By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)
WWE Raw (Episode 1,583)
Ontario, California at Toyota Arena
Aired live September 25, 2023 on USA Network
[Hour One] Raw opened with Cody Rhodes making his entrance and being introduced by ring announcer Samantha Irvin. Cody stopped and greeted some younger fans along the entrance aisle and even took a few steps back to meet a child that he missed.
Michael Cole and Wade Barrett were on commentary. Cole set up a video package that recapped Jey Uso rejecting the Judgment Day’s invitation to join the faction, yet losing to Drew McIntyre in last week’s Raw main event.
Cody welcomed viewers to Raw and then did the bit where he turns his back to the camera to see the full crowd while noting that it was a sold out show. Cody said he’s tried to broach the subject of Jey Uso for two weeks and was interrupted both times.
Cody said Jey coming to Raw means somebody will be “drafted” over to Smackdown. Cody said that means there’s a disgruntled locker room that thinks he should have let Jey sink. Cody said that’s not him. He said that he and Jey are not best friends and perhaps there are other reasons he would want him on Raw. “Something tells me we’re not in the third inning anymore, boys,” Cody said.
Powell’s POV: That’s a play on Paul Heyman stating that they are in the third inning of The Bloodline saga when he’s been asked about it post show press conferences.
Cody brought up Jey turning down Judgment Day and started to refer to it as the most toxic faction in history when he was interrupted by the group’s entrance theme.
Finn Balor, Damian Priest, and Dominik Mysterio made their entrance and walked to ringside. Priest said they gave Jey a chance to join a real family. Priest took issue with Cody helping Jey last week and said everything is always about Cody.
Dom tried to speak and was booed loudly. Dom spoke to the crowd in Spanish and they kept booing over him. Cody interrupted and then said it was rude of him and encouraged Dom to speak. The fans booed again. Cody recalled Priest mentioning Judgment Day being a real family, then said Dom has a real family that can’t stand him.
Cody said he was game if they wanted to enter the ring. Cody noted that they all had title matches. He asked what would happen when Rhea Ripley returns and they are empty handed. Dom told Cody to shut his mouth. The Judgment Day trio put their mics, belts, and the briefcase down and teased entering the ring.
Jey Uso showed up and joined Cody in the ring. Priest, Balor, and Dom still teased entering the ring. Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn hopped the barricade and joined Cody and Jey in the ring, which caused the Judgment Day members to retreat.
JD McDonagh walked out with two chairs and gave one to Balor, who opted to head to the ring. Priest tried to talk them out of it. Dom joined Balor and McDonagh. Priest stayed at ringside for moment and then decided to help them. The babyfaces cleared Balor, Dom, and McDonagh from the ring. Priest was surrounded and motioned for the babyfaces to bring it, which they did until he was able to escape the ring…
The broadcast team ran through the previously advertised matches and segments. Otis and Maxxine Dupri made their entrance for Otis’s opening match against Bronson Reed. A tale of the tape was shown while Barrett played up the size of both men and said big meaty men would be slapping meat… [C]
Powell’s POV: Lots of star power in the opening segment. Cody mentioned the trade compensation for Jey, so I assume this means the idea of Cody wanting to be that compensation is in play after all. Meanwhile, I was wondering how long it would take WWE to take back Big E’s “big meaty men” line after it spawned a bunch of meat chants during the Miro vs. Powerhouse Hobbs match in AEW.
1. Bronson Reed vs. Otis (w/Maxxine Dupri). Barrett said everyone in the locker room had “eyes on this spectacle.” Both men ended up at ringside and charged at one another. Otis knocked Reed down. Otis charged Reed again, but this time Reed move and Otis crashed into the ring post. When Otis got up, Reed put him back down with a clothesline.
Back in the ring, Reed executed a Samoan Drop. Both men went for running crossbody blocks and collided. Otis caught Reed with an elbow and then did a somersault to avoid him. Otis splashed Otis in the corner and got him down. Otis tore his shit off and then hit the Caterpillar elbow. Otis went for a Vader Bomb that Reed avoided. Reed followed up with a senton splash and then hit his Tsunami splash and scored the pin…
Bronson Reed defeated Otis in 4:25.
