Reviews

The John Report: WWE Raw Deal 06/30/25 Review

By John Canton • Published Jun 30, 2025 20:30 EDT
WWE Raw Deal June 30 Review

It’s WWE Raw featuring Sami Zayn teaming with Penta against Bron Breakker & Bronson Reed, Sheamus facing Rusev, and more.

This episode of Raw has an early 6 p.m. ET start time, as they are taping the July 4th SmackDown immediately after it, to give talent and staff some days off. I’m fine with the early start time.

On a personal note, I will be on vacation starting tomorrow, Tuesday, July 1st (Canada Day), for one week. I haven’t had a whole week off since last November, so I’m looking forward to it. That means I won’t have a review for Friday’s July 4th SmackDown until probably July 7th or July 8th—something like that. My reviews for WWE NXT and AEW Dynamite will probably be on July 7th or July 8th. I’ll be back for a live Raw review next Monday.

This is the Raw Deal for episode #1675 of Monday Night Raw. It’s taking place at the PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Follow me on Twitter/X @johnreport. Let’s get to it.

A video package aired about WWE Night of Champions from last Saturday in Saudi Arabia. I thought it was a pretty good show, but I wouldn’t call it great. Some interference finishes hurt some matches, while I thought Cody Rhodes and Randy Orton had the matches of the night.

There was some pre-show walking shown of Sami Zayn, Penta, The New Day, and Sheamus.

The commentary team was Michael Cole with Corey Graves, who was in his hometown of Pittsburgh. This is the third week with Graves filling in for Pat McAfee. Alicia Taylor was the ring announcer.

Let’s Hear from Rhea Ripley

Rhea Ripley made her entrance and got a huge pop from the fans who love her. Ripley welcomed us to Monday Night Mami. Ripley said that now that she has beaten Raquel Rodriguez and her issues with The Judgment Day may finally be over, she needs to get her priorities straight since Evolution is around the corner.

The Women’s World Champion Iyo Sky made her entrance, and she got a good ovation. Sky joined Ripley in the ring. Sky said that you can’t have Evolution without her. Sky reminded Ripley that she is not on top since Sky has the Women’s World Championship. Sky said that Raw GM Adam Pearce told her that she can pick who she wants to defend the World Title against at Evolution. Sky said she wants to defend against the best, and that means defending against Rhea Ripley.

Ripley said that she has nothing but respect for Iyo. Ripley said that if that is what you want, then Ripley will stop at nothing to get this back. Ripley told Sky that what happens at Evolution is what Sky wanted. Ripley said you’re on for Evolution. Cole put it over as a gutsy move by Sky to challenge Ripley to a match at Evolution.

Analysis: That’s going to be an excellent match because we have seen those two have great matches in the past, both in singles and multi-woman matches like at WrestleMania with Bianca Belair involved. I think the Ripley-Sky match could headline Evolution, especially if they put the Women’s World Title on Ripley, which might happen.

The Intercontinental Champion Dominik Mysterio was backstage with Finn Balor and JD McDonagh, who left for their match. AJ Styles walked up to Dominik, who had a doctor’s note saying that he was injured. Styles put his glasses on to read it. Styles said that the doctor said that Dominik is a punk ass. Styles said he can’t wait until Dominik is cleared because Styles will take the title from him. Styles got in Dom’s face, so Dom held up the doctor’s note and left.

The Judgment Day’s Finn Balor and JD McDonagh entered for tag team action. There was a commercial for some fans as Finn and JD posed in the ring. The New Day entered for the match during the break for some fans. Cole criticized New Day for only having two title matches since winning the titles at WrestleMania.

World Tag Team Championships: The New Day – Kofi Kingston & Xavier Woods vs. The Judgment Day – Finn Balor & JD McDonagh

This is a heel-heel match, so the fans booed both teams during the introductions. The J-Day guys were on the side facing the camera, which is where the babyface team goes. Kofi got a sunset flip, but Balor hit a dropkick. JD tripped up Kofi, leading to a leg drop on the back of the head. JD tossed Kofi out of the ring and kicked Kofi in the head. Kofi tripped up JD on the ropes, so Woods jumped off the top and hit a double foot stomp to JD’s back. JD was out on the floor as the show went to break for some fans. Woods worked over JD, but then JD headbutted Woods and knocked him down. Kofi missed an attack on JD and Kofi hit the ring post. JD jumped off the top with a cross body block on Woods for two. JD kicked Woods in the head, but Kofi pulled Balor off the apron to stop a tag attempt. Kofi hit a senton on JD’s back while on the apron.

