Monday Night Raw
Date: June 1, 2026
Location: Inalpi Arena, Turin, Italy
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves

We’re still in Italy for an afternoon show in the eastern United States. Clash In Italy took place yesterday and Roman Reigns is still the World Champion, albeit now with Jacob Fatu under his thumb. That should help him as he could have an upcoming challenger via the King Of The Ring, which gets started this week. Let’s get to it.

Here is Clash In Italy if you need a recap.

Clash In Italy recap.

Roman Reigns and the Usos arrive, minus Jacob Fatu. We pause for the fans to serenade them and yeah that’s a pretty cool moment. Reigns seems impressed as this goes on for at least a few minutes before he gets in the catchphrase. Reigns is happy that it’s acknowledgment daybut there’s no Fatu. Jey: “His first day on the job and he’s already late!”

Cue Fatu, in far more casual than usual clothes, with Reigns and Jey mocking him for taking too long. Fatu glares at Jey and then takes the microphone away, saying he’s taken a lot of losses over his career. Last night was another one and he knows there are consequences. His children saw their father take a loss last night but he’s going to be a man and keep his word. Last night he lost to his Tribal Chief, but he didn’t lose to Jey’s punk a**.

Fatu goes back to Reigns and officially acknowledges him, even taking a knee in front of him. Reigns takes Fatu’s hand and pulls him up, saying that Fatu might not understand this right now, but Reigns loves him. Jimmy says Fatu is with them now and they’re the ones, with the four of them doing the pose. It could take a bit, but this setting up the other three turning on Reigns, which could do well for everyone involved.

Video on King and Queen Of The Ring. The tournaments will be four four ways, with the winners going on to regular four person elimination brackets.

King Of The Ring First Round: Penta vs. Oba Femi vs. Solo Sikoa vs. Carmelo Hayes

Non-title and the MFT’s are here with Sikoa. Femi clears the ring to start and knocks Sikoa outside with a straight right hand. Femi follows him and dropkicks Hayes into the face. They switch places and Hayes hits the Fadewaway, only to dive into a superkick. Femi and Talla Talla Tonga have the big staredown on the floor and before Femi chokeslams Penta and Hayes.

We take a break and come back with Sikoa cleaning house until Femi drops him with a clothesline. Femi gets hit with the First 48 and is sent into the post, with Sikoa and the MFT’s taking him out on the floor. Penta and Hayes hit a dive each until Sikoa clotheslines Penta back inside. The Penta Driver gets two on Hayes and everyone is down. Femi is back up though and starts cleaning house, including a spinebuster to Penta. Talla Tonga is tossed onto the announcers’ table and the Fall From Grace finishes Sikoa at 8:57.

Rating: B. The ending was OBA SMASH and that’s all it needed to be. Femi needed a dominant win after what happened at Clash In Italy and while I don’t know if he wins the whole tournament, he was treated like a huge deal here. It didn’t feel like Femi got lucky, as much as he just ran through everyone to win.

Post match Femi talks about Brock Lesnar asking if he could take a beating. Well here he is after 7 F5’s and now he’s going to be King Of The Ring. Lesnar needs to remember that they’re 1-1 so they’ll see each other again.

Video on Seth Rollins vs. Bron Breakker, which takes place again tonight.

Here is new Women’s Intercontinental Champion Sol Ruca for a chat. Ruca is asked if she believed she would get here and thanks the fans for believing in her. She also thanks Becky Lynch for giving her a chance, but then she proved Lynch wrong. And it’s not just hear saying it either! She’ll be a fighting champion and you shouldn’t underestimate her because she’ll snatch your soul. She even gets some pyro to wrap it up.

After last night’s show, Cody Rhodes and Roman Reigns had a silent staredown.

Reigns wants the Usos to keep an eye on Rhodes. For now though, he wants Jey Uso to go be King Of The Ring and go on to Summerslam to get the other World Title. Jimmy is staying with Reigns though because Jey has to do this on his own.

Rey Mysterio/Dragon Lee vs. Ethan Page/Rusev

Rusev stomps Lee down into the corner to start and it’s off to Page, who gets sent into the corner. Lee’s wrecking ball dropkick hits Lee in the corner, setting up a running dropkick for two. Rusev comes back in and gets rolled up for two before Lee looks over to Mysterio for quite the reaction. Page breaks up the tag though (that was a great evil thing to do) and Lee gets planted as we take a break.

We come back with Page breaking up Lee’s tag attempt. That doesn’t last long though as Lee gets over to Mysterio for the big tag so house can be cleaned. Everything breaks down and Page sends Mysterio into Lee, allowing him to grab a rollup for two. Page’s Boston crab has to be broken up and Lee suicide dives Rusev. That leaves Mysterio to 619 Page into the slingshot splash for the pin at 11:34.

Rating: B-. This was just a way to get Mysterio in the ring in front of the international crowd and they more than seemed to appreciate it. That was how the match should have gone and while I could have gone with Rusev taking the pin over Page, this was pretty nice stuff. If nothing else, Mysterio can still more than go in the ring and it’s more impressive every week.

Adam Pearce talks to Penta and gives him the Intercontinental Title match against Rey Mysterio. Penta approves and leaves when LA Knight comes in. Knight isn’t happy with how much attention Pearce has been giving to Roman Reigns, so maybe we need to get Pearce his own Honorary Uce shirt.

Maybe Knight can bring Pearce out of retirement so he can put him back in it. Knight thinks Pearce is trying to get the Bloodline back together and even mocks the finger point before storming off. The thing that made this work is how natural Knight sounded. It felt like he was told “here’s why you’re mad at Pearce, get this point over, go talk.” That’s a great way to go and it worked here, as Knight can talk with the best of them.

Commentary talks about the Mask vs. Mask match from last weekend’s AAA show, with the match airing again after Raw on Netflix. Watch it if you haven’t seen it.

We get some highlights of the mask vs. mask match.

Queen Of The Ring First Round: Lash Legend vs. Giulia vs. Iyo Sky vs. Roxanne Perez

Legend catches Giulia to start but gets dropkicked down by Sky. Perez is in to go after Sky but Legend picks up Perez and Sky, with Giulia dropkicking everyone down for a change. We take a break and come back with Legend being pulled out to the floor, leaving Sky to Bullet Train Perez and Giulia in the corner.

Legend is back in with a choke to Sky but Giulia breaks it up with the running knee. Perez takes Giulia and Sky down at the same time, followed by the cartwheel knee to Sky’s head for two. Giulia takes Sky up top but Perez breaks it up, only for Legend to double powerbomb not-Sky. A Lash Extension drops Giulia and Perez but Sky makes the save. Over The Moonsault gives Sky the pin on Giulia at 10:36.

Rating: B-. Sky possibly moving back to the title picture is a good way to go as she feels like a major star. At the same time, Giulia continues to just kind of float around aimlessly and Perez will more than likely be going back to tagging. That leaves Legend, who has turned into a pretty decent power monster. I’m rather impressed with her transformation, as she looked more than capable in there this time.

Maxxine Dupri isn’t happy about not being in the Queen Of The Ring but Adam Pearce says she’s the first choice if a spot opens up. The Alpha Academy warn her about hanging out with Austin Theory, because he’s bad news. She insists she’s got this.

We get a video on Danhausen cursing ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith and the New York Knicks, who then went on a losing streak, then uncursed them, and then they went on a 7-0 winning streak and went on to the NBA Finals. This is the definition of “let’s run with this” and it’s working.

Bayley and Lyra Valkyria want the Women’s Tag Team Titles. Valkyria goes over to Sol Ruca and praises her for ending the Becky Lynch reign of terror. Valkyria gets a title shot out of this and Bayley isn’t thrilled.

Roxanne Perez rants about her loss when Liv Morgan comes in to brag about how she’s going to win the tournament. Raquel Rodriguez has to help her get the hint and Perez doesn’t seem happy about not getting any help. Morgan says she and Dominik Mysterio are winning the tournaments, seemingly forgetting that Rodriguez and JD McDonagh are entered as well.

Seth Rollins vs. Bron Breakker

Paul Heyman is here with Breakker. Rollins strikes away to start but gets suplexed down for his efforts. Breakker is sent outside, where’ he’s able to toss Rollins over the barricade as we take an early break. We come back with Breakker continuing to wreck Rollins, including the array of suplexes. They head outside with Breakker sending Rollins into the announcers’ table and clearing both tables off.

Rollins uses the delay to fight up and take over, with a running knee hitting Breakker back inside. Breakker is fine enough to run the corner and snap off a super Frankensteiner for two, leaving the frustration levels high. They go outside again with Rollins going onto the announcers’ table and diving at a diving Breakker for a midair collision.

We take a break and come back again with Breakker hammering Rollins in the corner, only to get reversed into a not great looking powerbomb for two. Rollins superplexes him down but has to reverse Breakker’s suplex into a small package for two more. The spear drops Rollins and they go outside again, with the diving spear being countered into a Pedigree through the announcers’ table.

Back in and cue Austin Theory for a distraction, but Montez Ford runs in to take him out. Another spear gives Breakker another two, as does Rollins’ stomp as Heyman puts the foot on the rope. Rollins goes after Heyman, who accidentally gets speared through the barricade. Breakker knows he screwed up and tries another spear but Rollins has grabbed a title belt, with Breakker knocking himself out. Another Stomp gives Rollins the pin at 22:24.

Rating: B. This got wild near the end and you know it’s a big deal if Heyman takes a bump. That’s likely going to get rid of him for at least a good while and I’m not really sure where that leaves a lot of things. The match was pretty much the traditional post PPV PPV level main event, which caps off the weekend nicely enough. It absolutely could have been on Clash, but then how else would you get in four more ads?

Rollins points at Ford and implies he wants Roman Reigns’ title to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. This show was more about setting things up for later, with the opening segment saying “Fatu is with the Bloodline”, the main event being about getting rid of Heyman, and two of the three other matches being starts to tournaments. That’s only so much of a show and while it wasn’t bad, it was a pretty skippable show. Not bad, but you’re better off reading a recap than watching the whole thing.

Results
Oba Femi b. Solo Sikoa, Carmelo Hayes and Penta – Fall From Grace to Sikoa
Rey Mysterio/Dragon Lee b. Rusev/Ethan Page – Slingshot splash to Page
Iyo Sky b. Giulia, Lash Legend and Roxanne Perez – Over The Moonsault to Giulia
Seth Rollins b. Bron Breakker – Stomp

Remember to follow me on Twitter and Bluesky @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Monday Night Raw
Date: May 25, 2026
Location: Schottenstein Center, Columbus, Ohio
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves

It’s the last Raw before Clash In Italy and the show is looking pretty solid. That’s all you need for the most part going into a pay per view and this week is likely going to be about building things up for Sunday. Oba Femi vs. Brock Lesnar II is officially set and that should be more than enough. Let’s get to it.

Here is Saturday Night’s Main Event if you need a recap.

Here is a serious Paul Heyman to get things going. He gets right to the point and says he is here to hype up the biggest rematch in history but is cut off by an OBA chant. Heyman says Oba Femi is going to be conquered by Brock Lesnar, which sends us to a video from Lesnar, who says he had never been beaten up like that. He isn’t about to let it end like that. We know Lesnar can take a beating, but can Femi? It’s time for Femi to take a beating from a retired Beast.

Back in the arena, Heyman says it’s time for Femi to be destroyed, which brings out Femi. He gets right in Heyman’s face and asks what this has awoken in him. What did four F5’s awaken in Femi himself? As Heyman cowers in fear, Femi says Heyman has to live to tell the tale of what happens when Femi retires Lesnar for the second time. Femi pulls out the contract and signs it on Heyman’s chest. The message for Lesnar is that last time, Femi was fighting to beat him. This time, Femi is fighting to kill him. Yeah this worked, as Femi feels like an absolute monster and the other one is Lesnar. What more do you need?

Saturday Night’s Main Event recap.

Intercontinental Title: Je’Von Evans vs. Penta

Penta is defending and has to block an early OG Cutter attempt. Penta’s hurricanrana is blocked and they show some respect but Evans snaps off a hurricanrana to the floor. The big no hands dive connects to drop Penta again but he’s fine enough to hit a superkick back inside. The slingshot dropkick in the corner gets two, only for Evans to come back with a kick to the head to send Penta outside again. Evans’ dive is sent HARD into the announcers’ table though and we take a break.

We come back with Penta still in trouble but he knocks Evans back, meaning it’s time to chop it out. Penta plants him down for two but the Mexican Destroyer is countered into a superkick. The OG Cutter onto the apron connects, though it’s not quite a clean landing as they both go to the floor. Back in and Penta kicks out but they both need a breather. The Penta Driver gets a close two so Penta goes up, only to dive into a superkick. The OG Cutter connects so Evans goes up again but dives into a Backstabber. That’s enough for the Mexican Destroyer to retain at 12:28.

Rating: B+. This was awesome as they were letting it all hang out in there with two of them beating the living daylights out of each other. Evans continues to feel like he is more than capable of hanging in there at this level and that is great to see. Penta’s reign gets to continue and this was a heck of a fight. I wasn’t sure if Penta was going to retain by the end so they were absolutely doing a lot right.

Post match Penta raises Evans’ hand but a frustrated Evans leaves.

Logan Paul has suffered a torn tricep and is going to be out for months. Uh oh.

Austin Theory tries to hand Paul Heyman his Tag Team Title but Heyman asks why he would do that. The contracts say the Vision are the champions so Theory is now partners with Bron Breakker. Theory gives him a VERY enthusiastic hug and Heyman’s eyes bug out as only they can. Heyman suggests that Theory needs to do something tonight and Theory should know what that means.

Post break Joe Hendry is in the ring to sing about how we need to fire Logan Paul. Cue Austin Theory to beat the fire out of Hendry with a chair.

Seth Rollins comes up to Angelo Dawkins and says he stayed out of the Street Profits’ way and he’s sorry for what happened on Saturday. Rollins saw what happened right out there and Theory has never been like that. They need to unite to take out the Vision but here is Montez Ford to say nothing good happens when Rollins is involved.

Rollins says they don’t have to like each other but they need to work together to get rid of the Vision. He understands what it means to not trust someone and brings up his own successes. Ford says that he’s also never stabbed his brother in the back. The challenge is on for tonight and Ford accepts as Dawkins is annoyed.

Video on El Grande American vs. Original El Grande Americano, with Rey Mysterio hyping up the importance of a mask vs. mask match.

Penta comes up to Je’Von Evans, who immediately apologizes for what happened out there because that was unprofessional. Penta understands and Evans says he’s coming for that title again, which works for Penta as well. Evans leaves in peace and Rey Mysterio comes up to talk to Penta. They chat for a bit and Penta offers to give him a title shot. Works for Mysterio of course.

Judgment Day vs. Bayley/Lyra Valkyria

Rodriguez and Perez jump them before the bell but Bayley and Valkyria fight back. Valkyria and Perez are in the ring to start, with Perez getting knocked down. Bayley comes in and fires off the shoulders in the corner for some fast tags and alternating shots to the head. A double crossbody gets Rodriguez out of trouble and she elbows Valkyria over and over in the corner.

The referee yells at Rodriguez so Perez gets in a stomp to the arm. Rodriguez’s spinning Vader Bomb connects and we take a break. We come back with Rodriguez being sent out to the floor and Perez getting kicked away. Bayley gets the tag and hits a quick dive to the floor, followed by a middle rope elbow to Rodriguez’s back for two. Liv Morgan trips Valkyria up and gets ejected, as well as decked by Bayley.

