Reviews

The John Report: The WWE Raw Deal 07/17/23 Review

By John Canton • Published 17th July 2023

This week’s WWE Raw featured a Cody Rhodes-Brock Lesnar showdown, GUNTHER facing Matt Riddle, Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn against The Judgment Day’s Damian Priest & Dominik Mysterio, plus a whole lot more.

This is the Raw Deal for episode #1573 of Monday Night Raw. It’s taking place at the State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia. Follow me on Twitter @johnreport. Let’s get to it.

The commentary team of Kevin Patrick and Corey Graves welcomed us to the show with a rundown of what’s coming up this week.

Let’s Hear from Cody Rhodes

Cody Rhodes got a huge ovation from the Atlanta crowd for his hometown entrance. The fans were singing his theme song and of course doing the “WHOA-OH” yell as part of the song. Cody was wearing his wrestling gear with a tank top instead of a suit. Loud “Cody” chants before he said a word. Some fans chanted “welcome home” as well.

Cody: “So Atlanta, my home…what do you guys want to talk about?” Cody said we really don’t have to talk because there’s a large shadow looming over this State Farm Arena and it looms over every arena…it’s Brock Lesnar. Cody said that Lesnar should come to this ring to accept his challenge for SummerSlam. There was no Lesnar. Cody said that if Lesnar shows up fashionably late at 9 p.m. or 10 p.m. or the end of the night, Cody will still be waiting for him.

Cody was a bit emotional pointing out that his mother Michelle was in the front row. The fans popped for her and they put her name on the screen. Cody praised his mother for being a fighter that has taught him so much in his life.

As the promo continued, Cody went back to mentioning Brock Lesnar saying that the two words he can think of are…hard times. Cody said that’s okay because when Lesnar shows up, it will not be hard times for Cody and Cody said it will be hard times for Lesnar. Cody told the crowd to enjoy Raw, he said he loved them and that was it. Cody hugged his sister and mom at ringside. That’s when Brock Lesnar’s music hit!

Cody was in the aisle ready for a fight, but there was no sign of Lesnar as the music stopped. Cody was okay with it. The music started again and then Cody went into the backstage area where Lesnar appeared with a steel chair!

Brock Lesnar hit Cody with multiple chair shots to the back as they fought toward the ring. Lesnar whipped Cody into the ring apron and Lesnar rammed Cody’s back into the ring post. Lesnar put Cody on his shoulders and Lesnar hit an F5 on Cody on the floor right in front of Cody’s mom and family. Lesnar was smiling about it. Lesnar applied the Kimura Lock submission on Cody’s left arm that he “broke” two months ago in the story. Lesnar stared at Cody’s family at ringside again. Lesnar applied the Kimura Lock submission again and stared at Cody’s family while he did it.

Lesnar to Cody: “Challenge accepted. I’ll see you at SummerSlam, bitch.” End segment.

Analysis: It was what it needed to be with Lesnar attacking Cody and getting the advantage during the entire fight. Cody didn’t get any offense against him as Lesnar destroyed Cody in front of his family. There are some fights that happened around the ring where there’s security and officials that try to break it up quickly. In this case, nobody tried to do anything for several minutes. Anyway, we knew Cody-Brock was going to happen at SummerSlam and now it’s finally official.

(Commercial)

There were replays of Brock Lesnar destroying Cody Rhodes before the break. They showed Lesnar hitting Cody with a steel chair in the back during the break.

GUNTHER vs. Matt Riddle

This is not for GUNTHER’s Intercontinental Title. Ludwig Kaiser & Giovanni Vinci are barred from ringside.

Gunther got some offense with chops. Riddle went for a choke hold, but Gunther powered out of it. Riddle applied an armbar on the right arm, Gunther got back to a standing position and Riddle sent him out of the ring. Riddle with a running kick to the chest. Riddle went for an attack on the floor, but Gunther chopped him and hit a body slam on the floor.

