By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)
WWE Raw (Episode 1,563)
Live from Jacksonville, Florida at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena
Aired May 8, 2023 on USA Network
[Hour One] Raw opened with a video package on the tournament to crown a new WWE World Heavyweight Championship. The video listed the twelve wrestlers who will compete in the tournament that plays out tonight and on Friday’s Smackdown followed by the finals at WWE Night of Champions… Kevin Patrick and Corey Graves were the broadcast team, and Samantha Irvin was the ring announcer…
Cody Rhodes made his entrance dressed in his ring gear. Rhodes gave his weight belt to a special fan before entering the ring while footage was shown of his victory over Brock Lesnar at WWE Backlash. Cody asked the Jacksonville crowd what they wanted to talk about while working in a “Duval” call (Jacksonville Jaguars fans chant Duval, which is the county where most of Jacksonville is located).
Cody noted that Jacksonville was his home during the pandemic and said they made a lot of good memories together. He said he wanted to make more tonight. Rhodes turned his focus on beating Lesnar at Backlash. Cody said he was now focused on the WWE World Heavyweight Championship, which was shown sitting on a table on the stage.
Cody left the ring and told the production crew to show the tournament brackets on the big screen, which they did. Cody walked to the stage and stood next to the championship and said he would fight until Samantha Irvin named him the new champion. A brief “you deserve it” chant broke out. “Jacksonville, let the tournament begin,” Rhodes said.
Seth Rollins made his entrance and stared at Rhodes for a moment. Rollins smiled and then headed to the ring. Rollins led the crowd in chanting his theme song while he stood in the middle of the ring. Patrick hyped Rollins vs. Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Damian Priest as coming up after the commercial break… [C]
A WWE Backlash video package aired…
Backstage, Damian Priest was interviewed by Cathy Kelley. It was a live interview, as Kelley flubbed saying the name of the new title and quickly corrected herself. Priest said that it took an entire island to keep him down at Backlash. Priest said he would put down Shinsuke Nakamura and Seth Rollins on his own. Priest assumed he would meet Finn Balor in the semifinals and that one of them would bring the new belt home to Judgment Day…
Damian Priest made his entrance and limped to the ring to sell Bad Bunny’s targeting his leg throughout their Backlash match. Shinsuke Nakamura’s entrance followed…
1. Seth Rollins vs. Damian Priest vs. Shinsuke Nakamura in a Triple Threat match for a spot in the semifinals of the WWE World Heavyweight Championship tournament. Priest was the early aggressor by going after both opponents right after the bell rang. Nakamura caught Priest with an enzuigiri and then Rollins sent Priest to the floor.
Rollins and Nakamura squared off briefly. Nakamura got the better of it with a sliding German suplex. Priest went after Nakamura, who draped him over the apron and blasted him with a knee left and then went to the apron and dropped a knee on the back of his neck. [C]
Rollins performed suicide dives on both opponents, who were on opposite sides of the ring. Rollins went for another, but Priest caught him with a punch from the floor. Priest and Nakamura fought while Rollins was at ringside. Nakamura caught Priest with a knee lift and then followed up with a flying knee from the middle rope, which led to a two count.
Rollins returned and set up Priest from a Pedigree, but he had to fight off Nakamura. Priest hit Rollins with an elevated Flatliner and covered him for a near fall. Priest set up Rollins for a move, but he released him to go after Nakamura, who caught him with a kick. Nakamura followed up with a spinning kick on Rollins and then all three men stayed down for a moment.
A short time later, Rollins put Nakamura down with a discus lariat. Rollins went to the ropes, but Priest cut him off. Priest set up for a Razor’s Edge, but his knee gave out. Rollins performed the Stomp on Priest and had him pinned, but Nakamura broke it up. Rollins barked at Nakamura about how he took the pin away from him.
Nakamura gave Rollins the “come on” line and they traded strikes while Priest was down at ringside. Nakamura got the better of Rollins and set up for a Kinshasa, but Priest returned and clotheslined Nakamura. Priest threw Rollins to the floor and went after Nakamura, who threw kicks at his bad knee and then applied a kneebar. Priest tapping, but Rollins performed a top rope splash onto Nakamura. Rollins performed a Pedigree on Nakamura and then pinned him…
Seth Rollins defeated Shinsuke Nakamura and Damian Priest in a Triple Threat in 13:25 to advance to the semifinals of the WWE World Heavyweight Championship tournament.