Rodriguez runs Bayley over but Bayley is back up top. Dominik Mysterio offers a distraction though and Perez gets Pop Rox, with Valkyria having to make a save. Valkyria hurricanranas Rodriguez out to the floor but seems to hurt her knee on the apron. Mysterio sends the title inside and it’s a tug of war with Bayley and Perez. Bayley lets go and the belt hits Mysterio, allowing Bayley to get a rollup to pin Perez at 10:08.

Rating: B-. This got wild at the end and it’s a good sign that Bayley and Valkyria got a win for a change. At the same time, the Judgment Day’s issues continue, though they’ve had issues since they got together in the first place. Hopefully Valkyria’s knee is ok as that was quite the nasty landing.

We look back at Jacob Fatu vs. Roman Reigns, with Fatu challenging Reigns to Tribal Combat last week and Reigns accepting.

Adam Pearce talks to Reigns, saying Fatu should be fired. Reigns gets it and says he had to accept Tribal Combat because he is the Tribal Chief. He wants guarantees that if he wins, Fatu will serve him or be fired. If Reigns loses, “we’re all screwed”.

Commentary thanks the veterans for Memorial Day and we get the customary video for the holiday. That’s a nice tradition to continue.

Here is LA Knight for a chat. He hasn’t been here in a bit but first of all, he wishes everyone a happy Memorial Day and thanks the military for their service. Now he’s done with the Vision though and he’s ready to do something new. Next week is the start of the King Of The Ring tournament and Knight wants in, because he’s aiming for Roman Reigns. That has him wondering about the Usos, because they’re with the most corrupt World Champion ever

This brings out Jimmy Uso, who says he and Jey did what they had to do with Reigns. He’s completely cool with Knight trying to be King Of The Ring and if Knight wins, he gets a fair title shot at Reigns. Knight is interested in the word “fair” because he’s seen what the Usos have tried to do to Jacob Fatu.

He doesn’t want Jimmy to become Reigns’ errand boy but Jimmy calls him off, saying if Knight keeps this up, his family will become Knight’s business. Jimmy goes to leave but Knight stops him, saying Jimmy is the one of the family he likes. Knight has never cared for Reigns and if things start going badly, he’ll put the family out of business. I can absolutely go for Knight getting into the title picture.

Adam Pearce likes the idea of Rey Mysterio getting the Intercontinental Title shot but Ethan Page comes in to say he doesn’t like this. Page wants his rematch, which Pearce says has to be earned. Page asks how Mysterio earned a rematch, which doesn’t sit well with Mysterio or Pearce. Rusev comes in to ask what is going on, with Page giving his version. Mysterio asks to face Rusev for a title shot tonight. Works for Rusev, who threatens to “bangaranged” Mysterio. That just leaves everyone confused.

Seth Rollins vs. Montez Ford

Ford backs him into the corner to start but Rollins shoves him away. Rollins knocks him to the floor for a suicide dive but they collide back inside. We take a break and come back with Ford going up top, where Rollins superplexes him into a Falcon Arrow for the near fall. They go to a pinfall reversal sequence until Rollins gets the better of an exchange of superkicks.

Ford puts him in a torture rack but Rollins flips to his feet and grabs a Pedigree for two more. Rollins yells at him a lot and hits a pair of buckle bombs but the third is reversed into a hurricanrana to the floor. Ford hits his big running flip dive, only to miss a 450 back inside. The Stomp gives Rollins the pin at 12:36.

Rating: B. These two had a rather good match, which shouldn’t be a surprise. Ford can do anything athletically in the ring and Rollins is right there to match him most of the time. It was cool to see Ford getting the chance to showcase what he can do on his own, and the singles run still doesn’t feel completely out of the question.

Post match Angelo Dawkins is knocked through the entrance and gets chaired down by Austin Theory. This includes a Conchairto, with the camera showing about eight inches between the chair and Dawkins’ head (oh that was terrible). And they actually SHOW IT AGAIN during the post break replay!

Post break Ford is trying to find out about Dawkins when Rollins comes up. Ford says Rollins is right, because he does need someone. They can go after the Vision. Ford goes in to check on Dawkins and Rollins says he wants Bron Breakker soon. Adam Pearce is off to talk to Paul Heyman.

Clash In Italy rundown.

Becky Lynch is very pleased with facing Sol Ruca in a rematch and says that there’s a difference between flips and tricks and greatness. Welcome to the big time.

Rey Mysterio vs. Rusev

For an Intercontinental Title shot and Ethan Page is on commentary. Mysterio avoids a charge to start and sends Rusev outside, which just annoys him. Back in and Rusev shrugs off a right hand so Mysterio runs. The chase almost lets Mysterio set up the 619, which is cut off with an elbow to the face. Rusev gets knocked outside again for a sunset bomb into the barricade. The running hurricanrana from the apron is pulled out of the air though and Rusev swings him into the barricade.

We take a break and come back with Mysterio hitting a top rope seated senton. A running headscissors sends Rusev into the corner, where Mysterio hammers away. The running seated senton sets up a Lionsault for two but Rusev pulls a springboard out of the air. The Machka Kick gets two but Mysterio gives him a 619 to the stomach. A regular 619 is countered so Rusev tries the Accolade, which is reversed into a rollup to give Mysterio the pin at 9:31.

Rating: B-. Mysterio is someone who is somehow underrated, as he debuted thirty seven years ago and is still having perfectly good matches. After the amount of knee injuries he has had over the years and how well he can still move, it’s rather remarkable to see. Rusev is little more than a midcard monster to be slayed over and over, but at least he’s getting in the ring rather than sitting at home for months on end.

Post match Rusev jumps Mysterio but Dragon Lee runs in for the save. Page comes in and gets beaten up as well, with Lee giving him a big running flip dive. Mysterio 619s Rusev into Operation Dragon so the luchadors can clear the ring.

Adam Pearce throws Austin Theory out but Theory doesn’t like it. Paul Heyman sucks up to Pearce but they walk away and Heyman rolls his eyes. They pass the Alpha Academy, which makes Maxxine Dupri leave in a hurry. Remember that Theory and Dupri have been seen in the background of various backstage segments for weeks.

Video on Oba Femi vs. Brock Lesnar.

Adam Pearce is in the ring for the contract signing between Jacob Fatu and Roman Reigns. Fatu comes out first and signs (Anyone else find it weird that a family affair with rules that likely date back a long time requires a formal WWE contract?) before throwing the set around. This brings out Reigns, who signs, and gets a HAPPY BIRTHDAY chant from the fans.

Reigns tells Pearce and company to leave and says it’s fine because Fatu knows he signed a blood oath. With everyone but Fatu gone, Reigns says his catchphrase, which is all Fatu ever had to do. Fatu had to acknowledge him and they could have moved on. Fatu says that would make him like everyone else in here and that isn’t happening. When Reigns talks about honoring and respecting him, it’s about living by the Bloodline’s code. Did Reigns do that at Backlash, or did he bend the rules to win?

Reigns says that if Fatu wins on Sunday, he’s the new Tribal Chief, but if Fatu can’t dog walk him, Reigns is going to domesticate him. If Fatu can’t beat him, Fatu will serve him and in time, Fatu will love his Tribal Chief. Fatu says it looks like a win for him then, because he has a job either way. But when Fatu wins, Reigns and everyone else will learn how to acknowledge him. They shake hands and touch heads to end the show. I’m not sure who is winning this and that’s how a big match should go most of the time.

Overall Rating: B+. This was a rather awesome Raw with the fairly useless Saturday Night’s Main Event out of the way. That allowed them to focus on Clash In Italy, which has two big matches from Raw leading the way. I want to see both of them, even if they’re rematches, as the idea is to have everyone just go nuts on each other. They covered Logan Paul’s injury perfectly well as switching Bron Breakker in is fine given the circumstances so there isn’t much to complain about here. Solid show and one of the better Raw’s in a good bit.

Results
Penta b. Je’Von Evans – Mexican Destroyer
Bayley/Lyra Valkyria b. Judgment Day – Rollup to Perez
Seth Rollins b. Montez Ford – Stomp
Rey Mysterio b. Rusev – Rollup

Remember to follow me on Twitter and Bluesky @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Monday Night Raw
Date: May 18, 2026
Location: First Horizon Coliseum, Greensboro, North Carolina
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves

It’s the last show before Saturday Night’s Main Event and that only means so much for Raw. The big story continues to be Roman Reigns dealing with the force that is Jacob Fatu, though they don’t have another match set up just yet. There is still time to add it here, but there is also the option of sending it to Turin for Clash In Italy later this month. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

We open with a recap of last week’s brawl between Roman Reigns and Jacob Fatu, with Fatu leaving the champ laying.

Adam Pearce stops Reigns as he comes in, saying if Reigns had listened to him last week, none of that would happen. Reigns says that doesn’t matter because he’s calling Fatu out right now. Pearce wants Fatu fired but they’re cut off by Fatu coming to the arena. There were some very loud echoes in this segment for some reason.

Here is Fatu to call out Reigns but he gets the Usos instead. Jey comes out with a chair but Jimmy tries to keep the peace, as is his custom. Jimmy calls out Fatu for not thinking and costing himself last week. Fatu attacked management and now he’s about to get fired. Then what? Is Fatu going to go back to being his old self to help his family then? Jey goes after him but gets knocked down, with Fatu grabbing the Tongan Death Grip on Jimmy. Jey’s chair shot has no effect so he gets Death Gripped as well.

This brings out Reigns and the big fight is on, with Reigns even throwing in a big boot. The Superman Punch is countered into the Tongan Death Grip and the Usos have to make the save. A Superfly Splash and 1D put Fatu down and the Usos tie him in the ropes. Some Superman Punches and the spear leave Fatu out and here is Pearce. Reigns says something to him and Pearce seems ready to fire Fatu….who wants Tribal Combat. Pearce tries to calm things down but Reigns is in. No word on when that takes place but Fatu winning the title wouldn’t be the craziest thing.

Video on Judgment Day turning on Finn Balor, with JD McDonagh wanting revenge on him for turning on him after so many years. This feels a lot like a video they’ve aired between them before.

JD McDonagh vs. Finn Balor

Street fight so they go right outside with Balor whipping him into various things. The kendo sticks and chairs are brought in and McDonagh gets in a few shots of his own to take over. Balor sends him hard into the chair in the corner and it’s time for a table, only for McDonagh to suicide dive him for taking too long. They fight out into the crowd with Balor whipping him into an equipment case. McDonagh drives him right back into it as well and hits a hue moonsault off of the case as we take a break.

We come back with Balor planting McDonagh but walking into a release Rock Bottom onto the chair. A nice looking standing moonsault gives McDonagh two but Balor is back with the Sling Blade. McDonagh is knocked through the table in the corner and Balor goes up. The Coup de Grace misses though and McDonagh knees him down for two. The top rope moonsault hits Balor for two so McDonagh puts him on another table.

That takes way too long though and Balor switches places, only for Dominik Mysterio to run in and break up the Coup de Grace. A top rope superplex sends Balor through the table for two (and a roar on the kickout). Mysterio loads up the 619 but Balor switches places and McDonagh gets kicked in the face instead. Mysterio is knocked outside and it’s a Coup de Grace to a trashcan to McDonagh for the pin at 11:50.

Rating: B. This got a good bit better near the end, with McDonagh fighting hard to hang in there with the much more accomplished star. Mysterio’s interference costing McDonagh and the team in the end is pretty much par for his course these days and I’m not sure how long that can last. At the same time, I’m not sure what the endgame for Balor is supposed to be. He’s already beaten Mysterio, so what is he supposed to finish the feud for good?

We look at Seth Rollins helping the Street Profits last week but they aren’t interested.

Rollins says he has to finish things with the Vision and sometimes the best thing to do is run right at your problem. He hasn’t had a match on Raw in about nine months so we should remedy that tonight. Tonight he has been given the main event slot and he wants to face anyone on the team. He’d like it to be Bron Breakker, who says he can do it on his own, but what is Breakker? A nepo baby or everything that he is supposed to be? Tonight is Breakker’s chance to show Rollins who he really is. This was more intense than usual from Rollins and it worked.

Sol Ruca is excited to have done well in her limited time around here but Becky Lynch interrupts. Lynch doesn’t think much of Ruca’s efforts thus far and she hasn’t even faced the best. Ruca should go back to NXT, which she says she’ll do. Lynch calls her a quitter and here is Ruca in the arena.

Ruca is in the ring and gets right to the point by calling Lynch out. This brings out Lynch, who wants to know what Ruca is trying. Ruca wants to face Lynch right here tonight but gets shot down. Lynch goes into her catchphrase and Ruca is already sick of it, prompting Lynch to start over. After we hear about all of the people Lynch has dealt with already, she agrees to let Ruca face her at Saturday Night’s Main Event, with Ruca making it a title match. That’s too far for Lynch, who says Ruca hasn’t earned a shot yet (fair) so we won’t be doing that yet.

The Vision ask Paul Heyman about Saturday Night’s Main Event but Bron Breakker comes in to say make the match with Seth Rollins for tonight. Heyman says Austin Theory should do it instead so Breakker asks Theory and Logan Paul to leave. Breakker insists he can beat Rollins and while Heyman agrees, he points out that Rollins will be busy tonight and Breakker will know it in advance. Breakker approves.

Original El Grande Americano/Los Hermanos Americanos vs. El Grande Americano/Los Americanos

Tornado rules and in advance: I’m going to get these people mixed up more than once. Julio strikes away at Rayo to start ast he other four brawl on the floor. A fall away slam sends Rayo flying and it’s Grande coming in to slug it out with Original. The ankle lock has Grande in trouble but Rayo comes in for the save.

Los Americanos crotch Original against the post and we pause for some dancing. Bravo walks across some backs for a hurricanrana to Bruto but Julio is back up for a dive. Grande and Original hit dives of their own and everyone is down at ringside. Back in and Original hits Bravo with a top rope superplex for two and we take a break.

We come back with Original suplexing Los Americanos at the same time and then suplexing Grande for two. A top rope headbutt gets two on Bravo but Julio’s 450 misses. That’s enough for Grande and the Americanos to load up their masks but the other three hit stereo German suplexes. Graves: “There are no Germans in the ring Cole. We have six Mexicans!” A triple moonsault gets a triple near fall on Grande and Los Americanos but Bruto gets headbutted down. Grande’s running headbutt, with two more from Los Americanos, gets the pin at 10:38.

Rating: B-. This was another wild match, though I have no idea who the good guys were supposed to be. It’s perfectly clear in Mexico, but here things aren’t as simple. The match was a lot of fun and fairly wild, which made up for trying to figure all of that out. They need to wrap it up though, as this feud is going to start losing steam in a hurry otherwise.

Whataburger delivers to the Alpha Academy. Dang it now I want Whataburger.

We look back at the Bloodline vs. Jacob Fatu brawl earlier. Tribal Combat is set for Clash In Italy.

Video on Tribal Combat.

The Usos know what Tribal Combat is all about but here is LA Knight to interrupt. Jimmy says not now but Knight asks “or what”. Knight calls them out for doing the same things the three of them beat up the Vision for doing at Wrestlemania so what’s the difference? The Usos aren’t happy.

