mentioning it. Chad Gable insists it is still just Otis. Otis says tomato, tamata, okay? Well, yeah, Otis is the reason they’re together. The brain, the brawn and the beauty, plus her brand management skills, but look. If Maxxine is gonna be an alpha, remember that alphas don’t run from a fight. Maxxine says Otise has opened her eyes to their potential. But she thought that she could handle that little witch, until she came rushing at Maxxine like an animal! And did you see that outfit?
Why are these Viking creeps targeting them anyways? Gable has already addressed this. He has given his number one guy the latest in Viking literature. He instructed Otis to study up, learn what makes the Vikings tick, and how to take them down. And Gable knows the answer is in that big, beautiful brain of his! So what did Otis learn? Otis says they’re gonna take ’em out… with deodorant. And? And they’re gonna have Master Gable teach the lovely lady how to take on the Viking lady, Sarah Logan. And that is why Otis is the number one guy! Maxxine might be ready, but they can’t train with her in a dress.
Oh, don’t worry. She has the perfect outfit in her locker. Maxxine heads off, just what will this workout outfit look like?
The Miz is in the ring.
And the Hollywood A-Lister welcomes us to the Most Must-See WWE Talk Show, MizTV. And when he heard about tonight’s World Heavyweight Championship match, he knew it’d be a special night. So he had to secure a very special guest. A guest worthy of a night like tonight! And boy, did Miz succeed. Please welcome Miz’s guest tonight, The American Nightmare, Cody Rhodes! The fans cheer as Cody makes his way to the ring, and they sing his theme song, too. “WHOA~ OH~!” Cody gets his pyro and fist bumps fans in the front row before joining Miz in the ring. Even Miz jams out to the theme song!
Cody shakes Miz’s hand, revels in the fans singing and cheering a little more, and Miz hands him a mic. “Shall we start?” Miz and Cody take seats, and Miz says Cody looks dashing tonight. But Miz wants to review with Cody said last week. Cody listed a bunch of cities he would be in while challenging BRRROCK, LESNAR, who beat Cody at Night of Champions, and who broke Cody’s arm. And yet, Cody wants Lesnar to show up wherever and fight? Isn’t that kinda stupid? Right out the gate, huh, Mike? Uh, in the ring, he is The Miz. First name: The, last name: Miz. Well, okay, then, The Miz…
Fans chant “MIKE MIKE MIKE MIKE!” but Cody says he hasn’t been called stupid until now. He’s heard “Crazy,” that it took balls… Miz knows a tiny little bit about that, right? Fans chant “TINY BALLS! TINY BALLS!” but Cody has everyone calm down. The Beast is apparently on that annual hibernation, we won’t be seeing him for awhile. Too bad. But here on MizTV, they love drama, controversy and most of all, surprises! Here’s a surprise for Cody! It is better than Lesnar being here. Since Cody has a storied family history, Miz thought he’d invite another man who shares the same pressures as a multigenerational talent.
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome this surprise guest! Arguably the hottest superstar in the WWE today, it is DOMINIK MYSTERIO! Miz jams out to Dom’s song now as he and Mami Rhea walk out. Fans boo and give thumbs down as Dom has his arm around the SmackDown Women’s Champion and she has her arm around him. They go to the ring, mics in hands, and Dom takes a seat. Fans chant “YOU SUCK! YOU SUCK!” but Miz asks Dom- Rhea tells Miz to be quiet. He says, “Yes, ma’am.” Rhea says Dom-Dom has something to say. Dom takes the mic and fans boo, which annoys Dom. Miz shouts to let Dom talk!
Cody says yeah, don’t boo Dom. Rhea tells everyone to sit down, shut up and show respect to HER Latino Heat! Dom tells Cody that he was happy when The Miz invited him out here. He listened to Cody last week, talking like he was the big dog in the yard. But to someone like Dom, who has done hard time, Cody is just a little birdy with a broken wing. Dom says he heard Cody rattle off this long list of crappy towns Brock can find him in, and it hit Dom. Cody is a bad father! Cody has a baby girl, he should be home, taking care of her! Instead, Cody’s here. So he’s just like Rey: A deadbeat dad!
