Reviews

The John Report: WWE Raw Deal 11/10/25 Review

By John Canton • Published Nov 10, 2025 23:12 EST
WWE Raw November 10

It’s WWE Raw featuring John Cena, the beginning of the Last Time Is Now Tournament, two women’s title matches, and more.

It feels like a bigger-than-usual episode of Raw with John Cena making his second-last Raw appearance in Boston, which is considered his hometown in WWE land since he grew up in West Newbury, Massachusetts. Cena will be on Raw in New York City next week as well, and then it’s Survivor Series (November 29) and his final match at Saturday Night’s Main Event (December 13) to end this retirement tour. I like Cena, I’m a fan of his, I have covered his career a lot over the last two decades, and I am excited to see him fired up in front of these hot crowds that will show him the love he deserves.

Last week’s WWE Monday Night Raw featured Logan Paul uniting with The Vision’s Bron Breakker, Bronson Reed, and Paul Heyman after they beat up the World Champion CM Punk. That likely means they will be teammates for the Men’s WarGames Match at Survivor Series. Punk will have to find some babyface allies for his team. I’m sure WWE will start promoting WarGames soon because it’s supposed to be a big deal. If it were up to me, I would have set up the WarGames matches at least a month before it. Survivor Series is 19 days away, and nothing is officially announced yet, even though we know there will be Men’s and Women’s WarGames matches. You need to be better than that, creative team. Just saying.

This is the Raw Deal for episode #1694 of Monday Night Raw. It’s taking place at TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. Follow me on Twitter/X @johnreport. Let’s get to it.

There was superstar walking shown of Shinsuke Nakamura, Damian Priest, The Kabuki Warriors duo of Asuka & Kairi Sane, and Stephanie Vaquer with Nikki Bella.

They showed a sign of Cena’s hometown of West Newbury, Massachusetts, which is about 35 miles from where they are in Boston. It was a packed house in the TD Garden in Boston.

Triple H Welcomes Us To Raw

The WWE Hall of Famer and Chief Content Officer, Paul “Triple H” Levesque, was in the ring in a suit to welcome us to Raw. They played his “King of Kings” song. They gave him a huge ovation. Hunter said that we live in a magical time where we can all be here for a night like this. Hunter says that people don’t agree on much, everybody has an opinion when it comes to this business. Hunter said that they all have their opinions on who the greatest of all time is. Hunter said you can measure it a million different ways – ability in the ring, charisma, promos, ability to do PR, box office attractions, and they are all subjective. Triple H said that he has seen it from a lot of different sides as a fan, a performer, an executive and so on. Triple H said that he thinks tonight they can all agree there is one person at the top of the list. One person who is a box office attraction, who left it all in the ring, he was ruthless on this microphone that can tear everyone apart, did it all with a smile on his face and he did it all because he loved this business as much as anybody on the plant and he wanted to elevate it to the biggest form possible. Hunter said that this is the single greatest asset that this business has ever seen. Hunter said for him objectively he is without a doubt, the Greatest of All Time, and it is his honor to bring him out for you all – it’s the hometown hero, the one and only Greatest of All Time…John Cena.

Analysis: That was a cool introduction by Triple H. I think what he said was genuine and I agreed with a lot of it. I don’t know how I’d rank the Greatest of All Time, but Cena is absolutely a guy who could do it all, and he deserves the praise he gets.

Let’s Hear from John Cena

John Cena made his entrance wearing a Celtic green “Last Time Is Now” shirt for the Boston Celtics. Cena held up his towel and ran down to the ring to a huge ovation. What a pop! Wow. This crowd is on fire.

