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WWE RAW TV REPORT
MARCH 4, 2024
SAN ANTONIO, TEX. AT FROST BANK CENTER
AIRED LIVE ON USA
REPORT BY MAURICIO POMARES, PWTORCH CONTRIBUTOR
Commentators: Michael Cole, Pat McAfee
Ring Announcer: Samantha Irvin
Attendance: WrestleTix reports today that 13,500 tickets were distributed so far; arena set up for 13,500.
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Tonight after WWE Raw, join Wade Keller live with guest co-host Mauricio Pomares to break down the show with live callers and emails.
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[HOUR ONE]
– The show opened with a recap of The Rock challenging Cody Rhodes to a tag match at WrestleMania.
– Cody Rhodes made his way to the ring to talk about The Rock being a distraction on his path to WrestleMania. Cody made fun of Rock’s 20-minute video and the way he called his fans Cody Crybabies. After mentioning The Rock’s challenge to a tag match, Cody introduced Seth Rollins. Cody put over how Rollins is set to face Drew McIntyre and would understand if Rollins declined the match. Rollins recalled arriving alongside Roman Reigns to give power back to the people, only for Roman to keep it to himself.
– Rollins said that he was over The Rock while calling him Diarrhea Dwayne. He dared Rock to try and take away his world title; and minimized his claim that he made wrestling cool again. Rollins announced that he was given full clearance and that he would be on this week’s SmackDown to confront the Bloodline. Cody said that he would come to SmackDown alongside Rollins to give the Bloodline an official answer to their challenge.
(Pomares’s Analysis: A very well-delivered promo by both men that ultimately felt like they were stretching this part of the story. It makes sense for Cody and Seth to give the Bloodline a proper answer in person and make a big deal about it. I don’t think they needed to take up the first 20 minutes of the show to set up that angle.)
[Commercial Break]
(1) GUNTHER vs. DOMINIK MYSTERIO (w/JD McDonagh)
Gunther knocked Dominik off his feet and nearly put him in a Boston Crab. Dominik attacked Gunther with a pair of chops to the chest and a slap, but Gunther looked unaffected. JD got in between Dominik and Gunther, but Gunther immediately shoved him into the ring post. Dominik saved JD from a chop, making Gunther accidentally chop the ring post. Dominik smashed Gunther’s hand into the ring post and crushed it with a stomp. Gunther surprised Dominik with a sleeper hold before blasting him with a chop, as WWE Raw went to commercials.
[Commercial Break]
Back from break, Gunther knocked Dominik with a couple of chops, setting him up for a Boston Crab. JD distracted Gunther, only for Gunther to knock him down with a big boot. Dominik knocked Gunther off the apron with a dropkick and hit him with a springboard splash. Dominik tripped Gunther into the ropes, but Gunther shut him down with a lariat. Gunther stopped his own pinfall and tried to go for a Boston Crab, only for Dominik to kick him away. Dominik surprised Gunther with a sunset flip for a close two count. Dominik hit Gunther with the 619, but Gunther evaded the Frog Splash. Gunther blasted Dominik with a shotgun dropkick, setting him up for a powerbomb and a victorious Boston Crab.
WINNER: Gunther at 9:15
(Pomares’s Analysis: A pretty good match to give Dominik a decent showcase while maintaining Gunther as a dominant champion. I’m assuming that whatever the WrestleMania plan for the Intercontinental title is, Dominik is out of the picture with this loss.)
– Backstage, Adam Pearce confronted Damage CTRL about their reasons for being on Raw. Dakota Kai claimed that they were on the show to scout the tag division and wouldn’t cause any trouble. Shinsuke Nakamura interrupted to talk with Pearce about the Intercontinental title.
[Commercial Break]
– Earlier today, Katana Chance and Kayden Carter set up a match against Shayna Baszler and Zoey Stark to position themselves for a title match.
– Damage CTRL were at ringside to watch the next match.
