Monday Night Raw
Date: September 25, 2023
Location: Toyota Arena, Ontario, California
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett

Things are getting interesting around here again as we are almost up to Fastlane, and this week might actually see something added to the card. Seth Rollins vs. Shinsuke Nakamura should be announced this week, though I think I’ve been saying that for the better part of a month now. Let’s get to it.

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

Here is Cody Rhodes to get things going. After a clip of last week, with Cody saving Jey Uso from the Judgment Day as Drew McIntyre stood and watched, Cody talks about how someone is going to have to go to Smackdown in return for Uso. It also means a disgruntled locker room who wanted to watch Uso sink. He and Uso are not best friends but something tells him “we’re not in the third inning anymore boys” (a reference to Paul Heyman saying the Bloodline story was only in the third inning a few weeks back).

Rhodes say Uso make the right decision by turning down the Judgment Day, but cue Judgment Day (again minus Rhea Ripley) to interrupt. Dominik is booed out of the building, so Rhodes points out that no one likes him. Rhodes mentions Ripley so the fight is teased, only to have Uso run in to even things up a bit.

Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens come in as well and the Judgment Day backs off. Cue JD McDonagh with some chairs so everyone but Priest go inside. Priest realizes this is a bad idea and everyone but Priest gets beaten down. Priest goes in as well and gets beaten down four on one, with Rhodes getting in a loud chair shot to the back to send him running.

Otis vs. Bronson Reed

Maxxine Dupri is here with Otis. They fight over a lockup to start with neither going anywhere. An exchange of clotheslines goes nowhere but another double clothesline sends them both to the floor. Otis hits a running clothesline of his own for a knockdown but Reed hits his own clothesline for his own knockdown. Back in and a Samoan drop hits Otis, setting up the neck crank to slow things down a bit. Otis fights up and they both hit crossbodies to leave them both down. Something close to an Angle Slam drops Reed but Otis misses the Vader Bomb. A backsplash sets up the Tsunami to finish Otis at 4:22.

Rating: C+. This was a match where they didn’t hide what they were going for and there is nothing wrong with that. Commentary described this as big meaty men slapping meat and that Big E. would be happy. It worked well in that regard and Reed wins, as he should be doing on his way (hopefully) back up the ladder.

Becky Lynch is shining her title when Tegan Nox comes in. Lynch wanted Nox to answer last week’s open challenge but Nox says she deferred to the veteran Natalya. Lynch says you need to step on some toes so she’ll see Nox in the ring one day.

Post break Nox comes up to Adam Pearce and asks for the winner of the NXT Women’s Title match. Shouldn’t she be asking Shawn Michaels? Anyway Natalya comes in and says you have to earn title shots, so Pearce makes the #1 contenders match.

Ludwig Kaiser vs. Tommaso Ciampa

Giovanni Vinci is here with Kaiser and this is the result of a backstage argument between Kaiser and Ciampa. Kaiser grabs a headlock to start but Ciampa is back up with some right hands. That doesn’t last long as Kaiser sends him outside and we take a break. Back with Ciampa being sent into the corner but managing a backdrop to the floor.

Ciampa sends him into the steps and grabs the Willow’s Bell for two. The Fairy Tale Ending is broken up so Ciampa settles for a reverse DDT. Vinci offers a distraction though and Kaiser drops Ciampa, only for the referee to be distracted. Ciampa scores with a jumping knee for the pin at 8:18.

Rating: B-. WWE needs to build up new challengers for Gunther and Ciampa is one of the best choices they have at the moment. With Gunther now holding the record, there is more of a reason to believe that the title could change hands and that opens some doors. Beating the minions to get to the big guy is a good way to go and it’s what they’re doing here.

Post match Ciampa says he wants Gunther, who isn’t happy in the back.

Video on Dragon Lee.

Tegan Nox vs. Natalya

Becky Lynch is on commentary and the winner gets the winner of the NXT Women’s Title match at No Mercy. Nox elbows her in the ace to start and hits a sitout gordbuster, followed by the reverse Cannonball in the corner for two. Natalya grabs a suplex but it’s too early for the Sharpshooter. Instead Nox hits the Shiniest Wizard for the pin at 2:36. That’s a good way to bring Nox back.

Damian Priest storms into the Judgment Day’s locker room, where he finds JD McDonagh. Yelling ensues, with Priest saying McDonagh will never be one of them and blaming him for the beating earlier. McDonagh is promptly thrown out.

Here is Seth Rollins for a chat. Rollins says the fans are tired of Shinsuke Nakamura attacking him and asks them to sing his song if they agree. Rollins says he’s challenged Nakamura to fight him in a rematch so if Nakamura isn’t out here right now, he’s moving on. Nakamura pops up on screen to say (in Japanese) that Rollins’ body is failing him, but he wants one last change. At Fastlane. In a Last Man Standing match.

Rollins looks a big unsure but recaps what Nakamura just said. His broken back is a strength and his family will only be ashamed of him if he doesn’t give it everything he has. His family knows he loves them but they know he loves this. Rollins’ 100% makes him the best in the world, so they can get crazy at Fastlane, Last Man Standing.

Ricochet, on crutches after last week’s attack, isn’t done with Shinsuke Nakamura and wants him no matter what happens at Fastlane.

We look at the Judgment Day defeating Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn at Payback to win the Tag Team Titles.

NXT North American Title: Dominik Mysterio vs. Dragon Lee

Dominik, on his own, is defending. They start fast with Lee sending him to the floor and hitting a big running flip dive. Back in and Dominik rolls him into a half crab, with Lee going straight to the rope. A DDT on the apron drops Lee again and we take a break. We come back with Dominik’s frog splash hitting raised knees. Some running dropkicks in the corner have Dominik in trouble as Cole goes over the top in his praise of Lee.

Back up and they trade knees to the face until Dominik gets two off a Michinoku Driver. The 619 misses so Lee hits another knee for two. Lee hits a snappy running hurricanrana off the apron, followed by a sitout powerbomb for two back inside. Dominik manages to counter a running DDT by crotching him on top, setting up the frog splash to retain the title at 10:06.

Rating: B. This was all about making Lee and NXT as a whole look good and they did both of those things rather well. Lee was flying all over the place and looked awesome more than once, though Dominik needed to win a match on his own just to show what he can do. That was even more important after last week’s loss to Cody Rhodes and this worked well on all levels.

We look at Nia Jax’s path of destruction.

Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn are ready to win their Tag Team Titles back. Note that Owens is wearing a Rey Mysterio/Eddie Guerrero shirt. If that’s a very subtle hint at a team having success and then splitting (which it very well may not be), WWE has upgraded their foreshadowing game.

Here is Nia Jax for a chat. She introduces herself as the baddest human in all of WWE. Everyone thought Rhea Ripley would be the big star but Nia squashed her. Shayna Baszler, Zoey Stark, Raquel Rodriguez, Chelsea Green and Piper Niven got squashed too. Anyone else would get that treatment, so cue Stark to go after Jax. Referees break it up rather quickly.

Zoey Stark vs. Nia Jax

Jax runs her over with an elbow to start and hits the running splash in the corner. Stark avoid a charge though and Jax goes shoulder first into the post. Some kicks to the head rock Jax and a springboard missile dropkick knocks Jax into the ropes. Stark tries a fireman’s carry but Jax falls hard onto her instead. A legdrop sends Stark throat first onto the bottom rope and the Annihilator finishes for Jax at 2:42.

Jey Uso didn’t join the Judgment Day because he didn’t want anything to do with any groups. He’ll be watching the Tag Team Title match tonight and will be there if Judgment Day is up to their normal stuff.

Finn Balor congratulates Dominik Mysterio on his win but says Damian Priest isn’t in the best place. Dominik will have their backs in the main event.

Here is Miz for MizTV, with special guest Drew McIntyre. Miz says he would have left Jey Uso to get beaten up last week but McIntyre says they’re nothing alike. That sends Miz into a speech about how they’ve both been the backbone of the company, with McIntyre being the WWE Champion. Then he lost, but had another chance at Clash At The Castle. The Bloodline cost him the title, with Uso being the one to lead a lot of the beatdowns. Then the Judgment Day beat up Uso and…..McIntyre: “Karma’s a b****.” Miz calls McIntyre the Batman of WWE, with Cody Rhodes being the Superman.

Cue New Day (including McIntyre’s scheduled opponent for tonight, Kofi Kingston) to interrupt and they don’t know this McIntyre. The one they know isn’t a coward because the one they know is Big D. But now there seems to have been a bit of shrinkage, as that big sword might not be enough to do the job. Miz gets cut off, with McIntyre saying he was expected to save the day as always.

Rhodes didn’t make a save out of the goodness of his heart, but rather because it was his mess. Kofi says McIntyre should have saved Uso, but McIntyre brings up all of the beatings the Bloodline, including Uso, gave Xavier Woods. Miz gets cut off (McIntyre says “Shut up Miz!” for the third time), leaving Kofi to talk about how McIntyre will always do what’s right. After the fourth SHUT UP MIZ (which the fans chant), McIntyre finally headbutts him down and we’re ready to fight.

Chad Gable gives Otis a pep talk after the loss when Ludwig Kaiser interrupts. They don’t want Kaiser there so Gable sends him off to get brow beaten by Gunther again. And remember: Gable is still coming for Gunther’s Intercontinental Title.

Drew McIntyre vs. Kofi Kingston

Xavier Woods is at ringside and Cole says this was made official during the break, despite Miz saying he wanted McIntyre to beat Kingston up tonight before New Day came out. McIntyre wastes no time in running Kofi over but Kofi is back with the double leapfrogs. The second is pulled out of the air but Kofi is fine enough to hit a running dropkick to the floor. The big dive to the floor takes McIntyre down again and there’s a high crossbody to do it one more time.

We take a break and come back with McIntyre sending him flying off an overhead belly to belly. Kingston manages a quick Fameasser for two and the Boom Drop connects as well. McIntyre grabs the Futureshock but Kingston sidesteps a charge to send him outside. The suicide dive connects but McIntyre gives him a nasty looking Alabama Slam onto the apron. The Claymore misses though and Kingston grabs the SOS for two. Cue Ivar, with Valhalla, to take Woods out, including a running crossbody against the barricade. McIntyre hits the Claymore on the distracted Kingston for the pin at 12:32.

Rating: B-. So that’s more or less the confirmation of McIntyre’s heel turn and it’s pretty overdue at this point. McIntyre has been needing to do something different for a long time now and letting him go evil again isn’t the worst idea in the world. He might not be all the way there yet, but it’s an idea that could have some legs.

Post match Ivar unloads on Kingston as McIntyre looks back, shrugs, and walks away. Ivar hits the moonsault to leave Kingston laying.

Gunther yells at Giovanni Vinci until Ludwig Kaiser interrupts to tell him what Chad Gable said. Gunther isn’t happy with either of them and says Vinci is Kaiser’s responsibility. If either of them screw up, they have a problem. Now Gunther is going to deal with Tommaso Ciampa himself.

Ivar says he took out Xavier Woods because New Day took out Erick. Eye for an eye.

Tag Team Titles: Judgment Day vs. Kevin Owens/Sami Zayn

Judgment Day (Damian Priest/Finn Balor) are defending. It’s a brawl at the bell until Sami snaps off some armdrags to Balor. We take an early break and come back with Sami being taken into champs’ corner so Balor can send him into the buckle. The chinlock doesn’t last long as Sami fights over to the corner for the tag off to Owens. Instead of going after Balor though, Owens goes after the illegal Priest and gets knocked down by Balor.

Priest comes in for the kicks to the chest but Owens comes back with the hockey fight punches. A DDT plants Priest and it’s Sami coming back for some right hands in the corner. The champs are knocked to the floor and there’s a big dive to the floor. We take another break and come back with Sami running the ropes for the tornado DDT on Priest. Owens comes back in to unload on Balor, including the Cannonball. With Priest knocked outside, Owens hits the frog splash for two on Balor as the fans declare this AWESOME.

Balor catches Owens on top but it’s a super Regal Roll to give Owens two more. The Swanton hits Balor’s raised knees and it’s the Sling Blade into the Coup de Grace with Sami having to make the save. South of Heaven is broken up and the hot tag brings in Sami but Dominik Mysterio runs in to break up the Coup de Grace.

Instead it’s a Blue Thunder Bomb for two on Priest as Balor and Owens fight to the floor. Cue Jey Uso to take out Dominik but JD McDonagh runs in to go after Uso. Cody Rhodes runs in as well and the brawl is on in the aisle. A Stunner hits Balor but McDonagh belts Sami in the face so Priest can get the pin to retain the titles at 20:13.

Rating: B. They were getting somewhere in the end with all of the run-ins and craziness and that made you think that something nutty might happen. At the same time, they had McDonagh come in and to redeem himself from earlier and that is a good way to go. There is a strong chance that this is going to set up WarGames in November and that is about as smart of an option as there is for that match at the moment.

Judgment Day celebrates but Rhodes, Uso, Owens and Zayn jump them for the big brawl to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. This show covered a lot of ground, set things up for the future and had some strong action throughout at the same time. That’s a rather nice way to go for three hours and even though Fastlane has a lot more that needs to be done in the next week and a half, at least they have a big Raw match set up. I liked this show a good bit and I want to see where some of these stories are going, so we’ll call this a strong success.

Results
Bronson Reed b. Otis – Tsunami
Tommaso Ciampa b. Ludwig Kaiser – Jumping knee
Tegan Nox b. Natalya – Shiniest Wizard
Dominik Mysterio b. Dragon Lee – Frog splash
Nia Jax b. Zoey Stark – Annihilator
Drew McIntyre b. Kofi Kingston – Claymore
Judgment Day b. Sami Zayn/Kevin Owens – Belt shot to Zayn

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

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AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

Monday Night Raw
Date: September 18, 2023
Location: Delta Center, Salt Lake City, Utah
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett

We’re less than three weeks out from Fastlane and that means it might be time to start announcing something for the show. So far there are no matches officially announced, though you should be able to figure out a few of them without much trouble. Other than that, Becky Lynch is he new NXT Women’s Champion and we’ll likely hear something about that. Let’s get to it.

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

Here is Cody Rhodes to get things going. Before he can get very far though, here is Dominik Mysterio (Cody’s scheduled opponent) to interrupt. Dominik talks about how Jey Uso is going to join the Judgment Day and mentions that Rhea Ripley is out tonight after the attack at the hands of Nia Jax last week.

Cody asks if the fans heard that and thinks that the Dominik/Rhea relationship has some Steve Urkel/Laura Winslow vibes, because Rhea isn’t that into him (he must not have seen the last few seasons). Besides, if you watched last week, it seems that Rhea has eyes for Jey Uso. Cue Finn Balor and Damian Priest to join Dominik before the match.

Cody Rhodes vs. Dominik Mysterio

Non-title. Cody starts fast and suplexes Dominik and grabs a quickly broken Figure Four. Dominik gets in a few shots of his own but walks into the Cody Cutter. Cross Rhodes finishes Dominik at 2:10. That’s a fast lost for Dominik, even against Cody.