Powell’s POV: A good match. Nakamura looked inspired to the point that I wondered if he was going to get an upset win. They went with the tournament favorite in Rollins going over, but they surprised me by having Nakamura take the pin rather than the “injured” Priest.
The broadcast team spoke about the new Raw roster coming out of the WWE Draft while the new roster graphic was shown…
Ludwig Kaiser and Giovanni Vinci walked through the backstage and spoke about how Imperium has arrived. Akira Tozawa walked past them. Kaiser and Vinci found Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn, who were not impressed by the Imperium duo, who complained that they were being disrespected. Vinci said that if Owens and Zayn continued to disrespect them, they were putting themselves and their tag team titles in jeopardy.
Owens labeled Kaiser and Vinci as henchmen and asked what was up with all of the henchmen in WWE. Zayn said that if Kaiser and Vinci had a problem with them, they could deal with it on one night by facing them in a match later in the show…
Otis walked to the ring arm-in-arm with Maxxine Dupri while Chad Gable accompanied them… [C] Most of Mustafa Ali’s entrance was televised…
2. Otis (w/Maxxine Dupri, Chad Gable) vs. Mustafa Ali. Otis used his size to knock Ali down a couple times early in the match. Otis pressed Ali over his head, but Ali escaped. Otis turned him inside out with a clothesline moments later. Otis splashed Ali in the corner and then tore off his t-shirt. Gable climbed onto the apron and encouraged Otis to go after Ali, who Dupri also gave instructions to Otis. Patrick said Gable wanted Otis to perform the Caterpillar. Otis charged Ali, who moved, causing Otis to crash into the corner. Ali hit a top rope 450 splash and scored the pin…
Mustafa Ali defeated Otis in 2:15.
Powell’s POV: The focus felt like it was more on the issues between Gable and Dupri than Ali picking up another win. I don’t know if Ali appearing on Raw means he’s “signed” with the brand or if he maintains his free agent status.
The Miz delivered a brief backstage promo. He told viewers that they would put respect on his name when he wins the tournament. Miz made his entrance for the second tournament match… [C] Photos were shown of The Miz and Maryse at the Kentucky Derby… A portion of Finn Balor’s entrance was televised, while Cody’s full entrance was shown…
3. Cody Rhodes vs. Finn Balor vs. The Miz in a Triple Threat match for a spot in the semifinals of the WWE World Heavyweight Championship tournament. Balor caught Cody with an early clothesline. Miz rolled up Cody for a two count, and then Balor rolled up Miz for a two count. Cody picked up Balor in suplex style and then dropped him on top of Miz. Cody covered Miz for a two count. Both heels ended up at ringside. Cody hit them with a suicide dive. [C]
[Hour Two] Cody caught Balor with a Disaster Kick for a near fall while Miz was down at ringside. Miz returned to the ring and performed a double DDT and covered Cody for a two count. Cody avoided a Coup De Grace from Balor. Miz tossed Cody to ringside and hit the Skull Crushing Finale on Balor, but Rhodes returned to break up the pin.
Balor caught Cody in an inside cradle for a near fall. Cody came right back with CrossRhodes. Miz tossed Cody and tried to steal the pin, but Cody returned and hit CrossRhodes three times on Miz and covered him.
Brock Lesnar appeared at ringside and pulled Cody off of Miz and to the floor. Lesnar executed an F5 on Rhodes. In the ring, Balor performed a Coup De Grace on Miz and then pinned him…
Finn Balor defeated The Miz and Cody Rhodes in a Triple Threat in 9:30 to advance to the semifinals of the WWE World Heavyweight Championship tournament.
After the match, Lesnar hoisted up Rhodes and F5’d him through the broadcast table. Lesnar, who had stitches in his forehead and a black eye, was handed a mic that didn’t work (or wasn’t turned on). “So, Cody, what do you want to talk about,” Lesnar asked. Lesnar looked into the camera and barked, “Look at this face.”
