SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
With WrestleMania 42 less than two weeks away, this week’s Raw took place in Houston, TX. After World Heavyweight Champion C.M. Punk put Roman Reigns through a table at the end of last week’s show, he was back to open this week’s show. In true Punk fashion, he used this time to cut one of his infamous “pipe bombs.” With a lot to get off his chest, Punk took aim at Reigns from everything to his part time schedule to his family connections giving him an extra boost. Not just singling out Reigns, Punk also let out his frustrations on other powerful figures within WWE.
By the time his promo was over, Punk succeeded in setting the tone for the rest of the night. In addition to that, we had IShowSpeed once again act as a thorn in the side of LA Knight, a heated brawl between Seth Rollins and Gunther, and the contract signing between Oba Femi and Brock Lesnar for WrestleMania in the main event segment.
Punk vs. Reigns
Latest developments:
On the March 23 Raw, World Heavyweight Champion C.M. Punk was laid out with a Superman Punch by Roman Reigns. Encouraged by his cousin Jey Uso to continue the attack, Reigns hit Punk with a Spear and then a Powerbombed through the announce table. Last week in Madison Square Garben, Reigns came out for a promo before being interrupted by Punk. The two of them got into a huge brawl that escalated to the outside of the ring as security attempted to separate them. After they both got through security, Punk hit Reigns with the GTS and returned the favor from the week before as he hit Reigns with a Powerbomb through the announce table.
With Reigns not on the show this week, Punk came out to open the show wit one of his fiery “pipe bombs.” Getting into how Reigns hates him, Punk got on top of the announce table and said his tools to get to the top were self made while the tools Reigns used were store bought and plastic. Punk then accused Reigns of always showing up late and leaving early while he puffs his chest out like The Rock, mentioning that The Rock is at least a Hollywood superstar (or at least was one). Punk then referred to Reigns as a bucktooth nepo baby who ate dog food for a weird old man and how that same weird old man treated him like a dog until he took his dignity and left, which is why he claimed Reigns hates him due to not being able to control him. Turning his attention to Pat McAfee, Punk told him to call the agent that was foolish enough to shoehorn him in the show and tell him to lower the ticket prices because he wants all the families to come watch him stand on the throat of Reigns at WrestleMania.
Analysis:
Even though Reigns wasn’t on the show this week to promote the match, this segment made it hard to really miss him. This promo was a prime example of how Punk has little to no peers when it comes to using a promo to sell a big match. From Reigns, The Rock, Emanuel, to McAfee, no one was safe from Punk’s wrath. Regardless of how much of this promo was off script, it really delivered in quality and most of the points Punk brought up throughout it are hard ones to debate. While the rest of the show was solid enough, this promo was far and beyond the peak of it.
The lines that stood out most was when Punk said The Rock “was” a Hollywood superstar and when he told Emanuel to lower the ticket prices. Ever since the rise in ticket prices has become a growing issue over the last two years, this was the first time anyone actually mentioned it on the show. Whether Punk said this on his own or it was part of the script, it was refreshing for someone with the star power of Punk to mention it in a setting like this. As much as Reigns has improved on the mic since becoming the Tribal Chief character, there’s nothing he can say that can top this promo that we saw here. With next week’s Raw being the WrestleMania go-home show, he’s really going to have to do something out of the box in order to make a statement as impactful as this one was.
Grade: A
L.A. Knight vs. Austin Theory
Latest developments:
With LA Knight at ringside doing commentary and IShowSpeed in the front row, the Usos defended their World Tag Team Titles against Logan Paul & Austin Theory last week in NYC Street Fight. As Paul attempted to grab a pair of brass knuckles from his mother sitting in the front row, Knight attacked him as Paul pulled IShowSpeed over the railing in the process. IShowSpeed picked up the brass knuckles and as Knight tapped him on the shoulder, IShowSpeed hit him with them by mistake. Paul later grabbed the pair of knuckles from IShowSpeed and hit Jimmy Uso with them as Theory pinned Jimmy to win the titles for he & Paul as IShowSpeed celebrated with them in the aisle way. The following Friday during one of IShowSpeed’s livestreams, Knight appeared and threw him through his camera.
With IShowSpeed & Paul in his corner, Theory went one on one with Knight this week in a match where Paul pushed IShowSpeed into Knight from behind. IShowSpeed attempted to get away from Knight in the aisle way until the Usos showed up from behind him. IShowSpeed jumped over Knight and into the ring until Knight caught him, but Knight let go of IShowSpeed to knock Paul off the apron. Taking advantage of the distraction, Theory then rolled up Knight and pulled his tights to pick up the win. Knight and the Usos cornered IShowSpeed in the ring after the match and as the Usos were about to hit him with the 1D, Paul pulled him out of the ring. Adam Pearce then came out after Knight called him out and Pearce made a Six Man Tag with IShowSpeed, Paul & Theory against Knight & the Usos official for WrestleMania.
