Coverage
Mitchell’s WWE Raw Results & Report! (1/15/24)
Will Rollins hinder Jinder?
The World Heavyweight Championship is Raw!
They’ve battled for the NXT and Intercontinental Championships before, but now Seth Rollins and Jinder Mahal battle for THE World Heavyweight title! Who wins the epic third part of the trilogy?
OFFICIAL RESULTS
- #DIY VS Dominik Mysterio & JD McDonagh; DIY wins.
- Candice LeRae & Indi Hartwell VS Chelsea Green & Piper Niven; Candice & Indi win.
- Xavier Woods VS Ludwig Kaiser; Ludwig wins, by disqualification.
- Akira Tozawa w/ Maxxine Dupri VS Ivar w/ Sarah Logan; Tozawa wins.
- Finn Balor & Damian Priest w/ Judgment Day VS The Miz & R-Truth; Finn & Priest win.
- Shayna Baszler & Zoey Stark VS Tegan Nox & Natalya; Shayna & Stark win.
- WWE World Heavyweight Championship: Seth Rollins VS Jinder Mahal w/ Indus Sher; Rollins wins and retains the title.
PLAY BY PLAY
WWE celebrates the life and honors the memory of Martin Luther King Jr.
His dream for America and the world lives on today, so long as we choose to live that dream.
Seth Rollins shows his daughter around backstage.
The Visionary may be preparing for his World Heavyweight Championship defense, he’s still a good father showing Roux the sights and sounds of the WWE.
Cody Rhodes is here!
Little Rock, Arkansas is covered in snow tonight, but they are heating up for the American Nightmare! The fans chant for Cody while he gets the mic, and he says, “So, Little Rock… What do you guys wanna talk about?” There’s a song about Little Rock, and his wife Brandi loves it. They could talk about that song, or about Cody fighting and defeating Shinsuke Nakamura last week. Or we could talk about the reason he is standing here. The reason Cody came back to the WWE, the thing Cody came back to the WWE for. The Royal Rumble is right around the corner, and he- is interrupted by Drew McIntyre!
The Scottish Terminator makes his way out to the ring, and though he brings the fire, he sure gets a chilly reception from Little Rock. McIntyre storms into the ring and grabs a mic of his own. Fans boo but McIntyre says, “So, Cody… What do you wanna talk about?” McIntyre says he and Cody haven’t had a chance to catch up. They go way back. They grew up in the WWE together. Same age, similar career paths, so McIntyre wants to say this to Cody’s face, he’s proud of Cody. Proud of the man Cody’s become, the performer he’s become, and looking back at how far they’ve both come, they were practically kids, 23 to 24 years old.
McIntyre and Cody were even WWE Tag Team Champions together! Google that to find it. Remember the name? Cody says, “The Dashing Ones.” Yes! TO think they didn’t go to the top with that name. But the reason they didn’t go to the top is that at the time, they didn’t have the perspectives they have now. They both saw themselves as top singles guys. They both had to leave the WWE to get their heads screwed on right and get that perspective. And they weren’t any ordinary wrestlers outside the WWE, were they? No, they redefined what it meant to be outside the WWE, they laid out a blueprint!
They became verbs! To pull a Drew, to pull a Cody! To become become so undeniable that the WWE called them back! But remember the last match McIntyre had before he returned to the WWE? It was with Cody. And he remembers what Cody said after that match. Cody told Drew he was gonna be a future world champion. McIntyre’s done it twice. So McIntyre will say it here in front of the world. We’ve seen what people have said. The gifs, the jokes, but screw it. Put your head down, keep doing what you’re doing, and you will be the first member of the Rhodes family to hold up the world championship. Fans cheer that!
Cody seems touched by those words as McIntyre says Cody will finish his story. But not before McIntyre finishes his. Cody says, “Is that so?” McIntyre has declared for the Rumble, Cody’s declared for the Rumble. So yeah, McIntyre could win. Jey Uso could win. A man who is very hungry and who wants to solidify his legacy in one CM Punk could win. Fans fire up for those names, but Cody says he doesn’t plan on letting that happen, but here’s the thing. They’ve both stood and won the Rumble, so you can’t count anyone out. McIntyre says this isn’t about anyone else, this is about him and Cody.
And since Cody’s following in McIntyre’s footsteps, McIntyre has some advice for Cody. “Just be yourself, man. You don’t have to wear the suits all the time. You’re not running for office. You don’t have to use all the big words like a thesaurus or a word-of-the-day toilet paper. And the biggest of one all, just don’t smile all the time. You’ve got that big dumb smile, and I can say that because I did it, too! I felt like even when I was angry, frustrated, sad, I had to be that beacon of light for the roster, I had to be that leader, I had to put that big dumb smile on my face. Wipe it off, mate. Be the real Cody.
“And if anybody has an issue with the real Cody, they can step up to you and you can drop them on their arse.” Cody says if we’re talking about stepping up… Cody steps up to McIntyre and assures him, this is not an act. Cody smiles when he comes out here because this is what he loves. HE appreciates the opportunities that he’s got because he made them for himself. They are similar, yes, but the major difference right now is Cody is thankful, grateful, and he cherishes his second chance while McIntyre just stands here complaining about his. Oh, so this is the real Cody, huh? Is he a wolf in politician’s clothing?
If not, then why they hell would Cody bring Jey to Raw, knowing the trouble it’d cause? Is that some “friends close and enemies closer” stuff? Or what about endorsing Punk? Cody knows what Punk’s like! Cody was there back in the day, and he was alongside Punk a bit more recently, so Cody should know! Is this to make Cody happy? Or to make everyone else happy? McIntyre doesn’t like Cody being a kiss-arse, but McIntyre still does like Cody, and he wishes this conversation wasn’t happening. But if not for Damian Priest being an idiot cashing in when he did, McIntyre would be World Champion so he and Cody wouldn’t be talking like this, but they are.
So then, Cody is just standing in McIntyre’s way. And like Punk learned, you will get eaten alive. McIntyre is on a different level. When he feels like this, when he is 100% himself, he’s not what is best for business, he IS this business! And at WrestleMania, the story belongs to Drew McIntyre! Cody says “IF IF IF!” If not for Priest, if not for Jey, that’s all it is with McIntyre! IF IF IF! They’re not the same, McIntyre is brimming with grievances and he wants that for Cody. But the difference is, when Cody thinks about it, when he speculates on finishing the story, he doesn’t look at McIntyre. He looks right here, in his heart, and out there to the crowd.
The fans cheer, and Cody says IF McIntyre wants to settle this in the Rumble match, then Cody will gladly give McIntyre something else to complain about. And McIntyre mentioned their “last match” they had, the last one between just them. Here’s something Cody wants to ask McIntyre: Who won? Cody drops the mic and heads out, leaving McIntyre stewing. There are so many stories on this road to WrestleMania, but who will be holding the pen?
Damian Priest confronts R-Truth backstage.
Priest asks Truth just what is wrong with him. He’s a funny guy and all, but now he’s selling modified Judgment Day merch in the parking lot?! At some point, it’s no longer funny. This is embarrassing! Truth says no, man, it’s wholesale, flipping it, and retail! No, stop! Enough is enough! But then Truth gives Priest a fat stack. That’s his cut! Every member gets their cut. Truth even has ones for “Tom and Nick.” Tom and Nick? Yeah, is Nick okay? Truth can’t find him on Facebook. Priest says fine, sell the merch, just don’t be too loud about it. The rest of the crew is really not happy with Truth. Got it, dawg!
And one last thing. In tonight’s match, don’t tag in. Don’t? Don’t. Ohhh…! Gotcha, wink wink. He won’t tag in. Here, take a shirt for the road. Wink wink. Priest may have just put the fix in, but will it fix the problems going on inside Judgment Day?
#DIY VS Dominik Mysterio & JD McDonagh!
Speaking of Judgment Day, Tommaso Ciampa got a win over Finn Balor last week, and now he and Johnny Gargano look to get another one together! Will they take down Dirty Dom & The Irish Ace to prove they’re worthy of an Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship match? Or will Dom & JD cross one problem off the list?
Raw returns as DIY makes their entrance. The teams sort out, and Johnny Wrestling has the fans behind him as he starts against the Necessary Evil. The two circle, feel things out, and tie up. JD wrenches, wristlocks, but Gargano rolls, wrenches and drop toeholds. JD scrambles to the ROPEBREAK, but Gargano lets off quick. The two reset, circle, and feel things out. JD shoots in to get a leg, trips Gargano, and rolls him to a facelock. Fans rally as Gargano endures, and Gargano rolls free to facelock back. Gargano rolls with JD to keep the facelock, then he gator rolls to a cover. TWO, and fans cheer as the two reset again.
Gargano and JD circle, feel things out, knuckle lock and JD wrenches to top wristlock! JD wrangles Gargano, but Gargano moves around. Gargano endures as JD leans on the hold, then JD shifts to grind the shoulder. Dom cheers but the fans rally for “Johnny Wrestling!” Gargano kips up but JD kicks low! JD whips, Gargano goes up and over and gets around to shove, dodge, and RANA! Fans fire up while JD bails out. Gargano builds speed but Dom dumps him out! Fans boo Dom but he revels in in. Only for Ciampa to DECK him! Fans fire up as Ciampa TORNILLO PLANCHAS! Direct hit, but then JD runs in!
Ciampa dodges JD, Gargano DIVES and sends JD over the desk! Fans fire up as DIY pats themselves on the back, and Raw goes to break.
Raw returns again and JD looms over Ciampa now. JD stands Ciampa up, whips him to ropes, but Ciampa ducks ‘n’ dodges to CLOBBER JD! Both men fall over in a daze and the fans rally up. JD brings Ciampa up and they start throwing forearms back and forth! The fans rally up behind Ciampa but JD whips again. Ciampa tags Gargano, slides under JD, CHOP and CLUB and JAWBREAKER into the wrench, whip and LARIAT! Fans fire up with DIY while JD sputters! Gargano drags JD up, CHOPS him against ropes, then whips. JD reverses, Gargano holds ropes and ELBOWS back! JD distracts the ref, Dom sucker punches Gargano!
Fans boo, JD runs to FALLING AX HANDLE! Tag to Dom and fans boo even harder as Dom rains down fists on Gargano! Dom flexes on Ciampa, then he stomps Gargano. Dom taunts Ciampa, ROCKS Gargano, then puts Gargano in the corner. Fans chant “YOU SUCK! YOU SUCK!” at Dom, but Dom throws hands. Tag to JD, and they mug Gargano. JD stomps away at the ropes, the ref reprimands, but JD lets off. Tag to Dom, he CLUBS away on Gargano with crossface forearms, then he clamps on a chinlock. The fans rally for Gargano as he endures, and Gargano fights up. Gargano throws body shots but Dom shoves him to the corner.
Gargano BOOTS back, RCOKS JD, then goes up and over Dom to schoolboy and KICK! Fans fire up as Gargano and Dom crawl, but JD hurries in! JD distracts the ref, he misses the hot tag to Ciampa! The fans boo as the ref says Ciampa has to get out! Dom stomps away on Gargano! JD gets some shots in, too! Fans boo as the Judgment Day gets away with that one, then Dom tags JD in. Dom & JD double whip but Gargano KICKS Dom away! Then Gargano DUMPS JD out! Then he SLINGSHOT SPEARS Dom down! The fans fire up as Gargano crawls over! Ciampa reaches out, but JD YANKS Ciampa down!
Fans boo as the Judgment Day isolates Gargano, and Dom DROPKICKS Gargano down! Cover, TWO! DIY is still in this as Raw goes to break!
Raw returns again, things are speeding up! Ciampa rallies on Judgment Day and he clotheslines JD in a corner! Then he clotheslines Dom in another! Then back to JD! Then back to Dom! Fans fire up as Ciampa just keeps going, he ducks ‘n’ dodges Dom to DOUBLE LARIAT Dom AND JD! The fans are thunderous, Ciampa brings JD up to whip and back drop! JD flounders, Ciampa brings him back around, REVERSE DDT! Cover, TWO! Fans fire up, Ciampa drags JD up and underhooks, to FAIRY- NO, JD slips free to tag Dom! Ciampa runs in but only gets buckles! JD trips Ciampa, Dom slingshot sentons!
Dom drags Ciampa up, JD joins in, and they double- NO, Gargano tackles JD! Ciampa cradles Dom, TWO!! Dom escapes, swings, but into a ripcord and HAYMAKER! Tag to Gargano, they coordinate for the BACK SUPLEX BOMB COMBO!! Cover, JD BREAKS IT! Fans boo but JD made it just in time! Ciampa ROCKS JD, JD ROCKS Ciampa, repeat! Ciampa gest the edge but JD kicks. Ciampa blocks to KNEE back, but JD HEADBUTTS! Gargano SUPERKICKS! Dom SUPERKICKS! Gargano DISCUS LARIATS!! All four men are down and Little Rock is thunderous with “This is Awesome!”
Ciampa and JD bail out, but Dom and Gargano crawl for the corners. Hot tags to Ciampa and JD, and JD dodges. Ciampa dodges, redirects, but JD SPANISH FLIES! JD drags Ciampa to a drop zone, goes up top, MOONSAULT! Cover, Gargano SUPERKICKS it apart!! Dom is back but Gargano fires off forearms! Dom ducks one to DROPKICK Gargano onto ropes! Dom dials it up while fans boo, but Gargano blocks the call! Ciampa KNEES Dom down to the floor!! JD is up, he shoves Ciampa into Gargano! Gargano falls out, JD rolls Ciampa with tights! TWO!! JD kicks and ripcords, but Ciampa SATELLITE DDTS!
Tag back to Gargano and DIY sets up! JD sits up while DIY MEET IN THE MIDDLE!! Cover, DIY WINS!
Winner: #DIY, by pinfall
And the momentum continues to build! Johnny Wrestling and the Sicilian Psycho are hunting down the Tag Team Champions, will The Prince & Punisher no longer be undisputed?
Candice LeRae & Indi Hartwell meet with Adam Pearce.
Speaking of tag titles, they’re talking about making 2024 their year. Pearce loves the energy, and he will- be interrupted by Chelsea Green & Piper Niven. Chelsea asks if Pearce even watches Raw. Well, she feels he doesn’t, because otherwise, he would’ve seen her pinning Kayden Carter, but that bum ref was the slowest counter ever. They should be fired for that. But Chelsea will take a rematch. Pearce says that ref is Eddie Arango, so respect him or change your tone. And as far as a rematch, that was their rematch, so too bad. But if they’re looking for a fight, Candice & Indi are looking for a chance, so how about this? These two teams, tonight!
Indi & Candice accept! And Indi says that count wasn’t slow, it got to two. Does Chelsea know how to count? Chelsea says she’ll show Indi who can count! Chelsea & Piper storm out, but will they have to move out of the way after tonight?
Candice LeRae & Indi Hartwell VS Chelsea Green & Piper Niven!