Lesnar turned on the mic and asked Cody what he wanted to talk about. Lesnar knelt down and grabbed Cody’s head from behind and told him that he wanted to talk about “me, me, me.” Lesnar told Rhodes to look at his face.
Lesnar took issue with Cody taking credit for what happened to his face and said Cody lucked into that and the victory at Backlash. “I want a fight,” Lesnar yelled. “You, me, Night of Champions, a fight. What do you got to say? Who is the coward now?” Lesnar stood up and slammed the mic down on Cody. A group of producers rushed into the scene to tend to Cody.
Lesnar walked toward the back and then stopped and looked at the new title belt. Lesnar smiled and then laughed as he turned around and looked back at Rhodes…
Powell’s POV: I like the angle to get Cody out of the tournament since it seems like most fans would prefer to see him go after the WWE Undisputed Championship. It also created the need for a rematch with Lesnar on short notice at Night of Champions. I’m not big on the choice to have Balor advance to the tournament semifinals. It’s not that I wanted to see Miz in that slot and I’m sure that Rollins and Balor will have a strong match, but I just don’t think the average fan sees Balor as a threat to win the championship.
Footage aired of Lesnar’s attack and promo… Cody Rhodes was shown walking slowly backstage with a trainer by his side…
The broadcast team stood in front of their broken table and hyped Seth Rollins vs. Finn Balor in the tournament semifinals as the main event of Raw. Graves noted that it would be a rematch of the first ever WWE Universal Championship match…
Smackdown Women’s Champion Rhea Ripley and Dominik Mysterio made their entrance while still shots of her Backlash win over Zelina Vega were shown. Dana Brooke made her entrance and was labeled as “the always positive” by Patrick. A pre-tape aired with Brooke saying she asked for the opportunity. She said she welcomed the challenge of facing Rhea Ripley because “I belong here.” Brooke said fans would see her untapped potential…
4. Smackdown Women’s Champion Rhea Ripley (w/Dominik Mysterio) vs. Dana Brooke in a non-title match. Brooke put Ripley down with an early bulldog that didn’t get a reaction from the live crowd. Brooke went to the ropes and dove at Ripley, who caught her and then gave her a gut buster. Ripley picked up Brooke and gave her the Riptide and then applied the Prism Lock and got the submission win…
Smackdown Women’s Champion Rhea Ripley defeated Dana Brooke in 1:40 in a non-title match.
After the match, Ripley performed another Riptide and locked in the same submission hold. Natalya made her entrance dressed in street clothes…
Powell’s POV: I guess this means Brooke’s potential is still tapped?
A video package spotlighted the NXT wrestlers who were drafted to the main roster…
Zoey Stark was interviewed by Byron Saxton on the backstage interview set. Saxton asked her how she handles the added expectations. Stark said she’s amazing at what she does and has supreme confidence in her own ability. Stark was distracted by something off-camera and told Saxton to follow her.
Stark approached Nikki Cross, who was watching Stark and smiled while pointing at her. Stark said there’s nothing but weirdos like Cross on Raw, which is why she will succeed. Stark challenged Cross to face her in her first Raw match. Cross smiled and said something. “Let’s see what you got,” Stark said…
Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champions Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn made their entrance for their match against the Imperium duo… [C] Ludwig Kaiser and Giovanni Vinci made their entrance while some clips aired from WWE’s latest overseas tour…
5. Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champions Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn vs. Ludwig Kaiser and Giovanni Vinci in a non-title match. Graves said Intercontinental Champion Gunther will arrive on Raw next week. Zayn was isolated by Kaiser and Vinci during the first couple minutes of the match. [C]
Zayn made a hot tag coming out of the break. Owens performed a Swanton on Kaiser and went for the pin, but Vinci broke it up. Vinci tagged in and dropped to the floor. Kaiser clotheslined Owens while Vinci swept the legs of Owens from the floor.
Owens inched toward a tag, but it was broken up. Vinci and Kaiser set up for a double team move that Owens broke up. Owens cleared Kaiser from the ring with a Stunner. Owens superkicked Vinci and then Zayn tagged in and blasted Vinci with a Helluva Kick. Zayn covered Vinci and pinned him…
Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champions Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn beat Ludwig Kaiser and Giovanni Vinci in 9:55 in a non-title match.