Cena was greeted by “Cena” chants. Cena said he’s been asked a lot about who he wants to face. The fans chanted “Thank You Cena” for him. Cena said that what goes on in here is a team effort and it doesn’t happen without the fans, so he thanked them. Cena said he wants to leave this business better than he found it. Cena said he’s super excited about tonight. Cena talked about the Last Time Is Now tournament, as WWE superstars will compete to try to face him in his last match. Cena said he’s not going down without a fight. Triple H said that on his last performance on December 13th at Saturday Night’s Main Event, this is where it’s good and it means so much to him. Cena said that it’s a night to close one chapter, but it’s also going to be a night of opportunity. Cena said it’s his final in-ring performance, but it’s a night when main roster superstars face the brightest that NXT has to offer for the future of this business. Cena said it’s about closing one chapter, but it’s about paving the road ahead. That’s what he wants for this tour.

Cena said that he wanted to come to Boston one last time. Cena said he doesn’t book the dates or towns. Cena said he just wanted to come to Boston one last time. Cena said it means a lot to see him look up to see the banners in the rafters and see the greatness in this building and be filled with joy. Cena said he wanted to say thank you so much…and here comes Dominik Mysterio. Oh my.

Dominik Mysterio made his entrance with the Intercontinental Title and AAA Mega Championship while Cena and Triple H were still in the ring. The crowd booed Dirty Dom loudly.

Dominik said you’re talking about the future, and the fans chanted, “Shut the f**k up” so the swear word got muted. Dominik asked Hunter what he’s going to do about what happened last week. Dominik said he’s the AAA Mega Champion and the greatest Intercontinental Champion of all time. Dominik complained about his celebration being interrupted by a deadbeat as a reference to his father Rey Mysterio. Dom said he interrupts old men and not the other way around.

Cena spoke up to welcome Dom to Boston. Dom said it’s not about Cena or Boston, so he told Cena to sit in the corner and let the grown folk handle business. Dom threatened Cena saying he would put him down. Fans chanted, “You f**ked up” at Dom, so that got muted too. Cena said you forgot where you were and you forgot who you were talking to because he’s Cena and this is Boston. Cena said on any other night in any other city, he’d give Dom another chance, but not tonight because tonight, Cena is invincible. Cena said if Dom wants to pick a fight with him then he will lose. Cena said wrong time, wrong place, and wrong guy. Cena said he’ll do Dom a favor out of the respect that Cena has for Dom’s father. Cena said he’ll allow Dom to leave and walk his ass through that curtain. Dom said you’ll need more than magic to touch him because he’s not even at his peak yet and he’s better than Cena ever was in his prime. Dom said any place, any time, any era, he would have whooped John Cena’s ass. The fans brought the, “You f**ked up” chant back.

Triple H said if he can take this for a second, he agrees with the people in Boston. Hunter said Dom said any time, any place, any era. Triple H said it seems like a good era and a good place, and one hell of a time. Triple H said if it’s okay with Cena, Dominik will defend the Intercontinental Championship tonight (the fans popped huge), right here and right now, against John Cena. Triple H called for a referee and let’s get to work. The fans were cheering loudly.

Analysis: There was a report about this earlier in the day, and here it is happening right before us. Huge. I thought they might save it for the main event spot, but they are going to do it now and the fans are into this as much as you can be into a title match that is impromptu like this. I liked Cena’s promo a lot, while Dominik showed a lot of heel charisma as usual. The fans ate this up perfectly and it felt like a big deal.

The commentary team was Joe Tessitore and Wade Barrett. Alicia Taylor was the ring announcer.

They went on a break for some fans as Alicia Taylor did the championship introductions. Alicia did the special introduction for Cena. As soon as she finished the introduction. Dom attacked and the bell rang.