Raw returns as the Poison Pixie & #IndiWrestling make their entrance. The teams sort out, but Chelsea BOOTS Candice down! Piper CLUBS Indi, the ref reprimands, and hey it’s Eddie again! Piper CLUBS Indi, brings her around, and scoops to SHOULDER BUSTER! Fans boo but Chelsea & Piper soak up the heat. Piper BLASTS Candice off the apron, cobra clutches Indi, then tags in Chelsea. Ripcord and SLAP! Then LARIAT! Chelsea hurries to cover, ONE!! Chelsea pie faces Indi but Indi throws body shots. Chelsea CLUBS Indi, whips her, but Indi reverses to send Chelsea to the apron. UPPERCUT and- NO, Chelsea avoids the boot!
Chelsea drags Indi out to the apron, shoves her down, then PENALTY- NO, Indi ducks the kick to trip Chelsea! And now Indi BOOTS her! Fans cheer while Indi shoves Chelsea back in. Piper tags, and she dodges Indi to then block a kick. Piper HEADBUTTS, whips, and Indi hits buckles hard! Piper stomps Indi, goes up the corner, and she VADER BOMB FLOPS as Indi moves! Indi hurries, Kayden & Katana are watching as Indi hot tags Candice! Candice fires off on Piper, then kicks a leg out! ENZIGURI! Piper flops over, Candice step-up SENTONS! Then step-up SENTONS again! Chelsea runs in, but into a step-up CODE BREAKER SENTON COMBO!
Fans fire up as Candice then hurries to tag Indi back in. They work together, wheelbarrow SPLASH combo! Cover, Chelsea breaks it! Chelsea BOOTS Candice down, but Indi SPINEBUSTERS Chelsea! Piper wrenches Indi to scoop and MICHINOKU DRIVER! Then Piper runs, Chelsea tags in but Indi avoids Piper’s basement crossbody! Indi WRECKS Piper, tags Candice, but Chelsea gets Indi’s arms! Indi powers out, sets Chelsea in ropes, and Candice LIONSAULTS!! Cover, Candice & Indi win!
Winners: Candice LeRae & Indi Hartwell, by pinfall
Big wins all around for The Way! Will we see Candice & Indi hold tag titles up alongside Gargano & Ciampa? And with Kayden & Katana defending those titles on Friday, will they still be the ones Candice & Indi face?
Gunther & Ludwig Kaiser are backstage.
Imperium’s Ring General returns, what will he have to say about his 2024 plans as the longest reigning Intercontinental Champion ever?
Nia Jax speaks.
A highlight reel of her dominance plays, and to cap it off, the Irresistible Force says, “At the Royal Rumble, no one is beating me. Period.”
The Judgment Day regroups backstage.
Dom asks Rhea who she thinks Nia is referring to. Rhea says she’s gotta go address her division. She heads out as Priest walks in, they say hey, and Finn asks where Priest’s been. Where he’s been? Well, since he’s apparently the only one with issue over McIntyre running his mouth, he went to talk with Pearce about it. Any other questions? Yeah, JD has one: why aren’t they beating Truth down tonight? Y’know what, JD? Focus less on Truth and more on what happened tonight so it doesn’t happen again! Finn has Priest slow down. Is Priest actually defending Truth? No, man! Then what does Truth bring to the crew?
This is what: He earns money! Finn sees the fat stack and asks, “What is that?” This is just Priest’s cut. If he was them, he’d go find Truth and get their cuts. What about JD? Oh, who knows. JD’s name isn’t on the shirt. But seriously, though, let’s just focus on handing business. Priest and Finn fist bump, will they be able to handle the Awesome Truth?
Ludwig Kaiser is on stage.
“Ladies and gentlemen…! I demand all your gratitude, for the return of the longest reigning Intercontinental Heavyweight Champion in history… Derrrr RING GENERAL…! GUUUUUUNTHER~!” Gunther steps out onto stage and leads the way to the ring, his reign now standing at 584 days. Gunther & Ludwig step into the ring, and Gunther gets the mic. Fans are torn having Gunther back, but Gunther is amused either way. Gunther eggs them on, Ludwig tells them to respect the champ, and Gunther says, “We are two weeks away from the Royal Rumble, and I can literally feel the desperation around this place.
“Well, I can literally smell the desperation around here. And since we’re in Arkansas, I think I can smell excrement, too.” Fans boo, but Gunther grins. Gunther says when he was away and observing what has unfolded, all he saw was his fellow superstars coming out here, arguing desperately about who will win the Royal Rumble and who will win at WrestleMania. So he had to come back and remind everyone about one thing: last year he entered the Rumble at number one, made it all the way to the end, and was one enemy away from winning! But the fans chant “CODY! CODY!” and Gunther says he lasted longer than any man in history before!
So this year, Gunther vows that the longest reigning Intercontinental Heavyweight Champion of all time will WIN the Rumble and main event WrestleMania! Fans boo but Gunther says enough about that. Now, he wishes to focus… on Ludwig. Oh? Gunther says let us take a moment to review what happened while Gunther was away. Last week was Kofi taking the fight to Ludwig, the match ending in a count-out draw, but Ludwig standing tall as he crushes Kofi against steel steps! Gunther tells Ludwig in the present, “What I saw there, I love to see that. You showed a side of you I always wanted to show you!
“You showed grit, you showed confidence, you showed courage! My friend, well done.” Gunther has Ludwig bring it in for a hug! Fans boo, but then the New Day’s music hits! Xavier Woods makes his way out here, and he has a mic to say, “No, no no no. Ludwig, you and I have a problem. Because last week, you took it ten steps too far when you dropkicked Kofi’s head into those steel stairs.” Woods talked with Kofi, and Ludwig is the reason Kofi is not here tonight. But unfortunately for Ludwig, Woods IS here. Woods is here to extract his pound of flesh, so tonight, this is what happens: Ludwig VS Woods.
Ludwig can step up, or maybe he has to ask Daddy Gunther for permission. Gunther smirks but fans chant, “Who’s Your Daddy?” Gunther offers the mic to Ludwig, and Ludwig accepts it. Ludwig then tells Woods, “So after you’ve seen what I did to Kofi last week, you’re really standing here right now and dare to challenge me? Woods, what I did to your friend last week was NOTHING compared to what I’m gonna do to you tonight! I will take your head, as well! I accept.” The Impeccable German then tries to take a cheap shot! Woods is ready as he RAMS into Ludwig, then dumps Ludwig out! Woods then FLYING LARIATS Ludwig from the apron!
Woods fires off on Ludwig, the fans fire up, but the ref backs Woods down! Woods goes into the ring, Little Rock cheers him on, and this match is going to happen, after Raw goes to break!
Xavier Woods VS Ludwig Kaiser!
Raw returns as the match is underway, and Woods has Ludwig in a corner. Woods CHOPS, then CHOPS, then CLUBS Ludwig to another corner. Woods fires off body shots and haymakers, the ref counts, but Woods lets off. Ludwig kicks low, then he LARIATS Woods down! Fans boo but Ludwig rains down fists! Ludwig lets off and storms around while fans boo again. Woods throws hands again but Ludwig bumps him off buckles. Ludwig CHOPS, then UPPERCUTS, then stomps! Woods fires hands, they scrap, Woods RAMS into the corner again and again! The ref counts, but Woods CHOPS again!
Ludwig comes back to CHOP! Woods CHOPS again! Ludwig UPPERCUTS, then stomps Woods down. The ref counts, Ludwig lets off, but Woods kicks him low! Ludwig smothers Woods in the corner, rains down fists, but lets off as the ref counts. The fans boo but Ludwig soaks it up. Ludwig brings Woods up but Woods throws hands. Ludwig shoves but Woods CROSSBODIES! Cover, TWO! Ludwig sputters and goes to a corner, but comes right back to UPPERCUT Woods down! Cover, TWO! Ludwig smothers Woods into the mat, CLUBS away on him, then drags Woods around to rain down more fists.
Ludwig KICKS Woods in the back, pushes Woods around and talks trash. Woods SLAPS Ludwig back! Woods stands, runs up, and he SPLASHES! Woods climbs up to rain down fists! Ludwig slips out at five to CHOP BLOCK Woods down! Woods is stuck in the corner but Ludwig CHOKES him again! The ref counts, Ludwig lets off, and Woods sputters. Ludwig storms up on Woods, drags him up and claws at his face! The ref counts, Ludwig KICKS Woods back down! Ludwig eggs Woods on, pie faces him around, then digs his boots in! The ref counts, Ludwig lets off again, then runs up to PENALTY KICK!
Woods sputters and writhes, Ludwig covers, ONE!! The fans rally with “NEW! DAY ROCKS!” but Ludwig glares at them. Woods throws body shots and CHOPS in return! Ludwig kicks low, whips, but Woods CLOBBERS him! Fans fire up and Woods stands. Woods CHPOS, CHOPS and whips, but Ludwig puts Woods on the apron. Woods GAMANGIRIS! Woods steps in, into an UPPERCUT! And a LARIAT! Ludwig snarls as he storms up and brings Woods around. Ludwig POSTS Woods, then has him stuck in the ropes! Ludwig runs side to side to DROPKICK Woods to the floor! Fans boo but Ludwig stands tall as Raw goes to break.
Raw returns again and Woods sputters on the apron. Ludwig taunts him as Woods drags himself up. Ludwig grabs at woods but Woods HOTSHOTS him back! And GAMANGIRIS! Woods steps in, TORNADO DDT! Fans fire up and Woods is feeling it! Woods has blood in his mouth but that might just be fueling him! Ludwig CHPOS, Woods CHOPS, repeat! Ludwig CHOPS and CHOPS but Woods CHOPS and forearms and repeat! The fans fire up as Woods fires off again and again and again! Woods hammers away in the corner! The fans are thunderous as Woods roars! Ludwig goes to ropes, Woods runs up to clothesline Ludwig up and out!
Woods builds speed and he WRECKS Ludwig with a dropkick! Deja vu as Ludwig goes up and over the desk! Woods roars, but Ludwig CHUCKS the armchair! Woods dodges it!! Woods CLUBS Ludwig onto the desk and throws more hands! But Ludwig fishhooks Woods’ mouth! The ref reprimands, Woods gets free to mule kick Ludwig! Woods has the armchair, and he SLAMS it onto Ludwig!!
Winner: Ludwig Kaiser, by disqualification
Fans boo but Woods doesn’t care anymore, he gets a steel chair! Fans fire up, Woods storms over, but Ludwig GAMANGIRIS the chair into Woods’ face!! Ludwig snarls as he again stands tall! But that isn’t enough, he drags Woods over to the steel steps! The ref says no, but Ludwig wants to do what he did to Kofi just last week! Ludwig runs in around the way, but Woods gets up to DROPKICK! Fans fire up as Woods now pulls the steps apart! Woods runs at Ludwig, the steps hit POST! Ludwig freaks out and runs away! Woods is denied his vengeance, but will he not stop until he’s torn Ludwig apart?
Bronson Reed speaks.
“There is a man right now who holds a championship in WWE who doesn’t realize that soon than later, it will belong to BIG BRONSON REED!” The Colossal Aussie is aiming for gold, but who does he mean? Will it matter once they’re hit with the Tsunami?
Backstage interview with Xavier Woods.
Byron Saxton finds him and apologizes for the timing, but where is Woods emotionally? Where do you think they are? You saw what happened last week, so Woods isn’t- LUDWIG ATTACKS!! Ludwig beats Woods down in an ambush, but then Jey Uso runs up! Ludwig backs off, refs rush in to keep this from exploding into another fight. Jey checks on Woods, is Main Event Jey gonna have to get Ludwig now?
Akira Tozawa w/ Maxxine Dupri VS Ivar w/ Sarah Logan!
The Stamina Monster keeps wanting to go big in the New Year, but he just keeps getting his hopes (and himself) crushed! Will tonight be no different? Or will Tozawa find a way to stop the raid all by himself?
Raw returns and Ivar makes his entrance, “Valhalla” by his side. The bell rings and Ivar BOOTS Tozawa down! Tozawa writhes but Ivar says he already told him, “You’re a little man!” Ivar kicks Tozawa around, puts him in a corner and pie faces him over and over, The ref counts, Ivar lets off, but Tozawa SLAPS back! Fans fire up, Ivar snarls, but Tozawa dodges to SOBAT, spin, slide under and SCREW HIGH KICK! Ivar wobbles but he blocks the whip! Ivar whips, then pops Tozawa up, but Tozawa SATELLITE DDTS! The fans fire up and Tozawa rips his shirt open! Tozawa runs, but Ivar scoops to SPINNING SLAM!
Ivar runs to BASEMENT CROSSBODY! Ivar then drags Tozawa to the drop zone and he goes up the corner. Fans rally, Maxxine gets on the apron and pleads for him not to! She also distracts him a bit with that new jersey and matching shorts. Tozawa hurries to GAMANGIRI! Ivar wobbles, Tozawa goes up, SUPER SUNSET BOMB!! High stack, TOZAWA WINS!!
Winner: Akira Tozawa, by pinfall
But then Sarah CLOBBERS Maxxine for the distraction! Sarah puts Maxxine in the ring and smothers her! Tozawa runs in but Ivar HEEL KICKS him down! Sarah fishhooks Maxxine to stand her up, then POP-UP HEADBUTTS! Sarah DROPKICKS Maxxine out of the ring, and Ivar drags Tozawa back into the drop zone. Ivar climbs, and fans boo as he hits the DOOMSAULT!! Ivar crushes Tozawa after all, is this the end of Tozawa’s New Year’s Resolution?
CM Punk posts to Instagram!
“I think it’s time you asked me what I wanna talk about, American Nightmare.” The Best in the World wants to be face to face with Cody Rhodes next week in New Orleans, what will these two have to say before the Royal Rumble?
The Alpha Academy regroup backstage.
Chad Gable & Otis check on Tozawa & Maxxine, with the Creed Brothers there, too. Otis says Sarah & Ivar are cowards for doing that. Ivy Nile storms in and says enough! She talked to Pearce. Valhalla will pay for this. Ivy storms off again, Julius & Brutus following her, will the Diamond Pitbull take a bite out of Sarah Logan? As for Gable, he says he’s proud of Tozawa. Tozawa is on his way to graduating. But Ivar was a coward! Savage! Idiot! And next week, Ivar learns the difference between being a coward, and being an alpha! And Master Gable will be the one to teach him! Tozawa says arigato, will Gable be the one to finally stop the raid?
Rhea Ripley heads to the ring!
Just as she promised, the Women’s World Champion makes her way out to address her Women’s Division. Fans cheer for “Mami! Mami!” while Rhea gets the mic. Rhea then says, “I am so sick and tired of people like Nia Jax running their mouth and claiming that this is their division. This is MY division. That’s why this is MY championship.” The fans cheer that! Rhea says take this as a warning for whoever wins the Women’s Rumble. “If you decide to waste your WrestleMania, then I would advise you to choose me. But if you don’t wanna waste that opportunity of yours… Choose someone else.
“Because it’s gonna end up just like it did last year. Because Mami is always on top!” Fans cheer that, but then here comes Becky Lynch! Now fans cheer for The Man as she makes her way out here! Becky steps right into the ring to get a mic of her own. She and Rhea circle while fans cheer Becky on. Becky then says, “So here we stand. Two very different people with two very similar journeys. Two women from foreign lands who dreamt of coming here and becoming the very best to ever do it. Both spent years meandering, trying to figure it out. Both went from being afterthoughts at WrestleMania one year, to becoming the faces of the industry the next.”
