An eight-man tag team match has been made official for Raw’s WrestleMania 39 go-home show.
The Street Profits will team up with Ricochet & Braun Strowman as they face Chad Gable, Otis & The Viking Raiders on Raw this Monday night. It’s a preview of the men’s Showcase match that will be taking place at WrestleMania 39.
The men’s WrestleMania Showcase four-way tag match will be The Street Profits vs. Ricochet & Strowman vs. Gable & Otis vs. The Viking Raiders. There will also be a women’s Showcase match at WrestleMania 39 involving Liv Morgan & Raquel Rodriguez, Natalya & Shotzi, Ronda Rousey & Shayna Baszler, and one more team that has yet to be announced.
Though they’ll be teaming together on Raw, The Street Profits and Ricochet & Strowman got into a backstage confrontation on SmackDown last night.
Monday’s Raw is taking place at the Footprint Center in Phoenix, Arizona. The updated card for the episode is listed below:
Cody Rhodes vs. Solo Sikoa
WrestleMania weigh-in with Brock Lesnar and Omos
Miz TV with Becky Lynch, Lita, and Trish Stratus
The Street Profits, Braun Strowman & Ricochet vs. Chad Gable, Otis & The Viking Raiders
There’s an axiom that goes back to the beginning of time, which is that you draw based on the main event and not the depth of the show. It’s been shown over-and-over again in every combat sport. Granted, in wrestling, things have changed in the sense that WWE draws based on the name value of its biggest shows although in the PPV era, the highs and lows of those shows were always main event based.
Double or Nothing on 5/30 turned out to be the exception, because most saw it as a deep card, but it didn’t have the killer main event that other shows had. But it ended up as the second most successful PPV show in company history, trailing only Revolution earlier this year.
Unlike with Revolution, which, when it became clear it was breaking the old record, we asked people why and the reason was largely exactly what one would think, people were interested in the explosive barbed wire match with Kenny Omega vs. Jon Moxley for the AEW title and that match got people to buy.
Wesley Blake and Steve Cutler have re-emerged, aiding King Corbin in his win tonight on SmackDown against Murphy.
Both men were identified when they came out to help Corbin, who lost last week against Murphy on SmackDown following interference from the Mysterio family. Corbin challenged Murphy to another match, saying that next time he would be prepared.
During tonight’s match, the two sides mostly stayed apart until the finish. Murphy had Corbin in the corner when Corbin signaled to Cutler and Blake. They promptly attacked both Dominik and Rey Mysterio. Murphy exited the ring to help, but when he came back to the ring walked into the End of Days for the win.
Cutler and Blake had originally been called up from NXT along with Jaxson Ryker back in April. However, all three men were pulled from television in May after Ryker voiced support for President Donald Trump during the George Floyd protests, which led to backlash backstage from several WWE stars.
A rematch between Murphy and King Corbin has been announced for next week’s SmackDown.
Commercials airing during football games airing on Fox today confirmed the match would take place next week.On Friday, Corbin wrestled Murphy in an impromptu match after Corbin’s original opponent, Otis, was taken out by Jey Uso with a steel chair. Corbin later confronted Murphy, leading to their match.
The Mysterio family constantly interfered in the match, helping Murphy and impeding Corbin every time he was in control. The finish had Murphy pin Corbin after Dominik Mysterio took Corbin’s foot off the bottom rope following a knee strike by Murphy.
After the match, a livid Corbin told Murphy he wanted another match, and promised that he would be prepared the next time he and Murphy faced one another.
The commercial also said that Kevin Owens would continue his feud with Roman Reigns. This follows an angle that took place at the end of SmackDown where Owens laid out Jey Uso, challenging his cousin Roman Reigns to do something about it.
Another round of WWE Draft picks has been revealed.
WWE announced during this week’s episode of Talking Smack that Humberto Carrillo, Drew Gulak, and Tucker have been drafted to Raw. It was also announced that Murphy and Kalisto have been drafted to SmackDown.