Ethan Page sits down with Michael Cole and brags about himself, including via a pre-written statement. Cole has to praise Page’s jawline but can’t get over Page wanting to rename the Intercontinental Title as the “Ethan Page Championship”. Cole can’t do this anymore and asks why Page acts like this. Cole praises Page’s skills but thinks his ego will cost him on Saturday. Page calls it confidence rather than ego and he’ll prove it at Saturday Night’s Main Event. To say Page is nailing it so far would be a drastic understatement. He’s slid into this role perfectly and it’s working very well.

Women’s Tag Team Titles: Paige/Brie Bella vs. Judgment Day

Judgment Day, with Liv Morgan, is challenging. Paige throws Perez down to start and it’s off to Bella, who is knocked down just as fast. Rodriguez takes over and hands it back to Perez, who mocks the YES chant. That just fires Bella up and she fires off the YES Kicks, with Rodriguez breaking them up. Paige’s dive is cut off and she’s swung into the barricade as we take a break.

We come back with Bella getting the tag and cleaning house but Rodriguez cuts her off. The spinning Vader Bomb is cut off and a double powerbomb brings Rodriguez back down. Perez takes Paige out though and Bella goes up, only for Morgan to shove her off. That’s enough for the big ejection so the title is brought in. Bella cuts that off and rolls Perez up to retain at 10:14.

Rating: C. And it continues. I know Paige and Bella are set for the title match against the Irresistible Forces but they continue to drain the life out of me every time they’re on screen. It’s not like they have some big, deep history together and Bella wasn’t exactly good on her best days. Now they’re the best team in a division which is actually getting pretty good? That’s quite a lot to take and it’s not exactly working for me.

Post match the Judgment Day jump the champs but Bayley and Lyra Valkyria make the save.

LA Knight comes up to Seth Rollins and says he can do this himself tonight, but it’s going to go badly. He needs help, so have fun getting stomped out.

Penta is sick of Ethan Page wanting the Intercontinental Title all for himself. He’ll take care of Page on Saturday.

Here is Oba Femi for his open challenge…and BROCK LESNAR RUNS IN to lay him out with four straight F5’s. Well that worked. I wasn’t completely sold on Lesnar being gone, but I didn’t expect him to come back on a pretty random Raw. Nice job.

Post break Adam Pearce is livid and Paul Heyman comes in. Pearce demands to know what happened but Heyman says Lesnar is retired. Heyman pulls out a contract, already signed by Lesnar, to face Femi at Clash In Italy. Pearce seems confused but interested.

Saturday Night’s Main Event rundown.

The Street Profits are ready for the Vision because they have the vision of winning the Tag Team Titles. Angelo Dawkins is distracted though and Montez Ford tells him to go. Dawkins goes over to Seth Rollins to thank him for last week. Rollins thanks him for that and apologizes for Dawkins getting taken out. For now though, he has a match of his own.

Seth Rollins vs. Austin Theory

Rollins jumps the Vision on the floor to start and hammers on Theory inside to start fast. Back in and Rollins stays on Theory, including a buckle bomb to knock him silly. Theory fights back and manages to send the ankle into the post, which should weaken the Stomp. Paul goes after Rollins and Theory crotches Rollins on the barricade as we take a break.

We come back with Rollins chopping away and countering the rolling dropkick into a sitout powerbomb for two. Rollins knocks him down again and loads up a super Stomp, only for Paul to shove Rollins down. Theory’s Stomp gets two so Paul slips him the knuckles, with Rollins superkicking Theory instead. Now Rollins gets the knuckles, with Paul pointing them out. Rollins grabs a Pedigree for the pin instead at 12:57.

Rating: B-. This was more about keeping the story moving forward than some big match and that’s all it needed to be. The idea was that Rollins was in over his head but at the end of the day, beating Theory in a singles match isn’t that difficult. If nothing else, I do appreciate Rollins mixing it up with the Pedigree for the pin for a change. That made sense and it worked.

Post match Paul comes in for the beatdown so here is Angelo Dawkins, followed by Montez Ford, for the save. Ford hits a big flip dive and tries to talk Dawkins out of this, only for Bron Breakker to run in and give Ford a Super Spear. Rollins makes the save but Paul grabs his leg, allowing Breakker to cut him in half as well. Security comes out but Breakker drops Rollins again before finally being pulled away. Adam Pearce threatens the Vision and they leave smiling to end the show. Kind of a weak ending.

Overall Rating: B-. This was the “oh dang, we’ve got two shows in less than two weeks so we need to hurry up” week and it went pretty well. The ending wasn’t the greatest, but the matches they set up look good enough. The big appeal here was the Lesnar return though, which was a rare genuine shock and that’s a very nice feeling to have. They’re blitzing to Saturday and Italy but I’ll take a rapid fire build over nothing at all.

Results
Finn Balor b. JD McDonagh – Coup de Grace to a trashcan
El Grande Americano/Los Americanos b. Original El Grande Americano/Los Hermanos Americans – Triple headbutt to Bruto
Brie Bella/Paige b. Judgment Day – Rollup to Perez
Seth Rollins b. Austin Theory – Pedigree

Remember to follow me on Twitter and Bluesky @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Monday Night Raw
Date: May 11, 2026
Location: Food City Center, Knoxville, Tennessee
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves

We’re done with Backlash and Roman Reigns is still World Champion but he might not be done with Jacob Fatu. While Reigns retained the title, Fatu attacked him again after the match and left him laying. Other than that, we are on the way to Saturday Night’s Main Event in less than two weeks so let’s get to it.

Here is Backlash if you need a recap.

Backlash recap.

Roman Reigns arrives and meets with Adam Pearce, who says Jacob Fatu isn’t here. Reigns asks for his title, which is apparently held for him at the venue. With the title back, Reigns wants Fatu fired, but that won’t be happening. Reigns says he brought Fatu in so he’ll be the one taking him out. With that, Reigns heads into his dressing room.

Here is the Vision for a chat. Paul Heyman insults the “inbred” fans and moves on to Seth Rollins, who was defeated at Backlash. Rollins is never going to be ready for a vision over any of the team. Bron Breakker defeated Rollins, and now we move on to the Tag Team Champions. Austin Theory says the Street Profits need the titles because Bianca Belair can’t pay the bills anymore.

On top of that there is Joe Hendry…and here are the Profits to interrupt. After Montez Ford sucks up to the Knoxville crowd, he makes it clear: they still want the titles. Logan Paul says the only thing Ford has done in the last six months organize a baby shower. Logan says Belair is better than Ford (he nods) and the Vision is ready but as he says his name, here is Hendry to sing about getting him fired. And now, for the scheduled six man.

The Vision vs. Street Profits/Joe Hendry

We’re joined in progress with Dawkins in trouble but he brings in Ford for a change. Breakker comes in as well though and hits a crazy fast clothesline, followed by a suplex for two. Ford gets launched into Paul’s uppercut for two but he’s able to get over to Hendry. That goes just as badly as Breakker takes over on him as we take a break.

We come back with Hendry suplexing his way out of trouble and bringing Ford back in to clean house. The big flip dive connects on the floor but Breakker is back up. Dawkins is sent outside for the big running spear but Seth Rollins pops up to clothesline Breakker. Back in and Dawkins gets the quick rollup pin on Theory at 9:17.

Rating: C+. This was in fact a six man with some interference to wrap it up. I’d bet on the Profits getting the title shot either at Saturday Night’s Main Event or Clash In Italy, though I’m not sure where that leaves Hendry. He seems to be mainly dealing with Paul, which is kind of weird while Paul is in a tag team. Rollins vs. Breakker is clearly not done though, so expect some kind of a big violent rematch and then a third match down the line.

Post match Rollins helps up a skeptical Dawkins, who gets speared by Breakker anyway. Ford isn’t happy at all.

The Original El Grande Americano introduces Bruto and Julio to Adam Pearce but Dominik Mysterio and Liv Morgan come in. Morgan isn’t impressed and Mysterio says Americano isn’t even a real luchador. Americano isn’t happy but Pearce gives him a AAA Mega Title shot. With that out of the way, Los Garza come in to say they’re looking for an opportunity on Raw. Pearce is interested.

Here is Penta, who heard what Ethan Page has been saying about him. He wants Page to say it to his face so here is Page to interrupt. Page says he would love to say it to his face but there’s a mask and paint covering it up. Instead, Page stands here with nothing hiding his face (save for the glasses of course) and is from the greatest country in the world.

Penta is ready to fight right now but Page points out that he’s not in wrestling gear. Page says that both he and the title both deserve a bigger spotlight, like say at Saturday Night’s Main Event. Penta seems ready to agree but here is Rusev to interrupt instead. Rusev doesn’t like Penta but Page tries to cut him off.

Apparently Page doesn’t want to skip the line, but Je’Von Evans went to see Adam Pearce and asked for a title shot over Rusev. Evans even asked why Rusev can get a title shot when he can’t beat Evans in the first place. This brings out Evans, who denies saying all of that but gets shoved into Rusev. Penta takes out Page on the floor while Evans clears Rusev out and hits a suicide dive. Back in and Page and Penta both do the latter’s strut. You know why this worked? You had four people who all want the same thing and they’re jockeying for it. That’s always going to work in wrestling.

Je’Von Evans vs. Rusev

We’re joined in progress with Rusev firing off some shots to the face and back. Rusev slowly knocks him around and then puts him on top. Evans gets in a shot of his own and a dropkick gets him out of trouble. A springboard hurricanrana has Rusev in trouble but the suicide dive is broken up. Rusev tosses Evans onto the announcers’ table and we take a break.

We come back with Rusev yelling at Evans, who fires off a clothesline. A spinning kick to the head in the corner has Rusev in trouble but he gets in some more forearms to the back. Rusev kicks him down for two but the Accolade is blocked. Evans gets in a kick to the floor for a great looking no hands dive. The OG Cutter finishes Rusev for the clean pin at 10:22.

Rating: B. They had me wondering what was going to happen here, as it was hard to imagine Evans actually beating Rusev. That being said, the match followed a well done story with Evans fighting through the pain and coming from behind to win. They’re going to mess around and turn this guy into a star, which is exactly what should be happening with someone that talented.

Video on the AAA Mega Title.

Asuka comes up to hug Iyo Sky and wants Sky to take her place. They have a big hug and a smiling Asuka leaves, taking her bag with her. So that seems to be it for Asuka for the most part.

Here are Brie Bella and Paige, who are here to answer the challenge from the Judgment Day. Roxanne Perez and Raquel Rodriguez come out, with Perez talking about how she was asked to take on the Bellas’ legacy. How dare the Bellas set the bar that low? Bella says the low bar would be Liv Morgan, and the only person who is that disappointed is Perez’s MOM.

Rodriguez calms things down and mocks Paige, who is just waiting for her next disaster. The fight is on, with Liv Morgan running in to help so the villains can stand tall. Well mainly Rodriguez stands tall but her friends stand next to her. Please change the titles, as I do not have the vocabulary to express how uninterested I am in Paige and Bella as a team. Also Bella insulting Perez’s mom? Come on.

Jimmy Uso talks to Roman Reigns about dealing with Jacob Fatu. Reigns says Fatu has to acknowledge him because they had a contract. Uso still isn’t sure about it.

Video on Dominik Mysterio as AAA Mega Champion.

Rhea Ripley NXT Origins video.

Iyo Sky vs. Sol Ruca

Feeling out process to start as commentary explains that they don’t know much about what Asuka is doing but she seems to be stepping away a bit. Ruca slams her down and surfs on Sky’s back but Sky dropkicks her out of a handstand. Sky is sent outside, where she avoids a step up moonsault and hurricanranas Ruca down.

Something like an apron 619 hits Sky though and a springboards corkscrew crossbody connects as we take a break. We come back with Sky hitting a super Spanish Fly for two, leaving both of them down. Ruca is back up with a fireman’s carry swung into a sitout powerbomb for two of her own.

Sky missile dropkicks her into the corner but misses the Bullet Train Attack. Ruca sends her into the corner again, where a cartwheel DDT plants Sky for two more. That leaves Ruca stunned for a change so Sky sends her into the corner for the Bullet Train Attack. Over The Moonsault hits raised knees though and the Sol Snatcher….misses as Sky stops short (on purpose), catching Ruca in a crucifix to give Sky the pin at 12:27.

Rating: B-. That ending was great as I thought they had botched it at first but it was really just well timed. Sky basically caught the younger Ruca going for a big move and pinned her, which is what a veteran should be doing. At the same time, I’m not wild on Ruca taking a fall like this, especially not when she seems to be gearing up to face Becky Lynch.

Post match, respect is shown.

We look at Jacob Fatu attacking Roman Reigns after their match at Backlash.

Jey Uso is waiting on Fatu when Jimmy Uso comes up. Reigns said that was terrible but Fatu has to acknowledge him.

We recap the announcement of the John Cena Classic, which is apparently a fan voted competition where wins and losses might not matter. We still have no details on when or where this will take place.

Saturday Night’s Main Event rundown, with the Street Profits challenging for the Tag Team Titles and Penta defending the Intercontinental Title against Ethan Page.

The Profits are happy with the news but Seth Rollins interrupt. If they want the titles, Rollins thinks they need to talk, but Ford says there is no “we” between the three of them. Rollins apologizes, though Ford doesn’t trust him and says they don’t need his help. Dawkins looks at Rollins and walks off.

Iyo Sky congratulates Sol Ruca and says they’ll meet again. Ruca says she looks forward to it and Sky parts in peace. Becky Lynch comes up to mock Ruca.

Here is Oba Femi for an open challenge but Adam Pearce interrupts….because no one has answered the challenge. Therefore, there is no challenge, which does not sit well with Femi. He goes to the back and kidnaps Los Garza (who were sitting with some random women) to bring them to the ring. They’re in street clothes but we have a referee anyway.

Oba Femi vs. Los Garza

Femi hits some running elbows in the corner and tosses Angel over Berto. With Angel on the floor, Berto gets tossed as well, setting up the Fall From Grace to finish Berto at 50 seconds.

The Original El Grande Americano wants the AAA Mega Title.

JD McDonagh is walking Dominik Mysterio to the ring when Finn Balor jumps McDonagh from behind. Balor says Mysterio has to do this on his own.

AAA Mega Title: Dominik Mysterio vs. Original El Grande Americano

Mysterio is defending. Americano starts fast with a springboard armdrag into a bridging northern lights suplex for two. The armbar keeps Mysterio in trouble but he sends Americano crashing over the top and out to the floor. We take a break and come back with Americano hitting an Angle Slam, followed by a moonsault for two.

Mysterio is right back up with a Michinoku Driver for two of his own but Americano sends him flying into the corner. A dragon suplex gives Americano two more so here are Los Americanos for a distraction. Mysterio’s tornado DDT gets two but Los Hermanos Americanos come out for a distraction. El Grande Americano offers a distraction of his own, allowing Mysterio to hit a 619 into the frog splash to retain at 9:15.

Rating: B. This was how a match between the two of them should have gone, with all kinds of people running in to screw with it. Mysterio’s big matches work best with all of the gaga going around and that’s what we had here. The battle of the Americanos is a huge story in Mexico and while it doesn’t mean as much here, at least they’re getting to do something with all of the talent that they have.

The Vision is sick of Joe Hendry, with Logan Paul threatening to cut his ear off if he has to listen to Hendry’s song about him. And they leave, with a woman in the front seat of their car that might have been Maxxine Dupri.