Cody stands up now and looks Dom in the eye. “I have a ton of empathy for you, Dom. I know that the 15 minutes you spent in prison was really rough on you. Hard times indeed. I mean, look! You even have a worse prison tattoo than mine. And then after prison, you went on to WrestleMania to have a match with your father. But I don’t know if I could call it a match, because it was more like a public spanking. And hey, hey, you’re right. No one’s perfect. I’m not perfect. Rey Mysterio, who I admire and respect, I’m sure that he’s not the perfect father. As a matter of fact, I know he’s made some terrible mistakes. And I know that because I’m looking at one.”
Fans chant for Cody while Rhea calms Dom down. Dom & Rhea turn to leave, but then Dom SLAPS Cody! Dom hides behind Mami and fans boo, and Cody sighs. Rhea dares Cody to do something and Dom keeps calling Cody a deadbeat. Mami & Dommy leave, Cody unable to do anything. Miz laughs, but Cody SMACKS him with the cast! THAT is something Cody can do. Will the American Nightmare teach the Prodigal Son a lesson while waiting on The Beast?
Women’s Money in the Bank Ladder Match Qualifier: Zoey Stark w/ Trish Stratus VS Natalya!
The Hunter has the Hall of Famer on her side and is looking to take over the women’s division with her guidance. Will Zoey say #ThankYouTrish after she helps her defeat the Queen of Harts? Or will Natty prove she’s still got it in her to become Miss MITB?
Raw returns as Natty makes her entrance. The bell rings and the two circle. They tie up, go around, and Zoey puts Natty in the corner. The ref counts, Zoey stomps away on Natty, but lets off at 4. Natty storms up but Zoey shoves her back into the corner for more stomps, and even forearms! The ref backs Zoey off, Natty rolls her up, ONE! Natty waistlocks to keep on Zoey, but Zoey fights up to snapmare, only for Natty to hold on! Natty and Zoey move around, Natty hammerlocks but Zoey switches that onto her. Natty fireman’s carries for the takeover, but Zoey headscissors. Natty moves back, pops free, covers, ONE!
Natty and Zoey get up, Natty headlocks, but Zoey powers out. Natty goes up and over but the leg jams! Zoey THRUST KICKS Natty down! Zoey stomps Natty and soaks up the heat while Trish smiles. Zoey gets the bad leg and wraps it around the ropes! The ref counts, Zoey lets off at 4, and Trish smiles more. Zoey drags Natty out from the corner, to DDT the foot! And DDT it again! Zoey gets the leg a third time, pushes on it and Trish says that’s good. Zoey has the standing toehold but Natty rolls and drags Zoey down! Natty has a deathlock but Zoey headlocks to drag Natty off. Natty powers out but Zoey runs her over!
Fans rally for Natty but Zoey drags her up by her hair. The ref reprimands, Natty SLAPS Zoey! Zoey KNEES low, talks trash, but Natty snapmares her away! Natty ELBOWS from a corner, Zoey runs in but into a kick! Zoey runs in again but into a GERMAN SUPLEX! Natty jackknife bridges, TWO! Zoey sunset flips but Natty rolls through to step through! SHARPSHOOTER!! Fans fire up while Zoey endures! Trish coaches Zoey and she crawls forward, to the ROPEBREAK! The ref counts, Natty lets off fast, and Zoey bails out to regroup with Trish. Natty storms up to WRECK Zoey with a dropkick!
Natty tells Trish to stay outta this, and she puts Zoey back in. But Trish KICKS the bad leg out! Fans boo as the ref missed that! Zoey hits Z 360!! Cover, Zoey wins!
Winner: Zoey Stark, by pinfall (advances to MITB)
#ThankYouTrish, you were the reason Zoey just won her way to London! But will Trish be able to help Zoey get up that ladder and win the briefcase?
Paul Heyman is backstage.
“Ladies and gentlemen, my name is Paul Heyman. And I wanna cordially invite you to join me this Friday night, when a family drama plays out in front of your very eyes when Jey Uso makes his historic choice. Y’know, as The Wise Man, I’m tasked at times to deliver… unpleasant news. No matter how bad that news is, I have to deliver it, even if I have to deliver it to Your Tribal Chief, Roman Reigns. This is one of those times. The news is not pleasant. The news will rip apart the entire Anoa’i-Fatu Dynasty, because this Friday, Jey Uso will make his choice… And Jey Uso will choose and stand by… his brother, Solo.