(Commercial)

The action continued with Gunther hitting some chops, but Riddle hit a few chops too. Riddle kicked that arm, then Gunther hit another chop and Riddle hit an overhead kick. Riddle hit a forearm, they exchanged more strikes and Riddle hit an Exploder Suplex. Gunther delivered more hard chops to the chest while Riddle kicked him in the chest. Gunther hit a German Suplex and hard lariat for two. They showed Ludwig Kaiser and Giovanni Vinci watching on a TV backstage. Riddle with a ripcord knee, then another knee and a running knee to the back of the head for two. Riddle went for the Floating Bro off the top, but Gunther got the knees up and Gunther hit a dropkick. Gunther with a Powerbomb for the pinfall win. This went about eight minutes.

Winner by pinfall: GUNTHER

Analysis: ***1/4 It was the usual good GUNTHER match. They didn’t get enough time for it to be a classic or anything like that. I liked it because Riddle didn’t back down, he delivered a lot of strikes just like Gunther did and they had an entertaining, physical match.

After the match, Gunther put the IC Title around his waist and stood on the commentary table. Gunther said you can boo him all you want, but tonight is the greatest night of your sad lives because you came here to see the greatest Intercontinental Heavyweight Champion of all time. Gunther said that Matt Riddle is done and Gunther is building a legacy. Gunther said if Drew McIntyre wants to ride Gunther’s coattails, then be his guest, but he will fall victim to the Ring General.

Analysis: I liked that Gunther promo. He recently passed 400 days as the Intercontinental Champion and it will be less than two months for him to set the record for the longest title reign. There was no Drew McIntyre on Raw this week due to filming a movie, so Drew will probably be back next week. They will need to make that SummerSlam match official soon.

Raquel Rodriguez & Liv Morgan, the Women’s Tag Team Champions, were interviewed by Jackie Redmond. Liv spoke about how they are prepared for anything. Raquel said that the tougher the battle, the sweeter the victory. Liv said they won’t back down from anyone. Rhea Ripley, the Women’s World Champion, walked in to stare at Raquel. Liv tried to say something to Ripley, so Ripley headbutted Liv to knock her down. Raquel attacked Ripley with punches, then WWE Officials tried to break it up. Ripley kicked Ripley on the left knee. Raquel was selling a left knee injury.

Analysis: The tease for a Ripley-Rodriguez match continues.

The Judgment Day foursome made their entrance.

(Commercial)

There was a plug for WWE Priority Pass on Location for WrestleMania 40 in Philadelphia on April 6th and April 7th.

They showed Viking Raiders and Valhalla getting ready for their match later.

Let’s Hear from The Judgment Day

It was promo time for The Judgment with Women’s World Champion Rhea Ripley laughing about how they weren’t going to break up. Ripley said they are better than everyone and not shatter because somebody’s ego got bruised. Ripley said they absolutely dominate Raw. Ripley bragged about being an unbeatable Women’s World Champion. Ripley said that Finn Balor and Damian Priest will become World Champions. Ripley said that her Latino Heat Dominik Mysterio will become NXT North American Champion this Tuesday on NXT.

Dominik Mysterio tried to talk, the fans booed him loudly and Dominik said he’s going to beat Wes Lee.

Damian Priest said that those boos won’t change the fact that Dominik become NXT North American Champion. Priest held up his Money in the Bank saying he’ll become World Champion while telling Balor he gets first crack at Seth Rollins.

Finn Balor told Priest he loves him. Balor said that the issues he has with Seth Rollins will never be over until Finn’s arm is raised as the new World Heavyweight Champion. Dominik tried to speak again, so the fans booed loudly.

Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens, the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champions, showed up for the interruption. Zayn said that he feels he has a pretty good relationship with the WWE Universe. Zayn asked the fans if they paid their hard earned money to listen to Dominik Mysterio talk? The fans booed. Zayn asked if they wanted to see somebody shut Dominik Mysterio’s mouth for him. Zayn said that they get to face Priest and Dominik tonight.