(2) KATANA CHANCE & KAYDEN CARTER vs. SHAYNA BASZLER & ZOEY STARK
Baszler blocked an arm drag from Carter and stomped her elbow. Carter caught Stark with a thrust kick, only for Stark to retaliate with one of her own. Stark and Baszler nailed Carter with a pair of knee strikes, as WWE Raw went to an ad break.
[Commercial Break]
Back from break, Stark knocked Chance with a thrust kick, only for Chance and Carter to plant her with a double Spanish Fly. Chance sent Baszler out of the ring with a hurracarrana while Carter cracked Stark with a thrust kick. Chance and Carter hit Stark with the Afterparty, only for Baszler to break the pinfall. Baszler pulled Change out of the ring with the Kirifuda Clutch, allowing Stark to steal the win with a roll-up.
WINNERS: Shayna Baszler & Zoey Stark at 6:43
– After the match, Dakota Kai entered the ring to tell Shayna Baszler and Zoey Stark that they would get their title match next week.
(Pomares’s Analysis: Match was fine while it lasted, but the weirdly placed ad break took half of its duration. Baszler and Stark have been heavily protected as a tag team act, so it made sense for them to eventually get a title shot. However, it seems like they are doing the tag match next week to take them out of the picture and let a different team be the one that gets the Mania spot.)
[Commercial Break]
[HOUR TWO]
– Backstage, Damian Priest told Dominik Mysterio that they would make things right with Imperium.
– A recap of Nia Jax and Becky Lynch’s confrontations last week was shown.
(3) BECKY LYNCH vs. NIA JAX
Lynch avoided a corner splash and stomped Jax numerous times, connolly for Jax to hit her with a series of shoulder thrusts. Lynch knocked Jax away with a dropkick, but Jax blocked the springboard kick. Jax dropped Lynch with a powerslam, followed by an elbow drop for a two count. Lynch tried to put Jax in a Sleeper hold, until Jax rammed her into the corner and planted her on the mat. Jax crushed Lynch with a hip attack, but Lynch countered a powerslam attempt with a chop block. Lynch sent Jax out of the ring with a missile dropkick, but Jax knocked her down with a Samoan Drop on the floor, as WWE Raw went to a commercial break.
[Commercial Break]
Back from break, Jax dropped Lynch from the top turnbuckle and crushed her with a diving leg drop for a two count. Lynch surprised Jax with aheadscissors takeover and a boot to the face, setting her up for the Molly-Go-Round and a nearfall. Jax put Lynch down with a Samoan Drop before missing the Annihilator. Lynch put Jax in a cross armbreaker, forcing her to roll out of the ring. Liv Morgan nailed Jax with a springboard forearm strike, ending the match suddenly.
WINNER: Nia Jax at 10:56 via DQ
(Pomares’s Analysis: An okay match without a real ending to extend this story bit. I like seeing Liv Morgan get a bigger spot on the card, but I hope this detour is over soon, so we can go back to focus on the build to Becky vs. Rhea.)
– Backstage, Ricochet complained to Adam Pearce about his position before Pearce told him that things would be made right by his announcement. J.D. McDonagh showed up to ask Pearce to put him in the ring with Gunther.
[Commercial Break]
– Backstage, Becky Lynch confronted Liv Morgan about her actions and challenged her to a match next week. Rhea Ripley passed by and laughed at Lynch.
– A recap of the confrontation between Drew McIntyre and Jey Uso from last week was shown.
– Andrade made his way to the ring, ahead of his return match.
[Commercial Break]
– Backstage, Adam Pearce announced that Sami Zayn, Ricochet, Shinsuke Nakamura, Bronson Reed, JD McDonagh and Chad Gable would fight in a Gauntlet match to earn the opportunity to face Gunther at WrestleMania.
(4) ANDRADE vs. APOLLO CREWS
They started the match exchanging shoulder tackles, until Andrade hit Crews with a big boot. Crews caught Andrade with a dropkick, followed by a chop to the chest. Andrade knocked Crews off the top turnbuckle, only for Crews to plant him with a superplex. Andrade immediately surprised Crews with a snap suplex, starting the Three Amigos for a two count. Before Crews could react, Andrade cracked him with the fake-out back elbow, the double knee strike and the Hammerlock DDT for the win.
