The John Report: WWE Raw Deal 09/16/24 Review
It’s WWE Raw featuring a Balor/McDonagh Tag Team Title match against The New Day, words from CM Punk, Damian Priest battling Dominik Mysterio…and more.
There are three more episodes of Monday Night Raw that will be three hours including this show. It’s back to two hours starting in October, which we found out on last week’s Raw episode.
This is the Raw Deal for episode #1635 of Monday Night Raw. It’s taking place at the Moda Center in Portland, Oregon. Follow me on Twitter/X @johnreport. Let’s get to it.
They showed some WWE superstars earlier in the day including Damian Priest & Rhea Ripley. The Judgment Day five-person group was shown. They also showed Kairi Sane & Iyo Sky along with Bianca Belair & Jade Cargill. There were also arrivals shown of Braun Strowman and Bronson Reed since they are facing off later in the show. CM Punk was shown driving up to the building. Punk parked a car, left the door open, and walked right into the building wearing a Bret Hart sweater.
CM Punk was shown walking around the backstage area of the building and then he made his way through the backstage area as his music played. Punk took off his Hitman sweater and had one of his shirts on underneath. The camera followed Punk from behind as the fans popped big for him.
The commentary team of Joe Tessitore and Wade Barrett welcomed us to the show.
Let’s Hear from CM Punk
CM Punk had a serious look on his face as the fans chanted his name as usual. Punk said that he is at the point in his career where he gets asked how many more matches he has left and Punk said that the answer is way more than you think. Punk said that when he came back to WWE he said he didn’t come back here to make friends, but it didn’t necessarily mean he was there to make a mortal enemy. Punk said that is what happened because the only way to end this between him and Drew McIntyre is Hell in a Cell. The fans cheered.
Punk said that he was naïve to think it would be over when he won a Strap Match. Punk mentioned Drew making it personal by bringing Punk’s wife and dog into this. Punk said maybe it should have ended when Drew sent him to a hospital for the second time, but Punk is too damn stubborn. Punk said people can ask him how many more Hell in a Cell matches does he have left in him and Punk said his honest answer is zero. Punk claimed his little sisters and his wife asked him not to do this. Punk said maybe the angel on his shoulder begged him not to do this. Punk said knowing that information, he will tell us why he is going to do this. The fans chanted “CM Punk” again.
Punk spoke about how the last time was in Portland, he told Drew that if you push him enough then he can be the devil himself. Punk said that the devil is here. Punk said that his heart tells him that the only way to end this is inside Hell in a Cell. Punk said he can’t promise Drew McIntyre that he will kill him because he can’t make promises on things he can’t 100% deliver on. Punk promised Drew that Drew would bleed and Drew would have to kill him because Punk is prepared for all of this to be over with. Punk said he had a great career and if this is the end then so be it. Punk told Drew that he was prepared for this to be the end of CM Punk and if Drew was prepared for this to be the end of Drew McIntyre then Punk would see him in hell. Punk left with the fans cheering him as usual.
Analysis: It was a serious version of CM Punk rather than the guy who talks about how happy he is to be there on a Monday night. I thought Punk brought the right tone to this promo and he made his points well. Punk saying his wife and sisters didn’t want to do Hell in a Cell is a smart way of putting over how serious of a match it is. I think Punk will beat McIntyre inside Hell in a Cell, but I certainly could change my mind on that one.
There were videos of the Sheamus-Pete Dunne issues over the last few weeks.
Sheamus was interviewed backstage by Cathy Kelley. Sheamus said he taught Pete Dunne too well. Sheamus said the one mountain he has left is the Intercontinental Championship and Dunne took that away. Sheamus reminded the fans that he hates being called Butch, so Sheamus mentioned saying Butch over and over again, which led to “Butch” chants. Sheamus said Pete Dunne becomes his Butch so Portland, are you ready for a banger? The fans cheered.
Analysis: A fun promo from Sheamus to encourage the Butch chants that will anger Pete Dunne. Good crowd management work by Sheamus.
Sheamus made his entrance for his match with Pete Dunne up next.