Post match Judgment Day stares down Cody but Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn run down to even things up. Judgment Day backs off and leaves. Please not another six man main event. Cody goes to leave again but Owens says cut the music. Owens asks him to get back in the ring because they need to talk about something.

Post break Owens says that Jey Uso is back on Raw because of Cody, which Cody says is correct. Owens talks about everything Jey did to a lot of people, so why is Cody willing to bring him back? Cody says there are people in the back who need to hear this but there are people here who probably already know this. His job is to make these people happy and Jey deserves a second chance. And besides: now the Bloodline is down a member.

Sami tries to play peacekeeper and asks Owens to give Cody and Jey a chance. Owens says he sees where this is going and says sure, he’ll pretend Jey didn’t cost them all the Universal Title and is just one shade of eye liner away from joining the Judgment Day. He won’t trust Jey, but he’ll trust them and they better be right. This is getting interesting and I can always go for that.

We look at Rhea Ripley retaining the Women’s Title over Raquel Rodriguez but getting crushed by Nia Jax after the match was over.

Ripley has bruised ribs and is day to day, the same as Rodriguez, who has whiplash.

Kofi Kingston vs. Ivar

This was going to be a tag match but Erik is out so we’ll do it solo. Kofi can’t headlock Ivar (with Valhalla) down to start so Ivar runs him over with a clothesline. Back up and Kofi hits the jumping elbow, only to get crushed with a seated senton out of the corner. Elbows and right hands get Kofi out of the corner and a top rope shot to the head staggers Ivar.

There’s a running clothesline but it’s too early for the Boom Drop. Instead Kofi kicks him in the head for two but Ivar hits a backdrop to the floor. The big splash off the apron crushes Kofi again and we take a break. Back with Ivar hitting a powerslam and a crossbody drops Kofi for the third time. The top rope splash misses though and Kofi runs the corner for a spinning high crossbody.

The SOS gets two but Ivar tiger bombs him down for the same. Ivar nails a spinwheel kick and hits a Bronco Buster so he goes up top. The top rope splash is loaded up but Valhalla tells him to go bigger, meaning it’s a moonsault (not a bad one either) for two. Kofi fights up and hits a sunset bomb out of the corner, setting up Trouble In Paradise for the pin at 13:04.

Rating: B. That was a heck of a match as Kofi is still good for a pretty awesome performance when he is given the chance. Ivar was more than holding his own here though as the power vs. speed was rolling. Sometimes you find two guys who have surprising chemistry and that was absolute the case here. Rather good stuff.

We look back at Shinsuke Nakamura attacking Ricochet.

Ricochet says he’s the cheat code for Nakamura and tonight it’s game over.

Ricochet vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

Hold o though as here is Seth Rollins to charge at Nakamura and the chase is on, with agents and security breaking it up. Back with the bell ringing and Ricochet backing him into the corner. Nakamura gets in a cheap shot to take over but the kick to the chest is blocked. Instead Nakamura hits a running knee for two and we hit the seated abdominal stretch.

Ricochet fights up but gets kicked back into the corner for a choke. The sliding German suplex is blocked though and Ricochet hits the middle rope moonsault to the floor as we take a break. Back with Ricochet kicking a charging Nakamura down and a handspring elbow does it again. The running shooting star press gets two on Nakamura and a springboard high crossbody does it a second time. Nakamura knocks him outside and Ricochet hits an enziguri before chairing Nakamura down for the DQ at 12:58.

Rating: B-. Well at least Ricochet didn’t get pinned, though having him beat Nakamura down like that at the end was a little weird. Either way, Nakamura is all but guaranteed to go to Fastlane for a rematch with Rollins while Ricochet can continue to be the star of the future, as he has been for years now. It’s kind of his thing and that isn’t likely to change anytime soon.

Post match Ricochet yells at the referee but Nakamura takes his knee out. Ricochet’s knee is destroyed with a chair and the post until Rollins runs in for the save. Nakamura backdrops his way out of a Pedigree attempt though and security breaks it up. Well they do for a bit at least as Nakamura gets in another cheap shot to the bad back to leave Rollins laying.

Post break Rollins needs help getting into the trainer’s room.

Piper Niven and Chelsea Green are ready for Shayna Baszler and Zoey Stark because they’re friends. Niven doesn’t buy that, as Green doesn’t even know where she’s from.

Piper Niven/Chelsea Green vs. Shayna Baszler/Zoey Stark

Non-title. Stark and Green start things off with Stark slugging away and hitting a basement clothesline. A slingshot hilo connects and it’s Baszler coming in for a reverse DDT backbreaker. Stark comes back in, though things seem a bit testy between her and Baszler. A missed charge in the corner staggers Stark though and Niven comes in to plant her for two. Stark gets up and hands it back to Baszler, who takes Niven outside. Cue Nia Jax to send Niven into the steps for the DQ at 3:52.

Rating: C. This was short and more about Jax than anything else. That may be here or there, but it is interesting to have her go after a bunch of different women rather than focusing in on just one to start. Other than that, good for not having the champs lose so soon, as they aren’t exactly the most firmly established in the first place.

Jax wrecks everyone post match and puts the division on notice.

Chad Gable comes up to Adam Pearce and asks for one more shot at Gunther but Pearce says he has to earn it. Bronson Reed comes in and says he’ll be glad to help. The match is on.

We look back at the Rock and Pat McAfee’s surprise cameos on Smackdown.

Damien Priest tries to talk Jey Uso into joining the Judgment Day, which is family instead of relatives. Priest wants an answer tonight.

Chad Gable vs. Bronson Reed

Otis and Maxxine Dupri are here with Gable. Some forearms stagger Reed to start and a missile dropkick does it again. It’s too early for the German suplex so Reed is right back with a powerslam. Reed catches him on top for a gorilla press toss onto the turnbuckle. We take a break and come back with Gable going after the knee. Reed blasts him with a clothesline but Gable grabs the cross armbreaker over the top. Reed’s backsplash only hits knees though and Gable can’t follow up. Gable grabs a sleeper so Reed drops backwards onto him, setting up the Tsunami for the pin at 9:35.

Rating: C+. That’s more than a bit surprising as you wouldn’t expect Gable to lose again so soon. That being said, it’s nice to have Reed get a win, as he is someone who has been in need of that kind of a moment for a good while now. I don’t know if he’s going to get a big showdown moment with Gunther, but I’ll take him getting an important win like this one.

Tommaso Ciampa is done with waiting and is ready to take out Imperium to get what he wants.

Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens still don’t see eye to eye about Jey Uso. Cue Jey, which has Owens walking off but Sami knows he has a big decision to make about Judgment Day.

Here is Becky Lynch to brag about winning the NXT Women’s Title. She wants to be champion that matters though and that means it is time to test herself tonight. Therefore the open challenge is on so here is Natalya to answer. This isn’t what Becky had in mind but Natalya says she deserves it and shoves her down. Ring the bell.

NXT Women’s Title: Natalya vs. Becky Lynch

Lynch is defending and gets sent outside hard to start as we take an early break. Back with Becky hitting a running forearm into the Bexploder for two. Natalya snaps off a release German suplex but the Sharpshooter is countered into a small package. A superplex gives Natalya two more but another Sharpshooter attempt is broken up. Becky hits the missile dropkick, only to have Natalya come back with a discus lariat. The Disarm-Her is countered into a rollup for two but Lynch reverses into a rollup of her own for the pin at 6:14.

Rating: B-. That’s about as Natalya of a match as you’re going to get: she comes in, she isn’t the most thrilling choice, she has a completely fine if not better than that match and then loses again. While she’s the perfect choice to guarantee at least a passable match. On the other hand, it doesn’t matter all that much as the fans don’t seem interested in her no matter what she is able to do in the ring. For a one off match, it high quality, but rather low on the interest levels.

Dragon Lee is in Adam Pearce’s office when Dominik Mysterio comes in to yell at both of them. Lee promises to win the North American Title next week.

Giovanni Vinci vs. Tommaso Ciampa

Ludwig Kaiser is here too as Vinci uppercuts Ciampa into the corner. A clothesline puts Ciampa down again as we see Gunther watching in the back. Vinci gets two off a belly to back suplex but Ciampa strikes away. Ciampa comes back with a Thesz press and a reverse DDT but Kaiser offers a distraction. That doesn’t work for Vinci as Ciampa pulls him into the Sicilian Stretch for the tap at 3:28.

Rating: C. As has been the case with LA Knight in weeks past, what mattered here was that Ciampa got another win. That is how you make someone feel like a bigger deal and they are making it work with him. He’ll have to move up the ladder sooner than later if he is going to, but at least he has a place to start.

Seth Rollins says he’s tired and in a lot of pain but he’s trying to keep it together. He’s tired of these games though and he’s willing to do anything to get Nakamura in the ring. Nakamura can name the time, the place and even the stipulation if he wants. Now Nakamura needs to decide who defines his legacy.

Video on Drew McIntyre vs. Jey Uso.

Drew McIntyre vs. Jey Uso

They talk trash to each other to start until McIntyre shoves him into the corner and asks if this is all he has. Jey ducks a shot in the corner and strikes away but McIntyre is right back with the chops. A snap suplex gives McIntyre two but Jey sends him outside, setting up the dive. Another dive hits McIntyre and here is the Judgment Day as we take a break.

Back with McIntyre hitting the top rope superplex, followed by the Glasgow Kiss. Jey manages a quick Samoan drop for two but the suicide dive is cut off. Back in and McIntyre’s spinebuster gets two, only to have Damien Priest offer a distraction on the floor. Jey get in a hard shot of his own for two but kicks all of Judgment Day down. The distraction lets McIntyre hit the Claymore for the pin at 14:12.

Rating: B-. This was all about the angle rather than the match and McIntyre gets a nice rub with a pin in Raw’s main event. He hasn’t had many such wins for a bit so maybe things are turning around now. On the other hand you have Jey loses, but he should have his hands full with Judgment Day for the time being. Not a great match, but the kind that opens up a lot of doors in a variety of directions.

Post match McIntyre leaves and Uso gets beaten down. McIntyre thinks about making the save but stands still until Cody Rhodes runs in for the real save to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. This show felt more like the NXT of old and that is a good thing. You could almost feel the list of things that they wanted to accomplish being checked off one by one. There were some things set up for the future, but none of those were set up for Fastlane. They still have two Raw’s left before the pay per view, but I’m getting tired of the matches being announced so late in the show’s buildup. Either way, good enough show here, as they got a lot done.

Results
Cody Rhodes b. Dominik Mysterio – Cross Rhodes
Kofi Kingston b. Ivar – Trouble In Paradise
Shinsuke Nakamura b. Ricochet via DQ when Ricochet used a chair
Piper Niven/Chelsea Green b. Shayna Baszler/Zoey Stark via DQ when Nia Jax interfered
Bronson Reed b. Chad Gable – Tsunami
Becky Lynch b. Natalya – Rollup
Tommaso Ciampa b. Giovanni Vinci – Sicilian Stretch
Drew McIntyre b. Jey Uso – Claymore

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

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

AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

Monday Night Raw
Date: September 11, 2023
Location: Scope, Norfolk, Virginia
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett

We have less than a month to go before Fastlane and there isn’t much set for the show so far. In a bit of a confusing way to go, there is a Women’s Title match this week, along with the return of Cody Rhodes. There is something a bit more historic to this show though, as it is the last WWE event before Endeavor officially takes over the company tomorrow. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

We run down the card.

Here is Jey Uso to get things going and my goodness that’s a star’s reaction. Jey says it feels good to be here on Raw but here is Kevin Owens to interrupt. Owens says Uso should be saying he’s on the Kevin Owens Show. There are a bunch of people backstage who do not trust Owens, but a lot of people are saying not to trust Jey. Sami Zayn trusts him but that’s about it, and it’s going to take time to earn Owens’ trust.

Cue the Judgment Day, with Finn Balor saying no one talks to him like that. They respect Jey and Owens doesn’t speak for the locker room. Jey has said no to their offers to join and that’s ok, as Dominik Mysterio said no time after time but here he is. Damian Priest said he thought they were facing Owens and Sami Zayn tonight, but Owens says Sami isn’t here tonight. Owens is ready to fight them all himself, even if it’s one on three. Jey: “Hey Kevin. I’m here too.” Owens is in and Judgment Day is cleared out.

Judgment Day vs. Jey Uso/Kevin Owens

Non-title and Dominik Mysterio is here too. Jey takes Balor down to start and hands it off to Owens for two off a DDT. Priest comes in and stomps away in the corner but it’s right back to Jey with a high crossbody. Jey sends them outside for the dive but Dominik takes out Owens’ bad knee as we take a break.

Back with Owens fighting out of trouble and bringing Jey back in for an enziguri. The running Umaga Attack misses though and Balor kicks him down. Jey grabs his pop up neckbreaker on Balor and fires off superkicks but the Superfly Splash hits raised knees. Owens comes back in with a tornado DDT for two and the spinning brainbuster gets the same on Balor. Jey accidentally superkicks Owens and fights to the floor with Priest, leaving Balor to Coup de Grace Owens for the pin at 12:28.

Rating: B-. The action worked but as you might have expected, this was more about the storytelling elements. Owens doesn’t trust Jey and even though Jey did something nice, he got burned in the end. This feels like another step in a long story, and the good thing so far is Jey feels like a big star who isn’t in over his head.

Post match Owens doesn’t trust Jey at all and limps off on his own.

We look at Raquel Rodriguez vs. Rhea Ripley for the Women’s Title later tonight.

Post break, Kevin Owens doesn’t want to hear from Jey Uso. Of note: Wade Barrett implies that Cody Rhodes had Jey brought to the show.

We look back at last week’s Gunther vs. Chad Gable Intercontinental Title match.

Video on September 11.

Miz vs. Akira Tozawa

Tozawa snaps off a hurricanrana to start but charges into a big boot to cut him off. Miz kicks him down again and sneers, setting up a running knee. Three straight Skull Crushing Finales finish Tozawa at 3:02.

Rating: C. This was what it needed to be as Miz got to wreck Tozawa to get his win back while also looking like a bigger threat to LA Knight this week. That’s part of the serious Miz and it makes for a good moment, as that version of Miz can be rather effective. Now just make it work this Friday.

Raquel Rodriguez is ready to win the Women’s Title because she’s bigger, stronger and angrier than Rhea Ripley.

Shayna Baszler is praising Zoe Stark for her effort last week when Chelsea Green comes in. Green offers her a spot as the new partner since Piper Niven isn’t medically cleared. Baszler offers to hurt her tonight but Green promises to find a new partner. Baszler leaves and here is Niven to say she’s back and cleared.

Here is Imperium for Gunther’s championship celebration. Cue Gunther, in one heck of a suit, to say that to the shock of no one, he is now the longest reigning and greatest champion in history. It means a lot to him, even if the legends who held the title before him contributed nothing. He is running out of competition and from now on he is only competing against himself.