Powell’s POV: A good tag team match. Perhaps Kaiser and Vinci gained something in defeat, but I really don’t like the idea of having them lose clean to the tag team champions on their first night on Raw.
Backstage, Sonya Deville and Chelsea Green were collecting signatures for a petition to give them another shot at the WWE Women’s Tag Team Titles. They got one woman to sign and then Xia Li signed it without knowing what it was. They approached Johnny Gargano, Candice LeRae, Indi Hartwell, and Dexter Lumis, but Lumis gave them the thumbs down. Gargano spoke about how the family was back together again…
Powell’s POV: The Way was cute in NXT, but I can’t say that I have any desire to see the saga continue on the main roster. I never thought it would be this difficult for the creative forces to figure out how to book Gargano as the lovable underdog.
Nikki Cross made her entrance… An ad for Smackdown touted the return of Roman Reigns, Raquel Rodriguez and Liv Morgan vs. Bayley and Dakota Kai for the WWE Women’s Tag Team Titles, and the continuation of the WWE World Heavyweight Championship tournament… [C]
The broadcast team congratulated Batista for the success of Guardians of the Galaxy 3… A video package recapped The Usos and Solo Sikoa beating Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn, and Matt Riddle at WWE Backlash. The video spotlighted the issues between Sikoa and Jey Uso… The return of Roman Reigns was hyped for Smackdown… Zoey Stark made her entrance…
6. Zoey Stark vs. Nikki Cross. Graves described Stark as a heavy hitter and said she refuses to conform to what anyone thinks she should be. Stark cut off Cross’s offense with a big clothesline. “Did I mention that she was a heavy hitter?” Graves asked. Cross battled back with punches and then dropkicked Stark’s legs out from under her. Cross followed up with another dropkick and went for a tornado DDT, but Stark blocked it and tossed Cross across the ring. Stark followed up with her Z360 finisher and scored the pin…
Zoey Stark defeated Nikki Cross in 2:30.
Powell’s POV: The crowd was really quiet, but Stark looked good in her first Raw match. Stark is very good in the ring. The question is whether she can develop a strong enough personality to become more than a good hand in the women’s division. Will we ever find out why Cross was stalking Candice LeRae? Am I the only one who still cares?
Rhea Ripley and Dominik Mysterio were interviewed backstage by Saxton, who asked if Ripley was feeling extra pressure. Ripley said she welcomes it. She was interrupted by Xavier Woods and Akira Tozawa laughing. Dom scolded them. Woods told Dom to relax. Dom threatened to punch Woods. Ripley cut in front of Dom, causing Tozawa to exit. “Dom Dom accepts,” Ripley said…
Trish Stratus was shown passing out Becky Lynch “missing” posters… An ad for Tuesday’s NXT hyped the beginning of the NXT Women’s Championship tournament… [C] Patrick narrated footage from WWE Backlash while touting the economic success of the event…
[Hour Three] Trish Stratus made her entrance and wore a Becky Lynch missing poster t-shirt. Once in the ring, Trish asked if people had seen Lynch. She told Kevin Patrick not to worry because they would find her. “Go Ireland,” Stratus said. She told the fans that she felt like they would find Lynch and then the fans could thank her.
Trish said Lynch would probably be found somewhere in Iowa with her daughter. Stratus said Lynch’s daughter is dumb because she’s two and doesn’t even know her colors. Stratus said nobody will steal her spotlight, including Lynch.
Becky Lynch’s music played. Trish started laughing and told the fans they are dumb and as gullible as Lynch was when she thought they were friends. Trish said Lynch is never coming back. Trish started to tell a story about buying a doll for her own daughter. A “Becky” chant broke out. Stratus said Lynch wasn’t there. Stratus got back to her story and said that she named the doll Becky Lynch.
Lynch’s music played again. Stratus acted surprised and told the production crew “it’s done” while saying they should cut her music. Lynch entered the ring behind Stratus, who slowly turned around. Lynch smiled and nodded before punching Stratus. Lynch gave Stratus a Becksploder suplex. Trish exited the ring.