(Commercial)
Pete Dunne vs. Sheamus
Sheamus connected with a backbreaker followed by a couple of forearms to the back. Dunne blocked the attempted forearms from Sheamus and Dunne pulled on Sheamus’ right arm against the shoulder. Sheamus came back with a spinning sidewalk slam. Dunne hit a step up enziguri kick to the head as the fans chanted “Butch” to annoy Dunne. Dunne stomped on Sheamus’ left arm. They left the ring where Dunne tried a stomp on the left hand, Sheamus avoided it and Sheamus gave Dunne an Alabama Slam onto the hood of the commentary table. They went to break there.
(Commercial)
Dunne countered a move by the turnbuckle and Dunne hit a running Powerbomb for two. There were some “Butch” chants to annoy Dunne, who hit Sheamus with repeated forearms. Sheamus blocked a punch and called Dunne a bitch leading to a Sheamus clothesline. Sheamus hit another clothesline followed by a powerslam. Sheamus jumped off the top with a knee drop on Dunne for two. Dunne slipped out of a move leading to a kick to the head along with another kick. Dunne went up top, Sheamus stopped him there and Sheamus hit a powerslam off the middle turnbuckle for two. The fans bought that as a nearfall. Sheamus hit the Ten Beats of the Bodhran forearms to the chest, but it was about 17 forearms with the fans counting along. Dunne grabbed a shillelagh from ringside and Sheamus hit a pump knee to the face. Sheamus had the shillelagh, so the referee took it away. Dunne left the ring, grabbed a cricket bat and hit Sheamus in the head. The referee never saw it. Dunne hit a pump kick on Sheamus for the pinfall win. It went about 11 minutes.
Winner by pinfall: Pete Dunne
Analysis: ***1/4 A cheap win for Dunne using the cricket bat cheap shot leading to the victory. Sheamus is always going to have an entertaining match while they are trying to build up Dunne more, which I like to see. It was good to see Dunne get a win like that since he loses too often for my liking. With that said, I think they might have a rematch with Sheamus getting the win in a gimmick match that allows them to use weapons.
There was a replay of last week’s Raw when The Judgment Day used the numbers game advantage to beat up Damian Priest & Rhea Ripley. Jey Uso made the save to chase The Judgment Day away.
Damian Priest and Rhea Ripley were backstage when Jey Uso showed up to talk to them. Jey said he knows Priest doesn’t need help, but he’ll have his eyes on Priest’s match. Xavier Woods walked up to them saying that The New Day is going for the World Tag Team Titles against The Judgment Day’s Balor & McDonagh and they wanted to prove they are still the best. Woods asked them to stay back here out of respect. Priest told them to whoop their asses. Jey left. Ripley was smiling at Jey as he left. Yeet.
Still to come: Damian Priest is against Dominik Mysterio.
(Commercial)
Braun Strowman was shown getting ready for his match when The Miz showed up asking him how he was doing. Braun showed a nasty bruise on his right arm. The Miz asked Braun what he meant by saying Miz was no match for Bronson Reed. Braun said he didn’t mean disrespect. Braun said sometimes it takes a monster to beat a monster. Miz said he’s not a monster, so he understood. Miz told Braun he’s got this.
Natalya (w/Zelina Vega & Lyra Valkyria) vs. Zoey Stark (w/Shayna Baszler & Sonya Deville)
This is Natalya’s first singles match since June 4th with thanks to Joe Tessitore for saying that. Last week was Natalya’s return after three months off as she got the win for her trio against Pure Fusion Collective. There were some quick moves and exchanges to start the match. Stark managed to kick Natalya in the head followed by a springboard dropkick. They went to a break there.
(Commercial)
The match returned with Stark going for a dropkick again, but Natalya avoided it. Natalya made the comeback with a German Suplex and clothesline. Natalya blocked a kick from Stark leading to a boot to the face by Natalya for two. Stark went for a corner attack, Natalya avoided it and then Stark hit a rolling senton along with a superkick for two. Natalya avoided the Z360 knee, but Stark blocked a Sharpshooter attempt. They exchanged pin attempts, Stark kicked Natalya away and sat on top for two. Natalya countered it into the ROLLUP OF DEATH~! for the win.
