By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)
WWE Raw on the USA Network
Aired live on August 12, 2019 from Toronto, Ontario at Scotiabank Arena
[Hour One] Raw opened with highlights of Seth Rollins defeating Brock Lesnar to win the WWE Universal Championship at SummerSlam… Michael Cole, Corey Graves, and Renee Young were on commentary, and Mike Rome was the ring announcer…
New WWE Universal Champion Seth Rollins headed to the ring dressed in regular clothing. The broadcast team played up the idea that no one gave Rollins a chance to beat Lesnar. Rollins stood in the ring and looked at his title belt while a “burn it down” chant broke out. Rollins said he had to be honest because he doesn’t know any other way, he didn’t know if he had what it took to beat Lesnar.
Rollins said Lesnar is everything he’s touted to be in the ring and he is a beast. A light “beast slayer” chant broke out. Rollins said that when he emptied the tank the fans came alive. “In that moment, you took me to a place I have never been in my entire career,” Rollins said. He said the fans took him to a place that they could only go together, and in that moment he knew he had what it took to slay the beast.
The OC came out to AJ Styles’ entrance music. Styles, Luke Gallows, and Karl Anderson made the “too sweet” sign on the stage and then headed to the ring wearing their respective title belts. Styles said The OC wanted to be the first to congratulate Rollins. They clapped for him. “But here’s where it gets tricky, Seth, you don’t have to worry about Brock Lesnar anymore, but you do have to worry about the man standing in front of you.”
Styles challenged Rollins and said he wanted to prove that he’s a better champion. Rollins said he’s always had a ton of respect for Styles. The fans chanted “yes” for the match. Rollins said he no longer has respect for Styles. Rollins said he doesn’t back down from a fight and would teach Styles a lesson in respect.
Styles offered Rollins a handshake and had Gallows and Anderson to leave the ring. Rollins shook his hand. Styles smiled while Rollins looked at him intensely. The OC teased attacking Rollins. Styles said Rollins looked scared and he better be…
Powell’s POV: So Styles is out to prove that he’s a better champion and so he didn’t ask for a title shot? That’s a little too convenient. It will be interesting to see if they set up another Rollins vs. Styles title match for Clash of Champions or if they are just filling some time on the night after SummerSlam before moving into the build for the pay-per-view next week. Most importantly, Rollins came off very well during his promo and I like the way he’s making the fans feel like they played a part in his win.
Cole noted that Rollins was not 100 percent going into the match. The broadcast team hyped Rey Mysterio vs. Andrade in a best of three falls match, Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross vs. The Kabuki Warriors for the WWE Women’s Tag Titles, and The Miz vs. Dolph Ziggler for later in the show…
Backstage, The Street Profits wore Toronto Blue Jays shirts and spoke about the Rollins vs. Styles match. Montez Ford was fired up about Rollins, while Angelo Dawkins said the SummerSlam party went late and Rollins was looking dehydrated. Sami Zayn showed up and said the Street Profits are new and everything is exciting, but “this place” and “those parasites” will suck the life out of them.
Zayn said he loves Becky Lynch and it was real when she became The Man, but now it’s manufactured. Dawkins asked if that happens for everyone, including someone like Samoa Joe. Zayn badmouthed Joe, who was standing behind him. Joe challenged Zayn to an immediate match and shoved him into a production crate… [C]
An ad for next week’s Raw hyped the return of the King of the Ring tournament for next week’s Raw…
Powell’s POV: I like the King of the Ring tournament. Unfortunately, I rarely enjoy it when winner becomes a one dimensional King character (see poor Wade Barrett).
A recap aired of the Roman Reigns whodunnit drama involving the scaffolding incident. Cole said there would be an update on the situation later in the show… Samoa Joe made his entrance for the match with Sami Zayn and then a video recapped Reigns nearly being struck by a car last week. Zayn made his entrance…
1. Samoa Joe vs. Sami Zayn. Cole hyped the series premiere of “Straight Up Steve Austin” as coming up after Raw and said they would have an interview with Austin about the SummerSlam main event. Zayn attacked Joe at the bell. Joe came back quickly and put Zayn down with the Coquina Clutch…
Samoa Joe defeated Sami Zayn in 0:45.