Damian Priest said they’ve been focused on individual championships, but those Tag Team Titles would look great in The Judgment Day. Priest suggested that Zayn & Owens put their titles on the line tonight. Zayn told Owens to give us his thoughts.

Kevin Owens shouted about wanting to give Priest a Stunner and put his foot down Dominik’s throat. Owens continued ranting by saying that if they want the Tag Team Titles on the line then you are on.

Analysis: It was originally advertised as a non-title tag team match, but then the champions are babyfaces so they are willing to put the titles on the line. It raises the stakes for the match later in the show, which is fine because it makes the match more interesting. I also really like the reactions for Dominik Mysterio promos. It’s amazing how much the crowd hates him.

They replayed Rhea Ripley kicking Raquel Rodriguez in the left knee earlier in the show.

Raquel Rodriguez was shown getting her left knee getting checked on by WWE Medical that was really an indy wrestler and WWE Official Adam Pearce was there as well. Anyway, the doctor had concerns about her wrestling, but Raquel said she’s still going to wrestle. The doctor okayed it. That Women’s Tag Team Title match is next.

(Commercial)

They showed Alpha Academy backstage getting ready for their match later in the show.

The entrances took place for the Women’s Tag Team Title match. Chelsea Green & Sonya Deville were up first. I love how Samantha Irvin introduces Chelsea. It’s great. Raquel Rodriguez & Liv Morgan were up next as the Women’s Tag Team Champions with Raquel limping to sell the left knee injury.

Analysis: There was only one match in the first hour. It’s not a major complaint. Just saying.

(Commercial)

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

Green & Deville worked over Morgan in their corner a bit. Morgan broke free with an enziguri kick on Deville. Raquel tagged in selling the knee as she sent Deville into the turnbuckle and Raquel did a fallaway slam. Raquel kicked Green off the apron. Raquel charged at Deville, who moved and Raquel hit her shoulder into the turnbuckle. Deville applied a half crab submission on the injured left knee of Rodriguez. Morgan was slow to break it up, but Morgan broke it up by hitting Deville in the back. Morgan tagged in against Green with shoulder tackles, a corner splash and a step up knee. Morgan jumped off the turnbuckle with double knees followed by Oblivion off the ropes. Morgan got a two count because Deville broke up the pin with a knee to Morgan. That was timed perfectly. Deville pulled Raquel off the apron and did a chop block to the back of the left knee. Morgan went for a pin attempt on Green, who kicked out, Deville with a punch Green hit the Unpretty-Her on Liv for a two count. Good nearfall. Deville tagged in, she went for a running knee, Morgan avoided it and got a rollup. Green hit Unpretty-her on Morgan again. Deville hit a running knee on Morgan for the pinfall win after about six minutes.

Winners by pinfall AND NEW Women’s Tag Team Champions: Chelsea Green & Sonya Deville

Analysis: **3/4 It was good in terms of the story with the heels taking out Raquel by targeting the left knee injury and it worked because that meant Liv was isolated against Green & Deville. That nearfall with Green hitting the Unpretty-Her was great. Green would hit it again followed by Deville’s knee and that was enough to put Morgan away. Like I said as a story it was booked well and made sense.

Chelsea Green & Sonya Deville celebrated with the Women’s Tag Team Titles. There was a pyro display for the mas they celebrated in the aisle.

Analysis: I didn’t expect a title change so soon after Raquel & Liv won the titles back, but I think it helps to legitimize Green & Deville as a team.

There was another replay of Brock Lesnar beating up Cody Rhodes earlier in the show.

The graphic was shown for SummerSlam with Brock Lesnar facing Cody Rhodes.

An interview with Seth “Freakin” Rollins was up next. Plus, a look back at Jey Uso from Smackdown.

(Commercial)

Chelsea Green & Sonya Deville were interviewed by Byron Saxton about being the new Women’s Tag Team Titles. Sonya said they have been champions since day one and would run the division. Green was rambling about all the people she has to thank, so Deville tried to shut her up and they left. That was it.

