A change has been made to the men’s Money in the Bank match.
WWE announced tonight following Raw that Apollo would be unable to compete in the men’s Money in the Bank match, writing: “Apollo Crews suffered a knee injury that left him unable to continue in his United States Championship Match with Andrade on Raw. Due to that injury, Crews will no longer be able to compete in the Men’s Money in the Bank Ladder Match on Sunday, May 10.”
The storyline injury happened towards the end of a United States championship match between Apollo and champion Andrade. Apollo jumped off the top rope and fell down immediately afterwards, clutching his leg. The referee checked on Apollo and stopped the match, awarding Andrade the win.
Later in the show, Apollo was shown walking away from the trainer’s area with ice wrapped around his knee. Charly Caruso asked if this will hinder his progress. He didn’t answer and walked away, upset.
Daniel Bryan, Rey Mysterio, Aleister Black and King Corbin are set for the men’s Money in the Bank ladder match. A match between Otis and Dolph Ziggler this Friday on SmackDown will determine the fifth participant.
Date: April 20, 2020 Location: WWE Performance Center in Orlando, FL
The Big Takeaway —
As expected, Aleister Black, Rey Mysterio and Apollo Crews qualified for the men’s MITB ladder match.
Drew McIntyre (the champion) challenged Seth Rollins to a title match at MITB and Rollins accepted. McIntyre went on to beat Angel Garza in the main event and continued to terrorize Zelina Vega’s stable.
For the second straight week, Kevin Owens was not on the show.
Show Recap —
Drew McIntyre entered to start the show. He said Raw was the highlight of his week and welcomed us to the show. He talked about being jumped last week but wasn’t at all surprised. The title meant history, prestige and fame but it also painted a bullseye on his back. McIntyre was once told that it was lonely at the top but that was a lie — it’s crowded as hell at the top.
McIntyre said Rollins wasn’t all that complex. McIntyre was the champion and Rollins wanted to be the champion. McIntyre noted that people didn’t think Rollins deserved a shot but admitted that he was one of the most decorated wrestlers of all-time. McIntyre wanted to continue to beat the best so he challenged Rollins for a title match at Money in the Bank.
McIntyre was about to give Rollins a message but was interrupted by Zelina Vega, Angel Garza and Austin Theory. Vega said he was too focused on MITB and was looking past Garza. At that moment, Andrade attacked McIntyre from behind. McIntyre quickly responded with a Claymore Kick.
Vega urged Theory and Garza to go after him but they didn’t budge. McIntyre Claymore kicked Andrade out of the ring. McIntyre looked into the camera and encouraged the audience to put their kids to bed because he was going to slaughter Garza later tonight.
Byron Saxton, Tom Phillips and Jerry Lawler are tonight’s announcers. They spoke about the gimmick for this year’s MITB ladder match.
Aleister Black defeated Austin Theory to qualify for the MITB ladder match (11:51)
Vega joined commentary, so there were once again four people sitting side-by-side-by-side at the announce desk. They’re not acknowledging that Vega and Black are married, which is silly.
Black dropkicked Theory out of the ring so Vega left commentary to yell at him for not fighting fairly. Theory then chucked Black into the barricade and they went to break. Theory was in control until Black applied a triangle choke but Theory countered into a deadlift powerbomb. Black came back later with strikes and springboard moonsault for two.
Theory went on offense briefly until Black caught him with a knee, German suplex and Black Mass for the pinfall win. This match was fine.
Saxton asked Black about his strategy for the corporate ladder match. Black said he didn’t know much about corporate life and guessed he would have to cover up his tattoos. Black promised his opponents that each floor of the building would turn into their own personal hell.
Shayna Baszler defeated Indi Hartwell (1:00)
Before Baszler entered, Charly Caruso asked her if she took it too far against Sarah Logan last week. Baszler responded, “Did I break any rules? Nah, I just broke Sarah Logan’s arm.” They showed a replay.
Baszler tried the arm-break spot again but Hartwell avoided it and applied a schoolgirl for two. Baszler used a forearm, slam, knee strike and then stomped the arm as she did to Logan. The referee immediately called for the bell and they announced Baszler as the winner. Baszler marched off.
As officials checked on Hartwell, Baszler brought a ladder to ringside. She swung Hartwell into the barricade and the ladder. The ref yelled at her to stop and Lawler said they should probably try to do more than just ask her to stop. Baszler trapped Hartwell’s arm in between the ladder and kicked it in. Saxton said Baszler was evil.
There’s some sort of Ricochet feature airing on the Network after Raw. Thorne and Vink very briefly got some offense, but this was really a showcase for Ricochet and Alexander. They won quickly after Ricochet gave Thorne a Recoil and Alexander followed with a Lumbar Check for the pin. Lawler seemed amused by those move names.
Caruso interviewed Kairi Sane and Asuka. Caruso wondered how Sane thought she would fare in her rematch against Nia Jax. Asuka said Sane was ready. They danced and sang their way out of frame.
Bobby Lashley was at the gym inside the PC. Lana joined him. Lashley wanted to show how easy it was to flip a giant tractor tire. Lana stroked his muscles. They left, so I guess this is happening later (Lashley needed to warm up first).
[Second hour]
For the second time in less than an hour, they plugged the Triple H anniversary show on SmackDown this Friday.
Nia Jax defeated Kairi Sane (4:07)
The announcers said Sane asked for this rematch. Like last week, Asuka watched from the back for some reason.
Jax tossed Sane into the turnbuckles and she took an ugly bump. Jax missed a charge and began selling her leg so Sane kicked away at it. Sane hammered away on Jax, hit a spinning back fist and sliding forearm. Jax avoided an Insane Elbow and hit a Samoan drop for the pinfall win. Jax lightly smacked Sane in the face after the match.