Winner by pinfall: Natalya
Analysis: **3/4 A solid technical wrestling match for the time given. I don’t necessarily love the ROLLUP OF DEATH~! as a finisher, but it’s a move that WWE likes to book as a finish to show that it was a close win. It puts over Natalya as a crafty veteran wrestler who can beat you with moves other than a Sharpshooter. I’m happy to see Natalya picking up some wins, but it feels like this storyline isn’t close to being done.
Rhea Ripley was interviewed by Cathy Kelley, but Finn Balor interrupted before Ripley could say anything. Finn said that Ripley was just as bad as Damian Priest. Balor said that Ripley said they were a family and all she cared about was herself. Balor said that her and Damian are why he was not a World Champion in the last year while trashing her and Damian some more. Ripley said they were a family while claiming she was there to prevent them from fighting because she loved her family. Balor said when Liv was putting the moves on Dom and they told Dom to resist, Balor told Dom to go with Liv. Jey Uso walked up asking if there was a problem here. Balor claimed Jey should focus on the Intercontinental Championship since Jey is out of his league with Ripley. Balor left. Rhea said that Finn had a point, so Jey asked if he was right that Rhea was out of her league. Ripley said no, he had to focus on the Intercontinental Championship. Jey said he’s on his way to the ring right now.
Analysis: It was an interesting promo exchange from Balor and Ripley trying to hash out their differences about the original Judgment Day group splitting up. Balor said he was the reason Dom went to Liv was a good line to get some more heat on Balor for being the cause of that.
(Commercial)
Let’s Hear from Jey Uso…and Bron Breakker
Jey Uso made his entrance with the fans going crazy for the Yeet Man as usual. Joe Tessitore held up a fan sign saying “Keep Portland Yeet” so Barrett complained about it. Last week on Raw saw Jey Uso earn an Intercontinental Title match against Bron Breakker. The Bron-Jey match is next week on Raw.
Jey said that he got his match with Bron Breakker and he’s going to get a shot at the Intercontinental Championship. Jey said that he has wanted it since he got to Raw and left The Bloodline. Jey said he knows he can be on his own to finally be “Main Event” Jey Uso.
Bron Breakker made his entrance as the Intercontinental Champion. Bron was wearing a leather jacket similar to what his Steiner Brothers father and uncle used to wear.
Bron told Jey to stay away yet here is Jey for this relentless pursuit of the Intercontinental Championship. Bron said he’s done his research about how Jey has been in WWE for 14 years. Bron said that the fans love Jey and they love chanting Yeet. Bron said that he’s done more as a singles superstar in six months than Jey has done in his whole career. Bron said that he did it without his father or his uncle. Bron said he didn’t need the name because he did it all by himself. Bron said that he fights for this championship and it fights for him. Bron said he’s a dog and that’s what he does. Bron said that he was going to expose Jey next Monday because Jey is nothing without his family.
Jey said he sees it in Bron because he’s got that dog in him. Jey said he’s not going to take Bron lightly. Jey said that Bron has been on this roster for six months while Jey has been on this roster for 14 years winning championships while Bron was in diapers (not exactly). Jey said he’s going to dogwalk his ass. Jey said we’ll see how long this lasts because it might end up short and sweet like Bron’s NFL career. The fans popped for that while Bron stared at Jey with anger in his eyes.
Bron teased leaving, but instead, he nailed Jey with a punch. Bron ran the ropes quickly, but Jey stopped that momentum with a Spear. Bron sold that Spear by going out of the ring and rolling around on the floor. Jey held up the Intercontinental Title in the air before putting on the apron to give it back to Bron.
Analysis: I liked that promo exchange to build up the Intercontinental Title match for next week’s show. It’s not a PLE match, but it’s a huge match for a Raw next week. Jey hitting Bron with a Spear shows that Jey is ready for him. I thought Bron sold that Spear very well also. I doubt Jey will win next week because I think Bron is going to have a very long title change, but I am looking forward to the match.