Analysis:
As everyone knew what this whole scenario was leading to after what happened last week, this match between Knight and Theory was the pure definition of an after thought. Despite that, the antics around this match and everything that happened after were entertaining. After accidentally hitting Knight with the brass knuckles and then costing the Usos the Tag Titles last week, IShowSpeed has been playing the part well of doing everything he can to avoid them to only make things worse. While there’s been a lot of complaints about the overuse of celebrities for WrestleMania this year and rightfully so, IShowSpeed’s involvement in this storyline has at least served a purpose. More than anything, he’s good at what they have him doing and he isn’t overshadowing anyone else involved in this.
Although IShowSpeed has taken many hard bumps in his other WWE appearances, this will be the first time he’ll be in an actual match. While they could’ve done a singles match between him and Knight, doing a Six Man Tag is the better route to go as he won’t have to do as much. With how he’s performed in this storyline so far, it’s hard to see his performance when the match happens turning out bad. This route also makes good use of the Usos, Paul, & Theory as it gets them all on the card and with all the talent involved, this should make for a fun match. Considering that the World Tag Team Titles haven’t been treated like a priority over the last year, the fact that they won’t be defended at WrestleMania this year is nothing worth being upset over.
Grade: B
ARTICLE CONTINUED BELOW…
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Finn Balor vs. J.D. McDonagh
Latest developments:
On the March 9 Raw, Finn Balor insulted Dominik Mysterio as the two then got into a scuffle that Finn got the better of. As Finn was about to continue his attack on Dominik, JD McDonagh hit him with a clothesline and he, Dominik, along with the rest of Judgment Day attacked Finn to officially kick him out of the group. On the March 23 Raw, Finn came out and attacked JD in the aisle way during Dominik’s Intercontinental Title rematch with Penta. Distracted by this, Dominik missed a Frog Splash attempt that Penta turned into a Small Package to retain his title. Last week, it was announced that Dominik and Finn will go one on one at WrestleMania.
Finn was set to go one on one with JD this week but during Finn’s entrance, he was attacked from behind by Dominik. Finn eventually recovered and fought off Dominik & JD. As Finn continued to fight off both men, Dominik hit him in the back with the AAA Mega Title after Finn threw JD over the top rope. Dominik then took a chair from JD and proceeded to hit him with it repeatedly as he used to edge of the chair to choke him with it. Later in the night, a promo from Finn aired where he teased the return of the Demon character for their match at WrestleMania.
Analysis:
While this beat down did succeed in putting more heat on Dominik before WrestleMania, they could’ve still done that and given us the match first. Considering how much of a factor JD played in the beat down Finn suffered when he was kicked out of Judgment Day, it would’ve made sense for Finn to have a match with him before getting to Dominik. For as appealing of a match as that is, to not give it to us after it had already been advertised was a mistake. While they could still have them face each other next week on the go-home show or maybe after WrestleMania, tonight felt like the best time for that match to happen. With that aside, the beat down Dominik & JD delivered to Finn did what it needed to do.
In addition to putting more heat on Dominik, this also set up the return of the Demon character. Even though many of us were already expecting this to happen, it didn’t make the way it was set up here any less effective. Considering we haven’t seen Finn play the Demon character in three years, this is perfect feud and perfect time to bring it back. While it feels like there haven’t been enough segments between Finn and Dominik recently to build towards this match, the segments that they have had together have all been well done. For as long as this storyline has been teased, it has the potential to make for one of the better payoffs at WrestleMania this year.
Grade: B
Seth Rollins vs. Gunther
Latest developments:
Last week as Paul Heyman was in the ring cutting a promo, Adam Pearce came out to tell Heyman that Seth Rollins was medically cleared to return to the ring. Rollins then showed up from behind Heyman and then proceeded to hit him in the back with a chair. As Rollins was about to hit Heyman with a Curb Stomp on the chair, Gunther pulled Rollins out of the ring and trapped him in the Sleeper. Gunther held a passed-out Rollins up by the hair after letting go of the hold and pointed to the WrestleMania sign. Later in the night, it was revealed that Rollins and Gunther will face each other at WrestleMania.