Kofi jumped off the top rope with a punch to JD’s head. Woods and JD exchanged strikes, Woods stomped on the foot and hit a chop. JD countered a Powerbomb with a facebuster into the mat. The fans were into it and cheered Balor getting the hot tag against Kofi. Balor hit a clothesline, along with a stomp and a reverse DDT elbow drop for two. Kofi hit an up kick on Balor, but Balor came back with a Slingblade neckbreaker. Kofi hit a stomp to the shoulders to put Balor down. JD sent Woods over the top to the floor. JD hit a springboard moonsault onto Woods on the floor. JD went for a moonsault onto Woods in the ring, but Woods got his boots up to block. Balor made a blind tag, JD held Woods, and Balor jumped off the top with a Coup de Grace, but Woods avoided it, so Balor hit JD. Woods got a rollup for two. Kofi jumped in for a Midnight Hour double team move for a two count. Good nearfall there. The fans chanted “New Day sucks” at the champions. Kofi went for Trouble in Paradise, Balor avoided it and Kofi got a rollup. JD punched Kofi and Balor got a rollup for two. Woods hit Balor in the back with a title (the referee never saw it) and Kofi got a rollup for two. Balor sent Kofi into the ropes while Woods was on the top, so Woods was crotched. JD tagged in and hit a Spanish Fly on Woods for a two count. JD slipped a bit on the way to the top, but he made it fine. Kofi went after Balor on the floor and Balor hit a Slingblade. JD kicked Woods. JD went up top and hit a moonsault. Balor went up top and hit the Coup de Grace double foot stomp on Woods for the pinfall win after 12 minutes. The fans cheered the title change.

Winners by pinfall AND NEW World Tag Team Champions: Finn Balor & JD McDonagh

Analysis: ***1/2 I thought it was a very good match. I didn’t go into this expecting a title change because I thought The New Day would have the titles longer than two months. The New Day didn’t have a lot of title defenses, so it was a forgettable title reign, even though I enjoy their heel act. The Judgment Day guys worked as the faces, and the fans were into it, which is a surprise because you don’t see them getting cheered often. The last five minutes were very exciting and well done. Finn & JD are two-time World Tag Team Champions now.

The Judgment Day celebrated with Intercontinental Champion Dominik Mysterio joining them in the aisle. There was some pyro for the title change.

A replay was shown of Lyra Valkyria attacking Becky Lynch during Lynch’s Women’s IC Title match with Bayley, which upset Bayley.

Bayley was interviewed by Jackie Redmond, who asked Bayley where her head is at now. Bayley said she’s focused on the Women’s IC Title. Bayley complained that Lyra Valkyria was getting involved. Lyra said that Bayley can’t respond to her in a text, but Bayley can complain about her in interviews. Lyra said that Bayley thinks Lyra purposefully ruined the match and Bayley said she agreed with that. Lyra yelled that Bayley didn’t know what it was like with Bayley over the last few months. They argued some more. Raw GM Adam Pearce interrupted and said that Bayley can face Lyra later in the show. The winner gets a shot at Becky Lynch’s Women’s IC Title. Bayley and Lyra were happy about that.

Analysis: The expectation is that they will do Lynch-Bayley-Valkyria at Evolution, so the finish later in the show should set that up.

Sheamus was shown getting ready for his match while Natalya, Maxxine Dupri and Akira Tozawa wished him good luck.

Grayson Waller was interviewed by Byron Saxton in the upper deck in the arena. Saxton asked about Waller’s friendship with Austin Theory, but Waller didn’t say much. This was during a break for some fans. Waller talked about how great The New Day is because the fans boo them. Waller credited The New Day for cutting the cord and getting rid of Big E. Waller said New Day became successful again because of that. Waller said that we can all learn something from The New Day, especially him. Waller said, “Thank God for The New Day” to end it.

