Powell’s WWE Raw Hit List: Uncle Howdy vs. Chad Gable, Braun Strowman vs. Bronson Reed, Triple Threat tournament matches for a shot at the Intercontinental Title

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

WWE Raw Hits

Drew McIntyre and CM Punk: McIntyre came through with another hard hitting promo. It would be easy to flip these two in a double turn because so many of McIntyre’s criticisms of Punk feel at least somewhat valid. Meanwhile, Punk is still struggling to find his edge as a babyface now that he seems genuinely happy with the state of the company. As such, it was a good idea to let Punk’s actions do the talking by having him attack McIntyre with a strap as opposed to delivering a go-home promo.

Bronson Reed vs. Braun Strowman: Another good week for Reed. He didn’t plow through Strowman as I thought he might. Rather, he and Strowman brawled through the backstage area and into the parking lot. The Tsunami on top of the car was cool, and it was a nice touch to show Strowman being tended to while the broadcast team said Reed got up on his own and refused medical attention.

Randy Orton promo: It’s a shame that we didn’t get one final verbal exchange between Orton and Gunther heading into their title match, but that was not possible due to Gunther working the overseas tour. Orton claiming that the World Heavyweight Championship belt is the most meaningful to him felt like a big stretch despite the attempt to lay out his history with it. Otherwise, this was a good go-home promo.

Uncle Howdy vs. Chad Gable: A solid in-ring debut for the Howdy character. Howdy’s mask and wig leave something to be desired. Bo Dallas doesn’t need an over the top horror movie mask like his brother wore as The Fiend, but Bo’s current look could use some tweaks. On the bright side, the match was entertaining and the live crowd seemed invested in the Wyatt Sicks.

Finn Balor, Dominik Mysterio, JD McDonagh, and Carlito vs. Rey Mysterio, Dragon Lee, Joaquin Wilde, and Cruz Del Toro: The match was carried by the Mysterio family drama. Otherwise, it felt like a mid-card battle. The new Judgment Day team needed a win and got one, but they still feel depleted after losing Damian Priest and Rhea Ripley. Although the addition of Liv Morgan is solid, the group lacks the type of high level replacement for Priest who will be taken seriously in the world title picture.

Jey Uso vs. Kofi Kingston vs. Karrion Kross in a Triple Threat tournament match for a shot at the Intercontinental Title: A soft Hit for Uso getting the expected win. While it’s nice to see the creative team come up with something other than a random four-way match to determine the next number one contender to the Intercontinental Title, it would be ideal if they start putting in the work to build up challengers by having wrestlers go on winning streaks and develop the type of momentum that makes them obvious candidates for title matches.

Overall Show: A soft Hit despite the lopsided Hit to Miss count. This episode was nothing special. Gunther, Seth Rollins, Sheamus, Ludwig Kaiser, and Sami Zayn among the wrestlers who were either sidelined or on the European tour. Monday’s Raw is the final episode before Monday Night Football returns. Will WWE set the hook for something big next week or will this be another year when they just take a business as usual approach?

WWE Raw Misses

Iyo Sky and Kairi Sane vs. Shayna Baszler and Zoey Stark: The back and forth feud continues. While Baszler, Stark, and Sonya Deville have a new faction name, there’s no sign of them getting an actual push.

Pete Dunne vs The Miz vs. Xavier Woods in a Triple Threat tournament match for a shot at the Intercontinental Title: There was some solid three-way work, but this just felt like a cold match involving characters that are not all that over.