By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)
WWE Raw on the USA Network
Aired live on August 26, 2019 from New Orleans, Louisiana at Smoothie King Center
[Hour One] Michael Cole welcomed viewers to Raw from New Orleans. Cole was joined on commentary by Corey Graves and Renee Young, and Mike Rome was the ring announcer…
Sasha Banks made her entrance while Cole hyped her match with Natalya for later in the show. Graves said Banks better not have ring rust because Natalya is at the top of her game. A video package recapped Sasha’s return and focused on how she interrupted Natalya’s speech about the anniversary of her father’s death.
Powell’s POV: So last week Natalya needed surgery on her arm, but this week they are saying she’s at the top of her game? I guess we’ll wait to see how it plays out.
Once the video concluded, Banks stood in the ring and looked ahead for a moment. “So everybody wants to know why and where Sasha Banks has been,” Banks said. She stated that she’s been away for four months and all she heard was her name. A “Becky” chant broke out. Banks smiled and replied, “Sasha Banks.”
Banks said she heard she threw a fit. She said she did. She said she heard that she was crying on the floor at WrestleMania and she did. She said she took her ball and went home. She said she was in a WrestleMania tag team match that she cared absolutely nothing about while Becky Lynch main evented against Ronda Rousey (and Charlotte Flair).
Banks said she went on a couple of amazing vacations with her WrestleMania paycheck. She said Lynch got way more money than she did for main event WrestleMania. Banks said she came back to work with a plan. “And there she was, good ol’ Natalya,” said Banks. She said she lied right to Natalya’s face when she told her that her dad would be proud of her. There were some boos.
Banks said Lynch was right on cue when she tried to save the say. Banks said the fans saw what happened to Lynch and now she’s back being the center of attention. Banks said she’s The Boss of the women’s division and the talk of the division. She said she deserves all the glory.
Natalya’s entrance music played and she ran to the ring in street clothes and had a wrap on her left elbow. Banks met Natalya at ringside and they fought. Referees and producers ran out to pull Banks and Natalya apart. The women continued to fight and were eventually pulled apart heading into the first break… [C]
Powell’s POV: Well, at least Natalya’s injury hasn’t been completely forgotten. Banks’s promo was flat. She didn’t show the type of fire she has as the heel Boss persona in the past. The brawl was spirited and set the stage for their match later in the show.
The Street Profits were shown backstage talking about the Banks and Natalya brawl. They also discussed the King of the Ring matches and the AJ Styles vs. Braun Strowman match for the U.S. Title. They shifted to hyping the tag team turmoil match. Angelo Dawkins asked what the hell a tag team turmoil match is. Montez Ford asked for a graphic and read through the rules, then said the winning team will challenge for the tag titles at Clash of Champions. They ran through the teams in the match…
1. Ricochet vs. Drew McIntyre in a King of the Ring tournament match. A portion of Ricochet’s entrance was shown, while McIntyre’s full entrance was televised. McIntyre stopped and picked up the throne and scepter before sitting down on the throne. Pre-taped promos for both men were shown.
Cole said McIntyre has had problems with smaller wrestlers and cited Cedric Alexander as an example. McIntyre caught Ricochet going for a huracanrana at ringside, the slammed him into the barricade, held onto him, and slammed him onto the ring apron heading into a break. [C]
Ricochet performed a Northern Lights suplex, but McIntyre came right back by slamming him to the mat. Ricochet performed a top rope clothesline and a standing shooting star press for a near fall. A short time later, McIntyre caught Ricochet on the apron with a punch that sent him to the floor. Ricochet came right back with a kick and then leapt off the apron and into a headbutt from McIntyre.
Back inside the ring, McIntyre set up for the Claymore Kick, but Ricochet caught him with a superkick. Ricochet threw more kicks at McIntyre, who stood up and turned him inside out with a clothesline. McIntyre performed a sit-out powerbomb for a near fall. McIntyre put Ricochet on his back and then climbed to the middle rope. Ricochet slipped away and pulled McIntyre down. Ricochet performed the Recoil from the middle rope, then went up top and hit the 630 splash and scored the clean pin.
Ricochet defeated Drew McIntyre in 14:10 to advance in the King of the Ring tournament.
