The John Report: The WWE Raw Deal 09/18/23 Review
This week’s WWE Raw featured Drew McIntyre facing Jey Uso, Shinsuke Nakamura against Ricochet and more.
The next WWE Premium Live Event is Fastlane on October 7th with nothing official for the show as we head into this episode of Raw.
This is the Raw Deal for episode #1582 of Monday Night Raw. It’s taking place at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Utah. Follow me on Twitter/X @johnreport. Let’s get to it.
Cody Rhodes made his entrance in his wrestling gear since he’s scheduled for a match. The fans cheered loudly for Cody as usual with the loud “WHOA-OH” singing of the song on cue. The commentary team was Michael Cole and Wade Barrett as usual.
Let’s Hear from Cody Rhodes
Cody Rhodes said he was interrupted last week, so he really wanted to talk about “Main Event” Jey Uso. It was interruption time with the NXT North American Champion Dominik Mysterio, who is Cody’s opponent.
Dominik spoke over the loud boos saying when Jey Uso joins The Judgment Day, they will continue to be the most dominant faction in all of WWE. Dominik said that “Mami” aka Rhea Ripley wasn’t there because she was injured by Nia Jax last week. Congrats to Rhea on a vacation. Dominik said when he beats Cody he’ll beat his victory to Mami.
Cody asked the fans if they heard him and the fans shouted “no” in reply. Cody said maybe if Dominik wins, she’ll define their relationship. Cody even mentioned Steve Urkel/Laura from the show Family Matters in the 1990s. If you are a certain age then you know, but the younger fans might have no idea. Cody said that Dominik is more interested in Ripley than she is in him. Cody claimed that maybe Ripley has her eyes on Jey Uso. Dominik said it’s not like that because they are a family and a family always has each other’s backs.
Analysis: There were some good lines there. Ripley is actually in Australia with fiancé Buddy Matthews of AEW. Since WWE is likely to announce their big Australia show that will take place early next year, Ripley will probably be on hand for that announcement too.
Damian Priest aka Senor Money in the Bank & Finn Balor entered as the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champions to support Dominik in the match coming up next.
(Commercial)
Dragon Lee from NXT was shown at ringside. It was announced that Dragon will challenge Dominik for the NXT North American Title next Monday on Raw.
Cody Rhodes vs. Dominik Mysterio (w/Damian Priest & Finn Balor)
Cody hit a delayed vertical suplex followed by a punch and a Figure Four Leglock, but Dominik got to the bottom rope quickly. Cody delivered a punch while on the apron, so Dominik distracted the referee and Balor tripped up Cody on the apron. Dominik with a suplex, Cody broke free and Cody hit a Cody Cutter. Cody hit Cross Rhodes on Dominik for the pinfall win after about three minutes.
Winner by pinfall: Cody Rhodes
Analysis: *3/4 A dominant win for Cody Rhodes beating Dominik within a few minutes. Dominik is not a strong NXT North American Champion, but he finds ways to win in cheap ways. In a non-title match like this against a top guy, Cody winning quickly is a fine way to book it.
After the match, The Judgment Day teased attacking Cody, but Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn ran out to stand beside Cody in the ring. The Judgment Day left through the crowd.
Cody was leaving up the aisle, but Kevin Owens told him to get back into the ring so they could talk about something. They went to break.
(Commercial)
Let’s Hear from Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn & Cody Rhodes
Kevin Owens was seated on the turnbuckle talking to Cody saying is Jey Uso back on Raw because of him? Cody said that was correct. Owens spoke about how Cody is well aware of what Jey Uso did when he was in The Bloodline. Owens wanted to know why Cody thought it was a good idea to bring him into this locker room. Owens said it’s not just him because there are a lot of people in the locker room who need to hear it.
Cody Rhodes said he’s had a lot of roles, tasks and duties. Cody said that his job is to make these people happy. Cody asked the fans if they like Jey Uso and the fans cheered. Cody said he has received a large amount of second chances. Cody said that Jey is one of the best in the world, he deserves a second chance and he deserves a chance to show us that he has changed. Cody also said that The Bloodline is now down a member, so what’s bad about that?