Becky says there’s one major difference: One went on to win the main event of WrestleMania, the other did not. But there’s a reason for that: one of them has a natural ability and a finesse that is unmatched; they have the strength of a bear, the other has the heart of a lion, and a relentlessness and determination that is unmatched. So here we are, two of the very best to do it! But there is this thought, this voice in Becky’s head, this thing that is keeping her awake at night. It is asking and saying to Becky, “I think you might be better than me.” Rhea smirks at Becky, but Becky says she needs to prove that she’s not!
So to do that, Becky needs to take the title from Rhea. And to do that, Becky needs to win the Women’s Royal Rumble. To point at the sign. To declare at WrestleMania, it will be Mami VS The Man! Fans like the sound of that, but Rhea tells Becky, “There’s only one other person that wants you to win the Royal Rumble match more than yourself, and that’s me.” Rhea smiles as she says, “See you at WrestleMania.” The Eradicator wants to go Big Time, but will Becky make it through 29 other women to stay on the Road to WrestleMania?
Backstage interview with Seth Rollins.
Jackie Redmond welcomes the World Heavyweight Champion and Rollins says, “OHHH~ Little Rock~, HAHAHA! It’s freezin’ cold, but welcome to Monday Night Rollins! HAHAHAHA~!” Yes, it is cold, Jackie can almost see Rollins’ breath. But she wants to ask, Rollins wants to bring this title into WrestleMania, and yet he is the one who asked for a match against Jinder Mahal. Why take the risk? Rollins says he has been World Heavyweight Champion for over 200 DAYS. With every single defense, Rollins gets stronger! He gets better! So the way he sees it, the only way he can do what he has set out to do is to continue to be who he is: a fighting champion! A workhorse champion!
Now as for Jinder, this ain’t their first dance. But this Jinder isn’t the same Jinder that Rollins beat to become the very first NXT Champion. No no no, this Jinder is a former WWE Champion! “This is the best version of Jinder Mahal, this is a deserving Jinder Mahal! And Jackie, I wouldn’t have it any other way. Because I am a Visionary, I am a Revolutionary, I am SETH! FREAKIN’! ROLLINS!” Rollins is ready, but will he make it through the most intense and hungry Maharaja that has ever been?
Finn Balor & Damian Priest w/ Judgment Day VS The Miz & R-Truth!
The Prince & Punisher know DIY is chasing them down for the Undisputed Tag Team Championships, but this match is about handling business. Will Truth remember his deal with Priest? Or will the Awesome Truth make him free to win some golden tickets of his own?
Raw returns as the Judgment Day makes their entrance, with Truth having added himself to the graphic! He is even following behind Finn, Priest, Dom & JD! Well, since he thinks he’s in the group, and Priest is stringing him along, this actually makes sense per Truth’s logic. But Miz does his best to remind Truth that he’s still on Miz’s team for this match. Truth says right, of course! Wink wink. Truth makes sure to give Finn’s cut, though he kinda spills it… He and Finn pick up the bills and stuff them in Finn’s jacket pocket, and then Truth gives Dom his cut! Truth and Dom hug it out, and JD asks where is his money. JD, you’re not in the group!
Miz again has to remind Truth whose team he’s really on, and Truth says he was just giving the boys their cut, that’s all. The teams sort out, and even though Truth was told not to tag in, he ends up starting! Finn CLOBBERS Truth, soaks up the heat, and he drags Truth up. Finn puts Truth in a corner, Truth dodges, but then Finn puts him back in the corner. Truth dodges the kick, then dodges the splash! Finn storms up, Truth kicks but Finn blocks! Finn spins Truth, but Truth does the splits to then ROCK Finn! Truth feels bad now! He apologizes, but Miz asks what Truth is sorry about! Finn trips Truth to DOUBLE STOMP him!
Fans boo as Finn stomps Truth, but Truth bails out. Truth asks Priest what’s going on, they’re supposed to be working together, wink wink. The fans rally for Truth all the same, and Raw goes to break.
Raw returns again and Finn has Truth in a chinlock. The fans rally up, Truth fights to his feet, but Finn wrangles him back down. Finn grinds Truth down but the fans continue to rally. Truth fights up, throws body shots, but Finn knees low! Tag to Priest, and Finn tells him to handle this. Truth still isn’t Judgment Day, so it should be easy. Priest still seems hesitant, and he drags Truth up, only to get a JAWBREAKER! Truth crawls, Finn tags back in and gets Truth’s leg! Truth ENZIGURIS Finn away! Fans fire up as Truth crawls, hot tag to Miz! Fans fire up again as Miz rallies on Finn! And then he dodges Priest to clothesline Priest up and out!
Miz TOSSES Finn out, slides under him, then YANKS Finn down! Finn hits apron, Priest runs in but Miz sends him into desk! Then over the desk! Miz puts Finn in, dodges Dom & JD, and then runs up on Finn. Finn shoulders in but misses, and gets a DRAPING CODE BREAKER! Cover, TWO! The fans fire up as Miz stands up, and he says, “MASSIVE! BALLS!!” Full nelson, but Finn arm-drags free! Finn runs up on Truth, Truth gets away, and Miz hits an A-LIST LARIAT! Truth tags in, that’s not part of his deal with Priest! But Truth still hits the SCISSOR KICK! And then he realizes what he’s doing!
Dom is upset, Truth apologizes, but Miz DECKS Dom! JD gets up, Truth DECKS JD! Because again, JD “isn’t” in Judgment Day! But Priest ROUNDHOUSES Miz! Truth sees Priest, he winds up, and but then Priest says hey, what’s he doing! Is Truth joining the group or not? Finn rolls Truth up! Truth slips free to CALF KICK Finn down! Dom distracts the ref, Priest choke grips Truth! SOUTH OF HEAVEN!! Priest lets Finn cover, Judgment Day wins!
Winners: Finn Balor & Damian Priest, by pinfall
No golden tickets for The Awesome Truth, and other than Priest, Judgment Day is glad to be standing over Truth. Will this finally get it through to Truth that HE is the one on the outside looking in?
Jinder Mahal meditates.
Jackie walks over and apologizes for interrupting, but it is almost time for the main event. She was hoping to get his thoughts before tonight’s title match. Jinder says, “Absolute clarity for the Modern Day Maharaja. A seven year drought, but the whispers are pouring in, making me the most talked about star of 2024. Everyone is divided, but my focus is singular. 12 years in the making, narrowed down to one night. And tonight, everyone is unified when I beat Seth Freakin’ Rollins and become World Heavyweight Champion.” Jinder heads out, just as ready as Rollins. Will nothing hinder Jinder now?
Shinsuke Nakamura speaks.
“Last week, I could not cause the damage I desired, which made me angry. And that has left me hungry. Cody, you should keep an eye open because our story doesn’t end until I say so. But now… I turn my hunger towards the Royal Rumble. A hungry Shinsuke is a dangerous Shinsuke. 29 other men, all hoping to make it to the top. 29 men, I will feast on their dreams.” The King of Strong Style is looking to completely derail everyone else’s stories, will he be the only one left on the Road to WrestleMania?
Shayna Baszler & Zoey Stark VS Tegan Nox & Natalya!
The Queen of Spades and The Hunter are sticking together, and once again take on the Welsh Firecracker and Queen of Harts! With the tag title chase never ending, who moves into pole position for the next shot?
Raw returns as Nox & Natty make their entrance. The teams sort out and Stark starts against Nox. Nox rushes in at the bell but Stark dodges to SUPERKICK her down! Stark looms over Nox, scuffs her, then drags her over to put her in the ropes. ENZIGURI, then tag to Shayna. They coordinate, STOMP NECKBERAKER COMBO! Cover, TWO! The tag champs are watching again as Shayna twists Nox’s arm and bends the elbow! Nox kicks and throws hands, but Shayna still YANKS the arm! Shayna digs her knee into Nox at the ropes, the ref counts, but Shayna lets off at 4. Shayna stalks Nox while fans rally up.
Shayna brings Nox up to throw body shots, then she tags Stark. Stark stomps Nox, then Shayna tags back in. Shayna stands Nox up to throw more body shots, then she tags Stark back in. Stark CHOPS Nox and Nox flops down! Shayna loves that one, and Stark stands Nox back up. Stark CHOPS again but Nox fires forearms and haymakers in return! Fans fire up with Nox but Stark knees low. Stark bumps Nox off buckles, tags Shayna, but Nox still fights back! The fans rally as Nox fires hands on Shayna and Stark! Nox ROUNDHOUSES Stark, but Shayna KNEES Nox down! Shayna drags Nox to a cover, but Natty breaks it!
Fans cheer but Shayna TOSSES Natty out. Shayna soaks up the cheers and jeers, then drags Nox up to the top rope. Shayna SLAPS Nox, climbs up after her, and fans rally up. Nox resists the lift, then SUPER GOURD BUSTERS Shayna! Nox adjusts, to CROSSBODY! Nox rolls through, UPPERCUTS Shayna down, but now she’s far away from Natty! Nox hurries, hot tag to Natty! Stark also tags in but Natty fires off on her first! Stark staggers around, Natty reels her in, snap suplex into a corner! Natty then fires off fists, lets off to get under Stark, and she rebounds Stark to sit her down! Natty DECKS Shayna, steps on Stark and basement dropkicks!
Stark staggers up, Natty ducks a haymaker to GERMAN SUPLEX! Fans fire up with Natty and she DISCUS- NO, Stark gets under, around, and ELBOWS Natty, into Z 3- NO! Natty blocks the knee, trips Stark up, but Stark boots Natty away! Shayna tags in, Nox does, too. Stark runs up, Natty & Nox dodge to DOUBLE LARIAT! Shayna waistlocks Nox but Natty makes the save! DISCUS LARIAT! PENALTY KICK! Cover, TWO!! Shayna survives but Nox tags Natty back in! They coordinate, for the HART- NO, Stark trips Nox! Stark drags Nox out to SUPERKICK! Natty DECKS Starks, but Shayna has the KIRAFUDA KLUTCH!
Natty kicks off the ropes, rolls it back, TWO!!! KIRAFUDA KLUTCH!! Natty endures but she’s fading! Natty taps, Shayna & Stark win!
Winners: Shayna Baszler & Zoey Stark, by submission
Shayna & Stark are 2-0 against Natty & Nox, are they shoe-ins for facing the WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions next? Will it still be Kayden & Katana with those titles after this Friday?
WWE World Heavyweight Championship: Seth Rollins VS Jinder Mahal w/ Indus Sher!
The Visionary said himself that this isn’t the same Jinder Mahal from way back when. And as Veer & Sanga walk up behind the Modern Day Maharaja, that is proof enough that this won’t be like those previous battles. Is this going to be the night Jinder returns to the top of the mountain? Or can Rollins make it through another high caliber contender?
Raw returns and Rollins makes his entrance. The fans sing his song, “OH~ OHH~ OHHH~!” The introductions are made, the belt is raised, and we see if Jinder’s drought ends in reign!
The bell rings and Rollins circles with Jinder, but he’s wary of Veer & Sanga ringside. Sanga distracts and Jinder attacks! Jinder CLUBS and stomps Rollins, then scoops and SLAMS him! Rollins snarls but Jinder fireman’s carries. Rollins fights free, but Jinder switches! Jinder wants the clinch but Rollins elbows free, mule kicks, only for Jinder to avoid the Curb Stomp! Rollins kicks Jinder, underhooks, but Jinder back drops Rollins out of the ring! Rollins hits the floor, right between Veer and Sanga. Jinder storms out to BOOT Rollins down! Sanga & Veer cheer Jinder on but Rollins CHOPS and CHOPS! Jinder throat chops!
Jinder scoops Rollins, and he aims, only for Rollins to slip off and POST him! Rollins goes to the apron, fans sing the song, and Rollins FLYING KNEES Jinder down! Rollins dares Veer to do something, then he puts Jinder in the ring. Rollins dares Sanga to try something, too, but they tell him to focus on Jinder. But wait, Rollins looks up the ramp and sees Priest! Priest has his MITB briefcase, the walls are closing in on Rollins, but Raw goes to break.
Raw returns and Priest is sitting ringside as Jinder stretches Rollins with the Cobra Twist! Rollins endures, fights with elbows, and then CHOPS! And ROCKS! And ROCKS again! Jinder shoves Rollins to ropes to then CLOBBER him on the rebound! Jinder springboard KNEE DROPS again and again, but then Rollins BOOTS him away! Rollins stands, but Jinder kicks him low. And it’s back to the Cobra Twist! Rollins endures, pries Jinder’s grip away, but then Jinder just shifts to have an arm! Rollins throws elbows into Jinder’s leg, gets free of the hold and LARIATS! Jinder stays up, Rollins LARIATS, but still Jinder stands!
Rollins runs, Jinder ROCK Shim, but Rollins fires back! They go back and forth, Rollins wobbles but then comes back! Jinder ROCKS Rollins, Rollins fires a flurry! ROLLING ELBOW! Jinder wobbles, into a DISCUS LARIAT! Fans fire up while Indus Sher is worried. Jinder goes to a corner, Rollins runs in, but Jinder puts him on the apron! Rollins ROCKS Jinder, climbs up, and CROSSBODIES! Cover, TWO! SUPERKICK! Jinder falls over, Rollins hurries out, but Indus Sher dares him to climb. Rollins changes his mind, and he SPRINGBOARD SWANTONS! Then somersault to the LIONSAULT! Cover, TWO!
Rollins grits his teeth, his back or perhaps even a leg bothering him. Rollins still fights to his feet and storms up on Jinder. Fans sing, but Jinder blocks the suplex! Jinder suplexes Rollins up, holds him, but Rollins turns things around to FALCON ARROW! The bad leg slows Rollins down, though, but he still goes to a corner. The fans fire up as Rollins runs in, but into a THRUST KICK! Rollins SUPERKICKS in return! Rollins reels Jinder in, underhooks, and hits the PEDIGREE!! But the bad leg holds Rollins back!! Rollins has to crawl to get the cover, ROPEBREAK thanks to Indus Sher! Fans boo but this is why Jinder has them ringside!
Rollins snarls, goes up the corner, and he CROSSBODIES Veer!! Fans fire up as Sanga checks on Veer and Rollins goes back up a corner! Rollins FROG SPLASHES but FLOPS as Jinder moves! Both men are down, and Priest stands up! Priest tried something like this last time, is he going to try again? But wait, MCINTYRE appears! The Scottish Terminator stares Priest down, they both talk trash, and they start throwing hands! The fans fire up, McIntyre RAMS Priest into barriers! Priest POSTS McIntyre! They brawl their way up the ramp, the ref tells them both to get outta here, and Sanga ROCKS Rollins!!
Jinder fireman’s carries, to GUTBUSTER DROP!! Cover, TWO!!! Rollins survives and Jinder can’t believe it! Neither can Indus Sher after they made sure Rollins was out of it! Jinder snarls, he rains down fists on Rollins, and then he calls to Indus Sher. Veer gets on the apron to distracts the ref, and Sanga sends a chair in! Rollins DECKS Jinder first! The ref sees the chair, Rollins rushes Veer, but Veer CRACKS Rollins with Priest’s MITB briefcase!! And then Jinder clinches Rollins, for the KALLAS!!!! Cover, TWO?!?! Rollins survives again and no one can believe it! Indus Sher is furious, but the ref says no, they gotta go! The ref EJECTS Indus Sher!!