Those five names were among the remaining wrestlers left in the night one draft pool after last night’s SmackDown. Mickie James, the rest of The Lucha House Party (Gran Metalik & Lince Dorado), and Shorty G were also in the night one draft pool but weren’t selected. WWE has noted that any undrafted wrestlers “will immediately be declared free agents and able to sign with the brand of their choosing.”
Tucker being drafted by Raw means that Heavy Machinery have been broken up in the draft. Otis was selected by SmackDown last night.
Murphy is joining Seth Rollins and Rey & Dominik Mysterio on SmackDown.
The draft will conclude on Monday’s episode of Raw. The updated rosters for Raw and SmackDown are listed below, along with the wrestlers in the night two draft pool:
Raw —
WWE Champion Drew McIntyre
Raw Women’s Champion Asuka
The Hurt Business (MVP, United States Champion Bobby Lashley, Shelton Benjamin & Cedric Alexander)
AJ Styles
Naomi
Women’s Tag Team Champions Shayna Baszler & Nia Jax
Ricochet
Mandy Rose
The Miz & John Morrison
SmackDown Tag Team Champions Kofi Kingston & Xavier Woods
WWE has revealed three of the matches that are taking place on tonight’s Labor Day edition of Raw.
– Keith Lee and Randy Orton will face off in a rematch from Payback.
Lee defeated Orton in their match at Payback. On Raw last week, Orton won a triple threat number one contender’s match and will challenge for Drew McIntyre’s WWE Championship at Clash of Champions later this month.
Lee and Seth Rollins were the other wrestlers in the number one contender’s match. Rollins went for a stomp on Lee near the finish, but Lee countered and hit a Spirit Bomb. Orton then came into the ring, hit an RKO on Lee, and pinned Rollins to get the win.
McIntyre hasn’t appeared on WWE television since the angle where he was given three punts by Orton on Raw two weeks ago. Lee made his official Raw debut that night in a match against Orton, but McIntyre interrupted the match and went after Orton.
– Kevin Owens vs. Aleister Black will take place in Raw Underground.
Orton advanced to last week’s number one contender’s main event by defeating Owens in a qualifying match earlier in the show. Black attacked Owens before the match, but Owens chose to still compete and was quickly defeated by Orton.
Black appeared on the KO Show with Owens two weeks ago. It was Black’s first appearance since the angle where his eye was attacked by Murphy the previous month. Black snapped on Owens and laid him out with Black Mass. Black has been wearing a black bandage over his eye since it was attacked.
– Dominik Mysterio will take on Murphy.
Dominik and his father Rey Mysterio defeated Murphy & Rollins in a tag match at Payback. Rey was originally supposed to face Rollins in a qualifying match last week, but Dominik took his father’s place due to Rey suffering a partially torn triceps at Payback. Rollins defeated Dominik and then — with Dominik’s family watching on backstage — laid him out with another stomp.
In his debut match, Dominik lost to Rollins at SummerSlam. Rey & Dominik vs. Rollins & Murphy then headlined this week’s Raw. Rey and Dominik hit a double 619 on Murphy and Dominik was about to go for a frog splash, but the lights started to go out and Rollins pushed Dominik off the top rope. RETRIBUTION then hit the ring and interrupted the match. Rollins and Murphy bailed and RETRIBUTION laid out Rey and Dominik.
Here’s the updated card for Payback:
Universal Champion “The Fiend” Bray Wyatt defending against Braun Strowman and Roman Reigns in a no holds barred triple threat match
Keith Lee vs. Randy Orton
Women’s Tag Team Champions Sasha Banks & Bayley defending against Shayna Baszler & Nia Jax
United States Champion Apollo Crews defending against Bobby Lashley
Owens teamed with Mysterio against Murphy & Rollins on Raw two weeks ago. In storyline, Mysterio got to pick the stipulation for his match against Rollins at Extreme Rules as a result of his team winning. Mysterio and Rollins are facing off in an Eye for an Eye match on tonight’s pay-per-view.