The fans chanted for Joe, who said that while he may forgive Roman Reigns for accusing him, that forgiveness does not extend to the fans who thought he was capable of the heinous actions committed against Reigns…
The Miz was shown walking backstage while Graves hyped his match with Dolph Ziggler as coming up next… [C]
Powell’s POV: I hope they have a good plan in place for Joe as a heel because it felt like the fans were more than ready to embrace him as a babyface before he shot them down.
A graphic touted that SummerSlam was more socially active than other shows on Sunday night…
Young Anakin Skywalker’s POV: Yippee!!!
The Miz made his entrance and still shots were shown of Goldberg destroying Dolph Ziggler at SummerSlam. Ziggler came out dressed in regular clothes. Fans taunted Ziggler with “Goldberg” chants. Ziggler called Miz a coward. He said everyone knew Miz didn’t stand a chance against him at SummerSlam so he set up the Goldberg match. Ziggler said he was speared so many times that he was not medically cleared to compete.
Powell’s POV: I wish someone would decide that Ziggler’s shitty entrance music is not medically cleared to be played ever again.
Ziggler teased leaving and then attacked Miz and ripped the “Toronto Is Awesome” t-shirt off him. Cole said it appeared the match would take place after all… [C]
2. The Miz vs. Dolph Ziggler. The match was joined in progress. Miz put Ziggler in a figure four. Ziggler reached for the ropes, but Miz pulled him back to the middle of the ring and then bridged into a Figure 8 and got the tap out win.
The Miz defeated Dolph Ziggler in 3:50 of television time.
After the match, Ziggler laid on the mat and said Miz isn’t even the best wrestler in his family, Maryse is. Ziggler said Miz didn’t have the guts to finish him off. Ziggler got to his feet and said Miz is a reality show wannabe just before Miz dropped him with a Skull Crushing Finale…
Powell’s POV: Just when you think the Dolph Ziggler character couldn’t be a bigger loser, he decides that losing isn’t enough. No, he needs to get his ass kicked even after he loses matches. But he may be progressing since he called Goldberg back twice on Sunday and only had Miz humiliate him one more time on Monday.
Charly Caruso tried to interview Becky Lynch, who took the mic and said she could handle it. Lynch said Natalya owed her a debt and she has respect for her. Lynch said she’s not trying to make friends. She said the game is to get them before they get her…
Cole hyped the champion vs. champion match between Rollins and Styles… [C]
Elias sat on a stool in the ring with his guitar. Elias complained that another legend interrupted him the night before. He said he’s figuring out that when he plays then someone interrupts him. Elias said they could just cut to the chase and have the person come out and interrupt him. Elias counted down from three, but no one came out. He tried again and nothing happened. Elias said it would be the first ever uninterrupted Elias performance.
Ricochet’s entrance music interrupted Elias. Ricochet said people don’t interrupt Elias because it’s the cool thing to do, it’s because he sucks. Elias said a guy who dresses like a comic book character wasn’t going to tell him what to do. Elias called for an official so they could have a match…
3. Ricochet vs. Elias. There was a really clunky moment with Ricochet going for some move that either he didn’t hit or Elias wasn’t ready for. There were some groans. A short time later, Elias avoided Ricochet going or a dive between the ropes and Ricochet crashed on the floor. Elias threw Ricochet back inside the ring and then grabbed his guitar, which the referee wouldn’t let him use. Ricochet performed a sunset flip from the top rope and got the pin…
Ricochet defeated Elias in 3:25.