The broadcast team spoke about Ricochet facing Samoa Joe in the second round next week while the KOTR bracket was shown. They also hyped The Miz vs. Baron Corbin in another KOTR match, then hyped an interview with new Raw Tag Champions Seth Rollins and Braun Strowman for after the break… [C] An ad for Smackdown played up the latest developments in the Roman Reigns saga…
Powell’s POV: A very good back and forth match. In fact, this was my favorite Raw match involving Ricochet to date. It would have felt like a bigger upset if two broadcast team members and Booker T had not predicted last week that McIntyre would win the overall tournament. I suspect that WWE officials have convinced themselves that only the diehard fans pick up on that sort of thing, but that’s not the case based on conversations I’ve had with casual fans over the years.
Cole touted that Raw was in New Orleans while artwork and footage of the city was shown… A video package recapped Braun Strowman and Seth Rollins beating Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson to win the Raw Tag Titles last week…
Sarah Schreiber interviewed Rollins and Strowman backstage. She noted that every championship will be defended at Clash of Champions. Rollins said they are willing to face any team that wants to take a crack at the titles. Strowman was staring at the WWE Universal Championship. Strowman eventually agreed and then asked who is going to face Rollins for the Universal Title. Strowman claimed he was just trying to make sure they are on the same page, then said he was challenging Rollins for the title. Rollins said he doesn’t back down from a fight and accepted the challenge. Rollins and Strowman shook hands…
Powell’s POV: I like the story being told between Rollins and Strowman heading into their title match. It’s an interesting hook to see how they coexist knowing their WWE Universal Championship match is right around the corner.
WWE magically had the graphic ready for the Rollins vs. Strowman match at Clash of Champions that was agreed to a second earlier. Graves pointed out that Strowman is challenging for the U.S. Title later in the show and could end up having a chance to become a triple champion at COC…
The Miz made his entrance for his KOTR match against Baron Corbin… [C] Miz cut an in-ring promo. He ran through his championship and other WWE history. He said he wants it all and wants to become King Awesome (the fans didn’t seem impressed)…
2. The Miz vs. Baron Corbin in a King of the Ring tournament match. Corbin wore his awful bartender shirt over a tank top. He removed the bartender shirt and threw it at Miz to distract him during the opening minute. Corbin was in offensive control going into a break a couple minutes into the match. [C]
Miz rallied coming out of the break. Cedric Alexander was shown watching the match while the broadcast team noted that he would face the winner next week. Corbin came back with Deep Six for a near fall. Corbin barked at referee John Cone. Miz flipped out of End of Days and hit a DDT for a near fall. Miz hit a Skull Crushing Finale a short time later for a good near fall.
[Hour Two] Corbin came back and hit the End of Days for the win…
Baron Corbin defeated The Miz in 10:00 to advance in the King of the Ring tournament.
Powell’s POV: It was hard to be excited by the possibility of either one of these guys winning the tournament. I didn’t give much thought to Miz winning, but that lame King Awesome line immediately soured me on the idea. I suspect that Corbin will at least go deep into the tournament.
Cole discussed the brackets and noted that Corbin will face Alexander, then hyped Ali vs. Buddy Murphy and Chad Gable vs. Shelton Benjamin as the KOTR matches for Smackdown. Corbin went to the stage and put on the crown and held the scepter, then sat down on the throne and cut a promo. Corbin said there’s a poll that shows fans want anyone but him to win KOTR. Corbin said he’s never cared about what the fans think anyway. Corbin said the fans couldn’t accomplish a single thing that he has even on their very best day. Corbin said he is where he is because of himself and said everyone will hear him say all hail King Corbin…
Powell’s POV: It was hard to be excited by the possibility of either one of these guys winning the tournament. I didn’t give much thought to Miz winning, but that lame King Awesome line immediately soured me on the idea. I suspect that Corbin will at least go deep into the tournament.
The broadcast team hyped Banks vs. Natalya, and the tag team turmoil match with Lucha House Party vs. Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson vs. Viking Raiders vs. Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder vs. The B-Team vs. Heavy Machinery vs. The Revival vs. Dolph Ziggler and Bobby Roode…
Kayla Braxton interviewed Gallows and Anderson, who said they will right the wrong of not getting an automatic tag title rematch…
Bayley made her entrance heading into a break… [C] The broadcast team touted the move of NXT to USA Network, then set up footage from last week of Rey Mysterio agreeing to continue his WWE career so that he can team with his son Dominic… The broadcast team hyped the return of Mysterio for next week in Baltimore…
3. Smackdown Women’s Champion Bayley vs. Nikki Cross in a non-title match. Cross’s entrance was televised. She wore an Alexa Bliss t-shirt, but Bliss was not in her corner. Young spoke about Bliss and Cross having a true friendship while Graves scolded her for jumping on the bandwagon after they won the tag titles. In the end, Bayley hit a top rope elbow and scored the clean pin…
Bayley defeated Nikki Cross in 4:00 in a non-title match.