Owens defeated Rollins on Raw last week after Rollins was distracted by Mysterio, Dominik, and Aleister Black.
The pre-show for Extreme Rules begins at 6 p.m. Eastern time tonight, with the main card starting at 7 p.m. Eastern. Here’s the updated lineup for the show:
WWE Champion Drew McIntyre defending against Dolph Ziggler (Ziggler will pick the stipulation for the match)
Raw Women’s Champion Asuka defending against Sasha Banks
Universal Champion Braun Strowman vs. Bray Wyatt in a non-title Wyatt Swamp Fight
SmackDown Women’s Champion Bayley defending against Nikki Cross
Rey Mysterio vs. Seth Rollins in an Eye for an Eye match
United States Champion Apollo Crews defending against MVP
SmackDown Tag Team Champions The New Day defending against Shinsuke Nakamura & Cesaro in a tables match
This will be the first time Mysterio has wrestled since the angle where his eye was attacked by Rollins in May.
Dave Meltzer has reported that — after his deal expired — Mysterio is currently working without a WWE contract. Meltzer noted that there was a plan for Mysterio to face Rollins in an “eye for an eye” match at Extreme Rules, though that has yet to be announced.
Bianca Belair continued to impress in her win over Ruby Riott while the tag match that finished the show was absolutely fantastic.
**********
Bianca Belair defeated Ruby Riott (5:53)
The more the weeks go by and the more I get to see Belair on Main Event, the more baffling it becomes that she is not on Raw working every week with the top talent. (Then again, baffling is par for the course with WWE right now.) This Belair vs. Riott match wasn’t as entertaining as their bout from last month, but it was another reminder as to just how ready Belair is for main roster action.
Tom Phillips noted Belair’s “effortless power” as she picked up Riott for a powerslam and he’s absolutely right. One of the things that makes her so good, and could make her a future main eventer, is that because she is so strong, she has complete control. She threw Riott around here, but none of it looked anything but safe.
There was a lull halfway through when Riott locked in a cravat and tried to wear Belair down, but it somewhat put the brakes on the flow of the match.
After taking a spinebuster, Riott got her knees up to block a handstand splash to grab a near fall. Belair then nailed Riott with a forearm and hit the KOD for the win.
Murphy & Austin Theory defeated Ricochet & Cedric Alexander (7:14)
I think it’s safe to say that this is the best tag match I have ever seen on Main Event and by some margin. If you can find it, go out of your way to see it as this was a lot of fun.
Had the babyfaces gone over, this was the kind of match you would want opening a pay-per-view: tons of action, some hugely impressive double team spots, and a finish that was 100 mph. This was four athletes working extremely hard to show you what they were capable of.
Ricochet and Alexander looked like superheroes with lots of posturing and a series of kip ups throughout. Early on, Ricochet and Murphy did some chain wrestling that got faster and faster, and resulted in a standoff before they tagged in their partners. Alexander and Theory then did the same.
Possibly the most impressive spot was a series of stereo moves that Ricochet and Alexander did on Murphy and Theory. They flipped out of belly to back suplexes, both did kip ups, rolled through, and came up to take both men into hurricanranas before dropkicking them out of the ring.
The finish was chaotic, but in the end, Theory caught Alexander and nailed him with the ATL. Alexander looked like he had recovered, but Murphy blind tagged in and Alexander turned around to eat a running knee punt that he sold like he was out cold, giving Murphy got the pin and win for his team.
Final Thoughts:
For whatever reason, Belair, Alexander and Ricochet are being hugely wasted, but that seems to be what this show has become: a dumping ground for strong talent that they don’t know what to do with. The only plus from this approach is that Main Event is better than ever. It’s just a shame that barely anyone can watch it.
Bianca Belair won in her Main Event debut in impressive fashion, handing Catalina her second loss in as many weeks.
Murphy beat Humberto Carrillo in an excellent match.