Analysis: It seems like the Waller-Theory alliance will end soon, but they don’t get much TV time.

There was a video package about Bill Goldberg because he’s facing Gunther for the World Title at Saturday Night’s Main Event on July 12th.

A clip was shown of Chad Gable arguing with Penta backstage. Penta superkicked Gable and hit The Sacrifice, pulling back on the left arm.

Chad Gable was backstage talking to American Made about his injury. Gable had his left arm in a sling. Raw GM Adam Pearce wished Gable good luck with his surgery. Pearce said he guesses we won’t see El Grande Americano for a while, huh? Gable said you never know. Gable tried to talk to The Creed Brothers and Ivy Nile. Brutus Creed said they are lost without him. Chad told them to listen to Ivy. Ludwig Kaiser was in the background while Chad talked to the group.

Analysis: It would be funny if Ludwig Kaiser became El Grande Americano while Gable is out. Kaiser is taller and less tanned than Gable, but he could pull it off. Plus, it would get heat if it were somebody other than Gable. I would be all for it. Anyway, I’ll miss Gable while he’s hurt, and I don’t know how long he’s out, but the dude is one of my favorites in WWE.

Rusev made his entrance for singles action.

A video aired promoting Jurassic World Rebirth with Bronson Reed talking over the video saying you better be ready.

Sheamus made his entrance during the break for some fans. The fans cheered for Sheamus. I prefer his original theme song and even the song that he had for the last few years. This new song is too generic for him.

The Raw and SmackDown GM’s Adam Pearce and Nick Aldis were talking backstage. Finn Balor and JD McDonagh showed up with their World Tag Team Titles. Balor said that it would be mean of these GMs to strip Raquel Rodriguez of the Women’s Tag Team Titles. Balor suggested Roxanne Perez as Raquel’s partner and said it would be a win-win. Pearce and Aldis talked about it. Pearce said that they will allow it. Aldis said that they have to prove that they are worthy champions. Pearce said that they’ll defend the titles at Evolution against a team from Raw, SmackDown, and NXT. Balor said it was good. Aldis said to Pearce that they are on the same page, and Pearce said, “For now.” Aldis looked a bit concerned.

Analysis: That was a simple solution for the Women’s Tag Team Title situation. It also sets up a four-way women’s tag team match at Evolution, which should be very good.

Sheamus vs. Rusev

They took turns doing shoulder tackles and didn’t knock eachother down. Sheamus and Rusev exchanged punches. Sheamus punched Rusev a few times, the referee made Sheamus move back and Rusev hit a clothesline. Sheamus hit a clothesline to knock Rusev down. Rusev worked over Sheamus with kicks to the body. Sheamus went for punches by the turnbuckle, so Rusev hit a Powerbomb. Sheamus worked over Rusev with punches to the back, Rusev went for an attack off the apron and Sheamus hit a powerslam on the floor. They went on a break for some fans, so I’ll take a quick break too.

Rusev was in control with a chinlock. Rusev worked over Sheamus with strikes against the turnbuckle, so Sheamus fought back. Sheamus hit punches, a double axhandle smash and a clothesline. Sheamus hit the Irish Curse backbreaker. Sheamus jumped off the top with a knee drop to the chest for just a one count. Rusev hit a spinning heel kick for a two count. Rusev hit a fallaway slam for a two count. Rusev charged, Sheamus got the boots up and Sheamus pulled himself to the top rope. Rusev went to the middle turnbuckle and hit a superplex. They went on a break for some fans again as the action continued. Rusev dumped Sheamus out of the ring, which led to Rusev kicking Sheamus in the head. Sheamus came back with a hard whip into the steel steps and Rusev was grabbing his right arm. Back in the ring, Sheamus jumped off the top with a clothesline for two. Rusev kicked Sheamus a few times to avoid a submission hold. Sheamus got back up with the White Noise slam. Both guys were down selling.