Graves hyped the U.S. Title match. Cole noted that Seth Rollins, Luke Gallows, and Karl Anderson were all banned from ringside for the match…
Braxton interviewed Strowman backstage about the possibility of becoming a triple crown champion. Strowman said he and Rollins would retain the tag titles, he’d beat Rollins for the WWE Universal Championship, and defend the U.S. Title later in the show…
Powell’s POV: Wait, so Braun thinks the U.S. Title match will go on after the WWE Universal Championship match at Clash of Champions? Good luck with that.
The Viking Raiders made their entrance as the first team in the tag team turmoil match… An ad aired for NXT UK Takeover: Cardiff… [C]
4. “Lucha House Party” Lince Dorado and Gran Metalik (w/Kalisto) vs. Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson vs. “Viking Raiders” Erik and Ivar vs. Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder vs. Curtis Axel and Bo Dallas vs. “Heavy Machinery” Otis and Tucker vs. “The Revival” Scott Dawson and Dash Wilder vs. Dolph Ziggler and Bobby Roode in a Tag Team Turmoil match for a shot at the Raw Tag Titles. The B-Team joined the Viking Raiders as the first entrants. They lasted 75 seconds before the Viking Raiders hit the Viking Experience on Dallas.
The Viking Raiders beat The B-Team in 1:15.
Gallows and Anderson were out next and they worked over the Viking Raiders briefly. Ivar took out Erik and Anderson with a suicide dive. Both teams returned to the ring and fought until the referee called for the bell and disqualified both teams for ignoring his commands.
The Viking Raiders fought Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson to a double DQ in 1:15.
Powell’s POV: The double DQ finish was weak and rushed, but I’m happy they didn’t give a clean finish to Viking Raiders vs. Gallows and Anderson.
Roode and Ziggler made their entrance while Cole questioned who their first opponents would be. [C] Lince Dorado and Gran Metalik were the next entrants and their match was joined in progress. In the end, Metalik came off the ropes with a handspring and was superkicked and pinned by Ziggler.
Bobby Roode and Dolph Ziggler eliminated Lince Dorado and Gran Metalik.
The Revival were out next and picked up a near fall on Ziggler. Later, Dawson hit a Brainbuster on Ziggler, but Roode came back with a Glorious DDT and pinned him. Cole questioned who was next to face Roode and Ziggler as they went to break. [C]
Bobby Roode and Dolph Ziggler eliminated The Revival.
Powell’s POV: I vote for Douche Money as the team name for Ziggler and Roode.
Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder were the next entrants and the match was joined in progress. Ziggler hit Ryder with a superkick and pinned him to eliminate Hawkins and Ryder.
Bobby Roode and Dolph Ziggler eliminated Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder.
Heavy Machinery were the final entrants in the turmoil match. Roode tried to call timeout from ringside. Tucker went after him and Ziglger to start the match. Later, Otis tagged in and got a strong reaction from the crowd as he worked over both opponents. Otis powerslammed Roode for a near fall. Tucker tagged in (never a good idea this late in the match) and they set up for their finisher, but it was broken up and Roode hit the Glorious DDT on Tucker and pinned him…
Bobby Roode and Dolph Ziggler beat Heavy Machinery in 5:30 to win the Tag Team Turmoil to earn a Raw Tag Title match at Clash of Champions.
Powell’s POV: The overall turmoil match was underwhelming. There were too many quick eliminations and too many severely damaged tag teams. On the bright side, Otis is really over and Ziggler being in a tag team means his shitty music didn’t play long and they went with Roode’s theme afterward. Putting the Ziggler music hate aside, I like the idea of putting Roode and Ziggler together as a team, though I’m not really sure what they bring to the table that the other good, wasted heel tag teams do not.
The broadcast team hyped Banks vs. Natalya as coming up next. Cole set up a video package on the Roman Reigns saga. Graves said Daniel Bryan and Rowan demanded an apology from Reigns as a way to push Smackdown… An NXT on USA Network ad aired for the September 18 premiere… [C]
[Hour Three] Cole touted the announcement of Total Divas returning on October 2 (yes, more wrestling programming on Wednesday nights)…
5. Sasha Banks vs. Natalya. Banks went for a move and was cut off by Natalya, who gave her a nice German suplex and then got a two count. Banks recovered and slammed Natalya’s bad arm into the ring post, then whipped her into the timekeepers area. Graves put over the ruthlessness of Banks said viewers are finally seeing her true colors.