Jinder drags Rollins up, but Rollins arm-drags free! CURB STOMP!!! Cover, Rollins wins!!
Winner: Seth Rollins, by pinfall (still WWE World Heavyweight Champion)
Despite the deck being stacked against him, the Visionary survives and holds onto the gold! But clearly, things are taking their toll, how much longer can the workhorse world champion keep this up?
My Thoughts:
A great Raw here, but things felt like they really dragged in the third hour. Shayna & Stark VS Nox & Natty felt like filler, and I’m not even sure why their rematch happened. It wasn’t necessarily better than the first time around, and it was still Shayna & Stark on top rather than tying things up 1-1. But we did get a good promo from and really good tag match out of Candice & Indi VS Chelsea & Piper. Good win for Candice & Indi, here’s hoping HHH can finally find a way to book them stronger and get them in the title scene.
For that matter, great tag match out of DIY VS JD & Dom that of course DIY wins. Great stuff out of Judgment Day as always, and Truth continues to add amazing humor to all of this. Great promos with Truth and Priest and then Priest explaining things to the others, and another great tag match. The Awesome Truth was of course losing, but I would love if only now, after Priest choke slammed Truth does Truth realize he isn’t actually Judgment Day. Good video for Nia, then Rhea kinda stammered through her promo, probably unsure what exactly to say to be menacing while waiting for Becky. Becky had a good promo, and they’ve all but told us this is the WrestleMania main event, so let’s just hope that stays the case.
Great promo from Gunther where he actually starts to be nice to Ludwig again, and great stuff from Ludwig and Woods in their match. I started to think Woods and Ludwig were setting up a No Disqualification match here, and that would set up Woods for going after Gunther and the Intercontinental Championship. But then Ludwig’s attack backstage and Jey making the save all makes me think it’ll be Jey VS Gunther now, though I’d still like Woods VS Ludwig in No DQ on the side to avenge Kofi. Jey wants singles gold, the Intercontinental Championship is a great choice, but I’m not sure his chances of dethroning Gunther unless it’s at WrestleMania, and even then that’s tough.
Really good stuff from this building Alpha Academy VS Viking Raiders story. Fun win for Tozawa but of course Ivar & Sarah beat Tozawa & Maxxine down. No mixed tag, we’re going to Ivy VS Sarah and that’ll be great stuff. I don’t know the injury status of Erik (Ray Rowe) but if he makes a return soon, we might get Mixed Six of the full Viking Raiders VS Diamond Mine, which would be a lot of fun given who good both the Creeds and Erik & Ivar are. But either way, it feels like Ivy should beat Sarah and Ivar will beat Gable to keep each of them strong in their respective title chases.
And speaking of, Bronson Reed calling out a champion without naming the champion is an interesting move, but I do like it. He can be going after Gunther, but he can also be going after Rollins because why wouldn’t he want the world title? Bronson VS Gunther and Bronson VS Rollins will both be great matches, so I’m cool with whatever we get. Great promo segment from Cody Rhodes with Drew McIntyre, and it was basically a parallel to McIntyre getting in Punk’s face last week, because while McIntyre does say some true stuff, he also ends up being shut up as the other guy gets the last word. Punk wanting to talk with Cody is an interesting move, that is gonna be a promo to watch.
Good promo from Nakamura to call out not just Cody but everyone in the Rumble, I hope Nakamura has a great showing in the Rumble even though I’m sure someone else wins. And then of course, really good promo from Rollins and really good promo from Jinder. The match could’ve been better, maybe just needed more time, but I appreciate that Indus Sher tried to help Jinder cheat this one. Also great brawl of Priest and McIntyre on the side. But naturally, Rollins retains so that he can continue on this story of being the fighting champion that is running himself into the ground. At this point, I don’t think he’s going to have a match at Rumble but who knows, they could easily throw one together next week on the go-home, with that really feeding into the story.
My Score: 8.7/10
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Everyone is showing raw emotion!
The New Day’s no longer positive, Drew McIntyre’s back for revenge, and Rhea Ripley battles Raquel Rodriguez, all on one Monday Night Raw!
OFFICIAL RESULTS
- 8 Man Tag: The Miz & The Final Testament VS The Wyatt Sick6; The Miz & Final Testament win.
- Dakota Kai VS Liv Morgan; Liv wins.
- WWE Women’s Intercontinental Championship Tournament Opening Round Triple Threat: Lyra Valkyria VS Zelina Vega VS Ivy Nile; Lyra wins and advances to the next round.
- Anything Goes: Rhea Ripley VS Raquel Rodriguez; Rhea wins.
PLAY BY PLAY
The New Day arrives backstage.
Xavier Woods wants high-fives, but no one is accepting. Kofi Kingston says hey to Natalya & The Alpha Academy, but they don’t return it. Their verbal shaming of Big E isn’t sitting well with anyone, will Woods & Kofi figure out who’s really in the wrong here?
Gunther is here!
Wichita, Kansas is a little torn as Der Ring General heads to the ring, dressed rather casually compared to other times, but he seems to have gotten over those multiple Coup de Grace double stomps from last week. Gunther grabs a mic, smiles as the fans both cheer and jeer, and he says, “As everybody has seen, quite obviously Finn Balor has made a grave mistake. And whether he deserves it or not, he now has my undivided attention. And I guarantee you right now, Saturday Night’s Main Event will not end up like Survivor Series for me.” But before he can continue, The Prince makes his way out here!
Finn, accompanied by The Judgment Day, also gets a mixed reaction from Wichita. But Finn tells Gunther that Gunther could’ve just given him the title match like he deserved. But instead, Gunther tried to mess with Finn by giving it to someone who didn’t deserve it, like Dirty Dom. The fans boo more but Finn says let’s be real! Finn is the only reason Gunther is still World Heavyweight Champion! And hearing what he said, Gunther is right about one thing: SNME will be NOTHING like Survivor Series. Because at Survivor Series, Gunther retained the title thanks to Finn. And at SNME, Gunther loses the title because of Finn!
And after eight long YEARS, Finn Balor walks out as the NEW World Heavyweight Champion! The Judgment Day applauds but the fans boo. Gunther tells Finn he’ll set one thing straight: Finn did NOT earn his title match. Finn’s audacity of claiming any responsibility of GUNTHER being champion is what did it. But Gunther gets it, Finn is frustrated. Eight years ago, Finn was the first-ever Universal Champion. And at that point in Gunther’s career, he looked up to Finn. Gunther respected Finn. But over the time, that respect kept fading and fading. Not because Gunther chose to, but because Finn chose to cut corners.
Finn chose to take shortcuts! Finn chose to hang out with a bunch of weirdos in a clubhouse! The fans cheer that but Gunther also adds that Finn chose to play second fiddle to Damian Priest. Finn gets heated, JD McDonagh keeps him back, and Gunther says, “So here we are now. Standing across from each other with no respect left. And I figuratively and literally am looking down on you. Eight years ago, you were the best in the world… for one night. I am the best in the world RIGHT NOW and for THOUSANDS of days to come! And this title proves it!!” The fans do cheer that.
Gunther tells Finn there is one reason he won’t leave Saturday as World Heavyweight Champion: Finn is NOT on Gunther’s level, and he never will be! Finn chuckles, and then The Judgment Day storms up to the ring! Gunther stands his ground, but here comes Damian Priest! Finn and his boys are shocked that The Punisher is storming down the ramp! Priest DOUBLE LARIATS JD & Carlito, KICKS and THROWS Dom aside, then fires hands on Finn! The fans fire up as Priest then THROWS Carlito down, then gives JD SNAKE EYES off railing! Finn goes after Priest now, and he sends Priest at the ring. Priest stops himself and fires hands on Finn
Priest puts Finn in the ring, and Gunther is there to CHOP him down! Priest SUPERKICKS Finn out of the ring! But then Gunther LARIATS Priest! The fans are torn as Gunther rains down fists on Priest, the guy who tried to help him! Gunther says he does not need help, and he TOSSES Priest out! Gunther storms out, clears off the desk, and now the fans are really fired up! Gunther brings Priest over, but Finn SLINGBLADES Gunther down! The Prince ends up saving Priest and he DROPKICKS Gunther into steel steps! But then Finn SMACKS Priest off the desk! Finn puts Priest in, climbs a corner, just to COUP DE GRACE Gunther!!
Judgment Day rushes Priest but he TOSSES Dom, throws JD into Carlito, then gives JD a FLAPJACK! SUPERKICK for Carlito! Dom throws hands, but Pries tis just pissed. Finn CLOBBERS Gunther on the outside, then hurries into the ring to save Dom! FINAL CUT! The Judgment Day mugs Priest now while fans boo. The boys set Priest up and Finn runs in, SHOTGUN! Priest hits buckles and falls! Judgment Day mugs Priest more while Finn goes up! COUP DE GRACE for Priest!! Finn wants more, his boys set Priest back up, COUP DE GRACE!! The fans boo even harder, but Finn wants another! Finn hits a third COUP DE GRACE on Priest!!
Wichita boos but Finn eyes the world title. Finn grins as he picks it up. Will Finn be a DOUBLE CHAMPION after Saturday Night’s Main Event? Or can Der Ring General stand against all of Judgment Day?
Judgment Day regroups backstage.
They’re all very excited after taking Gunther and Priest at the same time, and in steps Adam Pearce. He has to hand it to them. Another Monday, another night Judgment Day is causing chaos. But he is here as a courtesy to Finn. Pearce spoke with Gunther, and that conversation has brought about a change to Saturday Night’s Main Event. Huh? It will be Gunther VS Finn… VS PRIEST!! Finn is furious but then he says fine. Because it’ll make it even more satisfying when Finn beats both Gunther and Priest to become the NEW World Heavyweight Champion! The Judgment Day agrees, but Pearce has something else to say.
Since Finn is so worried about the other champions, here’s an opportunity to lead by example. Next week on Raw, Finn & JD will face the War Raiders again, for the tag titles again, and the best part? The rest of Judgment Day is BANNED FROM RINGSIDE! Pearce leaves, Judgment Day is furious, but the Liv says Finn should relax. He’s got everything under control. Though, she was wondering if Finn’s got any advice for Raquel’s match tonight. They wanna listen to Finn so they’ll win. Finn says yeah, Sis, just give him a couple minutes. Finn heads out, JD follows, and Liv says she feels good about tonight. Will Judgment Day be (not) fine?
8 Man Tag: The Miz & The Final Testament VS The Wyatt Sick6!
The Hollywood A-Lister’s sins came back to haunt him, but he aligned himself with men who are without conscience. But will any of them be conscious after facing Uncle Howdy and the new Wyatt Family? Or will Kross make Bo Dallas #FallAndPray?
The fans fire up for the Wyatts, and Bo talks to the rocking chair to say this is for the family. Then with a “Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah~!” Bo and the Wyatts rush the ring! The fans fire up as the brawl is on and the bell rings! Lumis scares Miz and slithers after him while Gacy has Akam, Rowan has Rezar and Bo of course goes after Kross! The Wyatts manage to LARIAT the AOP up and out of the ring, then Bo CLOBBERS Kross! Bo clinches but Miz drags Kross out to safety! The Final Testament regroups while Raw goes to break.
Raw returns and Akam has Gacy down. The fans boo, Miz soaks it up, and Rezar tags in. AOP double whip to DOUBLE SPINEBUSTER! Cover, TWO! The fans rally but Rezar DRIBBLES Gacy’s face off the mat! Rezar then drags Gacy up, fires body shots, then talks trash. Rezar whips Gacy but Gacy BLASTS Kross! Gacy BOOTS Rezar, heads for his corner, but Rezar whips! But Gacy handsprings and comes back from THE UPSIDE-DOWN! The fans fire up while both men crawl, hot tags to Miz and Rowan! Big Red, the Ramblin’ Rabbit, rallies on Miz AND Akam! Then LARIAT in the corner for Miz, LARIAT in the corner for Akam!
Rowan runs back at Miz, but Miz BOOTS him! Miz runs but Rowan grabs him and TOSSES him! Miz lands hard out by Akam, and Rowan builds speed!? Rowan WRECKS Akam and Miz with a dropkick! The fans fire up as Rowan puts Miz in, and he BOOTS Akam! The fans fire up and Rowan slides in. Miz KICKS Rowan, but that just pisses Rowan off! Rowan suplexes for the CUTTER! Cover, AOP breaks it! AOP BLAST The Wyatts, then they hoist Rowan up! DOUBLE POWERBOMB!! But Gacy & Lumis get in to fire hands! They dodge, DROPKICK and SUPERKICK in stereo! Then Lumis whips Gacy so he can DIVE onto AOP!
Lumis goes up, Gacy sets AOP for the CANNONBALL! All four men are down and Miz is freaking out! Rowan crawls, hot tag to Howdy! Bo CLOBBERS Miz, then LARIATS in a corner! Bo reels Miz in, suplexes, and puts Miz on ropes for the MAGIC SCREW! The fans are thunderous and Bo waits on Miz. Miz rises up, scrambles to ropes, and he throws an elbow! Kross tags in, but Bo ROCKS Kross first! Bo LARIATS Kross up and out! The fans fire up for Bo, he builds speed, but Scarlett trips him up! The fans boo as the Femme Fatale gets away with that one. Or does she? NIKKI CRSS creeps out from nowhere, and she creeps Scarlett out!
Nikki waves, Scarlett runs away but into the ring! The ref tells her to get out, which she does, but Nikki is there on the other side! FLYING THESZ PRESS! Bo clinches Kross, but Miz CLOBBERS him! The fans boo but Miz thinks he’s got him> Bo GRABS Miz with the MANDIBLE CLAW!! Miz flails desperately, but PAUL ELLERING is back! POCKET SAND!! Kross scoops Bo for the FINAL PRAYER! Cover, Final Testament wins!
Winners: The Final Testament, by pinfall
That mastermind, Ellering, returns when Kross needed him most! But is this only the first battle in a war with the Wyatts?
Sit-down interview with CM Punk.
Jackie Redmond is with the Second City Saint and thanks him for taking the time. He thanks her for inviting him, he appreciates it. Punk then teases if she’s going to belittle his Chicago Blackhawks, she’s in for a fight. Jackie says no, she’ll be asking something much more important. It is all anyone’s talking about, anyway: the promised favor from Paul Heyman! What is it? Can he hint anything about it? No, this isn’t the right time for that. That’s a personal thing. Punk and Heyman go back many years, the favor is between them.
Jackie accepts that and then asks about Seth Rollins. Last week, Punk let Rollins know that Punk doesn’t think about Rollins at all, but Rollins made it clear that he has his sights set on Punk. Rollins is willing to force the issue, so how will Punk handle it? Punk says it is no secret that he doesn’t shy away from a fight. If you go after him, he’ll start swinging. But when it comes to Rollins’ hatred for Punk, Punk is more confused than anything. Punk doesn’t hate Rollins. To understand, you have to talk about the history between them, which also goes back years.
