WWE Raw results (9/29): Powell’s live review of The Usos vs. Bron Breakker and Bronson Reed in a tornado tag, Dominik Mysterio vs. Rusev for the Intercontinental Title

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

WWE Raw (Episode 1,688)
Raleigh, North Carolina, at Lenovo Center
Streamed live September 29, 2025, on Netflix

[Hour One] Joe Tessitore checked in on commentary while a shot aired of the host venue. Backstage/arrival shots aired of The Usos, Judgment Day, the Americanos, and Rusev… Tessitore and Wade Barrett checked in from their broadcast desk at ringside and set up highlights from last week’s Asuka and Kairi Sane heel turn…

Powell’s POV: My apologies for the late start for those reading live. I was dealing with some technical issues, but we’re good to go now (knock on wood).

Rhea Ripley made her entrance for an in-ring promo. Ripley said she always knew it would come to this with Asuka. She said she hoped they could settle things in the ring like the warrior that she thought Asuka was. Ripley said that what Asuka did to Iyo Sky crossed the line. Ripley said they would settle things in the ring, then called out for The Kabuki Warriors to come get her.

Iyo Sky came out looking sad with her head down and joined Ripley inside the ring. An “Iyo” chant broke out. Sky said it broke her heart to say that Ripley was right about Asuka and Kairi Sane, but they are her family. Sky said she still loves them. The fans booed. Ripley tried to console Sky.

“The Kabuki Warriors” Asuka and Kairi Sane appeared on the big screen. Subtitles were used while Asuka said she taught Sky everything she knows, and now she acts like none of it matters. She accused Sky of forgetting about her once she won the Women’s World Championship. Asuka told Sky to apologize to her, and then she could be like Sane and they would remain her students. Sane said they could be a family again.

Ripley said Asuka could go to hell. She told Sky she had to trust her. She said she’d been burned by her own family before. Sky apologized to Ripley and said she needed more time. Sky made her exit from the ring and looked sad as she headed toward the back.

Asuka and Sane attacked Ripley from behind. Sky returned to the ring to stop them. Sane knelt down in front of Sky and folded her hands. Asuka stood behind Sane and sprayed mist at Sky. Asuka and Sane worked over Ripley by hitting her with back fists. Asuka put Ripley in a submission hold, and then Sane hit Ripley with an Insane Elbow. Referees and producers came out to tend to Sky heading into the first break… [C]

Powell’s POV: A strong follow-up to last week’s big turn. This is arguably the most compelling story on WWE television.

Rusev made his entrance while footage aired of him beating JD McDonagh last week, when Dominik Mysterio froze on the apron, and Finn Balor had to come out and break the Accolade that Rusev had McDonagh locked in. Dom made his entrance with Balor and McDonagh, but they stopped near ringside and headed to the back…

1. Dominik Mysterio vs. Rusev for the Intercontinental Championship. Ring announcer Alicia Taylor delivered in-ring introductions for the title match. Barrett worked in a comment about the Europeans whopping the Americans during Ryder Cup golf tournament (the American fans who attended and acted like idiots should be ashamed). Rusev hit Dom with a fallaway slam onto the broadcast table before a break. [C]

Dom battled back, but Rusev eventually took control. Dom scurried out of the ring to avoid the Accolade. Moments later, Dom hit Rusev from behind with the title belt. Rusev didn’t budge, but he ended up with the belt. Dom dropped down and acted like Rusev hit him. The referee cleared the belt from the ring. Dom caught Rusev with a low blow that the referee couldn’t see and then pinned him…

Dominik Mysterio defeated Rusev to retain the Intercontinental Championship.

Powell’s POV: The live crowd loved Dom and his heel antics.

Footage aired from earlier today of LA Knight telling Raw General Manager Adam Pearce that he wants his title shot. Pearce said Knight isn’t the only one. Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods showed up and claimed Pearce owed them a World Tag Team Title match. Pearce told the New Day duo to earn it. Knight took offense to being interrupted, and called for a match with Kingston, which Pearce agreed to…

The tour bus of Cody Rhodes was shown while Tessitore hyped that the WWE Champion was in the building… [C] Tessitore touted the WWE podcast lineup…

A Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins video package aired to promote their match at WWE Crown Jewel in Australia. Cody recalled returning to WWE and facing Rollins at WrestleMania. Rollins said Cody stole a win from him by holding his tights at Backlash. He said they had to go to hell. Cody recalled working through the torn pectoral muscle and said it wasn’t the wisest decision, but through it he found respect. Cody said it will be a defining win for him. Rollins said Cody will forever be the defining rival of his career. Rollins said that’s why what happened next is so tragic…

Powell’s POV: They are doing a great job of focusing on the rivalry between Cody and Rollins rather than fighting the uphill battle of trying to make viewers care about the Crown Jewel Championship.

