Monday Night Raw – September 25, 2017: Everything You Need To Know

Monday Night Raw
Date: September 25, 2017
Location: Citizens Business Bank Arena, Ontario, California
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Booker T.

We’re past No Mercy and that means we have about a month to go before Tables Ladders and Chairs 2017. That means it’s time to build a card, which doesn’t seem likely to contain Brock Lesnar. It does however include Roman Reigns, who defeated John Cena last night and Braun Strowman, who fell to Lesnar in the Universal Title match. Let’s get to it.

Here’s are the Miz and the Miztourage for MizTV. After a quick look at Miz retaining the Intercontinental Title last night and bragging about his victory, Miz brings out his guest for the evening: Roman Reigns. Miz talks about Reigns’ accomplishments, including retiring Undertaker. Reigns says Cena carried the company for fifteen years and even an idiot like Miz can see that Reigns is the new guy.

That brings Miz to Jason Jordan, who isn’t good enough to be in the ring with him. Reigns disagrees, and says Miz wouldn’t win without the Miztourage. He tells Axel and Dallas to go get him a cold beer but Miz brings up Reigns having help in the form of the Shield. A match between the trios is teased and Reigns gets out of his chair, sending the Miztourage and company to the floor. Cue Kurt Angle to say Miz is facing Reigns tonight, but first the Miztourage will be facing Matt Hardy and Jason Jordan.

Matt Hardy/Jason Jordan vs. Miztourage

Jordan takes Dallas down without too much effort and northern lights Axel for two. It’s off to Matt for a headlock before the Miztourage being cleaned out as we take a break. Back with the Miztourage in control and Axel grabbing a chinlock on Jordan. That goes nowhere as it’s off to Matt for the middle rope elbow to the back of the head. Everything breaks down and Jordan does his running shoulder in the corner, followed by the belly to belly on Axel. The Side Effect into the Twist of Fate puts Dallas away at 10:25.

Rating: D+. Well that happened. What in the world am I supposed to say about this one anyway? Jordan was thrown in there because Jeff was hurt and it’s not like they have any other teams to throw in there. Heath Slater and Rhyno are available but they’re pretty low level, even for something like this. In other words, MAKE SOME NEW TEAMS ALREADY!

Quick video on Lesnar vs. Strowman, trying to make it far less disappointing than it really was.

Elias vs. Apollo Crews

Rematch from last night’s Kickoff Show. Apollo takes him down with a headlock and Elias can’t do much from there. Back up and Crews snaps off a dropkick and a clothesline, drawing a rather hard chant from the fans. Crews dives over the top onto Elias and poses with Titus, only to have Elias kick Titus’ knee out. Back in and Elias runs him over, followed by Drift Away for the pin at 2:42. That was Elias’ only offense.

Titus beats up Elias post match.

Finn Balor thanks Bray Wyatt for pushing him to the limit and says he wants the Universal Title match.

Here’s Curt Hawkins to issue a challenge to end his losing streak.

Braun Strowman vs. Curt Hawkins

Hawkins bails before Strowman gets in the ring so Strowman chases him through the crowd. Curt gets caught without too much effort and a chokeslam puts him through a table. Strowman takes him to the stage and powerslams Hawkins through the LED wall in a big crash. No match of course.

With Hawkins pretty much dead, Strowman goes to the ring and grabs the mic. After last night, he wants a real fight right now. Cue Dean Ambrose with a taped up shoulder to answer the challenge.

Braun Strowman vs. Dean Ambrose

Strowman throws him around to start and drives Dean into the corner. Dean stumbles backwards, slaps him in the face, and then falls down. The running powerslam is countered though as Dean grabs a sleeper. They fall out to the floor with Dean posting him, only to miss a charge back inside. Strowman gets knocked outside and Dean’s suicide dive into a tornado DDT plants him with a loud thud. Back in and a basement dropkick staggers Strowman for two. A missed charge sends Braun into the post but the top rope elbow is countered into the powerslam to give Strowman the pin at 6:32.

Rating: C+. This was fun and a good way to get Strowman back on his feet but for what? Where is Strowman supposed to go from here? He’s fought Reigns already so maybe Balor? Is that the most interesting thing in the world? Not that it really matters as we’re just waiting on Lesnar to return for his title defense at the Rumble anyway, making the whole thing a pretty big waste of time. But hey, Roman vs. Lesnar II right?

