SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
WWE RAW TV REPORT
APRIL 8, 2024
PHILADELPHIA, PA. AT WELLS FARGO 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 17,208 tickets were distributed so far; arena set up for 18,336.
CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO OUR POST-SHOW PODCAST
[HOUR ONE]
– The show opened with Triple H making his way to the ring to claim that they just saw the biggest WrestleMania ever. Triple H thanked the fans and welcomed them to a new era before introducing Cody Rhodes as the new Undisputed WWE Universal champion. Triple H congratulated Cody for ending a historic title reign and showed a video package made for him, recapping his life journey. Cody asked Samantha Irvin to introduce him once again as the new world champion. Cody acknowledged Roman Reigns and showed footage of his own daughter as the reason he still fights. He said that he stood in the middle of the ring, going from undesirable to undeniable to undisputed.
– The Rock interrupted and teased speaking for a few minutes, but the crowd wouldn’t let him with a load of boos. Rock told the crowd to shut the f*ck up before telling Cody that he would give him his flowers. He told Cody that both his mother and his father were proud of him. Rock asked Cody if he could hold that title, pointing out that he had never held Cody’s. Cody agreed to give Rock his belt, as long as Rock gave him his Brahma Bull belt. Rock posed with the belt and said that it felt right before giving it back to Cody.
– Rock said that he would go away for the time being, but when he came back, he would do it for Cody. Cody said that he was looking forward to that moment. Rock reminded Cody that while he beat Roman right in the middle of the reign, he was pinned on Night 1. Rock told Cody that his story with Roman might be over, but their story had just begun. Cody pointed out that Rock might be the boss, but he is the champion. Rock pulled out something out of his pocket and put it on Cody’s hand. Rock told Cody to never break his heart again and left the ring while Cody looked conflicted.
(Pomares’s Analysis: A very well-delivered opening promo to serve a victory lap after Cody Rhodes’ historic title win. The Rock was his charismatic self as usual to tease a major match, though the brief title exchange did feel quite awkward. The segment definitely went on way too long for my liking and felt like a bit of a waste of the commercial free hour.)
(1) ILJA DRAGUNOV vs. SHINSUKE NAKAMURA
Nakamura nailed Dragunov with a knee strike, following it with a series of knees. Nakamura blasted Dragunov with kicks to the chest, until Dragunov retaliated with an enzuigiri. Dragunov crushed Nakamura with a diving knee drop, followed by a series of German suplexes. Dragunov put Nakamura down with a discus clothesline, but missed a follow-up diving senton. Nakamura clocked Dragunov with a kick to the back and the sliding German suplex, setting him up for a flying knee strike for a two count. Dragunov floored Nakamura with a German suplex, only for Nakamura to crack him with a knee to the back for a two count. Dragunov hit Nakamura with a chop to the chest and a jumping boot to the face, setting him up for a powerbomb, the H-Bomb and Torpedo Moscow.
WINNER: Ilja Dragunov at 4:16
(Pomares’s Analysis: A very dominant victory for the debuting Ilja Dragunov who has been main roster ready for a long time. Assuming he gets the full call-up during the Draft, I expect his title reign to end at the next major NXT show.)
– A recap of Drew McIntyre winning the World Heavyweight Championship, only to lose it to Damian Priest was shown.
[Commercial Break]
[HOUR TWO]
– A recap of the Awesome Truth winning the tag titles and Rhea Ripley defeating Becky Lynch at WrestleMania was shown.
– The Judgment Day stood in the middle of the ring to tell the fans that they were wrong about Rhea RIpley and Damian Priest. Dominik Mysterio introduced Rhea Ripley as still the Women’s World champion. Ripley said that they have some problems to deal with, but they came out with mami still on top and a new era for Judgment Day. Finn Bálor introduced Damian Priest as the new World Heavyweight champion. Priest told the audience to rise for the Judgment Day, only for R-Truth to show up with his title belt.
– The Miz interrupted to tell Truth that he wouldn’t want to be part of the Judgment Day. Finn told Miz and Truth that they would have the shortest title reign in history, challenging them to a title match tonight. Truth agreed to a six-man tag team match with a man they couldn’t see. Judgment Day accepted the match and assaulted Awesome Truth before Truth could announce who their partner was, as WWE Raw went to commercials.
(Pomares’s Analysis: A decent segment that doesn’t really excite me for the near future. The Cena teases will lead to a fun little match, but after that it feels like we will just see more of Judgment Day vs. Awesome Truth.)
[Commercial Break]
(2) AWESOME TRUTH (R-Truth & The Miz) vs. JUDGMENT DAY (Finn Bálor & Dominik Mysterio & JD McDonagh) – Handicap Match
Back from break, JD and Dominik stomped Truth down, until he was able to give Miz the hot tag. Miz pummeled Dominik down with a barrage of kicks and knocked Finn off the apron with a big boot. Miz spiked JD and Dominik with a double DDT for a two count. Finn nailed Miz with an illegal clothesline, allowing JD to throw him into the barricade, as WWE Raw went to an ad break.
