Raw Review
With Money in the Bank behind us, Extreme Rules around the corner, and SummerSlam on the horizon, tonight’s Raw is sure to be one filled with conclusions to old storylines and the beginning of new ones.
Join us as we break down the June 18th episode of Raw.
Opening Segment
The night is kicked off by Kurt Angle, who announces Alexa Bliss to the ring. Bliss relishes in her win, claiming to have beaten Rousey and Nia Jax in one night. Before Bliss could gloat anymore, she was interrupted by Rousey herself.
Bliss taunted Ronda, calling her a rookie and asking if Rousey was still sore from the beating she received from Bliss.
Ronda snapped, taking out Bliss and Angle with the briefcase. An obviously fuming Rousey took out referees and put Bliss through the table that was in the ring. Later that night, it was announced that Rousey would be suspended for 30 days.
Dolph Ziggler vs. Seth Rollins
Seth Rollins issued an open challenge to anyone in the back and the call was answered by Dolph Ziggler, accompanied by Drew McIntyre. Early in the match, Dolph was dominate, working on the knees and neck of Rollins.
Late in the match, the two traded top-moves and pinfall attempts until, off the distraction from McIntyre, Ziggler rolled up Seth and scored the pinfall, becoming the new Intercontinental Champion. The two men took out Rollins after the bell rang.
Bobby Roode vs. Curt Hawkins
Hawkins jumps out to an early control of the match, but Roode proves to be too tough and delivers a Glorious DDT. The squash match is over quicker than it started and Roode grabs another W.
Braun Strowman Segment
Strowman recapped the last year of his career and challenged Brock Lesnar. Kevin Owens interrupted early in the segment. Owens congratulated Braun and offered Strowman somewhat of an alliance. Strowman acted as though he was interested until power-slamming Owens, closing the segment.
The Deleters of Worlds vs. Rhyno & Slater
Rhyno and Slater were dominant from the start and kept Hardy in isolation. Wyatt received the hot tag, taking full control of the match. The match was ended shortly after a Kiss of Deletion from Hardy and Wyatt.
Chad Gable vs. Jinder Mahal
Mahal came out the gates swinging, looking to end the match early. For most of the match the two men back and forth. Mahal scored the much-needed victory after hitting Gable with the Khallas.
Bayley & Sasha Banks vs. Riott Squad
Bayley and Sasha began arguing early, forcibly tagging themselves in for most of the match. The two teams went back and forth for most of the match. Banks went for the double knees on Morgan, but was distracted by Logan, which allowed Morgan to finish the match with a schoolboy to Banks.
After the match, Banks and Bayley found themselves in a shoving match which only furthers that we’re likely to see a heel turn from one of them soon.
Kurt Angle Segment
Angle came to the ring and announced that he had news on Brock Lesnar’s next opponent. Before he could say more, he was interrupted by Roman Reigns, who claimed to be the uncrowned Universal Champion and demanded a match against Lesnar. They were interrupted by Bobby Lashley.
Lashley said he’s waited years to fight Lesnar and that Roman has had plenty of chances. Angle announced a multi-man #1 contender match for Extreme Rules and promised that Lashley and Roman would be in it.
The Revival, sick of the whining, came to challenge the duo to a match.
The Revival vs. Lashley and Reigns
The faces controlled the match early. Midway through the match, Roman lay on the outside and the Revival worked over Lashley. Roman, able to recover, got the hot tag and hit a bunch of his signature stuff. Lashley tagged himself back in and hit a spear to end the match.
No Way Jose vs. Mojo Rawley
Rawley came out the gates hot early in the match. Mojo was dominating for most of the match before hitting the Fireman’s Carry Slam for the win. Rawley ended the match in short fashion, earning a much-needed win.
Elias Segment
Elias looked broken, yet intense as he spoke about his loss at MITB and his want to compete in the multi-man match announced earlier in the night. Elias ended the segment with an intense look down the lens of the hard-cam. It was an Elias we’ve never seen before.
Finn Balor & Braun Strowman vs. Constable Corbin & Kevin Owens
Corbin took control early, but a sore Owens couldn’t maintain the team’s dominance. The heels isolated Balor and kept the smaller man down. Strowman got the hot tag and took out both Cobin and Owens. Balor made the tag and kept up the momentum for his team. As Owens and Strowman fought on the outside, Balor attempted a top-rope maneuver, only to be caught by Corbin, who hit Balor with the End of Days and pinned him for the win.
Conclusion
Tonight, we witnessed the end of old rivalries and the beginning of new ones. AS the WWE continues to build to Extreme Rules and SummerSlam, more matches are sure to be made in the weeks to come and tonight was a great start to that process.