A video package aired about Jey Uso from Smackdown last week with Jey saying he was the real Head of the Table. Paul Heyman and Solo Sikoa said that Jimmy Uso was in the hospital because of Jey Uso, so they were trying to make Jey feel guilty. Jey beat up his brother Solo Sikoa and even hit Paul Heyman with a superkick as well.

This Friday on Smackdown: Roman Reigns and Jey Uso will have a “Rules of Engagement.” It will likely set up their SummerSlam match. This Friday’s Smackdown is on FS1 for those of you in the USA.

Seth “Freakin” Rollins Interview

There was a sitdown interview with Seth “Freakin” Rollins in a unique outfit as usual. Byron Saxton asked Rollins about what was next for Seth’s World Heavyweight Title. Rollins said that Finn Balor, Damian Priest, Drew McIntyre, Gunther and so on have earned a place, but here is Balor. Finn kicked Saxton out. Balor said that he didn’t care about other contenders because the line starts with him. Balor said their issues are far from over. Balor told Rollins to talk to Pearce and make the match. Rollins told Balor to stop living in the past. Balor said he’s living in chaos and that chaos is why he’s going to take the title. Balor said he’ll hurt him, laugh in his face and take Seth’s career and alter it forever. Rollins said that World Heavyweight Championship is about more than Balor’s personal vendetta. Balor said the title is bigger than either of them. Rollins said if they want to settle the score, they don’t need a match – we can do this right here, so take your shot or get out of Seth’s face. Balor said “cool” and left.

When Rollins thought it was over, Balor attacked him by throwing a chair and stomping on Rollins. Balor told Rollins to make the match. Balor left while Rollins was angry.

Analysis: Seth Rollins beat Finn Balor at Money in the Bank, but the match is going to happen again at SummerSlam. I liked the intensity of both guys. I think doing the match again is fine although it should have a stipulation on it rather than being a regular match.

They set up the viking ship around the ring along with shields against the ropes. We have seen this before on Smackdown, but this was the first time on Raw. Alpha Academy made their entrance for the Viking Rules Match.

(Commercial)

Titus O’Neil joined commentary for this match.

Viking Rules Match: Alpha Academy – Chad Gable & Otis (w/Maxxine Dupri) vs. Viking Raiders – Erik & Ivar (w/Valhalla)

There was a piece of viking ship (longboat) connected to the ring. There are no rules.

Gable hit a dive over the top onto the VR guys. Erik slammed Ivar off the longboat onto Otis on the floor. Gable tripped up Erik for an Ankle Lock. Gable threw Erik into a shield that was against the ropes. Otis shouted at Gable to get a table. Gable got a table, but Erik knocked him down. Ivar hit a running cross body block on Otis against the side of the longboat. Back in the ring, Erik held Gable, Ivar went for a springboard attack, but Otis caught Ivar and hit a powerslam! Nice. That wasn’t easy but it worked.

(Commercial)

It continued with Ivar knocking down Otis with a boot to the head. Ivar went up top and hit a moonsault on Ivar, but Gable made the save with a moonsault on Ivar. Gable hit a bridging German Suplex on Ivar for a two count, but Erik broke up the pin. Gable and Erik delivered strikes to eachother, which was won by Erik with a forearm to the head. Gable hit an overhead suplex on Erik across the ring. Gable jumped off the top with a headbutt for two, but Valhalla saved her husband Erik. Dupri jumped off the top with a cross body block on Valhalla. Gable put Dupri’s AA jacket on. Valhalla was back up and tackled Dupri through the table that was against the turnbuckle. Viking Raiders sent Gable into a shield. Otis was back up with a back elbow, a body slam and an overhead slam across the ring. Otis hit a corner splash on Ivar. Otis hit a Powerbomb on Erik as the crowd came alive. Otis did the Caterpillar into an elbow drop. Valhalla slapped Otis in the face. The VR guys were back up as they hit the Ragnarok double Powerbomb on Otis for the pinfall win after 12 minutes.