Sami Zayn said he has KO’s back and has known him since day one. Zayn said that Owens takes time to trust people. Zayn said he’s been through a lot with Jey. Zayn told Owens you don’t have to give him a second chance, but Sami thinks he should. Zayn said that Kevin has given Sami a second chance and Sami has done it for him too, which led to them becoming WWE Tag Team Champions at WrestleMania.
Owens said that he hears them. Owens spoke about how all three of them lost title matches to Roman Reigns in part due to Jey Uso with Owens saying it happened to him like five times. Owens said that Jey could be close to joining The Judgment Day. Owens said if you want him to trust Jey Uso, he can’t do that, but Owens trusts both of them so he hopes they are right.
Analysis: It is the kind of necessary segment that needs to air as this story continues with Jey Uso. It would be wrong for everybody to trust him, so having Owens question Jey makes logical sense. Meanwhile, Cody and Sami are confident that Jey is a changed man so it’s fine for them to trust Jey more. It adds more intrigue to the story.
A replay was shown from last week when Jey Uso accidentally superkicked Jey Uso during a tag team match last week on Raw.
There were highlights shown of the Rhea Ripley-Raquel Rodriguez match from last week’s Raw when Ripley retained the Women’s World Title thanks to a surprise return from Nia Jax attacking Raquel. After the match, Jax attacked Ripley as well.
Cole said that the injury update is that Ripley has bruised ribs while Raquel has whiplash. That’s obviously a work.
Kofi Kingston entered for singles action.
This Friday on Smackdown: Solo Sikoa & Jimmy Uso are united against John Cena. Also, IYO SKY defends the WWE Women’s Title against Asuka. That should be an outstanding match.
(Commercial)
Kofi Kingston vs. Ivar (w/Valhalla)
There was going to be a 2/3 Falls match between The New Day and Viking Raiders. Erik is not medically able to compete (maybe an injury or illness) according to WWE Official Adam Pearce, so they aired a video with New Day wanting a singles match with Ivar. Kofi and Xavier Woods did paper/rock/scissors so Kofi won that to get the match.
Kofi did some impressive leapfrogs leading to a back elbow. When Kofi charged, Ivar jumped up and sat on his chest to drive Kofi into the mat. Kofi came back with the rising kick to the head followed by a top rope chop. Kofi hit a leaping clothesline. Ivar with a back punch to the head followed by Kofi hitting a spin kick for two. Ivar hit a back body drop sending Kofi out of the ring. Ivar jumped off the apron with a splash onto Kofi on the floor. That led to a break.
(Commercial)
Ivar was in control as he went up top and jumped off with a splash, but Kofi moved out of the way. Kofi hit a splash onto Ivar’s back for a two count. Kofi jumped off the top in a cross body block for two. Ivar decked Kofi with a stiff boot to the face. Kofi took down Ivar with the SOS trip for a two count. Kofi hit the Boom Drop double leg drop. Kofi and Ivar each missed kicks leading to Ivar hitting a double underhook sitout Powerbomb for a two count. Ivar hit a spinning heel kick for a two count. Ivar hit a running splash on Kofi against the turnbuckle. Ivar went to the middle rope, then Valhalla told Ivar to go up top and it took a long time, but Ivar managed to hit a moonsault off the top for a two count. Great nearfall there. They battled by the turnbuckle with Kofi countering Ivar with a sunset flip Powerbomb. Kofi hit the Trouble in Paradise kick for the pinfall win after 13 minutes.
Winner by pinfall: Kofi Kingston
Analysis: ***1/2 That was a terrific match. We know Kofi is more than capable of having great singles matches while Ivar proved how talented he is as well. I know Ivar is going to remain a tag team wrestler, but he showed he has the skills to be a powerful singles wrestler too. It’s a reminder of how talented the WWE roster is as long as wrestlers get the time to have meaningful matches like this. I don’t think the result mattered that much, but Kofi winning makes sense since he’s more experienced as a singles star.