Powell’s POV: There were no “meat” related chants that I heard, but the live crowd was definitely into the match. There was a lot of gasping when the big men executed power moves. Barrett also played up the Elimination Chamber event coming to Reed’s native Australia.
Becky Lynch was backstage polishing her title belt when Tegan Nox entered her dressing room. Lynch said she had someone like Nox in mind when she issued the open challenge last week and even saw her at the curtain. Nox said Natalya is a veteran, so she let her take the match. Lynch told her that she shouldn’t be afraid to step on some toes and added that she wants her to take the next open challenge…
Tommaso Ciampa made his entrance for a match against Ludwig Kaiser… [C]
Adam Pearce was on the phone telling someone that they haven’t finalized the trade that will send someone to Smackdown. Tegan Nox apologized for interrupting. Nox asked if she could face the winner of No Mercy’s NXT Women’s Championship match.
Natalya showed up and asked about her rematch against Lynch. Nox said she had a lot of respect for Natalya, but she just had a shot last week and asked her to step aside. Natalya spoke about how the champion was distracting her top challengers. Natalya said something about Nox not having passion, which led to a fiery response from Nox. Pearce booked them in a match against one another for later in the show to determine who will get the title shot…
Ludwig Kaiser and Giovanni Vinci made their entrance. Footage aired of Ciampa telling all three members of Imperium that he would go through Kaiser and then expects a title match with Gunther…
2. Tommaso Ciampa vs. Ludwig Kaiser (w/Giovanni Vinci). Gunther was shown watching the match on a backstage television. Ciampa ended up on the apron and caught Kaiser with an elbow. Kaiser regrouped and shoved Ciampa off the apron and into the ring steps below. [C]
Ciampa had Kaiser down and lowered his kneepad. Vinci climbed onto the apron and was drilled with a knee strike from Ciampa. Kaiser caught Ciampa with an enzuigiri and covered him, but the referee was tending to Vinci. Kaiser kicked Vinci off the apron and barked at him. Vinci turned around and took a ripcord knee from Ciampa, who then pinned him…
Tommaso Ciampa beat Ludwig Kaiser in roughly 8:00.
After the match, Gunther was shown watching while Ciampa looked into the camera and said he would take everything that Gunther has…
Powell’s POV: I’m actually more intrigued by Kaiser kicking Vinci than I am by the thought of Ciampa challenging Gunther. Don’t get me wrong, they should have a hell of a match, but I don’t feel like they’ve done enough with Ciampa to make him feel like a strong threat to actually win the championship.
Cole set up a video package on Dragon Lee, who was shown standing backstage after it played. Cole told viewers who had not seen Lee before that they were in for a treat. Cole hyped Lee challenging Dom for the NXT North American Championship for later in the show…
NXT Women’s Champion Becky Lynch made her entrance. Cole said Lynch would join her and Barrett on commentary during the Nox vs. Natalya match… [C] A portion of Nox’s entrance was televised and then Natalya made her full entrance…
3. Tegan Nox vs. Natalya. Lynch sat in on commentary and they pushed her match at Saturday’s NXT No Mercy. Natalya caught Nox with an early elbow. Nox fired up and had a solid flurry of offense. Lynch said Nox was showing the fire she wants to see from all of the women in the back. Natalya came back with a sit-out powerbomb for a two count. Nox came right back and hit the Shiniest Wizard before scoring the pin…
Tegan Nox beat Natalya in 2:40.
Powell’s POV: Well, I thought this was for a title shot based on what Pearce said earlier, but Cole questioned post match whether Nox would get a title shot now that she was victorious.
Backstage, Balor was talking to Dom and McDonagh when Priest entered the room and threw a chair. Priest told a frightened McDonagh that he doesn’t care who he’s friends with, he’s not in Judgment Day and won’t be. Priest ordered McDonagh to leave the room, which he did…
World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins made his entrance. Cole said Rollins was awaiting an answer from Shinsuke Nakamura and questioned whether he’d get it after the break… [C] The crowd sang Rollins’ entrance theme and he encouraged them to keep it coming.