Here are Roman Reigns and Jimmy Uso for the acknowledgment ceremony. After Reigns’ catchphrase, Jacob Fatu arrives, with Jey Uso trying to talk him out of the likely violence. That earns Jey a headbutt, with Fatu saying that Reigns is going to have to beat the acknowledgment out of him. Jimmy tries to calm Fatu down and gets beaten up in the aisle for his efforts.

Fatu hits the ring and the fight is on, with Reigns managing to knock him down and grab a chair. The big beatdown is on but the spear is cut off by a superkick. Fatu gets the Tongan Death Grip and sends Reigns outside for the suicide dive. With Reigns down, Fatu shouts about how Reigns left his family for dead. The announcers’ table is loaded up but Reigns hits a Superman Punch.

A second edition is countered into the Tongan Death Grip, followed by a powerbomb through the table. Fatu holds up the title to…well just tease ending the show actually as he runs back to Umaga Attack Reigns and the Usos through the barricade. Now the show ends with the Bloodline laid out. I’m not wild on the feud continuing after Reigns beat him at Backlash, but that’s a good way to show that Fatu is still a threat.

Overall Rating: B. This was a solid show, though it did show that Backlash was little more than a pit stop and not any kind of a game changer. A lot of the feuds are just continuing forward, which makes me think that Reigns vs. Fatu should have been a double DQ or something. Other than that, I liked the wrestling well enough and Saturday Night’s Main Event is already being set up. They have to do it that fast with just a twelve day turnaround, but at least they’re off to a good start.

Results
Street Profits/Joe Hendry b. The Vision – Theory
Je’Von Evans b. Rusev – OG Cutter
Iyo Sky b. Sol Ruca – Crucifix
Oba Femi b. Los Garza – Fall From Grace to Berto
Dominik Mysterio b. Original El Grande Americano – Frog splash

Remember to follow me on Twitter and Bluesky @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Monday Night Raw
Date: May 4, 2026
Location: CHI Health Center, Omaha, Nebraska
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves

It’s the last Raw before Backlash and we have a main event set with Roman Reigns defending the World Title against a rather ticked off (as in more than usual) Jacob Fatu. Other than that, Oba Femi is issuing an open challenge and Sol Ruca is officially joining the roster this week. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Roman Reigns arrives and starts walking to the ring rather quickly, mostly ignoring Adam Pearce on the way. Pearce finally stops him and says that Jacob Fatu isn’t here yet, meaning the contract signing has to wait. Since Reigns isn’t going to the ring at the moment, he can pause to see Seth Rollins, who says reigns is in the way.

Rollins heads into the arena…and Bron Breakker jumps him from behind. Breakker drops Rollins onto the barricade and sends him into the steps until security and referees break it up. Well for all of five seconds that is as Breakker gets inside to spear Rollins. The fans want to see it again but Breakker leaves instead.

We recap Roxanne Perez ignoring Finn Balor’s warnings about the Judgment Day and telling him to leave the clubhouse.

We go to the Judgment Day clubhouse, with Liv Morgan wanting to know why Balor was here last week. Perez doesn’t know why he was here but Morgan asks why she wasn’t told about this. Why does she need to watch Netflix to know what is going on around here? Perez insists she is loyal to the team and Morgan seems to believe it, though she does brow beat Perez a bit. With Morgan gone, Perez doesn’t seem thrilled.

Finn Balor vs. JD McDonagh

Dominik Mysterio is here with McDonagh, who gets taken down with an early headlock. Balor backs McDonagh up against the ropes but gets distracted by Mysterio so McDonagh can chop away. A Russian legsweep gives Balor two and he glares down at Mysterio. That’s enough for McDonagh to start in on the leg and here are the rest of Judgment Day as we take a break.

We come back with Balor making a comeback but having to deck Mysterio. A Spanish Fly gives McDonagh two but Balor knocks him down again. Balor loads up the Coup de Grace, allowing Mysterio to crotch him on top. That’s enough for Mysterio to be ejected, leaving McDonagh’s moonsault to hit raised knees for two. The Sling Blade connects so Morgan gets on the apron and throws a timekeeper’s hammer to Perez. The cheap shot knocks Balor silly and the headbutt gives McDonagh the pin at 10:55.

Rating: C+. There was a lot going on in this match and it dragged things down a bit. The idea is that Balor was fighting against a numbers advantage, but it only has so much of an impact when it keeps going this long. Balor is going to need some help dealing with them, though I’m not sure why the feud needs to keep going.

Seth Rollins is going to be ready for Backlash, where he will finish the job.

Video on Roman Reigns vs. Jacob Fatu from last week, with Fatu bringing back the Tongan Death Grip.

Commentary actually explains the Tongan Death Grip and talk about Haku passing it down to Fatu, though it can only be used in certain circumstances.

We look back at the Street Profits saving Joe Hendry from the Vision last week.

The Vision make fun of Hendry when Paul Heyman comes in. Heyman asks if Rollins is still breathing but Logan Paul cuts them off to threaten Hendry. Heyman says no because if Logan faces Hendry, he’ll be put in jail. Therefore, Austin Theory can do it instead. Logan is still rather on edge about this whole thing.

Penta/Je’Von Evans vs. Ethan Page/Rusev

Rusev pounds Evans into the corner to start and it’s off to Page, who doesn’t have the same success. Evans ducks a kick to the head and brings Penta in to strike away at Page. Everything breaks down and Evans hits a dive to the floor, leaving Page to get hit with the Penta Driver as we take an early break.

We come back with Penta knocking Rusev off the apron but he pulls Evans off the apron to break up the tag attempt. Penta blocks the Twisted Grin attempt and hands it back to Evans to pick up the pace. A dive hits Rusev and a springboard clothesline gets two on Page. Evans misses a heck of a moonsault but scores with a kick to the back of the head.

Penta comes back in as everything breaks down, with Penta hitting a suicide dive on Rusev. The big dive through the table is cut off and Penta gets tripped down on the apron. A Rock Bottom onto the table plants Penta and Page hits a release fisherman’s suplex for the pin at 10:41.

Rating: B-. That should set Page up for a title shot down the line and that is a good thing to see. Page has done rather well on the main roster thus far and it’s nice to see Rusev and Evans getting a chance to do something as well. This was a rather nice midcard match and it should set something up for later on, with the gold on the line.

Here is Adam Pearce in the ring for a chat. He talks about how much fun it was to work with a can’t miss prospect in NXT. That’s what he is getting to do again and we see a video on Sol Ruca. This brings out Ruca and she’s looking a bit nervous. Pearce presents her with a contract and she knows it is going to feel good to sign. Cue Becky Lynch to interrupt (ok that’s quite the starting point) saying a very reliable source told her this was her spot. Lynch goes into her usual Sports Illustrated rant but Lynch cuts her off, saying not everything is about her.

Ruca says Lynch is everything everyone says she is: a crude, bigheaded b****. Ruca: “It’s not just me saying it!” Lynch is incensed and Ruca signs her contract. Ruca says if Lynch ever interrupts her again, she’ll snatch her soul. Lynch swings and hits Pearce by mistake, which means a Sol Snatcher (after Ruca missteps a bit to start). If they’re putting her with Lynch to start, they pretty clearly think something of her and that’s a great sign for her future. Now just live up to it.

We look at Jacob Fatu smashing the MFT’s on Smackdown.

The Usos are on their way to see Roman Reigns but stop to talk about how this is a family thing. Fatu is swimming in deep water and swinging for the fences, but the Bloodline has been drawn. He’ll figure out what he’s doing at Backlash.

Joe Hendry vs. Austin Theory

Before the match, Hendry sings about Logan Paul, who is talented but a piece of trash. This brings out Paul, who says he can’t be fired because it would be bad business. Hendry is glad Paul is here, because he’s up to the part of the song with the apology. It’s not much of an apology, but Theory charges in to start fast.

Hendry knocks him outside but gets distracted by Paul so Theory can hammer away. A whip into the corner sets up a suplex to drop Hendry, who is back with a bigger suplex. The fall away slam sends Theory outside and Hendry strikes his pose…and Paul runs in for the DQ at 3:17.

Rating: C. This didn’t have time to go anywhere but Hendry was making a nice comeback when it ended. The numbers game is getting to Theory and he has the Street Profits, though I’m curious where that leaves Hendry. Paul could be fighting Hendry on his own and the Profits as a team, but that’s kind of a weird way to go. It’s working well enough for now though and this wasn’t bad despite being short.

Post match the beatdown is on with the Street Profits running in for the save. Bron Breakker is in to take the Profits out but Seth Rollins is here to break up the Super Spear. Montez Ford hits the big dive but the distraction lets Breakker Super Spear Rollins instead.

The Judgment Day is ready to win the Women’s Tag Team Titles. Bayley and Lyra Valkyria come in to say they want a shot instead but Liv Morgan makes fun of them.

Here is Oba Femi for his open challenge.

Oba Femi vs. Otis

Akira Tozawa teases taking the challenge but it’s Otis instead. Otis and Femi trade running shoulders until Femi elbows the heck out of him. A toss sends Otis flying and the Fall From Grace finishes for Femi at 1:49. The toss and powerbomb both looked good and this was effective.

Seth Rollins isn’t happy with getting speared again but the Street Profits aren’t sure why they should trust him. Rollins says they’re fighting the same fight but they’ll stay out of each others’ way. Joe Hendry doesn’t look pleased either.

We get a sitdown interview between Asuka and Iyo Sky before their match at Backlash. Sky says she has avoiding this fight for years because Asuka is her mentor. Despite everything Asuka has done, Sky still respects her and never wanted it to come to this. Asuka has changed though and the old Asuka is gone. Asuka calls this disrespect and that she doesn’t know this disrespectful Sky. That is Asuka’s biggest disappointment and she is done with Sky, who will be cut out of her life at Backlash. Sky says she is ready for Asuka, who mists Sky to blind her.

We look at the Creed Brothers attacking El Grande Americano last weekend on AAA.

The Original El Grande Americano and Los Hermanos Americanos (Bruno/Julio Creedo) don’t like how Original was treated in Mexico. They’re friends with Chad Gable, who is still certainly sidelined with an injury.

El Grande Americano/Los Americanos vs. Original El Grande Americano/Los Hermanos Americanos

Julio suplexes Rayo to start and it’s off to the Original for two off a hiptoss. Americano comes in for a lockup and sends Original outside for a baseball slide. We take a break and come back with everything breaking down and Original cleaning house. A double German suplex drops Los Americanos but Grande is back in with the headbutts. Bravo’s top rope splash only gets two and the Original hits Rolling Chaos Theory. A top rope headbutt connects for the pin on Bravo at 8:24.

Rating: C+. The action was fine, but there is a reason that this feud has shifted over to AAA for the most part. Down there, this feels a lot more important and it’s a main event feud. Up here, this felt like a comedy match you would see at an early 90s Survivor Series. It’s a nice six man tag, but the two teams being in masks didn’t make this more interesting, as it just made it feel sillier.

John Cena will be at Backlash for some big announcement.

Backlash rundown.

Here are Roman Reigns and Jacob Fatu to join Adam Pearce for a contract signing. Instead they just sit there and stare at each other for a bit until Reigns hits his catchphrase. That gets him a rather strong OTC chant, which Reigns says is the sound of love and respect. That respect was earned over the last twelve years and Reigns was the one holding the door open for Solo Sikoa. Fatu got in because of Reigns and he isn’t standing for this lack of respect.

Now Fatu is bringing out the Tonga Death Grip? That’s the kind of thing you bring out when you’re surrounded by eight people at a bar at 3am. You don’t do that to your TRIBAL CHIEF! Fatu says that is where Reigns has it all wrong, because yes he is desperate and he has no choice but to take Reigns’ title. He’s going to put a chokehold on the business and squeeze out every cent, just like this company has been doing to their family for decades.

Fatu brings up his household, which has Reigns cutting him off and signing. While Fatu talks about having seven kids, Reigns has spent twelve years looking after the 170 kids in their family and taking care of several generations. They’re the same blood but in this ring, Fatu is beneath him. Fatu jumps at him and tries the Tongan Death Grip but gets knocked away (with Graves being there for the save by saying Fatu didn’t have it all the way on).

The belt shot misses and Reigns hammers away in the corner but the Superman Punch is countered into the Tongan Death Grip. Reigns’ eyes but out and he grabs Pearce until Fatu chokeslams Reigns onto the table. Reigns is gasping for breath as Fatu signs and the fans chant for Fatu to end the show. They’re making Fatu feel like a threat and while I don’t think he’ll win the title, this is making the possibility seem stronger.

Overall Rating: B-. This was a show about getting us more ready for Backlash and that went well enough. Backlash has two big Raw matches and those both enough of a build this week. Other than that, Asuka vs. Sky is already set and should be fine, which pretty much covers the red side of Backlash. The wrestling here was ok enough, but it was more about the final push and I liked the main event segment fairly well. It’s not a great show, but it did what it was asked.

Results
JD McDonagh b. Finn Balor – Headbutt
Ethan Page/Rusev b. Penta/Je’Von Evans – Release fisherman’s suplex to Penta
Joe Hendry b. Austin Theory via DQ when Logan Paul interfered
Oba Femi b. Otis – Fall From Grace
Original El Grande Americano/Los Hermanos Americanos b. El Grande Americano/Los Americanos – Swan Dive to Rayo

Remember to follow me on Twitter and Bluesky @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Monday Night Raw
Date: October 11, 1999
Location: Georgia Dome, Atlanta, Georgia
Attendance: 33,375
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler

Well this is an upgrade. We’re in a huge stadium and it happens to be the last Raw before No Mercy, where HHH will defend the WWF Title against Steve Austin. Other than that, the Terri Invitational Tournament continues with Edge and Christian facing the Hardy Boyz in one cool match after another. Let’s get to it.

Here is Smackdown if you need a recap.

We open with a tribute to Gorilla Monsoon, who passed away last week. That’s a big one, especially for people who grew up in the Golden Era.

Opening sequence.

Here is Vince McMahon, who is very happy to be here in Atlanta (WCW’s hometown of course) and wastes no time in bringing out Steve Austin for a chat. Austin says he’s been gone for a few months and it’s because of HHH and that’s all changing tonight. For the last few months, HHH has been attacking Jim Ross and a rattlesnake in a bag.

Neither of those are Austin though and he isn’t scared of anything HHH is doing. Austin wants HHH out here right now so here he is, with the fans not being happy to see him. They argue over the fans getting on HHH, who says that Austin knows he can’t win at No Mercy. No one here can beat HHH…and yeah sure he’ll fight Austin right now.

Or instead he’ll go outside and shove JR’s hat off. This time JR actually gets up and hits him with a fan, allowing Austin to come outside for the real fight. They get back inside, with JR hammering on HHH some more until Chyna makes the save. Austin lays Chyna out so HHH issues the challenge for the tag match tonight. And of course Austin and JR are in.

There are a bunch of bulldogs in the back. Georgia bulldogs?

An annoyed Mankind is pacing in the back.

We look at Mankind and the Rock getting into a fight/argument on Smackdown.

Billy Gunn vs. Crash Holly

Road Dogg and Hardcore Holly are here too, with Dogg calling out the Hollys for not being real super heavyweights. Gunn hammers away in the corner to start and grabs a Jackhammer (or Jackknife according to JR) for two. The other two get in a fight on the floor and Gunn hits a Fameasser for the pin at 50 seconds. I don’t think Crash got in a single bit of offense.

Post match Hardcore brings in the scales to hit the Outlaws in the face.