Ricochet was interviewed by Jackie Redmond. Ricochet said that he is nobody’s pawn. Ricochet said the only reason that he’s involved with Shinsuke Nakamura is because Nakamura attacked Ricochet last week. Ricochet said if Nakamura wants to play games, Ricochet is the cheat code and tonight is game over.
Shinsuke Nakamura made his entrance for his singles match against Ricochet. The World Heavyweight Champion Seth “Freakin” Rollins made his entrance, but WWE Officials and security tried to get Rollins to back away. Rollins went after Nakamura, but Nakamura left the ring and security/officials stopped Rollins again. Nakamura mocked Rollins as the show went to break.
Analysis: I like how they did that. It shows how Nakamura’s mind games are working.
(Commercial)
Ricochet vs. Shinsuke Nakamura
They were locked up by the ropes leading to Nakamura kicking Ricochet to knock him down. Nakamura delivered multiple kicks to the chest. Ricochet with forearms, then a headscissors and a dropkick. Ricochet stomped on Nakamura against the turnbuckle. Ricochet tried a handspring attack, but Nakamura hit a sliding dropkick to stop that. Nakamura delivered a rising knee to the ribs for two. Nakamura applied a submission move with a chinlock on the mat. Ricochet came back with a kick to the back along with a standing moonsault. Nakamura came back with chops and forearms while Ricochet was against the turnbuckle. Nakamura with a kick to the back leading to sliding German Suplex attempt, but Ricochet avoided it and Ricochet hit a moonsault off the apron onto a standing Nakamura. That led to a break.
(Commercial)
Nakamura charged for an attack, but Ricochet hit a jumping knee to the face. Barrett made the point that Nakamura wasn’t trying to win due to a lack of covers. Ricochet knocked Nakamura down again leading to a running Shooting Star Press for two. Ricochet kicked Nakamura against the turnbuckle. Ricochet hit a springboard cross body block with Nakamura falling too early a bit, but it still worked as Ricochet got a two count. Nakamura stopped the momentum with a kick by the turnbuckle. Nakamura kicked Ricochet while on the apron. They were out on the floor with Ricochet getting a step up enziguri. Nakamura tried a chair attack, but Ricochet avoided it and hit a superkick. Ricochet hit Nakamura with a chair to the back. The referee saw the whole thing, so there’s the DQ finish at 13 minutes.
Winner by disqualification: Shinsuke Nakamura
Analysis: ***1/4 A good match that was heavy on story with Nakamura playing mind games again and that led to Ricochet getting disqualified due to being frustrated by Nakamura’s actions. Barrett spoke about how Nakamura wasn’t going for the win because he wanted to cause pain to Ricochet. Ricochet lost his cool by using the steel chair because of the great mind games that Nakamura was playing. That’s why the story is so important.
Post match, Ricochet was talking to the referee about what happened. Nakamura was back in the ring with a kick to the back of the ankle. Nakamura with a kick to the back of the neck. Nakamura rammed Ricochet’s left knee into the ring post. Nakamura hit Ricochet’s left knee/ankle with the chair against the ring post. Seth “Freakin” Rollins showed up for the save. They fought in the ring with Rollins going for a Pedigree, but Nakamura gave him a back body drop on a steel chair. The fight continued with Nakamura sending Rollins back first into the commentary table. Nakamura gave Rolins a belly-to-back suplex onto the commentary table. Nakamura grabbed a Seth Rollins giant head from a fan as he walked to the back. Cole called Nakamura a vicious man as the show went to break.
Analysis: I thought it was a great angle to get more heat on Nakamura while Rollins took some punishment again. Nakamura also weakened Ricochet as well. They are doing a tremendous job of getting heat on Nakamura over the last few weeks and this was a good example of that.
(Commercial)
Seth Rollins was shown walking backstage and he actually fell down while walking. The referee was there helping Rollins into the trainer’s room.