Bianca Belair & Jade Cargill, the Women’s Tag Team Champions, were backstage getting ready for Belair’s match. Iyo Sky walked up to Belair calling her a coward because she claimed Kairi Sane had an eye injury. Belair said she didn’t challenge Sane to the match, it was booked for her. Belair told Sky if Sane can’t compete then maybe Belair should face Sky instead. Sky accepted the challenge.
The New Day made their entrance for a World Tag Team Title match up next.
This week on Smackdown: Cody Rhodes & Roman Reigns seek common ground on the road to Bad Blood.
(Commercial)
WWE World Tag Team Championships: The Judgment Day – Finn Balor & JD McDonagh vs. The New Day – Kofi Kingston & Xavier Woods
The New Day haven’t been champions for over three years. The New Day’s ten-year anniversary is coming up soon. This is Finn & JD’s first televised title defense since winning the titles nearly three months ago.
Kofi hit an impressive hurricanrana on JD followed by a forearm. New Day tagged for some combo offense leading to Woods getting an elbow drop on JD for two. Kofi tagged in as Woods put Kofi on his shoulders, which led to Kofi hitting a moonsault onto JD for two. Balor went into the ring, so New Day superkicked both opponents out of the ring.
(Commercial)
The match continued with Kofi hitting an SOS slam on Balor leading to Woods tagging in against JD. Woods hit JD with running forearms and Woods hit another forearm on JD. Woods punched JD repeatedly followed by a punch for Balor on the apron. JD hit a Russian legsweep on JD. Balor into the ring illegally, so Woods kicked him and Kofi jumped off the top with a forearm smash. Kofi hit a somersault dive over the top onto Balor for two. Woods hit a sitout Powerbomb on JD for two. Dominik Mysterio, Carlito & Liv Morgan of The Judgment Day went down to ringside, so the LWO’s Dragon Lee, Joaquin Wilde & Cruz Del Toro fought with The Judgment Day. JD rolled up Woods for two. Woods hit a superkick. Kofi jumped onto the five guys on the floor. Woods jumped off the top with an elbow drop, but the referee Shawn Bennett was focused on the guys on the floor. The fans chanted “ref you suck” at the referee. Balor made a blind tag, JD held onto Woods and Balor jumped off the top with the Coup de Grace double foot stomp on Woods for the pinfall win. Kofi was out on the floor after the dive, so he couldn’t make the save. It went about nine minutes.
Winners by pinfall: The Judgment Day – Finn Balor & JD McDonagh
Analysis: *** A good match between four good workers, but not the kind of tag team match where they did a bunch of nearfalls. It was more about the finish with Kofi Kingston diving onto the guys on the floor, which led to the referee checking on them on the floor and it prevented the referee from counting during Xavier’s pin attempt. The Judgment Day came across as crafty heels who capitalized on the situation to get the win.
After the match, Xavier Woods was frustrated with Kofi Kingston because he was out of the ring. Woods was yelling “every time” and yelled “why” at Kofi. Woods told Kofi he was tired of this and said that something had to change.
Analysis: The New Day has been a cohesive unit for nearly a decade without any kind of dissension, so it will be interesting to see if this leads to anything. I don’t know if they would do a split or if it’s just a case of the group becoming more focused and finding a way to win the titles.
Bianca Belair and Iyo Sky were shown getting ready backstage.
A video aired about the Wyatt Sicks group. There was a mysterious QR Code at the end of it. No idea what it meant.
(Commercial)
They showed Rey Mysterio and Dominik Mysterio sitting at the UFC event on Saturday night, but not in the same area. Dominik’s wife was with him, but they didn’t show her in the picture. Anyway, Rey also gave UFC President Dana White a mask.
Kofi Kingston was shown was backstage where Cathy Kelley tried to interview him, but Kofi said he had to talk to Woods. Xavier Woods was yelling at the LWO. Kofi walked up to them saying he asked for the LWO to help. Woods said that LWO cost them the titles. Kofi said that they never needed help before because they had Big E, but now it’s just us. Woods said now Kofi is saying Woods isn’t good enough and Woods said maybe he thinks that they aren’t good enough to win. Woods left angrily.