Cue Chad Gable to interrupt and say they had a classic last week. After Gunther won, Gable saw the realization in Gunther’s eyes that he just had the toughest title defense of his career. Gable promises to get the title after having to see his family cried last week. Gunther praises Gable’s abilities but calls him a bad father. The fight is on with Otis’ interference not getting him very far. Tommaso Ciampa chases the three off.

We recap the New Day/Drew McIntyre/Riddle/Viking Raiders ordeal.

Drew McIntyre apologizes to Xavier Woods for throwing the chair at him but Woods is cool with it. Woods brings up the insults to Kofi Kingston from last week and thinks it’s jealousy. Kofi got his big Wrestlemania moment in front of tens of thousands of people, while McIntyre was in front of no one. McIntyre promises pain tonight.

Tommaso Ciampa says he doesn’t like Gunther and Imperium using their numbers advantage, so Otis suggests a six man carnage tonight. Ciampa doesn’t say anything.

Drew McIntyre vs. Xavier Woods

McIntyre starts fast and Glasgow Kisses Woods down. Woods tries to pick up the pace but gets knocked down again, only to send McIntyre to the floor. The dropkick through the ropes connects but the slingshot dive is pulled out of the air. McIntyre throws him over the announcers’ table and we take a break.

Back with Woods slipping out of what might have been a superplex and hitting a powerbomb. A guillotine legdrop gets two on McIntyre but he snaps off the belly to belly. McIntyre neckbreakers him down but walks into a kick to the face for two. The reverse Alabama Slam is countered into a victory roll to give Woods two, followed by a penalty kick for the same. They slug it out and run the ropes until McIntyre nails a heck of a Claymore for the pin at 9:43.

Rating: B-. This was a much edgier McIntyre and that is a good thing. McIntyre has been kind of stale for a long time now and shifting towards a heel turn could be exactly what he needs. At the end of the day, he has the background and abilities to make it work and I’m curious to see how it could go. For now though, I’ll settle for a pretty awesome looking Claymore for the pin.

Here is Cody Rhodes for a chat. Cody wants to talk about Jey Uso but here are Dominik Mysterio and JD McDonagh to interrupt. Dominik says Jey is going to join the team and there isn’t a thing Cody can do about it. The fight is on and Cody cleans house without much trouble.

In the back, Drew McIntyre runs into Jey Uso and says they have unfinished business. McIntyre doesn’t trust him. Jey says cool, but McIntyre says Jey can’t stand on his own two feet. A match is set for next week.

Chelsea Green vs. Shayna Baszler

Piper Niven is here with Green. Baszler wastes no time in taking her down and going after the arm, only to get kicked in the head. The threat of a cross armbreaker sends Green outside but some damage has been done. Back in and the Kirifuda Clutch is countered into a victory roll for two but Baszler Pipers Pit’s her for the pin at 1:50.

Post match Niven goes after Baszler but Zoe Stark comes in for the save.

Shinsuke Nakamura says Seth Rollins isn’t honorable and brings up some of he horrible things Rollins has done. Nakamura will challenge him when he feels like it.

Here is Seth Rollins for a chat. Rollins agrees with all of the bad things Shinsuke Nakamura has said about him and is ready to fight for the title right now. Nakamura’s music plays but we cut to the back where Nakamura is beating up Ricochet. Nakamura will be around.

Finn Balor comes up to Jey Uso in the back and says he likes what he’s been seeing tonight. Jey isn’t sure what to think about this but the Judgment Day’s doors are always open.

Imperium vs. Alpha Academy/Tommaso Ciampa

Maxxine Dupri is here with the Academy and Ciampa. A Thesz press takes Vinci down to start and it’s off to Gable vs. Kaiser. Gable gets the better of things so it’s back to Vinci, with Kaiser low bridging Gable to the floor. Gable gets sent into the corner for the triple kick and we take a break.

Back with Gable not being able to dive over for a tag as Gunther knocks his partners to the floor. Gable finally takes Gunther down and brings Ciampa back in to pick up the pace. A reverse DDT gets two on Vinci, who is back up with a heck of a clothesline. Otis comes in and gets to clean house, including the Caterpillar to Kaiser. A missed charge sends Otis into the post though and it’s a double tag to bring in Gable and Gunther for the showdown.

Gunther snaps off a German suplex but the powerbomb is rolled through into an ankle lock. Vinci comes in and gets ankle locked as well, setting up Chaos Theory for two. With everyone else fighting on the floor, Gable ankle locks Vinci. Gunther tries to dive in for the save but Ciampa grabs the Sicilian Stretch to slow Gunther down and make him watch Vinci tap at 13:06.

Rating: B. This was a fast paced almost non-stop action match, especially after they went nuts after the break. Otis continues to have that weird charisma to him that makes even his goofy stuff look good, but this was again about Gunther vs. Gable. They’re likely to have another match at Fastlane and Gable almost has to win the title after this much hype.

Judgment Day is ready for the main event.

NXT Women’s Champion Tiffany Stratton is in the back to complain about how Becky Lynch isn’t here. Cue Lynch, so Adam Pearce wants to get the contract signed. First though, Stratton says she has been nothing but nice to Lynch, who is coming after the title anyway. Lynch says she sees all of the potential in Stratton so it’s time to bring her to the big time. Lynch signs as Stratton says she’s ready to prove she’s the best. Stratton signs as well and walks off.

Raw Women’s Title: Rhea Ripley vs. Raquel Rodriguez

Ripley is defending and they take turns showing off the power to start. A powerslam gives Rodriguez two and we hit the bearhug. Ripley slips out and sends her outside for a dive off the steps, followed by some right hands back inside. Ripley misses a charge into the corner though and Rodriguez hits a big boot as we take a break.

Back with Ripley tying up the leg while hammering away at the same time. With that broken up, Ripley drops her in the corner, setting up a headscissors choke. Rodriguez powers up and drops Ripley on the corner for the break. They trade running forearms until stereo big boots put them both down.

Back up and they slug it out until Ripley gets two off a northern lights suplex. Riptide is blocked though and Rodriguez plants her down for two. Ripley knocks her down again and hits a frog splash for two and they head outside again. This time Ripley’s cannonball is countered into a swing into the announcers’ table, followed by an apron powerbomb. Ripley is thrown back in…..and Nia Jax returns to take out Rodriguez. Back in and Riptide retains the title at 15:43.

Rating: B-. They were having the hoss fight here and Rodriguez was going step for step with Ripley but then the ending happened. It’s a big shock to have Jax return, but unless she has improved a good bit since the end of her last run, it might not be the best addition. If she can move out there well enough and is a good bit safer then cool, but otherwise I’m not sure about this.

Post match Jax hits a Banzai Drop on Ripley to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. There was enough good action on this show to make the three hours go by pretty quickly and that’s the best thing that can be said about most Raw’s. The ending is the big moment of the show, along with what feels like a Drew McIntyre heel turn. I’m curious about where some of these things are going and Jey Uso feels like an actual high level star as he is sprinkled throughout the show. This week was more about setting things up for later and on that front, it was a good success.

Results
Judgment Day b. Kevin Owens/Jey Uso – Coup de Grace to Owens
Miz b. Akira Tozawa – Skull Crushing Finale
Drew McIntyre b. Cody Rhodes – Claymore
Shayna Baszler b. Chelsea Green – Piper’s Pit
Alpha Academy/Tommaso Ciampa b. Imperium – Ankle lock to Vinci
Rhea Ripley b. Raquel Rodriguez – Riptide

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

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AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

Monday Night Raw
Date: September 4, 2023
Location: Spectrum Center, Charlotte, North Carolina
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett

We’re done with Payback and Seth Rollins has retained the Raw World Title over Shinsuke Nakamura. However, Nakamura attacked him again after the show was over so we might be in for a rematch. That would likely be at Fastlane in a little over a month, but we have some time to set that up. Let’s get to it.

Here is Payback if you need a recap.

Payback recap.

Opening sequence.

Here is Jey Uso, through the crowd, for his Raw debut. He talks about being introduced by Cody Rhodes and some people aren’t going to be happy that he’s here. Cue Sami Zayn to say that’s true, but Sami is indeed happy that he’s here. Sami extends his hand but Jey doesn’t move. That’s cool with Sami, who says he’s happy to wait and will talk whenever Jey is ready. Sami goes to leave but Jey says that wasn’t very Ucey of him. Jey holds out his hand and Sami hugs him, so everything is cool. As they leave, Jey runs into Drew McIntyre and Matt Riddle, both of whom stare at him but nothing gets violent.

We look at Seth Rollins vs. Shinsuke Nakamura from Payback.

Ricochet is asking Adam Pearce for an opportunity when Seth Rollins comes in. Pearce isn’t happy he’s here because of the medical report on his back and Jey Uso. Rollins: “Uso schmuso. Medical schmedical.” Ricochet says Rollins doesn’t have to carry the show himself when he has help but Rollins insists he’s fine.

Of note: we cut back to McIntyre and Riddle waiting in the ring for their match to start, with McIntyre being heard saying “we’ve been out here forever”.

Drew McIntyre/Matt Riddle vs. Viking Raiders

Tornado tag and Valhalla is here with the Vikings. They start fast and the Vikings get dropped, allowing McIntyre to flip Riddle onto Erik for two. The Vikings are sent outside, with McIntyre suplexing Riddle onto them. It’s already time for the table (why there is a monitor under the ring isn’t clear) and we take a break. Back with McIntyre saving Riddle from a splash through a table. A double superplex to Ivar misses the table as well but Erik is back up.

McIntyre suplexes his way out of trouble and hits a Death Valley Driver on Ivar. Another suplex on the floor drops Erik but Ivar dives off the announcers’ table with a splash to McIntyre. Riddle is back up to clean house but the Vikings are back up thanks to Valhalla interference. Cue Kofi Kingston to break up Ragnarok but he accidentally hits Riddle with Trouble In Paradise. Kofi is tossed at McIntyre and a double powerbomb through the table finishes Riddle at 9:40.

Rating: B-. It was the usual wild brawl as this was basically another version of a street fight. The Kofi interference going the wrong way opens up some doors as we are likely heading towards a triple threat tag team match. It’s a story that has been going for a few weeks now and isn’t losing steam so well done on putting things together well enough.

In honor of tonight’s main event, we look at some legends who held the Intercontinental Title over the years.

Here is Seth Rollins for a chat. Shinsuke Nakamura brought it on Saturday and Rollins didn’t know if he could continue the fight, but he’s still the champ. Then Nakamura attacked him after the match, meaning Nakamura walked out of the arena but Rollins was wheeled out by his wife. So Nakamura can get out here right now and we’ll finish this.

Cue Nakamura, who won’t get in the ring. Therefore, Rollins offers to put the title on the line right now. Nakamura responds in Japanese, which Rollins takes as a yes, so let’s ring the bell. Nakamura: “No.” Rollins is confused so Nakamura says it again, which makes it even more confusing. That doesn’t work for Rollins, who charges up the aisle and the fight is on. Security is here to break it up but Nakamura gets in some knees to the back. Ricochet makes the real save.

Post break Adam Pearce tells Rollins that he’s going too fast and Pearce is just trying to protect him.

Ricochet vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

Nakamura bails tot he floor to start but Ricochet throws him back in. A suplex doesn’t work for Ricochet and Nakamura hits a middle rope knee to the face. Nakamura hits the sliding German suplex and we take a break. Back with Nakamura striking away as Rhea Ripley and Damian Priest are watching backstage. Ricochet hits a running boot in the corner and the running shooting star press gets two. Nakamura kicks him in the head but Ricochet hits the Recoil for two of his own. They head to the floor with Ricochet being driven into the barricade. Then Nakamura hits him with a chair for the DQ at 9:32.

Rating: C+. They only had so much time here but there is something to be said about Ricochet as Rollins’ buddy, as he can hold his own against a lot of people. One thing that helps that theory is the lack of a pin here, as Ricochet was in trouble but lost via DQ. That helps quite a bit and for some reason it is often overlooked.

Post match Nakamura wraps a chair around Ricochet’s neck but Seth Rollins runs in for the save. Security can’t break it up so Nakamura drives him into the steps. Ricochet makes the real save with a chair. We cut to the back where Rhea Ripley tells Damian Priest “not tonight”.

We look at Becky Lynch beating Trish Stratus at Payback, with Zoey Stark turning on Trish after the match.

Zoey Stark says she respects Stratus, but no one pushes her around. Shayna Baszler (oh yeah she’s supposed to be a thing now) comes in to say she’s glad Stark got rid of the dead weight. Stark wants a match tonight so Baszler says show her something.

Here is Judgment Day for a chat. Dominik Mysterio is of course booed out of the building as he tries to go over what the team managed to do at Payback. Finn Balor thanks the team for everything they have done, including Damian Priest, who has had some issues with him, but now they’re the champs. Balor thanks JD McDonagh for having his back but also himself, as he is now Grand Slam Finn. Rhea Ripley is proud of the team for rising to the occasion, but now people are talking about Jey Uso instead of the team.

Cue JD McDonagh to say that the team needs some kind of a change. That would be a new briefcase for Priest, with the new version being blue and saying Senor Money In The Bank. Cue Sami Zayn to say he hears a bunch of talking but wants Mysterio tonight. McDonagh steps in instead though and the match seems to be set.

More Intercontinental Champions.

Gunther is ready to be in the history books and he’ll prove it tonight.

Adam Pearce gives Raquel Rodriguez something. Chelsea Green comes in to say the Women’s Tag Team Titles are NOT cursed and someone like Rodriguez isn’t getting them. The thing that Pearce gave her by the way? A match with Green.

Zoey Stark vs. Shayna Baszler

Baszler takes her down fast and starts in with the strikes to the arm. They fight to the floor where Stark has to get out of a choke. The big dive drops Baszler again and we take a break. Back with Stark kicking Baszler down and hitting a springboard dropkick for two. Baszler kicks her down for two more but has to block the Z360. Instead Stark knocks her to the floor and hits a splash off the apron. Back in and Stark misses a springboard splash, allowing Baszler to grab the Kirifuda Clutch for the (eventual) knockout at 8:52.

Rating: C. This is a good example of a match that probably shouldn’t have been made. You had Baszler get the big win at Summerslam but then Stark had her big moment two days ago. With both of them needing to follow up on things, having the match means one of them is probably going to have to lose. Why do it in the first place then?

Respect is shown post match.

Judgment Day wants JD McDonagh to prove himself and Finn Balor agrees. They’re off to keep an eye on things. Rhea Ripley tells Dominik to go take care of this.

Raquel Rodriguez vs. Chelsea Green

Green tries to bail to start and is quickly ragdolled. Some shots to the face don’t do much to Rodriguez, who catches a crossbody and plants Green. A hard clothesline sets up the Tejana Bomb for the pin on Green at 1:40.