Sheamus and Rusev exchanged strikes with punches to the side of the head. Rusev kicked Sheamus in the face. Rusev ran the ropes, leading to Sheamus hitting a powerslam. Rusev rolled to the apron, so that led to Sheamus hitting 15 forearms to the chest instead of the usual ten and the fans were into it. Sheamus fired up, he charged and Rusev ducked it, leading to a back body drop. Rusev kicked Sheamus. Sheamus hit a running knee. Sheamus hit a running knee on a wobbling Rusev and it was just a two count because Rusev got his right shoulder up. Sheamus tried a slam, but Rusev got out of that and hit a uranage slam. Rusev hit a jumping superkick. Rusev stomped on Sheamus’ back and applied the Accolade submission that is like the Camel Clutch. Sheamus managed to get back to his feet and Rusev into the turnbuckle. Sheamus sent Rusev crashing through the ropes to the floor. Sheamus hit a Brogue Kick on Rusev on the floor. The referee Rod Zapata was counting them out as Sheamus got back in the ring, and Rusev managed to get back in the ring before the ten count. Sheamus and Rusev battled by the turnbuckle, where Rusev sent Sheamus into the ring post. Sheamus picked up Rusev, but Rusev got out of that lifting attempt. Rusev did a thumb to the eye. Rusev pulled on Sheamus’ arms and pulled Sheamus into the steel beam connecting the ring post to the turnbuckle. Rusev hit the Machka Kick for the pinfall win after 19 minutes.

Winner by pinfall: Rusev

Analysis: ***3/4 I thought it was a great match. I’m glad they had a lot of time to have a physical match that was grueling from the start. I like how they hit all their big moves, but they weren’t able to put eachother away. I thought Sheamus might win by countout with the Brogue Kick on the floor. I’m glad that Rusev won because I think he needs a big win since returning to WWE. Since Sheamus has a lot of credibility as a WWE legend, it shows that Rusev can beat him, so I’m happy for Rusev getting a win like that. It was a cheap attack by Rusev with the eye poke and the move that sent Sheamus chest/throat first into the steel beam.

After the match, Rusev trash-talked Sheamus and kissed his friend Sheamus on the side of the head.

A video was shown featuring Raw GM Adam Pearce and SmackDown GM Nick Aldis talking about Evolution on July 13th. They announced there will be a battle royal where the winner will get a championship match at Clash in Paris.

American Made’s Ivy Nile and The Creed Brothers were interviewed by Jackie Redmond. Nile said she was getting herself in the battle royal for Evolution. Someone walked into the screen wearing the El Grande Americano outfit and passed by. It was definitely Ludwig Kaiser, wearing a mask. Ivy said no comment.

Analysis: There’s the Kaiser idea I mentioned earlier. I didn’t know for sure if they would do it, but with Kaiser standing in the background, it was WWE’s way of foreshadowing it.

Sami Zayn was about to be interviewed by Jackie Redmond, but Karrion Kross showed up for a cheap attack. Kross beat up Zayn with punches and threw him into some objects backstage. Kross hit Zayn in the ribs with a steel pipe. Some WWE Officials and referees showed up to break it up.

Stephanie Vaquer was interviewed by Byron Saxton in the upper deck. It was during a break. Vaquer talked about the women’s battle royal at Evolution. Saxton asked what champion she would want to face if she won the battle royal. Vaquer said that after she wins, she would face the Women’s World Champion, whether it’s Iyo Sky or Rhea Ripley. Vaquer said that being a champion is part of who she is, and she will not stop until she is the women’s champion.

It’s official for WWE Evolution on July 13: Iyo Sky defends the Women’s World Title against Rhea Ripley.

They showed members of the Pittsburgh Steelers at ringside, including the great Cam Heyward.

