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WWE RAW REPORT
JULY 21, 2025
HOUSTON, TEX. AT TOYOTA CENTER
AIRED LIVE ON NETFLIX (WORLDWIDE)
REPORT BY WADE KELLER, PWTORCH EDITOR
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves
Ring Announcer: Alicia Taylor
Attendance: WrestleTix reported earlier today that 13,406 tickets were distributed; arena set up for 13,406. The arena has a capacity of 19,000 spectators when configured for concerts.
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PWTorch editor Wade Keller is joined by PWTorch.com contributor Kurt Cadet to review WWE Raw LIVE tonight right after the show ends. Join us and let us know your thoughts on Raw during the show.
Email our post-show at wadekellerpodcast@gmail.com with your comments and questions about Raw. We’ll read your emails live during the post-show.
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[HOUR ONE]
-They opened with a clip of last week’s main event with Bron Breakker running the full Gaunlet with help from his cohort Bronson Reed until C.M. Punk beat him in the final segment which included the return of Roman Reigns to offset all the interference.
-Michael Cole introduced the show as they showed Met Life Stadium, home of Summerslam. They showed the arrivals of Sami Zayn, Becky Lynch, and The Judgment Day. A.J. Styles showed up as the valet to park the car. Dominik Mysterio called it harassment.
-C.M. Punk made his entrance to his theme. He pumped up the crowd on his way. Cole said he earned a match against Gunther at Summerslam for the World Title, his first shot at the World Heavyweight Championship in 15 years. Punk said his goals when he came back to WWE were to headline WrestleMania and win the World Title. He said he has accomplished one of them. He said he had been dealing with distractions created by people who took things personally. He said he won a Gauntlet match last week to earn a match against Gunther. He said he can’t promise a win, but with the fans cheering him like they do, he will give them everything he has.
He talked about Gunther’s record-setting IC Title run and now World Title run. He said he only has two weeks to prepare, but he’s been preparing his entire life. He said to Gunther and whatever fans he has, he isn’t just any challenger. “I am the best in the world,” he said. Gunther interrupted.
(Keller’s Analysis: That’s a fine babyface challenger promo, but for Punk, boy is it generic 101 stuff. If it works, great, but there’s no rebellious edge left to that character.)
Gunther entered the ring with the World Title around his waist. After a long pause, during which fans chanted “You tapped out!”, Gunther said Punk has a huge ego. He said he has a big ego, too, but his is justified, unlike Punk. “My ego is based on results,” he said. He said the Best in the World is the man who holds the World Title. He said he will maul him and push him around and choke him out and drop him like a wet towel. He said he’ll make Punk realize he will never be the Best in the World, but at least he’ll have the degenerates cheering for him for the rest of his life. He threw down the mic and left. They showed Punk contemplating Gunther’s words.
-Byron Saxton interviewed Stephanie Vaquer. Naomi interrupted and said they haven’t met yet, but she is the Women’s World Champion. She said after she wins the Triple Threat match at Summerslam, she’ll face her at Clash in Paris. She said she’s going to do what she couldn’t do and beat Iyo Sky. She said Iyo was walking her like a dog before before the match got interrupted. She said she wouldn’t have let that slide, “but that’s just me.” She said she’d see her in Paris. She then cartoonishly cackled and left.
-Rusev made his entrance. [c]
(1) RUSEV vs. SHEAMUS
Rusev took over early, but when Rusev turned his attention to fans, Sheamus recovered and punched Rusev to the mat. The action spilled to ringside. Rusev slammed Sheamus onto the announce desk and they cut to a break. [c]
Back from the break, Rusev took it to Sheamus for a while. Sheamus fired back with a high knee for a two count. Rusev kicked Sheamus out of mid-air as he leaped off the top rope, then applied his modified camel clutch. Sheamus eventually reached the bottom rope. Rusev grabbed Sheamus’s shillelagh and swung at Sheamus, but Sheamus landed a Brogue Kick for the win. Cole said that was Sheamus’s first win over Rusev.
WINNER: Sheamus in 15:00.
-Saxton interviewed El Grande Americano about his goals. Dragon Lee interrupted and called him a fake who was disrespecting luchadors everywhere. Americano pie-faced Dragon Lee. Officials separated them quickly.