Mankind is rather proud of his guest appearance on G vs. E last night but he wants to talk about the Rock on Smackdown. Maybe he wanted to hit the Rock with a chair because one of them isn’t a team player. There is no I in team, Rock or Sock and he needs a commitment from the Rock before he can move forward with the team’s endorsement deals.

Mae Young vs. Ivory

Non-title. Before the match, Ivory complains about how annoying Young and Fabulous Moolah have been, even threatening to beat the regularity out of her. Ivory hits her in the back with a belt before the bell, right in front of the referee, who says the bell can ring anyway. Moolah runs in and jumps Ivory for…well I guess a no contest at about 30 seconds as the bell didn’t ring.

Post match Moolah beats Ivory up until she runs off.

Jim Ross calls the Rock and tells him about Mankind’s issues from Smackdown. Rock doesn’t really care and he’s on his way to the show, where he’ll turn the Georgia Dome upside down. Wouldn’t that make it a Georgia Pit?

British Bulldog has no idea why those dogs are here and doesn’t care about the Rock and Mankind tonight. At No Mercy, he’s beating the Rock to get closer to the WWF Title.

We look at Stephanie McMahon getting hit in the head at Rebellion and seemingly losing her memory.

Earlier today, Stephanie (with Shane McMahon) sat down and said she can’t remember anything happening to her in the short term. She can’t remember any of the feelings she has for Test and Shane has to calm her down.

Val Venis and the British Bulldog jump Mankind and leave him laying.

Mark Henry and a woman arrive in a limo.

Edge & Christian vs. New Brood

This is the fourth match in the Terri Invitational Tournament (Edge & Christian are up 2-1) and Lilian Garcia describes this as a “non…..tag team match.” Also can we please just get to them being the Hardys already and drop the New Brood stuff? It’s a brawl to start with the Hardys getting sent into the corners for some running shots.

Matt fights back and stomps Christian down in the corner, with Jeff hitting a springboard moonsault. The flipping splash/falling punch combination hits Christian, with Jeff adding a legdrop in the ropes. Jeff: “DID YOU SEE ME???” Uh yeah, yeah we did Jeff. Back in and both Hardys miss something off the top, allowing the tag off to Edge. Matt grabs a rollup with feet on the ropes for two but Edge gives Matt a Downward Spiral.

It just happens to be right in front of Jeff, who comes off the top with a Swanton for the save. Christian Unprettiers Jeff (Lawler: “Can you do that JR?”) and Matt dives off the top to take Edge out. Jeff dives onto the two of them and Edge’s running flip dive hits both Hardys. They all brawl on the floor and it’s a double DQ at 4:56. Kind of odd to see that instead of a countout but it’s the same thing for all intent and purpose.

Rating: B-. That’s probably going to be the match of the night and that shouldn’t be a surprise. These guys are clearly giving everything they have now that they are getting the chance. As it turns out, it’s working very well, which is saying a lot when this was one of the lesser of their series.

X-Pac demands Kane not come out to the ring during his match no matter what.

The Rock finally arrives and post break, says he doesn’t care Mankind feels about the team. As for the British Bulldog, Rock isn’t just another nobody and no one cares about Bulldog anyway. Bulldog is nothing and apparently Rock has brought those dogs to the show for whatever reason.

He can’t seem to remember his catchphrase, going through some Flair, Savage and Hogan before getting it right. Cue Mankind who wants an answer right now. Rock tells him what to do with his gear and where to put it but here is Vince McMahon to give them a match against Val Venis and the British Bulldog. Rock says tonight is about winning one for the scooper, which has Mankind confused.

X-Pac vs. Faarooq

During the entrances, we get a statement from the Drozdov family, thanking the fans for wishing Droz well. That’s kind of random but it’s still nice to hear. There’s no Kane here but Bradshaw is here with Faarooq, who gets kicked in the corner to start things fast. Faarooq is right back up with a whip into the corner and gets two off a backbreaker.

The powerslam gives Faarooq two and we hit the bearhug as Kane is watching backstage. X-Pac gets out and kicks away before avoiding an elbow in the corner. Bradshaw gets up for a distraction but X-Pac escapes the Dominator and sends them into each other. The X-Factor finishes Faarooq at 3:20.

Rating: C+. This is about as far as I can go with X-Pac hanging in there against a powerhouse, with Faarooq being someone who can lose to him without it going too far. The good thing is that X-Pac is a rather talented star and someone who could get fans behind him. At the same time, the X Factor still doesn’t feel like a great finisher and that isn’t helping things here.

Post match the beatdown is on but Kane comes out…to stay on the stage, even as X-Pac is double powerbombed. Bradshaw puts X-Pac on top but Kane finally runs in for the save. The ungrateful X-Pac is mad at Kane for helping him out. You know, Kane has a match on Sunday too so stop being a selfish jerk.

We look at the setup for the tag match and JR heads to the back to get ready.

We look at Mark Henry’s second sex therapy session, with the therapist (the woman from earlier) saying we need to go extreme to make it work, even starting tonight. Henry likes the idea and busts out some handcuffs, but the therapist isn’t happy.

Michael Cole replaces JR on commentary.

Chris Jericho/Curtis Hughes vs. Headbangers

This is the Headbangers’ reunion after a pretty horrible attempt at a solo run for Mosh. Jericho and Mosh start things off, with Mosh launching him into a hot shot. Jericho gets hung up in the ropes for a jumping splash from Thrasher. Back up and a butterfly backbreaker plants Thrasher to put him in trouble for a change.

It’s off to Hughes, who gets clotheslined by Mosh, followed by a double clothesline for a double down. Mosh comes back in and has to be saved from the Walls. Hughes runs Jericho over by mistake so Jericho hits him right back and walks out. The Stage Dive (and a bad one at that) finishes Hughes at 3:21.

Rating: C. So that’s it for the Hughes/Jericho partnership and that’s about how it should have gone. Hughes felt like he was dragging things down for Jericho and it’s good to see Jericho getting away from him to be free. The Headbangers being back was nice to see as well, but it’s not like they were ever a great team in the first place.

Big Show is upset in the back when D’Lo Brown comes up to check on him. Show’s father has terminal cancer and Brown says he’s there for him anytime. Well that got a lot more serious.

Rock has Mankind sweep up the dogs’ waste and put it on a big tray.

Godfather vs. Mark Henry

Godfather has about thirty women with him this time…because this is a Ho Jack match. Apparently this is the sex therapist’s idea of extreme measures to cure Henry of his addictions. Sweet goodness how 1999 can a show be? Henry is sent outside where he seems to enjoy the women’s company. Back in and Henry gets beaten up, only to be distracted by the women again. The Ho Train sets up a rollup to pin Henry at 1:28.

Post match Henry is jumped by the women and Henry couldn’t seem happier.

HHH, with Chyna, says Steve Austin should always be worried about him and it’s going to be a good piece of business for JR. HHH doing a JR impression is a rather disturbing thing.

Big Boss Man vs. Big Show

Before the match, Boss Man says he doesn’t care about Show’s problems because Boss Man is the real problem. Even Lawler thinks that’s too far and here is a rather emotional Show. A superkick drops Boss Man in the aisle and the bell rings, with Show hitting a flying shoulder inside. Boss Man hits him with the nightstick for the DQ at 36 seconds.

Post match the beatdown is on until Al Snow runs in for the save but gets beaten down as well.

Mankind has collected quite a bit of waste.

HHH/Chyna vs. Jim Ross/Steve Austin

Lawler loses it over JR having his wrists taped. Austin, in street clothes, finally bothers coming to help and brawls on the stage with HHH. They fight back to ringside, where Chyna and JR are nowhere to be seen. HHH gets whipped into the steps and Austin even dives off the steps with a right hand. They fight out into the crowd as Chyna is beating JR up back in the ring. Austin and HHH brawl out of the back of the building as Lawler loves JR getting stomped by Chyna (Lawler: “He always had a foot fetish!”).

Chyna gives JR a Pedigree but here is Jeff Jarrett to hit her with a toaster. Miss Kitty wheels down a laundry cart and Jarrett throws Chyna inside before wheeling her away. Austin and HHH brawl back into the arena, with Austin throwing him into a beer stand. Naturally Austin stops to have a beer and then goes to celebrate at ringside as I guess the match just ended. I’m not sure it ever started but when has that ever stopped them?

Rating: C-. I guess there was a match in there? Maybe? Somewhere? This felt like a way to get Austin officially on the card for a stadium show without having him have to really wrestle. That’s about all you can do if he’s that banged up and you don’t want to risk him getting hurt even worse. JR was barely a factor here, with Chyna’s weird status as a hero at some points and a villain at other times is still weird.

In the back, Jarrett shoves the laundry cart off a ledge and into the parking lot. Post break, Chyna is helped by medics.

Oh and I guess Jim Ross was eaten by rabid ferrets or something.

Val Venis/British Bulldog vs. Rock N Sock Connection

Naturally Mankind brings out the dog waste and I think you know where this is going. Cole: “This should be a good one.” Based on what? Nothing about this seems good, and Mankind almost being knocked onto the tray to start isn’t changing my mind. They get inside where Venis hammers away in the corner with Bulldog getting in his shots as well. A running faceplant puts Venis down for two and it’s off to Rock to hammer away in the corner.

Rock hits his big clothesline to cut Venis off again and it’s already back to Mankind. The general clubbering continues until Rock comes back in and gets elbowed by Venis. Rock fights back on Bulldog in the corner but the Rock Bottom is broken up. That means Venis’ fisherman’s suplex gets two so Rock gives him the Samoan drop to even things back up.

Mankind comes back in with a double arm DDT to Venis as everything breaks down. The brawl heads out to the floor and Mankind loads up Mr. Socko to chase Venis up the ramp. That leaves Rock to grab the tray and throw it inside, where Bulldog is Rock Bottomed onto said tray. Well onto what is on the tray. The People’s Elbow is loaded up…but Rock just stops and poses instead as I guess we’re done at around 8:15.

Rating: C-. Well, it was in fact a match and they had more time than any other match on the card, but how good was this going to be? They were mainly focusing on the tray and teasing the big spot with the thing. It’s also another match without an actual fall, because Venis is getting a singles match on pay per view in six days so he can’t take a pin here.

HHH jumps Austin in the back but Austin has a rattlesnake waiting on him.

We get some Extra Attitude, meaning a clip from after the show, which is Austin coming out to drink beer (and pour some of it on the dog waste). JR comes out and drinks some as well. The only thing I get out of this: Austin’s ability to catch beers with one hand is still incredibly impressive. This really didn’t do much whatsoever and didn’t need to be included.

Overall Rating: D+. There were some ok matches on here, but the focal points were two tag matches which didn’t end with an actual fall and the big deals at the end were dog waste and a snake. That’s in addition to a Ho Jack match and Ivory feuding with Moolah and Mae Young. While Vince Russo is officially gone, there are still a lot of remnants of him hanging around (though the dog thing had to be a Vince McMahon idea) and this show was a rough watch as a result.

Remember to follow me on Twitter and Bluesky @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Monday Night Raw
Date: April 27, 2026
Location: Sames Auto Arena, Laredo, Texas
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves

We’re rapidly approaching Backlash and that means it is time to start building up the show. That is likely going to be taking place this week, including Roman Reigns giving Jacob Fatu an answer after last week’s challenge for a title shot. A lot of things could come together for Backlash so let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

We open with a recap of Jacob Fatu challenging Roman Reigns last week.

Reigns and the Usos sit down in a dark room, with Reigns not being sure what to do about Fatu. Jimmy thinks it’s better to avoid Fatu while Jey wants to teach Fatu a lesson in respect for the family. Reigns says he’ll handle this tonight and they put their hands together, with Reigns suggesting that the team is called the First Family. It’s been used before in wrestling but it fits here.

Here is Seth Rollins to get things going. Rollins has a lot to get to tonight, starting with Roman Reigns holding his World Title because of Bron Breakker. That’s why he wants Breakker out here right now, which is what he gets, plus a side of Paul Heyman. Rollins says Breakker took everything away from him this year and Rollins wants to know why. Breakker wants to know what Rollins ever gave him.

For months, Breakker and Bronson Reed had to stand there while Rollins said his same thing and then they had to fight his battles. Rollins talks about going down to NXT and wanting to face Shawn Michaels’ best, which is why he fought Breakker in the first place. Then he agreed to take Breakker under his win because he knew the potential. Rollins knows what it means to be a 28 year old star with all over the potential in the world.

The difference is that Breakker is trying to take over but Rollins already did it. The reality is that Breakker isn’t ready, but Breakker says he lost to the best in the world, which is better than someone who just says it. Rollins: “That was pretty good Baby Steiner.” Rollins issues the challenge for Backlash but “Steiner” needs to understand he isn’t even the second best in his own family.

Judgment Day jumps Stephanie Vaquer in the back and crush her with an anvil case.

Penta vs. Rusev

Non-title and Ethan Page is here too. Rusev sends him flying with a fall away slam to start but Penta hits a dropkick to the floor, setting up the running flip dive. Page mocks Penta, who has to cut Rusev off with a superkick. Back in and Rusev superkicks him out of the air as we take a break. We come back with Penta kicking away and hitting the reverse Sling Blade. The running slingshot dropkick in the corner gets one but Rusev kicks him down. A release Rock Bottom sets up the Machka Kick but the Accolade is escaped. Penta teases a springboard but hangs on to headfake Rusev, setting up a rollup for the pin at 7:28.

Rating: C+. This was a quick match with Penta getting a win, with Ethan Page continuing to feel like the next challenger in line. That should be enough to carry the title picture going forward as Penta is doing well in his role as the fighting champion. It wasn’t a match that had a chance to go very far but they got the details right.

Post match Page runs in to help beat on Penta, with Rusev and Page stomping away. Je’Von Evans runs in for the save, including the OG Cutter to Rusev, and has a nice moment with Penta.

El Grande Americano, with Los Americanos, is ready to face the Original El Grande Americano in a mask vs. mask match. That’s as big as it gets for him and he needs to be ready, which is why he wants to face Rey Mysterio tonight.

Here is Becky Lynch for a chat. She’s very pleased to have gotten the Women’s Intercontinental Title back because it means she has won four different women’s titles at Wrestlemania and have more wins there than any other woman in history. The best thing thing was looking out and seeing her daughter, who needs to learn that there is more to being a champion than just the money and five star hotels. It’s also about facing the best, which is why it’s open challenge time.

Cue Iyo Sky to interrupt and Lynch isn’t sure about this one. Sky issues the challenge but Lynch says she wanted someone challenging and exciting, but Sky is neither challenging nor exciting. Lynch thinks this must be Sky accepting on behalf of Rhea Ripley because she wanted to face Shawn Michaels, not Marty Jannetty. Sky knocks her down and here is Adam Pearce to say let’s do the match right now. Lynch jumps her from behind as the referee comes in.

Women’s Intercontinental Title: Becky Lynch vs. Iyo Sky

Sky is challenging and we’re joined in progress with Lynch knocking her down. The middle rope legdrop connects for two but Sky is back up for the exchange of forearms. Sky German suplexes her for two and hits the missile dropkick. Back up and Lynch gets in a shot of her own before having to block a suicide dive.

Instead Sky hits a sunset bomb out to the floor and we take a break. We come back with the two of them knocking each other down again. Sky is up with a superkick and tornado DDT but Lynch is back with a Manhandle Slam for two. Back up and Sky knocks her outside for an Asai moonsault, only to lose a shoe. Sky loads up a dive but cue Asuka to cut off a springboard, allowing Lynch to hit the Manhandle Slam and retain at 13:12.