[Commercial Break]
Back from break, Finn and Miz knocked each other down with clotheslines. JD stopped Miz from tagging out while Dominik pulled Truth off the apron and rammed him into the steel steps. John Cena showed up to make a shocking appearance and stand in Awesome Truth’s corner.
(2) AWESOME TRUTH (R-Truth & The Miz) & JOHN CENA vs. JUDGMENT DAY (Finn Bálor & Dominik Mysterio & JD McDonagh)
Miz gave Cena the tag, so he could lay Finn, JD and Dominik with back suplexes. Cena, Miz and Truth nailed Judgment Day with stereo Five Knuckle Shuffle and stereo Attitude Adjustment for the win
WINNERS: Awesome Truth & John Cena at 10:01
(Pomares’s Analysis: A fun use of John Cena while he is available, though I think this match could have lasted a whole segment less.)
– A recap of Bronson Reed winning the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal was shown.
– Backstage, Bronson Reed stood in front of his trophy to threaten Jey Uso, Ricochet and Drew McIntyre ahead of their match tonight.
[Commercial Break]
– Backstage, Rhea Ripley told Dominik Mysterio to talk with Adam Pearce about Andrade’s betrayal. Before Ripley could react, Liv Morgan threw a chair at her head and beat her down, until referees showed up to separate them.
(3) INDI HARTWELL (w/Candice LeRae) vs. ROXANNE PEREZ
Perez slapped Hartwell and put her in a sleeper hold before hitting her with a dropkick to the knee. Perez blocked a bodyslam and floored Hartwell with a Russian leg sweep. Hartwell kicked Perez away and laid her out with a pop up facebuster, followed by a couple of clotheslines and right hands. Perez caught Hartwell with an uppercut, only for LeRae to trip her behind the referee’s back. Hartwell briefly argued with LeRae before being defeated with a rake to the eyes and Pop Rox.
WINNER: Roxanne Perez at 2:45
(Pomares’s Analysis: I wished Roxanne Perez’s showcase match was a little bit longer, but it’s cool to see that a main roster call-up is coming soon. Moving on, I hope this heel turn really pushed Candice LeRae back to a more prominent position.)
– A recap of Logan Paul retaining the United States title and Sami Zayn winning the Intercontinental title was shown.
– Backstage, Jey Uso congratulated Sami Zayn for his title win before they did their old handshake.
[Commercial Break]
– Backstage, Natalya told Roxanne Perez that she would see her tomorrow night.
– Sami Zayn made his way to the ring to a thunderous reaction from the crowd. Sami thanked the fans before praising Gunther’s record-breaking run as champion. He admitted that Kevin Owens’ talk right before his match helped before being interrupted by Giovanni Vinci and Ludwig Kaiser. Kaiser mocked Sami for looking like a bum and said that they would make things right on behalf of Gunther. Chad Gable ran down to protect Sami from an assault and set up a tag team match, as WWE Raw went to a commercial break.
(Pomares’s Analysis: A short and sweet moment to let the people cheer for Sami and pay a moment of respect to Gunther’s brilliant title reign.)
[Commercial Break]
[HOUR THREE]
– A video package hyping up the return of Sheamus was shown.
(4) SAMI ZAYN & CHAD GABLE vs. IMPERIUM (Giovanni Vinci & Ludwig Kaiser)
Vinci blasted Gable with a chop to the chest before receiving a corkscrew crossbody and an arm drag. Vinci hit Gable with an uppercut, setting him up for a palm strike from Kaiser. Sami got the hot tag to clock Kaiser with a diving elbow strike, only for Vinci to corner him with a series of uppercuts. Sami launched Vinci and Kaiser out of the ring, setting them up for a diving clothesline from Gable. Back in the ring, Gable crushed Vinci with a high crossbody for a two count. Kaiser belated Sami with an illegal strike before he and Vinci nailed him with a double dropkick, as WWE Raw went to commercials.
[Commercial Break]
Back from break, Sami laid Kaiser out with a Blue Thunderbomb and gave Gable the hot tag. Gable planted Vinci with a running blockbuster and laid him and Kaiser out with Xploders. Gable sent Kaiser out of the ring, setting him up ro a cannonball from the apron. Back in the ring, Gable hit Vinci with a diving headbutt for a close two count. Vinci avoided a suplex and blocked the Chaos Theory German suplex, allowing Kaiser to get a blind tag. Imperium dropped Gable with an Imperium Bomb, but Sami broke the pinfall.
Gable hit Vinci with a back body drop and countered a diving uppercut from Kaiser with a German suplex. Sami and Gable put Imperium down with a series of stereo German suplexes. Sami trapped Vinci in an Ankle Lock while Kaiser pulled Gable off the apron. Kaiser blasted Sami with an enzuigiri and tossed Gable out of the ring. Sami clotheslined Kaiesr out of the ring and dropped Vinci with a Xploder into the corner. Sami hit Vinci with a Helluva Kick, setting him up for Gable’s Chaos Theory suplex and the win.