Footage aired of Bayley’s personality issues with Lyra Valkyria… Backstage, Bayley wanted Valkyria to join her at ringside, but she was still too upset about Bayley shoving her last week. Valkyria told Bayley she was on her own. Bayley made her entrance alone and hugged fans… [C]

Tessitore hyped Zuffa Boxing starting in January, as a picture was shown of Dana White and Turki Al-Sheikh…

2. Bayley vs. Raquel Rodríguez (w/Roxanne Perez). Rodriguez’s entrance was not televised. Rodriguez caught Bayley going for a huracanrana off the apron and then swung her into the barricade. [C] Bayley put Rodriguez down and hit her with a Swanton for a near fall. Barrett said it was a shout-out to Matt Hardy and Jeff Hardy, who are from the area.

Rodriguez came back and showed frustration over not getting a three count. There was a botched spot near the ropes that they made a quick recovery from. Bayley applied a Figure Four while Barrett noted that they were in Ric Flair country. Perez raked Bayley’s eyes while the referee couldn’t see it. Rodriguez hit a Tejana Bomb and then pinned Bayley.

Raquel Rodriguez defeated Bayley.

[Hour Two] After the match, Barrett noted that Bayley could have used Lyra Valkyria in her corner. Rodriguez and Perez worked over Bayley until Valkyria ran out. The heels teamed up on Valkyria and put her down. Bayley’s demeanor changed, and then she got up and cleared the heels from the ring. Bayley turned and looked at Valkyria, who was down on the mat and leery of her. Bayley laughed and said Valkyria got them. Bayley pulled Valkyria to her feet and eventually got a high five from her…

Powell’s POV: Botched spot aside, this was an entertaining match with Bayley paying tribute to the Hardys and Flair. More importantly, Bayley’s personality disorder storyline continues to be intriguing.

Backstage, Jimmy Uso asked Jey Uso about walking off when he and LA Knight needed his help. Jey said helping Knight gets them nowhere and made them lose at Wrestlepalooza. Jey asked Jimmy why he helped him. Jimmy said he helped him and would help Jey, who cut him off. “I said no help,” Jey replied. Jey recalled putting Knight down and said he might be the World Heavyweight Champion if he did more of that. Jey told Jimmy that’s something he wouldn’t get. Jey told Jimmy he loved him and walked away…

Iyo Sky was being treated by the trainers when Kairi Sane entered the room. Sane told Sky they could still be a family. Sane pleaded with Sky to apologize to Asuka. Sky yelled at Sane to leave her alone. Sane handed Sky a photo of happier times between the three women…

LA Knight made his entrance… [C] Tessitore pushed two-day combo tickets for WrestleMania 42… Tessitore said Raw would be in Dallas, Texas, next week and would start at 7CT/8ET…

3. LA Knight vs. Kofi Kingston (w/Xavier Woods). The New Day entrance wasn’t fully televised. Knight sent Kingston to the floor and followed him. Knight slammed Kington’s head on top of the barricade several times. Woods backed away when Knight turned toward him. Kingston caught Knight with a kick and then ran him into the ring post. Kingston jumped off the apron onto Knight. [C]

Woods provided another distraction that allowed Kingston to be on the offensive. Late in the match, Knight ducked Trouble in Paradise and then put Kingston away with a BFT…

LA Knight defeated Kofi Kingston.

Powell’s POV: The match was fine, but there was no mystery regarding the outcome, even with Woods at ringside. Speaking of Woods, he’s just as obnoxious as a heel as he was as a babyface. It works better now that he’s a heel, but there are times when he’s so annoying that I want to reach for my remote control.

