Date: August 18, 2025
Location: Xfinity Mobile Arena in Philadelphia, PA
The Big Takeaway —
Naomi is expecting a child with Jimmy Uso and relinquished her World Championship. The segment turned her into a big babyface, so we’ll see what happens when she returns. She made it clear that she’s coming back as soon as she can to recapture the title.
Raw’s streak of inconclusive main events ended as Jey Uso beat Bron Breakker in an Extreme Rules match, which included a lot of interference.
It wasn’t announced, but Roman Reigns appears to be facing Bronson Reed at Clash in Paris.
Next week’s Raw in Birmingham airs at 3 pm ET/12 pm PT.
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Show Recap —
Jey Uso and Naomi were shown arriving (separately) after a recap of last week’s Raw.
The Vision opens Raw
They advertised that The Vision would appear on Raw and, in fact, the four men who are on Raw most weeks entered to kick off the show.
Seth Rollins wore a floral-patterned shirt and pants. The fans sang his song, the heel group was cheered, and people loudly barked for Bron Breakker.
They also cheered for Paul Heyman, who said he was God in this city (Philadelphia). The city would build him a statue, but he was far too humble to accept the credit he deserved for everything he’s done in front of and behind the camera. “Bluntly—I am the GOAT.”
Heyman said the ring was filled with GOATs. He put over Breakker and Bronson Reed in the same manner he always does. Reed continues to carry Roman Reigns’ shoes with him, so the crowd chanted, “OTC.” Heyman put over Rollins next and said he’s beaten Reigns twice. The crowd sang his song again.
Rollins was about to speak, but Jey Uso entered through the crowd. Jey remained in the crowd to cut his promo. (He pointed the microphone at a few young fans who all said, “Yeet.”) Jey was tired of The Vision. He called Breakker a puppy dog who would have to deal with him tonight.
Rollins egged on Breakker by claiming Jey said things about Breakker and his family that he never actually did. Rollins claimed Jey said he was a better and stronger athlete than Breakker, and claimed Jey thought his family was stupid. I guess Breakker believed him because he wanted to go after Jey right now, but Rollins stopped him. (Jey seemed unbothered by all of this.)
Heyman said that in a bingo hall not so far away, men used to settle their differences in the ring in a particular type of match. He was about to proclaim the match in the name of Sandman, New Jack, Rob Van Dam, Sabu, Tommy Dreamer, and The Dudley Boyz, but Jey cut him off and offered the match instead: extreme rules.
(When Heyman said Dreamer’s name, he called him the “late, great Tommy Dreamer.” He went on to say that he knew Dreamer wasn’t dead but added, “he should be.”)
This was the usual opening segment to build to the main event, with some ECW references in Philly thrown in to make it feel different.
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Asuka apologized to Iyo Sky backstage for shoving her last week. Kairi Sane and Asuka offered to be at ringside for her match, but Sky politely turned them down. They were all happy and on the same page.
IYO SKY vs. Raquel Rodriguez (w/Roxanne Perez)
Sky was about to go for a dive, but was tripped by Perez from outside the ring (with the ref distracted). Rodriguez used the distraction to boot Sky. Rodriguez took over the moment they went to break, and Sky came back the moment they returned after dodging an elbow drop.
Sky hit a missile dropkick, and the crowd cheered when she did her pose. Sky went for a bullet train, but Rodriguez caught her and hit a Samoan drop, followed by a corkscrew elbow drop for two. Rodriguez avoided a moonsault and turned Sky inside out with a clothesline for two.
Sky wiped out Perez with a suicide dive and went for one on Rodriguez, but Rodriguez caught her and rolled through to her feet. Rodriguez lawn-darted Sky onto the ring apron and went for a Tejana Bomb in the ring, but Sky countered out of it and hit the bullet train. Sky followed with a moonsault for the pinfall win.
— Perez and Rodriguez attacked Sky after the match, but Rhea Ripley (not Asuka and Sane) ran out to make the save. Sky quickly joined in, and they worked together to get rid of Rodriguez.