Back inside the ring, Banks avoided the Sharpshooter and then performed a Backstabber and rolled into the Bank Statement. Natalya fought to get to the ropes but ended up tapping out.
Sasha Banks defeated Natalya in 4:00.
Trainers entered the ring and checked on Natalya’s bad arm. Banks teased leaving, then rushed back to the ring and pt her in the Bank Statement again and smiled while doing so. Banks released the hold and then headed backstage…
Powell’s POV: I like that Banks is a ruthless heel and isn’t showing any redeeming qualities. Perhaps that’s why she took the subdued approach to her promo earlier in the show. Had she showed good fire then it’s possible the fans would have rallied behind her, which isn’t what she wants.
AJ Styles was interviewed by Charly Caruso on the interview set. Styles wasn’t happy about Gallows and Anderson being banned from ringside, but he said he doesn’t fear Strowman and could win without the other OC members…
Cole hyped Cedric Alexander vs. Cesaro for after the break… [C] Cole hyped “Straight Up Steve Austin” with Cleveland Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield as his guest…
6. Cedric Alexander vs. Cesaro. Cole plugged the NXT UK Takeover: Cardiff event and mistakenly referred to the WWE UK Championship as the NXT UK Championship (which it probably should be called). They cut to break three minutes into the match. [C]
Cole said Cesaro targeted the knee of Alexander during the break. Alexander hit a Michinoku Driver for a near fall, then held his injured leg. Baron Corbin was shown watching the match on a backstage monitor. Alexander went for a springboard move, but he sold it like he couldn’t pull it off due to the injury. Alexander rallied with a standing Spanish Fly for a near fall. In the end, Alexander caught Cesaro with the Lumbar Check and pinned him…
Cedric Alexander beat Cesaro in 10:55.
Powell’s POV: You had to know that Alexander wasn’t losing this match clean given that he’s still in the KOTR tournament while Cesaro was eliminated last week. I like the idea of Alexander selling a knee injury, as they can easily incorporate that story into his KOTR match with Corbin next week. By the way, I wish Cole using the wrong name for the title belt had been intentional in that it was a set up for Walter showing up and destroying him.
AJ Styles was shown warming up backstage while Cole hyped the U.S. Title match… [C] A graphic boasted that Raw was the most socially active show on television last Monday…
Footage aired from a Founders Day event sponsored by Fox Sports that saw R-Truth pin Elias to win the WWE 24/7 Title. Drake Maverick chased after Truth, who punched him and then slammed him into a dunk tank. They also showed footage of Truth on an FS1 talkshow where host Rob Stone pinned him. Elias rolled up Stone and pinned him to reclaim the title…
Powell’s POV: Just wait for “The Masked Singer” week once Smackdown moves to Fox in October.
Schreiber introduced the Douche Money tag team of Ziggler and Roode and asked them how they came to be a team. Ziggler said he doesn’t trust anyone, but he saw a twinkle in Roode’s eye that showed he wants it more than everyone else. Ziggler assumed that the WWE Universal Championship match will go on before the Raw Tag Title match at Clash of Champions (why?). Roode said the team is destiny and they are the most athletic and best looking tag team in WWE…
Montez Ford stood backstage and said Ziggler and Roode changed the game. He questioned whether it’s possible for Rollins and Strowman to hold it together. Angelo Dawkins was shown wearing beads and a party hat. Ford told him to focus. Dawkins said he was focused on the afterparty on Bourbon Street. Dawkins was about to make a prediction on the U.S. Title match when they spotted Strowman walking past them… [C]
Cole touted NXT moving to USA Network while various tweets were shown and Triple H’s was spotlighted… Graves set up a video package on how “this madness” with Bray Wyatt and The Fiend persona started…
Ring entrances for the U.S. Title match took place. Cole noted that Rollins, Gallows, and Anderson are barred from ringside. Graves questioned how Rollins would be barred from ringside when he’s in Hawaii. Mike Rome delivered in-ring introductions for the title match…
7. AJ Styles vs. Braun Strowman for the U.S. Championship. The bell rang and Strowman immediately tossed Styles over the top rope to ringside. Strowman followed and threw a rough looking running shoulder block, then ran around the ring and did it again. Strowman rolled Styles back inside the ring and charged at him in the corner, but Styles put his feet up.