WWE Intercontinental Championship: Dominik Mysterio vs. John Cena

It was Dom in control with some kicks and punches. The show returned from break for some fans as Dom stomped on Cena by the turnbuckle. Cena sent Dom into the turnbuckle and hit a bulldog. Dom bailed to the floor. Cena went after him out there, but Dom managed to send Cena shoulder-first into the steel steps. Dom sent Cena into the steel steps. Barrett mentioned Cena hasn’t held the IC Title before, which is true. Dom hit the Three Amigos suplexes for a two count. Cena came back for punches. Cena went for AA, Dom avoided it, and Dom hit a DDT for two. They went on a break for some fans as the action continued. Dom hit a running splash on Cena against the turnbuckle. It was a very gentle splash. The fans chanted, “Let’s Go Cena/Dom you suck” and Cena avoided a splash, followed by Cena hitting a clothesline. Cena ran the ropes and hit a shoulder tackle. Dom hit a shoulder tackle to the leg to stop another one, so Cena bumped to the floor. Back in the ring, Dom hit a slingshot senton for a two count. Dom worked over Cena with punches.

Cena blocked a senton splash attempt from Dom. Cena hit the two shoulder tackles and the spinning suplex. The fans were standing as Cena did his, “You Can’t See Me” taunt and followed up with the Five Knuckle Shuffle fist drop. Cena wanted the AA, Dom slipped out of it and Dom sent Cena shoulder-first into the turnbuckle. Dom took the top turnbuckle pad off. The referee, Chad Patton, admonished Dom for that, so Dom grabbed a steel chair. The referee fixed the turnbuckle, Dom smashed the chair into the mat, tossed it to Cena, and Cena put it down. Dom and Cena were both down on the mat. The fans were chanting “Eddie” since it’s an Eddie Guerrero move and Cena winked at Dom. The referee took the chair away from Dom, Cena picked up Dom, and Dom’s feet kicked Patton down to the mat and out of the ring. Cena applied the STF in the middle of the ring, Dominik tapped out and there was no referee to see it, so the match was not done. Dom brought the IC Title into the ring, Cena ducked a belt shot and Cena hit Dom with an Attitude Adjustment. Referee Eddie Orengo went into the ring, Cena covered and it was a two count. The fans bought that as a nearfall. That was great. Dom tripped Cena against the ropes and hit a 619 kick to the jaw. Dom went up top and hit a Frog Splash, but Cena powered out of it. Cena picked up Dom and hit an Attitude Adjustment for the pinfall win! John Cena is the new Intercontinental Champion! It went 14 minutes.

Winner by pinfall AND NEW Intercontinental Champion: John Cena

That is the first time that John Cena has won the Intercontinental Title, so he is now officially a Grand Slam Champion in WWE.

Analysis: ***1/2 It was a very entertaining, old school kind of match with the weapon usage, the ref bump, the tapout without a referee around, the nearfalls that the fans bought as potential finishes and then the happy ending with Cena winning the IC Title for the first time. That was a cool moment. Dom was excellent in his role as usual, while Cena looked sharp throughout the match. They crushed it. I thought there would be interference with Dominik getting help from The Judgment Day, but that didn’t happen, and Cena beat Dom clean. The star rating doesn’t matter that much in a match like this, but it was still a lot of fun to watch. The hot crowd certainly helped a lot, too.

John Cena thanked Boston and said because of you, tonight, the champ is here! Cena posed with the Intercontinental Title while fireworks went off by the entrance. Cena teased putting the title around his waist, but instead, he put it on his shoulder. Cena held up the IC Title above his head, and the fans cheered again.

Analysis: Great moment for John Cena and for Boston. The fans absolutely loved this. There are reports that Cena is in the Men’s WarGames Match, so he’ll probably hold the IC Title all the way until his final match on December 13, where he will probably lose it to Gunther, who is his rumored final opponent.

LA Knight was interviewed by Byron Saxton in the back of the arena. This was during a break for some fans. Knight said that he’s the best in the business. Knight said in the John Cena tournament that he can now become the Intercontinental Champion. Knight said that if he beats the Greatest of All Time, then what does that make him? Knight said that Nick Aldis doesn’t want to tell him his opponent on SmackDown. Knight said that whoever steps into that ring will get dropped and BFT three the hard way. They cut away before he finished his promo. There’s a timer, and he missed it.