Match result: IYO SKY defeated Raquel Rodriguez (11:00)
This wound up being pretty good, particularly the portion following the commercial break.
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Jackie Redmond interviewed LA Knight. Before he could say much, CM Punk interrupted. Punk said Redmond could leave, but Knight told her to stay. Punk thought Knight didn’t like him, but Knight said it wasn’t personal. Punk kept stepping into his business.
Punk thought they should stay on the same page against Rollins’ crew, but Knight wasn’t interested after Punk attacked him last week. Knight was focused on walking out of Paris as the world champion.
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The New Day cut a generic heel promo during a break. Kofi Kingston said the 76ers were losers, and Xavier Woods said Penta owed him money for his hat.
They aired highlights of Triplemanía and said it was the most viewed edition in history, with 4.3 million views in the first 24 hours. They did not mention that it aired on YouTube.
Asuka and Sane approached Ripley and Sky backstage. Asuka didn’t appreciate Ripley stepping in to help Sky instead of them. Asuka and Ripley got into a shouting match until Sky yelled at them even louder to stop. Sky kept shouting as she left and could be heard off-screen as Asuka and Ripley stared at each other. Asuka left, Ripley was annoyed, and Sane looked disappointed at this turn of events.
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Xavier Woods (w/Kofi Kingston & Grayson Waller) vs. Penta
The heel took control 90 seconds into the match, which meant it was time for a break. During the break, Michael Cole said Woods tracked down Petey Williams to find out how to counter Penta’s Canadian Destroyer. (Although, Cole said Woods asked Williams about his Canadian Destroyer to counter Penta’s Mexican Destroyer.)
Penta made a comeback and wiped out Woods and Waller with a dive. Woods responded later with a reverse vertical suplex for two. The crowd was deathly silent as Penta countered Woods’ Honor Roll with a Penta Driver.
Penta didn’t immediately go for a cover, and Woods managed to roll to the ropes. This allowed Kingston to put Woods’ foot on the bottom rope to break up the cover, so Penta wiped out Kingston and Waller with a flip dive. (I like that Waller did nothing at ringside besides get laid out by two dives.)
Woods tried to steal a win with a small package, but Penta kicked out and hit a Canadian Destroyer for the pinfall win.
Kingston and Waller entered the ring to go after Penta, but he bailed.
Match result: Penta defeated Xavier Woods (9:48)
Congrats to Penta, who moves to one win above .500 in 2025.
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They showed Dominik Mysterio getting pinned by El Hijo del Vikingo at Triplemanía thanks to AJ Styles. (They played loud music over the crowd’s reaction to Vikingo winning.)
After the show, Dom called Styles an “old bat” for costing him the title and said he would beat Vikingo at Worlds Collide on September 12th. (Rey showed up to mock Dom for losing.)
Non-title match: World Tag Team Champions Finn Bálor & JD McDonagh (w/Intercontinental Champion Dominik Mysterio) vs. Dragon Lee & Mr. Iguana
Mr. Iguana got a modest reaction. Dragon Lee was in control for a couple of minutes before tagging him in. There were light cheers when he tagged in, but Bálor immediately cut him off. The crowd sang Dom’s name as Bálor had the heat. Dragon Lee and Mr. Iguana wiped out Bálor and McDonagh with dives ahead of a break.
This slowed down during a break. When they returned, McDonagh hit Dragon Lee with a poisonrana, but Lee quickly responded with a Liger bomb. Mr. Iguana made a hot tag, and his offence included using his puppet, “La Yesca,” which didn’t get much of a reaction. Dragon Lee tagged himself in, and McDonagh wiped out Mr. Iguana with an Asai moonsault.
Bálor hit Dragon Lee with a slingblade, but Lee came back with a superkick. McDonagh distracted the referee as Dom grabbed Lee by the leg. This allowed Bálor to hit Lee with a dropkick and Coup de Grace for the pinfall win.