The broadcast team immediately pointed out that Elias’s shoulder was up during the pin. Elias complained to the referee…
Rey Mysterio was shown walking backstage while Graves hyped his best of three falls match with Andrade… [C]
Powell’s POV: Ricochet ditched the top half of his Nightwing tribute gear from SummerSlam and only wore the pants. Meanwhile, Elias still wrestles in work boots for reasons that only he understands. The botch was really rough and the finish was just plain strange in that it seemed like a planned finish. Do we really need a rematch/
Cole hyped SummerSlam 2020 for Boston…
[Hour Two] Ring entrances for the best of three falls match took place…
4. Rey Mysterio vs. Andrade (w/Zelina Vega) in a best of three falls match. Andrade attacked Mysterio the moment the bell rang to start the match. Mysterio came right back with a 619 attempt, but Vega grabbed his legs before he could execute it. Andrade rolled up a distracted Mysterio and used the ropes for leverage and Vega helped out by holding his legs on the ropes as he scored the pin. Andrade beat Rey Mysterio in 0:25 to win the first fall.
Mysterio performed a huracanrana that resulted in Andrade taking a bump from the apron to the floor. Mysterio eventually hit a 619. Mysterio went for a top rope splash, but Andrade put his knees up. Andrade performed a hammerlock DDT and scored the pin to sweep the match…
Andrade defeated Rey Mysterio in two falls to none in a best of three falls match in 5:35.
Powell’s POV: This wasn’t as fun as their previous matches because it was so brief. While it’s sad to see Mysterio losing so much lately, I’m happy to see this wasn’t a parity booking situation where they had Mysterio get his win back. WWE has a shortage of strong heels because of their bad booking, so this is a step in the right direction for Andrade. Will we see King Andrade crowned next week?
Michael Cole interviewed Steve Austin, who appeared via Skype. Cole asked Austin how impressed he was by the performance of Seth Rollins at SummerSlam. Austin put over Rollins for the match and his performance. He said he wondered who Rollins is, but now he knows who he is because Rollins said ‘this is all I am and all I got.’ Cole asked what advice Austin gave Rollins at Raw Reunion. Austin said he told him to stay focused. Cole hyped Austin’s show for after USA… [C]
Charly Caruso interviewed Mysterio backstage and asked if he met his match. Mysterio said he had no idea where his career was going, but he has a family to support…
Montez Ford was shown elsewhere in the backstage and he said Mysterio should keep his head up. Angelo Dawkins was passed out (so it was him who was dehydrated, not Rollins as I mistakenly wrote earlier). Ford hyped the WWE Women’s Tag Title match while Dawkins guzzled water…
Sarah Schreiber interviewed Drew McIntyre, who took offense to her saying this was the next chapter of his feud with Cedric Alexander. McIntyre said he would cave Alexander’s skull in and his fairytale would end…
McIntyre made his entrance. Cole said McIntyre and Alexander will be in the King of the Ring tournament next week… An ad for Smackdown hyped Roman Reigns vs. Buddy Murphy… [C]
Powell’s POV: I didn’t even think of King McIntyre, but he seems like a strong candidate to win King of the Ring and become a one dimensional heel character.
5. Drew McIntyre vs. Cedric Alexander. Cole said the KOTR tournament will feature eight Raw wrestlers and eight Smackdown wrestlers and will begin next week (so it’s not a one night tournament). Alexander got a lot of offense and near falls against McIntyre, who caught him with a good Claymore Kick and pinned him…
Drew McIntyre defeated Cedric Alexander in 8:40.
Powell’s POV: This was a really good television match. McIntyre got the win as he should have, but Alexander looked good in defeat. I know I’m being negative about KOTR. I really do enjoy a good tournament and there’s a chance this will be a positive. After all, it will give some television matches more meaning than usual, and there’s no guarantee they will saddle the winner with a one dimensional king gimmick. But I still have bad memories of King Sheamus and King Barrett, and it doesn’t help that Charlotte Flair is currently a one dimensional queen.