Show Review:
Bianca Belair defeated Catalina (4:42)
If you’ve never seen Belair in the ring, this performance should tell you everything you needed to know. As a former All-SEC and All American track star and Crossfit competitor, she glides around the ring with fluidity and grace, but with a strength that is difficult to find elsewhere. There’s no doubt that given time, Belair could work main events with the very best.
Belair led the match here with Catalina working better this week than last week, especially under the shorter timeframe. Catalina had a couple of moments, but she was there largely to feed Belair who looked so impressive in slamming, suplexing, and backbreaking a competitor of Catalina’s size.
They gave Catalina some hope, but when Belair pulled her off the second turnbuckle to thwart a 360 splash attempt, they quickly went to the finish. Belair lofted Catalina up on to her shoulders for the KOD and got her Main Event debut win in style.
Murphy defeated Humberto Carrillo (7:19)
Carrillo is becoming something of a regular on Main Event. After an enjoyable series of matches with Shelton Benjamin over the last few months, it was just as satisfying to see Murphy walk out as his opponent this week. He is the perfect opponent to Carrillo as his grit and the snarl in his facial expressions make everything he does look aggressive. Carrillo, in contrast, is a tough and athletic clean-cut babyface.
In just over seven minutes, these two went all out to produce a highly technical and fast paced match that sprawled inside and out of the ring. They fought on the ramp, used the mat. and highspots off the ropes in a match that really could have gone either way.
They worked really well together culminating in a false finish where Carrillo nailed Murphy with a springboard enzuigiri. Murphy kicked out and then the two went back and forth before he was able to hit Carrillo with Murphy’s Law for his first Main Event win.
Final Thoughts:
This was very good show this week. Belair taking on all comers each week on Main Event would suit me just fine and Carrillo and Murphy could wrestle like this every week and it would be a joy. At this point, we’ve come a long way from Titus O’Neil vs. Mojo Rawley days of the show.
Ahead of his title defense at Money in the Bank, WWE Champion Drew McIntyre will be in action against a disciple of Seth Rollins on Raw’s go-home show for the pay-per-view.
WWE has announced that a non-title match between McIntyre and Murphy will air on Monday’s episode of Raw. McIntyre is defending his title against Rollins at Money in the Bank on Sunday, May 10.
A contract signing for McIntyre and Rollins’ WWE title match at Money in the Bank was the main event segment of Raw this past Monday. Murphy got involved in the contract signing after things turned physical. As McIntyre was going to give Rollins a Claymore Kick, Murphy appeared and attacked McIntyre. Rollins hugged Murphy, then McIntyre flew in with a Claymore and ended up hitting Murphy.
Rollins then bailed after that, with McIntyre asking if Murphy was his sacrificial lamb.
A last chance gauntlet match is also set to air on Raw’s go-home show for Money in the Bank. It will determine the final participant for this year’s men’s MITB ladder match. Plus, Raw Tag Team Champions The Street Profits will face off with The Viking Raiders on the episode in what appears to be a non-title match.
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.
New Tag Team Champions were crowned on tonight’s episode of Raw in Brooklyn, New York.
The Street Profits defeated Seth Rollins & Murphy to win the Raw Tag Team titles on the show. The match was billed as “Now or Never” for The Street Profits, with it being the final shot they would get at the titles.
The referee ejected AOP from ringside during the match. As the ref argued with AOP and Murphy, Kevin Owens gave Rollins a stunner. Montez Ford then hit a frog splash on Rollins and pinned him to get the win.
There was a backstage segment where Rollins & Murphy were interviewed after losing the titles. Rollins vowed that they would win them back in a rematch against The Street Profits at Sunday’s Elimination Chamber pay-per-view.
This is Ford & Angelo Dawkins’ first title reign on the main roster. They previously held the NXT and EVOLVE Tag Team titles.
The Street Profits had unsuccessfully challenged Rollins & Murphy at Super ShowDown in Saudi Arabia last week. The finish of that match was Murphy pinning Dawkins after Rollins gave Dawkins a stomp on the apron while the ref was distracted.