“You can share a womb with your twin, Jimmy, but you’ll never be closer in life to him than you are to Your Tribal Chief, Roman Reigns. And this Friday, live on SmackDown, Jey Usos will… Jey Uso will acknowledge that fact. Or else.” Heyman dusts his hands off, having done his part. Is this a prediction of what Jey will do, or a spoiler?
Indus Sher w/ Jinder Mahal & Cedric Alexander & Shelton Benjamin!
Veer & Sanga have been mauling men on Monday Night Raw, much to the delight of the Modern Day Maharaja. But will they be able to do the same to PRIMED Alexander & The Gold Standard? Or will Alexander & Benjamin be able to handle their business?
The teams sort out and Indus Sher CLOBBER Alexander *& Benjamin! Then they LARIAT each man down! Veer’s Million Dollar Arm is worthy every penny, and then he gives Alexander to Sanga. ELBOW DROP SIDEWALK SLAM COMBO! But the bell didn’t even ring, so this wasn’t a match but a mauling! Fans boo, Sanga tells Alexander to shut up about his pain, and the ref calls it! There’s no way Alexander can compete now. But then Indus Sher drag him back up! Another ELBOW DROP SIDEWALK SLAM COMBO! Primed got pruned, will nothing stop these two tigers from tearing into the Raw Tag Division?
WWE World Heavyweight Championship: Seth Rollins VS Damian Priest!
The Visionary put out the Open Challenge online, and the challenge was accepted! And earlier tonight, Rollins dared the Punisher to do this on his own, and the challenge was again accepted! Will Priest make Rollins accept that The Judgment Day truly runs Monday nights? Or will this still be Monday Night Rollins?
The introductions are made, the belt is raised, and one way or another, this is a historic first defense!
The bell rings and the two circle. Fans rally, the two feel things out, then they tie up. Priest puts Rollins in a corner, the ref counts, and Priest scuffs Rollins. Priest talks trash, but Rollins says okay. Then he rakes Priest’s eyes! The ref reprimands but Priest TOSSES Rollins to a corner! Rollins dodges the elbow to fire off fast hands and CHOPS! Rollins whips, Priest reverses but Rollins stops himself. Rollins then avoids Priest but Priest ELBOWS him on the apron. Priest shoulders in, but into a GUILLOTINE LEG DROP! Priest flops out of the ring, Rollins leaps, FLYING KNEE takes Priest down! Fans fire up with Rollins as Raw goes to break.
Raw returns and Rollins has Priest in a corner, but Priest ROCKS him with a forearm! Priest storms up on Rollins at the ropes, whips him, but Rollins kicks back! Rollins eggs Priest on, Priest runs in but Rollins dumps him out! Rollins then goes out after Priest, but Priest knees him low! Priest scoops Rollins and brings him around the way, but Rollins slips off! Rollins POSTS Priest! Fans fire up, Rollins runs in at Priest, but Priest tosses him into the timekeepers’ area! Rollins lands on his feet, jumps at Priest, but Priest DECKS Rollins out of the air! Rollins flounders into the ring but Priest is after him.
Priest drags Rollins up, CLUBS him, then TOSSES him to a corner. Priest ROCKS Rollins, stomps away, but the ref counts. Priest stops at 4 and he soaks up the heat. Rollins sputters to ropes but Priest CHOKES him! The ref counts again, Priest lets off at 4, and then Priest puts Rollins in a corner. Priest ROCKS Rollins with a forearm, wrenches and whips corner to corner hard, then he THRUST KICKS Rollins down! Cover, TWO! Priest clamps onto Rollins with a chinlock and wrangles him down. Fans rally for Rollins while he endures, and Rollins fights up. Rollins JAWBREAKERS free, but runs into an ELBOW! Cover, ONE!!