Footage aired from Smackdown of Randy Orton saving Cody Rhodes from being worked over by Bron Breakker and Bronson Reed…

Backstage, Akira Tozawa told Maxxine Dupri that he is proud of her. Becky Lynch showed up and questioned why Tozawa would be proud of Dupri, calling her “5 Foot 9 Inches of failure.” Dupri recalled Lynch claiming to be the greatest female wrestler of all time. Lynch did her bit about how everyone says it. Dupri said everyone says it except for AJ Lee. Tozawa laughed. Lynch hit Tozawa and knocked him down, then hovered over him and laughed. Dupri scolded Lynch, who walked away. Dupri checked on Tozawa. Lynch returned and attacked Dupri until several producers arrived.

Lynch walked away and approached her husband, Seth Rollins, who asked if she was feeling better. She said a little. Lynch asked Rollins how he was feeling. “We’ll see,” Rollins replied. She asked if he wanted her or Paul Heyman to join him, but he said he had to do it on his own… [C]

World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins made his entrance. The fans chanted his entrance theme, and he looked at his watch while he was in the ring. Eventually, the fans stopped and chanted for CM Punk, “OTC” for Roman Reigns, and then sang Cody’s name in European style.

Rollins acknowledged that he is 0-3 against Cody. He said it doesn’t matter. Rollins said the winner of their match at Crown Jewel wouldn’t just win the Crown Jewel Championship, but the winner might decide the future of the industry for the next 10-20 years.

Rollins said there are actually some people who want Cody to win. Rollins said he will be the person to lead the industry into the future. He said he’s done it right by staying with the company and pushing it into the golden age. He said he took Bron Breakker and Bronson Reed under his wing so he could give them his knowledge. Rollins said he’s sacrificed everything by trying to rid the company of cancers such as Reigns and Punk, yet the fans still chant for Cody.

WWE Champion Cody Rhodes made his entrance and joined Rollins inside the ring. Cody called Rollins on the nonsense of claiming they are fighting for the future of the industry. “It seems a bit much,” Cody said. Cody said the fans have all the control.

Cody mentioned that Bron Breakker and Bronson Reed showed up on Smackdown. Cody wondered if that was Rollins or a Paul Heyman call. Rollins said every decision runs through him. Cody asked if it was Seth’s call to have Heyman introduce Brock Lesnar at Wrestlepalooza. Rollins repeated that everything runs through him. “No, it doesn’t,” the fans chanted in response. Funny.

Cody said he thought that Rollins was his friend after they teamed up at WrestleMania 40. Rollins told him to shut up and said he was never his friend. Rollins said what they had was a means to an end. Rollins said Cody was the lesser of two evils. Rollins said everything that happened between them was dead, and he would write a new future at Crown Jewel. Rollins said he is the only person who will lead his vision. Rollins exited the ring…

Powell’s POV: I’m so happy that Cody called out Rollins on the nonsense about how the winner of their match would decide the future of the industry. Rollins is doing a great job of displaying intensity to show how much this match means to him, but his ongoing talk of leading the company into the future feels generic, and the live crowds respond to it accordingly. With that in mind, I’m surprised the closing line was about leading his vision.

Backstage, Rhea Ripley approached Iyo Sky and asked if she was okay. Sky said no, then told Ripley she was right about Asuka. Sky said she and Ripley would team to face the Kabuki Warriors at Crown Jewel. Ripley said she wanted to make sure Sky could handle it and that she could trust her. Sky said she couldn’t go back to Asuka or Sane after what they did. Ripley said she was in, and then they hugged. Sky acted like her eyes were still bothering her from the mist. Ripley said she’d get her some water…

AJ Styles made his entrance for his tag team match… [C]

Dragon Lee was in the ring with Styles coming out of the break. Tessitore reminded viewers of next week’s Raw starting at 7CT/8ET. Lee introduced himself to the crowd and said it was an honor to share the ring with Styles. Lee said he’s the No. 1 contender to the AAA Mega Championship, which means he’s coming for Dominik Mysterio.

Styles said he hopes Lee kicks Dom’s teeth in. Styles said he has a match at Crown Jewel against John Cena, which he said the fans were responsible for. Styles said he gets to do something he loves. “I get to beat up John Cena,” Styles said with a smile. “But tonight we kick Los Americanos’ ass.” All three Americanos made their entrance…

4. AJ Styles and Dragon Lee vs. “Los Americanos” Bravo and Rayo (w/El Grande Americano). Tessitore listed the Los Americanos’ names. Bravo and Rayo got the better of Lee heading into an early break. [C]

[Hour Three] Lee got Bravo hanging over the ropes and performed a rough double stomp from the top rope. Styles took a hot tag and worked over both opponents. Styles eventually hit a Phenomenal Forearm on Rayo, who ended up at ringside. Lee took out Rayo with a flip dive. Styles hit Bravo with a Styles Clash and scored the pin…

AJ Styles and Dragon Lee beat “Los Americanos” Bravo and Rayo.