Rating: B-. Of course these two were capable of having a solid match and they did so here, with the focus being on Asuka’s interference. That’s perfectly fine, as it was more about setting up Sky vs. Asuka than anything else. Lynch is getting ready for her next challenger and that could be more than a few people, which is nice to see from the women’s division.

Post match Asuka lays Sky out with the Asuka Lock.

El Grande Americano asks Rey Mysterio if he has to worry about Mysterio in the mask vs. mask match on May 30. Mysterio says no and speaks Spanish, which the Original doesn’t understand. The other El Grande Americano and Los Americanos come in and aren’t happy with Mysterio, who says he’s not on anyone’s side. That isn’t good enough and the three of them leave.

LA Knight interrupts the Usos and tries to talk them out of this reunion with Roman Reigns. Jimmy says it isn’t Knight’s business but Knight says the power will eventually corrupt things and that makes it Knight’s business.

Here is the debuting Joe Hendry for a concert. He sings about officially signing with Raw and he’s fine with Oba Femi and acknowledges the OTC, but can we fire Logan Paul? Cue a ticked off Paul and Austin Theory to say he cannot be fired and declares everyone fired. Hendry laughs off the idea of the Vision being winners because all he saw on ESPN was a couple of prime time losers. They clear Hendry’s concert equipment out of the ring and the fight is on, with the Street Profits running in for the save. Hendry hits a running dive over the top onto the Vision and poses with the Profits. That’s pretty standard Hendry.

Grayson Waller is annoyed at not getting an opportunity of his own and insults Oba Femi, who pops up behind him. Femi says if Waller wants an opportunity, he can have one tonight. Adam Pearce is in.

Joe Hendry thanks the Street Profits again, with the Profits suggesting he gets a new shirt to replace the blue one since he’s a Raw star now. Hendry seems to agree and leaves, with the Profits running into Seth Rollins. They aren’t impressed because Rollins isn’t special and last week was about the Vision, not him.

El Grande Americano vs. Rey Mysterio

Los Americanos are here with Americano, who takes Mysterio down off a test of strength to start. Mysterio gets his shoulders up at two and sends him into the ropes but the 619 attempt is cut off with a clothesline. We take a break and come back with Americano knocking him into the corner. Mysterio jumps up for a moonsault into a tornado DDT though and Americano is rocked again. Rayo tries to load up the mas but gets taken down with a 619. Americano picks up the plate but here is the Original El Grande Americano to cut it off. Mysterio hits the 619 into the slingshot splash for the pin at 9:15.

Rating: B-. I was a bit surprised to see Americano lose here though the ending feels like it could be a step towards him dropping the loaded up headbutt. That is all but guaranteed to play into the mask vs. mask match, as will Americano being unhappy with Original interfering here. This feud continues to be a lot bigger in Mexico and that’s fine, as it’s better than not getting any heat for it whatsoever.

Post match Mysterio takes the foreign object and puts it in his tights, because Americano isn’t using it anymore. Since it’s impossible to find another metal plate? Anyway Mysterio leaves and the two Grande Americanos brawl.

We look at Jacob Fatu wrecking Solo Sikoa and the MFTs on Smackdown.

Backlash rundown, with Rollins vs. Breakker and Sky vs. Asuka officially set.

Asuka says she has blamed herself for Iyo Sky’s mistakes for so long but now she realizes that Sky is the real problem. Sky is her biggest failure because Sky failed her family. Now they’re both alone because Asuka thought they could be a family again. Nothing will stop her from destroying Sky at Backlash.

Oba Femi vs. Grayson Waller

Femi runs him over to start and sends him into the corner for a running uppercut. Waller gets in a neck snap across the top but the rolling Stunner is tossed away. The Fall From Grace finishes Waller at 1:06. That’s our Femi.

Post match Femi says he and the people are feeling good around here. Waller isn’t, but Femi did hear Waller say something that got his attention. He wanted a chance, so Femi will take it on himself with an open challenge to anyone who wants to try and climb the mountain. Just be ready.

Liv Morgan talks to Roxanne Perez and apologizes for what she thought of Perez while she was gone. She was watching Raw and Finn Balor put himself before the family. Morgan wants to support Perez in what she’s doing so she’ll be in the corner tonight. Perez trusts her….but needs one second backstage, where she doesn’t look happy. Balor pops up and tells Perez to be quiet, but she can’t trust Judgment Day. Perez asks if she can’t trust them or him. Perez throws him out, with Balor saying he hopes she knows what she’s doing.

Bayley/Lyra Valkyria vs. Judgment Day

It’s Raquel Rodriguez/Roxanne Perez with Liv Morgan for the team here. Rodriguez powers Bayley into the corner to start and it’s off to Perez, who gets quite the hometown reaction. Perez smiles her head off as she stomps Bayley down but gets powered over for the tag off to Valkyria.

Perez fights out of trouble but gets backbreakered down, only for Perez to kick away before Bayley can drop an elbow. That’s fine with Valkyria, who kicks Perez down again so the elbow can connect. Everything breaks down and Rodriguez posts Bayley as we take a break.

We come back with Valkyria firing off the clotheslines and rolling some suplexes on Perez. A fireman’s carry is loaded up but Perez escapes and rams Valkyria into Bayley to crotch her on top. Rodriguez comes back in for a big boot into Perez’s Russian legsweep for two but Bayley counters Pop Rox. The Bayley To Belly gets two on Perez and the other two fall out to the floor. Morgan offers a distraction and Bayley gets her throat snapped across the top. A Shining Wizard and Pop Rox finish for Perez at 9:21.

Rating: B. They had a lot going on in this match but Perez’s reception and reaction to that reception push it to a higher level. She was clearly so happy out there and it was a special moment to see. Other than that, you had Bayley and Valkyria having some miscommunication issues before their loss. That’s on top of Judgment Day having issues of their own, which is quite a bit to have in one single match.

Video on Sol Ruca, who has signed with Raw and will be here next week.

Here is Roman Reigns and the fans seem rather pleased to see him. Reigns even makes mention of the reaction before saying this title was made in spite of him. The reality is that the man makes the title, which is what he has done again. He has made this title relevant and now you can respect this title, or even ACKNOWLEDGE it. Let’s demonstrate, and he hits the catchphrase.

This brings out Jacob Fatu to interrupt, with Reigns saying Fatu is right on cue because Reigns was “just getting to you”. Reigns hopes Fatu has made the right decision but Fatu says he didn’t need a week, or even an hour to know what to do. Fatu still needs the title because Reigns still doesn’t know what it means to be like him. While the Bloodline was running things, Fatu was foaming at the mouth and he didn’t get a phone call from his family. You know who did call him? Solo Sikoa.

That doesn’t sit well with Reigns, who says Fatu is either completely confused or dumber than he thought. Sikoa couldn’t even get a cup of coffee delivered to the building. Who does Fatu think runs this place? The fans chant for Reigns and he says the fans aren’t lying. Reigns never forgot about him and he’s the one who signed off on Fatu.

The reality is Fatu has never earned it and he isn’t going to just give Reigns a shot because that’s nepotism, which Reigns isn’t allowing. Fatu grabs a TONGAN DEATH GRIP and Reigns goes down, with Fatu promising to take everything from him. That leaves Reigns laying so Fatu leaves, with Reigns accepting the challenge for Backlash. Fatu isn’t waiting for Backlash and he’ll see Reigns next week. The Death Grip was a surprise and makes Fatu feel that much more dangerous, which is great to see going into the title match.

Overall Rating: B-. The wrestling wasn’t the best here but this show was more about setting up Backlash. It wasn’t exactly a hard card to set up as you could guess a lot of the matches from at least a week ago, but you still have to get the work done. That’s what they covered this week, which makes sense as the pay per view is somehow a week from Saturday. Either way, not a must see show here, but it did what was necessary.

Results
Penta b. Rusev – Rollup
Becky Lynch b. Iyo Sky – Manhandle Slam
Rey Mysterio b. El Grande Americano – Slingshot splash
Oba Femi b. Grayson Waller – Fall From Grace
Judgment Day b. Bayley/Lyra Valkyria – Pop Rox to Bayley

Remember to follow me on Twitter and Bluesky @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Monday Night Raw
Date: April 20, 2026
Location: T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas, Nevada
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves

We’re done with Wrestlemania and that means it is time to have a big fallout show. That’s what we’ll be covering this week and I’m curious to see where the whole thing goes, as there are a lot of doors to cover. One of the biggest around here is that Roman Reigns beat CM Punk to win the Raw World Title. Let’s get to it.

Here is Wrestlemania if you need a recap.

We open with the traditional long Wrestlemania recap.

Here is Oba Femi, who soaks in a lot of cheers. He says The Ruler Has Arrived and drops the mic to hit his pose. That’s all he needed to say, because his actions yesterday spoke for him. It worked for Roman Reigns nine years ago and it worked for Femi here.

Asuka says it didn’t have to be this way with Iyo Sky. Now it’s time for revenge, with Kairi Sane not looking happy about any of this.

Iyo Sky/Rhea Ripley vs. Kabuki Warriors

Sane and Sky go to the mat to start with Sane pulling her down by the hair. A headscissors takes Sky down and Sane goes over to Asuka to make sure she approves. Sky is back up with a butterfly backbreaker and it’s Ripley coming in to drop Sky onto Sane for two. Asuka comes in for the big strike off but Ripley’s handstand kick to the head get two more. A cheap shot cuts Ripley off though and Sane hits a great looking Insane Elbow to take her out on the floor.

We take a break and come back with Ripley still in trouble. That’s broken up as Ripley fights back and brings Sky back in. Sky kicks away, with Sane knocking Asuka down by mistake. Sky gives them a double dropkick and hits some running Bullet Train Attacks in the corners. A kick to the head gets two on Asuka and Ripley gives her the Razor’s Edge. Sky adds a missile dropkick for two and it’s Riptide to Sane. Over The Moonsault gives Ripley the pin at 11:33.

Rating: B. These teams work well together and it’s nice to see the new champion getting a win, even if it’s in a tag match. The Warriors can go off to do something else, though they might be splitting soon anyway. Sky is going to be coming after Ripley and the title one way or another and it might be soon, which is a good thing.

Post match Asuka yells at the mostly out of it Sane.

Adam Pearce congratulates Penta on his win last night. Je’Von Evans comes in and wants a title shot. Penta seems interested and leaves. Ethan Page, the former NXT champion, debuts as Raw’s newest star and doesn’t think much of Evans. Pearce makes the match for tonight.

Here’s a rather serious looking CM Pun for a chat. He talks about how he lost his MMA trainer and dog Larry in a short span. Then it felt like every few weeks, someone behind the scenes in WWE was passing away. Those are the real heroes and the kind of people who make this place runs. Then Punk lost the title and it took away the anchor that kept him from falling apart over all his losses.

It’s not quite the same, but he knows the people will help him get through it again. He was never supposed to be champion again but he won it for three minutes, which was quite the cherry on the sundae. After that, he could have gone home to eat donuts and spend time with his hot wife. But then he stayed ready and got a #1 contendership match. If he wasn’t ready, you would be talking to Jey Uso right now. The thing is, he’s still the best in the world and he proved it last night. He gave it everything he had but it wasn’t his night. He’s not going home because you never know when a title match could fall out of the sky.

Cue Cody Rhodes to interrupt, with quite the limp and one heck of a black eye, to interrupt. Punk asks if he went over his time but Rhodes says no because this is Raw. Rhodes says this wasn’t what he expected, with Punk asking if Rhodes expected him to freak out. Rhodes: “….yeah.” Punk: “That’s fair.”

Rhodes brings up the idea of feeling like a loser and Punk seems to think Rhodes is saying that Punk should feel like one too. Punk praises Rhodes for what he did on Saturday with his win. The path for Rhodes is to keep being champion while Punk just has to stay ready because you never know when a championship opportunity is going to fall out of the sky (he says with some long looks at Rhodes’ title). Punk leaves and Rhodes says “just say when”, which makes Punk smile. That very well could be Wrestlemania next year, or maybe Summerslam, but it’s going to be a big one.

Finn Balor says Dominik Mysterio brought it at Wrestlemania but the Demon put him down. He’s not done with the Judgment Day though, including JD McDonagh. Balor remembers McDonagh coming to his gym as a kid and now McDonagh has chosen Mysterio. Now it’s time to take him out.

Ethan Page vs. Je’Von Evans

Evans starts fast but Page cuts him off without a ton of trouble. Page clotheslines him down and we’re already in the chinlock. Back up and Evans hits a dropkick, followed by the bouncing hurricanrana to send Page outside. The big no hands die follows and Evans chills with the fans as we take a break.

We come back with Evans (still wearing his shirt for some reason) hitting another dive but getting placed on the top. Page slams him back down and pulls him into a powerslam for two. Evans loses his shirt to reveal a bunch of medical tape and they head outside, with Evans hitting a superkick. Cue Rusev to go after Evans for a distraction, allowing Page to break up the OG Cutter. The Twisted Grin (Twist Of Fate) finishes for Page at 9:45.

Rating: C+. That’s a good way to go, as you give Evans an out to escape the loss while also having Page win his debut and actually having Rusev on the show. I’ll take some actual feuds and stories in this part of the card and Page diving right into the title picture is a good sign for him. I like this debut, as there was nothing else for Page to do in NXT.

Post match Rusev stays on Evans but Penta runs in for the save. Page knocks Penta off the top though and Rusev grabs the Accolade…and the title.

Paige and the Bella Twins are here.

Here is Judgment Day for a chat. Liv Morgan says the YOU DESERVE IT chants are the smartest things these people have said all day because she is the greatest of all time. She thanks the Judgment Day for being her rock and promises to be even more trouble than she ever was before. This brings out Sol Ruca (Ruca: “Hey Liv.”) to say Morgan has been an inspiration to her for years. She knows Morgan is the top woman in the division but Ruca is coming for her. Morgan doesn’t sound scared and a fight is teased, with Adam Pearce bringing out a referee to start it right now.

Sol Ruca vs. Liv Morgan

Non-title and we’re joined in progress with Ruca flipping out of a headscissors. A dropkick sends Morgan into the corner but she knocks Ruca out to the apron. Back in and Ruca fires off some forearms but Morgan takes her right back down. The front facelock goes on for a bit until Ruca fights out and rolls into an X Factor. Ruca sends her outside for a middle rope moonsault and we take a break.

We come back with the two of them slugging it out and Ruca getting the better of things. A middle rope dropkick sets up a running knee to give Ruca two but she dives into a Codebreaker. Ruca escapes the Oblivion and kicks Morgan in the head, setting up the Sol Snatcher, which sends Morgan rolling out to the floor. Ruca’s dive takes out all three of the women at ringside…and here is Ruca’s NXT enemy Zaria to take her out. Back in and oblivion finishes for Morgan at 11:43.

Rating: C+. I’m not sure what to think here, as Ruca is ready for the main roster, but having her lose in her debut match is kind of a strange choice. At the same time, you don’t want the new champion to lose so soon either. This was the best case scenario if they had to have the match so I’ll go with it, even if it might not be Ruca’s best starting option.

Post match here is Stephanie Vaquer for the staredown with Morgan.

We get a video on Brock Lesnar’s career, set to I Stand Alone of all things. This feels like the big retirement tribute, though I’m sure there will be more.