— Judgment Day put the boots to the babyfaces post-match. Dom cleared the announce table but was attacked by Vikingo.
Vikingo attacked McDonagh in the ring, but Dom attacked Vikingo from behind with his AAA Mega Championship belt. Judgment Day aided Dom, who hit Vikingo with a frog splash.
Match result: Finn Bálor & JD McDonagh defeated Dragon Lee & Mr. Iguana (9:52)
Dragon Lee looked good here, but there was only so much he could do. Mr. Iguana didn’t do much, but they definitely wanted you to know he has a puppet. Neither Mr. Iguana nor Vikingo got significant reactions. That doesn’t mean they shouldn’t be used on WWE programming, but the crowd isn’t with them yet.
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Redmond interviewed Becky Lynch and asked why she attacked Natalya last week. Lynch claimed we saw the best of Maxxine Durpi thanks to her, and she was only defending herself when Natalya shoved her. Lynch said Natalya has been wrestling in different promotions to prove herself, but Natalya didn’t belong in the ring with her. Lynch welcomed her back to the big time.
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There was a follow-up to that Bayley interview last week. She’s talking to herself now. She has a split personality like Two-Face, and her inner voice was constantly calling her a loser. Of course, we can hear it too, which doesn’t make any sense.
This was stupid.
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Women’s Intercontinental Championship: Becky Lynch (c) vs. Natalya (w/Maxxine Dupri & Akira Tozawa)
We got normal WWE Natalya in this match. Lynch posted Natalya, and they went to break 90 seconds into this title match. They tried to play it up like Natalya had a shoulder injury. The ref checked on her, but Lynch went after and worked over her arm through the break.
Lynch applied an armbar when they returned. Natalya eventually fought out and hit a powerbomb. Natalya sold her arm before going for a Sharpshooter. Lynch avoided it, but Natalya hit a discus clothesline for two.
Dupri checked on Natalya, so Lynch booted Dupri and hit Tozawa with a baseball slide as he checked on her. This led to Natalya applying a cradle, which was probably meant to get a reaction since it came off a distraction, but it didn’t. Lynch kicked out and applied a Disarmer for the submission win.
— Lynch decked Natalya and Dupri after the match. She put Dupri on a Disarmer until Nikki Bella ran out to make the save. Nikki laid her out with a “Rack Attack 2.0.”
Match result: Becky Lynch defeated Natalya to retain the Women’s Intercontinental Championship (7:51)
A standard WWE match with a crowd as quiet as you’ll ever hear.
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They announced a “special edition” of Stephanie McMahon’s podcast with Naomi (who Stephanie called “Trinity”) and Jimmy Uso. They aired a clip but cut away before Jimmy could make an announcement.
Naomi is up next.
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Redmond tried to interview Sheamus, but they were interrupted by Rusev. The two men were about to brawl, but officials broke it up. A furious Adam Pearce said they would settle things in a good old-fashioned donnybrook.
Vic Joseph interviewed Trick Williams during a break, but they were interrupted by Je’Von Evans. Trick left and said he’d see him tomorrow. Evans plugged the match on tomorrow’s NXT.
Punk approached Jey Uso and offered to have his back tonight. Once again, this did not go the way Punk hoped. Jey wanted to do this on his own and was focused on Paris. They shook hands.
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Naomi’s announcement
Naomi entered with her world championship. She was emotional and asked the fans to turn to the screen. They aired the announcement on Stephanie’s podcast. Jimmy announced they were having a baby, and the crowd popped huge. Stephanie wanted to hear it from Naomi, so Naomi confirmed she was pregnant.
Back in the ring, Pearce congratulated Naomi and said they were all happy for her. The fans cheered.
Naomi looked angry as she turned her attention to Pearce. She said this wasn’t her first time relinquishing a title. She handed it back the first time, but this time, “I ain’t handing you shit.” Her hormones were jumping like a disco, so she told Pearce to get to steppin’ and get out of her ring. He left. She encouraged the fans to sing the goodbye song at him, so they did. She thanked them.