Lynch picked up the microphone while the fans chanted her name. “You want me, Trish, I’m right here,” Lynch said. “The Man has come around to kick your ass.” It looked like Lynch was going to say more, but her entrance music played and she tossed the mic down and jawed at Stratus…
Powell’s POV: Trish was better on the mic as a heel than she was during her monotone babyface promos. It felt like they could have gotten more out of Trish playing up that Lynch was missing for at least a couple more weeks, but Lynch’s return was well received. I assume this means they’ll be having a match at Night of Champions.
Backstage, Cody Rhodes was icing his ribs or abdomen while Adam Pearce, Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn, and a trainer sat with him… Patrick hyped the Rollins vs. Balor match as the main event… Xavier Woods made his entrance… [C] Dominik Mysterio and Rhea Ripley made their entrance…
7. Dominik Mysterio (w/Rhea Ripley) vs. Xavier Woods. Woods tied up the legs of Dom, who reached the ropes. Ripley barked at Woods. Dom went for a sneak attack and then offered a handshake when Woods caught him. A short time later, Woods performed a top rope crossbody block on Dom. Woods charged Dom in the corner, but Dom elevated him over the top rope, causing Woods to crash land on the ringside mat. [C]
Dom performed the Three Amigos coming out of the break while Graves said he had it on good authority that Dom performing the suplexes “makes Mami feel some type of way.” A short time later, Woods performed a tornado DDT for a near fall. Ripley was shown saying that was too close. Dom came back with a nice flying elbow for a near fall of his own.
Dom went to the apron and taunted the crowd before setting up for a move. Woods took advantage of the delay by tripping Dom. Woods placed Dom so that he was draping over the top rope and then hit him with a dropkick from the ropes and covered him for a two count. Woods performed his top rope elbow drop, but Ripley pulled Dom out of the way. Dom rolled Woods into a pin and got the three count.
Dominik Mysterio defeated Xavier Woods in 10:45.
Afterward, Dom celebrated with Ripley at ringside. Dom chanted “Dom-Dom rocks” while clapping. Funny… [C]
Powell’s POV: The referee was out of the camera shot when Ripley pulled Dom out of the ring, but I’m not sure how the referee would have missed that. Anyway, the right guy went over and Dom-Dom does indeed rock.
Veer Mahaan and Sanga were shown standing backstage dressed in suits. Jinder Mahal spoke as he paced behind them and ultimately said that they would shake the foundation of Raw…
Backstage, The Miz told Shinsuke Nakamura that he was willing to forgive his disrespect last week if he agreed to form Mizsuke Nakamura. Nakamura proposed a singles match between the two and said it would be awesome…
Deville and Green were backstage with their petition when WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions Raquel Rodriguez and Liv Morgan showed up. The champions said all Deville and Green had to do was ask if they wanted a rematch. Morgan said they would beat Damage CTRL and then see them next week. Deville and Green laughed at the idea of Rodriguez and Green thinking they would beat Damage CTRL…
The broadcast team recapped footage of Brock Lesnar’s latest attack on Cody Rhodes…
Cody Rhodes was interviewed in the backstage area by Cathy Kelley, who asked how disappointed he was to be out of contention for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. Cody said he doesn’t feel good and he won’t be the first champion in what he said “respectfully, was mine to win.” Cody said he didn’t know what else to say and teased leaving, but then he stopped.
Cody said it’s the second time that Lesnar has attacked him for no reason. Rhodes said the only reason he can think of is that Lesnar’s grip on the main event scene is over. Cody said that if Lesnar wants to fight him, then he would fight him against his better judgement. Cody officially accepted Lesnar’s challenge for Night of Champions…
Finn Balor made his entrance for the main event… [C] The following matches and events were announced for next week’s Raw: Intercontinental Champion Gunther debuts, The Miz vs. Shinsuke Nakamura, Sonya Deville and Chelsea Green challenge for the WWE Women’s Tag Team Titles… Seth Rollins made his entrance…
8. Seth Rollins vs. Finn Balor for a spot in the WWE World Heavyweight Championship match at Night of Champions. A couple minutes into the match, Balor performed a Buckle Bomb that drove Rollins into the ringside barricade. Graves pointed out that Balor was injured (legitimately) when Rollins performed the same move on him at SummerSlam 2016. [C]
Rollins sold a left arm injury and held it at his side coming out of the break and then he sold it after performing offensive moves. Rollins went for a top rope frog splash, but Balor put his knees up and then rolled him into a pin for a two count. Balor applied a Fujiwara armbar. He eventually released it and performed a sling blade clothesline. Rollins rebounded with a superkick that led to a near fall.