Here is the Vision, with Paul Heyman talking about how much the opening of this show changed him. Earlier today he heard CM Punk praising the production staff, but Brock Lesnar is still in the NOW section of the opening of the show. It is time for him to move to the FOREVER, because that is where he belongs. Heyman had some fire in this one, as you can tell he cares about Lesnar.

As for the now, you have the Vision as the reigning Tag Team Titles and are leading a renaissance of tag team wrestling around here. Logan Paul takes the mic and gets drowned out by the crowd. He blames IShowSpeed for their loss at Wrestlemania but says Speed left Wrestlemania with a piece of fist in his face. Just like they left Wrestlemania with the titles.

Heyman says he’s ready to talk to Gunther about repayment at any time, but the real MVP of Wrestlemania is this man right here: the returning Bron Breakker. Heyman is glad to have him back but Breakker says that it’s ironic that he came the leader of the team one year ago in this very building. Breakker loved taking the win from Rollins at Wrestlemania and hopes Rollins is watching tonight, because he’s going to make Rollins…and here is Rollins with a chair from behind.

Cue the Street Profits of all people (Cole: “REALLY?”) for the save and the brawl takes the Vision into the crowd. Rollins cuts Breakker off with a superkick and Breakker is busted open. He’s fine enough to avoid the Stomp and hit a Super Spear. Breakker screams at Rollins for causing all of this himself and another Super Spear knocks Rollins cold. I can definitely go for the Profits in this spot, as they’ve had nothing to do for months. Let them have a fresh start and it might go well for them. It’s a ready made title feud and that’s a good start. Rollins vs. Breakker has been ready for months so this didn’t change much for them.

JD McDonagh says he and Finn Balor were supposed to be family but Balor has changed. What about the guy who stood behind Balor for twenty years?

Finn Balor vs. JD McDonagh

Balor jumps him before the bell and beats McDonagh into the crowd. The beating goes back to ringside and they get in for the opening bell. McDonagh manages to avoid the Coup de Grace though and we take an early break with Balor in trouble. We come back with Balor missing his shotgun dropkick and getting dropped with the big headbutt. McDonagh’s moonsault hits raised knees and now the dropkick connects. The Coup de Grace finishes for Balor at 6:15.

Rating: C. This was pretty much a formality, as Balor wasn’t about to lose the night after his big win at Wrestlemania. I’m not sure how much longer he’s going to go after the Judgment Day, but Balor actually winning some matches is good to see. He needs to finish the team off and move on, which is what seems to be happening.

Post match Dominik Mysterio runs in to go after Balor but gets knocked into the corner. McDonagh gets Mysterio out of there.

Gunther says there is nothing with he and Paul Heyman. All that matters is getting his World Title back, but LA Knight comes in to say he didn’t need help winning at Wrestlemania. You mean other than his partners?

Here’s what’s coming next week, including the debuting Joe Hendry, who is now full time on Raw.

Rhea Ripley and Iyo officially split up because Ripley has to go be on Smackdown. Sky leaves and Ripley walks past Liv Morgan, who says enjoy Smackdown. Ripley says she’s looking forward to it.

Roman Reigns arrives and does the big long walk through the back. He meets the Usos at the Gorilla Position and invites them out with him.

After a break, here are Reigns and the Usos for a chat. Reigns said that he was going to keep things simple by talking about the title and the future, but then he ran into his cousins. He misses how things went when they worked together and did business as a family. Jey Uso has some rapper mocking him, but he’s the man who changed everything. We stop for the YEET chant before Reigns talks about how they ran things when they were together. He’s not asking them to serve him, but to be his blood and stand with him.

Jimmy says he speaks for his brothers when he says they’re the ones and the Usos do the pose. Reigns loads up his own pose…and it’s Jacob Fatu interrupting. Reigns says Fatu must be here to acknowledge him. That’s not right, so Reigns says it must be that Fatu wants the title. Fatu doesn’t want it, because he needs it. He doesn’t want to be the Tribal Chief but he needs everything that the Tribal Chief has. He needs the shoe deal, he needs the private jets, he needs the Rolex and to put his kinds in better schools.

At Backlash, he’s leveling up his household and Reigns will now Fatu is all gas and no brakes. Reigns isn’t sure about this because he doesn’t know if Fatu is ready if he wins. He’ll get back to him next week. This was good stuff, as they could hand pick anyone to come after Reigns first and Fatu fits that mold. He’s a different kind of opponent and Reigns is going to have to fight back, which he knows how to do. Throw in the Usos and it should be interesting.

Overall Rating: B. This is one of the annual shows where the wrestling isn’t the point. This show is all about dealing with what happened over the last two days and seeing where we go from here. There were a few directions taken and some new names debuted/were announced. They did what they needed to do here while also taking a bit of a deep breath. Good show here, with the regular stuff starting again next week.

Results
Iyo Sky/Rhea Ripley b. Kabuki Warriors – Over The Moonsault to Sane
Ethan Page b. Je’Von Evans – Twisted Grin
Liv Morgan b. Sol Ruca – Oblivion
Finn Balor b. JD McDonagh – Coup de Grace

Remember to follow me on Twitter and Bluesky @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Monday Night Raw
Date: April 13, 2026
Location: Golden 1 Center, Sacramento, California
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves

It’s a special show this week with the final Raw before this weekend’s Wrestlemania. That means we are not likely in for much in the way of the wrestling, but we should be getting a lot when it comes to hyping up matches. If nothing else, it should be the last big push between Roman Reigns and CM Punk. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Roman Reigns joins us to start and talks about how the fans trust him more than CM Punk because he’s real with them. We see some of Punk’s recent actions and what Pat McAfee has said about him. Reigns is giving Punk one more chance to tell the truth tonight. This was approved by Roman Reigns. Odd ending but ok.

We look at the Brock Lesnar/Oba Femi contract signing brawl from last week.

Adam Pearce is in the ring with HHH to open the show and says tonight, Lesnar and Femi will sign their contract separately. This brings out Paul Heyman, who says no one will get close to Lesnar during Wrestlemania fight week. Lesnar comes to the ring and signs, with a tip of his hat to Pearce. Heyman goes to talk about Femi, but Lesnar takes the mic and says no one will know Femi’s name after Wrestlemania. Heyman says there will be a winner and a loser and the winner will be Lesnar.

We look at the setup for the Wrestlemania six man tag.

The Vision is training with IShowSpeed, who is worried due to the whole “I’m not a wrestler” issue. They tell him that it doesn’t matter so he gets in the ring with the vision and what appears to be Dante Chen and Edris Enofe. Speed hits a nice high crossbody and a rather aggressive Boston crab before declaring himself ready.

Charlotte vs. Lyra Valkyria

Their partners are here too. Valkyria takes her down into a headlock to start but Charlotte reverses, only for Valkyria to slip away. Charlotte nips up and Valkyria drops her with a spinwheel kick, much to Bayley’s approval. A whip into the corner sends Charlotte to the apron and Valkyria kicks her to the floor. The dive misses though and Charlotte hits a big boot as we take a break.

We come back with Valkyria hitting a top rope ax kick for two but her moonsault hits knees. Charlotte’s moonsault connects for two but Natural Selection is blocked. Something like a fisherman’s buster gives Valkyria two so Charlotte throws her onto Bayley. Back in and Charlotte tries a rollup but Bayley trips her down to give Valkyria the pin at 10:24.

Rating: C+. This was another basic preview for the four (or maybe three) way at Wrestlemania. That’s not a bad way to go as Valkyria getting a pin on Charlotte is one way to change the titles. These random matches are about all you can do with the match set up and the match was completely acceptable.

Post match we get a staredown but it doesn’t get physical.

LA Knight and the Usos are ready for Wrestlemania but here are Solo Sikoa and the MFT’s to interrupt. Sikoa insults Knight and calls him an embarrassment, so Knight wants a six man tag against any of the MFT’s tonight.

We look at a clip from the Hulk Hogan documentary, focusing on the original NWO turn.

Here is Stephanie Vaquer for a chat…and Liv Morgan pops up from behind to shove her into Cathy Kelly. Agents break them up and Morgan calls her a little b****. Vaquer charges in and the brawl is on again before they’re separated again, leaving Morgan screaming a lot.

Video on Rhea Ripley vs. Jade Cargill, including Iyo Sky being taken out.

Sky is in the back when the Kabuki Warriors come up. Asuka calls Sky Ripley’s sidekick but Sky tries to tell Sane that she doesn’t have to listen to this. That’s cut off and Asuka makes Sky vs. Sane for tonight. Asuka calls Sane a good girl and they leave together.

Usos/LA Knight vs. MFT’s

Jimmy knocks Mateo into the corner to start and it’s off to Jey for a running forearm. Jey clotheslines Mateo to the floor for a big dive and we take a rather early break. We come back with Sikoa knocking Jimmy to the floor but Jey fights his way out of trouble. Knight comes in to clean house and Mateo is sent outside. Knight drops Loa but Mateo makes the save as everything breaks down. Jey low bridges Sikoa to the floor, where Sikoa sends him over the announcers’ table. Cue Tama Tonga (not here earlier) for a staredown with Sikoa, who isn’t pleased with him. During the distraction, Knight gives Loa the BFT for the pin at 6:48.

Rating: C+. This was another fine match, though I’m not sure why they needed a break in a match that doesn’t even last seven minutes. The good thing is Knight and the Usos have some momentum heading into Wrestlemania. Yeah it’s just a celebrity match, but at least it’s something a bit unique rather than the same multi team/man stuff we get elsewhere.

We look at Pat McAfee and Cody Rhodes’ segment from Smackdown. This resulted in Randy Orton beating up Jelly Roll.

Here is Gunther for a chat…and never mind as Seth Rollins runs in to knock Gunther outside. Rollins heard Gunther say it was personal between them last week and he wants to know why. He offers Gunther a chance to get in the ring and explain (which makes you wonder why he beat Gunther up in the first place) so Gunther grabs a mic.

Gunther goes face to face with Rollins and says it has ticked him off to hear Rollins talk about how he was the best in the world. When Gunther was World Champion and going for the best competition in the world, Rollins became Paul Heyman’s servant. Gunther says it’s personal to him because he wants to prove he’s the best in the world. The fight is on with Rollins knocking him to the floor but Gunther avoids a Stomp on the steps and bails into the crowd. That is a rather basic explanation from Gunther but it’s something that makes perfect sense for him.

We get a video narrated by John Cena advertising Club WWE (which has been shown in graphics for the last few weeks), which is a way to get fans exclusive access to various things. No word on how much it costs but I’ve heard worse ideas.

We see some smoke with red lights flashing over it and….yeah the Demon is officially back to face Dominik Mysterio.

Dominik Mysterio isn’t happy with Adam Pearce for letting this happen but he didn’t sign to face the Demon so the match has to be canceled. That won’t happen, and Pearce doesn’t care for Dominik talking about his father like he’s a loser. Pearce tells him to go look in the mirror because he’ll get what he deserves.

Iyo Sky vs. Kairi Sane

Sane takes her down and pounds away, followed by a running shoulder in the corner. A nice looking top rope forearm and we hit the chinlock. Sky fights up and flips out of a headscissors before taking Sane outside. The moonsault off the barricade drops Sane again and we take a break.

We come back with Sky’s missile dropkick connecting to send Sane into the corner. Over The Moonsault is broken up so they both go up top, with Sky being knocked into the ropes. Sane is knocked down so cue Asuka to send Sky into the post. This brings out Rhea Ripley (Asuka rolls up her sleeves) for the brawl but Jade Cargill runs in to jump Ripley from behind. Sane dives onto Cargill but Asuka breaks up Over The Moonsault again. Sane’s rollup gets the pin at 9:57.

Rating: B. This wound up being a match with a big angle and I got into what we were seeing. The Asuka vs. Ripley brawl didn’t last long but it made perfect sense for all of the run-ins. That’s a nice way to build up a few stories at once and it happened to come with a rather good match as well.

Video on AJ Lee vs. Becky Lynch.

Here are Adam Pearce and HHH for the signing with Oba Femi. Cue Femi, who signs the contract without saying a word. Paul Heyman pops up on stage to say he has never seen someone be perceived as the best around as fast as Femi. Heyman says Femi is the most violent person to come into WWE since Brock Lesnar so the fans chant for OBA.

This annoys Heyman again, but he says that everything comes crashing down for Lesnar at Wrestlemania. Don’t worry though, because Heyman’s door will always be open to him after Wrestlemania. The fans want Femi to beat Heyman up, but Femi says those scars will heal. The emotional beating after he beats Lesnar though? That never goes away. There are twenty five years of history that Lesnar can’t be beaten but Femi has four weeks of evidence that he can. It’s time to end the Beast and everyone can feel it.

Heyman has been Lesnar’s mouthpiece but he has never been an honest one. If Heyman was honest, he would have come out here and said that Lesnar was scared. Femi is the mountain that Lesnar cannot climb and the Beast is being slayed at Wrestlemania. Femi’s delivery isn’t perfect (granted he doesn’t have much experience) but I believed what he was saying and it sounded like he did too, which is a big part.

We get a Liv Morgan music video for a song called Trouble. This is certainly different, but it’s basically just an excuse to have Morgan dancing on TV in various outfits.

Je’Von Evans/Dragon Lee vs. JD McDonagh/Rusev

McDonagh stomps Lee down in the corner to start and hits a hard clothesline. Evans gets knocked off the apron and it’s off to Rusev to keep Lee in trouble. That’s broken up and it’s off to Evans to make the comeback. Rusev gets low bridged to the floor but McDonagh Asai moonsaults onto Lee. Evans dives onto him but gets fall away slammed onto the announcers’ table.

We take a break and come back with Lee’s running hurricanrana to send McDonagh into Rusev. McDonagh is able to catch him with a running Spanish fly so Evans is back with a flipping kick to the head. The huge dive over the top takes Rusev out, leaving Lee to roll McDonagh up for two. The Styles Clash puts McDonagh away at 8:13.

Rating: B-. This was a fast paced tag match with Rusev playing a good monster. That’s something the ladder match has been needing, as it has felt very thrown together. Giving it a bit of attention is a good idea and hopefully they can deliver on Sunday. The problem is that it’s still a bit thrown together, but this was the best build it has gotten thus far.

Post match Rusev wrecks the winners, as is his custom. Rey Mysterio runs in for the save attempt but gets taken out. Cue Penta but Rusev clears the ring again, including taking out McDonagh. Rusev grabs the Accolade on Lee and cranks way back.

Wrestlemania rundown.

Danhausen interrupts Adam Pearce and wants to talk to John Cena on the phone. Cena isn’t on the phone, though Danhausen hopes that he can see him at Wrestlemania. And then Danhausen disappears.

Here is Roman Reigns for the big closing segment. Reigns takes his time to set up the catchphrase but here is CM Punk, in the crowd, to cut him off. Punk takes his own sweet time to get to ringside, where he gets on the announcers’ table. Punk talks about watching the cold open and says stop him when he’s telling lies. Reigns says they won’t need these mics but Punk says this he hates Reigns because he envies him.

This is all Punk has ever wanted and he is jealous that it was handed to Reigns. He hates that Reigns was champion for so long, because he knows how hard Reigns worked to do that. Punk says the legacy is about how many and he hates how many times Reigns has main evented Wrestlemania. He hates that he feels this way before shifting over to Sika (Reigns’ father).