Backstage, AJ Styles said he only got one chance to beat Brock Lesnar while Rollins had numerous chances. Styles said he came “this close” to beating Lesnar. Styles said he’d run through Rollins and embarrass him. Styles said he’s a champion who leads by example and the fans would know who the champion is afterward…
A grumpy Paul Heyman was shown walking backstage and he entered Brock Lesnar’s dressing room… [C]
Caruso was outside Lesnar’s locker room and said she’d try to get an interview in a few minutes…
6. Robert Roode vs. No Way Jose. Most of Jose’s entrance with the goof troop took place while Caruso was talking, and Roode received a televised entrance. Caruso was shown standing backstage with Heyman as the bell rang. Graves said Jose has a lot of talent that gets lost in the shuffle because of the cartoonish conga line he comes out with (amen, brother). Roode hit his Glorious DDT and scored the clean pin…
Robert Roode beat No Way Jose in 1:25.
Backstage, Caruso told Heyman that history was made at SummerSlam. Heyman mocked the line. Heyman said WWE ruled earlier in the day that Brock Lesnar won’t get a rematch against Rollins. Heyman struggled to find the right words, gave up, and headed into Lesnar’s locker room…
Cole hyped the Styles vs. Rollins match as coming up after the break… [C]
7. “The Revival” Scott Dawson and Dash Wilder vs. Gran Metalik and Lince Dorado (w/Kalisto). Neither team’s entrance was televised. The match was interrupted by R-Truth running to the ring while a group of the usual suspects chased after him.
The Revival fought Gran Metalik and Lince Dorado to an apparent no-contest in 1:25.
Carmella tripped Drake Maverick. The Revival performed a Hart Attack clothesline and pinned R-Truth to win the title. Kalisto roughed up both Revival members. Wilder pulled Kalisto to ringside, then Carmella put Truth on top of Dawson and the referee counted to three. R-Truth his now a 12-time champion. Cole said Truth his entering Flair territory.
Truth went backstage and the wrestlers all followed and exited through one side, then Truth and Carmella came out the other side. In a backstage area, Truth boasted to Carmella about how many times he won the title. Elias showed up and hit him with a guitar and pinned him to become a three-time WWE 24/7 Champion.
Cole hyped an update on Roman Reigns for after the break… [C]
Powell’s POV: I would question if Dash Wilder still has a claim to the title since he wasn’t pinned, but I just don’t care. After these last two segments, I feel like I tuned in for Raw and an episode of WWE Main Event broke out.
The broadcast team hyped KOTR briefly…
[Hour Three] A video package aired on the Reigns saga… Cole said the developing story would continue Tuesday on Smackdown…
Natalya headed to the ring in regular clothing and had her left arm in a sling. She received a tame reaction. Cole narrated still shots of Lynch beating Natalya at SummerSlam. Natalya conceded that she tapped out the night before. She said Lynch outwrestled her and was the better woman. Natalya said she had a dislocated elbow and would undergo and MRI on Tuesday.
Natalya said this was probably the time when she was supposed to take back the things she said about Lynch, but she wasn’t taking back a damn thing. She said she and Lynch would do it again at some point. Natalya started to tell a story about her father speaking to her in a dream the night before (there was a light boring chant). Natalya said it was one year ago to the day that her father died.
Sasha Banks made her entrance. The crowd popped big. Graves called Banks despicable for interrupting Natalya’s emotional moment. Graves said he didn’t miss Sasha for a second and said she should go back to posting cryptic photos on instagram.
Banks entered the ring and hugged Natalya, then turned and punched her. Banks removed a wig that had her previous color to reveal blue hair. Banks violently attacked Natalya and dumped her to ringside, then ran her into the ring steps. A loud “thank you, Sasha” chant broke out. Ouch. Banks ran Natalya into the steps again and jawed at her, then rolled her inside the ring.