Priest snarls while Rollins sputters. Priest KICKS him in the back! Priest stomps Rollins, drags him up, and ROCKS him again! Rollins sits down, and Priest gets the arms. Priest has a motorcycle stretch while Rollins endures the knee in his back. Fans rally, Rollins fights back up and moves around, but Priest CLUBS him back down! Fans boo but Priest smirks as he stands Rollins up. But Rollins throws elbows! Priest shoves Rollins, CLUBS him in the back, but Rollins PELES! Both men are down and fans rally up again. Priest sits up in a daze but Rollins feeds off the energy. Rollins stands, blocks a punch and gives a punch!
Rollins counter punches Priest again and again, then fires off haymakers and CHOPS! Rollins whips Priest to ropes, Priest reverses but Rollins reverses back to LARIAT! Priest stays up, so Rollins runs in to LARIAT again! Priest is still up, but barely! Rollins runs again, ducks a boot, and he mule kicks! Front kicks! DISCUS LARIAT! Priest falls and fans fire up! Priest goes to a corner, Rollins runs in, BIG forearm smash! Rollins lifts Priest for a BACKBREAKER! Rollins goes up the corner, FROG SPLASH but he has to roll through! Priest ROUBNDHOUSES Rollins! Priest then runs corner to corner for the BIG back elbow!
Priest keeps moving, but Rollins kicks back! And reels Priest in! But Priest fights the underhooks to back drop! Rollins sunset flips, TWO! Priest runs in, but into a SLINGBLADE! Fans fire up, Rollins sees Priest go outside, so he builds speed. Rollins DIVES, but Priest catches him! FLATLINER to the table! The champ is down and fans go nuts while Raw goes to break.
Raw returns again and Rollins and Priest are both up top. Rollins SUNSET FLIPS, but Priest holds onto the ropes! Priest CLUBS Rollins down, but Rollins is right back up to ROCK Priest! Rollins adjusts Priest’s position and goes up after him, and fans sing “OH~ OHH~ OHHH~!” But Priest throws body shots! Priest CLUBS Rollins, CLUBS him more, then HEADBUTTS Rollins away. Rollins staggers back up, springs right back up after Priest, and hits a SUPERPLEX! Then roll through, but Priest suplexes! Rollins fights off Broken Arrow to suplex Priest for FALCON ARROW! Cover, TWO!!
Fans rally while both men are down, and Priest rolls out of the ring. “This is Awesome!” as Rollins takes aim. Rollins builds speed and DIVES! Direct hit and now Priest hits the desk! Rollins keeps going, for another DIVE! Priest hits the desk again! Rollins isn’t done, he runs and DIVES to send Priest over the desk! Fans are thunderous, but Priest gets back up!? Rollins hurries to put Priest in the ring, the fans sing again, and Rollins runs in, SUPERKICK! Priest wobbles, Rollins pushes him down and goes to a corner! Rollins climbs up, leaps, FROG SPLASH hits!! Cover, TWO!! Priest survives and Rollins is stunned!
Rollins goes to a corner and he seems to copy Roman Reigns’ lock ‘n’ load motion! Rollins spins, but Priest ROCKS him first! Priest aims to KICK Rollins, KICK him again, then KICK the leg! Priest spins, but Rollins blocks to ROLLING ELBOW! And then the turn, but Priest slips free, HEADLOCK DRIVER!! Cover, TWO!!! The Punisher gave a shout out to the third Shield member, but it wasn’t enough! Priest drags Rollins up, reels him in, but Rollins slips out! Priest choke grips, SOUTH- NO, Rollins slips free to CHOP! Priest ROCKS Rollins to a corner! Priest runs in, into a BOOT! Rollins goes up, but Priest SPIN KICKS him!
Priest goes up after Rollins now, and SUPER STEINERS!! Cover, TWO!! Rollins survives and Priest is beside himself! Priest grits his teeth, taunts Rollins, but the fans rally up. Priest stands Rollins up, traps an arm, and LARIATS point blank! Priest says if Rollins won’t give up, he’ll give him more pain. Another point blank LARIAT! And then a shove, and- NO, Rollins slips through the lariat to underhook! PEDIGREE!!! Rollins crawls to the cover, TWO!?!? Priest survives and no one can believe it! “This is Awesome!” as both men go tor poes. Priest goes to the apron, Rollins goes out after him!