Angle is telling the referee for the Miz vs. Reigns match to keep an eye on the Miztourage. Cue Enzo Amore to say he wants a celebration for tonight. Angle doesn’t think so but once he can understand Enzo, he agrees to the idea. This is Enzo’s first title so Angle asks if he’d like some advice from a Hall of Famer. Enzo: “Nah.”

Seth Rollins brings Dean a bag of ice for his shoulder. Dean is still going to be at ringside for Rollins vs. Sheamus later. Seth is going to go request a match with Strowman for next week.

Here’s Alexa Bliss for a chat. She considers all of the fans her friends and she has to be honest with them: she is VERY disappointed with each and every single one of them. This morning she got up and looked at some messages about her title win but everything was about Sasha, Bayley or Asuka. Alexa has cleaned out the entire women’s division but here’s Mickie James to interrupt.

Mickie brings up Alexa insulting her on Raw Talk after last night’s show. Alexa says she’s been watching her since she was a little girl and Mickie was even on her top eight on MySpace. There are still some fans who say Mickie still has it but she’s worried about Mickie breaking a hip. Mickie brags about all the barriers and hearts she’s broken since Alexa was still in a training bra. Mickie: “And that seems to still be working for you.” Alexa calls her an old lady and gets slapped in the face, followed by a superkick for good measure.

Seth Rollins vs. Sheamus

Cesaro, even without the teeth, is here too. Sheamus throws him into the corner to start but gets sent shoulder first into the opposite post for his efforts. That means a suicide dive from Rollins, only to get caught in an Irish Curse back inside. Sheamus bends Seth’s knee around his neck before getting two off a sitout powerbomb. After a Cloverleaf doesn’t get him very far, Sheamus kicks the head out of Rollins’ jaw for two. The Brogue Kick misses though and Rollins grabs the wind-up knee for the pin at 4:12.

Rating: C. This didn’t have time to do much and felt like leftovers from last night’s great match. Rollins winning makes sense when he’s facing Strowman next week, though I’d like to see Rollins get back into the World Title scene. Of course, again, we need a champion around to fight and apparently we can’t do that for a few months now. Eh I’m sure this won’t be a problem whatsoever.

Balor comes up to Goldust, who isn’t cool with Balor taking shots at him. Goldust didn’t ask for nor does he need Balor’s help. Finn apologizes but Goldust hits him in the face and beats him up anyway.

Video on Reigns vs. Cena. After last night’s loss, Cena talked about his role changing in WWE and how much of a weight it felt like was being lifted off his shoulders when he lost. He’s not sure he can continue at this pace and while he’s not done, he’s transitioning.

Miz vs. Roman Reigns

Non-title. Reigns pops him in the jaw to start and knocks Miz outside without too much effort. Miz stays on the floor long enough to get Reigns to chase him, allowing a few shots as he gets back in. An Axel cheap shot lets Miz boot him in the face and we hit a chinlock. Reigns powers out but gets taken down by the Miztourage again.

Back in and Miz scores with the running corner dropkicks but Reigns pulls him out of the air with a Samoan drop. Yet another Miztourage distraction lets Miz get in the running clothesline and the YES Kicks. Reigns has finally had it and punches everyone in the face, setting up the apron dropkick. Axel offers ANOTHER distraction though and Miz’s short DDT is good for two. Not that it matters as Reigns spears him down for the pin at 9:50.

Rating: C. They weren’t exactly hiding what they were going for here and you can see the post-match stuff from here. However, as usual, they have no reason to have Miz job here when they could have just done a DQ. But hey, we can add Miz and the Intercontinental Title to things Reigns has conquered to the same level of reaction. Have I mentioned I’m REALLY not ok with the ending to last night’s match?

Reigns tries to fight off the trio but gets laid out with a chair. The Miztourage goes to leave but comes back for some more shots, including another big one with the chair. They throw in the Shield pose to really make this one clear.

Goldust vs. Finn Balor

Goldust goes straight after him and sends Balor shoulder first into the post. Balor gets dropped onto the barricade and we take a break. Back with Goldust holding a waistlock and kicking Balor in the ribs. Balor kicks him down and stomps away, followed by the Sling Blade and the Coup de Grace for the pin at 7:24.