[Hour Two] Rollins told the crowd that they should sing it longer if they think it’s about time that he defend his championship. Rollins told the crowd that they are beautiful and said he loves them. Rollins said Shinsuke Nakamura has been ducking him and playing games.
Rollins said that if Nakamura didn’t accept his rematch offer, then he was pulling the opportunity. He said there are “a million” capable and deserving challengers in the locker room and he’s looking for a fight. Rollins said this is Nakamura’s last chance.
A Shinsuke Nakamura video aired on the big screen. Nakamura said Rollins has so many demands and hit’s no wonder his body is failing him. Nakamura said he has restraint, whereas Rollins has no patience. He said the conclusion would leave Rollins’ daughter so ashamed that she won’t be able to look at him.
Nakamura said he will stand tall while Rollins won’t be able to walk again. Nakamura accepted the challenge and said they would meet in a Last Man Standing match at WWE Fastlane.
Rollins said it would be a straight up fight until one man couldn’t answer the ten count. He said two men would walk in and only one would walk out. Rollins said he had to admit that Nakamura played this one perfectly because he got the match wanted on his terms.
Rollins said Nakamura made one critical mistake. Rollins said Nakamura thinks that his broken back is a weakness and his daughter will be too ashamed to look at him. Rollins said his broken back isn’t a weakness, it’s a strength. He said the only way his family would be ashamed is if he doesn’t give it everything he has.
Rollins said his family knows he loves them, but they also know that he loves “this.” Rollins said that if Nakamura doesn’t think he won’t give it one hundred percent while knowing that it could be his last match then he’s crazy. Rollins said his 100 percent makes him the best in the world and the World Heavyweight Champion. Rollins said he would the one who walks out of their match…
Powell’s POV: A good segment. The Nakamura videos continue to be top notch, and Rollins was came back with a strong rebuttal. I also like the Last Man Standing stipulation because it doesn’t require anyone to be pinned, which makes Nakamura feel like more of a threat to win with some type of screwy finish.
Jackie Redmond stood on the interview set and interviewed Ricochet, who was on crutches. She asked when he would be back in the ring. Ricochet guaranteed that he will return and it will take more than that to keep him down. Ricochet said that it doesn’t matter whether Nakamura wins the title or not, he has unfinished business with him…
Dominik Mysterio was shown walking backstage while Cole hyped his title match as coming up next… [C] Highlights aired of Damian Priest and Finn Balor beating Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn to win the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Titles, and then Cole hyped the rematch as the Raw main event… Entrances for the NXT North American Championship match took place…
4. Dominik Mysterio vs. Dragon Lee for the NXT North American Championship. Samantha Irvin delivered in-ring introductions for the title match. Cole noted that Lee is the son of La Bestia del Ring. Lee sent Dom to ringside and then hit him with a flip dive. Dom came back with a DDT on the apron a short time later. [C]
Footage aired from during the break of Dom tying the tails on Lee’s mask to one of the ropes and then putting the boots to him. Back live, Lee had Dom down in the corner when he hit him with a dropkick and then covered him for a near fall. Dom came back with a Falcon Arrow for a near fall of his own.
Lee kicked Dom’s legs out from under him and then drilled him with a knee strike that led to another two count. A short time later, Lee had Dom on the apron when he jumped over the ropes and performed a huracanrana that sent Dom to the floor. Back in the ring, Lee executed a sit-out powerbomb for a near fall. A “this is awesome” chant broke out.
Lee went to the ropes and was cut off by Dom. Lee fought back and got Dom in the tree of woe and then double stomped him from the ropes. Lee charged Dom in the corner, but Dom crotched him on the top rope. Dom went up top and hit a frog splash and scored the pin…
Dominik Mysterio defeated Dragon Lee in 10:10 to retain the NXT North American Championship.
Powell’s POV: A hot match. The crowd was hot for Lee and his flashy offense. I love that Dom ended up pinning Lee clean. It didn’t really hurt Lee, who looked really great in defeat, and Dom picked up a credibility boost.