-They went to Cole and Corey Graves at ringside. Cole plugged “WWE Unreal” which premieres next Tuesday. He said they’d take viewers insider the writer’s room. He said what happens behind the scenes can sometimes be as exciting as what happens on camera. They showed iShowSpeed being entered in the Royal Rumble when Akira Tozawa was too beat up.
(Keller’s Analysis: That was a weird preview clip as it had nothing to do with writers and was completely storyline-0riented. I suppose maybe they wanted to keep whatever airs on Raw more “storyline cannon” and not “expose” the inner-workings to people who don’t specifically seek that out in the Unreal format. Just a guess.)
-The New Day made their ring entrance. [c]
-Backstage, Lyra Valkyria approached Bayley about whether she was responsible for them being booked as partners tonight. She asked what game she is playing after what she did to her last week. Bayley said that’s water under the bridge and she’d see her out there later.
(2) THE NEW DAY (Kofi Kingston & Xavier Woods) vs. THE CREEDS (w/Ivy Nile) vs. THE LWO (Joaquin Wilde & Cruz Del Toro) – Triple Threat match for no. 1 contendership
The bell rang 47 minutes into the hour. Julius rallied a minute in and took out Wilde and scored a two count. Kofi tried to get a pin on Julius after Del Toro took him down. Fans chanted, “New Day Sucks!” They cut to a break with Kofi celebrating after a rally. [c]
Wilde got in a flurry of offense including a near double pin on both Xavier and Kofi. Nile shoved him off the top rope. Cole said there are no DQs in a Triple Threat, so the ref couldn’t do anything about it. Dragon Lee and Americano fought at ringside. The Creeds yelled at Americano. Cole said they were upset for Americano “stealing Chad Gable’s gimmick.” Wilde leaped off the top rope onto the Creeds at ringside. Back in the ring, Wilde pinned Kofi with a roll-up for the upset win.
WINNERS: Wilde & Del Toro in 10:00 to earn a World Tag Title match.
-A clip aired of Raquel Rodriguez & Roxanne Perez beating the Kabuki Warriors last week.
-Backstage, Iyo Sky told Asuka and Kairi Sane they will be tag team champions. Kairi said Sky will be Women’s Champion again. Vaquer walked in and told Sky that if she wins at Summerslam, she’ll face her in Paris. Sky said she’s looking forward to it because she had her beat. Vaquer said they don’t need to wait for Paris to find out. Sky said they should wrestle tonight. Fans cheered.
[HOUR TWO]
-Highlights aired of the WrestleMania match with Punk vs. Roman Reigns vs. Seth Rollins.
-Backstage. Adam Pearce told Dom to quit stalling about seeing a doctor to get reevaluated. Styles showed up behind him in a janitor’s uniform mopping. New Day showed up and he warned them to be careful since the floor was wet. Xavier Woods ranted about being the greatest tag team of all time and they needed to restore power. Kofi agreed. Grayson Waller walked in and said the dead weight of Austin Theory is off his back because he got himself injured. He offered his services to them. New Day didn’t seem enthusiastic. Waller said he’d go get the car.
-The drone flew near the full upper balcony as Cole touted the sellout crowd.
-Becky Lynch made her ring entrance. She told booing fans to put some appreciation on her name. She said she should be in New York for the premiere of “Happy Gilmore 2” but instead she was in Houston. She said people are calling her win the slickest victory ever. She said Lyra Valkyria spent months accusing her of being a thief of opportunities, but now she’s Bogarting title opportunities. She asked how greedy can one be. “Who needs two titles?” she said regarding Lyra going for the tag titles. Becky acknowledged her run with two titles was groundbreaking, whereas Lyra is just being selfish. She called Lyra to the ring.
Lyra came out. Lynch said she’d give her another title match as long as she agrees not to challenge her for her title again, just like their previous stip when Lyra was champ. Lyra accepted her terms, made it a no DQ no countout match, and said, “See you at Summerslam.” Lynch told her she will respect her. She asked her to shake her hand, saying she’d “once again be the bigger person.” Lyra reached out, but Becky pulled her hand away. Lyra saw it coming and beat up Becky. Bayley’s music then played and she walked out, slapping fan hands on her way. Graves said he is baffled by Bayley and Lyra teaming.
-Ring entrances took place for the next match. [c]
(3) BAYLEY & LYRA VALKYRIA vs. RAQUEL RODRIGUEZ & ROXANNE PEREZ (w/Dominik Mysterio) – Women’s Tag Team Title match
The bell rang 20 minutes into the hour. Fans chanted, “Dirty Dom!” early. They cut to a break a few minutes in. [c]
Lyra was hesitant throughout to trust Bayley. Graves said if you’re still trying to figure out how to get along with your tag partner, you’re probably not going to win. Dom distracted Bayley from the ring apron, leading to a two count after a roll-up by Perez. Lyra got in Dom’s face at ringside. Raquel went to kick Lyra, but Lyra ducked and Dom went down. Raquel called for medical help. Lyra landed a wrecking ball kick on Raquel. Meanwhile, Bayley and Lyra collided mid-ring. Medical ran out to check on Dom who acted dazed and hurt. Styles showed up as a medic and applied aggressive CPR. Becky then yanked Lyra off the ring apron and into the ringside steps. Bayley and Perez exchanged two counts with roll-ups. Raquel blind-tagged in and gave Bayley a Tejana Bomb for the win.
WINNERS: Rodriguez & Perez in 14:00 to retain the Women’s Tag Team Titles.
-Jackie Redmond interviewed Sami who said he was going to deal with Kross because lately he’s been getting in the way of his goals.
-Sami made his entrance. [c]
-Backstage, Dom asked people backstage if they had seen Styles. Finn Balor and J.D. McDonaugh told Dom he’d be okay. An angry Pearce said Dom had to get a medical evaluation or he’d find himself a new IC Champion.
(4) KARRION KROSS (w/Scarlett) vs. SAMI ZAYN
The bell rang 43 minutes into the hour. Sami clotheslined Kross over the top rope and then flip dove onto him, but clutched his ribs afterward. Scarlett took a shot at Sami at ringside as they cut to a break. [c]
Kross was in control after the break. Sami walked the ropes and landed a tornado DDT for a two count at 6:00. He fired up. Kross hit Sami with the lead pipe as Scarlett grabbed Sami’s leg as he set up a Helluva Kick. With the ref turned to scold Scarlett, Kross hit Sami with the pipe for the win. Kross had a bloodied nose. Kross leaned over Sami and yelled at him: “Say it! Just say it!”
WINNER: Kross in 8:00.
-Styles hounded Pearce backstage for results of Dom’s evaluation. The medic came out and said they had to evaluate the results. Dom then hit Styles with his IC belt, then told him he’d see him at Summerslam. Pearce asked for help. [c]
-They showed That Mexican OT, a Texas-based rapper, plus a local furniture store owner.
[HOUR THREE]
(5) IYO SKY vs. STEPHANIE VAQUER
The bell rang at the top of the third hour. Cole made note of Styles making his return to TNA last night on the TNA PPV. They cut to an early break. [c]
Vaquer dropped a knee onto Sky’s neck on the ring apron, then did Devil’s Kiss. Fans cheered. She then gave Sky the Devil’s Kiss center-ring. Graves said they had to give credit to Booker T. Cole said, “He invented it, creepy as it is.” She scored a two count on Sky afterward. Fans chanted, “This is awesome!” Vaquer took Sky hard to the mat off the top rope. Both were slow to get up. Fans chanted, “Holy shit!” Piper Niven and Alba Fyre came out and distracted Vaquer. Chelsea Green attacked Vaquer from behind. The ref called for the bell.
WINNER: No contest in 15:00.
-Sky stood behind Vaquer after they cleared the ring of the heels. Naomi shoved Sky into Vaquer. Rhea Ripley’s music played and fans popped big. She ran out and attacked Niven and Fyre. She then went after Naomi in the ring. Sky and Vaquer went after Green with strikes, and then Ripley gave Green a Rip Tide. “That’s the face of a woman who is ready for war!” said Graves. Ripley, Sky, and Vaquer stood together in the ring.
-Cole plugged that a week from Saturday, Summerslam would begin. He hyped Naomi vs. Sky vs. Ripley. He also plugged Summerslam airing in movie theaters next month. [c]
-Back live, Paul Heyman, Bron Breakker, and Bronson Reed made their entrance. Heyman entered the ring and said he stood before them with the future of the entire industry, Breakker and Reed. He said he had a lot of things to get off his chest before Reigns came out. Fans chanted “OTC!” Reigns’s music immediately interrupted.