The reality is that Sika was a champion and a great man and a Hall Of Famer. Punk respects the old timers and he apologizes for invoking Sika’s name in vain. He hates that there is more than one royal family in wrestling and he hates that he wasn’t born into a dynasty. Punk doesn’t know what it’s like to have that kind of family. He grew up on the streets of Chicago and had to find his family.

Those people were found in barns, bowling alleys, abandoned churches and VFW halls. Punk conquered the indies and then he went to Japan and England and he made wrestling his home and family. Punk hates that he feels this way and he hates that he has to share his first singles Wrestlemania main event with Reigns. Tell him when he’s telling lies. He has gold on his shoes and gold around his waist, and on Sunday night after their fight, the gold will be around his head because he’ll still be Heavyweight Champion of the World. Tell him when he’s telling lies (Reigns has just stared at him during this whole thing).

Reigns says that’s probably the truest stuff he’s ever heard Punk say, except for the ending. The truth is he’s hated Punk for a long time, but that’s because of the relationship Punk has with the fans. He hopes that they chant for him when he leaves. No one can take away the connection he has with the fans and that’s his truth. The reality is that the time is up because on Sunday it’s not “AND STILL”, because it’s “AND NEW”.

The nostalgia act is through and on Sunday we fix this mess that Punk has made. On Sunday, the Tribal Chief takes over again and you, and everyone else, will acknowledge him. The staredown ends the show. Reigns didn’t get to say much but he didn’t really need to. This was a money promo and felt like a Wrestlemania go home speech from Punk, who showed some rare vulnerability. There have been some problems with this Wrestlemania build but this hasn’t been one of them.

Overall Rating: B. The wrestling wasn’t much here but that’s almost always the case with five days to go until Wrestlemania. This show was mainly focused on talking and the stuff we got worked well, with Punk’s speech and Femi’s response to Heyman going strong. I want to see their matches over the weekend as the Raw half of the shows are looking good. They mostly stuck the landing here, though the weekend is what really matters.

Results
Lyra Valkyria b. Charlotte – Rollup
Usos/LA Knight b. MFT’s – BFT to Loa
Kairi Sane b. Iyo Sky – Rollup
Je’Von Evans/Dragon Lee b. JD McDonagh/Rusev – Styles Clash to McDonagh

Remember to follow me on Twitter and Bluesky @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Monday Night Raw
Date: April 6, 2026
Location: Toyota Center, Houston, Texas
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves

We’re less than two weeks away from Wrestlemania and that means everything has to come together. The good thing is that the Raw side of things has been the better of the two shows and that means we could be in for a nice night. If nothing else, we might be getting some more things set for the pay per view. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Here is a ticked off CM Punk to get things going. Punk sits down in the middle of the ring as we get some dueling chants from the fans. Punk talks about this being a wrestling town and he has some history of his own here. This is Paul Boesch territory and Houston Wrestling. He loves to hear about the old timers and you can’t help but compare yourself to them. Sometimes he dreams and asks what Harley Race would do.

The important things happen when we’re awake though (he gets up) and it’s good to be alive on a Monday night in Houston. The thing is, Roman Reigns isn’t here tonight. Punk recaps his issues with Punk over the last two weeks. Punk gets out on the apron and talks about how Reigns hates him. That’s a good thing, because he won’t trade his authenticity for approval. Not vying for the approval of losers is what prevents him from being one of them. The fans chant for Reigns but Punk says he’s the one who is here. Punk: “And I’m an old man!”

Punk takes off his jacket and stands on the announcers’ table and talks about how this company sent Reigns to Jimmy Fallon. Reigns is there because he’s safe and boring and you know he’s not going to lose it. On the other hand, Punk is someone who could say anything. He can film TV shows and movies and never miss a show but Reigns uses it as a crutch to be gone and then Punk gets booed when he shows up. Reigns puffs his chest around in the back like he’s the Rock, a Hollywood superstar. Punk: “I’m sorry. WAS a Hollywood superstar.”

After that gasp is over, Punk talks about how Reigns got a job because his father was a wrestler because he sucked at football. He calls Reigns a nepo baby who ate dog food for a weird old man. That old man treated Punk like a dog for years but Punk had FU money and walked away. That’s why everyone hates him: they can’t control him. You can’t blackball him and he can blow up his own bridge because he knows how to swim.

He’s not done though because PAT MCAFEE thinks he can come here and get in Punk’s business. Call that agent of his that shoehorned him into the show and tell him to LOWER THE TICKET PRICES. McAfee isn’t coming here and telling him to put people in seats. Lower the ticket prices so everyone in Houston (and their families) can come to Las Vegas and see him take Reigns out. This was Punk in his element as he felt like he was venting, with the part about the ticket prices not being something I was expecting to hear.

We recap IShowSpeed’s issues with LA Knight, who showed up on Speed’s stream and beat him up last week.

Speed is in the back and runs into Danhausen, who will remove the curse in exchange for Speed’s mansion. Adam Pearce shows up and Danhausen disappears. Pearce suggests that Speed go home before it gets worse but the Vision show up and have Speed come to the arena with them.

Austin Theory vs. LA Knight

Logan Paul IShowSpeed are here with Theory, who sends Knight into the ropes to start. Back up and Knight knocks him outside for a change but Theory is back with a ram into the buckle. That earns him another trip to the floor, where Knight clotheslines him into the timekeeper’s area as we take a break.

We come back with Knight grabbing a neckbreaker and hammering away, followed by a Russian legsweep. Another neckbreaker gives Knight two but Theory hits a shot to the face into a Blockbuster. Knight shrugs that off and takes him outside for the rams into the announcers’ table. With Theory back inside, Paul shoves Speed into Knight, who gives chase up the aisle. Cue the Usos to cut Speed off so Speed jumps over Knight, who catches him back inside. Paul’s save doesn’t work but Theory rolls Knight up, with trunks, for the pin at 9:43.

Rating: C. This was a case where the match was mainly a backdrop for everything else going on, which isn’t the worst thing. At the same time, it’s also a case where a DQ would have made a lot more sense. Knight didn’t need to take a fall like this and there was so much else going on that you could have saved a bit of a headache without the pin.

Post match Knight isn’t overly happy but he has an idea for how to even things up a bit: a six man tag at Wrestlemania. Adam Pearce pops up to say he told Speed to go home because the match is official. Yeah that was obvious and it’s not a bad thing to go with what makes sense.

Commentary introduces a video on Pat McAfee’s actions on Smackdown, with Michael Cole having to calm himself down.

CM Punk talks about his favorite Wrestlemania memory: being an extra at Wrestlemania XXII, which he thinks about every time he comes to work.

Finn Balor vs. JD McDonagh

Hold on though as Dominik Mysterio jumps Balor from behind and even mocks Balor’s pose. Balor fights back and goes after McDonagh but Mysterio gets in a belt shot with the AAA Mega Title. McDonagh brings in a chair and Mysterio beats Balor down so he can do the sign point. No match.

We get a video on AJ Lee, including a lot of her time before her hiatus.

Lee sits down with Michael Cole and says she is nervous about her first Wrestlemania in eleven years…and here is Becky Lynch to interrupt. Lynch calls Cole the worst interviewer and commentator in WWE so Cole leaves, telling Lee good luck. Lynch talks about seeing Lee at Wrestlemania XXXI and getting a fake hug but then Lee left the next day. Lee tells her to keep underestimating what Lee can do and cuts her off when Lynch doesn’t like this

The reality is Lynch is a big star but she walked through the doors that Lee opened. This company called her for ten years and the fans never forgot her. When Lynch goes home and asks her daughter who her favorite wrestler is, her daughter will say it’s AJ Lee. See you at Wrestlemania. Lee leaves and Lynch is livid. Keeping Lynch angry and annoyed is a good thing and Lee getting the chance to back up her words should be fun.

Bayley vs. Lash Legend

Lyra Valkyria and Nia Jax are here too. Bayley is knocked outside to start and can’t make much of a comeback before it happens again. We take a break and come back with Bayley knocking her out of the ropes but seeming to have a bad arm. Legend swings her into a backbreaker for two but misses a boot in the ropes. Bayley’s running dropkick sends Legend into the corner, where a knee to the face connects as well.

The middle rope elbow to the back gives Bayley two but Jax interferes, triggering a brawl with Valkyria. Cue Charlotte and Alexa Bliss, with Charlotte hitting Jax with her jacket for some reason. Bayley dives onto all of them and goes up, where Legend tries a superplex. Valkyria breaks that up though and Bayley falls on top for the pin (with Valkyria holding Legend’s foot) for the pin at 8:32.

Rating: C+. Much like the opener, I wouldn’t have had someone get a fall here, but at least it was a challenger pinning a champion, which could be a much bigger deal at Wrestlemania. The interference made sense, though Charlotte’s thing with her jacket was kind of weird. At least the Bellas weren’t involved, which kept things a bit better than they would have been otherwise.

We recap Gunther attacking Seth Rollins last week.

Various celebrities, including Mark Henry, are here.

We look at the trailer for Netflix’s documentary on Hulk Hogan. That could be fascinating or stupid. I’m leaning towards stupid.

Here is Seth Rollins for a chat. Rollins talks about being gone for six months and he’s so glad to be back so he wants to hear the fans singing his song. He’s BACK and in less than two weeks, he faces Gunther at Wrestlemania. Rollins isn’t sure how we got here because he didn’t think he and Gunther had any issues.

The only option is that Gunther must have entered into some kind of agreement with Paul Heyman. Rollins is back and has two goals: get his title back and kill the Vision. They’ve already got some Samoans to deal with and that won’t end well. He also put Brock Lesnar on a silver platter for Oba Femi and yes, Femi is the future.

As for Gunther, if he wants to be in league with Heyman, it has become personal for Rollins. Cue Gunther to try a sleeper but Rollins reverses into one of his own. Gunther slips out and the fight is on, with Rollins kicking him to the floor for the suicide dive. Gunther tosses him away again but security quickly breaks it up. That lets Gunther get in a cheap shot before he leaves.

In the back, Gunther runs into Heyman, who says he doesn’t know why Gunther did what he did last week. As far as Heyman knows, there’s nothing personal between Gunther and Rollins, so Heyman owes Gunther a big thank you. Gunther says it is personal between Rollins and Heyman, so it is personal to Gunther for some different reasons (which he doesn’t reveal). He shakes Heyman’s hand but pulls him in to say Heyman owes him more than he knows. Intriguing.

We look back at Roxanne Perez saving Liv Morgan from Stephanie Vaquer last week.

Vaquer says Morgan’s hair dye must have gotten to her brain if she thinks middle school insults are going to be enough. Morgan is trying to solve her daddy issues with Dominik Mysterio, who is trying to deal with not being as good as his own dad. Vaquer wants to inspire girls but while Morgan says it’s on sight, the truth is she’ll never see it coming.

Penta/Dragon Lee/Je’Von Evans vs. Los Americanos

Bravo and Lee trade some flips and posing to start before it’s off to Rayo for a running headbutt. The dancing lets Evans come in for a springboard hurricanrana as Kofi Kingston is watching from behind. Americano comes in to counter a headscissors into a kind of reverse powerbomb, allowing all three Americanos to pose. That’s broken up and they’re sent to the floor for a set of dives. Back in and Penta and company do the Penta strut as we take a break.

We come back with Penta hitting a double DDT and bringing in Lee before diving onto Americano. Bravo has to save Rayo from a Styles Clash and everything breaks down with a parade of knockdowns. Lee Styles Clashes Bravo but Americano is in for the save. A bunch of superkicks set up Penta’s Mexican Destroyer on the apron. That leaves Evans to hit the OG Cutter to Bravo for the pin at 7:45.

Rating: B-. It was an entertaining match with a bunch of people flying around and going nuts for a short amount of time, which will always work. The ladder match at Wrestlemania still feels a bit out of nowhere, but if very well could just be a big “let’s all do a bunch of high spots”, which should work out well. Then again Evans might break every bone in his body, as he seems likely to do quite often.

Post match Rey Mysterio is back (and Je’Von Evans is completely starstruck) to praise Penta for everything he has done. The ladder match has the potential to be great…and he’s going to be in it too. Penta shakes his hand and says let’s make history.

We look at Cody Rhodes’ promo from Smackdown.

We look at the Wrestlemania six man tag being set up earlier. IShowSpeed realizing he’s in big trouble is still funny.

Video on Oba Femi vs. Brock Lesnar.

We get a video from Asuka, who talks about how Iyo Sky abandoned her and tried to steal Kairi Sane away from her too. Asuka was here to pave the way for them and made sacrifices to make everything better. It was all out of love, but she loved Sky too much. Then Sky rebelled, and it’s time for Asuka to get revenge, including one more lesson in the ring.

Iyo Sky/Rhea Ripley vs. Michin/B-Fab

Jade Cargill is here too. Ripley takes B-Fab down to start and brings Michin in for a big boot. Michin is sent outside but B-Fab is up with a pump kick. A spinning DDT gives B-Fab two and we hit the chinlock. Ripley fights out without much trouble and brings Sky back in to clean house. A double missile dropkick hits Michin and B-Fab and Sky’s suicide dive takes them out again. We take a break and come back with Sky in trouble and Ripley being drawn in off a distraction. Cargill sends Ripley into the steps but Sky sends Michin into the post. That leaves B-Fab to get rolled up for the pin at 7:27.

Rating: C+. The ending came out of nowhere but there is little reason to believe that Michin and B-Fab could win here anyway. The two of them exist to be cannon fodder for Cargill and that’s pretty much all they were here. Ripley and Sky were only ever in so much trouble here and the match wasn’t in the biggest doubt.

Post match the big beatdown is on, with Michin getting a kendo stick. Ripley tries to make the save but gets kicked in the face. Michin and B-Fab hold Ripley back in the corner, leaving Cargill to beat up Sky.

Finn Balor says he taught Dominik Mysterio how to play dirty but play time is over. There’s another side of him that he thought he had buried forever, but Mysterio awakened it. But now it’s back and coming for Mysterio at Wrestlemania. Oh dear.

Dominik Mysterio is nervous about what that means but the rest of Judgment Day tries to calm him down. Mysterio has an idea and leaves wit JD McDonagh. Liv Morgan (in a Wrestlemania XV shirt) talks to Roxanne Perez and thanks her for last week. She knows Finn Balor brought Perez onto the team…and here is Stephanie Vaquer to jump Morgan from behind.

Here are HHH and Adam Pearce to oversee the contract signing between Brock Lesnar and Oba Femi. Paul Heyman interrupts though and handles Lesnar’s introduction, as only he can. Femi comes out as well and Lesnar jumps him on the way into the ring. Femi is right back to ram Lesnar into the post though and they go through the table, with security running in to break it up. Lesnar throws a chair at Femi and security has a lot of work to do to keep them apart as the show ends.

Overall Rating: B-. We are officially in the “Wrestlemania is pretty much set so we’re not going to do much to shake it up” period and that means we might not be in for much great stuff. They added a bit more to the show though and nothing was overly bad. Raw continues to be light years ahead of Smackdown at the moment and while this show wasn’t must see TV, it advanced enough things on the way to Wrestlemania. That’s all it needed to do and it did so well enough.

Results
Austin Theory b. LA Knight – Rollup
Bayley b. Lash Legend – Top rope splash with Lyra Valkyria holding the foot
Penta/Dragon Lee/Je’Von Evans b. Los Americanos – OG Cutter to Bravo
Iyo Sky/Rhea Ripley b. Michin/B-Fab – Rollup to B-Fab

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