They aired a Rollins promo which appeared to be from a remote location. Rollins noted how much he and McIntyre had in common and that they both beat Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania for the title.
Rollins accepted his challenge but not out of respect or even disdain. This wasn’t personal. It was necessary. Rollins said the WWE universe needed a leader, but as much as they had in common, he was a proven leader and McIntyre was not. Rollins would be the light in the darkness. He would take the title, not because he wants to, but because he has to.
They aired a tape of the Viking Raiders driving around doing their own version of carpool karaoke. They wore t-shirts and jeans to go along with their Viking headgear. Ivar chomped down on a drumstick as Erik drove. They were in a much more gleeful mood than usual. This seemed designed to give them some personality.
Apollo Crews defeated MVP to qualify for the MITB ladder match (8:09)
Crews interrupted MVP’s pre-match promo. They went to break 45 seconds into the match. MVP was in control until Crews countered his finisher into a spinebuster. Crews followed with a Stinger splash, fists, superkick, clothesline and powerslam for two. MVP got his knees up on a frog splash attempt and hit the Playmaker for a nearfall.
Crews came back with an enziguri, press slam, standing moonsault, standing shooting star and a spin-out powerbomb for the pinfall win. Not much of a match but Crews’ finishing sequence was impressive. Phillips yelled that this was the biggest win of Crews’ career.
Caruso interviewed Ruby Riott about the Riott Squad and her match against Liv Morgan tonight. Riott said there never really was a squad. She had double shoulder surgery because she had to carry Logan and Morgan on her back. She made them look threatening. Now Logan has a broken arm and Morgan might leave here with broken arms. Riott said Morgan thinks she’s all grown up but she would learn how small and lonely and weak she was without her.
Liv Morgan defeated Ruby Riott (3:19)
They went back-and-forth until Morgan caught Riott with a Flatliner off the ropes for the pinfall win. The announcers intimated that Morgan was now done with Riott. (I like Riott a lot but Morgan did pick up a win on the Mania pre-show, so this makes sense.)
Back at the gym, Lashley was all warmed up. Lana said he wasn’t warm, he was hot. Lashley flipped the tractor tire. He admitted that any world-class athlete could flip that tire but questioned if they could flip a much bigger one. They had one that seemed twice the size.
They aired a tribute graphic for Howard Finkel. RIP.
Rey Mysterio defeated Murphy to qualify for the MITB ladder match (15:03)
Mysterio wore Under Armour gloves with the Batman logo on it. He appeared to injure his finger and went outside to regroup so Murphy went after him and pushed him into the barricade. Murphy tried working over his hand but Mysterio fought him off until Murphy stomped his hand on the steel edge of the ramp.
Murphy continued to target the hand after the break. He stomped it against the top of the ring post, then Mysterio shoved him to the outside and used a leg scissors takedown against the ramp. Murphy tried countering a 619 but Mysterio turned that into a tilt-a-whirl DDT for two. Mysterio then drove Murphy into the barricade with another leg scissors takedown.
Mysterio appeared to try popping his finger back in place. Back in the ring, Murphy rolled through a high cross attempt and hit a fireman’s carry neckbreaker, knee strike and brainbuster for two. Mysterio blocked a sunset flip powerbomb and hit a Canadian Destroyer, 619 and frog splash for the pinfall win. Good match.
McIntyre vs. Rollins for the title was made official for MITB.
Caruso tried interviewing Vega but she continuously mocked her. Vega intimated that her plan was going just fine and suggested McIntyre may not make it to MITB after tonight. Garza invited Caruso to ask him how it feels to beat a champion after his match tonight. She smiled and responded, “I could do that.”
NXT Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair defeated Kayden Carter in a non-title match (2:45)
Charlotte stretched using the ropes as the bell rang to start the match then caught Carter off guard with a big boot. She said you should always do your homework, which is fine advice. Carter fought back and used a crucifix driver.
Charlotte fought out of an octopus hold and hit a spear. She applied the Figure Four, slapped Carter in the face while holding the move, then transitioned into the Figure Eight and Carter tapped out. Charlotte mockingly clapped for Carter after the match.
Back in the gym, Lashley admitted he wasn’t sure he could move the 450-lbs tire, but if anyone could do it, it was him. Lashley attempted it a couple of times but it barely budged. Saxton, an idiot, called this embarrassing. Lashley then flipped it over without much problem. Lana was very impressed. (Lawler said it was a monster truck tire and it would have weighed well over 500-lbs.)
(There was a piece of exercise equipment in the background with the NXT logo on it. It appears they tried to cover up the NXT logo with black tape but the tape peeled off.)
US Champion Andrade (w/Zelina Vega) defeated Akira Tozawa in a non-title match (4:56)
Tozawa was all over Andrade early on and hit the same running flip dive to the outside that he did last week. No, Lawler did not make the same remark as last time. Tozawa followed with a flying front dropkick for two. Tozawa tried going after him on the outside but Vega momentarily got in his way which allowed Andrade to attack.
Tozawa managed to apply an octopus hold anyway but Andrade got a rope break. Andrade hit a back elbow but Tozawa then psyched him out and punched him in the face. Andrade came back with a dropkick but Tozawa countered a vertical suplex into a small package for two, followed by two more rollups for two.
Tozawa hit a superkick and went to the top but Andrade knocked him down and hit an elevated hammerlock DDT for the pinfall win. This was short but quite fun.
As Vega and Andrade exited, the Street Profits entered and they danced on the announce table, so five people were in close proximity to each other. In fact, Vega and Andrade walked past them to leave so there were really seven people quite close to each other for a moment.
Back from break, the Street Profits were still on the announce table and they introduced Bianca Belair. Montez Ford and Angelo Dawkins joined commentary for the match.