Analysis: I think both guys made good points. Kofi thinks that they needed help because of The Judgment Day getting involved while Woods feels insulted that Kofi doesn’t think they are good enough without Big E. I like it as a story that can go a lot of ways. I don’t have a prediction, but I’m glad that The New Day is being used well again.
Bronson Reed was featured in a video showing his devastating summer that included his attacks on people like Seth Rollins, Braun Strowman, R-Truth and The Miz. Reed complained about how his IC Title shot was taken away because of Covid and they gave the opportunity to Braun Strowman instead. Reed said that Braun is going to be the victim of WWE’s true monster Bronson Reed.
Bronson Reed made his entrance for singles action up next.
(Commercial)
Braun Strowman vs. Bronson Reed
Braun sent Reed into the turnbuckle and Reed pulled the turnbuckle off, so the top rope went down. I watched it in slow motion and you could see Reed pull it off. Braun hit a Chokeslam in the ring. Bron kicked Reed out of the ring. Braun ran on the floor, Reed threw a “fan” at him so it was an adult male that went crashing onto Braun. It was likely some indy wrestler, I assume. Reed celebrated, so Braun came back with a cross body block on Reed through the barricade. The referee called for some help. The fans were going crazy for it. Reed was helped back up and walked to the back while Braun celebrated in the ring.
Match Result: No Contest
Analysis: There was no match. It was a chaotic scene with these two big dudes doing some crazy stuff and crashing into the barricade. That was fun and the fans were so into it.
Bronson Reed was walking toward the backstage area and he called for Braun Strowman to come after him. Braun ran at Reed and sent him crashing into some equipment case. Braun tossed aside some security guys and flipped over a golf cart. Reed jumped off an equipment case and splashed Braun through a table! Braun got up after that and tackled Reed through a wall! This is crazy!
Analysis: That was a lot of fun. It was chaos. We can probably nitpick about these guys not selling that much and that’s fine, but I really enjoyed it. Two big dudes running into objects is fun to watch. They put their bodies on the line to entertain us. I enjoyed the chaos.
(Commercial)
There was a replay of the Strowman-Reed fight before the break.
They showed Strowman and Reed down on the floor while medical personnel and officials checked on them.
Adam Pearce was in the Raw GM office when Ludwig Kaiser walked up to Pearce wondering if he had found Gunther an opponent. Pearce said that Sami Zayn made a compelling case for the match. Kaiser complained about Pearce saying that Zayn was an adequate opponent. Sami Zayn made his entrance and Pearce told Kaiser if Gunther had a problem with him then Gunther could talk to Pearce himself.
Analysis: If Pearce thinks Zayn is deserving then why not book the match? That is literally Pearce’s job as Raw GM to book matches for wrestlers on this show. I get that it’s a storyline where Gunther is avoiding Zayn, but logically Pearce could make the match at any time.
Let’s Hear from Sami Zayn
Sami Zayn made his entrance wearing a plaid shirt looking like a suburban dad in the winter. It’s still summer out. If I was Zayn I’d be wearing my own merch, but he is a different kind of guy. The fans were singing Sami’s song as he greeted the fans.
Zayn mentioned being in the ring in front of a red hot crowd in Portland, Oregon (cheap pop). Zayn said last week he was in the ring with Bret Hart in Calgary. Zayn spoke about how last week was motivational because he heard Bret talk about what it meant for him to be a champion and a true Canadian champion with a work ethic. Zayn said he wants that to be him and he needs to be him. Zayn said he needs to be the guy who deserves the title week in and week out. There were “Sami” chants. Zayn said unfortunately the current World Heavyweight Champion has repeatedly declined every time Zayn has challenged him for a World Title opportunity. Zayn mentioned how Gunther doesn’t think Zayn is on Gunther’s level. Zayn said he didn’t believe that. Zayn said he is in Gunther’s head because he remembers what happened at WrestleMania in Philadelphia (Zayn won). Zayn said Gunther knows that Zayn has beaten him before and he can beat Gunther again. Zayn said he thinks Gunther is scared.
Ludwig Kaiser arrived for the interruption asking Zayn what is he doing here? Zayn wondered why Zayn was asking for a World Championship match against Gunther. Kaiser called Gunther the most dominant force in WWE right now and he’s trying to save Zayn from the worst embarrassment of his entire life.