Becky Lynch came out for the save and traded punches with Banks. Lynch got the better of it and Banks rolled to ringside. Lynch followed Banks to the floor and ate a punch. Banks ran Lynch into the barricade a couple times. Banks grabbed a chair and slammed it over Lynch’s back and then side ten times. Three referees showed up, but Banks backed them off and hit Lynch with the chair a few mores times before tossing it aside. Banks picked up Lynch and ran her into the steps, then walked up the ramp, looked back, and smiled before walking backstage… [C]
Powell’s POV: A strong return for Banks, who becomes the strong challenger that Lynch desperately needs. It seems they overestimated the appeal of Natalya in Canada, as the crowd turned on her before Banks came out and then the fans showed no sympathy once Banks attacked her. Heel Sasha has finally arrived on the main roster.
The broadcast team recapped Banks attacking Natalya and Lynch. Cole said they would try to find out more details and pass them along via social media on why Banks did what she did…
8. “The Viking Raiders” Erik and Ivar vs. local wrestlers. A pre-tape aired with the Viking Raiders boasting about how they have dominated for the last four months and said everyone will fall. The locals were not mentioned by name. One of them ate the Viking Experience and was pinned. “Thank God for socialized healthcare,” Graves said. Funny…
The Viking Raiders won a squash match in 1:30.
Powell’s POV: Another squash match win for the Raiders without much reaction from the crowd. Raw will be in Minnesota next week, so maybe they’ll get some Skol love from my fellow Vikings fans.
Cole hyped Rollins vs. Styles for later in the show…
Backstage, Caruso interviewed Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross. Bliss said they would be fighting champions unlike “our former chatting champions.” Cross expressed gratitude for Bliss. “Aww, Nikki, always trying to give me all the credit,” Bliss said. Then she delivered a straight faced thank you… Cole said the women’s tag title match was up next… [C]
Cole hyped the 20th Anniversary of Smackdown special on October 4 in Los Angeles. Cole noted that it will be the Smackdown debut on Fox…
Bliss and Cross made their entrance and Young noted that Graves was quiet. Graves recalled saying things he regretted about Bliss on SummerSlam (regarding her Toy Story themed outfit). He said he sent her a text about it. He said she has a beautiful friendship with Cross and it’s time everyone accept it for what it is. The Kabuki Warriors made their entrance. Cole noted that Paige was not present and set up a clip of Paige saying she couldn’t be at Raw because she was undergoing another neck surgery…
9. Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross vs. “The Kabuki Warriors” Asuka and Kairi Sane for the WWE Women’s Tag Titles. Mike Rome delivered in-ring introductions for the title match (his hair seemed less blonde than at SummerSlam). Asuka leapt off the apron and slammed her ass on Bliss at ringside, then Sane took out Cross on the floor. Asuka rolled Bliss back inside the ring and covered her for a two count. [C]
Sane hit the Insane Elbow on Cross and had her pinned, but Bliss broke it up. Asuka and Bliss ended up at ringside. Bliss ducked a kick and Asuka’s leg hit the ring post. Bliss returned to the ring and dragged Cross to their corner. Sane stopped her. Cross recovered and performed a swinging neckbreaker, then tagged in Bliss, who hit Twisted Bliss and scored the pin…
Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross beat The Kabuki Warriors in 8:45 to retain the WWE Women’s Tag Titles.
Powell’s POV: A good match. The crowd was quiet because I don’t get the sense that they know how to react to Bliss and Cross. After all, they worked against heels on Sunday and now against babyfaces on Monday.
Seth Rollins delivered a backstage promo and said he’s the champion that Styles only wishes he could be. Rollins noted that he beat Lesnar twice, then recalled beating Styles at Money in the Bank.
Cole said the match was just moments away, then recalled Steve Austin endorsing Rollins. The broadcast team hyped Steve Austin’s show with the slogan “Less talk, more show.” A brief preview of the show aired… [C]
A KOTR video package aired. Elias, Miz, Kevin Owens, Chad Gable, Andrade, Shelton Benjamin, Buddy Murphy, Ricochet, Cedric Alexander, Drew McIntyre, Cesaro, Baron Corbin, Sami Zayn, Ali, Apollo Crews, and Samoa Joe were featured in the video along with past KOTR winners…
Powell’s POV: That’s a total of 16 current wrestlers, so I assume those are the 16 entrants in the the tournament. We don’t have the brackets, but it has the potential to be a good tournament and there are some intriguing king possibilities.