Cole put over Dom’s win and then noted that Rhea Ripley has been out of action due to the attack by Nia Jax. Footage aired of Jax taking out Ripley and Raquel Rodriguez. Cole and Barrett also recapped footage of Jax destroying Chelsea Green, Piper Niven, Shayna Baszler, and Zoey Stark last week…
Jax was shown walking backstage. Akira Tozawa entered the picture and quickly ducked out once he saw Jax. Cole said he would speak to Jax after the break… [C]
The broadcast team promoted The Continental for Peacock, and then a brief video aired with the cast talking about the fight scenes…
Redmond interviewed Owens and Zayn on the backstage ring set. Owens said the only thing Jey Uso proved last week was that he wasn’t with Judgment Day last week. A fired up Zayn shifted the focus to their tag title match and how they started together and won the tag titles in the main event of WrestleMania together. Zayn said it’s not about anybody else, “it’s about taking back what’s ours”…
Michael Cole stood in the ring and introduced Nia Jax, who made her entrance and joined him in the ring. Barrett said he was happy that Cole was in the line of fire rather than him. Cole asked Jax why she’s targeted everybody in the women’s locker room. Jax said she wasn’t paying attention to him, then told him to relax.
“I am Nia Jax, the baddest human in all of WWE,” Jax said. “See, Michael, they thought it was going to be Rhea Ripley, the most dominant champion male or female. I squashed her.” Cole said they thought the same of Shayna Baszler and she squashed her too. Jax listed the other wrestlers she’s squashed and said she would do the same to anyone they put in the ring with her. The crowd gave her the “What?” treatment.
Zoey Stark made her entrance and interrupted Jax’s closing line. Stark jumped over the top rope and went face to face with Jax. Stark congratulated Jax for squashing her. She said she did it while her back was turned. Stark dared Jax to do it when they were face to face. Jax shoved Stark down. Stark got up and they fought while a couple of referees tried to pull them apart… [C]
Cole hyped John Cena facing Jimmy Uso and Solo Sikoa in a handicap match for WWE Fastlane…
5. Nia Jax vs. Zoey Stark. Jax put Stark down and then dropped an elbow on her before covering her for a two count. Jax tossed Stark around the ring and then splashed her in the corner. Stark avoided a spear in the corner and then threw a couple of kicks at her. Stark hit her with an enzuigiri, but Jax remained on her feet.
Stark executed a springboard missile dropkick and then tried to power up Jax before collapsing under her weight. Jax draped Stark’s head over the bottom rope, went to the apron, and dropped a leg on the back of her head. Jax followed up with the Annihilator sit-down splash from the middle rope and scored the pin…
Nia Jax defeated Zoey Stark in 2:55.
Powell’s POV: Again, you don’t have to like Jax to appreciate the job the creative forces are doing of building her up as a monster. Stark showed really good fire before and during the match before Jax put her away.
Backstage, Byron Saxton asked Jey Uso why he didn’t join Judgment Day. Jey said no groups or emo bands. Jey said Cody Rhodes took a chance on him and he wasn’t going to do him like that. Jey said Judgment Day are not his kind of people. Saxton asked Jey where things stand with him and Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn. Jey said he and Owens have a beef and it is what it is, but Sami is his dawg. Jey said he would keep an eye on Judgment Day during the main event…
Powell’s POV: I hope it’s not as simple as Jey trying to save KO and Sami only to have it backfire and cost them the match. It’s a logical storyline development and yet it feels a little too predictable. I guess we’ll find out soon enough.
The Miz made his entrance for a Miz TV segment… [C] Cole hyped WWE Elimination Chamber being held in Perth, Australia at Optus Stadium while mainstream headlines were shown…
Backstage, Balor praised Dom for retaining his title. Dom asked where Priest was. Balor said he needed to cool off. Balor told Dom to remember that they had a lot of work to do tonight…
The Miz hosted the Miz TV segment and introduced Drew McIntyre as his guest. McIntyre walked onto the stage and looked at his sword while presumably thinking, “Wow, this thing is stupid” and then headed to the ring. McIntyre put the stupid sword in its stupid holster and then took a seat.
[Hour Three] Miz said McIntyre had a lot of frustration and told him to take it out on Kofi Kingston during their match. Miz told him it was a judgement free zone for McIntyre to say what’s on his mind. McIntyre asked if he had any questions. Miz said he would have abandoned Jey Uso too and then asked him why he did it.