The Progressive replay was shown telling the story of Shayna Baszler becoming allies with Zoey Stark against the Women’s Tag Team Champions Chelsea Green & Piper Niven.
Chelsea Green & Piper Niven, the WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions, were interviewed by Byron Saxton. Green called Saxton “Bryan” while claiming she is best friends with Niven. Piper said if they are friends, what country is she from? Green said “Florida” because she’s dumb. Saxton said the answer is actually Scotland. Green claimed she knew that and Green said they’ll show what real team looks like.
Analysis: It’s goofy Chelsea as usual. She is good at it even though it’s a bit too silly at times.
Shayna Baszler & Zoey Stark vs. Chelsea Green & Piper Niven
This is not for Green & Niven’s Women’s Tag Team Titles. Stark hit a running elbow, forearm and a sliding clothesline on Green. Stark did a springboard senton splash for two. Baszler tagged in with a backbreaker. Baszler hit a neckbreaker along with a sliding knee attack. Stark tagged in, Niven saved Green from a corner attack and Green hit a missile dropkick off the top for two. Niven hit a shoulderbreaker on Stark. Green back in with a step up enziguri on Stark and Stark came back with a kick. Niven made the save, so Baszler knocked Niven out of the ring. Niven gave Baszler a body slam on the floor. Nia Jax attacked Niven on the floor by sending her into the ring post. The referee saw it, so there’s the disqualification. It went four minutes.
Winners by disqualification: Chelsea Green & Piper Niven
Analysis: *1/2 That sucked in terms of trying to give the women’s tag team division a bit of a spotlight. The fans were dead for most of it. It’s already something a lot of fans complain about it and this will just add to it. That was also the second straight match with a DQ finish. With that said, I get that WWE wants to put over Nia Jax as a dominant threat too.
After the match, Jax threw Niven into the steel steps. Jax went into the ring and hit Stark with a Samoan Drop along with a running senton. Jax tossed Green across the ring and a running hip attack. Baszler was in the ring, so Jax hit a running splash on her. Jax did the Banzai Drop that is called the Annihilator. Jax stood tall while the fans booed. Jax left saying the entire women’s division was on notice.
Analysis: It was more destruction from Nia Jax. The security team and WWE Officials are quick to save other people on the show, but there was no sign of them here. That’s because this is a case of WWE really wanting to put over Jax in a big way.
Adam Pearce, the WWE Official, was shown talking on the phone to somebody. Chad Gable walked up asking how is Seth? Pearce said that he’s hurt and he’s angry. Gable said that he beat Ludwig last week and he wants to know what he has to do to get to GUNTHER again. Pearce said you lost to GUNTHER so he can’t just slide Gable into an Intercontinental Title shot. Bronson Reed walked into the picture, they argued with Gable saying he’ll suplex him and Reed said he can’t do that. Pearce said they could have a match up next.
(Commercial)
Jey Uso was interviewed by Jackie Redmond. Jey said he knows he has eyes on him and a big red target on his back. Jey said he has history with Drew McIntyre, so he knows what to expect. Damian Priest walked in while Jackie left. Priest said that The Judgment Day is looking for an Uso. Priest said that others might want Jimmy, but he wants Jey in the group and said it’s a family decision. Priest said that what The Judgment Day has is something special. Priest said that J-Day could be the family that Jey has been looking for his whole life. Priest told him to give a yes or no answer by the end of the night.
Analysis: That continues the story of Jey Uso wanting to prove himself while The Judgment Day wants Jey to join them. It adds some intrigue to the main event later in the show.
Bronson Reed vs. Chad Gable (w/Otis & Maxxine Dupri)
Gable got some momentum going with strikes followed by a missile dropkick off the top. Gable tried a suplex, Reed was too big for it and Reed splashed Gable against the turnbuckle. Reed hit an overhead belly-to-belly suplex. Reed whipped Gable hard into the turnbuckle with Gable taking a sternum first bump. Gable tried to get some offense going, but Reed picked him up and press slammed Gable into the turnbuckle. Reed knocked Gable off the apron to the floor leading to a break.