WINNERS: Sami Zayn & Chad Gable at 12:23
(Pomares’s Analysis: Easily the best in-ring action of the night with both teams working really well together. Don’t know how long the Sami and Gable partnership will last, but I wouldn’t be surprised if down the line, Gable was the one to dethrone Sami.)
– A recap of Bobby Lahsley and the Street Profits winning their Street Fight, LA Knight beating AJ Styles and Jey Uso overcoming Jimmy Uso was shown.
– Backstage, Jey Uso talked about coming for the World Heavyweight championship after winning tonight.
– Backstage, Adam Pearce, Nick Aldis and Ava discussed the talent on their rosters, as the Draft approaches. Chelsea Green interrupted to complain about not being at WrestleMania. Pearce confirmed that Green would have a match tonight.
[Commercial Break]
(5) JADE CARGILL vs. CHELSEA GREEN
Green complained about having to face Jade, only for Jade to immediately beat her with a pump kick and Jaded.
WINNER: Jade Cargill at 0:33
(Pomares’s Analysis: Just a squash match to showcase Jade Cargill on the post-Mania show.)
– A recap of Stephanie McMahon opening the show, Bayley dethroning Iyo Sky, Drew McIntyre beating Seth Rollins and Damian Priest successfully cashing-in.
– Backstage, Sami Zayn met Chad Gable to tell him that he would gladly give him a title match next week.
– Drew McIntyre made his way to the ring for his match with a mic in hand. Drew complained about his moment being cut short after just 5 minutes. He thanked Seth Rollins for giving him a fight before calling out Damian Priest and the Money in the Bank briefcase for costing him another title. Drew put the most blame on CM Punk for causing the end of the match and threatened to harm him on sight. Jey Uso interrupted making his way to the ring for the main event.
(Pomares’s Analysis: Yet another outstanding promo from Drew McIntyre who keeps on making the most out of every second he’s given.)
[Commercial Break]
– It was announced that Andrade would face Dominik Mysterio and that Sami Zayn would defend the Intercontinental title against Chad Gable next week.
(6) RICOCHET vs. JEY USO vs. DREW MCINTYRE vs. BRONSON REED – World Heavyweight Championship Contender’s Match
Everyone started exchanging right hands, until Reed hit Drew with a belly-to-belly suplex. Reed clotheslined Jey out of the ring, only for Ricochet to send him out. Ricochet crashed into everyone with a top turnbuckle cannonball, as WWE Raw went to an ad break.
[Commercial Break]
Back from break, Drew planted Ricochet with a powerbomb before Jey broke the pinfall. Jey launched Drew out of the ring, only for Reed to put him down with a body block and an elbow drop. Reed crushed Jey with a hip attack, but Jey blocked his follow-up move with a superkick. Reed used Jey’s body to knock Ricochet off the apron before putting Jey through a table in the corner with a powerslam, as WWE Raw went to its final commercial break.
[Commercial Break]
Back from break, Ricochet cracked Reed with an enzuigiri, followed by an enzuigiri on Drew. Drew launched Ricochet across the ring with a belly-to-belly suplex before Reed tossed Ricochet’s body out of the ring. Drew and Reed got into a strike exchange, until Drew floored Reed with a Michinoku Driver for a nearfall. Jey, Ricochet and Reed joined forces to take Drew out with a triple superkick. Jey and Ricochet blasted Reed with double superkicks before trading strikes between each other. Reed turned Ricochet inside out with a lariat, only for Jey to blast him with a Spear.
Drew broke Jey’s pinfall and sat him atop the turnbuckle, but couldn’t hit him with a superplex. Jey knocked Drew into a Tree of Woe position and knocked Ricochet away. Drew put Jey down with a Spider suplex before receiving a Hesitation dropkick from Ricochet. Reed rammed Ricochet into Drew’s legs with a buckle bomb and floored him with a Death Valley Driver for a nearfall. Reed knocked Drew away with a shoulder tackle off the apron and cleared the announce table.
Drew cracked Reed with two Glasgow Kisses and a shot into the steel steps, laying him on the table. Jey took Drew out with a suicide dive before Ricochet knocked him out of the ring with an enzuigiri. Ricochet put Reed through the announce table with a springboard 450 Splash. Drew spiked Jey with a Future Shock DDT, but couldn’t go for the Claymore Kick after CM Punk grabbed his leg. Jey immediately nailed Drew with a superkick, a Spear and an Uso Splash for the victory.
WINNER: Jey Uso at 17:39
(Pomares’s Analysis: A really good main event to close the show and continue Jey Uso’s momentum. CM Punk costing Drew the match will likely lead to a match at either Backlash, King & Queen of the Ring or Clash at the Castle if Punk isn’t ready yet. As for Jey winning, he makes the most sense as a viable first opponent for Damian Priest to beat while looking credible.)
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