We’re talking about a 16-year-old Seth Rollins coming to Punk to ask Punk to train him, for free. Now, that’s the key part everyone leaves out. Rollins’ entitlement gets carried over into adult Rollins, who wants to be the best in the world, in everyone’s Top Ten List. But Punk remembers when Rollins was on the top ten list of those to be fired from here. Punk “shielded” Rollins from that. If Punk had to live in his shadow, Punk would hate Punk, too. Rollins is a multiple time world champion, a Mr. Money in the Bank winner, but everything he’s done, Punk did before and did it better.
Now, Punk doesn’t claim to do those things because he wanted a thank you. He did recognize Rollins had all the potential in the world. And in Punk’s absence from the WWE, Rollins did a fantastic job filling to void. But simply put, the starting player is back, Rollins has to go back to the bench. Jackie appreciates the honesty, and thanks Punk for his time. But is Punk really telling the truth that he doesn’t hate Rollins with how he just talked down about him? Will Rollins’ hate for Punk only grow exponentially now?
Dakota Kai VS Liv Morgan!
#CobraKai is already into the second round of the WWE Women’s Intercontinental Championship tournament, but she could capture a golden ticket off of the Women’s WORLD Champion here in Wichita. Will Damage CTRL be doing damage to Judgment Day for the holidays? Or will Liv simply use Kai to prepare for Iyo Sky?
The bell rings, Liv runs up and the two tie up. Dakota headlocks, but Liv pulls hair to get free! Liv shoves, drops down, but Dakota stops herself. Dakota bypasses Liv, then hurdles. Liv jumps over, comes back, but Dakota arm-drags her around and around! Dakota snapmares Liv to then NECK SNAPPER! Jackknife bridge, TWO!! Liv escapes and scurries away to a corner. Dakota runs up but Liv TOSSES her up and out! Dakota SMACKS off steps before hitting the floor, and Liv grins while Raw goes to break.
Raw returns and Liv SLAMS Dakota down! Dakota writhes but Liv kicks her around. Wait, Pure Fusion Collective make their way out here? They must be upset on Shayna Baszler’s behalf for how Dakota won that Triple Threat. Anyway, Liv hits a snap suplex, then rolls, that was Una Amiga! Now she hits Dos Amigas! And then Liv gives some Latina Heat for Daddy Dom, but Dakota hits a suplex first! The fans fire up while Liv flounders away. Liv runs back up but Dakota ROCKS her first! And again, and again, and again! Liv shoves Dakota, but Dakota LARIATS! And LARIATS! Then DROPKICKS! The fans fire up with Dakota as she goes after Liv!
Dakota whips Liv corner to corner hard, and Liv sits down! Dakota then runs side to side to BOOT WASH! Liv flounders to the apron but Dakota puts her in ropes, DRAPING STOMP! Cover, TWO! Liv survives and now Dakota notices PFC. They wave mockingly and also mockingly coach her. Dakota fireman’s carries Liv, but Liv slips free to shove! Dakota comes back with a SCORPION KICK! Dakota runs, Zoey is there, so Dakota BOOTS her! And PERNALTY KICKS Shayna! The ref tells PFC to back up, but Liv runs up! Dakota avoids ObLivion, rolls Liv up, TWO! Liv dodges a kick to hit a CODE BREAKER!
Dakota staggers to a corner, Liv runs up, SHINING WIZARD! Liv kicks Dakota out, then goes up, FLYING- POWERBOMB!! The fans fire up but Sonya gets on the apron! Dakota BOOTS her down! Dakota runs Around the World, but Liv dodges the boot! Dakota hobbles, Liv runs up, OBLIVION!! Cover, Liv wins!
Winner: Liv Morgan, by pinfall
The Women’s World Champion snatches her belt and leaves, but PFC goes after Dakota! They really ARE upset over last week’s Triple Threat! They mug Dakota, then drag her up. But wait, here comes DMG CTRL! Iyo Sky RAMS Shayna, Kairi drags Sonya out! URAKEN for Sonya! Zoey & Shayna dodge the handspring, but Iyo comes back to DOUBLE SHOTGUN! Iyo kips up while Wichita fires up, and Kairi joins in! Iyo gives Kairi a hand to go up, up and AWAY! TRIPLE CROSSBODY!! PFC goes down, the fans fire up more, but then Iyo turns around into OBLIVION!! Liv gets the final shot on the Evil Genius, will this be how things go at Saturday Night’s Main Event?
Drew McIntyre speaks.
“Hell in a Cell was the most violent match of my 24-year career. And in the end, I succumbed to massive blood loss. I could’ve been at Raw post Bad Blood, against doctor’s orders. I proved time and time again The Scottish Warrior isn’t just a catchy nickname, it is earned. But I had to go back to Scotland. My family needed me. 2024 should’ve been a career year for Drew McIntyre, but time and time again, I kept getting screwed over at the finish line. While I was home in Scotland, that same thought kept going through my head, burning in my brain. ‘What if I’m wrong? What if everyone else was right? What if people truly can change? What if my gut was wrong?’
“Then I turned on Survivor Series and I saw Roman Reigns standing side by side with CM Punk. Who was by their side? Sami, Jimmy, Jey, with their stupid fingers in the air. After everything they know, Roman just snaps his fingers, they put their tails between their legs, they run right by his side? At least CM Punk took a bribe! They all sold out for absolutely nothing. That’s when it was clear, that’s when I knew I had to come back. That’s when I knew I was gonna take out Sami. That’s when I knew I was gonna take out Jey Uso. Spending time back home, I realized there’s no changing the past, no matter how much I want to.
“But I can change the present. And I will change the future.” The Scottish Terminator has new targets, or perhaps old depending on how you look at it. But will there be no running for Jey and Sami now that McIntyre’s making it his mission to destroy them?
Adam Pearce exits his office, with Cody Rhodes!
The Raw General Manager shakes hands with the Undisputed WWE Champion, and then The New Day walk by. They see the American Nightmare, and Cody says he’s known them both for a very long time. Cody and Woods have even known each other since they were kids. Cody says they should be ashamed of themselves. Woods laughs that off and says good coming from that guy, like he was so good in high school. The New Day continues on, who else will the find disapproves of this new attitude?
Seth Rollins is here!
Wichita sings for The Visionary, “WHOA~ OH~ OHH~!” while he goes to the ring. Rollins grabs a mic and welcomes Wichita to Monday Night Rollins~! And he is your host tonight! He is a Visionary, he is a Revolutionary, he IS Seth FREAKIN’ Rollins! And there’s a lot to talk about tonight. Wichita, give it up for CM Punk, huh? The fans are torn but Rollins tells “Punker,” when you’re done in the ring, Punk can be a politician! That right there earlier tonight, that was a master class in how to spin the truth. Take a little bit of the truth, play the victim, and Punk’s been doing that his entire life!
Rollins says Punk is a fraud, a conman, and Rollins will share the truth between them. Punk was right, Rollins did go to get trained by The Best in the World, no doubt about it. Rollins looked up to Punk, idolized him, and Punk helped Rollins get his foot in the door here in the WWE. Rollins respected Punk, and they were once friends. And if the story ended there, you might wonder, too: Why does Rollins hate Punk? The part of Punk’s story that he left out will tell you why. When Punk walked out the door of WWE eleven years ago, Rollins called and texted as a friend and how he respected what Punk stood for.
What’d Rollins get in return? Nothing! Rollins got ghosted! And not just Rollins, it was everyone who was a friend of Punk’s here in WWE! Because if you didn’t quit your dream job, and your priorities didn’t line up with Team CM Punk, then you were evil. And if the story ended there, okay. But that’s not what happened! Because for the next ten years, all Punk ever tried to do was tear WWE down! That’s all he did! Punk talked crap, took pot shots, and when Punk finally walked back in here, do you know why that was? Because Punk FAILED at everything else, burned every single bridge that would lead him to water, and… the money was right.
The fans are still torn, but plenty of fans still chant “CM PUNK! CM PUNK!” Rollins says yeah, once upon a time, he used to chant for Punk, too. He used to respect Punk, used to want to be just like Punk, follow in his footsteps. But somewhere along the way, Rollins realized Punk was a fraud and that he wanted to be BETTER than Punk! And Rollins was! Everything Punk did, Rollins did it TWICE! And he did the one thing Punk could never do, and that was main event WrestleMania! But wait, here comes Sami Zayn! Rollins tells Sami to stay outta this but the fans cheer Sami on as he goes right down to the ring.
Sami steps in with a mic in hand, and Rollins says if Sami is out here to defend Punk again, then they’re gonna be fighting again. Rollins does not wanna hear it, he has no time for it. Sami says last week, Rollins was angry, Sami was angry, they said some things and had it out in the ring. That’s bound to happen when they’ve known each other for as long as they have. But it was wrong of Sami to assume Rollins dropped Jey. Sami’s known Rollins long enough so he was wrong, and for that, he is sorry. The fans cheer the apology, and Rollins says he is glad Sami brought that up.
Because the thing that’s been eating Rollins up is, as far back as they go, 20 YEARS, and their kids play together, they’re tight! But when Jey went down, Rollins was the first person Sami thought of! And Rollins wants to know why. Well there is a reason! The way Rollins was talking, he was outta his mind! No, go back and watch. Rollins wasn’t talking like Rollins, he wasn’t like the guy Sami’s known those 20 years. Rollins was being someone who points his fingers at everyone else, that blames everyone else, and acts like they’re the only person with moral clarity. He wasn’t being Seth Rollins, he was being Drew McIntyre!
Rollins stares Sami down and says, “I am not Drew McIntyre.” Sami says he knows that, because Rollins is a better person. But this thing with Rollins and Punk, it is bringing out the worst in Rollins. And maybe Sami shouldn’t have gotten involved. Sami saw a guy he’s known forever and a guy he’d just gone to war with, they were fighting, and Sami got involved when he shouldn’t have. That is why he is here. Sami has to tell Rollins that this thing with Punk is worse than Sami thought possible, so Sami will let Rollins deal with it however he wants. Rollins thanks Sami for that, that is all Rollins has wanted.
Okay, so what about them? Are Sami and Rollins good? The fans chant “HUG IT OUT! HUG IT OUT!” Rollins says, “Yeah, Sami, we’re good, man.” Rollins appreciates Sami letting him handle things with Punk, and notes it seems Sami has something with Drew. Rollins heads out, and Sami says yeah, that’s good advice. Sami will handle things with Drew! Sami says this thing with Drew, they won’t run it back like before. Sami won’t listen to Drew coming out here, week after week, talking about everyone else is wrong and he is wrong and is some martyr. Sami’s gonna end this as quickly as it started, so this is how it goes!
Sami has already spoken with Adam Pearce. The fans cheer that! Sami says Saturday Night’s Main Event, Sami VS Drew, and Sami will see Drew in Long Island!! The fans fire up as SNME just gets that much bigger. Sami heads out, but then McIntyre CLOBBERS Sami on the stage!! The fans boo, producers and refs rush out, and they have to drag McIntyre off of Sami. McIntyre grins and says okay, he’s done with Sami, for now. Will McIntyre put Sami out of action like he did to Jey last week? Or can Sami stop the Scottish Terminator before he gets started?
WWE Women’s Intercontinental Championship Tournament Opening Round Triple Threat: Lyra Valkyria VS Zelina Vega VS Ivy Nile!
Another spot in the semifinals awaits, and we’ll see The Morrigan, La Muneca & The Diamond Pitbull battle it out! Will Lyra fly on to the second round? Will the LWO have the Queen of the Ring representing them? Or will this tournament soon be American Made?
The bell rings and Zelina SHOTGUNS Ivy! Lyra rolls Zelina, TWO! Zelina and Lyra clinch, Lyra whips, but Zelina leaps to FACE SMASH! Then BASEMENT HEEL KCIK! The fans fire up and Zelina dials it up, 619! Lyra flops back but Ivy YANKS Zelina down! Ivy runs up, whips Lyra, then tilt-o-whirl POWERSLAMS! Cover, TWO! Ivy stomps away on Lyra, then stands on her face! The fans boo and the ref reprimands while Raw goes to break
Raw returns and Lyra rallies the fans before she builds speed. Lyra WRECKS Ivy and Zelina with one dropkick! Lyra puts Ivy in, brings her around, and then runs up a corner! TORNADO DDT! Then a roll through to fisherman and BUSTER! Cover, TWO! Ivy stays in this but Lyra stays on Ivy. Lyra fireman’s carries, but Ivy fights around to an ARMBAR TAKEDOWN! Ivy clasps hands and fights around, and she rolls back, but into a DISARM-HER! Ivy references The Man but Lyra rolls Ivy, TWO! Ivy lets go and runs up, but Lyra sunset flips! ONE, and Ivy jackknife bridges! ONE as Lyra rolls and rolls, but Zelina is up top! SWANTON BOMB!!
Zelina covers Ivy, TWO!! A cover on Lyra, TWO!! Zelina is annoyed but she builds speed to SLIDING SUNSET BOMB! A shoutout to Rey Mysterio and Zelina hurries up top. Zelina climbs up and the fans rally for the FLYING METEORA! Cover, Ivy BOOTS it apart! The fans boo but Ivy throws Zelina to a corner. Zelina BOOTS Ivy, goes up, and CROSSBODIES! Ivy catches Zelina for a SWINGING SIDE SLAM! Cover, Lyra breaks it! The fans fire up and all three women are down! The fans rally, Ivy drags Lyra up to waistlock, GERMAN SUPLEX! Ivy holds on, Lyra scrambles around, and Lyra grabs Zelina! Ivy DOUBLE GERMAN SUPLEXES!
Bridging cover on Lyra, TWO!! Lyra stays in this but Ivy stays on her! Lyra fights #SuplexIvy to switch, but Ivy switches for a BIG back suplex! Cover, TWO! Lyra stays in this, but Zelina hops on! CODE RED for Ivy! Cover, Lyra breaks it again! Lyra hurries to get Ivy up, fireman’s carries, and hits the NIGHTWING DRIVER! Cover, LYRA WINS!
Winner: Lyra Valkyria, by pinfall (advances to the next round)
The Morrigan finds her opening, and now she’s flying back to a “shiny shiny!” But the next match will have Alba Fyre VS Kairi Sane VS Natalya, who wins that Triple Threat to meet Lyra in the semifinals?
Rhea Ripley prepares backstage.
Priest finds her, and he simply tells her, “Eradicate.” They fist bump and Priest heads out. Will Rhea do exactly that when she and Raquel Rodriguez go Anything Goes?
Backstage interview with The New Day.
Cathy Kelley is with Woods & Kofi and brings up last week’s celebration becoming anything but “don’t you dare be sour,” the very phrase they coined ten years ago. What was the intention behind them berating their longtime friend, Big E? Kofi says hold on, she is supposed to be neutral, why is she asking a question like that? Woods says Cathy is cleary biased, so they’re going to go talk to the people they need to, and that’s the fans. Can’t he just answer the question? Woods says no, Cathy, please. Now hand Woods the camera. What? Woods doesn’t care if John Cena’s his best friend, the cameraman is gonna hand it over!