(Commercial)
Gable did a chop block, but then Reed came back with a clothesline. They were against the turnbuckle with Gable applying an armbar against the ropes. Gable hit a rolling kick. Gable went up top and hit a headbutt for two. Gable went for the Chaos Theory suplex, but Reed was too big and Reed ran over Gable again. Reed tried a splash only for Gable to get the knees up. Gable went for a suplex again, Reed was too big and Reed fell back right onto Gable for a painful slam. Reed went up top leading to the Tsunami splash with Barrett yelling “Tsunami” like he did in the NXT days. That’s always fun. Reed pinned Gable for the win. It went 10 minutes.
Winner by pinfall: Bronson Reed
Analysis: **3/4 The power game of Reed was too much. Gable tried the suplex, but he couldn’t do it and Reed capitalized to win. A result that surprised me a bit because Gable had a lot of momentum other than Gunther matches, yet here he is losing clean to Reed. I don’t mind Reed winning because he’s really good and probably underused a bit, but I thought this would be a Gable win. Perhaps WWE is going to play the long game with Gable before he gets another Intercontinental Title match.
Tommaso Ciampa was shown backstage talking to the camera. Ciampa said he would play the long game, be patient and eventually his number would be called. Ciampa said he found out that patience is not a virtue. Ciampa said you have to create your own opportunities. Ciampa said he chose Imperium and it’s because GUNTHER has what Ciampa wants.
Analysis: Good intensity was shown by Ciampa as usual. I still wonder when Johnny Gargano is going to come back to team with him.
There were highlights shown of NXT last Tuesday when Becky Lynch beat Tiffany Stratton to win the NXT Women’s Title.
Becky Lynch was shown walking backstage for a match. She touched fists with Tozawa on the way.
(Commercial)
Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn were shown talking backstage with Owens talking about Jey superkicking last week. Jey Uso walked up to them with Owens saying he thinks Jey is with The Judgment Day. Jey said he’s not and Jey said last week was an accident. Owens left saying he didn’t trust Jey either way. Owens said they don’t have a match so he’s leaving. Zayn told Jey to just chill because Owens takes time to come around. Zayn said that Jey has a decision to make tonight – a big one. Zayn wished Jey good luck with the decision.
Analysis: The quick segments like that work really well to advance the story. They were used a lot in The Bloodline story over the last three years too. It’s important to have meaningful backstage segments and not just filler.
Let’s Hear from Becky Lynch
Becky Lynch made her entrance as the NXT Women’s Champion. Lynch said that she didn’t want to win this title just to be a Grand Slam Champion. Lynch said she wants to test herself against the best that the future has to offer because NXT represents the future. Lynch said she’ll be at NXT on Tuesday night, but tonight she’s in Utah and she knows there are a lot of women in the back that want to step up to the plate. Lynch said tonight is the night for somebody new because she is issuing an open challenge.
Natalya answered the open challenge in some new ring gear. Natalya said it was eight weeks ago when she took Raw Women’s Champion Rhea Ripley to her limits. Natalya said she has been waiting for her chance ever since then. Natalya said she accepts the open challenge. Lynch said that she respects Natalya and they go back to wrestling as teenagers. Lynch said that she wanted to face somebody new while Natalya has been here for 15 years. Natalya said that Lynch stepped over the women in NXT that were waiting for a chance and Lynch is a “hypocritical ginger witch.” Natalya shoved Lynch and Lynch said she accepts.
Analysis: That was an interesting reply by Natalya. It was actually a very good point made by her since she said that Lynch was just given an NXT Women’s Title match without wrestling there for years and Lynch became the champion while other women in NXT were pushed aside. This was originally planned to be Lynch against Tegan Nox, but those plans were changed.
NXT Women’s Championship: Becky Lynch vs. Natalya
Natalya punched Lynch and threw her shoulder-first into the ring post. They went to break.