More famous Intercontinental Champions.

Chad Gable, with the Alpha Academy, is ready to win the Intercontinental Title.

It’s time for MizTV and Miz isn’t happy about that loss to LA Knight. He accuses Knight of being in league with John Cena and wants an explanation. Cue Cena….or at least the invisible version. Miz yells at him as they have a seat, and Miz apparently gets a confirmation that Cena cheated. Therefore, the loss to Knight should NOT count.

Miz tells Cena to get out and the fight is on, with Miz hitting the Skull Crushing Final. Miz says there is nothing invisible about how unfair that loss was, so now he wants a rematch with Knight. That was certainly different and I’m not sure if that’s good or not. Knight vs. Miz doesn’t need to continue though and the fact that it is isn’t a good sign.

Video on Gunther vs. Chad Gable.

Jey Uso runs into Adam Pearce and says Smackdown is getting compensation for the trade for Jey (It was a trade?) and it’s going to tick people off. Jey leaves and Tommaso Ciampa comes in to see Pearce to continue some conversation they’ve been having.

JD McDonagh vs. Sami Zayn

McDonagh bails to the floor to start but takes over back inside. They trade chops in the corner before heading outside, where McDonagh rams him into the announcers’ table. We take a break and come back with Sami fighting out of a chinlock and hammering away in the corner. A backdrop sets up the Michinoku Driver for two on McDonagh. Sami loads up the Helluva Kick but cue Dominik Mysterio to break it up. The villains are both beaten up but McDonagh grabs a rollup with tights for the pin at 8:00.

Rating: C+. Not a bad match, with McDonagh getting a needed win. McDonagh has been up and down throughout his time on the main roster so maybe this is the next step for him. At the same time, that’s back to back falls for Sami, who is mostly bulletproof but doesn’t need to lose over and over.

Post match Sami fights up and hits the Helluva Kick on McDonagh as Mysterio leaves.

We look at Tiffany Stratton interrupting Becky Lynch after Payback.

More Intercontinental Champions.

Judgment Day is pleased with JD McDonagh but Dominik Mysterio goes over to see Jey Uso. They have a lot of things in common, like coming from a broken family. If Jey is interested, there are open arms in the Judgment Day. Jey doesn’t say no.

Here’s what’s coming next week.

Intercontinental Title: Chad Gable vs. Gunther

Gunther is defending and after the Big Match Intros, a headlock takeover puts Gable down. Back up and Gable dropkicks him to the floor as we take a break. We come back with Gable cranking on the leg over the ropes. The leg is fine enough for a big boot and the hand is fine enough for a chop but Gable is right back up. Gable unloads in the corner but Gunther kicks him out to the floor as we take another break.

Back again with Gable reversing a powerbomb into a hurricanrana to the floor. Gunther kicks him down and goes up, only to have Gable run the corner for a superplex. The ankle lock is broken up but Gable suplexes his way out of a sleeper. Rolling Chaos Theory gets two and the grapevined ankle lock goes on. That’s broken up as well and Gunther gets the sleeper. With that broken up, Gunther hits a sleeper suplex into the powerbomb into the hard clothesline to retain at 16:03.

Rating: B. They were rolling by the end and made the most out of a rough situation. Gunther has gone over a year as champion and will break the record for longest reign ever later this week. There is no reason to take the title off of him here, so Gable was tasked with making the most out of a rough situation. It was a heck of a fight here near the end, but this was the only way it should have gone.

Gunther leaves but gives Gable a respectful look to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. This was a bit of a tighter show, with multiple stories running throughout the show. That made for a good night, as you can see where multiple stories are probably going. On top of that, you had a heck of a main event as Gunther is all but guaranteed the record for longest Intercontinental Title reign of all time. Solid show here, which is even better coming off a pretty unimportant pay per view.

Results
Viking Raiders b. Drew McIntyre/Matt Riddle – Double powerbomb through a table to Riddle
Ricochet b. Shinsuke Nakamura via DQ when Nakamura used a chair
Shayna Baszler b. Zoey Stark – Kirifuda Clutch
Raquel Rodriguez b. Chelsea Green – Tejana Bomb
JD McDonagh b. Sami Zayn – Rollup with tights
Gunther b. Chad Gable – Lariat

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

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AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

Monday Night Raw
Date: August 28, 2023
Location: FedEx Forum, Memphis, Tennessee
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett

It’s the go home Raw for Payback and the card is mostly set. There are still a few things that need to be either set up or at least finalized a bit more and hopefully that makes for an entertaining show. Odds are we’ll also be seeing something in the way of tributes to Bray Wyatt and Terry Funk. Let’s get to it.

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

In Memory Of Terry Funk and Bray Wyatt.

Sami Zayn vs. Damian Priest

This is a preview of the newly announced Tag Team Title match at Payback, where Sami and Kevin Owens will defend against Priest and Finn Balor. Priest’s headlock doesn’t last long as Zayn sends him out to the floor and hits a springboard moonsault. Back in and Priest blasts him with a clothesline, followed by the Broken Arrow for two.

Zayn is sent outside for a Downward Spiral onto the announcers’ table and we take a break. We come back with Zayn hitting a sunset bomb for two and the Blue Thunder Bomb gets the same. Zayn exploders him into the corner but here is JD McDonagh for a distraction so Priest can hit South Of Heaven for the pin at 11:30.

Rating: C+. This is the standard way to build towards a Tag Team Title match in WWE and I would bet on an Owens vs. Balor match later in the night. The McDonagh factor makes it more interesting but we might be waiting to see that one go anywhere. For now though, we got a decent enough match as Priest gets the win while Zayn is protected in a loss.

Post match Priest shoves McDonagh down and leaves, with Kevin Owens coming in to beat McDonagh up again.

Drew McIntyre has a new photo of himself in bright green trunks, which Akira Tozawa finds a bit disturbing. Matt Riddle comes in to suggest they get matching kilts and watch New Day vs. the Viking Raiders tonight.

Video on Raquel Rodriguez wanting to get revenge on Rhea Ripley.

Here is the Miz dressed as LA Knight and we have an impression. Miz mocks the way Knight speaks and switches between YEAH and WHAT. He knows it takes more than a catchphrase to get your support and whips out a bag of LA Knight shirts. If you want a free shirt, give him a H*** YEAH. Miz takes off the gear and talks about how pathetic the fans are. They’ll cheer for anything and the party is over when he beats LA Knight for good. You can cheer for catchphrases and losers and in five days, they’ll be chanting M-I-Z, YEAH! Miz was fired up here and it worked as usual.

We look back at Shinsuke Nakamura talking about Seth Rollins’ back injury.

New Day vs. Viking Raiders

Drew McIntyre and Matt Riddle (taking notes) are at ringside. Woods headlocks Erik to start but it’s off to Ivar to take over without much time. That’s broken up and Kofi comes back in to strike away. The kick in the corner sets up a high crossbody for two on Ivar, who needs a breather. The big no hands dive takes Ivar out again and we take a break.

Back with Kofi having to dropkick his way out of trouble. Commentary references Barbarian of all people as they talk about Valhalla wearing antlers at ringside and Kofi gets dropped with a forearm for two. Ivar forearms Kofi down and Erik adds a boot as the beating continues. Ivar’s chinlock doesn’t last long and he misses a sitdown splash.

Kofi gets over to Woods so the pace can be picked up but Erik grabs a full nelson onto a raised knee. Everything breaks down and Kingston is driven into Riddle and McIntyre. The latter throws a chair inside and another hits Woods HARD in the face (he seemed to be aiming for Erik). Ivar dives onto McIntyre and Ragnarok finishes Kofi at 17:08.

Rating: C+. This got a lot of time (likely too much) and was more about Riddle and McIntyre interfering than anything else. McIntyre throwing the chair at Woods’ head was a nasty looking crash and should set up a triple threat match. Good stuff here, but it went longer than it needed to.

Post match Kofi, McIntyre and Riddle check on Woods.

Finn Balor and Damian Priest argue about JD McDonagh again and Rhea Ripley has to calm things down again. She already has to deal with Raquel Rodriguez and if the team doesn’t walk out of Payback with Gold, there are going to be some changes.

We get the full Bray Wyatt tribute from Smackdown.

Drew McIntyre and Matt Riddle ask Kofi Kingston about Xavier Woods, with Kofi saying he’ll be ok. He knows it was an accident because that’s not what Drew is about. Next week, Drew and Riddle are dealing with the Viking Raiders.

Here is Imperium for a chat. Gunther, standing on the announcers’ table as usual, talks about how Chad Gable defeated him last week….by countout. In reality, Gable won nothing, because Gunther is still the champion. The only thing Gable has achieved is making him mad, and now Gable has his focus. If Gable is the last thing left between him and the longest title reign in history, so be it. Cue the Alpha Academy, with gable saying Gunther is making some good points. Next week, Gable is taking the title away.

Chad Gable vs. Ludwig Kaiser

Gable wrestles him down to start and sends things outside for a flip dive off the apron. We take a break and come back with Gable bridging up from a wristlock and taking him down with a drop toehold. Kaiser shoulders him down as well though, only to have Gable come back with a roll into the ankle lock.

That doesn’t work either as Kaiser blasts him with a clothesline. The armbar over the ropes slows Kaiser down again but he knocks Gable outside with a heck of a slap. We take another break and come back again with Kaiser dropkicking him out to the floor. Back in and Gable goes after the leg but can’t get a German suplex.

Instead Kaiser kicks him in the face for two but gets caught with a neckbreaker. Gable misses the moonsault, only to come back with something like a Gory Stretch into a Dominator for two. A Cactus crossbody puts Kaiser on the floor and Gable moonsaults down onto Kaiser and Giovanni Vinci at the same time. Back in and the ankle lock is broken up so Gable grabs Chaos Theory…but Vinci comes in for the DQ at 18:08.

Rating: C+. Wait what? They had the #1 contender go 18 minutes with the champ’s chief goon and then he can’t even get a pin? Not only should Gable have won this clean after taking out an interfering Vinci, but he should have done it in about ten minutes less. I don’t get this one and it didn’t do Gable any favors at all.

Post match the brawl is on with Gunther coming back in. Gunther’s powerbomb is countered into an ankle lock but Gable is beaten down anyway.

Here is Seth Rollins to call out Shinsuke Nakamura. After taking his time to soak in some singing, Rollins throws in a YOWIE WOWIE before saying who he is. It has been a long week so he’ll get to the point and calls out Nakamura right now. There’s no Nakamura, so Rollins is off to drink.

Cue Nakamura on the screen in a video, as he practices with various weapons as well as grappling. The voiceover (with captions) talks about how he is going to stop Rollins. This doesn’t impress Rollins, who wants the OLD Nakamura back. A year ago, Rollins would have given him the shirt off his back but not anymore. On Saturday, Rollins will lay him out, so Nakamura will know that he is never getting anything else from him. Cue Nakamura to jump him from behind and whisper something else to Rollins.

Sami Zayn is sick of Judgment Day always using the numbers game to win. We’ll do it one more time, but it’s going to be in a Steel City Street Fight.

Bronson Reed vs. Tommaso Ciampa

Reed jumps him downing the entrance but gets kneed down as we take a break before the bell. We come back joined in progress with Reed crossbodying him down to cut off an early comeback. Ciampa avoids a charge and manages an Air Raid Crash but Reed is back with a powerbomb. Reed knocks him off the apron and hits a flying shoulder from said apron for the big crash. Back in and Willow’s Bell into a running knee to the face gives Ciampa two. Ciampa gets back up and grabs a crucifix bomb for the pin (despite barely being able to get the shoulders down) for the pin at 4:38.

Rating: C. Not much to this one and the ending didn’t help things. It feels like these two and a few others have been trading wins for weeks now and no one has really come out looking better. What matters here is Ciampa gets a win for a change, but it doesn’t make much of a difference if there is no follow up.

Becky Lynch is ready for Trish Stratus in a cage and for Zoey Stark in a falls count anywhere match. It’s not the easy way and that’s fine with her.

Here are Dominik Mysterio and Rhea Ripley for a chat (and NXT Women’s Champion Tiffany Stratton is in the crow). Ripley doesn’t think much of Raquel Rodriguez, even if she has a resume of her own. Like being tall! Either way, Ripley is keeping the title at Payback. Cue Rodriguez for the brawl with a fall away slam sending Ripley flying. The Riptide is blocked and Ripley gets clotheslined to the floor.

Trish Stratus and Zoey Stark are ready for Becky Lynch.

Payback rundown.

We get the Terry Funk video tribute from Smackdown.

Zoey Stark vs. Becky Lynch

Falls count anywhere and Trish Stratus is here with Zoey. They both grab kendo sticks to start with Becky beating her down. They head outside where a Trish distraction lets Stark get in a cheap shot. A springboard missile dropkick connects so Trish throws in some chairs….one of which hits Stark in the head (meaning commentary is all over Trish).

There is a pile of chairs in the ring but Lynch pulls her off the top. The Z360 is countered into the Manhandle Slam for two, with Trish making the save. Becky gives chase but has to pull a kendo stick away from Trish. The beating sends Trish up the ramp, only to have Zoey get in a chair shot to the ribs as we take a break.

Back with Becky throwing Zoey over the barricade and back to ringside for a suplex into the barricade. They get back inside where Stark chairs her down again as Michael Cole is standing up on commentary for some reason. A slingshot springboard corkscrew dive hits the chair on Lynch so Stark goes up again. Becky catches her with a superplex onto the chairs and we head outside.

This time the Manhandle Slam onto the announcers’ table is loaded up but Stark escapes and kicks her in the face. Trish is back with a bulldog through a well placed table for a rather delayed two. A double bulldog is broken up and Stark accidentally takes Trish out. The Manhandle Slam off a crate and through a table finishes Stark at 16:11.

Rating: B. They were going for the big fight feel here with Becky overcoming the odds, but that only worked so well as it felt like a handicap match instead of a showdown with Stark. At the same time, this didn’t really make me want to see a Lynch vs. Trish cage match, as Trish was mostly vanquished here. This whole feud has been a bit of a mess and I don’t see the blowoff on Saturday going great either.

Lynch holds up a BRAY armband to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. This was an up and down show with the main event being the best match on the card. At the same time, there wasn’t much added to Payback, save for a Tag Team Title match which was hardly a surprise. Instead they had a wrestling heavy show this week and that is a nice thing to see every so often. They needed a steady show like this after all of the rough news last week, so this was about as good of a choice as they had available. It worked well enough, but save for the main event, there isn’t much you need to see here.

Results
Damian Priest b. Sami Zayn – South Of Heaven
Viking Raiders b. New Day – Ragnarok to Kingston
Chad Gable b. Ludwig Kaiser via DQ when Giovanni Vinci interfered
Tommaso Ciampa b. Bronson Reed – Crucifix bomb
Becky Lynch b. Zoey Stark – Manhandle Slam through a table

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

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AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

Monday Night Raw
Date: August 7, 2023
Location: Target Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett

We’re done with Summerslam and the wasn’t much on the Raw side. Finn Balor again failed to win the World Title from Seth Rollins, Damian Priest still has the Money In The Bank briefcase and Cody Rhodes beat Brock Lesnar again. Payback is in about a month and that means it’s time to start the build up. Let’s get to it.