Kaiser got into the ring saying that WrestleMania was undoubtedly the greatest night of his career. Kaiser said that Zayn’s family was looking up to him instead of looking down on him. Kaiser told Zayn that miracles never happen twice. Kaiser claimed this was never, ever going to happen again.
Analysis: Heels lie. Remember that.
Zayn said he knows Gunther doesn’t need Kaiser to speak for him. Zayn said that Gunther didn’t need Kaiser for anything. Zayn told Kaiser he didn’t need Gunther either. Zayn said that Kaiser is looking to stand on his own two feet to show what he’s capable of. Zayn asked Kaiser if he’d win respect as Gunther’s mouthpiece? Zayn told Kaiser not to speak for Gunther and instead should have the balls to speak for himself.
Gunther made his entrance as the World Heavyweight Champion wearing all black attire like Kaiser. Gunther asked Kaiser if there was anything he needed to tell him. Kaiser said there was something he needed to get off his chest for a very long time and Kaiser decked Zayn with a clothesline. Kaiser nailed Zayn with a cradle DDT while Gunther laughed about it. Gunther denied Zayn’s challenge for the World Heavyweight Champion. The fans booed that. Gunther laughed and hugged Kaiser.
Zayn managed to get back up, he countered Kaiser and Zayn hit a German Suplex. Zayn hit a Helluva Kick on Kaiser to clear the ring. Zayn was fired up in the ring.
Analysis: It’s obviously going to lead to a Gunther-Zayn match, but they aren’t making it official yet. Gunther turning down Zayn does push the idea that Gunther is hesitant to face Zayn since Zayn beat him at WrestleMania.
Damian Priest was interviewed by Cathy Kelley backstage, who asked Priest if he had hesitation about facing Dominik Mysterio and here comes Women’s World Champion Liv Morgan. Liv told Priest that he and Ripley are two lonely, pathetic losers hanging on to when they were on top. Priest said that he can’t believe somebody in The Judgment Day has a set and told Liv to protect that until Ripley beats Morgan at Bad Blood. Priest told her to kiss Dominik goodbye because he was going to put her scumbag boyfriend down. Priest said he’s only getting started with those boys.
Bianca Belair and Jade Cargill made their entrance as the WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions.
(Commercial)
Iyo Sky (w/Kairi Sane) vs. Bianca Belair (w/Jade Cargill)
Sky got a rollup for a two count. Sky came off the ropes with a dropkick attempt while Belair did the same and then they did a kip up to get back up at the same time, so the fans cheered that. Belair went for a Powerbomb, but Sky reversed it into a sunset flip for two. Belair used her athleticism to backflip over Sky followed by a delayed vertical suplex. Sky countered a move with an arm drag, but Belair quickly got to her feet so they had a staredown. That led to a break.
(Commercial)
The match returned with Belair avoiding a kick leading to a rollup for two. Belair with two shoulder tackles and a dropkick. Belair hit a running shoulder tackle against the turnbuckle. Belair flipped over Sky again, but Sky was able to get some offense with two uppercuts along with a dropkick. Sky hit a running double knee attack. Belair spun Sky around leading to a gutbuster onto the knee. Belar charged, Sky avoided that and Sky hit a missile dropkick for two. They exchanged strikes and Sky got a sunset flip pin attempt for two. Belair sent Sky into the top turnbuckle followed by a spinebuster. Belair bounced off the ropes with a moonsault for two. Belair tried a press slam, Sky slipped out of that and Sky hit a German Suplex for two. The fans were chanting “this is awesome” for them. Sky did a necksnap across the top rope. Sky ran off the ropes leading to a suicide dive on the floor. Good job by Belair stepping up a bit to break the fall or else Sky would have taken a nasty fall. Belair held up Sky in a suplex position and tossed Sky into the ring. That was impressive! Belair went up top, jumped off with a 450 Splash and Sky blocked it with the knees. Sky went up, Belair went for KOD, Sky flipped out of that and Sky got an inside cradle for the pinfall win after 12 minutes. Joe Tessitore showed a lot of enthusiasm on commentary, so good job by him.