Bianca Belair defeated Santana Garrett (4:11)
Ford and Dawkins were very excited on commentary and Saxton joined them in their excitement until Phillips told him to shut up. Ford and Dawkins went crazy for a shoulder tackle, which was kind of funny. Garrett hit a high cross but Belair kicked out at one.
Belair followed soon after with KOD for the pinfall win. The Street Profits went absolutely crazy for the win. I assume a lot of people would have found them annoying, but I thought this was pretty amusing.
WWE Champion Drew McIntyre defeated Angel Garza (w/Zelina Vega, US Champion Andrade & Austin Theory) (5:03)
Like last week, the main event started with only about 7-8 minutes left in the show.
McIntyre chopped the hell out of Garza. Andrade tried to distract him as Garza went for a dive, but McIntyre caught him and hit a headbutt. Theory also tried to attack but McIntyre fended him off. Garza finally managed to take advantage and rammed him twice into the post. Garza followed with a missile dropkick for a one count.
McIntyre fought out of a single leg crab and hit a clothesline and boot. McIntyre hit a double axe handle and went for a Claymore kick but Garza tried to escape the ring. As he did, McIntyre ripped his pants off. McIntyre then hit an Undertaker dive onto all three men.
McIntyre sent Andrade over the barricade and Claymore kicked Theory. He tried giving Garza a reverse Alabama Slam but Garza rolled into a cover for two. McIntyre followed immediately with a Claymore kick for the pinfall win.
After the match, McIntyre let the announce team know he was going to hit another kick. So, in fact, McIntyre went to the ring and gave Garza another Claymore kick. He told Vega to keep lining them up. Theory got in the ring for some reason so he also ate a Claymore kick.
Andrade went up the ramp and got too close to the WWE title, so McIntyre chased after and Andrade bailed to the back. McIntyre did a baseball slide to pick up his belt and posed with it. McIntyre couldn’t help but chuckle. He seems to be having the time of his life right now.
I enjoyed this show more than most of the recent empty arena shows.
Three Money in the Bank qualifying matches have been announced for next week’s Raw.
MVP, in a VIP Lounge segment backstage, announced three matches that are set to take place for the first time ever next week. Rey Mysterio will battle Murphy, while Austin Theory will face Aleister Black. MVP then announced Apollo Crews versus himself. MVP called himself a ladder match legend.
Early on tonight’s episode of Raw, Asuka defeated Ruby Riott to earn a spot in the women’s Money in the Bank ladder match. Two more qualifying matches (Kairi Sane vs. Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler vs. Sarah Logan) are set to take place later tonight.
This year’s Money in the Bank ladder match will consist of two six-person ladder matches, with three wrestlers representing Raw and another three representing SmackDown. Two qualifying matches, Daniel Bryan vs. Cesaro and Dana Brooke vs. Naomi, has been announced for this Friday’s SmackDown.
Due to the coronavirus pandemic, this year’s Money in the Bank event will take place on May 10 at the WWE Performance Center.
Crews made his return on tonight’s episode of Raw, facing off against Aleister Black. The announcers explained that Crews was Raw’s newest acquisition, as Raw “had draft picks that were about to expire”. Crews and Black proceeded to wrestle a match that went 27:30 and spanned three commercial breaks. Black finally scored the win over Crews in a competitive match after hitting the Black Mass.
Since being traded to SmackDown last year, Crews had largely been left off television. In recent months, he had been teaming with Shorty G. On recent episodes of SmackDown, their team had shown signs of dissention as both men had lost multiple matches to Sheamus.
Crews made his main roster debut in 2016 and has switched between both Raw and SmackDown on multiple occasions in the years since. His most famous run was when he joined forces with Titus O’Neil and Dana Brooke to form Titus Worldwide.
WWE has announced two King of the Ring first round matches for Monday’s Raw and two for Tuesday’s SmackDown.
Cesaro vs. Samoa Joe and Cedric Alexander vs. Sami Zayn are set for Raw, while Kevin Owens vs. Elias and Apollo Crews vs. Andrade will take place on SmackDown.
The bracket for King of the Ring was revealed yesterday. Ricochet vs. Drew McIntyre and The Miz vs. Baron Corbin are the other first round matches on the Raw side of the bracket. The winner of Cesaro vs. Joe will face the winner of Ricochet vs. McIntyre in the second round. The winner of Alexander vs. Zayn will face the winner of Miz vs. Corbin.
Ali vs. Buddy Murphy and Chad Gable vs. Shelton Benjamin are the other first round matches on the SmackDown side. The winner of Owens vs. Elias will take on the winner of Ali vs. Murphy in the next round. The winner of Crews vs. Andrade will face the winner of Gable vs. Benjamin.
King of the Ring is a multi-week tournament that will culminate at Clash of Champions on September 15.
Monday’s Raw is taking place at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota. The Denny Sanford PREMIER Center in Sioux Falls, South Dakota is hosting Tuesday’s SmackDown.
Drew Gulak will defend the Cruiserweight Championship against Oney Lorcan, Women’s Tag Team Champions Alexa Bliss & Nikki Cross will defend their titles against Peyton Royce & Billie Kay, and Apollo Crews will face Buddy Murphy.
Bliss & Cross vs. The IIconics and Crews vs. Murphy are new additions to SummerSlam, while Gulak vs. Lorcan had already been set for tonight’s card.
Bliss & Cross became Women’s Tag Team Champions by defeating Royce & Kay, Mandy Rose & Sonya Deville, and Asuka & Kairi Sane in a fatal four-way elimination match on Raw last week. Royce & Kay were the champions heading into the match but were eliminated first.
WWE has already announced that Asuka & Sane will challenge for the Women’s Tag Team titles on tomorrow’s post-SummerSlam episode of Raw.