Winners by pinfall: Viking Raiders – Erik & Ivar

Analysis: ***1/2 That match was great. It was certainly better than I thought it would be because I had low expectations going into it. They worked their asses off to put on an entertaining match. The table spot featuring Valhalla taking out Maxxine Dupri was done in a safe way and drew a big reaction. Gable was taken out by throwing him into the shield and that left Otis alone. Otis was fantastic trying to take out both Viking Raiders and nearly doing it, but that slap from Valhalla stopped it. I like the Raganarok as a finisher because it looks impressive.

Shayna Baszler entered for singles action.

There was a commercial for the new Cody Rhodes documentary on Peacock on July 31st. That’s going to be great.

(Commercial)

Nikki Cross vs. Shayna Baszler

Baszler put the Kirifuda Clutch on Cross and Nikki tapped out. The match took about ten seconds.

Winner by submission: Shayna Baszler

Analysis: No rating. Squash city.

Ronda Rousey did a promo from a private box. Rousey bragged about how successful she is. Rousey said she’s the greatest combat sports athlete of all time while Baszler is a knockoff version of Rousey. Baszler trashed Rousey for being so far away. Baszler said that she’s a better Ronda Rousey than Ronda is. Baszler teased going after Rousey, but security was thee to stop it. Rousey said that she’ll do Baszler a favor by getting booked at SummerSlam. Rousey said she’ll see Baszler at SummerSlam in the Motor City. That was it.

Analysis: We knew it was coming at SummerSlam. Baszler continues to get cheered while Rousey is hated by the fans. It won’t be a long match probably, but I think Baszler should win it.

There was a replay of last week when Ricochet and Logan Paul exchanged words and Ricochet got the upper hand.

Ricochet was interviewed by Jackie Redmond. Ricochet said that Logan Paul thinks that Ricochet is a joke, so of course to Logan everybody is a joke. Ricochet said that the fans are here for WWE, not Instagram posts. Ricochet brought the real fight last week. Ricochet challenged Logan Paul to meet him again next week on Raw in Tampa, Florida so Ricochet can hurt his ego.

Becky Lynch was shown walking backstage for a Miz TV segment up next.

(Commercial)

Miz TV with Becky Lynch

The Miz was in the ring in a suit hosting Miz TV. The Miz claimed that he was back since he beat Tommaso Ciampa and he’s a winner. It was The Miz’s first win of the year, which he didn’t mention. The Miz bragged about being in a celebrity golf tournament over the weekend. Anyway, The Miz introduced Becky Lynch.

Becky Lynch made her entrance. It looked like she was wearing pajamas or something like that, but it’s Becky, so she can pull it off. The Miz ripped on Lynch for losing Trish Stratus and Zoey Stark. Lynch threw the chairs out of the ring and yelled at Miz to bring out his other guests while mocking Miz for his tiny balls.

Trish Stratus (with facemask) made her entrance with Zoey Stark. Lynch wanted her rematch. Trish said that Lynch was acting like a bratty toddler and mentioned Lynch’s daughter Roux, so Lynch yelled at her not to mention Lynch’s daughter.

Trish and Zoey got into the ring saying she’s not going to fight Lynch since she already beat Lynch. Trish said that Zoey beat Lynch too, so they are done with Lynch. Trish said this is the perfect place for Lynch to say “Thank You Trish.”

Lynch said that this is about Trish being a psychopath with a big ego. Lynch said that Trish knows she can’t handle Becky at her strongest. Lynch said she’s spent more time in this company that Trish and accomplished more than Trish has done. Lynch said if Trish is as good as she says she is, she should accept Lynch’s challenge. Lynch kept on trashing Trish, so Trish said she’ll fight her.

Trish said she had a few conditions. Trish told Lynch she had to beat Stark first. Lynch said done. Trish said that when Stark beats Lynch, Becky will have to go on her knees and say “Thank You Trish.” Lynch said “done” to that too. Trish said she wanted Lynch to tattoo “Thank You Trish across your chest. Lynch said “Done “ to that.