They showed John Cena getting congratulations from WWE superstars backstage. Rey Mysterio congratulated Cena on the win, and Cena said he hopes Dom learns from it. Cody Rhodes, the WWE Champion, was there as well to congratulate Cena, and Cena thanked him.

A video package aired about last week’s Raw when The Vision and Logan Paul aligned to beat up CM Punk in the main event.

They showed Logan Paul backstage to let us know he was there tonight.

Damian Priest made his entrance for singles action. He has some makeup around the left eye to sell the fire that was thrown in his face by Aleister Black over a month ago.

A video aired honoring the brave heroes on Veterans Day in the US on Tuesday, November 11th. Here in Canada, we have Remembrance Day on the same day. We say thank you for your service.

There was a break for some fans as they did “Signs of the Night” with Alicia Taylor talking about the signs that were shown on screen. Rusev made his entrance after that.

Last Time Is Now Tournament First Round: Rusev vs. Damian Priest

I assume most of you know this, but this is a first round in the 16-man tournament to determine who will face John Cena in Cena’s retirement match on December 13th.

They locked up early on and Rusev went after Priest’s left eye that he has been selling for weeks. Priest worked over Rusev with punches. Rusev sent Priest into the turnbuckle, followed by a kick and a spinning back heel kick. Rusev pulled Priest off the turnbuckle and hit a fallaway slam across the ring. Priest bumped to the floor. They went on a break and I’ll take a break there. Rusev was in control during the break.

Priest hit a lifting flatliner as the break portion ended. Priest and Rusev exchanged punches. Priest hit a jumping shoulder tackle, along with a running elbow against the turnbuckle. Priest hit a Broken Arrow slam. Rusev was in control with kicks to the body. Priest got back up and they exchanged kicks to the body. Priest punched Rusev, who hit a boot, and Priest hit a clothesline. Priest did a rope walk into a cross body block. Rusev did an eye gouge and some face grinding by the ropes. Rusev hit a Machka Kick to the head for the pinfall win after about 9 minutes. Rusev did a, “You can’t see me” hand gesture for Cena.

Winner by pinfall: Rusev

Analysis: **3/4 The eye injury of Priest came into play throughout the match since Rusev worked on the injured left eye. It wasn’t the most exciting match or anything like that, but it was fine for a physical match between two veterans. Rusev winning is fine. I doubt he’s going to make the tournament finals, although I’m happy to see him get a win like this. Priest has the excuse that he wasn’t physically ready due to the eye injury.

AJ Styles and Dragon Lee, the World Tag Team Champions, spoke to Raw GM Adam Pearce about how they wanted to defend the titles. Pearce said he’ll find them opponents soon. Pearce asked if they had a team name. Lee said Dragons With Style in Spanish, and Styles said it was too long. Styles said they’ll keep working on it.

Maxxine Dupri spoke to Pearce, saying she was ready for her title match against Becky Lynch. Pearce booked it for Raw next Monday in New York City. Dupri was excited. Pearce left, and Becky Lynch punched Dupri. Lynch told Dupri she doesn’t stand a chance.

Analysis: Title change for Maxxine Dupri? Maybe. I don’t know if it’s going to happen or not. It’s possible.

CM Punk made his entrance with the World Heavyweight Title around his waist. They went on a break for some fans with Punk’s promo after that break. Punk ended up walking around the ring and greeting fans for a few minutes.

They had LJN action figures at ringside. CM Punk put the Dusty Rhodes action figure over the Logan Paul figure when he was out there. Barrett put over Paul for knocking out Punk last week.

Let’s Hear from CM Punk

CM Punk said he was pissed off because last week, he got sucker punched by a piece of garbage named Logan Paul. Punk said he knew Paul was a piece of garbage. Punk said that Paul isn’t going to get a shot at his title, but he is going to fight him. Punk trashed Paul’s broccoli-headed millennial look and told him to come out here to give Punk the ass kicking he has earned.