This week, Rollins came out for a promo where he said his two missions were to take back the title he never lost and to kill The Vision. Rollins told Gunther that if it’s his intention to have a business relationship with Heyman and it may be business for them, it’s personal for him. Gunther showed up from behind and attempted to put him in the Sleeper until Rollins escaped and then hit him with a Suicide Dive through the second rope. The two of them brawled outside the ring as Adam Pearce and officials attempted to separate them, but Gunther knocked Rollins down with a big boot as he was being held back. Later backstage as Heyman told Gunther that he owed him a huge thank you, Gunther said in response that Heyman owes him much more than that.
Analysis:
While this didn’t have the same impact as last week, this segment did as good of a job as possible in making this match feel WresteMania worthy. Considering that this feud just started last week, they had no time to waste here with WrestleMania less than two weeks away. Although a good brawl for the time it lasted, it just didn’t stand out as we have had too many brawls like this on the show already. In all honesty, this probably would’ve been more effective if Gunther and Heyman were talking in the ring first before Rollins would eventually come out to attack Gunther. While we kind of got an explanation for why Gunther chose to work with Heyman, having him give that explanation in the ring before being interrupted would’ve helped sell this match more.
Gunther telling Heyman he owes him much more than a thank you now creates another mystery storyline like the one Heyman was in with C.M. Punk and Roman Reigns last year. From how this played out, it feels like the favor Heyman is going to owe Gunther is a future match with Brock Lesnar. As that’s a match that should be saved for a special occasion, we probably won’t get the reveal of that potentially being the favor until the summer. With the Rollins and Gunther feud obviously being a short term one, having this issue attached does give it more appeal. With their original plans surrounding everyone involved in this all having to change due to injuries, it’s hard to criticize WWE too harshly for what they’ve been doing with this storyline.
Grade: B
Oba Femi vs. Brock Lesnar
Latest developments:
On the March 16 Raw, Oba Femi planted Brock Lesnar on the mat with the Fall from Grace to answer his open challenge for WrestleMania. The following week, Lesnar attempted to hit Oba with an F5 before Oba escaped and clotheslined him over the top rope. Last week in Madison Square Garden, Lesnar called Oba out to the ring to face him. Oba pushed his way through security and Adam Pearce before entering the ring to confront Lesnar. Before anything could happen, Triple H appeared and got in between them as he ordered Paul Heyman to get Lesnar to leave until he eventually did.
In this week’s main event segment, Heyman introduced Lesnar as they came to the ring for the contract signing for Lesnar’s match with Oba at WrestleMania. Oba came to the ring moments later after being introduced by Pearce but as he was about to enter the ring, Lesnar attacked him. Before Lesnar could continue on the attack, Oba picked him up and rammed him into the ring post. The two of them then brawled in the ring to the point where they went through a table as security tried to separate them. Lesnar and Oba eventually got through security and the two of them continued to brawl and even threw a chair at each other as the show ended.
Analysis:
Once again, the interactions between Oba and Lesnar turns out to be one of the standout parts of the entire show. While the build for most of the other matches for WrestleMania has been very hit or miss, this build for this match has been the most consistent. Oddly enough, they had this segment billed as a contract signing and neither one of them ended up signing the contract at all. As their first few interactions made Oba look strong, last weeks and this one made both men look strong. While wild brawls have been a bit overused lately, doing one for this segment worked perfectly.
What was also refreshing about this segment was the fact that it was the first time in over a month that the main event segment was for a storyline other than the C.M Punk and Roman Reigns one. Although that match is the clear main event for WrestleMania, there are other matches on the card that also deserve more of the spotlight. In addition to that, letting other storylines main event the show from time to time is good in making the show feel less predictable and repetitive. For as good as this feud has been so far, their match at WrestleMania shouldn’t be a one off. Even if Lesnar ends up winning that match as the build is making it look like that’s going to happen, Oba will be fine as long as they eventually do a rematch and he wins that one.
Grade: B+
Becky Lynch Interrupts A.J. Lee’s Sit-Down Interview
Latest developments:
Women’s Intercontinental Champion AJ Lee was doing a pre recorded sit-down interview with Michael Cole until Becky Lynch appeared to interrupt it. Cole left after Becky insulted him and Becky then proceeded to dive into how her and AJ interacted backstage at the last WrestleMania AJ appeared in as that was the night that she saw in Becky her replacement. Becky then mentioned how AJ quit the next day because she knew Becky was coming for her and how unlike their last match, she’ll have no home field advantage at WrestleMania because that’s her home. AJ then told Becky that she was proud of her for everything that she accomplished, but that none of that would’ve happened if it hadn’t been for what she did before her. AJ said she knows exactly who she is and that Becky’s daughter will say AJ is her favorite wrestler when she tucks her in at night and told her she’d see her at WrestleMania as she walked away.
