Top 10 Moments from WWE Monday Night Raw
The Rock and Roman Reigns played a starring role on Raw
Here are the top 10 moments from last night’s Raw, which marked the final Raw before WrestleMania 40:
10.) Seth Rollins and The Bloodline set up the night’s main event
After delivering a savage attack to Cody Rhodes to close out last Monday’s edition of Raw, The Rock kicked off this week’s show. He recapped the actions of last week, then showed clips of some young fans crying over the violence. He said that while those reactions break his heart, he wanted to speak directly to the children to tell them that when people stick their nose in places they don’t belong, which is what Rhodes did, it is necessary to knock them down. He credited himself for the recent success of WWE, despite the company’s steady increase in popularity starting well before he made his big return. The Rock did not come to Raw alone, he brought along the rest of The Bloodline, including his WrestleMania tag team partner, Roman Reigns.
Reigns thanked The Rock for making this WrestleMania the easiest of his life, as he believed they had the tag team match on night one in the bag, which would make Reigns’s Undisputed WWE Universal Championship match on night 2 a Bloodline Rules match, tipping the odds heavily in Reigns’ favor. In the middle of Reigns explaining the importance of the matches, Seth Rollins’ music hit. The World Heavyweight Champion entered through the crowd, just as he and Reigns had during their days in The Shield. He challenged The Bloodline to a match to be the night’s main event, allowing Reigns and The Rock to decide amongst themselves not only the stipulation, but which of the two would step up to the challenge. Rather than accepting, the two stepped aside for Solo Sikoa to answer the call, proving to Rollins that they were too cowardly to do the job themselves. The Bloodline also decided that the match would be fought under Bloodline Rules, essentially no disqualification.
9.) Damian Priest and The Judgment Day prevail in WrestleMania preview
The Judgment Day
Courtesy WWE
In anticipation of their Undisputed Tag Team Championship defense at WrestleMania, Finn Balor and Damian Priest, along with fellow Judgment Day members JD McDonagh and Dominik Mysterio, faced off against the team of The New Day and DIY. Though the latter two teams worked together in this match, they will be opponents in this weekend’s six pack ladder match for the Tag Team Titles. The result of this match did not bode well for the challengers, as Priest snatched a victory not long into the match by pinning DIY’s Tommaso Ciampa. Señor Money in the Bank looked incredibly strong in this match, which should not only put any tag teams vying for the titles on notice, but any of the men’s singles champions as well.
8.) Chad Gable helps Sami Zayn prepare for WrestleMania
Chad Gable helped train Sami Zayn for his WrestleMania match against Gunther for the Intercontinental Championship. As the last man to truly push The Ring General to the limit, Gable attempted to do the same for Zayn in preparation. When Zayn pushed back, Gable told him that the hunger he had for last year’s WrestleMania, in which Zayn was victorious, was gone. When asked what happened, Zayn admitted that his fear of letting people down has been holding him back. Gable vowed to help Zayn prove all of his doubters wrong, and the two embarked on a training montage.
Gunther
Courtesy WWE
After losing to Bronson Reed last week, Zayn got his rematch. Zayn looked significantly more prepared compared to their last bout. Gable’s training clearly made an impact, as Zayn looked stronger than he ever has. He no longer fought like an underdog, barely scraping by until he could find an opportunity to eke out a win. Zayn was dominant for much of the match, and just as he appeared on the cusp of putting Reed away for good, Gunther entered, dragging a battered Gable by his foot. Zayn abandoned the match in the ring to run to his coach’s aid, and Gunther took the opportunity to beat Zayn within an inch of consciousness. Gunther began to retreat, leaving his WrestleMania opponent laid out. However, Zayn willed himself back to his feet, only to be knocked down again when Gunther struck him with the Intercontinental championship belt. This sort of mind game that Gunther played is exactly what Gable has been warning Zayn about week after week, and while Zayn overcame a lot with Gable’s help, a similar trick at WrestleMania could do him in.
7.) Miscommunication within The Judgment Day
While The Judgment Day conferred in their clubhouse, Legado del Fantasmo showed up and were greeted by Dominik Mysterio. Mysterio was the only one to welcome them, however, as the rest of the group was upset that he invited Legado without discussing it with the team. Mysterio will be joining the leader of Legado Del Fantasma, Santos Escobar, in a tag team match at WrestleMania against a common enemy, Rey Mysterio and Dragon Lee of Latino World Order.
While The Judgment Day gave Dirty Dom their blessing to compete in the match, they felt that allowing another faction to hang out in their space was a step too far. This is yet another communication breakdown within The Judgment Day, which have become more and more common over the course of the last few weeks.
6.) Candice LeRae gets her comeuppance
Candice LeRae’s mean streak continued to take a toll on the women’s locker room as she and Indi Hartwell took on Maxxine Dupri and Ivy Nile. During their last bout, LeRae sent Dupri running after verbally tearing her to shreds, and capitalized on her weakened emotional state to win the match.
This time around, Dupri got her revenge by knocking LeRae off the ring apron and rolling up Hartwell for a pinfall. While Hartwell has disapproved of LeRae’s cruel yet effective strategy, as her tag team partner, she has reaped the benefits of victory. This was no longer the case after losing the match. LeRae blamed Hartwell, and she became the new target of her vitriol.
Maxxine Dupri with a dropkick
Courtesy WWE
5.) Drew McIntyre addresses his rivals
In a pre-taped segment, Drew McIntyre stood at the pulpit of an empty church after closing the casket behind him. Rather than deliver a eulogy, he used it to take shots at both his WrestleMania opponent, Seth Rollins, and the match’s guest commentator, CM Punk. The irony of the promo is that McIntyre holds contempt for Rollins due to his attention being split between their match and helping Cody Rhodes feud with The Bloodline, but he does not realize he is doing the same thing by continuing to antagonize Punk, a man who barely has anything to do with the World Heavyweight Championship match.
4.) Ricochet and Ivar clash ahead of SmackDown appearance
Ahead of Friday night’s Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal, two of the match’s participants, Ricochet and Ivar, faced each other one-on-one. These two had excellent in-ring chemistry in this preview of the annual pre-WrestleMania match. Ricochet won by pinning Ivar, but in the battle royal a pinfall will not do the job. The human highlight reel utilized his high-flying abilities to pick up the victory against the big man, but this could be a detriment in a match where going over the top rope and landing outside the room spells elimination.
Ricochet
Courtesy WWE
3.) The Judgment Day and Andrade cut a deal
The Judgment Day watched Ricochet’s match from a monitor backstage, and strategized about how to deal with him after his string of wins against the group in recent weeks. JD McDonagh explained his plan was to take out Ricochet in the Battle Royal, but he has assured he would do so in the past with poor results. They needed an insurance plan, and so they employed Andrade, offering him status as a full member of The Judgment Day if he can deal with Ricochet in the event McDonagh fails.
2.) Rhea Ripley and Becky Lynch come to blows
Yesterday, Rhea Ripley appeared on The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani, but she was interrupted by her WrestleMania challenger, Becky Lynch. Staff on Helwani’s show had to escort the irate Lynch off the set. That night during Raw, Lynch walked to the ring to finish the altercation started earlier, and beckoned Ripley to meet her there.
Becky Lynch
Courtesy WWE
Instead, Raw General Manager Adam Pearce answered with a team of security, telling Lynch to save the fighting for their WrestleMania match. Ripley defied Pearce by marching past him and towards Lynch, and the two came to blows as soon as they were within punching distance of each other. Security attempted to separate the two, but they were no match for Lynch and Ripley’s hatred towards each other. They fought all throughout the commercial break, and into the backstage area, until Ripley was dragged away by Dominik Mysterio.
1.) Seth Rollins finds out what Bloodline Rules entails
In the main event, Seth Rollins took on Solo Sikoa in a Bloodline Rules match. After a brutal bout full of tables, chairs, and steel stairs, and a dominant performance by Sikoa, Rollins seemed ready to turn the tides in his favor. However, he was soon thwarted by Jimmy Uso, who took advantage of the match stipulation to deliver a superkick to Rollins.
Seth Rollins
Courtesy WWE
As if on cue, Jey Uso appeared to neutralize the threat of his twin brother. He chased Jimmy backstage, but was immediately knocked back through the entrance way by The Final Boss. The Rock tossed Jey back where he came from, and continued on his path towards Rollins, who lay in a sorry state on the mat. Despite not being medically cleared to be at Raw tonight, Cody Rhodes showed up for his partner and went right after The Rock.
Roman Reigns spears Cody Rhodes
Courtesy WWE
Roman Reigns showed up to once again even the odds, and the ringside brawl delved into chaos. With Rhodes and Rollins sprawled out on the mat, The Rock and Reigns stood tall over their WrestleMania night one opponents. But that wasn't enough.
The Final Boss and The Tribal Chief further emphasized their dominance by whipping both Rhodes and Rollins with belts. In an emphatic display of aggression, they ordered Sikoa to hold Rhodes down as they struck him across the back in the ending moments of a memorable Raw.
Bonus: Lil Wayne announces WrestleMania appearance
As he walked around backstage, Jey Uso came across Lil Wayne sitting in a hallway. Uso invited him to attend WrestleMania this weekend, granted he had space in his busy schedule. Not only did Lil Wayne accept the invitation, he also said that he would use the event as the platform to debut his newest single.