Logan Paul made his entrance and was booed as usual. Paul said he’s not just smarter than Punk, he’s smarter than everybody in the building. Punk wanted Paul to go to the ring. Paul said he’s been punched in the face by the greatest boxer of all time, Floyd Mayweather, and it was nothing compared to getting splashed by Bronson Reed. Paul said if you’re not conforming with those guys, you’re getting cracked every week. Punk said that they are there to fight. Paul said he thought that he knew it all, but after taking that Tsunami, his eyes have been opened to a whole new vision.

Paul Heyman walked out to stand beside Logan Paul. They were joined by Bronson Reed and Bron Breakker. Heyman told Punk he’s the single most unlikable human being that he has ever met. Heyman said that Punk is friendless. Heyman said it’s because Punk betrays his friends and he knows it as Punk’s former best friend. Heyman said that Punk is a miserable, rotten bastard, and Punk is the most unlikable person and couldn’t be more unlikable unless your name was AJ Lee. Punk said if his wife, AJ Lee, was there, then he’d leave them in a pool of their own piss and blood. Punk said he’d fight all five of them and that includes Heyman twice.

Jey Uso went into the ring to stand beside CM Punk. The music of Cody Rhodes hit, and the WWE Champion Cody Rhodes ran down to the ring. The fans sang Cody’s song even after the music stopped playing.

The six wrestlers got into a brawl around ringside as Punk fought with Paul while Cody and Jey fought with Bron and Reed in the ring. Punk threw Paul into the barricade. Cody hit Bron with a chair to the ribs. Reed was isolated in the ring, so Jey hit him with a superkick. Punk hit Reed with a chair and Cody/Jey clotheslined Reed out of the ring. The fans sang, “Cody, Cody Rhodes.” The babyfaces stood tall in the ring while The Vision heels were on the floor.

Analysis: It was a good segment to show that CM Punk is not alone against The Vision because he does have friends. They are obviously building to the Men’s WarGames Match at Survivor Series, and we know those are usually 5-on-5 matches, so more wrestlers will need to be added to it. I don’t know why WWE is taking their time in setting it up even though we know WarGames is a part of Survivor Series. I think it’s a misstep by WWE to not promote WarGames more. I mentioned earlier in the review that John Cena is rumored for the babyface team in WarGames, and if Roman Reigns is also involved, then that’s a lot of star power. Brock Lesnar was rumored to be on the heel team, but I don’t know if that’s going to happen. They would need one more guy after that.

Charlotte Flair and Alexa Bliss were shown getting ready for their Women’s Tag Team Title defense against the Kabuki Warriors later on Raw.

Stephanie Vaquer made her entrance for her Women’s World Title match. She was joined by Nikki Bella. They went on a break for some fans. The WrestleMania 42 commercial aired. Raquel Rodriguez made her entrance, and she was joined by Roxanne Perez.

WWE Women’s World Championship: Stephanie Vaquer (w/Nikki Bella) vs. Raquel Rodriguez (w/Roxanne Perez)

The powerhouse Raquel was in control early with elbows and a shoulder tackle. Vaquer got a rollup and then used her body for extra leverage for a two count. Vaquer hit a dropkick. Vaquer went for the Devil’s Kiss, but Raquel powered out of that and sent Vaquer into the turnbuckle. Raquel clotheslined Vaquer for a two count. They went on a break for some fans as the action continued. Raquel gave Vaquer a body slam. Raquel hit a shoulder tackle and elbow drops. Raquel splashed Vaquer against the turnbuckle. Raquel grabbed a chinlock. Raquel stretched Vaquer across her back.

