By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)
WWE Raw Hits
“The 946” Royce Keys, Bronco Nima, and Lucien Price: The show-ending scene with the new faction setting the Usos’ SUV on fire was memorable. You have to turn your brain off because this isn’t even the type of crime that can be explained away by stating that the Usos refused to press charges. It’s the type of crime that police can make arrests for without the vehicle owner’s involvement. If you can get past that, it was a wild image to close the show with. I really liked Jacob Fatu encouraging the Usos not to fall into the trap that Keys set. It established that the 946’s actions aren’t just random acts of violence. Rather, the Keys character is intelligent and calculated, as is Fatu’s character for recognizing what Keys was going for. The line of the night was Keys calling for Fatu to let the two bitches off their leashes.
Bron Breakker vs. Rey Mysterio vs. Ethan Page in a Triple Threat men’s Money in the Bank qualifier: A good match. Breakker going over seemed like the obvious call, especially after he and Bronson Reed took out Oba Femi, which prevented him from getting involved. Still, it was a pleasant surprise that they went with a competitive match rather than having Breakker dominate both opponents. Page winning Money in the Bank and walking around with the briefcase would have been great, but I didn’t expect to see him jump from the secondary title picture into world title contention.
Liv Morgan vs. Stephanie Vaquer for the Women’s World Championship: An enjoyable match until the tired Judgment Day interference spot. It was good to see the wrestlers get nearly 18 minutes, but I know I wasn’t the only one who spent the match waiting for the interference. Raquel Rodriguez and Roxanne Perez interfering to set up Becky Lynch coming out to stop them was logical, but it didn’t end there. The referee turned his back on what was happening in the ring to watch Lynch chase Perez over the ringside barricade and into a concourse area so that he could miss Morgan hitting Vaquer with the title belt. I really wish all pro wrestling companies would stop going with lazy finishes that make their referees look like incompetent jackasses. Will Lynch get a title shot in a singles match, or will they jump right to the seemingly inevitable Triple Threat?
Sol Ruca vs. Lyra Valkyria vs. Maxxine Dupri in a Triple Threat women’s Money in the Bank qualifier: In hindsight, WWE officials wanting Ruca in the ladder match seemed fairly obvious, but I couldn’t rule out Dupri stealing a pin to continue the theme of making The Vision look strong. Dupri winning Money in the Bank and the threat of her cashing in to steal a world championship would be major heat. Bayley costing Valkyria the match and beating her up afterward restarts a feud that was put on hold after Valkyria beat Bayley on Saturday Night’s Main Event nearly two months back. The feud felt cold back then, so it will be interesting to see if they have any new ideas to generate viewer interest.
Austin Theory vs. Otis: More of an in-the-middle than a Hit or a Miss. The Vision’s show-opening promo showcased the return of Bronson Reed, while also putting over that he and Bron Breakker did a number on Oba Femi at Sunday Night’s Main Event. We missed most of the match due to a commercial break. They went with an underwhelming finish, with the other Vision members interfering before Otis could hit the Caterpillar on Theory. The post-match was much better. Oba Femi looked heroic by coming out despite being injured, especially when the heels had a numbers advantage. It was a good call to double down on Breakker and Reed beating down Oba, as Raw is clearly seen by more viewers than the Peacock-exclusive Sunday Night’s Main Event.
WWE Raw Misses
Joe Hendry vs. JD McDonagh: The gag with Je’Von Evans mocking the size of McDonagh’s noggin by wearing a giant Funko head was one of the worst gags I’ve seen on a pro wrestling show all year. Just when it looked like Je’Von developed more of an edge with his strong showing against Big Cass, he had to take part in this nonsense. One step forward, two steps back.
Matt Mathews with The Miz and Kit Wilson: I miss the days when babyface wrestlers came to the aid of most celebrities who were being harassed by the heels. It’s one thing to have an athlete stand their ground, but I could do without seeing regular-sized celebrities busting out moves that the actual wrestlers have to sell on the weekly television shows. At the very least, save this type of physicality for dark segments like WWE did when Bert Kreischer chokeslammed Austin Theory. Does this segment ending with Miz hitting Mathews with a Skull Crushing Finale mean there’s more to come?
(Jason Powell, founder and editor of ProWrestling.net, has covered pro wrestling full-time since 1997. He hosts the weekly podcast, Pro Wrestling Boom, and also appears regularly on the Wade Keller Pro Wrestling Podcast. Reach him via email at dotnetjason@gmail.com and on social media via @prowrestlingnet.bsky.social or x.com/prowrestlingnet. For his full bio and information on this website, click here.)
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