Let’s Hear from Gunther

The World Heavyweight Champion Gunther went into the ring for a promo. Gunther said that he sees what Goldberg really is. Gunther said that he’s a 58-year-old man that wants to ride out his career on Gunther’s coattails. Gunther said it won’t happen because he knows Goldberg is not capable of taking the World Title from him. Gunther said he’s capable of beating Goldberg in under three minutes. Gunther said that his goal is to take his time, blow him up, outclass him and embarrass him in front of everybody that is near and dear to him. Gunther said he’s heard Goldberg said he doesn’t like bullies. Gunther said it was too bad that Goldberg bumped into the biggest bully around here. Gunther told Goldberg he’ll bully him and treat him like a piece of crap. Gunther said there is nothing Goldberg can do about it. Gunther said that people will wonder if Goldberg still has it, but Gunther said he’ll expose that Goldberg never had it. Gunther said that after he wins, he’ll be the one to ask, “Who’s next?” Gunther wondered who was next for The Ring General.

Analysis: It was a good heel promo from Gunther as usual. He does a nice job of being a confident champion.

Seth Rollins made his entrance with the Money in the Bank briefcase that was held by Paul Heyman. Rollins made his way down to the ring. The MITB briefcase was black and yellow rather than green. Gunther said that they looked proud that Rollins traveled all that way to Saudi Arabia to achieve nothing.

Rollins said that they haven’t seen Gunther since he regained the World Heavyweight Title. Rollins explained that he wasn’t at Night of Champions to cash in Money in the Bank. Rollins said that they were to stop CM Punk from becoming the World Champion so they flew across the world to stand on that business. That led to chants for CM Punk. Rollins said when they won this, he told the world that it would be an all out assault on both World Titles. Rollins congratulated Gunther and stared at the World Title.

CM Punk’s music hit, and Punk ran down to the ring, so Punk went after Rollins with punches. Rollins did an eye gouge. Punk was back up and he hit Rollins with an elbow. Rollins left the ring and ran away. Rollins ran into the crowd and up the steps. Punk called Rollins a coward.

When Punk turned around, he bumped into Gunther, who hooked Punk’s arm a bit and Punk shoved Gunther on his ass. While Rollins was standing in the crowd, LA Knight showed up behind Rollins and attacked him.

Analysis: There’s a nice tease of Gunther against CM Punk. I think we’ll see that match at PLE in the coming months.

LA Knight fought with Seth Rollins in the concourse area while fans were standing around. Rollins threw a drink in Knight’s eyes, and Rollins ran away from Knight.

Analysis: That was a creative way to continue the LA Knight story that he has had with Seth Rollins over the last few months.

The Judgment Day’s clubhouse was shown with Finn Balor, JD McDonagh, Dominik Mysterio, and Roxanne Perez with their titles. Raquel Rodriguez walked in, saying Liv Morgan would be back soon, but Finn Balor said he had a shoulder injury, so he knows how long it takes. Balor, JD, Dominik, and Raquel all approved Roxanne Perez in The Judgment Day. Roxanne said thanks and that she would take out Kairi Sane for taking out Liv Morgan. Balor claimed that Liv would love it.

Analysis: All five healthy members of The Judgment Day have titles right now. Sane didn’t really hurt Morgan, but Sane was in the match with Morgan, so that fits the heel story.

Bayley made her entrance for singles action. They went on a break for some fans, and Lyra Valkyria made her entrance also.

A video aired about Kairi Sane. She spoke in Japanese about wanting to be a champion again.

Bayley vs. Lyra Valkyria

They did some mat wrestling early on. Bayley hit an armdrag off the turnbuckle, followed by a clothesline. Lyra hooked Bayley’s arms into a pin attempt for two. Bayley did a catapult to send Lyra into the turnbuckle. Bayley applied a Boston Crab submission. Lyra got out of that and got a pin attempt. Lyra and Bayley hit a double cross body block to knock eachother down. They went to break for some fans as the action continued. Lyra headbutted Bayley in the ribs. Bayley came back with an elbow drop for two. Bayley stomped on Lyra’s back. Lyra sent Bayley hard into the turnbuckle. Bayley hit a neckbreaker across the middle ropes.