Vaquer finally got some offense going with some kicks and a headbutt. Vaquer knocked Raquel down, followed by Vaquer going up top and hitting a cross-body block. Vaquer hit a Meteora double knee attack for a two count. Vaquer tried a lift, Raquel countered out of it and Raquel used her power to hit a suplex. Raquel bounced off the ropes, followed by a boot to the face for two. Vaquer countered a Raquel move by sending her into the turnbuckle. Vaquer tried a Meteora, but Raquel countered with a Powerbomb for a two count. Vaquer was on the apron, Perez grabbed her while the referee was looking at Raquel and Nikki threw Perez into the barricade. Raquel caught Vaquer and hit a fallaway slam across the ring. Raquel missed an elbow drop. Vaquer rolled Raquel into the Devil’s Kiss knee-smashing spot that popped the crowd. Vaquer hit a superkick. Vaquer went up top and hit a Corkscrew Moonsault for the pinfall win after about 10 minutes.

Winner by pinfall: Stephanie Vaquer

Analysis: ***1/4 It started slow, but it got better as it went on. Raquel was on offense for most of it and Vaquer found a way to get the win. I didn’t expect a title change. Perez tried to help Raquel, so Nikki attacked, and it led to Vaquer getting the win because Raquel couldn’t cheat to win.

After the match, Roxanne Perez hit Vaquer in the head to knock her down. Nikki Bella made the save and attacked Perez. Vaquer kicked Perez out of the ring. Nikki grabbed the Women’s World Title and she hit Vaquer in the head with it! The fans reacted to that with a big pop and boos. Joe was shocked by it, while Wade made the point that if you have a title, then you have a target, and that’s true. Nikki ripped off her shirt to show off her Fearless top. Nikki left looking proud of herself.

Analysis: I mentioned weeks ago that this felt like Nikki Bella was going to turn on Stephanie Vaquer, and here we are. The fans reacted to it in a big way, so I’d say it worked. Nikki is fine as a babyface, but she can pull off being a heel, too. I honestly thought it might wait until after Survivor Series, but they didn’t wait. Anyway, I doubt Nikki takes the title from Vaquer.

The WrestleMania 42 commercial aired with Cody Rhodes talking about his career. Cody said he was built for this moment and every one after it.

CM Punk was backstage with Cody Rhodes and Jey Uso. Adam Pearce walked up to them. Punk said he’s got a team, so tell Paul Heyman to get a team. Pearce said are you saying what I think you’re saying. Punk called for William Regal, who walked in and shouted: “WarGames!” It’s official.

Analysis: Thanks for finally mentioning the Men’s WarGames Match, WWE. I would have done that in front of the crowd. They would have popped even louder for it if Regal walked out there and shouted WarGames. Just saying. It was still a nice touch to have Regal did it since he was awesome at doing it as the NXT GM in the 2010s.

Shinsuke Nakamura made his entrance for singles action. Sheamus was up next as his opponent.

Last Time Is Now Tournament First Round: Sheamus vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

It was Sheamus in control with strikes. Nakamura came back by setting up Sheamus on the top rope, and then Sheamus avoided a knee strike. Nakamura kicked Sheamus in the head three times. Nakamura hit a knee to the back of the head. Sheamus left the ring, he caught Nakamura and Sheamus gave Nakamura a power slam on the floor. They went on a break and I’ll take a break too.

The match continued with Sheamus hitting a rolling senton. Sheamus went to the turnbuckle, so Nakamura met him with a jumping kick. Nakamura hit a superplex off the middle turnbuckle for a two count. Nakamura worked over Sheamus with kicks to the chest, so Sheamus told him to bring it. Nakamura and Sheamus exchanged punches. Nakamura ran the ropes, Sheamus caught him and hit the backbreaker. Sheamus hit the Ten Beats of the Bodhran forearms to the chest as the fans chanted along for every shot. Sheamus charged, but Nakamura stopped that with a Slingblade style of neckbreaker. Sheamus charged, Nakamura kicked him and Nakamura jumped off the turnbuckle, but Sheamus stopped that with a knee smash for two because Nakamura got his hand on the ropes. Sheamus set up Nakamura on the turnbuckle, Nakamura tried to fight out of it and Nakamura hit a Powerbomb for two. Nakamura charged, Sheamus got a rollup for two, Nakamura hit a spin kick, Sheamus bounced off the ropes and hit a Brogue Kick for the pinfall win after about 10 minutes.