Rating: D+. This was as good as Finn Balor vs. Goldust was going to be. Not that I’m complaining about seeing Goldust getting some time at this stage in his career but it’s not like there’s any real reason to believe Balor was in any real danger here. Balor needs something to do that isn’t Bray Wyatt but who else is he supposed to feud with at the moment?

Post match Bray’s lights come on and what sounds like a kid sings He’s Got The Whole World In His Hands. Yes, this is actually continuing for whatever reason they have this time.

Bayley and Sasha Banks are in the back before their tag match later. Bayley apologizes for costing her the title last night but says she wants to win it herself. Banks seems cool with that.

Enzo receives a no contract rule for his celebration, saying if any cruiserweight attacks him they can’t have a future title shot. Angle finds him very annoying.

Emma/Nia Jax vs. Bayley/Sasha Banks

Nia and Bayley start things off with the monster knocking Banks off the apron and flattening Bayley with a clothesline. Back from a break with Nia cranking on Bayley’s arm and sitting on it for good measure (Graves: “That won’t just separate your shoulder. That will divorce it!”). Bayley finally kicks Emma away, sending her right into Nia. The hot tag brings in Banks to clean house with some bad dropkicks and a Regal Cutter to Emma. Everything breaks down and Nia gets double teamed on the floor, including a good posting from Bayley. Back in and the Bayley to Belly puts Emma away at 8:35.

Rating: C-. You know, at some point Nia has to actually win something and stop getting taken down every single time. At this point we’re just waiting for Asuka though as she’s going to be a complete game changer for the entire division. The match wasn’t bad or anything but Bayley and Banks vs. Emma isn’t exactly in doubt.

Here’s Enzo for the closing segment. He says that it wasn’t a dream and first of all it’s time to talk about his morning. This morning, he woke up and looked at the title, which made him start reflecting. Over the last few months, there have been more than a cuppa haters. Those people were jealous, just like his former partner Big Cass. From the looks of Cass’ knee, Enzo was the one holding him up. He’s heard the YOU CAN’T WRESTLE chants and now it’s time to retire his jersey.

Enzo pulls a sheet off a framed Certified G jersey and says that he’s done the impossible by making 205 Live relevant. This brings out the majority of the cruiserweight division and Enzo starts cracking jokes. Rich Swann is a bad dancer, Cedric Alexander is the man that charisma forgot, Gran Metalik has a big gut, Gulak’s gear looks stupid….and here’s Neville to cut him off, again looking like a zombie after he lost the title the last time.

Neville rips on Enzo for making everyone around him miserable. Enzo has been tormenting the entire roster for a year and now he’s been dumped on the cruiserweights’ doorstep. He’s done nothing but make a joke out of everything and now it’s time to pay. Neville charges the ring but Enzo brings up the no contact clause.

Enzo says that this is the first time the cruiserweights have closed the show in the last nine months and it’s because of his star power. He moves more merchandise than all of them combined so he’ll see everyone tomorrow night on the Zo Show. Neville kicks him low and sends him through the jersey. Enzo tries to bail but the division cuts him off so the beating can continue. The contract is put into Enzo’s mouth and Neville superkicks him to applause from his fellow cruiserweights. The Red Arrow ends the show.

Overall Rating: D+. There were some good things on this show but sweet goodness it died in the last hour. That’s been the idea they’ve been trying in the last few weeks and it’s actually not the worst move in the world. People aren’t watching in the last hour so why bother wasting something bit when then audience isn’t around? The lack of a big story is hurting things but I guess we’re using the Shield reunion as a stopgap measure. Let me repeat that: the Shield reunion is a stopgap measure. That should sum up this show’s problem in a nutshell.

Results

Matt Hardy/Jason Jordan b. Miztourage – Twist of Fate to Dallas

Elias b. Apollo Crews – Drift Away

Braun Strowman b. Dean Ambrose – Running powerslam

Seth Rollins b. Sheamus – Wind up knee

Roman Reigns b. Miz – Spear

Finn Balor b. Goldust – Coup de Grace

Sasha Banks/Bayley b. Emma/Nia Jax – Bayley to Belly to Emma

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