Woods takes the camera from this guy, then he and Kofi head on through the backstage area and towards gorilla. The fans can be heard booing as they do, and The New Day make their entrance without music or fanfare. The fans instead chant “NEW! DAY SUCKS! NEW! DAY SUCKS!” Woods asks, “What’d we do?” Kofi and Woods go into the ring, we get a different camera perspective while they get mics. Kofi says no no no no no, but the fans just boo more. “You mean to tell me… after the ten years of positivity that Woods and I have given you, you mean to tell me you’re this mad, all from one day?”
The fans boo and give thumbs down, but Woods says that New Day came out here… The fans chant “We Want Big E! We Want Big E!” and “NEW! DAY SUCKS! NEW! DAY SUCKS!” Woods says they didn’t even do anything to Big E! The fans boo because yes they did! Kofi says they could’ve hit Big E with a steel chair! They could’ve hit him with a sledgehammer! The fans chant for Big E more, and Woods says, “Y’know what? We were gonna try to come out here and talk…” The fans boo more so New Day just gives up and drops their mics. New Day leaves, acting like they’re somehow NOT in the wrong, but will someone get it through their heads what they did?
Anything Goes: Rhea Ripley VS Raquel Rodriguez!
After weeks of being this close to getting even with Liv Morgan, and yet being so far from revenge because of Big Mami Cool, these two finally have it out 1v1! No disqualifications, no count outs, no holding these two back from what they really wanna do to each other! Who will be the Top Mami after tonight?
Raw returns and Raquel makes her entrance. But Rhea goes after her at the ramp! Rhea fires hands, then she whips Raquel into barriers! The fans fire up as this match is happening in front of them, and Raquel sends Rhea into the railing! And then the barriers! Then she CLUBS away! Rhea hits back, they brawl, and Rhea SMACKS Raquel off a trash can! The fans fire up but Rhea has them move aside. Rhea makes Raquel take a seat so she can CHOP and CHOP and CHOP! Rhea then runs and TOSSES Raquel over the barriers! We’re finally ringside and Rhea CHUCKS a trash can at Raquel! The trash flies everywhere while Rhea storms up on Raquel.
Rhea puts Raquel in the ring, where a lot of items are already waiting! Rhea gathered those during commercial it seems, and Rhea hits a FACE SMASH then LARAIT! Raquel stays up, so Rhea SMACKS her with a kendo stick! Raquel falls, and Rhea SMACKS her again! Raquel grabs the stick, throws Rhea to a corner, but Rhea BOOTS in return! Rhea goes up, up and MISSILE DROPKICKS! Down goes Raquel and the fans fire up! Raquel tumbles out, Rhea builds speed and WRECKS her with a dropkick! The fans fire up with Rhea, and she looks under the ring. Rhea brings out a TABLE! The fans love it!
But then Raquel RAMS Rhea into the post! Raquel scoops Rhea, to FALL AWAY SLAM her onto the desk! Rhea tumbles, Wade Barrett & Joe Tessitore get clear, and Raquel roars while Raw goes to break.
Raw returns again and Rhea DOUBLE BOOTS Raquel! Both women are down and Wichita fires up! Rhea and Raquel rise, Rhea wrenches Raquel to short arm LARIAT! And then ROUNDHOUSE! Rhea grabs a chair, tosses it to Raquel, then DROPKICKS the chair into her! The fans fire up and Rhea runs, but into a KNEE! Raquel hoists Rhea up, ALLEY-OOP into buckles! Cover, TWO! Rhea stays in this but Raquel is furious! Fans want tables but Raquel sets up a chair. Raquel gut wrenches Rhea but Rhea slips free! Rhea gets around, and atomic FACEBUSTERS Raquel off the chair! Then Rhea SMACKS Raquel with another chair! Cover, TWO!
Rhea is seething and she piles chairs together. Rhea hauls Raquel up, pump handles, but here comes Liv! Liv taunts Rhea, Rhea runs up to TOSS Liv into the ring! Liv flounders, almost hitting those chairs on that landing! But Raquel CLOBBERS Rhea! Raquel decides to use that chair pile herself! Scoop and SLAM onto the chairs! Cover, TWO!! Rhea survives but Raquel sits a chair up upside-down! Raquel aims Rhea at the chair legs, but Rhea slips free! Rhea HEADBUTTS Raquel! Then she pump handles, but Liv jumps on for a SLEEPER! Liv thrashes but Rhea THROWS her down! Rhea runs up and tells Liv that she’s gonna pay!
Raquel runs up but Rhea SUPERKICKS her! But Liv gets Rhea into OBLIVION!! But wait, Iyo Sky is here! Payback with a MISSILE DROPKICK! The fans fire up as Iyo kips up! Iyo then builds speed and DIVES! Down goes Liv! But Raquel covers Rhea! TWO!! Rhea survives again but Raquel brings that table up! The fans are torn because they like the table but the want Rhea to rise up! Raquel hoists Rhea up, but Rhea slips free again! Raquel runs up, but is sent into a CORNER CHAIR!! Rhea then hauls Raquel up, pump handles, and RIPTIDE through the table!!! Cover, Rhea wins!!
Winner: Rhea Ripley, by pinfall
That was brutal to be sure, but Rhea grins as she gets one over on Raquel. Rhea spots the world title, but so does Iyo. They both grab it, then stare down with each other. With Iyo facing Liv this Saturday, could the Evil Genius be leaving Long Island the NEW Women’s World Champion, and Rhea’s new target?
My Thoughts:
A great Raw tonight, especially as the go-home to Saturday Night’s Main Event. There were also more hints at this WWE Transfer Window, with Tiffany Stratton in the background as Rollins was on his way to gorilla, and then Cody Rhodes having his moment with Adam Pearce and The New Day. As I said for SmackDown, this is clearly Netflix wanting THE Undisputed WWE Championship on Raw, and we’ll basically get a direct trade of Cody for Gunther. But speaking of The New Day, brilliant stuff out of them. They’re Heels who don’t realize they’re Heels, but everyone else does, and that is definitely something special for this next chapter of The New Day’s careers.
Great 8 Man Tag from Wyatts and Final Testa-Miz, but it got overbooked real quick. Scarlett was a given, as was Nikki Cross, but I did NOT see Ellering showing up and throwing that HUGE amount of sand or powder. I do commend them for this, as cheating was really the only way anyone was gonna beat The Wyatts. I hope the rematch lets them let loose with a No Disqualification stipulation, maybe even something rather Bray Wyatt in style. Though at the same time, we’re almost at Christmas so they could do like, a Nightmare Before Christmas match so that it’ll be themed for the holidays, but also spooky for The Wyatts.
Great promo from McIntyre to help us understand it really was him who attacked Jey Uso, and to quickly establish he and Sami are gonna fight it out. Great promos from CM Punk, Seth Rollins and Sami Zayn, too, and even though the Royal Rumble is first, I feel like we’ve got a great field for Elimination Chamber already. Punk, Rollins and McIntyre all hate each other, but McIntyre also hates those who help Roman Reigns, which will bring Sami into it. And the match itself could be for a top championship, or at least a shot at it, so you can throw in just about anyone, it really depends on how this Transfer Window sorts out.
The World Heavyweight Championship going from 1v1 to a Triple Threat is some wild stuff. Great promo segment from Gunther with Finn & The Judgment Day, and then of course Priest gets involved. I feel like with the Triple Threat, that’s their way of keeping the title on Gunther while keeping everyone strong. Or also letting Judgment Day get involved so they can tilt things in Finn’s favor, but then still let Gunther get away with the title. Finn & JD VS War Raiders next week, probably with Finn NOT World Heavyweight Champion, and NO Judgment Day allowed ringside, that has to be a title change, right?
Great Triple Threat from Lyra, Zelina and Ivy, but it also felt a little secondary with everything else going on tonight. Great win for Lyra, and I feel like it’s either Alba Fyre or Natalya who meets her in the next round. Dakota VS Liv was a good match to give Liv some momentum going towards SNME, but it was also a vehicle for Pure Fusion Collective to get involved. I feel like we’ll be getting a Six Woman Tag of PFC VS DMG CTRL after Saturday, assuming Iyo doesn’t win the title on Saturday. Liv of course got involved with the Anything Goes main event tonight, which cued Iyo to return the favor, and that helped Rhea win.
The main event was still awesome even without the overbooking, but now they’re teasing Rhea VS Iyo. Iyo might win, but maybe Tiffany Stratton shows up with her Money in the Bank briefcase. Tiff could cash in and take that title from Liv and Iyo, setting up some Tiff VS Rhea, but then what happens to Iyo? Again, we’ve got a good field for a Women’s Elimination Chamber right there: Liv VS Rhea VS Iyo VS Tiff VS… I dunno, two women in this Women’s Intercontinental Championship tournament that don’t win. Again, the Transfer Window will have to sort out who is where first, then we’ll go from there.
My Score: 8.8/10
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Will heads for the Tokyo Dome?
Gabe Kidd & Sanada won A Block handedly while Naito & Hiromu came out of B Block’s chaotic finale, but only one team can win World Tag League!
OFFICIAL RESULTS
- Tiger Mask VS Daiki Nagai; Tiger Mask wins.
- Shane Haste & Mikey Nicholls VS Shoma Kato & Katsuya Mursahima; Shane & Mikey win.
- Bishamon VS The Filip Brothers; Bishamon wins.
- Six Man Tag: The United Empire VS Taichi, Taka Michinoku & DOUKI; Taichi, Taka & Douki win.
- Six Man Tag: Los Ingobernables de Japon VS Bullet Club; LIJ wins.
- 10 Man Tag: Hiroshi Tanahashi, Toru Yano, Boltin Oleg, Tomoaki Honma & Jado VS The House of Torture; The Houes of Torture wins, by disqualification.
- Six Man Tag: TMDK VS Shota Umino, Alex Zayne & Ryusuke Taguchi; TMDK wins.
- 2024 World Tag League Finals: Gabe Kidd & SANADA VS Tetsuya Naito & Hiromu Takahashi; Naito & Hiromu win.
PLAY BY PLAY
10 Man Tag: Hiroshi Tanahashi, Toru Yano, Boltin Oleg, Tomoaki Honma & Jado VS The House of Torture!
The Ace, The Joker & The Rook are joined by a couple knights of NJPW to stand against The King of Darkness and his army of scumbags! With WrestleKingdom on the horizon, which side of this war wins this crucial battle?
But as The House makes their entrance, Team Ace turns the tables by going after them first! The fans cheer as Tanahashi goes right after Evil and The House panics! Yano brawls with Narita, Oleg and Jado take care of Kanemaru and Yujiro, and Tanahashi headlocks Evil. Tanahashi brings Evil to ringside to POST him! Evil falls but Tanahashi drags him back up to wrench and whip into railing! The fans cheer more and Tanahashi CLUBS Evil. Tanahashi whips Evil at more railing, and Evil hits so hard that he tumbles up and over! The rest of the team keeps The House down all around ringside while Tanahashi fetches Evil.
Tanahashi brings Evil into the ring, then follows, and finally the bell rings! The fans cheer as Tanahashi stalks Evil to a corner. Tanahashi stomps Evil, throws forearms, and the ref counts. Tanahashi shoves the ref! The President is getting really rough with his employees, but he stalks Evil. Tanahashi drags Evil up to fire a BODY BLOW! And another! Tanahashi whips, Evil reverses, and then Evil gets in the ref’s face so Dick Togo can trip Tanahashi up! Then the House rushes in and BLASTS Team Ace off the apron! The ref reprimands everyone but Evil CHOKES Tanahashi with the tag rope!
The fans boo but The House beats up on Team Ace, and then Evil throws away the evidence of his crime. Dick passes the mic to Evil, and Evil grabs it so he can shout in Tanahashi’s face about just giving up now and sparing himself the embarrassment at WrestleKingdom! Tanahashi tells Evil he’ll never surrender, and the ref reprimands Evil. Evil stops choking Tanahashi and throws the mic away. Evil tags Narita and the Souled Out Son of Strong Style stomps away on Tanahashi’s legs! Narita then clamps on a KNEEBAR! Evil and Yano shout at each other, but Tanahashi fights his way to the ROPEBREAK!
The ref counts and Narita lets go at 4. Narita stomps Tanahashi more, then he tags Tokyo Pimp. Narita & Yujiro have the legs, and they split the wishbone! Yujiro then drops an elbow on the bad leg! Yujiro taunts Tanahashi, then ROCKS him with a forearm! Tanahashi ends up on ropes, so Yujiro ROCKS him, then CHOPS him! Yujiro stands Tanahashi up, Narita & Sho anchor Tanahashi in place, and Yujiro BOOTS him! The ref reprimands everyone but Yujiro snapmares for a cover! TWO, the fans rally, but Kanemaru tags in. The Heel Master YANKS the leg, then whisp Tanahashi to ropes. Kanemaru dropkicks the leg out!
Kanemaru hurries to step through, FIGURE FOUR! The House BLASTS Team Ace again! The ref reprimands and the fans rally up while Tanahashi endures. Honma clears Evil out, and he runs to FALLING KOKESHI on Kanemaru! The fans cheer as Tanahashi is saved, but Narita goes after Honma! The fans boo as Narita TOSSES Honma, but Kanemaru tags Sho. Sho stomps the leg, then DDTS the foot! The fans rally for Tanahashi but Sho scuffs him around. Tanahashi stands up and he fires forearms! Sho CLAWS Tanahashi’s eyes, but Tanahashi CLAWS Sho’s eyes! The ref reprimands them both, but Tanahashi blocks a kick! DRAGON SCREW!
The fans fire up as Tanahashi crawls over, hot tag to Oleg! The fans fire up as BARS CLOBBERS Sho! Evil gets away before Oleg can get him, and Yujiro attacks from behind! Yujiro & Narita double whip, but Oleg CLOBBERS them both! Kanemaru kicks and whips, but Oleg reverses to scoop Kanemaru! Oleg SMACKS Sho using Kanemaru! Then Oleg SLAMS Kanemaru, and gut wrenches! The fans fire up for the Shake, Shake, Shake! GUT WRENCH PLEX! Oleg kips up and the fans fire up! Oleg then deadlifts Sho for the gut wrench. But Sho bends fingers and wrenches free! Sho runs, SPEARS, but he bounces right off of Oleg!
The fans fire up and Oleg deadlifts Sho again! Shake, Shake, Shake! GUT WRENCH PLEX! And another kip up! The fans fire up with Oleg and he runs to BODY PRESS! Cover, TWO! Oleg drags Sho right up into his arms, then pops him to a fireman’s carry! But Sho CLAWS Oleg’s eyes! Sho slips free, but Oleg kicks Sho! Sho runs to dropkick Oleg’s legs! Sho whips, and TADA! Bare buckles! Oleg suffers The House Special, and Evil DROPKICKS Tanahashi! Sho & Evil double whip Oleg into the bare buckles! Oleg hobbles forward, into a DOUBLE- NO! Oleg fights to DOUBLE SUPLEX them first! The fans fire up and Oleg crawls, and Tanahashi is adamant about getting in!