Tessitore reminded viewers of next week’s Raw in Dallas, starting at 7CT/8CT. The broadcast team ran through the show’s lineup: CM Punk returns, Women’s Intercontinental Champion Becky Lynch vs. Maxxine Dupri, and Lyra Valkyria vs. Roxanne Perez…

A video package focused on Cody Rhodes vs. Seth Rollins for the men’s Crown Jewel Championship, Stephanie Vaquer vs. Tiffany Stratton for the women’s Crown Jewel Championship, and John Cena vs. AJ Styles…

Backstage, Jackie Redmond interviewed Women’s World Champion Stephanie Vaquer, who said she respects WWE Women’s Champion Tiffany Stratton, but she will beat her at Crown Jewel. Stratton showed up and said it will remain Tiffy Time. Vaquer told her that her time is over. Stratton said La Primera will have to get used to coming in second…

Jey Uso and Jimmy Uso were shown in the concourse, and then they made their entrance through the crowd for the main event. A shirtless kid pumped his temporary (or at least I hope so!) tattooed arms with them. The Usos arrived at ringside. [C]

At the Gorilla position, Seth Rollins looked down while standing with Paul Heyman, Bron Breakker, and Bronson Reed. Heyman asked Rollins if he was okay. “I have to beat him,” Rollins said. Heyman said, of course, he would. Rollins cut him off and repeated that he had to beat him. The entrance music of Breakker and Reed played, and then they headed to the ring with Heyman while Rollins remained backstage…

5. Jimmy Uso and Jey Uso vs. Bron Breakker and Bronson Reed (w/Paul Heyman) in a tornado tag team match. Jey dove onto Breakker and Reed while they were at ringside. The referee called for the bell to start the match. The Usos remained on the offensive until they set up for a double dive on Breakker, but Reed tripped them up from the floor.

Breakker returned to the ring and worked over Jey while Reed roughed up Jimmy on the floor. Breakker set up for his clothesline from the apron, but Jey hit him from behind. Jey went for a suicide dive, but Reed caught him with a punch from the floor. Reed ran Jey into the ring steps.

Reed cleared the broadcast table and then pulled Jimmy up with him. Jimmy slipped off of Breakker’s shoulders and knocked him off the table. Breakker jumped from the barricade in front of the timekeepers’ area and hit Jimmy with a clothesline, which broke the table. [C]

Jey was fighting both heels coming out of the break. Breakker and Reed got the better of the Usos. Breakker stacked the Usos so that Reed could hit them with a Tsunami, but they were interrupted by entrance music.

Roman Reigns made his entrance with a chair in his hand. Reigns entered the ring and immediately cleared Breakker to the floor. Reigns stared at Reed and then worked him over with the chair. Reed went to the floor. Reigns followed and continued to hit him with the chair until Reed ended up on the other side of the barricade.

Breakker hit Reigns, who fought him off quickly. The fans chanted Roman’s name in European style. In the ring, Jimmy superkicked Breakker, and then Jey speared Breakker. The Usos went up top in opposite corners and hit a double Uso Splash. Jey covered Breakker and got the three count.

Jimmy Uso and Jey Uso defeated Bron Breakker and Bronson Reed in a tornado tag team match.

After the match, Reigns entered the ring and hit Breakker with the chair. Breakker tumbled out of the ring near Heyman, who was in the entrance aisle. Reigns and Jey did a bro handshake. The executive producer credits rolled while Reigns told Jey it’s all about him as Jimmy watched and didn’t look pleased…

Powell’s POV: The main event didn’t conclude with the satisfying win for the babyface team since they needed help, but it didn’t seem like the live crowd cared since they got to see Reigns make his return. Roman is on the Crown Jewel poster, so his return tonight likely means he will have a match on that show.

Overall, a solid show that provided strong hype for the Cody vs. Rollins match at Crown Jewel. I hope they do more with the Cena vs. Styles build. I will be back shortly with my weekly same-night audio review of Raw, which will be available exclusively for Dot Net Members (including our Patreon patrons). Let me know what you thought of the show by grading it below.