10. WWE Universal Champion Seth Rollins vs. U.S. Champion AJ Styles (w/Luke Gallows, Karl Anderson) in a non-title match. Rollins had his ribs wrapped. Rollins was the early aggressor and set up for the Stomp, but Gallows and Anderson pulled Styles to ringside. Styles fought them, but Styles used the distraction to run Rollins rib first into the apron and ended up flipping him into the air and letting him drop on the floor going into a break (no restarts!). [C]
Rollins ducked a Phenomenal Forearm attempt and then dropped Styles with a superkick. Rollins went up top. Anderson distracted the referee while Gallows shoved Rollins off the top rope. The referee ended up ejecting Gallows and Anderson (they never left). Rollins had Styles down when Gallows and Anderson hit the ring and attacked Rollins for the DQ.
Seth Rollins beat AJ Styles by DQ in 9:20 in a non-title match.
Ricochet’s music played and he came out and helped Rollins. Gallows and Anderson ended up hitting the Boom of Doom on Ricochet and then tossed him to ringside. Styles went to the middle rope and set up for a powerbomb.
Braun Strowman’s music hit and he took out Gallows and Anderson. Styles threw some kicks at Strowman, who came right back with a powerslam. Strowman picked up Styles and performed the running powerslam on Styles. Strowman’s music played and he looked back at Rollins, who was down in the corner.
Strowman went to ringside and grabbed the WWE Universal Championship belt and then brought it into the ring. Strowman started to hand the belt to Rollins, then looked at it, then shoved it at him. Rollins took the belt. Strowman offered a handshake. Rollins accepted. Ricochet joined Rollins and Strowman in the ring to close the show…
Powell’s POV: The match didn’t live up to the hype because we didn’t see much of it, especially with the commercial break. But the post match angle was good and presumably sets up a six-man tag match. Things were fine between Rollins and Strowman on this episode, but we’ll see if that changes. I didn’t come away from the main event feeling like they are building toward a Rollins vs. Styles title match. The Sasha Banks angle was the highlight of the night and the the show held my interest despite some throwaway matches. I will have more to say in my weekly same night Dot Net Members’ exclusive audio review. Find out how you can become a member of our ad-free website for just $2 on the main page.
Jason, you crack me up. Your disdain for Ziggler’s entrance music is hilarious.
I don’t get it.
to bad Mysterio didn’t get his win back……..I like back and forth booking where face and heels trade wins week to week.
Too typical. Andrade is overdue for a megapush as a heel and much needed.
You should apply for a WWE creative position. Vince McMahon would love your philosophies.
Alexander should have gotten the win over Mcintyre as should be. let Mcintyre look good in defeat.
24/7 Segments best thing about RAW and WWE so fun to watch CHEERS!!
Jason, they mentioned that The King of The Ring would have 8 Raw Superstars and 8 Smackdown Superstars.
Randy Orton should have come out and cut a scathing promo on an absent Kofi Kingston/New Day. Orton could have called Kingston the single “worst wrestler he’s ever seen yet alone been in the ring with” and a “total piece of shit as a human being, one of the worst people I’ve ever had to deal with much less be around.” He could have sighted some likely make believe examples like accusations of Kingston dining and dashing, stiffing and taking advantage of friends, refusing to sign autographs for fans, refusing to pay bills even though he has the money and just generally being a low life. What would add to this would be the cowardice of it with Orton saying these things knowing that Kingston isn’t there to defend himself nor are his fellow New Day members.
Sasha Botch is back. Whoop-de-doo.
Oh god, what if the plan is to have King Andrade amd Queen Charlotte rule both shows as The Royal Couple…shudder