Here is Summerslam if you need a recap.

Long Summerslam recap video.

We’re commercial free for the first hour.

Here is Cody Rhodes to get things going. Cody talks about how he was face to face with one of Minneapolis’ own at Summerslam and defeated him when he beat Brock Lesnar. After the match, Lesnar shook his hand, which was Lesnar ACKNOWLEDGING him. Now Rhodes feels like he could beat anyone in the world….and here is Seth Rollins to interrupt. Rollins (in yellow sunglasses and what look like massive yellow Crocs) to say he is thanking Cody for helping him, but let’s put this “I can beat anyone” to the test.

Cue Judgment Day (minus Finn Balor) to say they run Raw, including determining the title matches. Dominik Mysterio is the REAL workhorse around here. Dominik takes the mic but Balor runs in through the crowd and the beatdown is on. Sami Zayn runs in for the save and the good guys stand tall. Cody throws out the challenge for the six man main event.

Earlier today, Ricochet complained to Adam Pearce about Logan Paul’s brass knuckles. Pearce can’t do anything, but Chad Gable, Riddle and Tommaso Ciampa all come in to interrupt. It’s a four way and the winner gets an Intercontinental Title shot against Gunther. Everyone gets in their promises of winning.

Ricochet vs. Matt Riddle vs. Chad Gable vs. Tommaso Ciampa

One fall to a finish and the winner gets a future Intercontinental Title shot. Feeling out process to start with no one getting anywhere. Gable and Riddle grab stereo ankle locks but Ricochet and Ciampa make the ropes. That leaves us with Riddle vs. Gable but Ciampa is back in to send Gable outside. Ricochet drops Ciampa with a springboard clothesline for two but Riddle gets the same off a fisherman’s buster.

Gable is back in to faceplant Riddle for two, with Ciampa coming back in with a reverse DDT or two. Ricochet flips out of the Fairy Tale Ending and the Benedriller gets two more. Everyone goes to the corner for a huge Tower Of Doom, with Ricochet bouncing off the mat for a rather funny facial. Gable ankle locks Ciampa, whose rope grab means nothing. Instead Riddle makes the save and knees Gable but has to take Ricochet out instead.

Another knee rocks Ciampa and a superplex makes it worse. Gable and Ricochet both come off the top but dive onto knees, giving Riddle and Ciampa stereo two counts. Ricochet hits a big flip dive to the floor but dives back into Ciampa’s kick to the face. Project Ciampa gets two so Riddle hits the Bro Derek, with Gable making the save off a top rope splash. Gable is back up with Chaos Theory to Ciampa for the pin at 10:06.

Rating: B. The action was pretty much non-stop here and it was cool to see these four getting to showcase what they can do. Gable, the hometown boy, gets another shot at Gunther, which makes last week’s loss a bit more questionable. Leave the five minute time limit thing alone and it would work but instead we’re getting a rematch after Gunther already beat him. Either way, good match here, with all of the moves you could want.

Post match Gable gets to celebrate, even carrying his son around the ring.

Video on Cody Rhodes vs. Brock Lesnar.

Sami Zayn has to play peacemaker between Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins. They’re cool enough to work together to fight the Judgment Day, but Sami doesn’t buy it.

Video on Roman Reigns vs. Jey Uso.

Miz is told he has to wait as LA Knight has a photo shoot.

Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Bronson Reed

Reed powers him up against the ropes to start and runs Nakamura over. Nakamura’s shots to the face have little effect as Reed shoulders him down again. Back up and Nakamura hits a running knee into a sliding kick to the face. Good Vibrations shakes Reed up but he runs Nakamura over again as we take a break (it’s not the end of the first hour yet but I guess picture in picture doesn’t count as a commercial).

Back with Nakamura hitting the middle rope knee and scoring with a running kick to the chest for two. Reed grabs a running powerbomb for the same and a Death Valley Driver gets two more. Nakamura’s spinning kick barely grazes Reed, who hits a hard clothesline. The Tsunami misses though and back to back Kinshasas finish Reed at 11:51.

Rating: C+. This has been a nice feud but I don’t really need to see them fight again. It’s also more than a little weird that Nakamura was showing no signs of last week’s heel turn, which had been built up for a few weeks. Reed losing again isn’t great, but at least Nakamura took some work to put him down. Just let them both move on.

We look back at Rhea Ripley attacking Raquel Rodriguez in recent weeks.

Ludwig Kaiser comes in to the Alpha Academy locker room to suggest that Maxxine Dupri (here alone) would be better off with Imperium (or at least Kaiser). She slaps him in the face and Otis pops up to issue the challenge for tonight. Deal.

Here is Becky Lynch for a chat. She is tired of dealing with Trish Stratus and she is ready to wrap this up next week. It’s the greatest of the previous generation vs. the greatest of this generation (and the next and the next and the next) but here is Zoey Stark to interrupt. She doesn’t like all of this badmouthing Trish, but Becky says Trish is just using her. Stark: “You are d*** right. I am good at what I do!” She rants about how great she is until Shayna Baszler interrupts.

Baszler is a bit banged up but she says you should see Ronda Rousey. Well you can’t, because she got rid of Rousey at Summerslam (Becky approves). Stark says Baszler looks like a tough punching bag, which Becky thinks are fighting words. Cue Adam Pearce to agree. Not the best exchange here, as none of them were exactly feeling it on the mic.

Before the match, we get a long video on Finn Balor vs. Seth Rollins.

JD McDonagh is in the back with Finn Balor when Damian Priest interrupts. Priest wants to know what was up with Balor making his own plans earlier. They argue over Balor’s loss, with Priest saying Balor is crowding him. Balor: “That contract is crowding both of us.” Rhea Ripley breaks it up, saying they need to act like men. McDonagh tries to intervene, saying that if the briefcase is coming between them, maybe Priest should get rid of it.

Shayna Baszler vs. Zoey Stark

Becky Lynch is having some lemonade at ringside. Feeling out process to start with Baszler knocking her down without much effort. Back up and Stark kicks away at a variety of Baszler’s injuries, meaning the chinlock can go on. Baszler fights up and hits a few kicks to the floor as we take a break.

Back with Baszler fighting out of a chinlock and making the clothesline comeback. Stark kicks her in the face for two but Baszler grabs a gutwrench suplex for two more (Becky approves). The Kirifuda Clutch sends Stark outside but Becky offers a distraction, allowing Baszler to kick her in the ribs and eventually hit a Piper’s Pit (now the World’s Baddest Slam) for the pin at 12:42.

Rating: C-. This was a good bit longer than it needed to be. I’m not sure if they were playing up the idea that Baszler is hurt and can’t take out Stark like she usually would, but it wasn’t exactly a great first match for Baszler after the big Rousey victory. Baszler can do better than that, but she needs to be more of a killer than all hobbled around.

Becky toasts Baszler’s win.

Shinsuke Nakamura is being interviewed when we cut to JD McDonagh attacking Sami Zayn, who has a HUGE lump on his elbow (that’s either a bad dislocation or a bursa sac).

Otis vs. Ludwig Kaiser

Maxxine Dupri and Giovanni Vinci are here too. Kaiser punches him into the corner to start but Otis gyrates his way out and grabs a slam. Otis hammers away in the corner but Vinci offers a distraction, allowing Gunther to come in with a cheap shot. Kaiser hits an enziguri and gets the pin at 2:57.

Seth Rollins and Cody Rhodes almost argue over who gets to say that Sami Zayn isn’t cleared to compete tonight, so it’s 3-2. Shinsuke Nakamura comes up and offers to be their partner. Rollins agrees without getting Rhodes’ approval.

Here is Miz for a chat. He doesn’t get what is going on here because the fans suddenly love LA Knight. Why is he waiting behind someone like Knight? You’re supposed to introduce yourself when you get here and pay respect to those who came before you. Knight did NOT do any of that and he is tired of the lack of respect.

Cue Knight to say he thought the battle royal was enough of an introduction but sticks out his hand anyway. Miz says no, because Knight doesn’t deserve to shake his hand. He calls Knight the flavor of the month, but Miz thinks Knight is just an Attitude Era fanboy playing cosplay in the middle of his ring. Knight says you don’t want to make this personal so Miz goes on a rant about what he has been doing for the last twenty years.

That sounds personal to Knight, who talks about spending the last twenty years making himself a dangerous man on the outside while WWE bet on all of the wrong horses. Like Miz for instance. He’s been waiting for the right chance to come in but Miz got a twenty year head start because he’s safe. Yeah Miz has won a bunch of stuff and good for him, but Knight hasn’t been here yet. Now Knight is on the rise and Miz’s career is in the toilet. Knight is fine with making Miz a stepping stone (and he doesn’t mean the little ones down there).

Miz goes on a rant about being the main event, so Knight says prove him wrong. The jacket comes off and Miz throws it at him to start the fight. Knight reverses the Skull Crushing Finale into Blunt Force Trauma to knock Miz silly. Knight shakes his hand on the mat for a bonus. This was a good comeback promo from Knight, who has the charisma to make this work, but the Miz stuff needs to be a one off match and not a feud.

Here are the Viking Raiders for an open challenge.

Viking Raiders vs. New Day

Valhalla is here with the Raiders and this is the first New Day match since before Wrestlemania. Woods kicks away at Erik to start before handing it off to Kofi for the same. A Valhalla distraction lets Ivar kicks Woods in the face and it’s a top rope splash to give Ivar two. The beating continues until Woods manages a tornado DDT to escape.

Kofi comes back in for the Boom Drop but misses Trouble In Paradise. The SOS gets two but Ivar splashes him in the corner, allowing Erik to knee him in the face for two. Back up and Kofi kicks Erik in the face, setting up Trouble In Paradise into the Limit Break to give Woods the pin at 5:37.

Rating: C+. It’s nice to have Kofi and the New Day back as the team can be slotted into any spot you want. They’re automatically near the top of the depth chart and that should make for a better future for the tag division. If Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens are both out of action, New Day getting the titles again soon wouldn’t be out of the question.

Shayna Baszler interrupts a Becky Lynch interview and says she’ll be coming for The Man sooner than later. Lynch says she’s not hard to find.

New Day is glad to be back and teaches interviewer Jackie Redmond their dance.

Sonya Deville has torn her ACL and is out indefinitely, meaning the future of the Women’s Tag Team Titles isn’t clear.

Judgment Day vs. Shinsuke Nakamura/Cody Rhodes/Seth Rollins

During the entrances, here is Raquel Rodriguez to jump Rhea Ripley. Indi Hartwell and Candice LeRae are here to help try and break it up but Ripley jumps both of them off, meaning it’s Candice going after Ripley instead. They’re broken up, with Ripley throwing her shoe at Candice.

After a break we get down to the actual match (after Cole says Wrestlemania is coming to the northeast for the first time in eleven years, as math is no longer his strong suit), with Nakamura dropping Dominik for an early two. We take a break and come back with Nakamura in trouble and not quite being able to fight his way out. Nakamura finally manages to kick his way over to Rollins for the tag so house can be cleaned for a bit. Priest can’t get the Broken Arrow so Rollins hits the Falcon Arrow for two.

Rollins hits some suicide dives but springboards into an uppercut, allowing Priest to hit the swinging Downward Spiral. With Rollins outside, Balor shotgun dropkicks him into the barricade and we take a break. Back with Rhodes coming in to pick up the pace but Balor catches him with the reverse DDT for two. The Cody Cutter gives Rhodes the same but Priest uses the briefcase to break up Cross Rhodes. Cue Sami Zayn (with a taped up elbow) to jump Priest, allowing Rollins to superkick the briefcase into Balor’s face. Cross Rhodes finishes Balor at 14:22.

Rating: B-. This was your main event tag match and that’s all it needed to be given the kind of weird circumstances. What mattered here was giving the good guys a win as Rollins is now about as ready as he can be to move on to someone else. Nakamura’s heel turn seems to have been kind of dropped after last week but maybe they’re planning something for later with him.

Rollins and Rhodes reluctantly shake hands and the good guys celebrate…until Nakamura Kinshasas Rollins to end the show. Well I guess it’s later.

Overall Rating: B. They got a lot covered in here and had the action to back it up. There are probably four or five matches set up out of this show, plus the return of New Day for a nice moment. With not much time until Payback, this is the kind of show that they needed and they certainly got out of the blocks fast. Good show here, but more importantly, they did a lot of stuff for the future, which is not something you can often say about WWE TV.

Results
Chad Gable b. Ricochet, Tommaso Ciampa and Matt Riddle – Chaos Theory to Ciampa
Shinsuke Nakamura b. Bronson Reed – Kinshasa
Shayna Baszler b. Zoey Stark – The World’s Baddest Slam
Ludwig Kaiser b. Otis – Enziguri
New Day b. Viking Raiders – Limit Break to Erik
Shinsuke Nakamura/Cody Rhodes/Seth Rollins b. Judgment Day – Cross Rhodes to Balor

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

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

AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

Monday Night Raw
Date: July 31, 2023
Location: Toyota Center, Houston, Texas
Commentators: Corey Graves, Kevin Patrick

It’s the last Raw before Summerslam and that means tonight is going to be about finalizing a bunch of the stories that have already been set up. That could make for some interesting situations as there might even be something else added. If nothing else, the Summerslam battle royal needs some entrants. Let’s get to it.

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

Here is Logan Paul to get things going. Paul insults the fans’ intelligence but says he’s here for Ricochet. Last week, Paul was victimized and ABUSED by Ricochet, who attacked him from behind. Summerslam is going to be the most viral WWE match in history but here is Ricochet to interrupt. Ricochet talks about how Paul is trying to fool these people but yes, their match will be viral. He doesn’t like anything about Paul, who he sees as a horrible human being, but he can respect the athleticism.

Paul says Ricochet is the best athlete in WWE….and then Paul showed up. We see a clip of their mid-air collision at the Royal Rumble but they do have a fist bump. Paul has one more thing though: he hopes Ricochet isn’t upset when ring announcer Samantha Irvin (Ricochet’s fiance), says Paul is the winner. The fight is on and Ricochet goes rather fast, only to get punched out of the air. As usual, Paul has more “it” than almost anyone around and this was rather fun, even if Ricochet isn’t a great brawler.

We look at Drew McIntyre beating Ludwig Kaiser last week.

Gunther isn’t happy with Imperium. Tonight, Kaiser can make it up by beating up Matt Riddle, while he’ll deal with McIntyre on Sunday. Gunther sneering at people is always great.