Winner by pinfall: Sheamus

Analysis: ***1/4 Good match between two talented veterans who are still going strong. It was a Brogue Kick where Sheamus took one step into it, rather than a traditional Brogue Kick where he steps into it more. I would have been fine with either guy winning, but I liked that it was Sheamus since he lost some matches to Rusev and needed a win like this.

A WWE Fact of the Night letting us know that John Cena has now held every major singles title in WWE. He is finally a Grand Slam Champion in WWE. Granted, Cena never really challenged for the IC Title in the past.

The Last Time Is Now Tournament continues next week. Adam Pearce announced the matches for next week:

* Je’Von Evans from NXT vs. Gunther

* Solo Sikoa vs. ??? – Pearce said we can find out live next Monday at MSG.

Analysis: I’m excited about the Evans/Gunther match. It should be awesome. I have missed Gunther, and Evans is incredible. Gunther will win, obviously. Gunther is the rumored winner of the tournament, which doesn’t surprise me.

Next Monday on Raw in New York City’s Madison Square Garden:

* John Cena’s final MSG appearance

* Last Time Is Now Tournament: Je’Von Evans vs. Gunther

* Last Time Is Now Tournament: Solo Sikoa vs. ???

* Women’s Intercontinental Championship: Becky Lynch vs. Maxxine Dupri

Analysis: I think it would be smart to put Cena in a match in MSG, so it will probably be set up on the show. Maybe it will be a tag team match with Rey Mysterio or perhaps he’ll face Dominik Mysterio again.

Charlotte Flair and Alexa Bliss made their entrance for their Women’s Tag Team Title main event match. The Kabuki Warriors were up next as the challengers. This was during a break for some fans.

WWE Women’s Tag Team Championships: Charlotte Flair & Alexa Bliss vs. Kabuki Warriors – Asuka & Kairi Sane

Flair and Bliss attacked both opponents with punches. Bliss hit Sane with a knee, followed by a dropkick. Flair tagged in against Asuka and hit a shoulder tackle. Flair got a rollup for two. Flair hit a jumping kick. Asuka went to the ropes, Sane tagged herself in and Sane jumped off the top with a forearm. Flair put Sane to the apron and Flair kicked Sane off the apron to the floor. Bliss tagged in, Asuka got in her face and Sane hit a forearm smash to knock Bliss down on the floor. The Warriors took over as the show went to a break for some fans. Asuka and Sane made quick tags while working over Bliss for a few minutes.

Asuka and Sane went for a double team move on Bliss, but Bliss countered with a double DDT. Flair tagged in and hit a cross body block off the top. Flair worked over both opponents with chops. Flair hit a cartwheel clothesline on Asuka, who waited there to take it. Flair hit fallaway slams on both opponents. Flair went up top and hit a moonsault onto both opponents for a two count on Asuka. It looked like Flair’s knee hit Sane. Flair punched Asuka, but Asuka came back with a back fist and kicks to the body. Flair gave Asuka a German Suplex. Bliss punched Sane. Bliss hit a Natural Selection on Sane, but Asuka countered Flair’s Natural Selection attempt. Flair kicked Asuka to knock her down. Sane pulled Bliss off the apron to prevent a tag. Asuka hit Flair with a knee. Asuka applied an armbar on the right arm, but Flair countered it with a Walls of Jericho-like move. Asuka got out of it and sat on top for two. Asuka kicked Flair in the head. Asuka ran the ropes and Flair stopped her with a boot to the head. Flair went for the Figure Eight, but Sane was on the top rope. Sane jumped off, Bliss caught her and Bliss hit Sister Abigail on Sane. Flair had Figure Eight on Asuka, but Nia Jax and Lash Legend showed up and Jax pulled Flair’s arm. The referee never saw it. Bliss was sent into the commentary table. Asuka held Flair and Sane jumped off the top with an Insane Elbow on Flair. Sane covered Flair for the win. It went about 12 minutes.