Bayley was in control with a superplex off the middle turnbuckle and Lyra hooked the legs for a two count. Bayley hit a high-angle belly-to-back suplex, so Lyra rolled out of the ring. Bayley jumped off the steps with an elbow drop to Lyra’s back on the floor. Bayley got a two count out of that. The fans were not into the match at this point. Lyra countered Bayley with an armdrag. Lyra hit a swinging neckbreaker for two. Bayley blocked a Tornado DDT attempt and Bayley hit a sunset flip into the turnbuckle for a two count. Bayley hit shoulder tackles, and Lyra came back with a gutwrench Powerbomb for a two count. They did a collision spot where they hit heads, or at least that was the idea. Bayley and Lyra each hit clotheslines that didn’t lead to knockdowns. Bayley got on Lyra’s back and Bayley sat on top for a two count. They did a spot where Lyra covered with a jackknife pin so that Lyra’s shoulders were down and Bayley’s shoulders were down too. It went 11 minutes. The referee Jessika Carr said it’s a draw.

Match Result: Draw

Analysis: *** They worked hard and I liked the intensity that both women showed, but the fans weren’t into the match. The fans were quiet for most of it. I don’t think it’s the fault of the wrestlers. The story is just okay and it’s a match between two faces. The draw finish will likely lead to a triple threat match with Becky Lynch, but it could just lead to a rematch with Bayley and Lyra.

After the match, Bayley and Lyra kept fighting. They were fighting on the floor. They went into the crowd, where Bayley sent Lyra onto an equipment case in the back of the arena. There were WWE Officials and referees who showed up to break up the fight. The fans chanted “let them fight” at the end of that.

Analysis: The fans barely reacted to the match, but they did care about the post match brawl.

A new match has been added to Saturday Night’s Main Event on July 12th: Seth Rollins vs. LA Knight…yeah.

CM Punk was interviewed by Jackie Redmond backstage. Punk said that Seth Rollins’ knees haven’t worked that well in years. Punk said he has receipts for Rollins, Bron Breakker, Bronson Reed and Paul Heyman. Punk walked up to LA Knight about Punk wanting to get his hands on Rollins. Knight said that he gets Rollins at Saturday Night’s Main Event, so Knight isn’t going to the back of the line.

Sami Zayn was shown backstage getting his ribs taped up. Penta asked Zayn if he was sure about tagging with Penta tonight. Zayn did the “zero fear” hand gesture to Penta to show that he was ready.

It was main event time as Sami Zayn made his entrance. The fans sang Zayn’s song as usual. They went to a break as Penta also made his entrance.

Paul Heyman spoke to Bronson Reed backstage, saying that Seth Rollins was on a plane. Heyman said that Rollins was planning Plan B. As Heyman tried to explain that, Bron Breakker walked in, saying the plan was for him to smash anybody who got in their way.

Bron Breakker & Bronson Reed (w/Paul Heyman) vs. Sami Zayn & Penta

Penta hit a hurricanrana to take Bron down. Penta hit another hurricanrana to knock Bron down. Zayn tagged in with a chop, so Bron hit Zayn with a knee to the injured ribs. Bron ran the ropes, leading to a running clothesline. Reed tagged in with a running splash on Zayn against the turnbuckle. Zayn jumped off the turnbuckle with a double axhandle. Penta was back in with a jumping forearm. Penta superkicked Bron out of the ring. Penta and Zayn did a strut together. Penta and Zayn hit somersault dives over the top onto both of their opponents. They went to break for some fans. Penta jumped off the ropes, Reed caught him and hit a World’s Strongest Slam on Penta to take over. Bron hit a suplex, followed by some push-ups like his uncle Scott Steiner. Heyman was laughing about it.

The match continued with Penta kicking Reed and Penta hit an enziguri kick. Zayn was back in, so he worked over Reed with punches. Zayn tried to knock Reed down with a clothesline, but Reed didn’t go down. Zayn clotheslined Reed over the top rope to the floor. Zayn sent Bron out of the ring. Zayn jumped top rope with the Arabian Press while doing a salute to the late, great Sabu. Zayn went up top, Reed stopped him with a punch and Reed went to the middle turnbuckle. Zayn punched Reed a few times in the back, which led to Zayn hitting a Sunset Flip Powerbomb for a two-count. Reed got back into it with a Death Valley Driver for two. Bron tagged in, Reed had Zayn on his shoulders, Zayn broke free and Zayn punched Bron down. Reed hit a body attack to knock Zayn down. Bron jumped off the apron with a clothesline onto Zayn on the commentary table. That spot always looks great. They went to break for some fans again as Bron and Reed worked over Zayn for a few minutes.