Matt Riddle vs. Ludwig Kaiser

The rest of Imperium is here too as Kaiser cranks on a headlock to start. A headscissors has Riddle in trouble until he fights up and misses a kick to the head. Back up and Riddle grabs a gutwrench suplex, only to be sent into the post. One heck of a dropkick puts Riddle on the floor but Riddle manages to score with the kick. The Floating Bro wipes out Kaiser again and we take a break.

Back with Riddle striking away, including the Pele. The exploder into a German suplex gets two but Kaiser is back up with a clothesline. Riddle hits a wind up knee but the Bro Derek is broken up. Giovanni Vinci’s distraction doesn’t work as it’s a powerbomb into the Final Flash for a close two. A leg lariat rocks Kaiser again but he avoids the moonsault and kicks Riddle in the face. Kaiser hits a wind up DDT to finish Riddle clean at 11:02.

Rating: B. This turned into a heck of a match as Kaiser got to showcase himself in a way you don’t often see. At the same time, this was the Riddle that works rather well, as he got to drop all the goofy stuff and showcase how talented of an athlete he really is. This was rather good stuff and Kaiser’s best stuff on the main roster, if not anywhere so far.

We look back at the Alpha Academy vs. the Viking Raiders.

Logan Paul thought Ricochet was always going to be a step ahead of him but he just laid Ricochet out. Now Ricochet is going to look like….a full grown fetus?

Long video on Cody Rhodes vs. Brock Lesnar.

Maxxine Dupri vs. Valhalla

Their respective teams are here too. Dupri slugs away to start but gets sent neck first into the ropes to cut her off. The chinlock goes on but Dupri fights up and drops her again. A not so great Worm (with commentary acknowledging the hitch) connects as everyone brawls on the floor. Gable moonsaults onto the pile, leaving Dupri to slip out of a superplex. A cyclone suplex (electric chair bridging into a suplex) finishes Valhalla at 3:26.

Rating: D. Ok, yes it was bad, but it Dupri’s second match and she has never been treated as anything serious. What else were you expecting from someone who celebrated a suplex a few weeks ago? This was goofy fun with the Worm being so bad that it was good for a laugh. Pretty awful match, but I have no idea why that should surprise anyone.

Shinsuke Nakamura and Tommaso Ciampa want to end things and seem to both be in the battle royal.

Here is the Judgment Day for a chat and the fans are rather happy to see Rhea Ripley. Damian Priest talks about the people they have taken out and promise to do the same to Sami Zayn and Seth Rollins tonight….if they show up. Finn Balor talks about how Seth Rollins tries to act insane, but singing and dancing like a clown isn’t insanity. No, insanity is waking up every day for seven years and thinking about the career that Rollins took from him. He can’t erase those scars, but he can leave Rollins with scars of his own.

Rhea Ripley talks about hurting Liv Morgan and promises to do the same thing to Raquel Rodriguez, who storms the ring and starts the brawl. Ripley is clotheslined outside and sent into various things but Dominik offers a distraction. A hard kick to Ripley’s knee takes her down and referees break it up. Sweet goodness this team is awesome, with Ripley being on an entirely different level than anyone else in the women’s division right now.

We get a big video on Shayna Baszler vs. Ronda Rousey, with Rousey talking about seeing Baszler in Strike Force and picking her for her Ultimate Fighter team. Baszler was more experienced but Rousey became a big star much faster. We see clips of the Four Horsewomen, with Baszler talking about how that was just so Rousey could have people to beat up. Where was Rousey in Baszler’s fight camps? More on this later, which is good as this was the most interesting thing I’ve seen about Baszler since she debuted in WWE.

The Alpha Academy is in the battle royal, but Imperium interrupts so Gunther can mock all three of them. Even Chad Gable, a former Olympian, is now a joke. Ludwig Kaiser says Gable couldn’t last five minutes with Gunther, so the five minute challenge is on. Gable: “I’LL LAST FIVE HOURS IF I WANT TO!” Everyone else will even stay in the back.

Tommaso Ciampa vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

Bronson Reed is watching in the back as Nakamura starts fast with Good Vibrations. They head to the apron with Nakamura firing off kicks to the chest but Ciampa scores with the running knee to the face. Another running knee connects and we take a break. Back with Ciampa elbowing him to the apron so the Willow’s Bell can get two. Nakamura manages a kick to the head into the running knee to the ribs in the corner for two. Ciampa knees him again but the Fairy Tale Ending is countered into a rollup with a handful of trunks to give Nakamura the pin at 8:47.

Rating: C+. The heel turn is probably the best thing that Nakamura can do at the moment as he’s been treading water (again) for a long time. Granted it won’t last more than a few months as he’s so good at being a villain that the fans will turn him back, but at least this gives him something fresh. Ciampa could use something fresh as well, like not losing so often, but I don’t know how likely that is.

Raquel Rodriguez’s knee is banged up but Adam Pearce says she can have her match with Rhea Ripley as soon as she is cleared.

Here is Brock Lesnar for the big showdown with Cody Rhodes. Lesnar lifts off his accomplishments and says that he is going to get paid to beat Cody Rhodes up this weekend at Summerslam. That night, Rhodes is going to get paid to get beaten up. He’s already been here way too long tonight though, so get Rhodes out here right now.

Lesnar says Rhodes has five seconds so here he is, with a handshake and some off mic trash talk. Lesnar goes to leave but Rhodes takes him down with a dive. A shot with the steps leaves Rhodes laying and holding his arm again….so Lesnar goes back and lays him out one more time. Not the best final push towards the show, but it could have been worse.

Gunther vs. Chad Gable

Non-title with a five minute time limit. Gunther takes him down a few times and teases a half crab, with Gable quickly making the ropes. A test of strength keeps Gable (minus the shoulders) down until Gunther has to stomp him to break the bridge. Gunther twists his feet around Gable’s neck as we’re halfway through the clock.

Back up and Gable tries a German suplex but gets elbowed in the face. The powerbomb is countered into the ankle lock but Gunther reverses into the sleeper. Gable reverses that into a hurricanrana to the floor though and time expires at 5:00. Gunther DOES NOT ACCEPT THAT and wants more time on the clock so let’s keep it going. Gable hits a dropkick on the floor and we take a break.

Back with Gable chopping away, until Gunther shows him how that’s done in the corner. Gable snaps him down into a Fujiwara armbar until Gunther snaps off a German suplex for two. Gunther goes up top but gets superplexed right back down, setting up a German suplex to give Gable his own two. Back up and Gunther kicks him in the head, setting up the huge clothesline for two more. The powerbomb FINALLY finishes Gable at 12:58.

Rating: B. This had a good story and the action to back it up as Gunther was out there working hard with Gable getting to showcase himself. It’s almost like this Gable guy, a former Olympian, is rather talented. I’m not sure why he is stuck in tag teams all the time, but he is making them work almost every time. Just let him show what he can do on his own like this more often.

Post match Gunther gets on the announcers’ table and says he isn’t losing on Saturday at Summerslam. I love when people say WHEN the show is taking place. It’s so simple of an idea and takes no effort so why not do it more often?

Cody Rhodes says he’s ready to shatter the aura of Brock Lesnar at Summerslam.

Here is Becky Lynch for a chat. She has done everything she needs to in order to face Trish Stratus again so let’s do it right now. Cue Trish Stratus and Zoey Stark, with Stratus saying she isn’t going to have this match when Becky tells her to. She also isn’t a cheater, unlike the Houston Astros. Actually hold on as here is Adam Pearce to say we’re doing this right NOW!

Trish Stratus vs. Becky Lynch

Zoey Stark runs in for the DQ at 4 seconds.

Post match Becky fights back and sends Stark into the post. Trish gets in a chair shot though and the villains leave.

Post break, Adam Pearce makes Lynch vs. Stratus again in two weeks, but Stark is barred from ringside.

We get the other part of the Ronda Rousey vs. Shayna Baszler video. Baszler talks about how it was always about Rousey, whether it was as a sparring partner or as the Women’s Tag Team Champions, when Rousey needed Baszler because Rousey had ticked everyone off. Rousey tells a story about how a kind king gave everything to everyone, but then an entitled stable boy killed him.

That’s what Baszler tried to do to Rousey, with Baszler saying Rousey has never given anything back to her. Baszler, sounding a bit choked up, says she is done riding in the backseat. Rousey talks about how she fights wanting to win every time and losing for even a second hurts her. Baszler loves Rousey’s daughter (her goddaughter) but she is going to hate Baszler for what she does to Rousey. Awesome stuff here and well done on getting me more interested.

The fight is officially under MMA rules.

Summerslam rundown.

Sami Zayn/Seth Rollins vs. Judgment Day

Zayn and Rollins start the fight on the floor, with Rollins chasing Finn Balor to the back. We take a break before the bell and come back joined in progress, with Dominik hammering away on Rollins in the corner. Priest come in to toss Zayn into the corner, where Zayn manages a few right hands of his own.

A middle rope elbow to the head lets the good guys start in on Priest’s arm before it’s quickly back to Dominik. Rollins misses a charge into the corner and gets kicked in the head, leaving Priest to knock Zayn outside. Rollins gets away and loads up a springboard but Balor is back to pull him down as we take a break. Back with Zayn coming in off a diving tag and getting to clean house. Dominik comes in and gets in a cheap shot but Zayn blasts him with a clothesline.

Rollins comes back in to pick up the pace, including the suicide dive to send Priest over the announcers’ table. Back in and Rollins hits a superkick but Rollins breaks up the stomp. Zayn drops Dominik on the floor so Rhea Ripley comes over to yell at him. That’s enough for Balor to dropkick Zayn into the barricade (there is no way the referee didn’t notice that) and Rollins gets Razor’s Edged. That’s enough to load up the cash-in but Rollins superkicks the case into Priest’s face. Zayn kicks Balor down and Rollins Stomps Priest for the pin at 12:08.

Rating: B. Another good match in a series of them this week with pretty much all action throughout. You don’t see that o Raw very often and it was a lot of tune this time around. While it’s a shame that Kevin Owens is hurt, it is nice to have something fresh in there and Rollins ties into everything nicely. High energy match here and that made for a nice main event.

Overall Rating: B. Oddly enough for Raw, this was a show that worked because of what was going on in the ring. The action was (mostly) rather good tonight with the women’s matches being the low, though rather short, points. Other than that, the Baszler vs. Rousey stuff was good and Summerslam is looking like a pretty nice show. I’m not expecting this kind of show to continue but for once, it was nice to be interested in the wrestling throughout.

Results
Ludwig Kaiser b. Matt Riddle – Wind up DDT
Maxxine Dupri b. Valhalla – Cyclone suplex
Shinsuke Nakamura b. Tommaso Ciampa – Rollup with trunks
Gunther b. Chad Gable – Powerbomb
Becky Lynch b. Trish Stratus via DQ when Zoey Star interfered
Sami Zayn/Seth Rollins b. Judgment Day – Stomp to Priest

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

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Monday Night Raw
Date: July 24, 2023
Location: Amalie Arena, Tampa, Florida
Commentators: Kevin Patrick, Corey Graves

Summerslam is right around the corner and thankfully the card is all but set. You should have a good idea of what to expect from the show after the last few weeks but there is always time for one more push towards Detroit. Odds are that means more Judgment Day this week so let’s get to it.

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

Here is Judgment Day, minus Dominik Mysterio, to open things up. They brag about everything they have been doing as of late and we see a clip of Dominik winning the North American Title last week. Cue Dominik to quite the negative reaction and we see a package on him and Rhea Ripley. Now it’s Kevin Owens (to a huge reaction) and Sami Zayn to interrupt, with Owens saying we did this last week. It drives Owens crazy when people don’t learn their lesson and now we have Dominik who can’t learn a lesson and now the best thing he can do for this business is shut his mouth forever.

After that amazing one sentence rant, Dominik says he will not be disrespected like this, which Zayn thinks is a good point. The thing is no one respects him in the first place so it doesn’t matter! Zayn remembers Judgment Day complaining about last week not being a title match, so how about Zayn vs. Dominik in a North American Title match tonight? Ripley accepts for Dominik, with Balor giving her a “well…..ok then” look.

Zoey Stark vs. Becky Lynch

If Becky wins, she gets to face Trish Stratus (ringside) again, but if she loses, she has to get a THANK YOU TRISH tattoo. Becky starts fast and knocks her down before taking the beating to the floor. Zoey gets in a shot of her own though and a springboard hilo hits Becky for two as we take a break.

Back with Becky being knocked outside, where the face masked Stratus gets in a headbutt. Zoey’s superkick gets two but Becky pulls her into a cross armbreaker. That’s reversed into a powerbomb for two but Becky reverses a rollup into the Disarm-Her. Trish throws the mask in for a distraction though and Zoey gets two off a rollup. The Manhandle Slam finishes Zoey at 9:40.

Rating: B-. This match did something rather difficult as it had some false finishes in a match that shouldn’t have had the slightest bit of drama. Trish vs. Lynch is tailor made for a big blow off at Summerslam and the tattoo stipulation felt like something out of 1999, but some of those near falls made me jump a bit. Good stuff here, even as they got to what should have been a completely obvious ending.

We look at Brock Lesnar taking out Cody Rhodes last week.

Here is Cody Rhodes for a chat. He talks about how Brock Lesnar beat him down last month and that wasn’t on his bucket list. Cody brings up Lesnar getting everything handed to him so fast, from the UFC to the NFL, but now he did this in front of Cody’s mother. That’s the same mother who watched Terry Funk throw fireballs at Dusty Rhodes and then went drinking with Gordon Solie. Now Cody is slapping the bear in the face and wants Brock to bring it at Summerslam. This was a bit rambly, but there is only so much that you can do when the story has been set for months.

We look at Logan Paul going after Ricochet in recent weeks.

Ricochet will say what he thinks of Paul to his face.

NXT North American Title: Sami Zayn vs. Dominik Mysterio

Dominik, with Rhea Ripley and Damian Priest, is defending and Kevin Owens is here with Zayn. A clothesline puts Dominik on the floor to start and there’s the big flip dive as we take a break. Back with Priest shoving Zayn off the top so Owens decks him as well. Owens is out….and so are Priest and Ripley. Zayn gets the Michinoku Driver for two and hits a clothesline to cut off a 619 attempt.

Dominik dropkicks him out of the air but Zayn is right back with the Blue Thunder Bomb for two. Another 619 attempt gives Dominik two and Three Amigos put Zayn down again. Back up and Zayn suplexes him into the corner but here are Priest and Ripley to jump Owens on the stage. Dominik rolls Zayn up (with tights) for the pin at 11:55.

Rating: C+. They were starting to roll at the end and the question became how would Dominik cheat to win here rather than would he at all. He’s basically the Honky Tonk Man at the moment and there is nothing wrong with that as it is an idea that works. Good enough match here as Dominik gets another win that he doesn’t deserve.

Post break, Owens’ ribs are pretty banged up.

We look at Jey Uso and Roman Reigns agreeing to Tribal Combat at Summerslam.