Reigns made his entrance. A loud “OTC!” chant rang out as Reigns entered the ring. Heyman said, “I never want to be disrespectful or rude.” He said he’s off to a bad start with him tonight. Fans chanted, “Asshole!” Then “OTC!” again. Fan booing slowed Heyman. He told Reigns, “So that you know, Seth Rollins is going to be out of action for a long, long time.” He said that leaves a leadership void in his group. “So if you think about it, we can fix this.” Heyman told Reigns he would always be his family “because I love you, my Tribal Chief.” He offered Reigns the mic. Reigns took it.
Reigns said there is one more thing he had to do. “H-Town!” he blared. He said a few years ago, he would have said those were wise words from a wise man, “but you’re not a wise man anymore, you’re just a dumbass.” Heyman had to hold Breakker back. He said he’s heard a lot of people taking credit for creating the Tribal Chief, “but it wasn’t him,” he said, pointing at Heyman. He said the only reason he’s still Tribal Chief is because the fans still acknowledge him.
Reigns said the OTC was a champion, too. “The greatest champion to ever step foot in this ring,” he said. “And I’ll say this man had a part in that.” He said Heyman had nothing to do with him keeping the title. He said it was the Usos and Solo Sikoa who did. He added that Sami even helped out. “I lost that title,” he said. “It took four years.” He said afterward, he went home to raise the future Bloodline despite how Heyman characterized his absence. He said Breakker thought they were just some faction or wrestling group, but the Bloodline was God’s work. He told Breakker, “I ain’t gonna say it again, back up son.” Heyman again had to try to calm Breakker.
Reigns said what really gets under his skin is that Heyman used to be just a friend to his family, a business partner. He said he made him a part of their family. He said he was chosen family to him and he gave him a responsibility. He said Heyman threw it all away. He said he threw it away for a “best friend, someone that he hadn’t even talked to in over a decade, and you betrayed me and my family for him?” He said the history books need to understand that he didn’t ruin The Bloodline, Heyman did.
Breakker stepped up again. Heyman gently placed the mic in Breakker’s hand. Breakker told Reigns, “Listen to me, Roman. Get this through your thick skull.” He said they don’t want him around because he’d old news. He said he was relevant five years ago when he was in his prime. He said he is glad he didn’t take their offer. He said he knows Heyman won’t stab him in the back. He said Reigns is worthless. “I’m the Big Dog now, I’m the top dog now, I’m the future of WWE. I’m the man around here now.” He told Reigns to “do what you do best, turn around and leave.”
Reigns pretended he was going to turn around and leave. He paused, then said he wanted to be completely honest. He said he didn’t hear “any of that trash you just said.” He said his mic wasn’t working, so use his. He threw the mic to Breakker. Then he gave Breakker a Superman Punch. Reed went after Reigns. Breakker speared Reigns. Reed punched away at Reigns. As Reed set up a Tsunami, Jey Uso’s music played and he came out. He superkicked Reed and then Breakker. Breakker and Jey exchanged strikes. Jey got the better of Breakker. Jey and Reigns stereo speared Breakker and Reed. Jey’s music played as Jey helped Reigns to his feet. Heyman, Reed, and Breakker retreated as Cole signed off by saying “The incumbent sheriff still runs this town for now.” (Note: The show ran 45 minutes into the third hour this week, the longest in a while.)
CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO OUR POST-SHOW PODCAST
JOIN US LIVE ON YOUTUBE TONIGHT FOR THE VIDEO-FORMAT OF OUR LIVE POST-SHOWS…
PWTorch editor Wade Keller is joined by PWTorch.com contributor Kurt Cadet to review WWE Raw LIVE tonight right after the show ends. Join us and let us know your thoughts on Raw during the show.
Email our post-show at wadekellerpodcast@gmail.com with your comments and questions about Raw. We’ll read your emails live during the post-show.
VIP MEMBER EXCLUSIVE VIDEO CALLER CODE: CLCK HERE
https://streamyard.com/2weaiq8rix
Click that link during the post-show to enter the waiting room as “live video caller” (or just audio if you turn off your cam, which is fine). This is a private link, so don’t share. It’s just for VIP members at this time.
If you can’t join us live on YouTube, stream the show on demand later at YouTube or listen or stream later on a podcast app. Subscribe to all of our free podcasts by searching “wade keller” and “pwtorch” in your podcast app of choice including Spotify and Apple Podcasts and most other iOS and Android apps.
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