Winner by pinfall: Iyo Sky
Analysis: ***1/2 This was a great match. It wasn’t a match promoted heavily or anything like that since it was going to be Belair against Sane, but they changed it to this, which led to Belair & Sky having an incredible match. There were a lot of great moves from both women including counters that led to nearfalls and the fans kept getting more into it as the action went on. I think Belair losing makes sense as a Tag Team Champion because it can lead to Sky & Sane getting a title shot. If they do Cargill against Sane I’d be very surprised to see Cargill lose a match like that, so I get why this match ended the way it did.
Iyo Sky celebrated the win with Kairi Sane while Bianca Belair was stunned by Jade Cargill. Barrett put it over as an upset since Belair rarely loses.
Damian Priest was shown talking to Rhea Ripley. Priest said he’s going to tear Dominik Mysterio apart and Ripley was happy about that.
(Commercial)
A video aired about the American Made group including Chad Gable, Julius Creed, Brutus Creed & Ivy Nile. Gable said that you can’t kill him or the American spirit. They said they were done with the Wyatt Sicks. Gable said they don’t run from history, they make history.
Analysis: I like the group. They lost the feud to the Wyatt Sicks, but I think American Made will still be featured on Raw regularly.
Ludwig Kaiser was interviewed by Cathy Kelley backstage. Kaiser said he’s going to expose Sami Zayn next week. Kaiser was furious about Zayn trying to question Kaiser’s loyalty to Gunther. Kaiser said let’s talk about Zayn’s past and loyalty. Kaiser mentioned Kevin Owens saying when either of them had more success than the other, they jumped on eachother and turned on eachother. Kaiser said he’ll show Zayn he’s a sad, bitter man and what he was. Kaiser said that Zayn is jealous of what his best friend was because that’s what Sami will never be – a World Champion. Kaiser ended it there.
Analysis: Good promo from Kaiser. Zayn will beat him next week
Next week on Monday Night Raw:
* Sami Zayn vs. Ludwig Kaiser
* Drew McIntyre returns
* Bron Breakker defends the Intercontinental Championship against Jey Uso
Jey Uso was backstage where Ilja Dragunov wished him the best of luck in the Intercontinental Title match. Ilja touched fists with Jey as a sign of respect and Jey left. The Judgment Day’s Finn Balor threatened Dragunov about who he is friends with. Dragunov said friends is a strong word, but he does respect Rhea, Damian and Jey, but none of The Judgment Day. Balor said this was a friendly reminder, but next time the message won’t be delivered so nicely. Balor said they had to take care of one of his friends.
The Judgment Day made their entrance for Dominik Mysterio’s match in the main event. The group was wearing “Street Trash” t-shirts.
(Commercial)
They showed some fan signs in the crowd. A fan had a “Dom is Dum” sign so Wade mocked the fan for spelling dumb wrong. That’s good.
Damian Priest was joined by his Terror Twin friend Rhea Ripley, who was still selling a left knee injury.
Dominik Mysterio (w/Liv Morgan, Finn Balor, JD McDonagh & Carlito) vs. Damian Priest (w/Rhea Ripley)
Priest threw Dom across the ring followed by some punches. Priest knocked down Dom with two shoulder tackles. Priest hit a jumping back elbow to knock Dom down. Dom kicked the left knee followed by punches, but Priest came back with a flapjack to send Dom hard into the mat. Priest choked Dom across the middle rope right in front of Morgan. Dominik tried some weak punches to the body, so Priest decked him with a hard punch to the head. Balor slid into the ring, Priest went after him and Dominik left the ring to the floor. Priest sent Dominik face first onto the ring apron. Priest decked Carlito with a forearm when he got too close. Dominik was distracting the referee in the ring, so Balor shoved Priest into the ring post. Dominik hit a suicide dive onto Priest on the floor.