Winners by pinfall AND NEW Women’s Tag Team Champions: Asuka & Kairi Sane

Analysis: *** I enjoyed the Flair/Bliss title reign, but I’m not surprised by the title change to give Asuka and Sane the titles again. The match was fine, although I think these four are capable of a better match. I thought it would be a longer match, so maybe being a shorter match was a factor. The presence of Jax and Legend obviously cost Flair and Bliss the match, so that set up what happened after.

After the match, Nia Jax and Lash Legend were joined by Asuka and Kairi Sane in attacking Flair and Bliss. Iyo Sky made her return to a big pop. She beat up Lash and hit a strike on Jax. Sky hit a springboard cross-body block on the Kabuki Warriors. Lash Legend went into the ring and she punched Sky to knock her down.

Welcome back, Rhea Ripley, because she made her return with a facemask to protect her broken nose. Ripley went into the ring with punches and kicks. The other babyfaces worked with Ripley to clear the ring. Ripley picked up Sane and gave her a Razor’s Edge over the top onto the heels on the floor. Ripley yelled into the microphone: “WarGames!” The fans loved it. The babyfaces stood tall in the ring while the heels were down on the floor. That was the end of Raw.

Analysis: There we go with the Women’s WarGames match. I thought it would involve Raquel and Roxanne, but for now it looks like a 4-on-4 match with Ripley, Sky, Flair & Bliss against Asuka, Sane, Jax and Legend. They could opt to make it 5-on-5 like we have seen for WarGames matches in the past. If they needed to add one more on each side, then Becky Lynch, Jade Cargill, or Nikki Bella could join the heels, while Maxxine Dupri, Tiffany Stratton, or Stephanie Vaquer could join the faces. We’ll see how it develops in the weeks ahead.

This week’s Raw had a runtime of 2 hours and 25 minutes on Netflix. It was 20 minutes shorter than last week. It was about 5 minutes shorter than most weeks.

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Three Stars of the Show

  1. John Cena
  2. Kabuki Warriors – Asuka & Kairi Sane
  3. Dominik Mysterio, because I thought he crushed it with his promo and the match

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The Scoreboard

8 out of 10

Last week: 7.5

2025 Average: 7.54

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Final Thoughts on WWE Raw

I enjoyed Raw a lot this week. There wasn’t a standout match or anything like that, but they had two title changes, progressed a lot of stories, and finally announced the two WarGames matches at Survivor Series. The John Cena/Dominik Mysterio promo and match were great. Dom is terrific as a cocky heel, and he’s still going to get better. I don’t think Dom will be hurt from losing the IC Title to Cena, who won that title for the first time in his career. With that said, I’m sure some fans are complaining about Dom losing a title to a guy who’s 20 years older than him. I don’t mind it at all.

When matches have meaning and stakes, then they feel bigger. The two matches in the “Last Time Is Now” tournament were solid matchups between veterans. Asuka & Kairi Sane ending the Charlotte Flair & Alexa Bliss Women’s Tag Team Title reign was cheap because of Nia Jax & Lash Legend getting involved. I liked Flair & Bliss as champs, but Asuka & Sane are great too. That ending led to Rhea Ripley & Iyo Sky coming back too. Lots of talent there.

The Boston crowd was fantastic. They were hot for John Cena, he got plenty of time in front of them with the promo and winning the IC Title, so I think the fans were pretty happy with Cena’s performance. It also ended with the babyface women standing tall, which pleased the fans at the end of the night. Next Monday at MSG is Cena’s final Raw.

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John Canton

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