Oleg isn’t sure about it, but he tags Tanahashi back! Tanahashi fires a strike fest on Evil, and goes an extra round before the SHOTEI! Tanahashi runs to SLINGBLADE! The fans fire up while Tanahashi stalks Evil to a corner. Tanahashi stomps a mudhole into Evil but the ref counts. Tanahashi is not stopping! He SHOVES the ref away! Tanahashi’s rage is getting the better of him as he UPPERCUTS Evil! Tanahashi goes corner to corner, runs back in, but Evil sends him into the ref! And then The House attacks again! Dick stomps away on Tanahashi while Evil recovers! The fans boo and tell Dick to go away!
Narita brings in chairs! Dick stomps Tanahashi more, and the House has all their favorite items! Dick has his Spoiler Choker, Narita with his pushup bar, Sho with the “Torture Tool,” Yujiro with the pimp cane, and Kanemaru with his whiskey bottle. The fans boo as Evil stands on Tanahashi’s face and The House closes in. Evil drags Tanahashi up, and Dick clamps on the SPOILER CHOKER! And then The House CLOBBERS Team Ace with all their weapons! Evil takes aim, but Tanahashi BOOTS him first! Tanahashi THROWS Dick away, but Evil JAMS him up! Tanahashi blocks the chair shot! Tanahashi kicks low, and he SMACKS away on Evil!
The fans fire up as Tanahashi breaks the chair on Evil’s back! Narita runs up, Tanahashi JAMS him first! And then he JAMS Yujiro! And he JAMS Kanemaru! And he JAMS Sho! Then Tanahashi uses the frame to SMACK Evil! The ref is back, he tells Tanahashi to stop, but Tanahashi shoves the ref again! Tanahashi’s rage explodes as he beats Evil down with the chair! Team Ace is DISQUALIFIED!!
Winners: The House of Torture, by disqualification
Tanahashi keeps beating Evil to serve justice, but Young Lions rush in and stop him! Evil writhes, but Tanahashi gets a new chair! Tanahashi SMACKS Evil again and again! His team isn’t even sure what to do, so they let him just BASH away on Evil! Tanahashi tells Evil this is what he gets! One more chair shot! AND THEN ANOTHER! Evil scrambles out of the ring, and Young Lions have to get in Tanahashi’s way to stop the beating! Tanahashi drops the chair to grab the mic, and he shouts, “EVIL, YOU BASTARD! Shut up about my retirement! Oi, oi, you want me to leave so badly? I get it. You want it a year earlier, huh?
“Then in our match on January 4th, I’ll put my career on the line right then!!” The fans are shocked, but Evil says good! And there’s no going back now that he said it! But Tanahashi adds that Evil won’t be able to rely on his goons! It will be a LUMBERJACK MATCH! Now YOU remember that!! Team Ace and The House will wage war once again in the Tokyo Dome! And given Evil only won tonight because Tanahashi lost his cool, will Tanahashi dish out his final justice?
Six Man Tag: TMDK VS Shota Umino, Alex Zayne & Ryusuke Taguchi!
Zack Sabre Jr. took the pin when he and Ryohei Oiwa faced Shota Umino & Tomoaki Honma in the tournament, so an IWGP World Heavyweight Championship match is set for WrestleKingdom! Will the Roughneck burn The Front Man again with the help of Funky Sauce? Or will we see even now that The Mighty Don’t Kneel?
The teams sort out and after Shota stares at the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship, and his paper replica to compare, he steps up to the champ. The bell rings and the fans cheer as we get this WK19 preview. Shota and ZSJ stare down, the fans rally up, and it sounds pretty even between “SHOTA! SHOTA!” and “ZAKU! ZAKU!” Shota and ZSJ get their fans even more fired up, and then the two circle. They feel things out, knuckle lock, but then ZSJ rolls to wrench. Shota wrenches back and he WRINGS ZSJ out! ZSJ UPKICKS, and the two reset. The fans cheer and the two circle again. Shota avoids a leg pick but ZSJ avoids an enzigiri!
Shota avoids the Penalty Kick, then spins ZSJ to underhook! ZSJ flips that but Shota fights the scoop! ZSJ avoids the uppercut but Shota blocks the uppercut! Shota wants the backslide but ZSJ spins that around, only for Shota to arm-drag! But ZSJ headscissors! Shota kips free and the fans cheer the standoff! Shota dares ZSJ to take the leg, but ZSJ just pushes the foot away. The two reset and feel things out again. They knuckle lock, go forehead to forehead, but then each man kicks a knuckle lock apart. ZSJ and Shota back off, and ZSJ dares Shota to bring it. Shota steps back up, they go forehead to forehead, and then ZSJ offers a free shot.
Shota says no, the champ should take the free shot. ZSJ decides to tag in Oiwa instead. Shota says fine, and he tags Taguchi. The fans rally as Taguchi and Oiwa circle. They tie up, Oiwa headlocks, but Taguchi pries the hold. Oiwa clamps on tighter but Taguchi fires body shots. Taguchi powers up and out, but Oiwa runs him over! Things speed up, Taguchi hurdles and DROPKICKS Oiwa down! Cover, TWO! Fujita slides in but Zayne intercepts! Zayne kicks the Japanese Young Punk and then throws him out! Funky Sauce double whip Oiwa to then BULLDOG and BASEMENT DROPKICK! The fans cheer and Taguchi stalks Oiwa.
Taguchi HIP DROPS Oiwa again and again, then uses the ropes to go up, out, and slingshot back in, but he hip drops onto Oiwa’s knees! Taguchi hobbles away and Oiwa storms up to whip. Taguchi reverses, runs up, but Oiwa pops him up onto the top rope! Taguchi is stuck right on the Funky Weapon! The ref checks but Oiwa SHAKES the ropes! Taguchi suffer, then he slowly tilts to one side! Oiwa gut wrenches Taguchi off the ropes! Tag to ZSJ and ZSJ UPPERCUTS the butt! Then he UPPERCUTS the butt again! And again! Taguchi falls over and ZSJ tags Fujita. Taguchi backstrokes towards his corner, but Fujita stomps him down!
Fujita drags Taguchi up, CHOPS him, then whips him to a corner. Fujita runs up and CHOPS again! Fujita snapmares Taguchi to PENALTY KICK! Cover, TWO! Taguchi stays in this and the fans rally up. Fujita drags Taguchi up, but Taguchi CHOPS! And CHOPS! And CHOPS! Fujita CHOPS back! Fujita runs, Taguchi jumps, but Fujita CHOPS the hip attack! Taguchi hobbles away while Fujita says he’s too smart for that. Fujita runs, but Taguchi somersaults to HIP ATTACK! Hot tag to Zayne and he fires forearms on Fujita! Zayne whips, hip tosses, then STANDING MARIPOSAS! The fans fire up while Zayne brings Fujita up.
Zayne fires more elbows, then a mule kick! Zayne runs to ROLLING AX KICK! Fujita goes to a corner, Zayne runs in, but Fujita BOOTS him away! Fujita hops up but Zayne comes back to JUMPING DRAGON RANA! The fans fire up and Zayne storms over to Fujita. Zayne scoops and B AJA BLASTS! Cover, TWO! Fujita survives but the fans rally behind Zayne. Zayne brings Fujita up, straitjackets, but Fujita fights free to CHOP! Zayne BOOTS! Fujita kicks but Zayne ducks! Fujita rolls off Zayne’s back and runs to GAMANGIRI! The fans fire up while both men are down! Fujita and Zayne crawl, hot tags to ZSJ and Shota!
The fans fire up as ZSJ BOOTS Shota, and Shota ROCKS ZSJ! Shota eggs ZSJ on so ZSJ UPPERCUTS! Shota UPPERCUTS in return! They UPPERCUT back and forth, harder and harder! The fans rally as they now go faster and faster! ZSJ gets the edge with UPPERCUT after UPPERCUT, but Shota roars! Shota UPPERCUTS again and again, ZSJ roars, but Shota UPPERCUTS him down! Shota hurries to FISHERMAN SUPLEX! Bridging cover, TWO! Not quite perfect but Shota stays fired up! Shota clinches ZSJ but ZSJ fights the lift! ZSJ goes for the arm but Shota waistlocks. ZSJ spins around to FACELOCK GUILLOTINE!
Shota endures and stays on his feet, even as ZSJ has the body scissors! The fans duel as ZSJ thrashes, but Shota powers through to suplex ZSJ up and over! Both men are down and the fans fire up again. Shota rises, then he brings ZSJ up to dragon sleeper. ZSJ spins and PELES the arm! But Shota blocks a roundhouse to PELE! But ZSJ PENALTY KICKS! Both men are down again and the fans rally more! ZSJ and Shota crawl, but ZSJ tags in Oiwa! Oiwa runs in at the corner to DROPKICK! Oiwa has the single leg but Shota fights off the suplex! Oiwa swings but Shota clinches, so now Oiwa fights free!
Shota ROCKS Oiwa, spins, but Oiwa ROCKS Shota! Oiwa runs, into a clinch! EXPLODER! The fans fire up while both men are down! The fans rally, Shota and Oiwa crawl, hot tag to Taguchi! Taguchi calls to Zayne and then BLASTS Fujita! Funky Sauce whips Oiwa to a corner, then Zayne sends Taguchi in. HIP ATTACK! Taguchi goes up, Zayne RANAS Oiwa into the butt! Backslide, roll through, KETSUYE! Cover, TWO! Oiwa survives but Taguchi signals for that. Taguchi and Zayne use the power of Strong Style, and then “ITADAKIMAAAS~!” Oiwa stands, into a DOUBLE HIP ATTACK SANDWICH! Cover, Fujita breaks it!
Zayne ROCKS Fujita, he and Taguchi double whip, but Fujita ducks the lariats to shove Zayne into Taguchi! Zayne blocks a kick but not the DRAGON WHIP! Shota dropkicks Fujita’s legs! ZSJ BOOTS Shota! Shota roars, but ZSJ BOOTS him again! ZSJ whips, Shota reverses and TORNADO DDTS! ZSJ flounders away and the fans fire up with Shota! Shota tells Taguchi to finish it off, and Taguchi runs at Oiwa! And he sliding kicks! Oiwa tumbles, Taguchi grabs the leg to OH MY GAH ANKLE!! Oiwa endures, reaches out, but Taguchi drags him back! Oiwa gets up to LARIAT! Both men are down and the fans fire up!
Oiwa fires up and he brings Taguchi around. Oiwa whips, then clamps on a SLEEPER! But Taguchi slips right out! Taguchi has the headlock, but Oiwa slips out to hit a BIG atomic drop! Taguchi hobbles and Oiwa clamps on the SLEEPER! Taguchi flails but he’s fading already! The fans rally and Oiwa spins Taguchi, for THE GRIP!! Cover, TMDK wins!
Winners: TMDK, by pinfall
The Mullet gets the better of The Funky Weapon, but Shota still dares ZSJ to go for the leg. ZSJ ignores Shota’s bait and just gives him the paper belt. “This is the closest you’ll get to the effin’ title.” ZSJ SLAPS Shota with it! Shota says don’t be rude to the kids! A fan made that for him. Shota dusts off the paper belt, and claims that he’s gonna get the real deal soon enough. ZSJ says yeah, sure. ZSJ will make Shota a real nice toy belt himself so he can keep dreaming. ZSJ mockingly puts something together using his old wrist tape! Shota says wow, thanks. With not even a month left, who will win out when the real belt is on the line?
2024 World Tag League Finals: Gabe Kidd & SANADA VS Tetsuya Naito & Hiromu Takahashi!
It’s the moment of truth as The Mad Man & Cold Blooded take on The Uncontrollable Charisma & Ticking Timebomb. There is still a lot of uncertainty regarding the tag titles given Henare’s knee injury, but for right now, it’s time to answer one question: Who will be the 2024 World Tag League Champions?
As Naito enters the ring, Gabe stays right at the center, but Naito completely ignores him. Then Naito takes his time with his entrance attire, as always, but Gabe and Sanada both stay calm. Gabe paces but Sanada keeps his eyes closed. Hiromu fires up Kumamoto and Naito finally does away with the pants. The teams finally sort out, and Gabe eggs on “the Junior.” Hiromu grins, then he fist bumps Naito, and yes, it seems Hiromu and the NJPW Strong Openweight Champion will start! The bell rings and both men run in! They DOUBLE LARIAT, but it’s Hiromu who falls! Hiromu gets up to CHOP, but Gabe CHOPS!
The fans fire up as the CHOPS go back and forth already! Hiromu backs down, but for only a moment! Hiromu CHOPS again, so Gabe CHOPS again! The CHOPS go back and forth, but Hiromu backs down again. Gabe eggs him on so Hiromu CHOPS! Gabe CHOPS again! Hiromu clutches his chest but he CHOPS again! Gabe CHOPS again, then braces himself. The CHOPS keep going, then they get forehead to forehead. Gabe winds up to CHOP! Hiromu drops back, and Gabe kicks at him. Gabe eggs Hiromu on so Hiromu CHOPS, CHOPS and CHOPS! Gabe spins to CHOP! Hiromu backs down, but runs up to LARIAT!
Gabe stays up, so he and Hiromu both run, but to take out Naito and Sanada! Then Hiromu runs up to kick Gabe low! Hiromu CLUBS Gabe, CHOPS, and Gabe feels that one. Hiromu whips, Gabe reverses, and Sanada gets a cheap shot in! The fans boo and Red Shoes reprimands, but the War Dogs double whip. Hiromu grabs ropes to stop, and Naito runs in! Naito CLOBBERS Sanada and Hiromu kicks Gabe! LIJ mugs Gabe then double whips, to DOUBLE CHOP! Then they DOUBLE BASEMENT DROPKICK! Gabe flounders away while the fans cheer. Hiromu tags Naito and Naito storms up on Gabe.
Naito CLUBS Gabe again and again, then snapmares for a chinlock. Gabe endures the knee in his back, even as Naito digs it in deeper. Naito then shifts to have a headscissors! Naito pushes up to put on the pressure, but Gabe still endures. Naito lets Gabe go and Hiromu sits in the ropes. Hiromu assures Red Shoes it isn’t what he thinks, but then Naito bumps Gabe off Hiromu’s boots! It WAS what it looked like! The fans cheer but Red Shoes reprimands, and Naito tags in Hiromu. Hiromu CHOPS Gabe to a corner, then CHOPS again! Naito joins in and they double whip Gabe corner to corner. Gabe comes back, Naito drops down and Hiromu CROSBODIES!
Sanada storms in but Hiromu CROSSBODIES! Hiromu goes out and chases down Gabe, CROSSBODY! Hiromu keeps moving, and Naito sets Sanada up for the CROSSBODY! The fans fire up with Hiromu as he goes back to the ring. Gabe storms around in frustration, then pushes his way to No Man’s Land. He eggs Hiromu on, so here he comes! But Sanada was lurking! He attacks first, then sends Hiromu into chairs! Naito and Gabe brawl, and Naito CLUBS Gabe around. Fans are told to move aside, and Naito whips. Gabe reverses and he BOWLS Naito into chairs! Not quite a strike but Gabe just flips off the fans.