The Roman Reigns mystery attacker angle continued on SmackDown last week, with Murphy accusing Rowan of being the person who attacked Reigns. Reigns beat Murphy down until Murphy would give him an answer.
Tonight’s two-hour pre-show begins at 5 p.m. Eastern time. The PPV is taking place at the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
The Big Takeaway: EC3 defeated Apollo Crews in a rematch of last week’s main event. Kalisto, Lince Dorado & Tyler Breeze then saw off Jinder Mahal & The Singh Brothers in a pointlessly short bout.
**********
EC3 defeated Apollo Crews (5:24)
After the outcry last week at him being on this show, losing, and losing to someone who currently means as little as Apollo Crews, EC3 got his win back. In the spirit of 50/50 booking, this rematch looked to be heading the same way until the last 30 seconds.
They did some mat work early on and a lot of rest holds. Crews worked over EC3’s left arm that he continued to sell throughout. EC3 bullied him for a little and taunted him until Crews got the heat.
At the finish, Crews nailed EC3 through the ropes to the outside with an enzuigiri. Crews then rolled him back in and went up top. EC3 got to his feet and pulled the ropes so that Crews tumbled off. This allowed EC3 to hit the One Percenter in the middle of the ring for the win.
A pro to the last, EC3 still sold his left arm after the bell, berating the referee for trying to raise it. He rolled his eyes and made the ref switch sides to raise his right instead.
This was fun while it lasted, but was inexplicably short for a six-man tag that had so much talent on the babyface team. Mahal, who only took two bumps in the match and didn’t tag in, had his right shoulder heavily strapped with kinesio tape.
In the three minutes that they were given, they essentially put on a tag match for The Singhs to get as much ring time as they could. Kalisto and Dorado moved around at 100 mph and Breeze, who was sporting a new goatee, cleared house, looking impressive yet again this week.
After neutralizing Mahal with a superkick, he rolled out of the ring and stayed there. Breeze took out Sunil and Kalisto and Dorado teamed up to finish off Samir. Kalisto used the Salida del Sol and Dorado came off the top with a Shooting Star Press to take the win.
The Big Takeaway: In a match that was virtually identical to their bout last week, Rezar defeated No Way Jose for the second week running. Apollo Crews then defeated EC3 in a mediocre offering.
**********
Rezar (w/ Drake Maverick) defeated No Way Jose (5:30)
They could have run a replay of last week’s match from Main Event and I genuinely wouldn’t have noticed. This was almost move for move the same match as the one before, running at about a minute longer.
So, just like last week, instead of giving Rezar the chance to look like a real heavyweight threat, he beat up Jose and then spent more than half the match using rest holds.
Rezar had pinned Jose after a big boot and a chokeslam a week ago. This week, it was a clothesline and a chokeslam. Subtle difference, same outcome. I’m not sure what this achieved or why they did a rematch that displayed such little ambition or creativity.
Apollo Crews defeated EC3 (6:47)
I could almost hear the inevitable collective groan when people read the headline of this show recap.
I hear you. We’re all asking the same things: Why is EC3 on this show? Why did he lose? Why did he lose to someone with such little currency? How can they be handling NXT talent like EC3 so misguidedly on the main roster? The list goes on.
Well, anyway, he lost. And the match was okay, but it was nothing spectacular. EC3 used a swinging neckbreaker for a near fall and then they collided in the middle. Crews got up first, got the heat, and came off the top rope with a crossbody for a two count.
EC3 then got some hope, but Crews kicked out of the One Percenter. He then stopped EC3 in his tracks with an enzuigiri before finishing him with the standing moonsault.
Here are results from tonight’s Raw tapings in Detroit, Michigan ahead of New Year’s Eve this coming Monday.
Main Event:
– Titus O’Neil defeated Curt Hawkins.
– The Revival defeated Tyler Breeze and Zack Ryder.
Raw:
– Drew McIntyre defeated Dolph Ziggler in a steel cage match
McIntyre destroyed Ziggler, hitting two claymore kicks. He then exited the ring and grabbed a chair. He delivered a third claymore kick between the cage and the chair, then finished Ziggler off with a fourth.
Seth Rollins came out talking about fresh starts. He wanted a rematch against Dean Ambrose for the IC title. Triple H came out and said there are no more automatic title rematches, so instead he will face Bobby Lashley.
– Apollo Crews won a battle royal
The winner of the battle royal was to face Ambrose for the title later on in the show. Participants included the Lucha House Party, Finn Balor, Curt Hawkins, Zack Ryder, The B-Team, The Ascension, Titus O’Neil, Baron Corbin, No Way Jose and Mojo Rawley. Crews last eliminated Corbin to win.
Backstage, Nia Jax attacked Natalya. She recovered and said she will be in the Royal Rumble.
Corbin was on the mic after the battle royal, mad that he lost. Elias came out and sang. They wind up brawling through the crowd.
– Bayley, Sasha Banks and Ember Moon defeated the Riott Squad.
– Bobby Lashley defeated Seth Rollins by DQ.
Seth used a chair on Lashley, leading to the disqualification. He continued attacking Lashley with the chair after the match.
– Jinder Mahal and the Singh Brothers defeated Rhyno and Heath Slater
Rhyno took the pinfall.
– Dean Ambrose defeated Apollo Crews to retain the Intercontinental title.
Alexa Bliss announced that her new talk show, A Moment of Bliss, will debut next week. The first guest will be Ronda Rousey.
– Ronda Rousey and Natalya defeated Nia Jax and Tamina Snuka.
Though the finals are less than a week away, replacement partners continue to shake up Mixed Match Challenge season two.