Ricochet asks Shinsuke Nakamura if he has seen Logan Paul. Nakamura says he’ll tell Ricochet if he sees him before turning around to see Tommaso Ciampa. Last week Nakamura got in a shot on Ciampa and that’s his only free one. If Nakamura gets involved again, they’ve got a problem.

Judgment Day runs into Apollo Crews and Akira Tozawa and demand some respect. Crews doesn’t like that and gets a match with Damian Priest tonight.

Tommaso Ciampa vs. Bronson Reed

Ciampa charges right at him and it doesn’t go so well. Some knees to the head get Ciampa out of a suplex but Reed tosses him outside without much trouble. Reed powers him around until Ciampa slips out of a fireman’s carry into a chinlock. That earns him a big crash back from Reed, giving us a great “OW!” look from Ciampa. Reed sends him outside but Ciampa knees him out of the air and we take a break.

Back with Reed running him over for two more but Ciampa fires off some running forearms. The discus forearm sets up a running Fameasser from behind but Reed isn’t having this being whipped thing. Instead he drops a backsplash on Ciampa and fires off chops, which just seem to wake Ciampa up. Ciampa hits a jumping knee and an Air Raid Crash of all things for two. Cue Shinsuke Nakamura for a distraction, allowing Reed to run Ciampa over again. The Tsunami finishes Ciampa at 12:44.

Rating: C+. Reed getting another win is nice to see but it’s rather depressing to see Ciampa lose, even with a screwy finish. Odds are this is setting up a big showdown with Nakamura (and possibly Reed), which is again more or less the same feud we just finished. For now though, at least Reed is looking like a monster.

We look back at Rhea Ripley attacking Raquel Rodriguez and Liv Morgan, leading to them losing the Women’s Tag Team Titles.

Morgan is ready to beat up Ripley tonight. Maybe she gets taken out, but maybe she doesn’t. With Morgan gone, Chelsea Green and Sonya Deville come in to ask why they aren’t being interviewed. That would be because they don’t have a match tonight, but here is Rhea Ripley to stare them off.

Liv Morgan vs. Rhea Ripley

Non-title and Morgan gets jumped during her entrance as the destruction is on outside. Morgan’s arm gets Pillmanized and, despite a medic and referee being there, Ripley does it a second time. No match.

The Alpha Academy want an Academy Rules match with the Viking Raiders. Maxxine Dupri is ready to face Valhalla in her first singles match.

Here is Ricochet to call out Logan Paul, even if Paul doesn’t belong here. Ricochet calls Paul an arrogant little pr***, who does not deserve to be here. The people who are here every week have sacrificed to get to this spot, but Paul just does whatever he wants. The challenge is on for Summerslam and here is Paul to jump him from behind and accept said challenge. As Paul talks to his phone, Ricochet is up with a superkick before taking his own picture.

Shayna Baszler is sick of Ronda Rousey so they’re going to FIGHT at Summerslam.

Logan Paul says that was unprofessional and he’s coming for Ricochet next week.

Damian Priest vs. Apollo Crews

Crews starts fast and hits a dropkick into a high crossbody. Priest is right back with a shot to the head and the big discus forearm drops Crews. A hammerlock lariat sets up South Of Heaven to finish Crews at 3:09.

Rating: C. Pretty much just a squash here for Priest. It’s nice to have him in the ring to keep looking dominant, though there can be such a thing as having someone on television too much in a week. This show has been very heavy on the Judgment Day stuff and I’m not sure this really needed to be on the sow.

Becky Lynch says it isn’t over with Trish Stratus until she wins.

Valhalla and the Viking Raiders are in against the Alpha Academy and Maxxine Dupri.

Here is Imperium for a face to face showdown with Drew McIntyre. The challenge is on for an Intercontinental Title match tonight but Gunther says he’ll humiliate McIntyre at Summerslam instead. Gunther brings up their Summerslam match, with Drew talking about how he and Sheamus have known each other for years (Drew: “I was 19 and Sheamus was about 42.”) and their dream was to face each other at Wrestlemania. That is what they did this year, but Gunther snuck in and stole the win. At Summerslam it’s one on one but Ludwig Kaiser interrupts. Gunther thinks Kaiser should lead Imperium but he’ll settle for a match.

Drew McIntyre vs. Ludwig Kaiser

Kaiser grabs a headlock to start as Graves goes into a Kaiser impression. McIntyre fights back and knocks him to the floor for a chop and a posting. There’s a ram into the barricade and some loud chops but Kaiser manages to post him as well to take over. Back from a break with McIntyre hitting an Air Raid Crash and nipping up, only to have the Claymore cut off by a kick in the general vicinity of his head. Not that it matters as the Claymore finishes Kaiser at 9:34.

Rating: B-. These two beat the fire out of each other for a little while until McIntyre finished him off. Kaiser is a great character and awesome at all of his talking, but he got to show off some in-ring abilities here. It was a pretty nice match and I got into seeing these two beating each other up rather well.

Post match the triple teaming is on, with Matt Riddle coming in for a failed save attempt. McIntyre fights back though and powerbombs Gunther through the announcers’ table.

Ronda Rousey is down to fight Shayna Baszler at Summerslam.

Here is Finn Balor to sign the contract with Seth Rollins. He believes the two of them can handle this like gentlemen with no Adam Pearce so here is Rollins to quite the serenade. Rollins says they can just sign and maybe Balor wins, but Damian Priest is going to cash in on him immediately anyway. Balor hesitates before signing, saying Rollins must think he has all of this figured out.

Cue Judgment Day, with Balor talking about how he has felt helpless for seven years. It’s like an itch you can’t scratch….a seven year itch. At Summerslam, Rollins becomes the seven year b****. Rollins turns the table over but gets beaten down, with Sami Zayn making a failed save attempt. The big beatdown wraps up the show.

Overall Rating: C+. The problem right now is that Summerslam is all but set, and that doesn’t leave much to cover over multiple hours a week. There was some stuff here that got a nice push towards the pay per view, but what we saw was either stuff being confirmed after being all but guaranteed or a slight stronger push or matches already set. That makes for only a pretty ok show, and that’s what we had here.

Results
Becky Lynch b. Zoey Stark – Manhandle Slam
Dominik Mysterio b. Sami Zayn – Rollup with tights
Bronson Reed b. Tommaso Ciampa – Tsunami
Damian Priest b. Apollo Crews – South Of Heaven
Drew McIntyre b. Ludwig Kaiser – Claymore

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

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AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

Monday Night Raw
Date: July 17, 2023
Location: State Farm Arena, Atlanta, Georgia
Commentators: Kevin Patrick, Corey Graves

We are closing in on Summerslam and that means we should be in for something interesting. In this case, that means we are going to be graced with Brock Lesnar’s presence, as he might be here to accept Cody Rhodes’ challenge. That should be quite the situation so let’s get to it.

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

Here is hometown boy Cody Rhodes to one heck of a reception. He’s happy to be home and this week he’d like to talk about the large shadow that is Brock Lesnar. Cody calls Lesnar out but there’s no one here. He thinks this is Lesnar being fashionably late but he’ll wait all night if he has to. This is the house that built me, but the woman that built him, his mother, is in the front row. Cody doesn’t like to use this phrase, but his relationship with Lesnar has been nothing but “hard times”. When Lesnar gets here tonight, it’s hard times for him.

Cody tells us to enjoy the show and hugs his mom and some other people before…..Brock Lesnar…..’s music plays. There’s no Lesnar so Cody goes into the back, where Lesnar knocks him down. Lesnar chairs him down and carries him in front of his family. The F5 drops him and the Kimura goes on, followed by another (with Lesnar’s eyes bugging out) back inside. A chair shot leaves Rhodes laying and Lesnar accepts the Summerslam challenge.

Matt Riddle vs. Gunther

Non-title and the rest of Imperium stays in the back. Riddle goes for the arm to start and slaps on a triangle to make it worse. They crash out to the floor and we take a break. Back with the two of them trading strikes in the corner and Riddle getting the better of things. Some running shots in the corner stagger Gunther and Riddle snaps off an exploder. Gunther gets in a suplex of his own and a hard clothesline for two, leaving Gunther (and Imperium in the back) rather stunned. Riddle knees him in the face a few times for two but the Floating Bro hits raised knees. Gunther hits a heck of a powerbomb for the pin at 8:08.

Rating: B. This didn’t last long but they beat the living daylights out of each other while it did. What mattered here was keeping Gunther looking strong while getting rid of Riddle from the title picture. We are probably on the way to Gunther vs. Drew McIntyre at Summerslam and this was a good way to clear the way for the match

Post match Gunther gets on the announcers’ table to say the fans are here to see the greatest Intercontinental Champion of all time. Matt Riddle is done and if Drew McIntyre wants to ride on Gunther’s coattails, be his best, but be prepared to fall victim to the Ring General.

Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez are ready to defend their Women’s Tag Team Titles against Chelsea Green/Sonya Deville tonight. We hear about some other teams but here is Rhea Ripley to stare up at Rodriguez. She’s not scared of Ripley, with Morgan saying the same. Ripley DROPS Morgan with a headbutt and takes out Rodriguez’s knee to leave the champs laying. I probably liked Morgan getting dropped more than I should but my goodness her “I’M NOT SCARED” stuff is annoying.

Here is Judgment Day for a chat. Rhea Ripley talks about how dominant the team is and promises that all of them will be holding gold soon enough. Dominik Mysterio gets booed out of the building, with Damian Priest having to say that Dominik will win the NXT North American Title tomorrow night.

Finn Balor and Priest promise to win the World Titles, but here are Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn to interrupt. Sami doesn’t think the fans want to hear Dominik get booed so it’s time to beat someone up instead. Priest thinks the idea of he and Dominik winning the Tag Team Titles tonight sounds good to him, so Owens gets to make the angry acceptance.

Raquel Rodriguez is banged up but the trainer reluctantly clears her.

Women’s Tag Team Titles: Raquel Rodriguez/Liv Morgan vs. Sonya Deville/Chelsea Green

Rodriguez, with a bad knee, and Morgan are defending. Morgan gets jumped to tart and caught in a delayed double vertical suplex. A few shots give Morgan a breather so it’s off to Rodriguez, who gets pulled into a half crab from Deville. Morgan FINALLY makes the save and gets to come in and clean house. The middle rope Codebreaker sets up Oblivion for two on Green with Deville making the save this time. Deville chop blocks Rodriguez and decks Morgan in the face, setting up Unpretty-Her for two. Another Unpretty-Her and a running knee to the face gives us new champions at 5:08.

Rating: C. The match was good enough for what it needed to be and that’s perfectly fine. Green and Deville have felt much more like a natural team since they were put together and it should be fun to see them bragging about their title win. If nothing else, it frees up Rodriguez to face Rhea Ripley, likely after Ripley massacres Morgan.

We look back at Brock Lesnar vs. Cody Rhodes from earlier tonight. The Summerslam match (sans gimmick) is official.

Sonya Deville and Chelsea Green are happy with their win, though Deville has to pull Green away from thanking everyone.

Long video on the Jey Uso/Solo Sikoa/Paul Heyman segment from Smackdown.

We get a sitdown interview with Seth Rollins talking about potential challengers. Finn Balor is mentioned and interrupts, taking interviewer Byron Saxton’s chair. Balor says the line starts with him and it’s time to do this again. Rollins says they can settle the score right now so take your shot or get out of his face. Balor stands up…and leaves. The interview seems to be over but Balor jumps him for a beating. Balor says make the match.

Alpha Academy vs. Viking Raiders

This is a Viking Rules match, so there is a ship’s head at the front of the ring and various weapons are available. As a bonus, Maxxine Dupri and Valhalla (with Maxxine’s jacket) are here, with Titus O’Neil on commentary for some reason. The fight starts fast on the ship’s head with Gable grabbing the ankle lock. That’s broken up and Gable flip dives onto Ivar before sending Erik into a shield.

Otis wants tables but has to pull a springboarding Ivar out of the air (geez) for a powerslam. We take a break and come back with Ivar hitting a moonsault as Otis makes the save. Erik has to make a save of his own but Gable suplexes him down. The top rope headbutt gets two but Dupri has to dive in to cut Valhalla off. Dupri gets her jacket back but gets speared through a table. Otis gets to clean house but Valhalla gets in a cheap shot, allowing the Vikings to hit Ragnarok for the pin at 10:27.

Rating: B-. I had a good time with this one as they leaned way into the goofy fun that they were having. That’s the best way to go a lot of the time and it worked well here. The Vikings are still fairly ridiculous but they could wind up being turned into one off challengers for the titles if need be. Rather fun match here and that’s the best thing you could ask for with something this ridiculous.

Shayna Baszler vs. Nikki Cross

Cross jumps her to start and gets Kirifuda Clutched for the tap at 20 seconds.

Post match Ronda Rousey pops up in the crowd to mock Baszler (Rousey: “Up here! Above you, literally figuratively, every way possible.”). Rousey talks about how you can take the front door like Baszler by making it through developmental, or the back door, like Rousey did, and dominate everyone.

Rousey is the best ever and Baszler is the knockoff version. Baszler says she’s the better Rousey and tells the real one to come down here right now. Baszler goes into the crowd to go after her but security cuts her off. Rousey says she’ll see Baszler at Summerslam. Rousey is still not great on the mic, as she was talking a mile a minute here.

We look back at Ricochet vs. Logan Paul from last week.

Ricochet is ready to deal with Paul and challenges him to come here next week. He’ll hurt Paul where it hurts the most: his ego.

It’s time for MizTV, with Miz bragging about playing in a celebrity golf tournament and insulting Trae Young of the Atlanta Hawks. With that out of the way, Miz brings out his guest, Becky Lynch, who looks like she is wearing pajamas with the stomach cut out. Miz asks if she has lost a step so Lynch throws the chairs out and shouts about everything she has lost. The one thing she hasn’t lost is a step so get Trish Stratus out here already.

Miz thanks her for ruining the surprise and brings out Stratus, with Zoey Stark. Lynch demands the rematch but Stratus thinks Lynch is sounding like her baby girl. Stratus is going to pass on the rematch because she has already beaten Lynch, though she was hoping to get her to say Thank You Trish.

Lynch was hoping to see Stratus show she could do more than post on social media and hide behind Stark, which is enough to get Stratus to say yes, but under some conditions. First, Lynch has to beat Stark, but if she can’t she has to get on her knees and say Thank You Trish. Oh and she can tattoo it across her chest. Lynch: “Done.” The brawl is on, with Stratus losing her mask, which Lynch uses to knock Stark silly. The tattoo stuff was a bit over the top but they set up the match the needed to set up.

We look at the Brock Lesnar/Cody Rhodes segment again.

Bronson Reed vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

Reed kicks him into the corner to start and busts out his own Good Vibrations. Nakamura hits a few strikes to send him into the ropes but misses a knee. Reed hits a running shoulder from the apron and we take a break. Back with Nakamura getting in some more kicks, including a jumping version to the head. A dragon screw legwhip gives Nakamura two but Reed runs him over. The Tsunami is broken up though and Nakamura’s middle rope knee gets two more. Kinshasa is loaded up but Tommaso Ciampa runs in to jump Reed for the DQ at 7:32.