Bron was in control of Zayn with an abdominal stretch and Zayn nearly tagged out. Bron charged at Zayn, who sent Bron to the floor. Zayn kicked Bron to the turnbuckle. Reed tagged in and missed a senton because Zayn moved. Penta got the tag against Bron, leading to a kick and cross body block. Penta sent Bron face first into the match with a bulldog. Penta hit an enziguri and a handstand dropkick against the turnbuckle. Penta pulled the right arm of Breakker for The Sacrifice. Bron was able to fight back with a press slam attempt, but Penta countered with a DDT for two. Heyman went on the apron to distract the referee, so Reed tripped up Penta. Bron hit a Frankensteiner off the top on Penta. Reed was legal and he hit a sitout Powerbomb on Penta for two because Zayn made the save. Reed went up top, jumped off with the Tsunami and Penta moved out of the way. Zayn tagged in against Bron and Zayn hit an Exploder Suplex into the turnbuckle. Zayn charged, but Bron hit a jumping clothesline to stop that. Bron ran the ropes, Zayn hit a boot to the face and Reed made the save. Reed tried a splash on Zayn, Sami avoided it, Penta did a necksnap on Reed against the top rope and Zayn hit a suplex on Reed. Bron was legal and he hit a Spear on Zayn for the pinfall win after 17 minutes.

Winners by pinfall: Bron Breakker & Bronson Reed

Analysis: ***1/2 A very good tag team match that got a lot of time, and it wasn’t a shock to see Zayn take the pin, considering he came into the match with the taped ribs. I thought maybe we’d see Karrion Kross show up to cost Zayn the match or maybe CM Punk would show up to cost Bron or Reed, but instead it was just Zayn being worn down by the pre-match attack, and it led to the heels getting the win. I enjoyed the match. The fans were into it, too.

After the match, Penta was checking on Zayn, so Bron nailed Penta with a Spear. Reed wanted to go up top, but Jey Uso made the save for his buddy Zayn. The fans exploded as Jey made his entrance with a steel chair. Jey hit Bron with a chair to the ribs and two chair shots to the back. Jey went after Reed in the ring. Jey hit multiple superkicks and Jey threw a chair at Reed’s head to knock Reed out of the ring.

Jey Uso celebrated with Zayn and Penta in the ring. Bron Breakker, Bronson Reed and Paul Heyman were down on the floor. The teams had a staredown. That was the end of Raw.

Analysis: This could set up a six-man tag team match situation with Jey, Zayn and Penta against Rollins, Reed and Breakker in the future. It may be next week’s Raw, or on a show down the line. The fans love Jey and we know there’s that friendship with Sami, so the save made sense.

This week’s Raw had a runtime of 2 hours, 27 minutes on Netflix.

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Three Stars of the Show

  1. Rusev and Sheamus
  2. Finn Balor & JD McDonagh
  3. Bronson Reed, Bron Breakker, Sami Zayn & Penta

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The Scoreboard

7.5 out of 10

Last week: 7.5

2025 Average: 7.54

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Final Thoughts on WWE Raw

I thought it was a very good Raw. The match quality was strong throughout the show, and all the matches got plenty of time. I didn’t expect The Judgment Day to win the World Tag Team Titles, so that’s a nice surprise. The Rusev/Sheamus match felt like a hard-hitting, old-school fight, and I liked the creative finish. Rusev winning was the right move.

They are doing a nice job of building to the Evolution PLE, and they added the Seth Rollins/LA Knight match to Saturday Night’s Main Event as well.

The main event tag team match was entertaining. I’m surprised that there wasn’t interference, but it’s a pleasant surprise because the match was better without interference. Great job by Zayn selling the rib injury, but his team with Penta still lost to Bron Breakker and Bronson Reed. I enjoyed the match.

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Thanks for reading. Please check out my reviews of every WWE PPV ever listed in order. Go Toronto Blue Jays. My contact info is below.

John Canton

Email [email protected]

Twitter/X @johnreport