It was announced on Raw tonight that Apollo Crews will be replacing Finn Balor as Bayley’s partner on tomorrow’s episode of Mixed Match Challenge. Bayley & Crews will be facing Alicia Fox & Jinder Mahal in a semifinal match on the show. Asuka & The Miz vs. Carmella & R-Truth is SmackDown’s semifinal match. That will also be taking place on tomorrow’s episode.
Bayley defeated Fox on Raw tonight, with Crews and Sasha Banks helping to even the odds against Mahal and the Singh Brothers.
Balor wrestled at WWE’s house show in Santiago, Chile last Wednesday but went home before WWE’s pair of house shows in Buenos Aires, Argentina. On Twitter, Balor apologized for not being able to perform in Argentina.
Drew McIntyre attacked Balor in an angle on last Monday’s Raw. Balor vs. McIntyre is set for TLC on Sunday.
The finals of Mixed Match Challenge season two are also being held at TLC. The winning team will enter their respective Royal Rumble matches at number 30 and receive “an all-expenses paid vacation to anywhere in the world.”
Alexa Bliss, Banks, Kevin Owens, Braun Strowman, and AJ Styles (as part of a storyline where he was attacked by Daniel Bryan after the match where Bryan won the WWE Championship from Styles) are the other wrestlers who have been replaced over the course of Mixed Match Challenge season two.
The Big Takeaway: Mike Kanellis lost again, this time to Zack Ryder in a solid opener. Kanellis is still without a singles win since July 2017. Apollo Crews then defeated Mojo Rawley in a decent bout at the end of the show.
**********
Zack Ryder defeated Mike Kanellis (5:10)
While Zack Ryder spends his free time making podcasts with Curt Hawkins about wrestling figures of old, you have to admire the physical shape both he and Mike Kanellis present themselves in. Both don’t appear to have an ounce of fat on them — with Kanellis looking especially lean here.
This was a solid, entertaining match. Mainly because they looked to be setting up for a quick win for Ryder — with him even hitting the Rough Ryder early on — but Kanellis got his foot on the rope to save the match. Things then switched and went completely in Kanellis’ favor.
Kanellis hit a Samoan driver on Ryder, got a near fall, and teased hitting a Broski Boot of his own. His wicked smile as he mimicked Ryder’s “woos” was great. But Ryder moved out of the way and sprung up to hit the Rough Ryder for the win.
Apollo Crews defeated Mojo Rawley (7:26)
Mojo Rawley has had a good run of late. Over the last few months, he has picked up wins against the likes of Tyler Breeze, No Way Jose, and even Chad Gable. However, it seems that whenever he comes up against Apollo Crews, he comes up short. And that’s just what happened here.
These two took their time and on the opening bell made it look like it had a big-match feel as they squared off in the middle. In another promotion maybe it would be, but Rawley has never had a character that has properly connected with the fans and, despite his talent, Crews has been given a character that just feels lacking in any depth.
Crews got a near fall on Rawley, then connected with an elbow and went for a crossbody, but Rawley caught him. Rawley hoisted him up onto his shoulders and nailed him with a flapjack. After Crews kicked out at two, Rawley taunted and trash-talked him, kicking him in the head and screaming at him.
Crews rolled out of the way and then sprung up and nailed Rawley with an enzuigiri. Rawley sold it like he was knocked out and Crews hit the frog splash for the win.
The Big Takeaway: A run-of-the-mill show this week saw Brian Kendrick & Jack Gallagher get a win in the all-cruiserweight opener and a furious Mojo Rawley attack both Apollo Crews and Titus O’Neil after he lost in the main event.
**********
Brian Kendrick & Jack Gallagher defeated Kalisto & Lince Dorado (w/ Gran Metalik) (4:46)
These two teams have been trading wins across WWE programming over the last few weeks, with the Lucha House Party subbing out Metalik for Dorado here. It was interesting to hear Rey Mysterio’s comments regarding the strong Latino talent in WWE right now with his longterm status still in the balance.
There wasn’t much to this one in the end. And after last week’s tapings in London, this was inevitably going to feel a little tame, but you can see that the teams have worked together a lot as there was a smoothness to their routines here.
Dorado helped Kalisto springboard into a senton on Kendrick to the outside. Dorado rolled Kendrick up, with Kendrick not being the legal man. Gallagher then headbutted Dorado and covered him for the win.
Apollo Crews (w/ Titus O’Neil and Dana Brooke) defeated Mojo Rawley (6:01)
Rawley was fired up when he came out here and, although the match was nothing special, the newsworthy note was his attack on both Crews and his manager, Titus O’Neil, after the match.
Crews got the better of Rawley and overcame a fight back to get the win. He hit Rawley with an enzuigiri and followed it up with a clothesline. After fighting off Rawley’s attempts to get back into the match, he hit his standing moonsault for the win.
Normally on Main Event they cut away from the celebrations and go straight to recapping Raw, often without a replay of the finish, so here it was clear something was going to happen. Rawley attacked O’Neil with several double axe handles to the shoulders, taking him to the mat, before sending him shoulder-first into the post.
He then leapt on Crews, hitting aggressive clubbing forearms to the back of the head. Rawley made it look incredibly intense as he screamed at both men the whole time. The angle easily garnered the most heat of anything on the show.
Last night on Raw, the chyron for Apollo listed his full name for the first time in two months. His bio on WWE.com’s website also has him back as Apollo Crews. Back in February, his name was shortened to just Apollo for reasons that were never made entirely clear. The Wrestling Observer Newsletter reported last month that internal memos within WWE indicated that the name was changed due to having a similar name with Nikolas Cruz, the shooter behind the Parkland, Florida mass shooting.