(Commercial)
Lynch was in control in a forearm followed by a Bexploder suplex. Natalya blocked a slam leading to a release German Suplex. Lynch countered Natalya into a cradle for two. Lynch went up top for a move, but Natalya hit a superplex while standing on the middle rope. Lynch kicked her way out of a Sharpshooter attempt and sent Natalya back first into the turnbuckle. Lynch went up top again leading to the missile dropkick. Lynch hit a baseball slide kick to Natalya on the floor. Back in the ring, Lynch up top again, Natalya moved to avoid an attack and Natalya hit a discus clothesline for two. Lynch went for the Disarm-her, Natalya countered it and got a rollup for two. Lynch with a rollup, Natalya countered for a pin of her own and Lynch got a ROLLUP OF DEATH~! for the pinfall win after about six minutes.
Winner by pinfall: Becky Lynch
Analysis: **1/2 A good technical wrestling match by two talented veterans. We only got to see about four minutes of action or else I would have rated it higher. I thought it would be a more decisive win for Lynch, but instead, it was the ROLLUP OF DEATH~! to show it was a close finish.
Dragon Lee was shown talking to WWE Official Adam Pearce in Pearce’s office. Dominik Mysterio walked in with the NXT North American Title saying that he lost to Cody Rhodes because Rhea Ripley wasn’t by his side. Dominik told Dragon he didn’t like guys with masks because they reminded him of his deadbeat dad. Dragon said that next week, he is leaving Raw as the next NXT North American Champion.
Analysis: I don’t think Dragon Lee will win next week. I like Dragon a lot, but I think Dominik’s title reign will continue.
Giovanni Vinci entered with Ludwig Kaiser for Vinci’s match up next.
(Commercial)
Tommaso Ciampa vs. Giovanni Vinci (w/Ludwig Kaiser)
Ciampa and Vinci exchanged strikes, Kaiser tripped up Ciampa and Vinci hit a stiff clothesline. The Intercontinental Champion GUNTHER was watching on a TV backstage. Vinci hit a belly-to-back suplex for two. Ciampa made the comeback with a Thesz Press followed by punches and a clothesline. Ciampa hit another clothesline followed by a reverse DDT. Kaiser with a distraction, so Ciampa got a rollup for two. Ciampa with a punch, a boot and Vinci with a chop. Vinci went for a springboard attack, but Ciampa hit a jumping knee. Ciampa applied the Sicilian Stretch submission leading to Vinci tapping out. It went about four minutes.
Winner by submission: Tommaso Ciampa
Analysis: **1/2 A solid match in a battle of the bald guys. Ciampa needs wins to build up his credibility as a potential Intercontinental Title challenger while Vinci loses nearly every singles match that he has.
Drew McIntyre was shown standing backstage ahead of his main event match.
(Commercial)
Seth “Freakin” Rollins was limping backstage with Byron Saxton asking Rollins how he is feeling. Rollins said he was tired and he’s in a lot of pain. Rollins said he’s losing his mind. Rollins will do whatever it takes to get Nakamura in the ring. Rollins said Nakamura can name the time, name the place and even name the stipulation if you want. Rollins spoke about how their destinies are intertwined at this point, so will Nakamura define his legacy or will it be Rollins? Seth left.
Analysis: It has been obvious for a few weeks that there will be a Rollins-Nakamura match at Fastlane. It’s still not official yet.
A video aired about the Jey Uso story setting up this match with Drew McIntyre. The video featured many instances where Jey Uso and The Bloodline attacked Drew over the years during Drew’s rivalry with Roman Reigns in the past.
Jey Uso made his entrance for the main event. The fans really like Jey’s hands up/hands down gesture.
(Commercial)
Next week on Raw:
* Damian Priest & Finn Balor defend the undisputed WWE Tag Team Titles against Sami Zayn & Kevin Owens
* Otis vs. Bronson Reed
* Shinsuke Nakamura responds to Seth “Freakin” Rollins
* Dominik Mysterio defends the NXT North American Title against Dragon Lee. They announced that earlier in the show.
Drew McIntyre made his entrance with his sword. Big pop for him as usual.