Sanada is beating Hiromu down somewhere in the upper deck, and Gabe drags Naito back up. Gabe UPPERCUTS Naito, but Hiromu fights back against Sanada! Sanada CLAWS Hiromu’s face! Hiromu stops the suplex, then suplexes Sanada! Sanada fights that, and he CLAWS Hiromu’s face again! As for Gabe, he BITES Naito’s forehead, then SMACKS him down! At least they’re at ringside. But then Gabe looks under the ring, and he brings out a table! Gabe sets the table up, but Naito fires forearms on Gabe! Gabe SMACKS Naito again! Gabe hauls Naito up to POWERBOMB through the table!!
The fans go wild as Gabe looms over Naito. Gabe slides in and mocks Naito’s pose! The fans are torn but most boo. Red Shoes reprimands Gabe, and it seems Sanada has retuned to ringside, with Hiromu somewhere in the crowd. A ring count starts, but Gabe SPITS at Naito! The count is 7 of 20 and the spotlight shows Hiromu is still so far away! We pass 10, then 12! Hiromu hobbles at 15 and he’s finally in the aisle! Hiromu runs and slides in safe at 19! The fans cheer but Gabe drags Hiromu up. Gabe CHOPS Hiromu in the corner, then CHOPS again! And then JABS! Tag to Sanada and he CLAWS Hiromu’s back while Gabe talks trash on Naito.
The fans rally for Hiromu but Sanada stomps him in a corner. Sanada digs his boot in, but he stops as Red Shoes counts. Sanada drags Hiromu up, TOSSES him out, and Gabe quickly runs Hiromu back to the back of the crowd and up the bleachers! Gabe ROCKS Hiromu with a straight right hand! Then SMACKS him again! Hiromu flops over and Gabe leaves him behind again. The ring count returns while Hiromu sputters. The fans cheer Hiromu on as he’s up, but he’s still so far away at 10! Then 15! Hiromu returns at 18 to slide in at 19.5!! Sanada is on Hiromu, but Hiromu dropkicks the legs out! But Naito isn’t at the corner!
Sanada tags Gabe and he stomps away on Hiromu in the corner! Red Shoes reprimands but Gabe drags Hiromu up. The fans rally for Hiromu, but Gabe whips him hard into the corner! Gabe eggs Hiromu on, saying he’s not “Despy” or Douki. Hiromu rises up to CHOP! Gabe snarls but Hiromu CHOPS again! Hiromu roars and he CHOPS! Gabe finally wobbles, but he keeps Hiromu from Naito! Gabe throws Hiromu down by his hair, then he WRECKS Naito with a dropkick! Gabe mocks the tranquilo and the fans boo. Gabe tags Sanada and the War Dogs bring Hiromu up. The fans rally but the War Dogs double whip, only for Hiromu to DOUBLE CROSSBODY!
Hiromu crawls, reaches out, but Sanada keeps him from Naito! Hiromu breaks free, blocks a kick, and a punch! Sanada CLAWS Hiromu’s eyes! Sanada runs but Hiromu bolts for the corner! Hot tag to Naito! Naito kicks and fires off on Sanada, but Gabe CLUBS him! The War Dogs double whip, but Naito reverses to send Sanada away! Then he sends Gabe into Sanada! Gabe falls, Naito dodges Sanada to arm-drag! And ELBOW! Naito keeps moving, basement DROPKICK! Gabe ROCKS Naito! Gabe whips, Naito reverses and runs up to ELBOW him down! Sanada runs up but is sent into the corner! Naito blocks boots to put Sanada in ropes, DRAPING NECKBREAKER!
Naito hurries to stand Sanada up, turn him, and stall for the NECKBREAKER! The fans fire up as Naito does the pose himself. Cover, TWO! Sanada is tougher than that but Naito drags him up. Naito dragon sleepers for another NECKBREAKER, and then it’s the LEG HOOK NELSON! Sanada endures as Naito puts on the pressure, and Sanada kicks around. Naito puts on more pressure, but Sanada has the ROPEBREAK! But of course Naito claims he needs a little help. Red Shoes counts, Naito lets the hold go, and he brings Sanada to a corner. Naito drags Sanada up, reel shim in, but Sanada stops Esperanza! So Naito BOOTS him!
Naito whips corner to corner but Sanada goes up and out, and even to the floor! Naito slides out but Sanada goes to the apron. Naito hurries back up, but Sanada KICKS ropes to jam Naito up! The fans boo and Red Shoes reprimands but Sanada tags Gabe. Gabe drags Naito up, has him in a corner, and CHOPS! HEADBUTTS! Repeat! Gabe wobbles a bit, but he rolls back and returns to LARIAT! Then SAIDO! Naito gets flung, Gabe hurries to cover, TWO! The fans fire up but Gabe drags Naito right up to suplex and BRAINBUSTER! Cover, TWO!! Naito survives but Gabe seethes. The fans rally for Naito as hard as they can, which annoys Gabe.
Gabe drags Naito up, reels him in, but Naito fights the lift! Gabe CLUBS Naito but still Naito fights! Gabe DOUBLE CHOPS Naito’s back, then powers through! But Naito powers out and throws those heavy back elbows! Gabe SPITS at Naito! Naito SLAPS Gabe! Gabe rebounds, Naito dodges, tilt-o-whirl CRADLE! TWO!! Gabe SMACKS Naito, reels him in, “I’m a MAD MAN, y’know!” But Hiromu SUPERKICKS him first! Sanada DROPKICKS Hiromu! Naito dropkicks Sanada’s legs! But Gabe KNEES Naito down! Hiromu fireman’s carries Gabe! TIMEBOMB 1.5! Sanada runs up, into a wrench and FACLON ARROW!
Sanada flounders out and Hiromu brings Gabe over to Naito! BOOSTED TORNADO DDT! The fans fire up and Naito brings Gabe back up! Wrench and tilt-o-whirl, DESTINO!! Cover, SANADA YANKS RED SHOES OUT!! The fans boo Sanada but he just soaks up the heat. Hiromu goes to the apron and he CROSSBODIES Sanada down! Hiromu helps Red Shoes up, Naito wrenches Gabe again, DESTIN- NO! TOMBSTONE!! Gabe and Naito are down and the fans rally even harder! There is some dueling in here, but the “GABU! GABU!” is still overwhelmed by the “NA-I-TO! NA-I-TO!” Both men stir while Red Shoes returns.
Gabe clutches his neck while rolling away from Naito. Naito changes course and rolls for his corner, hot tags to Sanada and Hiromu! Hiromu dodges Sanada’s boot but Sanada blocks the lariat! Dragon sleeper, but Hiromu spins that around! Sanada fights the suplex so Hiromu dropkicks a leg out! Hiromu KICKS and fireman’s carries, and flips Sanada into the dragon sleeper! Sanada spins that around, but Hiromu fights a suplex! Hiromu suplexes but Sanada slips free to dragon sleeper! SKULL END! Hiromu endures but Sanada drops back into the body scissors! The fans rally and Hiromu fights around!
Sanada squeezes as tight as he can and Hiromu is fading! Red Shoes checks, Hiromu faintly comes back to life, but Sanada goes to his old ways! Sanada goes up and up to ROUNDING BODY PRESS, but onto knees!! Hiromu saves himself and the fans rally up! Hiromu feeds off the energy to fire back up. Hiromu runs to HIROMU- NO, Sanada dodges the lariat, but the HIROMU-CHAN BOMBER still finds him! Fireman’s carry, TIMEBOMB 1.5!! Cover, TWO!! Sanada survives and Hiromu grows frustrated. The fans rally up behind him and Hiromu drags Sanada up. Hiromu fireman’s carries but Sanada slips free.
Sanada waistlocks but Hiromu switches. Sanada grabs at Red Shoes, Red Shoes gets away, and Hiromu avoids the low blow kick! Hiromu SUPERKICKS Sanada, then runs, but Sanada slips around! Sanada shoves Hiromu at Red Shoes and Red Shoes almost ends up falling out of the ring! Sanada whips Hiromu to POP-UP LOW BLOW! And then O’CONNER BRIDGE!! Cover, NAITO YANKS RED SHOES OUT!! Naito returns the favor and grins at Sanada. Gabe storms in with a chair! Naito runs and shoves Hiromu out of harm’s way! Naito then dodges Gabe to POP-UP LOW BLOW!! Another bit of returning the favor!
The fans are thunderous as Gabe writhes and rolls out of the ring. Naito drags Sanada up, Hiromu helps, BOOSTED TORNADO- NO! Sanada slips free, but Naito sends him into a SUPERKICK! ENZIGIRI! HIROMU-CHAN BOMBER!! The fans fire up with Hiromu as he fireman’s carries Sanada, for the OG TIMEBOMB!! Cover, TWO?!?! Sanada survives and shocks everyone! Hiromu roars and the fans are with him! Hiromu clinches in a dragon sleeper, but Gabe BITES Hiromu’s face! Gabe DECKS Naito, then he drags Hiromu up. Hiromu CHOPS, CHOPS , and CHOPS! Gabe just UPPERCUTS!
Gabe scoops and SLAMS Hiromu, then goes up the corner! MAD MAN MOONSAULT! Gabe calls to Sanada to get Hiromu, and Sanada goes up! ROUNDING BODY PRESS!! Cover, TWO!!! Hiromu survives and Sanada is furious!! Red Shoes defends his count and the fans are electric for Hiromu! Gabe reels Hiromu in, PILEDRIVER!! Feed to the DEAD- NO, Naito CLUBS Sanada! Naito dodges Gabe, comes back, DESTINO!!! SHINING WIZARD from Sanada!! Sanada hauls Hiromu up but Hiromu pump-handles! HIROMU-CHAN CRA- NO! SHINING WIZARD!! Sanada roars, fans are torn, but he drags Hiromu up.
Sanada clinches, DEAD- NO, Hiromu slips free, wrenches, pump handle, HIROMU-CHAN CRADLE!!! LIJ WINS!!!!
Winners: Tetsuya Naito & Hiromu Takahashi, by pinfall (World Tag League 2024 Champions)
Sanada cannot believe it, but Kumamoto absolutely loves it!! The War Dogs tore through A Block, but it was the team that survived the extra Triple Threat match that takes the whole thing! What does this mean for the combination of Gabe and Sanada in the future? Is there a future for them?
As for LIJ, Naito drags himself into the ring, crawls over to Hiromu, and master and student hug it out! Red Shoes brings them the trophies, and LIJ sets them side by side before they stand back up. Naito gets his hat back on while Hiromu rests on the mat again. And after a little water to refresh themselves, Naito gets the mic. “Buenas noches, KUMAMOTOOOO~!” The fans cheer, and Naito says, “The way things work, it should be Hiromu, the main event winner, on the mic right now. But it looks like he took some damage. In that case, I’ll say my part first.” The fans applaud that.
Naito thanks all the fans that came out to the Grand Messe Kumamoto for the WTL Finals. “Gracias, amigos.” The fans cheer that, and Naito adds that he won the main event here back in April of 2018. He sent a message to all the fans here that night. Does anyone remember what he said about “having the courage to take that step?” The fans applaud as it seems they do. Naito says, “Make no mistake, we won the World Tag League thanks to Hiromu.” The fans applaud again, and even chant for “HI-RO-MU! HI-RO-MU!” Naito says that Hiromu’s refusal to give up under any circumstance made Naito feel he had to take that step, too.
“And that step brings me to that singles match we were set to have before the pandemic.” Fans are intrigued hearing that. Naito says how about doing it January 4th in the Tokyo Dome? The fans cheer for Hiromu in support of that idea. Hiromu takes the mic now and asks if it takes Naito that long to take a step. The fans chuckle, and Hiromu stands. Hiromu says thanks to that, they were able to enter WTL and win it all. Hiromu thanks Naito for that, both arigato and gracias. The fans applaud, and Hiromu reviews the idea: January 4th, WrestleKingdom, Naito VS Hiromu. “The answer is, of course…! Let’s do it.”
The fans cheer as the match is now set! Hiromu thanks Naito for letting him know this is how he felt! “It’s important to say what we feel, isn’t it? Everyone, do you have something you want to say as well? It could to a friend, a lover, a parent, a teacher, a senpai, a kouhai! I’m reminded once again how important it is to share what we are feeling. Naito-san, do you mind if I tell you something, too?” The fans are again intrigued. “Naito-san, thank you for teaching me how to be a wrestler!” Hiromu bows and the fans applaud. Hiromu then says January 4th can’t come soon enough! “Everyone, we only live once, so enjoy it to the fullest!”
First, think of the life you wanna live, and then enjoy it to the fullest! And during that time, if pro-wrestling can bring you even a bit of joy, Hiromu will be satisfied! So then, let’s have more… The fans echo back, “Moto!” Moto! Moto! Moto! Moto! Moto! Moto! Moto! Moto! Moto! Moto! Moto! Moto! MOTO fun in life enjoying pro-wrestling together~! The confetti goes off as the WTL winners must take a different route for WrestleKingdom. Will it be teacher or student who proves themselves the better man in the Tokyo Dome?
My Thoughts:
An awesome finale to WTL 2024, even with a lot of the other matches just kind of filler since there weren’t tag titles to be defended here and a lot of WrestleKingdom 19 stuff to be set up. I made sure to do the 10 Man Tag because it of course fed Tanahashi VS Evil, but I certainly didn’t see it happening that way. Tanahashi going wild because of all the frustration he has with Evil was some great stuff, and a Lumberjack match is a great move so that Tanahashi’s allies, aka all of The House of Torture’s enemies, are gonna be ringside with them. But moving up the retirement stipulation is a shock. Was saying 2026 would be when Tanahashi retires just a smokescreen so this would be more shocking? Or is this the smokescreen to put more drama on a match we’re pretty sure Tanahashi still wins?
The Six Man Tag of TMDK VS Shota & Funky Sauce was really good, and a really good win for Oiwa there. This was all still just secondary to building heat on Shota and ZSJ, but it was rather funny for Shota to have that paper (and I think soft foam?) belt and ZSJ mocking him with the wrist tape. If Shota ends up winning, I think NJPW is guilty of making him their “Super Cena,” their “Cena Wins LOL” guy, and that’s a disservice to Shota and especially Zack. Zack needs to make it through a WK with that belt, let Shota fight his way back up through the New Japan Cup or something.
And awesome, incredible main event with the WTL finals. I figured Naito & Hiromu were winning, just because Gabe’s got his NJPW Strong title and the Kenny Omega match for that Tokyo Dome weekend. Not sure what it means for Sanada, but I don’t think he’s leaving War Dogs already (as funny as that would be). And I suppose with Henare’s knee in question, they’re just going to leave the Heavyweight Tag Team Championship match for another time. Naito VS Hiromu, the World Champ VS Junior Heavyweight Champ match we never got four years ago for the anniversary show, is a great move for WK19. There’s no place better than WK for a match like that, and they can’t wait on this match with Naito having said he’s getting closer and closer to retiring.
That said, maybe Hiromu wins to put him over and get him into that next level where he’s going for big titles. Granted, NJPW is literal about the “heavyweight” part of the World Heavyweight Championship, and I don’t know if Hiromu’s going to be able to pull off a 205+ frame. He’s already ~195, he’s already 35, but hey, maybe he can get a short reign in just so he can say he was on top of both weight classes in his career.
My Score: 9/10
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