McIntyre said he’s nothing like Miz, who said that abandoning Jey was a very Miz move. Miz recalled McIntyre’s title reign and then how he had an opportunity to regain the title at WWE Clash at the Castle. Miz played up The Bloodline’s attacks and noted that Jey Uso was a part of it.
“Karma is a bitch,” McIntyre said. Miz said exactly, Jey made his bed and finally had to live in it. Miz said McIntyre is the Batman of WWE and said that makes Cody Rhodes the Superman of WWE. Miz asked McIntyre how it felt to be upstaged by Cody last week.
The New Day entrance theme played. Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods came out. Woods brought out the king of stupidity trombone with him. Kingston said the McIntyre they know isn’t the coward that he was last week. Woods said they called him Big D for the last few years, but it looked like there was some shrinkage. Woods asked if McIntyre was worried that his giant sword was a little too limp to get the job done.
“Hey, hey, Big D and Massive Miz were having a conversation,” Miz said. McIntyre told him to shut up. McIntyre asked if Kingston and Woods came out and helped Jey last week and accused them of being hypocrites. McIntyre said there were a lot of guys who could have helped and Cody did it because he was cleaning up his own mess.
Kingston said McIntyre should have helped out Jey. Miz tried to speak, but McIntyre told him to shut up again. McIntyre asked if they just forgive and forget all of the Bloodline beatdowns. Kingston said they didn’t forget, but Jey was trying to make it right. Miz spoke up and was told to shut up again.
Kingston said they look up to McIntyre because he always does what’s right and they respect him for it. Miz held up his hand and started to do his usual bit, but McIntyre told him to shut up. The crowd chanted, “Shut up, Miz.” He started to say that when his hand goes up, but McIntyre punched him out and then invited Kingston to get in the ring and find out what hard times is all about… [C]
Powell’s POV: The lame ass sword and trombone aside, this was a great segment. Miz brought his A-game and did a hell of a job of stirring the pot with McIntyre, whose frustration is understandable and believable. Kingston also handled his part of things nicely. Oh, and Woods helped work in a dick joke.
Maxxine Dupri held an bag of ice on Otis’s back while Chad Gable told him that he had nothing to be ashamed of. Gable said they would study and see what went wrong. Ludwig Kaiser showed up and told Dupri to take a look at her guys and then take a look at Imperium.
Kaiser said they hold themselves to a higher standard. Dupri wondered why a guy who speaks so many languages can’t comprehend what go away means. Gable assume Kaiser was on his way to get browbeat by Gunther, and told him to let him know what he would suplex his way into a title match and take the title from him…
6. Drew McIntyre vs. Kofi Kingston (w/Xavier Woods). McIntyre took offensive control early and powered up Kingston before suplexing him with ease. Kingston caught McIntyre with a dropkick that sent him to ringside. Kingston went up top and hit McIntyre with a trust fall while Woods played the awful trombone. Back in the ring, Kingston executed a tope rope crossbody block for a two count. [C]
Kingston caught McIntyre with a suicide dive. McIntyre came back with a big forearm shot and then executed an Alabama Slam that drove Kingston face first onto the apron. McIntyre shoved dead weight Kingston back inside the ring while Cole said he’s been kicking ass and taking names for weeks.
McIntyre did the countdown and went for a Claymore Kick that Kingston avoided. Kingston put McIntyre down with an SOS for a two count. Cole called it a classic match and then said they’ve had a number of them on this episode. A “this is awesome” chant broke out.
Ivar showed at ringside and destroyed Xavier Woods while Valhalla watched. Ivar splashed Woods against the barricade. Kingston tried to help, but McIntyre shoved him down. When Kingston stood up, McIntyre put him right back down with a Claymore Kick and pinned him.
Drew McIntyre defeated Kofi Kingston in roughly 12:00.