Analysis:
While most of the things said here are things they’ve already said, this setting was a nice change of pace. The backstage setting really made it feel more personal between AJ and Becky and was more effective than just having them do another promo in the ring. Although this match doesn’t feel as big as it should, it still is an appealing one. With this being AJ’s first WrestleMania in 11 years and this also marking the first time the Women’s IC Title will defended at that event, both women will likely be extra motivated to have a match that stands out. Considering how long this feud has stretched and how this segment played out, there’s no need to do anything else between these two until WrestleMania.
Bayley vs. Lash Legend
Bayley went one on one with Lash Legend this week in a match where Lash hit Bayley with a hard right hand as Bayley jumped from the second rope. Lash continued to dominate the match with a devastating Back Breaker, but Bayley was able to kick out. Bayley made a comeback with a few running knees followed by an Elbow Drop from the second rope onto the back of Lash for a near fall. After Nia Jax rammed Lyra Valkyria into the edge of the apron, Charlotte & Alexa Bliss came out to attack Nia as Bayley took out all the women on the floor with a Cross Body from the second rope. Lash attempted a top rope Superplex, but Lyra pulled her leg as Bayley then fell on top of her for the pin while Lyra held Lash’s leg down.
Analysis:
While there wasn’t much to this match, the finish really stood out. Considering that they’re babyfaces, it was odd to see Bayley win by having Lyra hold onto Lash’s leg for leverage. While unexpected, it was a welcomed change as it showed that they’re willing to do what’s necessary to win the titles. As it seems like they’ve gotten away from the whole Bayley split personality storyline from a few months ago, perhaps what they did here is a sign of a big change in direction for Bayley and Lyra. While being in a Four Way Tag match is probably not what either woman had in mind for WrestleMania this year, maybe their storyline can pick up more steam once Mania is in the rearview.
Penta, Je’Von Evans & Dragon Lee vs. El Grande, Bravo, & Rayo Americano
Latest developments:
Intercontinental Champion Penta teamed up with Je’Von Evans & Dragon Lee to take on El Grande, Bravo, & Rayo Americano this week. As the match progressed, Penta, Evans, & Lee consecutively leaped over the top rope onto each of the Americanos. Later in the match, Lee hit a Styles Clash onto Bravo before Americano interrupted the count. After Lee took out Americano with a Hurricanrana from the apron to the floor and Penta hit a Mexican Destroyer on Bravo on the apron, Evans hit the OG Cutter onto Rayo to pick up the win. After this match, a returning Rey Mysterio came out to announce that he’ll be the sixth participant in the Intercontinental Title Ladder match at WrestleMania.
Analysis:
In ring wise, this match was the highlight of the whole show. There was so much going on throughout this match that it was kind of hard to keep up with all of it. From the time the match began, none of these six men wasted a single minute. Seeing as Penta, Lee, & Evans will all be opponents at WrestleMania, it was fun to see how they all played off each other here as a preview of what’s to come. The return of Mysterio and the reveal that he’ll be in the Ladder match too was a nice surprise as his involvement makes the match even more appealing than it already was.
Rhea Ripley & Iyo Sky vs. Michin & B-Fab
Latest developments:
With her Women’s Title match against Jade Cargill right around the corner, Rhea Ripley teamed up with Iyo Sky this week to take on Jade’s protégé’s Michin & B- Fab. Iyo maintained the advantage for her team with an impressive Missile Dropkick onto Michin & B-Fab simultaneously and followed that with a Suicide Dive. As Iyo went to tag in Rhea later in the match, Jade pulled Rhea down from the apron. Despite that, Iyo rolled up B-Fab out of nowhere to pick up the win. Jade attacked Iyo from behind after the match and as B-Fab & Michin held Rhea back against the post, Jade hit Iyo repeatedly with a kendo stick and then hit her with the Jaded as Rhea was forced to watch.
Analysis:
The match itself was nothing that stood out as the finish literally came out of nowhere. However, the post match beat down of Iyo at the hands of Jade while Rhea had to watch was great heel heat. Regardless of what her limitations in the ring may be, this segment was an example of how effective Jade can be as a heel. While it’s not saying much, this was the best thing they’ve done with the Jade and Rhea feud since it started. Considering how close Rhea & Iyo are, something like this happening before WrestleMania felt inevitable.
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