Rating: C+. Someone striking away at a monster like Reed is always going to work and Nakamura can throw strikes like few others. Ciampa running in makes all the sense in the world, even if he is just taking Ricochet’s place in the same story they were telling on the way to Money In The Bank. Either way, this was a story that has been done before and that isn’t a bad thing.

Post match Nakamura takes out Ciampa to blow off some steam.

Post break, Nakamura says he’s tired of everyone getting in his business.

Here’s what’s coming next week.

Tag Team Titles: Kevin Owens/Sami Zayn vs. Judgment Day

Judgment Day, Dominik Mysterio and Damian Priest in this case, is challenging. We get the Big Match Intros and here is Seth Rollins to dive onto Finn Balor and brawl with him to the back. It’s a brawl to start with Dominik getting crushed by Owens’ backsplash, meaning the champs can take over in the corner.

Sami and Priest come in with the latter hitting an uppercut so Dominik can already come back in. A backdrop puts him down so let’s take a breather on the floor. Priest cuts Sami off again and chokeslams him onto the apron as we take a break. Back with Sami escaping a suplex and bringing Owens back in to clean house. Owens knocks Priest outside and hits an apron frog splash, followed by the Cannonball back inside.

The Swanton hits knees though and Dominik comes in with a frog splash for two. Everything breaks down and Priest hits a pop up powerbomb for two on Dominik with Priest making the save. Zayn tornado DDTs Priest for two but he catches Zayn on top with a super hurricanrana (Ripley freaking out is great). Dominik tags himself back in but the 619 is broken up. The champs hit a pair of flip dives so Ripley tries to get involved, only to get cut off by Liv Morgan. Zayn Helluva Kicks Dominik to retain at 15:28.

Rating: B. This got going rather well by the end, though I’m a bit surprised that this wasn’t the Summerslam Tag Team Title match. What we got was a hot tag match though as Owens and Zayn can work well with anyone. Judgment Day still feels like a dominant force around here, but man they lose quite a bit.

Overall Rating: B. This was the show where it felt like they started to move forward to Summerslam, with matches either being announced or being set up. That should be enough to get things going for the next few weeks as the card can be made official. I like them getting this done with some time to spare, as that isn’t something you always see. For now though, it’s another good show, as things are starting to come together at the right time.

Results
Gunther b. Matt Riddle – Powerbomb
Sonya Deville/Chelsea Green b. Liv Morgan/Raquel Rodriguez – Running knee to Morgan
Viking Raiders b. Alpha Academy – Ragnarok to Otis
Shayna Baszler b. Nikki Cross – Kirifuda Clutch
Bronson Reed b. Shinsuke Nakamura via DQ when Tommaso Ciampa interfered

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

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

AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

Monday Night Raw
Date: July 3, 2023
Location: CFG Bank Arena, Baltimore, Maryland
Commentators: Kevin Patrick, Corey Graves

We’re back stateside after Money In The Bank in London and the big story around here is Damian Priest being the new Mr. Money In The Bank. That means there is officially a threat over a few champions’ heads and that could make things interesting for a long time to come. Let’s get to it.

Here is Money In The Bank if you need a recap.

We open with a long recap of pretty much everything that happened at Money In The Bank.

Here is Seth Rollins to get things going. After a long serenade, Rollins talks about retaining the title at Money In The Bank but now he has to worry about that pesky briefcase. Cue Cody Rhodes to interrupt….but he can only get a “So…” out, here Brock Lesnar interrupts. Cody immediately goes outside for the fight but Lesnar takes him side. The F5 is countered and a Cody Cutter sends Lesnar running.

Post break, Rollins is still in the ring but here is Judgment Day (minus Finn Balor) to interrupt. Damian Priest recaps the Money In The Bank concept and Rollins offers him a match tonight. Priest says Rollins can fight someone standing next to him. Rhea Ripley: “Well I’m already defending my World Women’s Title against Natalya.” So it’ll have to be Dominik Mysterio instead. Rollins smells a trap but listens to the fans and says he’ll do it.

Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Damian Priest

Ripley and Mysterio are here with Priest. Nakamura takes him down fast to start and fires off the knees to the ribs, only to have Priest hit him in the face. Back up and Priest stomps away in the corner, setting up the running elbow. Nakamura manages to put hum on top for the running knee to the ribs as the fans are all over Dominik. They head outside with Priest dropping him onto the barricade as we take a break.

Back with Nakamura striking away and hitting an STO. The sliding German suplex drops Priest and lets Nakamura…go outside to hit on Ripley. With that odd visual out of the way, Priest knocks a diving Nakamura out of the air and hits a good looking spinning kick to the head for two. Nakamura hits a kick of his own and adds the middle rope knee to the chest. Not that it matters as Priest hits a HARD clothesline, setting up South Of Heaven for the pin at 11:00.

Rating: C+. Well Priest is already off to a better start than some Money In The Bank winners as he’s not losing after slipping on a banana peel. Priest has been treated seriously for months now and it is nice to see that continue after he gets his big win. Keep it up and WWE might actually have a star on their hands if they’re not careful.

We recap Shayna Baszler turning on Ronda Rousey to cost the team the Women’s Tag Team Titles at Money In The Bank.

Here is Rousey for a chat but Baszler interrupts, saying people are sick of hearing her trying to talk. Rousey wants an explanation, saying she is owed one. That sets Baszler off, saying she is the reason Rousey got into wrestling so she owes Rousey nothing. The only thing she owes ANYONE is an apology for getting Rousey into the business. Rousey says they worked to become champions, which sets Baszler off again.

Baszler doesn’t remember Rousey building rings to work in front of 30 people or having to fill out an application. Rousey came in and went straight to Wrestlemania. Baszler loves this and owes Rousey the reality that there is someone here who can shut her up. The fight is on with Rousey getting the better of things until Baszler gets an ankle lock. With Rousey slowed, Baszler gives her a running knee and leaves, even as Rousey tells her to get back here. That’s not exactly an explanation, as Rousey and Baszler were a successful team. So Baszler waited until they were a success together to let out all of this anger? That’s a bit odd.

Maxxine Dupri is ready to make her in-ring debut and is ready to prove that Chad Gable is a heck of a trainer. Gable is ready to give the Viking Raiders a dose of patriotism.

Tag Team Turmoil

For a Women’s Tag Team Title shot against Liv Morgan/Raquel Rodriguez (at ringside). Chelsea Green/Sonya Deville are in at #1 and Candice LeRae/Indi Hartwell are in at #2. Hartwell goes after Deville to start but everything breaks down quickly. Green gets sent to the apron but comes back in with UnprettyHer to LeRae. Deville’s running knee is enough for the pin at 1:32.

Emma/Nikki Cross are in at #3 with Cross Checking on the banged up LeRae. Green comes in and gets Russian legsweeped, but Cross is still worried about LeRae (who is gone). The UnprettyHer and another running knee finishes Emma at 4:55 total. Tegan Knox/Dana Brooke are in at #4 and clear the ring rather quickly as we take a break. Back with Deville pinning Nox with the running knee at 7:54 so it’s Kayden Carter/Katana Chance in at #5.

Carter drops Deville for a fast two but she has to fight out of the corner. Green is taken up top but Carter goes up with her. Chance tags herself in and hits a super hurricanrana for two with Deville having to make the save. The After Party is broken up and Deville gets in a cheap shot from the floor. UnprettyHer gives Green the pin and the title shot at 11:49.

Rating: C. Deville and Green are a good enough team to get a title shot out of all of this, but a match like this one really shows you just how shallow the division is. Other than the winners, it’s three thrown together teams and Carter/Chance, who have mainly been treated as losers since getting called up. There might (and I emphasize that word) be a decent division between all three brands, but this really didn’t do the division any favors.

Video on the women’s Money In The Bank match.

Video on Bronson Reed.

Here is a ticked off Becky Lynch who didn’t win Money In The Bank, but wants to finish this with Trish Stratus RIGHT NOW. Cue Stratus and Zoey Stark, with Stratus sporting a face mask to protect a broken nose. Lynch: “HAHA LOOK AT HER FACE!” Stratus: “You think this is funny?” Lynch: “I DO!” Stratus isn’t medically cleared to fight so Lynch will beat up Stark instead.

Lynch isn’t impressed but Stratus calls herself the greatest of all time. Lynch says Stratus is just back to plug some low level show and appear on the cover of a local magazine that she paid to be in. Once she leaves, is she taking Stark back to be the secretary of her yoga studio? Why is Stratus still here? Stratus talks about being the face of the women’s division and Lynch is jealous of all of the attention that Stratus gets. Now Stark is going to break her face….or not as Stratus has a medical appointment right now, so they have to leave Balti-less right now (Graves liked that one). Lynch vs. Stratus at Summerslam should work.

Cody Rhodes comes out, welcomes new interviewer Jackie Redmond, and says Brock Lesnar is back. Rhodes will fight him anywhere anytime…and that’s that.

Alpha Academy vs. Viking Raiders

Six person tag here, with Otis wasting no time in hitting the Caterpillar on Ivar. We take a very fast break and come back with Gable coming in to clean house. A dive to the floor hits Erik and a top rope headbutt hits Ivar. Erik takes Gable down though and it’s the women coming in, with Dupri managing the suplex. Valhalla breaks up the Caterpillar from Dupri though, as Gable moonsaults onto the Vikings at ringside. A sunset flip out of the corner gives Dupri the pin on Valhalla at 7:58.

Rating: C-. I do kind of like the fact that WWE isn’t hiding what they’re doing with Dupri. She is far from a skilled star in the ring but she has nice gear and a bunch of charisma. If they keep her doing low level, mostly non-serious stuff like this, she’ll be fine as someone who can be brought up slowly. Not much of a match but they were smart enough to keep the women’s part short.

Ricochet isn’t happy that Logan Paul was in Money In The Bank so how about they settle it face to face next week.

Raw Women’s Title: Rhea Ripley vs. Natalya

Ripley is defending and gets jumped from behind during the entrance. They go inside for the opening bell and they go straight back to the floor, with Ripley sending her face first into the announcers’ table. Back in and Ripley forearms her in the back, followed by a headbutt out of the corner. A low superkick keeps Natalya down as this is one sided so far.

Natalya fights out of the corner and hits a high crossbody for a double knockdown. Ripley is back up with a basement dropkick for two and we take a break. We come back with Ripley hitting a kick to the head for a double knockdown. Natalya hurricanranas her way out of a powerbomb but Ripley gets up top for a missile dropkick.

The Prism Trap goes on but Natalya sends her into the corner for the escape. Ripley drops her again and goes up for a frog splash (complete with Eddie dance) only to hit raised knees. A powerslam into the Sharpshooter sends Ripley to the ropes but she’s right back with a headbutt. Riptide retains the title at 13:06.

Rating: B-. This got a lot better after the break and they had a pretty good match despite the lack of uncertainty over the winner. Natalya’s problem has never been her abilities in the ring so it’s no surprise that she can get going in a long match. Just stop trying to have her involved in stories and she’s a lot better. Ripley isn’t likely to lose the title anytime soon, so giving her a nice win like this is a good way to go.

Post match Ripley stays on her until Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez make the save.

We look at Miz attacking Tommaso Ciampa last week.

Ciampa says he fought Miz face to face but Miz attacked him from behind. There is a silver lining in this though: Ciampa saw that look in Miz’s eye. He’s happy to have that Miz back and now he can face the good one.

Miz says he’s feeling better than he ever before so he’ll face Ciampa in a no DQ match next week.

Video on the Bloodline Civil War at Money In The Bank with Jey Uso finally pinning Roman Reigns.

Rhea Ripley is in the back and runs into Ms. Money In The Bank Iyo Sky. Ripley says try her, because it would be a huge mistake. Sky leaves and Dominik Mysterio/Damian Priest come in. They haven’t heard from Finn Balor but Ripley threatens Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez. Dominik Mysterio is ready to hurt Seth Rollins, which has Ripley approving.

Matt Riddle vs. Giovanni Vinci

The rest of Imperium is here with Vinci. Riddle kicks away at the chest but Vinci goes after the still banged up ankle. The middle rope moonsault connects for Vinci but Riddle grabs a rollup for the pin at 1:20.

Post match the beatdown is on until Drew McIntyre makes the save. The Claymore drops Vinci and McIntyre stares Gunther down.

We recap Seth Rollins retaining over Finn Balor at Money In The Bank.

Matt Riddle thanks Drew McIntyre for the save and they’re going to face Imperium next week. For tonight, they’re hitting the town.

Seth Rollins vs. Dominik Mysterio

Non-title and the rest of Judgment Day (minus Finn Balor) are here with Dominik. Rollins takes him over with a headlock as the fans are all over Dominik. Rollins’ headlock is reversed into another headlock but he’s right back up with a running clothesline. With Dominik on the floor, Ripley offers a distraction but Dominik gets tossed outside again anyway.

We take a break and come back with Rollins snapping off Three Amigos but another Ripley distraction lets Priest shove him off the top. Dominik hits the frog splash and then does it again but doesn’t bother covering. A third only hits raised knees though and Rollins first off some running forearms in the corner. The running knee drops Dominik again and a clothesline sends him outside. Rollins hits a dive onto Dominik and Priest, the latter of whom comes in with the South of Heaven for the DQ at 9:50.

Rating: C+. This was the right way to go as Dominik isn’t going to be a threat to Rollins straight up, but Dominik with Ripley and Priest could be. It’s also good to not have Dominik take another fall, as you don’t want to run him into the ground. Priest coming in for the DQ to set up a cash in tease worked fine and it was nice to see the champion getting to beat someone up for a bit.

Post match Priest loads up the Razor’s Edge through the announcers’ table but Rollins slips out. Dominik gets in a briefcase shot though and Priest teases cashing in. Cue Finn Balor though, and he knocks Rollins into Priest to break up the cash-in attempt (Priest didn’t do it). The argument lets Rollins escape, albeit after a Pedigree on Dominik on the floor. Judgment Day argues a lot to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. This show had quite the level of HHH efficiency going on and that’s a great thing to see. You had the Judgment Day/Seth Rollins stuff going on throughout the show, plus some things being set up for the future. While not officially announced, you can probably guess most of the Summerslam card from a month out and that’s not bad. Keep doing stuff like this and Raw should be in a good place on the way to Detroit.

Results
Damian Priest b. Shinsuke Nakamura – South Of Heaven
Sonya Deville/Chelsea Green won Tag Team Turmoil last eliminating Kayden Carter/Katana Chance
Alpha Academy b. Viking Raiders – Sunset flip to Valhalla
Rhea Ripley b. Natalya – Riptide
Matt Riddle b. Giovanni Vinci – Rollup
Seth Rollins b. Dominik Mysterio via DQ when Damian Priest interfered

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