After the match, McIntyre looked down at Kingston while Ivar and Valhalla watched from ringside. McIntyre exited the ring and then Ivar entered the ring and attacked Kingston. McIntyre walked toward the back, then stopped and looked back at what was happening before opting to head backstage. Ivar performed a moonsault on Kingston and then he and Valhalla stood over him…
Powell’s POV: The slow burn to the McIntyre heel turn is going extremely well. They are very different storylines, but it does bring back some memories of being a Paul Orndorff fan when I was younger and hoping that his character would see the light, which eventually led to him turning on Hulk Hogan. Too many turns are done with shock value in mind, but I really enjoy when they tell a story that leads to a longtime babyface finally boiling over.
Backstage, Gunther scolded Giovanni Vinci. Ludwig Kaiser showed up and then he was scolded for losing. Kaiser said he would have gotten the job done had it not been for Vinci. Gunther told Kaiser that Vinci is now his responsibility. “If you mess up, then we have an issue,” Gunther said. “If he messes up, then we have an issue as well.” Gunther said he would hold up his responsibility by being the greatest Intercontinental Champion of all-time. Gunther said he would beat Tommaso Ciampa by himself…
Balor was shown warming up backstage. Priest entered their little goth clubhouse and bumped fists with him while Cole said the main event was up next… [C]
An apprehensive Byron Saxton stood backstage and asked Ivar and Valhalla if they wanted to explain their actions. Ivar said New Day took Erik out of the fight. Valhalla added an eye for an eye…
Cole hyped Becky Lynch vs. Tiffany Stratton for the NXT Women’s Championship for NXT No Mercy lineup for Saturday’s show…
Barrett announced that Tegan Nox will challenge for the NXT Women’s Championship on next week’s Raw. Cole also hyped a contract signing for Gunther vs. Tommaso Ciampa for the Intercontinental Championship, but he did not list when the match will take place…
Entrances for the main event took place for the tag team title match with the champions entering first followed by the challengers…
7. Damian Priest and Finn Balor vs. Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn for the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Titles. Samantha Irvin delivered in-ring introductions for the championship match. The teams pushed and shoved one another. The referee separated them and then called for the bell to start the match. All four men went right at one another. Cole said referee Chad Patton would have his hands full. The challengers got the better of the early brawl and were standing tall in the ring. [C]
The champions eventually isolated Owens for a stretch. Owens fired up and traded punches with Priest and then put him down with a DDT. Zayn tagged in and put Priest down with a clothesline. Zayn mounted Priest in the corner and threw punches at him. Priest tried to pop up Zayn, who dropkicked him. Balor ran in and was immediately cleared to ringside by Zayn, who then clotheslined Priest to ringside. Zayn executed a flip dive onto both men. [C]
Owens had a burst of offense and clotheslined both men at ringside. Owens got Balor down in the corner and then hit Priest with a cannonball from the apron. Back in the ring, Owens cannonballed Balor in the corner. Owens dumped Owens onto the broadcast table. Owens rushed back to the ring and hit a top rope frog splash on Balor for a near fall. A “this is awesome” chant broke out.
A short time later, Owens executed a rolling senton from the middle rope on Balor for another near fall. Owens fought off Priest and then went for a Swanton, but Balor put his knees up. Balor hit a shotgun dropkick on Owens and then hit him with the Coup De Grace, but Zayn broke up the pin at the last moment.
Priest tossed Zayn to ringside. Priest spoke to Balor and then went to their corner. Balor threw punches at Owens and then tagged in Priest, who lowered the straps on his gear. Priest went for his South of Heaven chokeslam, but Owens avoided it and tagged out. Owens put Priest down with an exploder suplex. Zayn set up for his finisher.
Dominik Mysterio showed up and distracted Zayn, who knocked Dom off the apron. Priest took advantage of the distraction, but Zayn came right back with a Blue Thunder Bomb and had the pin until Balor broke it up. Owens attacked Balor. Dom clotheslined Zayn over the top rope while the referee was distracted, which led to Priest getting a near fall. Dom stood on the apron and argued with the referee.
Jey Uso showed up and pulled Dom off the apron and worked him over on the floor. JD McDonagh showed up and attacked Jey. McDonagh held Jey while Dom punched him.