Trish and Stark tried an attack, but Lynch was ready for it. Lynch knocked down both women with punches. Lynch took Trish’s facemask off and punched Trish in the face. Lynch headbutted Stark with the facemask as well. Lynch stood tall to end it as her music played.

Analysis: That should lead to the Lynch-Stratus SummerSlam match, but they have taken their sweet time to get there. Lynch will beat Stark first to get the match with Trish, which is fine because it builds Lynch’s momentum before the Trish match.

There was another replay of Brock Lesnar beating up Cody Rhodes to start the show.

Shinsuke Nakamura made his entrance for singles action against Bronson Reed.

(Commercial)

Bronson Reed vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

Nakamura hit a jumping kick, but Reed ran him over with a body attack. Nakamura came back with a roundhouse kick and a running kick. Nakamura went for a knee drop, Reed moved and Nakamura hit the apron leading to a bump to the floor. Reed hit a shoulder tackle on Nakamura on the floor. They went to break two minutes into the match.

(Commercial)

Nakamura made the comeback with kicks to the body followed by a roundhouse kick. Reed missed a corner splash, Nakamura avoided it and Nakamura got a dragon screw leg takedown. Reed grabbed Nakamura on his shoulders and hit a Death Valley Driver for two. Priest went up top, Nakamura was back up with a kick and knee. Nakamura hit a knee strike off the middle turnbuckle for two. Nakamura charged, but Reed hit a cross body block. Tommaso Ciampa showed up to attack Reed for a DQ finish after eight minutes.

Winner by disqualification: Bronson Reed

Analysis: **1/4 It was okay with a DQ ending that makes it just an average match. I thought Reed would get the win before the Ciampa attack, but instead they decided to book a DQ finish. They worked well together with Nakamura getting plenty of offense and Reed came back with power moves to take control.

Post match, Ciampa was punching Reed a few times and Ciampa hit a knee strike to knock Reed out of the ring. Nakamura wasn’t happy about what Ciampa did, so Nakamura kicked Ciampa in the chest to knock him down.

Analysis: An interesting reaction by Nakamura there. I don’t think it means Nakamura is going heel, but Nakamura is mad that Ciampa ruined the match.

They showed Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens taping their hands/wrists ahead of their main event match up next.

(Commercial)

There was a replay of the end of the match before the break.

Shinsuke Nakamura was interviewed with Byron Saxton. Nakamura yelled at Byron that he was tired of people get in his business.

Next week on Raw:

* Becky Lynch faces Zoey Stark. If Lynch wins, she gets a rematch with Trish Stratus.

* Drew McIntyre goes face-to-face with Intercontinental Champion GUNTHER.

* Logan Paul returns to Raw to face off with Ricochet.

Analysis: That’s two “face-to-face” style segments next week. It feels repetitive, but it’s a way to set them up as SummerSlam matches.

Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn entered as the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championships as they carried the Raw & Smackdown Tag Team Titles with them. The Judgment Day foursome made their entrance looking united as usual.

It’s official for SummerSlam: Seth “Freakin” Rollins will defend the World Heavyweight Title against Finn Balor. They showed Balor reacting to the graphic with Balor smiling about it. The main event tag team match was next.

(Commercial)

The introductions took place for the main event with Samantha Irvin doing a great job as usual.

Seth “Freakin” Rollins showed up at ringside and hit a suicide dive on Balor. Rollins chased Balor to the backstage area.

Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championships: Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn vs. The Judgment Day – Damian Priest & Dominik Mysterio (w/Finn Balor & Rhea Ripley)

Priest worked over Zayn with uppercut punches. Dominik tagged in, so Zayn knocked him down with a punch. Owens tagged in with a senton splash on Dominik’s back and a senton on the chest. Owens hit an elbow drop. Zayn tagged in, Dominik drove him to the turnbuckle and Priest tagged in with an uppercut. Dominik was back in, so Zayn greeted him with a high back body drop. Dominik bailed to the floor, Zayn went after him and slammed Dominik’s head into the commentary table. Ripley got in Zayn’s face, so Dominik hit a baseball slide dropkick. Priest tagged in with a Chokeslam on Zayn on the apron.