Crews and the rest of Titus Worldwide came out last night to welcome Dolph Ziggler, who had just been traded from SmackDown. Titus invited Ziggler to join the group. As he was contemplating, Drew McIntyre came in and laid out Crews, headbutting him. The new team attacked both Titus and Crews, laying out Crews with a zig zag/Claymore kick combination.
Crews has been mostly teaming with Titus O’Neil ever since joining Raw in last year’s Superstar Shakeup.
The WWE name-shortening machine has apparently struck again.
Apollo Crews’ name has been shortened to just Apollo on WWE.com’s roster page. This hasn’t been reflected on television yet, as last week Apollo was still being referred to as Apollo Crews, but that may change on tonight’s program.
This would be the latest person to have their name altered on the main roster. Others who have lost their names in the past include Adrian Neville, Antonio Cesaro, Alexander Rusev, Big E Langston, Luke Harper, Erick Rowan, Elias Samson, and a bevy of others.
Apollo, real name Sesugh Uhaa, was signed by WWE in 2014. The following year, he was renamed Apollo Crews and worked in the NXT developmental program until he was called up in April of 2016. Since the brand split, he’s worked both brands and has most recently appeared on Raw. He was a part of the fatal five-way match last week that would determine the final entrant in this Sunday’s Elimination Chamber match.
The Big Takeaway: The sixth competitor in the Elimination Chamber is still up in the air. Seth Rollins was added to the last chance Fatal Four-Way match during the show by Kurt Angle. In the main event, Rollins and Finn Balor each pinned Bray Wyatt, then argued about who won. It appears this is setting up a singles match for next week with the winner earning a spot in the Elimination Chamber. The first entrant into the Elimination Chamber will be the Miz, who lost the opening match to John Cena. It was announced that Ronda Rousey will sign her Raw contract at the Elimination Chamber. Best match of the show was the Bayley vs. Sasha Banks bout, who had easily their best match against each other since leaving NXT.
Show Recap:
Cena came out. He said WrestleMania can make a superstar’s career, can bring a legend back from the dead and be the most important moment in the career of a WWE Superstar. Cena said tonight he’s out to face the truth. The truth is in two weeks, he has to win the Elimination Chamber match. If he doesn’t win the Elimination Chamber match, he’s not sure if he has a road to WrestleMania. Cena said he has to survive the most unwinnable match in WWE history in order to win a match against the most unbeatable challenger in WWE history. Cena said he loves to make impossible absolutely possible and vowed to win the Elimination Chamber and go on to face Lesnar in the main event of WrestleMania.
The Miz stepped out with the MizTourage by his side. Miz said this isn’t 2013, this is 2018, the year of the Miz. Miz wondered if Cena has spent too much time in Hollywood where he can’t differentiate fantasy from reality. He told Cena he was going to go on to main event WrestleMania and beat Lesnar to become the first person to hold the Universal and Intercontinental Championship. Cena scoffed at Miz sayng he would beat Lesnar and pointed out a fan at ringisde openly laughed when Miz said he could beat Lesnar. Cena said the only way the Miz could beat Lesnar was if Lesnar didn’t show up or he got food poisioning.
Miz shot back that he’s not afraid to cross the lines that Cena is afraid to cross, which is why he beat Reigns for the Intercontinental Championship and why he will beat Lesnar. Cena said the Miz was forgetting he still has to go through the Elimination Chamber. Miz said he can outsmart anyone who enters the chamber, just like he outsmarted Cena last year at WrestleMania. Cena responded by challenging Miz to a match tonight with the loser of the match being forced to enter the Elimination Chamber first.
Miz acted like he didn’t want the match, then Curtis Axel and Bo Dallas took out Cena, ending with something that looked like a Shatter Machine. Miz, as Cena was down and out, ordered a referee to come out and accepted Cena’s challenge. Kurt Angle came out, ordered the match complete with Cena’s stipulation and also told Dallas and Axel to the back.
Michael Cole announced that Cena would be the host of the Nickelodeon Kids Choice Awards on March 24.
John Cena defeated Intercontinental Champion The Miz in a nontitle match, forcing the Miz to enter the Elimination Chamber first (19:04)
Cena kicked out after Miz covered him immediately after the opening bell. After Cena hit a tornado DDT, Miz put on a lengthy sleeperhold. After a commercial, Miz failed in his first attempt at the Skull Crushing FInale, but clamped on the Figure Four Leglock. Cena lefted Miz’s pressure leg and clamped on the STF. Miz got the rope break. Miz attempted a cross body block, but Cena caught Miz and tried the AA, but Miz escaped for a Pimp Juice DDT for a near fall. Miz got a clothesline in the ropes, then made a charge at Cena, who caught him and delivered the AA, but Miz kicked out. Cena went to the top rope, but Miz grabbed the top rope to crotch Cena and put the Figure Four back on. Cena lifted Miz’s arm into a Triangle Armbar and then clamped on a crossface, leading to another Miz rope break. Cena missed a corner charge and Miz hit the Skull Crushing Finale for a long two count. Miz put Cena on the top rope for the Skull Crushing Finale off the top rope, but Cena turned it into the AA off the top rope for the pin. Afterwards, Cena hugged a fan in a wheelchair, along with his family.
Hardy did a Woken interview saying he gets a second chance to fulfill his destiny tonight. Hardy said he would turn the Elimination Chamber into the Deletion Chamber. As fate would have it, Jeff Hardy was spotted behind the UNC men’s basketball team’s bench tonight against Notre Dame in Chapel Hill, NC.
Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows did an interview from backstage. The gimmick is they have a “Nerd-O-Meter” graphic on display while they’re talking and said the Revival being able to name tag teams from the 60s and 70s doesn’t make them cool, it makes them nerds.
The Revival defeated Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows (7:40)
Scott Dawson and Dash Wilder jumped the Good Brothers during their ring entrance. Wilder gave Gallows a chop block on the left leg, which he sold for the rest of the match. Later, Dawson gave Gallows another chop block as the referee was trying to get Anderson out of the ring. Now that he’s a babyface, Anderson’s big move for his hot tag sequence is a knee to the head and he makes it sound like he’s delivereing a giant karate kick. After a blind tag, Dawson pinned Anderson with the Shatter Machine.
Angle returned to say that in two weeks at the Elimination Chamber, Ronda Rousey would sign her Raw contract. That got a surprising amount of boos. He then turned to Jordan. Angle announced his son had suffered a neck injury and would miss WrestleMania. Crowd cheered. Angle got mad and said if anyone got any joy out of seeing a WWE Superstar get injured and miss WrestleMania, then they should be ashamed of themselves. Angle told the fans to be more respectful.
Rollins came out and said he was sorry about Jordan, who he called a good kid. Rollins said he can relate because he had to give up the WWE Championship. In fact, he won the championship just up the road at WrestleMania in Levi’s Stadium. He beat Reigns. He beat Lesnar. He was on top of the road and was on top of the road. Then it came crumbling down when he tore up his knee and lost his championship. Rollins talked about WrestleMania, saying he doesn’t have a championship, doesn’t have a match. Angle offered him a chance to find another tag team partner. Rollins said thanks but no thanks, he doesn’t want to be a part of Monday Night Raw, he wants to BE Monday Night Raw. He wants to turn this place back into Monday Night Rollins, he wants to be the man again. He wants Lesnar, he was the Universal Championship and he wants it at WrestleMania. But the only way he can do that is if he wins the Elimnation Chamber match.
Angle said he can’t cancel the Fatal Four-Way match. Rollins said he wants to earn an opportunity, so he proposed making the Fatal Four-Way match and make it into a Fatal Five-Way match and put him in it. Crowd chanted “yes.” Angle said he wasn’t sure because it wouldn’t be fair to the other four wrestlers. Rollins said his fate was in Angle’s hands and begged him for the opportunity. Angle said it’s not up to him or Rollins, it’s up to the fans. Angle asked the fans if he wanted to give Rollins a chance to make it to the Elimination Chamber. They chanted “Yes” and it became a Fatal Five-Way.
Bayley defeated Sasha Banks (12:03)
Announcers emphasized that Bayley was wrestling in her hometown and claimed that Banks requested this match because she wanted to beat Bayley in her hometown. Bayley got a better reaction than usual, but it was light years away from her reaction when she made her main roster debut at the Battleground PPV in July 2016. Banks was a total heel as she threw Bayley out of the ring, then drop kicked Bayley on her left kneecap as she tried to get back in the ring. Then Banks draped Bayley’s injured right shoulder over the ropes. Banks delivered the double knees in the corner, but Banks caught her with a clothesline. It was a total fight at this point, with Bayley delivering a series of fists in the corner and a stunner against the ropes. Bayley caught a knee to the face, but missed the elbow off the top rope. Banks put on the Bank Statement, but Bayley made the ropes. Bayley did a forward roll as Banks grabbed her leg, sending Banks into the corner. Banks went to the second rope. but Bayley climbed the second rope for a Bayley-to-Belly superplex for a pin.
After Bayley celebrated, the two had a long stare at each other. They appeared ready to hug, but Jax ran out of the crowd and decked both women. Bayley tried to push Banks out of the way, but Jax gave both Bayley and Banks a Samoan Drop for heel heat. Charly Caruso came out and asked why Jax interjected herself in a moment that had nothing to do with her. Jax said this had everything to do with her. She said over the past two weeks, both Banks and Bayley had taken Asuka to her limit, yet she destroyed both of them in seconds. Jax said there was only one women who could end Asuka’s undefeated streak and it was her.
Backstage, Reigns asked Rollins about possibly being in the Elimination Chamber. Rollins asked Reigns if he was worried about him being in the chamber. Reigns said he hopes that Rollins wins because he will eliminate him just like he did at the Royal Rumble. Sheamus and Cesaro walked in laughing about how Jordan and Dean Ambrose must be in physical therapy together discussing how lousy of a tag team partner Rollins is. Reigns asked Cesaro what happened to his mouth? Then Reigns remembered that Cesaro ran into the Shield. Reigns challenged Sheamus to later tonight.
That ran a detailed package on the undefeaed string of Asuka, measuring 240 wins and 0 losses, spanning 860 days. 34 different women across 11 countries and four continents have lost to Asuka, eight of them former champions. She had a 543-day reign as NXT Champion and the 1st women’s Royal Rumble Champion, going through 15 different women. If this Asuka push doesn’t take, it’s not for a lack of trying.
Crews, TItus O’Neil and Dana Brooke did an interview with Renee Young. O’Neil took the mic and asked the questions. O’Neil asked Crews if he was going to be deleted by Hardy. Crews said he was ready to create history. Brooke said Crews Can’t Lose and O’Neil got fired up. Crews said he was going to take one small step for himself and one giant leap for Titus Worldwide.
Mickie James ran into Alexa Bliss backstage. James asked why did Bliss save her last week against Sonya DeVille and Mandy Rose? Bliss said she was tired of the new faces trying to prove themselves against the established Raw stars. Bliss said she also wanted to clear the air between them. James brought up Bliss calling her old, getting her a walker, then said she called Bliss “Biscut Butt.” Bliss said James was amazing how she looked despite being a mother. James wasn’t buying any of this, even though Bliss claimed she was trying to apologize. Bliss said if Absolution wins the championship, they would keep the championship to themselves. Every week it would be Mandy vs. Sonya, Sonya vs. Mandy. James said she appreciated what Bliss did for her last week, but she was buttering the wrong biscut.