WINNER: Andrade at 3:26
(Pomares’s Analysis: Solid return match for Andrade to make him look strong, though I’m not quite sure where he fits on this year’s WrestleMania. On a side note, I wonder who did Apollo Crews anger to get 8 months of wrestling on Main Event since his last match on Raw.)
– Backstage, Jackie Redmond interviewed Sami Zayn about next week’s Gauntlet match. Sami said that the Gauntlet match was his only path to get to WrestleMania. Ivar interrupted to complain about not being part of the Gauntlet and tell Sami that he knows that he can’t beat Gunther. Sami said that he can beat Ivar and challenged him to a match tonight.
– The Judgment Day made their way to the ring, ahead of their match against Imperium.
[Commercial Break]
– An “in memory” graphic for Paul “Butcher” Vachon was shown.
– Backstage, Candice LeRae and Indi Hartwell discussed getting another chance at the tag titles. Next to them, Natalya told Tegan Nox that they had to regroup if they wanted an opportunity. Ivy Nile and Maxxine Dupri showed up to cheer LeRae up, only for LeRae to angrily dismiss her words.
(5) JUDGMENT DAY (Damian Priest & Finn Bálor) vs. IMPERIUM (Ludwig Kaiser & Giovanni Vinci)
Finn nailed Kaiser with a couple of forearms to the back, only for Kaiser to pummel him down. Vinci hit FInn with a strike to the abdomen, but Finn shut him down with a basement dropkick. Priest clobbered Vinci with a series of right hands and knocked Kaiser down with a boot to the face. Priest caught Kaiser with a back elbow, followed by an illegal kick from Finn. Kaiser knocked Finn off the apron and Priest blasted Vinci off the apron with a thrust kick. Finn dropped Kaiser with a Scissor kick, but he kicked out at two. Imperium took Finn out with a double dropkick, as WWE Raw went to commercials.
[Commercial Break]
Back from break, Finn took Kaiser out with a reverse DDT, but Vinci knocked Priest off the apron before the tag. Imperium took Finn down with a modified High Low for a two count. Vinci clocked Finn with a lariat, setting him up for a forearm strike and a kick to the head from Kaiser. Finn caught Kaiser with a rising kick and a Pele kick, reaching Priest for the hot tag. Priest attacked Kaiser with a series of forearms, a bell clap and a flatliner. Priest dropped Vinci with a modified facebuster before crushing him and Kaiser with a series of corner splashes.
Kaiser tried to hit Priest with a suplex, only for Priest to counter with the Broken Arrow. Finn got a blind tag to hit Kaiser with a sling blade, but Kaiser shut him down with a cartwheel Death Valley Driver. Vinci knocked Priest off the apron before receiving a shotgun dropkick and a Coupe de Grace. Kaiser broke Finn’s pinfall, only for Priest to send him out of the ring. Finn crushed Kaiser with a Tope con Hilo while Priest finished Vinci with a lariat and the South of Heaven.
WINNERS: Judgment Day at 14:13
(Pomares’s Analysis: This was a good match that took a bit to get the crowd invested in it, likely due to the heel vs. heel dynamic. However, once the crowd got into it, the action got really good. It kind of felt like a trial for how a baby face Judgment Day would work. I don’t know if that is the plan, but the crowd seemed to really dig Priest as a viable face star.)
[HOUR THREE]
– Michael Cole announced that the first inductee into this year’s Hall of Fame would be Paul Heyman.
– Backstage, Jackie Redmond interviewed Drew McIntyre about Seth Rollins’ words from earlier tonight. Drew said that Rollins was a spotlight junkie that inserted himself whenever any major name like Cody Rhodes, CM Punk and The Rock showed up. Drew moved on to tell Jey Uso that he knew how much he needed the win and he wouldn’t give it to him.
– Sami Zayn made his way to the ring, ahead of his match against Ivar.
[Commercial Break]
– Backstage, Rhea Ripley told Iyo Sky to stay out of her territory.
(6) SAMI ZAYN vs. IVAR (w/Valhalla)
Ivar knocked Sami off his feet with a shoulder tackle, followed by a snap powerslam. Sami attacked Ivar with a couple of right hands and a clothesline over the ropes, setting him up for a Tope con Hilo. Ivar blocked a Tornado DDT and tossed Sami out of the ring before crushing him with a cannonball from the apron, as WWE RAW went to an ad break.
[Commercial Break]
Back from break, Sami countered an avalanche back suplex with a crossbody for a two count. Ivar shocked Sami with a spinning leg lariat, setting him up for a Tiger Driver and a nearfall. Sami blocked a superplex to floor Ivar with a sunset flip powerbomb for a close two count. Sami dropped Ivar with a Xploder into the corner before Ivar countered the Helluva Kick with a seated senton. Ivar missed a moonsault, allowing Sami to knock him out with the Helluva Kick.
WINNER: Sami Zayn at 10:14
– After the match, Bronson Reed attacked Sami Zayn and crushed him with the Tsunami.
(Pomares’s Analysis: Fun match to maintain Sami strong, as he goes into next week’s match. It’s clear after this match and the following promo that Gunther’s challenger will either be Sami Zayn or Chad Gable. No one else feels even close to having a decent story to challenge Gunther.)
– Backstage, Cathy Kelley interviewed Gunther about his victory over Dominik Mysterio and the Gauntlet match for next week. Gunther said that he felt flattered by having all these challengers, but he would still remain champion. Chad Gable interrupted to tell Gunther that he was sick of his condescending smile and that he would take that smile and put it on his daughter by taking the title that he promised last year.
– Backstage, Jey Uso told Drew McIntyre that he was sorry for what he would do tonight.
[Commercial Break]
– Backstage, DIY and R-Truth played WWE 2K24, until The Miz interrupted. Miz told them that to get back at Judgment Day, they needed to take their tag team titles.
– It was announced that Becky Lynch would face Liv Morgan; that Shayna Baszler and Zoey Stark would challenge for the Women’s tag titles; and that there would be a Gauntlet match for a shot at Gunther’s title next week.
(7) JEY USO vs. DREW MCINTYRE
Drew quickly tossed Jey over the announce table, as WWE Raw went to an ad break.
[Commercial Break]
Back from break, Jey clocked Drew with an enzuigiri and a high crossbody for a two count. Drew knocked Jey down with a boot to the face and a back elbow, followed by chops to the chest. Jey blocked an avalanche Air Raid Crash to hit Drew with a sitout powerbomb for a two count. Drew blocked the Uso Splash with his knees before flattening him with a spinebuster for a nearfall. They got into a forearm strike exchange, until Drew clotheslined Jey out of the ring. Drew hit Jey with a suplex on the floor, as WWE Raw went to its final commercial break.
[Commercial Break]
Back from break, Drew rammed Jey into the barricade and the apron, only for Jey to knock him down with a boot to the face. Jey attacked Drew with a couple of right hands and a Samoan drop, but he kicked out at two. Jey crushed Drew’s head with a hip attack, followed by a suicide dive. Solo Sikoa showed up at ringside, distracting Jey and allowing Drew to hit him with the Future Shock DDT for a nearfall. Cody Rhodes ran down to attack Sikoa and brawl with him through the crowd. Jey blocked the Claymore kick with a series of superkicks and a Spear. Jimmy Uso showed up at ringside to distract Jey and allow Drew to get the win with the Claymore Kick.
WINNER: Drew McIntyre at 16:45
– After the match, Seth Rollins stopped Jimmy Uso from assaulting Jey and chased him away. Drew McIntyre hit Rollins with the Claymore and told him to focus on defending his title.
(Pomares’s Analysis: Solid main event to keep all the main event storylines spinning. Drew McIntyre once again winning due to interference continues being a great story bit, as he continues his rightful quest for the world title.)
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