(Commercial)
The match returned with Priest missing a splash against the turnbuckle and Dominik connected with a Tornado DDT for two. Dominik did some light punches, so Priest fired up with punches, a forearm and a running splash. Priest hit a flapjack for two. Dominik rolled him up, Priest hit a roundhouse kick to the head and Priest hit a Broken Arrow slam for two because Morgan put Dominik’s foot on the rope. The referee never saw Liv get involved. Ripley tackled Morgan over the commentary table and onto Barrett as well. Priest decked Carlito with a forearm. Dominik tried diving onto Priest, who tossed Carlito into Balor. Priest hit Carlito with a superkick. Dominik hit Priest with a dropkick into the ropes followed by the 619 kick. Dominik went up top, Priest avoided the splash and Priest hit a big clothesline. Priest spiked Dominik with South of Heaven for the pinfall win after 12 minutes.
Winner by pinfall: Damian Priest
Analysis: **1/2 A dominant win for Priest as you would expect. They aren’t going to have Priest to Dominik when Priest has the Bad Blood match with Finn Balor, so that’s a match result that wasn’t a surprise at all. Priest looked dominant as he should be in a match like that. Dominik gets some cheap wins sometimes thanks to his allies helping him. I didn’t think that was going to happen here.
After the match, The Judgment Day attacked Priest from behind so they beat him up with punches and kicks. Rhea Ripley got a hold of Dominik by the ropes, but Liv Morgan pulled her down and sent Rhea into the steel steps. Jey Uso showed up at ringside, but Bron Breakker was there to drop Jey with a Spear on the floor. Ripley got back up, so Morgan hit her with Oblivion. Balor hit Coup de Grace off the top on Priest two times in a row. Balor went up top and hit Coup de Grace for a third time on Priest. The Judgment Day stood tall over the Terror Twins while the fans booed. That was the end of Raw.
Analysis: It’s more heat for The Judgment Day. They did that last week to Priest & Ripley too, so now we see it again. This time it also involved Bron Breakker getting revenge on Jey Uso with a Spear to build up their match next week. We know Triple H loves to book his “heels look strong” endings and this was another example of that.
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Three Stars of the Show
- Iyo Sky/Bianca Belair
- The Judgment Day/The New Day
- Pete Dunne/Sheamus
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The Scoreboard
7.75 out of 10
Last week: 7.75
2024 Average: 7.61
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Final Thoughts on WWE Raw
It was a very good Raw with some entertaining matches while advancing several key storylines as well. Iyo Sky and Bianca Belair had an excellent match that was the best of the night. Those two women can really go in the ring, so it was nice to see them get the time to have a match like that. I liked Pete Dunne’s win over Sheamus as well even though it was cheap. CM Punk’s serious promo about Hell in a Cell with Drew McIntyre was exactly what it needed to be to put over how big of a match it is.
The Tag Team Title match with Balor & McDonagh beating The New Day was also very well done. We haven’t seen much tension between The New Day in ten years, but now we have Woods arguing with Kingston, so I’m interested to see where that goes. That Braun Strowman-Bronson Reed “match” was chaos. Two big dudes running into objects is always going to get big crowd reactions. I loved it. The fans did too.
I’m looking forward to the Bron Breakker-Jey Uso match for the Intercontinental Title next week. I don’t think Jey will win the title or anything like that, but it should be an outstanding match. I like how much they are building up the title defense. The good thing about Triple H booking is they have storylines for a lot of people including those not in PLE matches. It’s important to build up big TV matches as well. Anyway, there are just two more three-hour Raw episodes after this week.
The next WWE PLE is Bad Blood on October 5th in Atlanta with this lineup announced so far.
* Hell in a Cell Match: CM Punk vs. Drew McIntyre
* Roman Reigns & Cody Rhodes vs. The Bloodline – Solo Sikoa & Jacob Fatu
* WWE Women’s World Championship: Liv Morgan vs. Rhea Ripley
* Damian Priest vs. Finn Balor
You can watch WWE Bad Blood, streaming live on Saturday, Oct. 5, at 6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT on Peacock in the United States and on WWE Network everywhere else.
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Thanks for reading. Please check out my reviews of every WWE PPV ever listed in order. Go Los Angeles Rams. My contact info is below.
John Canton
Email mrjohncanton@gmail.com
Twitter/X @johnreport