Powell’s WWE Raw Hit List: CM Punk vs. AJ Styles vs. El Grande Americano, and Stephanie Vaquer vs. Liv Morgan and Ivy Nile in the final Money in the Bank ladder match qualifiers

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

WWE Raw Hits

Jey Uso vs. Gunther build: Gunther’s matter-of-fact comments about how Jey looking out for his friends will cost him the World Heavyweight Championship were strong. It was perfect that those words were followed by Jey taking two Tsunami splashes when he tried to save his friends after the main event. The big WrestleMania rematch that will be held on next week’s Raw is very interesting. Sure, it could be just another big WWE television match that ends with a cheap finish, but the timing is interesting in that the Money in the Bank contract will be in play.

Stephanie Vaquer vs. Liv Morgan and Ivy Nile in a women’s Money in the Bank ladder match qualifier: It’s great to see that Vaquer’s popularity wasn’t limited to the NXT audience. This was one of the better matches of the night. While Vaquer and Morgan certainly deserve credit, this match was the latest example of Nile’s in-ring improvement.

CM Punk and Sami Zayn: A compelling opening segment with Punk expressing his interest in going after a world championship. The key to the promo’s success was Zayn playing up the stakes of the Raw main event and the men’s Money in the Bank ladder match due to his concern over what would happen if Seth Rollins won the World Heavyweight Championship. On a side note, Karrion Kross stating that Sami is actually a bad guy was an interesting segment. Sami sold the line to perfection by showing that Kross’s words hit home.

Lyra Valkyira and Becky Lynch: That’s more like it. Valkyria showed good fire while delivering her best mic work to date. I was lukewarm on their latest Women’s Intercontinental Title match when it was announced it for MITB, but this verbal exchange left me feeling more invested in their match.

Finn Balor and JD McDonagh vs. “The War Raiders” Erik and Ivar: A good tag match that concluded with Roxanne Perez providing the distraction that helped the heel duo win. I’m not big on distraction finishes that are done merely to avoid having a finish, but they’re fine in small doses when they serve a better purpose. I’ve been ready to write off the Judgment Day faction countless times, going back to the very beginning when it got off to a rocky start with Edge as its leader. I thought the end had to be near once Rhea Ripley and Damian Priest exited the group, and yet the faction is still going because the creative forces continue to find fun ways to keep things interesting. The latest bit with Balor attempting to bring Roxanne Perez into the fold to mess with Liv Morgan and Dominik Mysterio is a blast. That said, I already miss Carlito’s one-liners.

Kairi Sane vs. Raquel Rodriguez: A soft Hit for a solid match. The match concluded with another distraction finish that also played into the Judgment Day drama.

WWE Raw Misses

El Grande Americano vs. CM Punk vs. AJ Styles in a men’s Money in the Bank ladder match qualifier: An enjoyable Triple Threat that ended with my least desirable outcome of the one-note joke character qualifying for the MITB ladder match. Perhaps it wouldn’t be so bad if the men’s field didn’t already look so weak. Having said all of that, the masked character being in the match presents some fun creative possibilities. In the storyline world, there is nothing stopping another wrestler from beating up Chad Gable, stealing the mask, and entering the MITB match as Americano. For that matter, even if Gable wins MITB as Americano, another wrestler could always steal the mask and the MITB contract from him before cashing in. In other words, we could get El Punke Americano cashing in. Or maybe this would be El Sami Americano’s way of preventing Seth Rollins from winning the World Heavyweight Championship? Call me crazy, but something tells me this wouldn’t be the first time that Sami wore a lucha mask. How about El Grande Americano Nightmare (yes, technically it would be Pesadilla, for all of you know-it-all types)? Or what if Jey Uso loses the title on Monday, but he gets it back by cashing in as El Grand Jey Americano at a later date? Okay, I’ve run this into the ground. The point is that while the idea of Americano winning the last spot in the MITB ladder match did nothing for me in the moment, I am now very open to the possibility that a big angle is coming.

Jey Uso and Sami Zayn vs. Bron Breakker and Bronson Reed: A minor Miss for a match that was Hit-worthy until he lousy finish. Breakker and Reed make one hell of a monster tag team. They don’t really need to be featured in squash matches, but I would enjoy the hell out of watching Breakker and Reed destroy some hapless jobbers.

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