(Commercial)

The heels were still in control as Priest drove Zayn into the turnbuckle. Priest tried a suplex, Zayn broke free and Owens tagged in with a barrage of punches. Owens clotheslined Priest out of the ring. Owens ran around the ring with running clotheslines on Dom and Priest. Owens hit a senton splash on Priest on the floor. Owens hit a Frog Splash off the apron onto Dom on the floor. Back in the ring, Owens sent Priest shoulder-first into the turnbuckle followed by KO hitting a cannonball. Owens went up top with a Swanton Bomb, but Priest got the knees up. Dominik tagged in with a Frog Splash off the top for two only for Zayn to kick out at two. Zayn sent Priest out of the ring and Dominik dumped Zayn to the floor. Owens wanted Stunner, Dominik avoided it and Owens hit a Popup Powerbomb leading to Priest breaking up the pin. The fans chanted “this is awesome” for them. Zayn hit a Tornado DDT for two. Priest was back up with punches and Priest hit a hurricanrana off the top on Zayn for two. Zayn with a boot to Priest and he dumped Priest out of the rig, but Dominik made the tag. Dominik hit a dropkick into the ropes. Zayn dumped Dominik out of the ring. Owens hit a splash off the apron onto Priest on the floor while Zayn hit a somersault dive onto Dominik on the floor. Ripley sent Owens into the steel steps. Priest drove Zayn’s neck into the top rope and Dominik got a rollup for two. Liv Morgan ran down to ringside to take out Ripley and they went tumbling over the barricade. Zayn gave Dominik an Exploder Suplex into the turnbuckle. Owens was back up with a Stunner on Priest. Zayn hit the Helluva Kick on Dominik for the pinfall win after 15 minutes. The crowd was on fire for that ending.

Winners by pinfall: Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn

Analysis: **** That was an awesome match. It wasn’t the best tag team match I’ve seen in the last three days, but was certainly an exciting match that was fun to watch. The fans were really into it. I went into this thinking the champions should retain, so it’s no surprise that they won although I liked that nearfall for Dominik after the cheap shot by Priest. You need to have moments like that to build up the excitement. Having Liv Morgan show up to attack Ripley made sense since Rhea beat up Raquel Rodriguez earlier in the night. That’s payback that was deserved. The finishing sequence was excellent with Zayn hitting the Helluva Kick for the win. This is the kind of exciting match we will always get with Zayn & Owens as a team. They are incapable of having a bad match. It’s always going to be good and usually great like this match was.

Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn celebrated. That was the end of the show.

===

Three Stars of the Show

1. Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn

2. Viking Raiders and Alpha Academy

3. (tie) GUNTHER

3. (tie) Chelsea Green & Sonya Deville

===

The Scoreboard

7.75 out of 10

Last week: 7.25

2023 Average: 7.26

===

Final Thoughts

I thought it was a great Raw for the most part. Since SummerSlam is coming, they are able to further so many stories on the show and they did a nice job creatively of making some of it feel different. Brock Lesnar kicking Cody Rhodes’ ass in Cody’s hometown right in front of Cody’s mom is great for a heel like Brock. Finn Balor was terrific with Seth Rollins as well to set up their SummerSlam match too.

In terms of matches, the main event tag team match with Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn beating Damian Priest & Dominik Mysterio was terrific. Owens & Zayn are always going to have good matches. The Viking Rules Match sounds goofy, but the Viking Raiders had a very entertaining match with Alpha Academy. That crowd loved it too. GUNTHER’s match with Matt Riddle was fun too. Then there was the Women’s Tag Team Title change, which worked well because of the story leading to Chelsea & Sonya leaving as the new champions. It was fitting for heels like them.

This three hour show was very entertaining from start to finish. I wasn’t bored at all and a lot of the booking made sense. Well done.

The next WWE Premium Live Event for the main roster is SummerSlam on August 5th with this lineup so far: