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WWE RAW TV REPORT
OCTOBER 9, 2023
OMAHA, NEB. AT CHI HEALTH CENTER
AIRED LIVE ON USA
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett
Ring Announcer: Samantha Irvin
[HOUR ONE]
-They opened with a four minute video package recapping key happenings at Fastlane.
-The Raw opening theme aired.
-Seth Rollins made his ring entrance. After saying Shinsuke Nakamura took him to the limit, his tone suggested he was going to retire due this back issue. But after a dramatic pause, he enthusiastically said he was “just getting started.” He said he hoped they could get through one Monday night without him having to fight for his life out there. He said they can still sing and dance and drink “some cold ones.”
He was interrupted at that point by Drew McIntyre. When Drew entered the ring, Seth said with a tone of resignation, “You’re not out here to party, are ya’?” He said Drew probably wanted a title match. Seth said he just wanted a night to celebrate, but he’s a fighting champion so he’ll go get ready for a fight. Drew said they can still celebrate tonight even if he declares he wants a title match, but he said someone probably will jump him. He said he wants Seth as close to 100 percent as possible. He suggested a match at Crown Jewel.
Seth asked if he’s really not out there to jump him and he really wants him at 100 percent. Seth said he’s not used to his challengers conducting business that way. Seth said Drew doesn’t have to leave. He said the party is just getting started. He said he was once in a band so he knows how to party. Drew said he has business to take care of, but if anyone sees him in Omaha after the show, buy him a pint and a shot. Seth said, “Suit yourself!” He then got the fans to sing his song again.
Priest attacked Seth from behind. Drew stood in the aisle and watched. Dominik Mysterio ran toward the ring with the briefcase for Priest to potentially cash in, but Drew stopped him. Dom pleaded with him to let him pass, but Drew gave him a headbutt. Seth then recovered and knocked Priest to the floor. Priest and Dom sat at ringside flustered and frustrated with the lost opportunity.
-They showed New Day warming up backstage. Cole said they’re normally jovial, but tonight they’re serious since Kofi Kingston has to face Ivar next. [c]
(1) KOFI KINGSTON vs. IVAR – Viking Rules Match
Ivar kicked Kofi at the bell and scored a early near fall. Kofi fought back and dove onto Ivar at ringside. He then pulled a table out from under the ring and leaned it on the ringside barricade. Ivar took over briefly until Kofi threw him off the ring apron. He leaped off the second rope and landed on Ivar’s back. He scored a near fall at ringside, where pinfalls were legal in this Viking Rules match. [c]
Back from the break, Kofi choked Ivar with a Viking flagpole and then leaped backwards with a Russian leg sweep. Both were slow to get up. Kofi ducked a swing of the flag.
Eventually Ivar climbed to the top rope to set up a splash. Kofi met him up there and then yanked him by his beard and sent him crashing through a table below. Valhalla attacked Kofi. Xavier Woods ran out. She eyed Xavier, and Xavier backed off. When she charged, he ducked. She flew over the barricade. Xavier laughed. Ivar charged at Xavier and splashed him against the barricade. Kofi superkicked Ivar and then shoved him back into the ring. Kofi then went for a Trouble in Paradise, but Ivar caught him and slammed him through a table in the corner. Then he scored a three count. Cole said, “You’re going to have to scrape Kofi off the mat.”
WINNER: Ivar in 11:00.
(Keller’s Analysis: A good TV opener. They fit a lot into the time they were given.)
-Byron Saxton interviewed Shinsuke Nakamura backstage. He said he pushed Seth to the limit but still came up short. He asked how he felt about his performance. Nakamura sighed and muttered, but didn’t answer. Ricochet then charged in and attacked Nakamura, calling him a son of a bitch. Officials held Ricochet back as Nakamura fled.
(Keller’s Analysis: I love when title match challengers are interviewed after they come up short, and quite a bit more than the loser just disappearing for a few weeks before returning. This is also worked to pivoting him immediately to a feud with Ricochet.)
-Raquel Rodriguez made her ring entrance with a wide Stephanie McMahon-like smile on her face. [c]
-Backstage, Priest had McDonagh raised in the air up against a wall in a rage. Finn Balor intervened. Priest yelled, “You know he deserves this!” Balor told McDonagh to shut it because he’s already caused enough problems. Priest asked where they were. Balor said they were talking to Pearce. Rhea Ripley said they secured a tag team title rematch next week. Priest said fine, but he still wants to deal with Drew and McDonagh. Ripley told him to take it easy because he still has the briefcase. Dom looked proud of her in the background. Ripley then told McDonagh to take care of Drew. He nervously assured Ripley he would. Priest stepped up to McDonagh’s face and said part of him wants to break him in two after Drew breaks him in half. “Good luck,” he said. “Now get out. Beat it.”
(2) NIA JAX vs. RACQUEL RODRIGUEZ
The bell rang 44 minutes into the hour. Jax went right after Raquel and took her to the mat and pounded her into the mat over and over. Rodriguez fought back and went for a bodyslam, but her back gave out and then Jax bashed her with forearms. Jax threw Rodriguez hard into the ringside barricade at 1:30 as they cut to a break. [c]
Back from the break, Jax had Rodriguez grounded. A minute later, Rodriguez went to lift Jax again, but her back gave out again. Jax set up her corner splash, but Rodriguez powerbombed her out of the corner. Both were down and slow to get up. Ripley ran out and threw Rodriguez out of the ring and then attacked Jax.
WINNER: No contest in 7:00.
-Rodriguez re-entered the ring and went after Ripley. Ripley headbutted Rodriguez, sending her to the floor. Shayna Baszler then ran out and got in the face of Ripley. They argued. Baszler and Ripley argued. Baszler gave Ripley a back suplex and a running knee. Jax had retreated up the aisle, but watched the happenings. Barrett said the security team stayed clear of that “and who can blame them?”
(Keller’s Analysis: A good way to step toward setting up the four-way at Crown Jewel)
-Seth approached Drew backstage and called him out for not saving him from the attack, but deciding to stop a cash-in attempt. Drew said a cash-in affects the whole locker room. He said if it doesn’t affect his business, he doesn’t get involved. Seth sarcastically congratulated Drew for looking out for the whole locker room. He said he doesn’t have to worry about The Judgment Day. He said they couldn’t take the title from him “and neither can you.” As Seth walked away, Drew said, “We’ll see about that.”
-They showed Cody Rhodes and Jey Uso backstage strutting with their newly-won WWE Tag Team Title belts. [c]
-Jackie Redmond asked Baszler for a comment on everything that’s going on with her and the other women. Baszler said she’s the baddest wrestler among them and nobody gets away with sneak-attacking her.
[HOUR TWO]
-Cole stood mid-ring and introduced Jey Uso. Jey made his full entrance. Cole then introduced Cody, who made his full entrance. Cole said he got goosebumps watching them win on Saturday night. He said Cody brought Jey to Raw less than two months ago and now they’re tag team champions. He asked where this massive responsibility of defending the titles all around the world “in front of the greatest fans on the planet” leaves his original plan to “finish the story.” He said he’s seen the documentary on it and they’ve talked about it. He asked if he’s content with defending the tag titles. He asked if perhaps he doesn’t want another shot at the Undisputed Title because he “failed” the first time and he’s nervous about coming up short again and letting people down.
Cody said he made a good point about how proud he is that he and Jey won the tag titles. Cole said that’s great, but he wants an answer to his question. He said he’s had an incredible year so far and came so close to winning the WWE Title. He said it was like his dad coming close. “Is that going to be your story?” he asked. As Cody soaked up the question, Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens interrupted.
Sami and KO walked out to Sami’s “heel” music and entered the ring. Sami said, “I haven’t heard that song in a minute; that’s alright.” He said he has a story to talk about. He said he and KO unseated the longest-reigning tag champions at WrestleMania. He said Cody and Jey beat Judgment Day for those titles, so that is the story they’re talking about right now. He said he came out there to sincerely congratulate them for their win.
He looked at Jey and said they’ve been through a lot and he’s happy they have won those championships. He said he really means it, but it also gets complicated and messy because he has mixed emotions. He said he can’t help but feel it should be them holding those titles.
Owens said he doesn’t have mixed emotions. He said he’s not happy they have those titles. He said he doesn’t care how hard they worked to win them, he wants them back. He said he’d love to challenge them to a title match tonight. Fans cheered. Owens said he knows they won’t agree to it because Jey can’t handle the thought of losing those belts to them twice. Cody said he thinks they’re all friends, and Owens is wrong, because they do accept. KO left the ring immediately satisfied. Cody said they can do it tonight. Owens returned to the ring and joined Sami in shaking hands on it. Barrett and Cole hoped that it would soon become official.
(Keller’s Analysis: The early part of that interview was really smart as it reminded people of Cody’s “story” and addressed whether this derailed that in any way. Having Sami and KO interrupted when they did was logical because of what Sami said about that being the story he cares about. This ultimately gives Cody something to do for a few months before the Royal Rumble with a mix of opponents without giving away a bunch of singles matches prematurely.)
-Bronson Reed interrupted Chad Gable as he was getting psyched up for his match by having Otis chop him in the chest. Bronson said he’s getting nowhere near the Intercontinental Title as long as he’s around because he beat both of them. He told Gable to tell his daughter not to watch tonight because it’ll be another heartbreaking loss. He walked away and Gable told him to hit him again. Gable then yelled, “Thank you!”
-As Ricochet’s ring entrance started, Nakamura attacked him in the entrance area. Officials intervened as they cut to a break. [c]
-Cole confirmed the main event was official – Sami & KO challenging Cody & Jey for the tag titles.
(3) RICOCHET vs. BRONSON REED vs. CHAD GABLE (w/Maxxinne)
Ricochet was in the ring, still recovering from the Nakamura attack. The bell rang 21 minutes into the hour. They brawled to ringside early. Gable gave Ricochet a full nelson suplex onto Bronson. As Gable celebrated, they cut to a break. [c]
Gable gave Bronson a German suplex after the break. Ricochet dove onto Bronson at ringside. Back in the ring, Gable went after Ricochet and applied an anklelock. Gable went for a suplex off the top rope, but Ricochet flipped all the way onto his feet. He favored his knee afterward. Bronson capitalized on it and landed a top rope Tsunami for the win. Barrett said Bronson vs. Gunther for the Intercontinental Title is an intriguing match for Raw next week.
WINNER: Bronson in 9:00.
(Keller’s Analysis: That should be a truly intriguing match next week!)
-Redmond interviewed Becky Lynch backstage. She said she’s not 100 percent and she has a lot of stitches in her arm. She said as a champion, if you’re doing things right, you’re never at 100 percent. She mentioned her memoir coming out in March. She said tonight is the biggest opportunity of Tegan Nox’s career and she’ll give it everything she’s got. Xia Li walked in and asked, “What about me?” She asked when it’s her turn. “I ain’t a hard woman to find, honey bunches,” Becky said.
-Drew made his ring entrance. [c]
(4) DREW MCINTYRE vs. J.D. MCDONAGH (w/Dominik Mysterio)
McDonagh and Drew stood chest to face at the bell. Drew shoved McDonagh into the corner. McDonagh slapped him in the chest in return. When Drew no-sold a couple more chops, McDonagh dropped to the floor. Drew pursued him all the way back into the ring. Drew backdropped McDonagh high in the air. Drew played to the crowd for cheers. McDonagh took over by going after Drew’s knee when Drew turned to Dominik who was standing on the ring apron. He focused on Drew’s leg. He said he has some Patrick Batemanesque qualities and seems a little off kilter mentally but is incredibly razor sharp. Drew clotheslined McDonagh as he charged at him at ringside. Dominik shoved Drew into the ringpost. McDonagh flipped onto Drew at ringside.
Back in the ring McDonagh scored a one count. Drew came back with a Future Shock DDT when McDonagh was staring down at Dominik at ringside. Drew and then hit the Claymore for the win.
WINNER: McIntyre in 4:00.
-They cut backstage where Priest was shown watching. Ripley said she had an idea.
-A commercial hyped NXT tomorrow night. It ended with the Undertaker’s bell sound. [c]
-A clip aired of the return of Johnny Gargano last week.
-Barrett conducted a sitdown interview with DIY backstage. Ciampa and Gargano talked about their success in NXT. Gargano said they wondered what kind of success they could have on Raw. Giovani Vinci and Ludwig Kaiser attacked them.
-They went to Cole and Barrett. Cole told Barrett he should stand his ground in those interviews. Barrett said that these days he’s a lover, not a fighter.
-A video package aired on Tegan Nox, who talked about her two torn knee ligaments.
-Nox was warming up backstage when Redmond approached her for comments on her title match tonight. Nox said Becky is going to face the best version of her. Natalya walked in and said she is proud of her and she was born to do this. [c]
-They showed big corporate website headlines covering Fastlane.
-Ricochet was wandering around yelling for Nakamura. Adam Pearce said he sent him home, but he’ll face Nakamura next week in a Falls Count Anywhere match. Ricochet was satisfied.
(5) BECKY LYNCH vs. TEGAN NOX – NXT Title match
Rome did formal ring introductions. Nox got almost no reaction from the crowd.
[HOUR THREE]
The bell rang at the very start of the third hour. Nox applied a side headlock early as Cole said she just needed an injection of confidence to get back on track. They stood and circled each other at 3:00 in a bit of reset after some early exchanges. Barrett said that’s a win for Tegan since few expected her to compete so evenly even early against her. When Tegan went to the top rope, Becky knocked her to the floor. Becky then slidekicked her into the barricade. Becky followed with a leap toward Tegan, but Tegan moved. Tegan then kicked Becky from the ring apron and followed with a flip dive. Back in the ring she scored a two count. Becky rolled to the floor as they cut to a break. [c]
At 12:00 Tegan knocked Becky off balance in the corner and charged with a hip attack as Becky hung upside down. Tegan applied the Disarm Her on Becky. Becky rolled out of it and leveraged Tegan’s shoulders down for a two count. Becky hit Tegan with a missile dropkick off the top rope for a two count. When Becky leaped at Tegan, Tegan turned into a fallaway slam into a bridge for a near fall. They went into a series of moves and counters resulting in Tegan tapping to Becky’s Disarm Her. Becky congratulated Tegan for a good effort afterward and offered a handshake. They shook and fist-bumped.
WINNER: Lynch in 15:00 to retain the NXT Title.
(Keller’s Analysis: I am not a fan of the NXT Title being defended on Raw for no good reason other than Becky is officially on the Raw roster. It just waters down the women’s titles to have three of them on the two main shows. It’s a sneaky way to get Becky on Raw in ostensible meaningful matches and cross-promote NXT, so I get why they’re doing it.)
-Pearce updated Candice LeRae and Indi Hartwell. He said Gargano is banged up but not seriously injured. He said he’s still awaiting an update on Ciampa. Ripley barged in and told them to get out because she had business with Pearce. She snapped when they resisted. (I like that they didn’t just cower and leave at first.) Ripley told Pearce she wants Baszler one-on-one next week. [c]
-Natalya approached Tegan backstage and told her she did amazing. Tegan was upset with her loss. Natalya said she did amazing and she should be proud. Kayden Carter and Katana Chance also walked up and offered Nox support. Chelsea Green and Piper Niven walked in and asked if they were having a pity party. Green told Natalya not to get in her business again “or else.” Natalya asked, “Or else what?” Niven said, “Or else you’ll have to deal with me.” Natalya told her to name a time and place. Niven said, “How about next week on Raw?” Natalya agreed.
-They went to Cole and Barrett who hyped next week’s “season premiere” of Raw featuring Balor & Priest getting a tag team title match against tonight’s winners, Gunther vs. Bronson, Ripley vs. Baszler, and Nakamura vs. Ricochet.
-They showed Jey Uso warming up backstage. Drew walked up to him and said he sees right through him. He said sooner or later he’s going to show his true colors. Jey said he’s got five minutes for him right now. Drew told him, “Your move.” Sami walked in and asked if everyone was good here. Jey asked where he came from. Sami said he was right back there. Jey said he appreciates him always having his back, but tonight it’s about keeping those titles. Sami said you don’t need to tell him twice.
-Sami and KO made their ring entrance. [c]
-A vignette aired on Kaiser who compared himself to great works of art. “I am living art,” he said. He said is A+ aesthetics and an A+ specimen. Cole said he’s quite self-confident. Barrett said he wishes he had his cheekbones and his abs.
(Keller’s Analysis: Interesting to see Kaiser getting a vignette dedicated to himself when he’s still part of a tag team with Imperium.)
(6) JEY USO & CODY RHODES vs. SAMI ZAYN & KEVIN OWENS – WWE Tag Team Title match
As Jey made his entrance, Barrett said he was skeptical of Jey like many others, but it appears he was wrong and that Jey has changed his pots. Rome did formal ring introductions again. The bell rang 36 minutes into the hour. Cole said Sami has believed in Jey all along. Barrett said it sometimes bit him on the ass, though. Cody and Sami shoved each other and things got heated a minute in, so KO and Jey also entered. They cut to a break as the ref stepped between them. [c]
At 44:00 Owens and Jey brawled onto the announce desk. Sami then charged at Cody at ringside. Cole yelled, “Somebody get control of this damn tag team championship match!” They cut to a second break in the midst of the brawl at the desk. [c]
KO and Jey battled after the break. Jey hot-tagged in Cody just as Sami also tagged in. Cody hit a snap powerslam and then let out a yell. He hit a Cody Cutter on Sami for a two count. Sami blocked a subsequent Crossroads attempt and landed a sudden Blue Thunder Bomb for a near fall. Cody hit Crossroads. KO interrupted the ref’s count (although Cody was still covering Sami and Sami’s shoulders were still down, so he could have just slapped the mat one more time and then scolded KO afterward).
Jey and KO both hot-tagged in. Things got a little sloppy as they did multiple superkick spots leading to a two count for Jey. KO caught Jey with a stunner a minute later. Cody interrupted the count. Sami flip dove onto both Jey and Coyd at ringside. KO threw Jey back into the ring and then went for a Swanton, but Jey lifted his knees. Jey superkicked KO and then superkicked a charging Sami. Cody gave Sami a Crossroads. Jey and Cody stereo superkicked KO. Cody and Jey hit a Cody Cutter/1D combo and Jey pinned KO.
Cole said for anyone who thought Cody & Jey would be a flash in the pan, think again.
WINNERS: Jey & Cody in 21:00 to retain the WWE Tag Team Titles.
(Keller’s Analysis: Given how new Cody & Jey were as a team, and how undeserved their tag title shot was by conventional criteria, it wasn’t a bad idea to give them this win. It’s also a strong unadvertised main event for Raw.)
-Cole and Barrett plugged next week’s Raw.
-They cut back to the ring where KO shook Cody’s hand. Cody encouraged KO to congratulate Jey too. KO turned and hugged Jey. Cole said KO has finally bought in. They all stood together as the show ended.
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