Naomi said the women in the back should be thanking one person. Some fans chanted for Jimmy Uso, and she smiled because that’s who she meant. If it wasn’t for Big Jim, she would’ve walked them all like a dog. But thanks to Big Jim and Netflix and chill, that wasn’t happening. The fans chanted, “You deserve it,” and she was happy to hear it.
Naomi exclaimed: “On the bright side, I guess the Bloodline continues, baby!” (Some fans decided to chant, “OTC.” Some much smarter fans chanted, “Baby Uso.”)
Naomi placed the belt down in the ring. She told the heffers in the back they had just over nine months to get ready. She would do whatever it took to get her title back, even if that meant doing it while breastfeeding her baby. She advised them to proceed with caution.
The crowd cheered as she waved goodbye.
(This was great, and of course, turned Naomi into a big babyface.)
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Next week on Raw in Birmingham, UK (start time 3 pm ET/12 pm PT)
- Rhea Ripley vs. Roxanne Perez
- Kofi Kingston vs. Penta
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Backstage, Judgment Day weren’t sure where Dom was, but they bumped into him while he spoke to El Grande Americano (Ludwig Kaiser). Dom told Bálor he just wanted to ensure Judgment Day always stayed on top.
Bálor acted like he was fine with this, but was clearly caught off guard. (Bálor has been the one pulling the strings for weeks, but this was the first time he seemed like he wasn’t in control of things.)
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Extreme Rules match: Jey Uso vs. Bron Breakker (w/Paul Heyman)
Jey wore a bandana like New Jack and carried a shopping cart full of weapons to ringside. Early in the match, Jey clotheslined Bron over the top, and Bron landed right on top of the cart, which didn’t look fun. Bron stayed down for a while until blocking Jey’s dive attempt by hitting him with a steel chair. (Before this, Jey tossed chairs into the ring one at a time as the fans yelled “Yeet.”)
Bron cut off Jey’s comeback attempt and dropped him gut-first onto the top edge of two steel chairs. Bron did his usual leaping clothesline off the apron, but used a trash can this time to send Jey over the announce desk. During a break, Jey gave Bron a back body drop through the thin piece of cardboard that covers the announce desk.
Bron hit a Frankensteiner and went for a super spear, but Jey cut him off with a spear of his own for a nearfall. Jey hit him repeatedly with a steel chair before hitting another spear. Jey hit an Uso splash, seemingly for the win, but Bronson Reed pulled the referee out of the ring.
Reed attacked Jey as Cole said this was all legal. You could question why Reed wasn’t out there from the beginning, but to answer that question, Knight ran out to even the odds. Rollins ran out through the crowd to attack Knight. Rollins laid out Jey with a pedigree, and Punk entered next.
Rollins slipped in the ring to escape Punk, but wound up getting attacked by both Knight and Punk. Punk set up Rollins for a GTS, but Rollins slipped out and shoved Punk into Knight. Knight fell off the apron and crashed through a table. Punk shrugged his shoulders and chased Rollins through the crowd.
Bron set up a table in the corner, but Jey superkicked him onto the table. Jey went to the top, but Reed shoved him off. The crowd chanted for Roman Reigns, knowing he was advertised for the show. Sure enough, as Bron set up for a super spear, Reigns’ music hit.
Bron hesitated while he watched the stage. Reigns didn’t show, so Bron went for the spear, but Reigns appeared at ringside and cut him off with a spear. Reigns also speared Reed.
Jey superkicked Bron onto the table and hit an Uso splash for the pinfall win. The crowd was happy.
— As Jey posed for the crowd, Reigns told Reed he would see him in Paris. Reed was on board.
Match result: Jey Uso defeated Bron Breakker in an Extreme Rules match (20:26)
This was basically a WWE main event match in a nutshell. Pretty good action, tons of interference, stars interrupting to their music. The crowd ate it up, and they were way, way, way more into this than anything else on the show, aside from Naomi’s announcement.
