Powell’s WWE Raw Hit List: Battle Royal for a shot at the Intercontinental Title, Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champs Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn vs. Damian Priest and Finn Balor in a non-title match, Raquel Rodriguez vs. Chelsea Green, Shinsuke Nakamura vs. The Miz, Dominik Mysterio vs. Xavier Woods

By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)

WWE Raw Hits

Battle Royal for a shot at the Intercontinental Title: A solid battle royal that included JD McDonagh destroying Dolph Ziggler while Bronson Reed also looked good in defeat. I was hoping for a Johnny Gargano upset win. A strong match with Gunther is exactly what Garagno needs to show viewers the type of heart that made his character so likable prior to his comedic turn. That said, it was still nice to see a mild upset with Mustafa Ali getting the surprise win and earning the title shot at Night of Champions.

Cody Rhodes promo: A brief yet strong promo. Cody showed good fire and didn’t overstay his welcome while setting up his rematch with Brock Lesnar.

Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champs Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn vs. Damian Priest and Finn Balor in a non-title match: An overstuffed main event with everyone from Dominik Mysterio and Rhea Ripley to Paul Heyman to the Imperium trio appearing at ringside. The creative forces clearly wanted to establish multiple teams as threats to Owens and Zayn while also giving Zayn every out imaginable for taking a loss.

Corey Graves’ sit-down interview with Seth Rollins: The spotlighting of Rollins continues as he inches closer to presumably winning the WWE World Heavyweight Championship at Night of Champions. I hope they take a similar sit-down interview approach with AJ Styles.

Becky Lynch promo: Lynch showed great intensity while delivering her promo about Trish Stratus. Lynch’s logic was solid and her character’s anger felt justified.

Dominik Mysterio vs. Xavier Woods: Another win for Dom-Dom, who continues to be the most booed heel in the company. This feud gives Dom some wins while also letting him learn while working with veteran Woods.

“Indus Sher” Veer Mahaan and Sanga squash match: A dominant win for Veer and Sanga. This is the easy part for the team and creative. Veer made it this far in his singles push, but it came off like no one bothered to think about his character beyond those early squash wins. Hopefully that won’t be an issue for the Indus Sher tag team.

WWE Raw Misses

Shinsuke Nakamura vs. The Miz: There’s nothing to be gained for Nakamura in this feud. The Miz hasn’t won a match in 2023 and has lost all in-ring credibility. It’s a shame because I’m a fan of Miz’s schtick. He’s a great talker who can always generate heat with his mic work, but a pest heel shouldn’t get his comeuppance on a near weekly basis.

Raquel Rodriguez vs. Chelsea Green: Rodriguez continues to feel miscast as a smiling babyface. Meanwhile, they have something with Green playing a Karen, but she’s in Miz mode in that they take the fun out of the act by having her lose far more than she wins. The post match angle with Ronda Rousey and Shayna Baszler attacking Rodriguez was fine, but Rousey’s appearances no longer pack a punch. She feels like a fairly regular member of the roster rather than a big money special attraction.