By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)
WWE Raw Hits
Chad Gable vs. Rey Mysterio vs. Dragon Lee in a Triple Threat for the Intercontinental Title: An excellent three-way with great hometown crowd support for Mysterio. It’s always fun to watch fans get as caught up in the close near falls as many of the San Diego fans were during this match. Ethan Page and Big Cass didn’t seem to be a united pair when they attacked Gable, Mysterio, and Lee after the match. Page roughed up Gable in the ring, while Cass attacked Mysterio and Lee at ringside, and they never stood together afterward. It’s good to see Page in the secondary title mix again, and he strikes me as a strong candidate to take the title from Gable.
Roman Reigns and Sami Zayn: It was fun to see these characters interact again, starting with a smiling Sami nodding to Reigns as he walked past him in the indoor parking area. The in-ring exchange started cordial, with Zayn saying that he understood what Reigns told him back in the day about the world championship being a burden. I’m not sure whether Reigns’ character took pride in that or if he was merely playing nice before pitching the idea of Zayn helping The Bloodline. Things took a turn for the worse when Zayn said he had his own table now, as Reigns downplayed the significance of the WWE Championship now that he holds the World Heavyweight Championship. I can’t say this made me anxious to see them wrestle at Crown Jewel, but the segment was entertaining, and who knows if that event will take place as scheduled. WWE plugged Crown Jewel, but not as aggressively as they normally would for an event scheduled to take place in less than three weeks.
The Bloodline and The 946: The 946 has gotten the better of the Bloodline at every turn, so it was fine for the Bloodline to stand tall for one night, assuming the 946 will get their heat back as soon as next week. A WarGames match between the two factions at Survivor Series feels inevitable. The question is whether they will go four-on-four with the wrestlers who appeared last night or if Jacob Fatu will return for the Bloodline, and the 946 will add a new member. Speaking of Fatu, I’m happy he’s selling being hit by the car that Jaida Parker drove rather than returning a week or two later, but WWE could do a better job of reminding viewers of that big angle and his absence.
Penta vs. Bron Breakker: There was no reason to expect a clean finish. The interference was structured well, with Austin Theory and Maxxine Dupri getting involved, only to have Je’Von Evans counter them to set up the crowd-pleasing Penta win. Evans hitting Breakker with the title belt gave him a bit of revenge for Breakker putting him through the top of the ambulance at Money in the Bank, and spearing him last week on Raw. Breakker was protected, but it still looks like the company has pulled back on his push.
Chelsea Green and Iyo Sky vs. Raquel Rodriguez and Roxanne Perez: A solid tag team match. I thought they might double down by having Perez pin Green again. Rather, they went with Sky pinning Rodriguez, which backs up her statement last week about targeting the Women’s Intercontinental Champion.
WWE Raw Misses
Joe Hendry vs. JD McDonagh: The Funko Pop joke about the size of McDonagh’s head wasn’t even funny to start with, but that hasn’t stopped the company from repeating it every week. Hopefully, McDonagh bashing the stupid thing with a chair repeatedly signified the end of this stupidity.
Stephanie Vaquer and Becky Lynch: Lynch could have simply asked for a title shot. After all, Vaquer is injured, and Lynch didn’t factor into the Triple Threat finish of Liv Morgan pinning Vaquer to regain the Women’s World Championship. Oddly, Lynch’s character is content to wait for a No. 1 contender’s match once Vaquer is healthy.
Lola Vice vs. Lyra Valkyria: A minor Miss. They put together a good match, but the deranged Valkyria character just isn’t working. While I applaud the effort to try something new, it feels like it’s time to throw in the towel once she gets through what appears to be the blowoff match to her feud with Bayley next week. Vice is winning singles matches and has looked good since she was called up to the main roster, but it’s time for her to enter a real program rather than having random matches.
(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 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.)