Absolution (w/ Paige) defeated Alexa Bliss & Mickie James (4:00)
Bliss kept eyeing James like she was waiting for the right moment to turn on her while she was getting the shine on DeVille. James hit flying head scissors out of the corner. Rose came in and put James in the abdominal stretch. James rolled out and hit a hangman’s neckbreaker. James reached for the hot tag, but Paige started screaming at Bliss. DeVille dragged Bliss off the apron and Rose pinned James after the Bed of Roses. Rose and DeVille put the boots to James after the match, but Bliss again ran in for the save.
Vince Curry and Brandon Cunningham of the Super Bowl Champion Philadelphia Eagles were shown wearing WWE championship belts at the Eagles’ victory parade last week.
Elias came out for the debut of a new song. Elias ran down the San Jose crowd saying it was an hour away from a real city like San Francisco, then changed his mind and said every city in California was a toxic dump. Elias said he was the same man who defeated Cena and Braun Strowman at the same place at the same time, which makes him the odds-on favorite to win the Elimination Chamber. He would prove WWE stand with Walk With Elias, and he wrote a song called the “Elimination Chamber Blues,” which he was about to perform. He started to sing but the crowd was booing pretty loud. Elias threatened not to sing, which didn’t hurt the crowd’s feelings. Elias sang since his vocal cords were already warmed up. He said six men enter but only one man leaves. As he was singing, the crowd roared because Strowman was out on the ramp. JoJo announced “Ladies and Gentleman, Braun Strowman.” Then Strowman appeared on the ramp with his own spotlight. He pulled out a stand up bass and strummed it. The bass strings broke after just a few notes. Strowman actually has a pretty good voice. Strowman said since he broke the strings, he can’t play this damn thing so there was only one thing he could do with it. He carried it to the ring and threatened to hit Elias with it. Elias begged off while holding up his own guitar as a weapon. Elias offered to put his guitar down if Strowman put is guitar down. Each man put their respective guitars down, but Elias jumped Strowman before he could get in the ring. Elias went for his guitar, but Strowman grabbed him by the throat and gave him the sledgehammer to the chest. Corey Graves dropped a reference to the old Pantera song “Primal Concrete Sledge.” Strowman gave Elias the running powerslam. As Elias crawled from the ring, Strowman picked up the stand up bass again and stood over Elias, then smashed the bass over Elias. A group of referees rushed out to check on Elias.
Roman Reigns defeated Sheamus (w/ Cesaro) (14:22)
Early on, Sheamus kept getting knocked out of the ring from Reigns’ punches. Sheamus eventually dragged Regins out of the ring and gave him a rollins senton. Sheamus put on a Texas Cloverleaf, but Regins kicked him off and caught a Samoan Drop for a two count. Reigns went for the Superman punch, but Sheamus caught him and hit White Noise for a two count. Sheamus called for the Brogue Kick, but Reigns met him with a Superman punch, but Sheamus kicked out at two. Reigns called for the Spear, but Sheamus met him with a knee. Sheamus attempted a huracanrana, but Regins held him into a Liger Bomb for another near fall. Cesaro jumped up on the apron, which distracted Reigns. Sheamus used a schoolboy cradle and a V-Trigger knee to the head for near falls. Regins rolled out fo the ring. Cesaro ran after Reigns, who backdropped Cesaro into the crowd. Regins went for the Drive By, but Sheamus caught him with a stiff clothesline. Sheamus threw Regins back in the ring, then climbed the top rope. Sheamus jumped off, only to have Regins catch him with a spear for the three count. Good, physical match.
They introduced Ivory as the newest member of the WWE Hall of Fame. They showed Ivory’s days in GLOW before moving on to the WWE during the Attitude Era. They showed her stint with Right to Censor, where she wrestled in a long skirt. They claimed her most famous rivalry was with Chyna, a program that ended at WrestleMania 17.
Seth Rollins and Finn Balor each pinned Bray Wyatt in a Fatal Five-Way that also included Matt Hardy and Apollo Crews (16:18)
They started the match during a commercial after all the ring entrances. When Wyatt did his lean back in the corner spot, Hardy smiled and led the crowd in applause. Hardy gave Wyatt and Balor each a side effect. Hardy called for the Twist of Fate on Wyatt, but Rollins came off the top rope for a flying clothesline on Hardy. Rollins gave Crews and Wyatt a double blockbuster, then hit Balor with a tope, followed by a tope for Hardy, then one for Wyatt. Rollins used the vertical suplex into a Falcon Arrow on Crews for a near fall. Wyatt clobbered Rollins with a clothesline, but Balor came back with a Sling Blade on Wyatt, followed by the Woo Dropkick. He attempted the Coup de Grace, but Rollins climbed up top and put the fists to Balor. Rollins attempted the Phoenix Splash on Wyatt, but Wyatt moved out of the way. Wyatt walked into the Twist of Fate from Hardy, but Balor came off the top with a Coup de Grace to Hardy. Rollins caught Balor with the Curb Stomp, but Crews rolled in for the save. Crews gave Rollins a powerslam, followed by a standing moonsault for another near fall. Rollins went for the Ripcord, but Crews caught Rollins with a kick to the head and nailed the standing Shooting Star Press on Rollins for a two count. Crews went for a moonsault but Hardy caught him on the top rope and tried the side effect off the top rope, but Wyatt pulled Hardy to the floor and gave him Sister Abigail on the floor. Wyatt took Crews and tried a superplex, but Rollins and Balor pulled Wyatt down into a Tower of Doom spot. Then Balor and Rollins each covered Wyatt and the referee counted three. But both Rollins and Balor thought they won. The referee never identified a sole, clear winner and the show went off the air with the sixth competitor in the Elimination Chamber still unknown.