Jey Uso vs. Drew McIntyre
Jey set up Drew against the turnbuckle leading to a kick. Drew came back using his power with a clothesline. Drew pounded on Jey with punches. Jey came back with punches that look better than most people in WWE. Drew hit a suplex for two. Drew chopped Jey down leading to a stomp to the head. Jey delivered some headbutts, but Drew came back with chops. Jey sent a charging Drew out of the ring leading to Jey hitting a suicide dive on Drew on the floor. Jey went back into the ring leading to another suicide dive on Drew on the floor. The Judgment Day’s Damian Priest, Finn Balor & Dominik Mysterio walked out with all their titles and the MITB briefcase for Priest to watch the match.
(Commercial)
Drew and Jey were fighting on the turnbuckle with Drew delivering a forearm. Drew hit a superplex off the top rope. Both guys were down selling for a bit before getting back up to slug it out. They each did a headbutt followed by Jey’s enziguri kick and Jey hit a Samoan Drop for two. Drew blocked a Jey dive with a forearm. Drew hit a spinebuster for two. Drew hit a neckbreaker along with a kip-up to show he had a lot of left. Dominik was on the apron to distract the referee, Priest grabbed Drew’s foot and Jey capitalized with a superkick for two. It was more like a jumping superkick. The Judgment Day encouraged Jey to finish him. Priest was standing on the apron beside Jey, so Jey touched his fist and then Jey superkicked Priest off the apron. Jey superkicked Balor and Dominik too. Drew was back up to his feet leading to a Claymore Kick for the pinfall win after 14 minutes.
Winner by pinfall: Drew McIntyre
Analysis: ***1/2 I thought it was a great match. The ending gives Jey a bit of an out since he had to deal with The Judgment Day, which allowed Drew to capitalize with the Claymore Kick for the win. The result gives Drew some revenge against Jey for the years of attacks while Jey answered The Judgment Day by superkicking them to tell them that Jey wanted no part of that group. Drew’s Claymore Kick is deadly as a finisher with very few people kicking out of it, so once he hit that, it was all over at that point.
After the match, Drew left up the aisle while The Judgment Day trio circled Jey Uso in the ring. The Judgment Day stomped on Jey while Drew watched from the aisle. Balor and Priest took turns punching Jey. Drew walked to the back with the fans booing that. Drew stopped, then he looked back at the ring and that’s when Cody Rhodes ran out to the ring.
Cody sent Priest out of the ring. Cody punched Balor and Jey superkicked Dominik. Cody gave Dominik Cross Rhodes as The Judgment Day retreated. Cody picked up Jey, they shook hands and that was the end of Raw.
Analysis: This could start an issue with Cody and Drew as well since Cody decided to get involved while Drew was looking toward the ring. I’m sure there will be some tag team matches coming out of this as well. It also feels like Drew is still going heel, but I don’t know for sure about that.
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Three Stars of the Show
- Drew McIntyre
- Kofi Kingston
- Jey Uso/Ivar
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The Scoreboard
7.25 out of 10
Last week: 8
2023 Average: 7.32
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Final Thoughts
I thought it was a good episode of Raw. Last week was definitely better, but there are still a lot of things that I liked. The two matches that stood out the most were Kofi Kingston/Ivar having a great match and I liked the Drew McIntyre/Jey Uso main event a lot in terms of advancing the story involving The Judgment Day. It’s a story that should carry the show for a few months anyway.
They are really doing a nice job of making Shinsuke Nakamura a devious heel with his attack on Ricochet as well the continued rivalry with World Heavyweight Champion Seth “Freakin” Rollins. The next Rollins-Nakamura match will feel like a big deal compared to the Payback match.
There is still nothing official for Fastlane yet, but obviously some big matches are coming based on the current storylines on the Raw brand.
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Thanks for reading. Please check out my reviews of every WWE PPV ever listed in order. Go Toronto Blue Jays and Los Angeles Rams. My contact info is below.
John Canton
Email mrjohncanton@gmail.com
Twitter/X @johnreport