Styles went for a Phenomenal Forearm, but Strowman caught him and chokeslammed him. Strowman went for a cover, but Styles put his foot on the rope to break it. Strowman sent Styles to ringside again heading into a break just over a minute into the match. [C]
Styles took over offensive control with a sleeper, a Lionsault, and a Calf Crusher. Strowman sold the Calf Crusher by yelling and showing anguish. Strowman teased tapping, then got to his knees to power out of the hold. Strowman headbutted Styles and covered him for a two count. Strowman sold leg pain and used the ropes to pull himself back to his feet.
A short time later, Styles avoided a charging Strowman, who went between the ropes and hit the post. Styles kicked Strowman into the referee, who tumbled to ringside. REF BUMP!!! Styles raked the eyes of Strowman and then kicked him in the balls. Styles grabbed a chair and slammed it over the back of Strowman. Styles tried to do it a second time, but Strowman powerslammed him and got the visual pinfall while the referee remained down at ringside.
Gallows and Anderson hit the ring and attacked Strowman while the referee was still down. Strowman worked over Gallows and Anderson with a chair to clear them from the ring. Styles got up and then laid back down again to act like Strowman had hit him. The referee recovered, saw Strowman with the chair and Styles down, and called for the DQ.
AJ Styles beat Braun Strowman by DQ in 11:00 to retain the U.S. Title.
After the match, Styles laughed. Strowman worked over all three OC members with the chair and then powerslammed each man. Strowman picked up the U.S. Title belt, looked at it, then tossed it at Styles. Strowman played to the crowd while his music played to close the show…
Powell’s POV: They tell us all the time that the referee can only call what he sees and this finish contradicted that. Even so, the main event was entertaining and I wasn’t surprised that they didn’t put all three major championships on Strowman and/or Rollins. Overall, Raw was decent. The show dragged and it felt like they lost the crowd as the night went on, though they did find some passion for the main event. I will have more to say in my weekly members’ exclusive audio review.
It seems like it will be a babyface vs. heel for the quarterfinals. They could’ve tried something fun like a Miz vs. Alexander but now we have Corbin vs. Alexander. They don’t have to do the babyface vs. heel route. It would make tournaments fun if they did babyface vs. babyface or heel vs. heel.
Btw, I think I’m realizing what you were saying last week or the week before about one dimensional Kings or in Charlotte’s case Queens. We saw McIntyre talk about ruling his kingdom and Corbin saying essentially the samething while he tried on the crown. Btw, nice to see there was a microphone there for Corbin just in case. lol
That’s quite a promotion for Corbin to go from baron to king.
Graves is sounding more like Bobby Heenen…no matter if Hogan was a face or heel…Heenen couldn’t stand him… . Graves mentions Sasha Banks showing her true colors…. Heenen said same thing when Hogan turned heel and joined the NWO.
when a wrestler was a Face Heenen didn’t like them. but if they turned heel he loved them……when hogan joined the NWO he was negitive against hogan instead of embraceing him as he did other faces turned heel.
Graves is acting the same way with Sasha Banks he still hates her.
But the difference is that when The NWO took off, Heenan was a part of WCW so no matter if you were a heel or a face in WCW you still hated The NWO.
Too many commercials. Way too much
Remind me never to pick the King of the Ring again: Owens – gone. McIntyre – Gone and Miz – Gone. I’m done with the tournament. I was already done with it because I wanted to see Owens v. McIntyre, but whatever.
The whole Natalya wrestling with a bad shoulder that’s in need of surgery thing was absolutely ridiculous. There is no way she’d be cleared to compete if this were legit. There is entirely too much suspension of disbelief here. People knew what the outcome of the match immediately after it was announced and for the very same reasons no one gave Nattie a chance at SummerSlam. She’s more or less a jobber to the stars, win a few here and there but lose a lot more.
Cedric Alexander’s “leg injury” in his match against Cesaro was just as bad. It disappeared and reappeared at a rate of once every 15-20 seconds!
1. Keep pushing Corbin just to make sure AEW, who may actually CARE about the fans who buy the tickets and not just do what they want as long as the advertising dollars are rollin’ in, does really well.
2. Another night of wrestlers making matches, but no mention of that not being how it “should happen” unless its Impact doing it…..
AEW has Pockets, the littlest midget, and the Librarians. They’re only delivering what douchebag 20 somethings want for a few weeks and then get tired of.