Rollins underhooks but Priest powers out. Priest blocks a kick to BELL CLAP, but then Rollins ducks the roundhouse to CHOP BLOCK a leg! Rollins has Priest in position, BARRIER BOMB!!! Just like to Finn all those years ago! Rollins puts Priest in the ring, the ref checks Priest’s shoulder, and Rollins SUPERKICKS Finn!! The Visionary saw The Prince coming and takes him out! Rollins then gets in the ring, but runs into a LARIAT!! Priest choke grips, for the SOUTH OF HEAVEN SLAM!!! But the bad arm slows Priest down! Cover, TWO!!!! Rollins survives but Priest then realizes Finn is here!
Priest asks what Finn is doing, they said this would be 1v1! Priest drags Rollins up, crucifix lift, but the bad arm! Rollins slips free, SUPERKICKS! ROLLING ELBOWS! DREAM SMASHER ELBOW!! CURB STOMP!!! Cover, Rollins wins!!
Winner: Seth Rollins, by pinfall (still World Heavyweight Champion)
The Prince cost Priest, but now he gets in the ring with Rollins. These two stare down, are we going to get one more round between these rivals?
My Thoughts:
A great Raw tonight, especially with Rollins’ first defense being made outta nowhere during SmackDown. The opening promo was really good, and I like that they added the agreement that Judgment Day was not to show up at ringside. We got an awesome main event match from Rollins and Priest, though I wish they’d given this the picture in picture treatment. Finn showing up in an attempt to screw over Rollins was a good touch, he and Priest are starting to have a disagreement. I don’t know if this will lead to Finn and Priest fighting over who is really in charge of Judgment Day and/or someone getting kicked out, but it’s definitely teasing that.
Really good stuff out of the Women’s MITB qualifiers, though I was rather surprised by the results. I thought Trish & Zoey were going to cost Becky her sport and then Becky would return the favor, but I suppose it does add star power to the Women’s MITB if Becky is in it. Even so, she and Zoey (and Trish) will surely keep each other from winning, and someone else gets the briefcase. Still hoping Lita gets in on the story again and we get a big tag match at SummerSlam. And really good match from Ricochet VS Nakamura as a sampler of the Men’s MITB, but I figured Bronson Reed was gonna get involved. It’s kinda his thing given what we saw with him, Austin Theory and Bobby Lashley just before the WWE Draft.
Good stuff from Kevin, Sami and Imperium again, especially that match of Gunther VS Kevin. A little surprised they didn’t go with a DQ finish but in a way, it’s a good thing they didn’t. Gunther winning with help from Imperium doesn’t hurt Kevin that bad, and it gave motivation for what we saw between Riddle and Imperium right after. We definitely need more of this savage Riddle, and while Gunther dared Riddle to go win the MITB, I feel like this should motivate having Gunther VS Riddle right away. Gunther’s all about everyone else showing Imperium respect and teaching others “discipline,” so he should want to “discipline” Riddle directly.
Good video promo for Kayden & Katana tonight, as well as a good backstage promo with Ronda & Shayna before their great match. It really gets KC Squared going for the first time a RawDown Only fan is seeing them, but the loss was obviously going to happen. Really good promo from The Alpha Academy, though I’m a little disappointed there wasn’t another segment with them where we saw Maxxine’s training outfit. Maybe that’s next week in a training montage of some sort. And wow, did not think Indus Sher would just crush Cedric & Shelton, but it does build Indus Sher as a strong team since Cedric & Shelton are former tag champions together.
I should’ve figured Heyman would show up tonight, he gave a really good promo to hype up this week’s SmackDown, even though just seeing last week’s SmackDown was enough to get everyone wanting to see this week’s. And really good MizTV segment, which is sorta rare. Miz jamming out to all the theme songs was good stuff, and for a second, I thought Miz was bringing out Bron Breakker. But nope, it was Dom. Dom & Rhea seem to be moving on from Xavier Woods and Apollo Crews already, so that Cody has someone to fight while Brock Lesnar waits out MITB so he can get that SummerSlam paycheck.
My Score: 8.7/10
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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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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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