Cody Rhodes ran out and performed a suicide dive onto McDonagh. Cody and Jey roughed up Dom in the entrance aisle until a group of producers showed up and got them to the back. In the ring, Owens put Balor down with Stunner. Priest threw Owens out of the ring. Zayn hit Priest with a Helluva Kick. McDonagh climbed onto the apron and hit Zayn with one of the tag title belts while the referee was acting distracted. Priest covered Zayn and scored the pin.
Damian Priest and Finn Balor defeated Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn in 20:15 to retain the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Titles.
After the match, Priest and Dom met Balor and McDonagh on the floor while Cole wondered if McDonagh had finally proven himself. Jey Uso and Cody Rhodes ran out and attacked the Judgment Day members and then Owens and Zayn joined in. The producers and referees tried and failed to pull the wrestlers apart and they all brawled to close the show…
Powell’s POV: A hot main event with a poorly executed distraction finish. The referee looked really bad. He was looking at the stage and pumping his arm. He looked back just as McDonagh was climbing on the apron and then turned away and kept acting like he was distracted by something on the stage even though nothing was actually happening. It’s too bad because it was a really good match. I’m happy they didn’t go with the obvious finish of Jey’s help backfiring and instead gave McDonagh another assist.
Overall, a consistently entertaining episode from start to finish. They continue to fill the three hours with meaningful content rather than filler. But they are really taking their sweet time when it comes to announcing the Fastline lineup for some reason. I will have a lot more to say about this episode during my weekly same night audio review of Raw for Dot Net Members (including our Patreon patrons). Let me know what you thought of Raw by grading it below.
Dom and Lee was the match of the night in my opinion
The Rollins/Nakamura feud is a little underwhelming coz no one is buying Shinsuke as a threat, not even this supposed back injury of Rollins’ help as none Shinsuke’s attacks target the back. Perhaps, if Seth had a head injury then this might be a different story. A back injury would’ve made Seth vulnerable to someone like Batista or ‘the Messiah of the backbreaker” Roderick Strong not Shinsuke.
By the way, I’m glad Samantha stopped announcing Miz’s name like she usually does. It was really annoying.
Yeah she really goes overboard on some of these entrances.
Dom and Lee was the match of the night in my opinion
The main event likely set up the teams for the next WarGames.
If so I hope no one comes dressed up in white if they’re not gonna BLEED!
I thought the same thing, but they don’t have any events listed with the two-ring configuration. Obviously, they want to keep it quiet until it’s announced, but they’d piss off ticket buying fans if they switched the configuration after tickets were already purchased. So while it’s probably headed in that direction, I’m just not sure when or where they’ll do it.
Regarding the lack of declared Fastlane matchups, I would wager that it’s by design at this point.
With the new Covid variant, lack of proliferation of the newest booster, and the almost non-existent public precaution, it’s way too likely that they’d have to make changes anyway.
They’re traveling full time, and there is no bubble. They sent LA Knight home last week, and had to shuffle everything.
And no, I’m not making political judgments here. Just saying that these are all relevant factors, and affect the calculus of the booking team. If they don’t account for it all, they’re being irresponsible and taking unnecessary chances. (It would be different for AEW, which has to sell individual PPVs, instead of mass streaming a PLE.)
I wish Tomato Ciampa would have been allowed to first connect with the audience before being rushed into a title match like this. I mean it’s not like I don’t believe in the guy to make it on the main roster but there’s just a huge portion of the WWE universe that’s unfamiliar with him and his work in NXT – black and gold, not being tapped out by some meathead kid in a stupid singlet. They should’ve gone all the way with him after that great match he had with Styles and the prior triple threat match, instead they had him steamrolled by lashley, not to mention being paired with Miz – as a partner then abruptly a rival – didn’t help matters either.
By gawd, the NXT title match between Ciampa and Gunther was absolutely great. That would be a prestige match up for the IC title’s value.
I like Rollins, but nothing about that heavyweight title feels “main event.”
Having the champ come out mid-show, but not revisited later, adds to that feeling. I honestly forget Rollins is heavyweight champion.
WWE really screwed things up with Reigns’ needlessly long title run. This paper championship only confuses things. Too late now.
I like the large sword that McIntyre caries to the ring. I enjoy Midevil history.