Later, Rollins blasted Balor with a forearm and an enzuigiri kick, but Balor responded with an overhead kick that left both en down. Balor had a bloody mouth. Balor put Rollins down and performed a standing double stomp. Balor went up top for his finisher, but Rollins caught him on the top rope and performed a superplex and then went for his falcon arrow, but Balor countered into into an inverted DDT for a near fall.
Balor kicked Rollins’ bad shoulder several times and then dropkicked him into the corner. Balor followed up with another dropkick and went up top for his finisher again, but Rollins avoided it. Rollins kicked Balor and performed a one-armed Pedigree for a near fall.
Rollins set up for his finisher. Balor avoided it and tried to roll him up, but Rollins stood up and performed an inverted Stomp (on Balor’s face rather than the back of his head). Rollins stood up and executed the traditional Stomp and then got the three count…
Seth Rollins defeated Finn Balor in 13:30 for a spot in the WWE World Heavyweight Championship match at Night of Champions.
A graphic showed that Rollins will either Bobby Lashley, Austin Theory, Sheamus, AJ Styles, Edge, or Rey Mysterio at Night of Champions for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.
Powell’s POV: Wow, it’s strange that Smackdown only has one heel in the tournament. Anyway, the Raw main event was well worked. I liked the callback with Balor returning the favor with the Buckle Bomb into the barricade. Seth working with one arm for the rest of the match still wasn’t enough to make me think that Balor had any chance of winning.
Overall, they filled the three hours nicely. I’m curious to see how the third hour holds up given what I considered to be a highly predictable main event match. I will be back later tonight with my weekly same night audio review of Raw for Dot Net Members (including our Patreon patrons). Let me know what you thought of the show by grading it below.
If it ends up the Miz vs Rollins we know Vince wrote the episode
The Way was far and away my favorite use of Gargano since the DIY\Ciampa feud days so maybe this will finally help to get him over with the main roster crowds.
I enjoyed it too. I just don’t want to see them go back to something that most of their viewers didn’t see. Plus, I felt like they told the story. Hopefully they have some fresh ideas and it’s not just a stroll down memory lane.
Can someone explain to me how a SmackDown wrestler will beat Rollins when HHH said the World Championship would be exclusive to Raw?
I’m also not so interested in The Way on the main roster as I don’t think this group is going to translate well on the main roster like it did in NXT. I’m glad Austin Theory is his own character and he doesn’t have to be dragged down by it. I do think Indi Hartwell since she’s a young star in the making probably gets Johnny and Candice over, but truly I think this is going to drag Indi down, so I think a heel turn for Indi where she turns on The Way is the best recipe for her going her own way and becoming a big star on the main roster.
Speaking of big future stars that’s Zoey Stark, she had probably the best NXT debut call up in the past year. Her backstage segment was fire with Byron and Nikki, for those who have paid attention to Zoey since she turned heel in NXT the past few months she’s been very good on the mic with her promos. She plays the cocky bully enforcer role so well and she backs up her trash talk in the ring. I loved it when she called Nikki a weirdo, that made me laugh. Zoey looked great in the ring as her finisher is great too. I think the best way to get Zoey over is to continue to have her look like a badass heel and win matches, but also put her in a new major heel stable where she’s the lead enforcer like a Solo Sikoa. Have Trish lead that new group as well.
Trish was much better this week than her last in-ring promo as her feud with Becky has been fun so far, so I liked it.
I just wish Katana Chance & Kayden Carter were on here tonight, but they should be challengers in the future for those tag team titles.
So I’m assuming if a Smackdown guy wins the title they’ll end up on Raw as a result?
Still love that wrestlers can just randomly book matches for themselves on shows, and even on PPV’s.