{"id":76351,"date":"2019-03-11T22:02:45","date_gmt":"2019-03-12T03:02:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/?p=76351"},"modified":"2019-03-11T22:02:45","modified_gmt":"2019-03-12T03:02:45","slug":"top-3-developments-raw-3-11-new-ic-champion-ronda-embraces-her-new-persona-triple-h-vs-batista-no-holds-barred-the-shield-and-other-random-thoughts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/2019\/03\/11\/top-3-developments-raw-3-11-new-ic-champion-ronda-embraces-her-new-persona-triple-h-vs-batista-no-holds-barred-the-shield-and-other-random-thoughts\/","title":{"rendered":"TOP 3 DEVELOPMENTS &#8211; RAW 3\/11: New IC Champion, Ronda Embraces Her New Persona, Triple-H vs Batista No Holds Barred, the Shield and other Random Thoughts"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"pwtor-1210313730\" class=\"pwtor-before-content pwtor-entity-placement\"><hr \/><b>SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)... <\/b>\r\n\r\n<iframe src=\"https:\/\/widget.spreaker.com\/player?show_id=3076978&theme=light&playlist=false&playlist-continuous=false&autoplay=false&live-autoplay=false&chapters-image=true&episode_image_position=right&hide-logo=false&hide-likes=false&hide-comments=false&hide-sharing=false&hide-download=true\" width=\"100%\" height=\"140px\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe>\r\n<hr \/><\/div><h2>NEW INTERCONTINENTAL CHAMPION&#8230;<\/h2>\n<p><strong>Recap:<\/strong> In the show&#8217;s second segment, Finn Balor came to the ring for a match. At the end of his entrance, the Titantron showed a creepy close up of Bobby Lashley&#8217;s face staring down at Finn.<\/p>\n<p>After a commercial, Lashley made his entrance and the match began.<\/p>\n<p>Mid-match, the bell unexpectedly rang. The camera showed that it was Lio Rush in the timekeeper&#8217;s area. Finn went after Lio, who by then had come to ringside. After dispatching Lio, Finn slingshotted back into the ring, where he was caught by a Lashley spear for the pin. Lashley and Lio then celebrated.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Evaluation: <\/strong>It seems that WWE has changed direction on the Lashley-Lio breakup. It&#8217;s somewhat disappointing that an Intercontinental Title loss for Finn was used to undo the breakup storyline.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Forecast: <\/strong>It seems likely that Finn will be chasing Lashley, culminating with a title match at WrestleMania.<\/p>\n<h2>RONDA EMBRACES HER NEW PERSONA&#8230;<\/h2>\n<p><strong>Recap: <\/strong>At the top of the second hour, Ronda Rousey came to the ring. She told the fans to take their applause and shove it. She said the fans wouldn&#8217;t be booing without the safety of a barrier, and that they&#8217;d cower before her if they were face to face. She referred to Becky, Charlotte, and WWE are &#8220;carny con artists,&#8221; and referred to the whole affair as a &#8220;charade.&#8221; She also gave WWE &#8220;permission&#8221; to make the match at WrestleMania a handicap match.<\/p>\n<p>Dana Brooke then came out. She got emotional, angry at Ronda for disrespecting WWE. She said that she wasn&#8217;t a household name like Ronda, but reminded Ronda of her post-PPV open challenges. Dana said she wanted to accept such a challenge. Ronda beat down Dana and positioned her for an armbar. but then told the fans that seeing an armbar would cost them $60. Referees ran out, and Ronda knocked one to the ground before laughing and leaving.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Evaluation: <\/strong>I&#8217;m not a fan of WCW worked shoots, but this did stop short of that, as Ronda never referred directly said everything was fake. As such, I didn&#8217;t have a problem with the segment.<\/p><div id=\"pwtor-1820928652\" class=\"pwtor-content pwtor-entity-placement\"><div align=\"center\" data-freestar-ad=\"__336x280 __336x280\" id=\"pwtorchcom_test_300x250\">\r\n  <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\">\r\n    freestar.config.enabled_slots.push({ placementName: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x250\", slotId: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x250\" });\r\n  <\/script>\r\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p>The new Ronda character is a 100% improvement over the face version. It not only plays into the fans&#8217; existing booing of Ronda, but also plays off of many negative real-life stereotypes about her. It also seems like she&#8217;s able to channel many of her real-life frustrations with the fans, which makes her promos even more believable. It&#8217;s refreshing when WWE actually goes with fan reactions instead of trying to change them.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Forecast: <\/strong>If the reports that Ronda is done after WrestleMania are true, I expect Becky to pin her.<\/p>\n<h2>TRIPLE-H VS BATISTA NO HOLDS BARRED&#8230;<\/h2>\n<p><strong>Recap: <\/strong>At the top of the third hour, Triple-H came to the ring. We had already seen Batista&#8217;s limo arrive earlier in the night. Triple-H called Batista to the ring.<\/p>\n<p>Eventually Batista&#8217;s music hit and he appeared, flanked by bodyguards. He stood there in silence as Triple-H referred to him as a nose ring model. Batista demanded that Triple-H give him what he wants. Triple-H mocked Batista for quitting and going to Hollywood. He said he wouldn&#8217;t give Batista anything. Batista countered by saying that until he gets what he wants, he would keep hurting the people Hunter loves.<\/p>\n<p>Batista then said Hunter couldn&#8217;t give it to him, since it would mean he&#8217;s not in control. The two got into a shouting match which culminated in Triple-H setting a match for WrestleMania. Batista thanked him for allowing him to end his career on his terms, and said he&#8217;d end Triple-H&#8217;s career as well. Before Batista could leave, however, Triple-H informed him that the match would be no holds barred.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Evaluation: <\/strong>This was a great promo by both guys. They spoke intensely and believably. Batista&#8217;s threatening of Triple-H&#8217;s loved ones made setting the match believable.\u00a0 Triple-H&#8217;s mocking of Batista quitting WWE and joining Hollywood was likewise a believable insult.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Forecast: <\/strong>The stipulation helps the match here, as it gets across the grudge match angle and also allows for some smoke and mirrors if Batista is rusty.<\/p>\n<h2>THE SHIELD &amp; OTHER RANDOM THOUGHTS..<\/h2>\n<p>I was initially hopeful that naming Alexa Bliss as host of WrestleMania tonight meant that the two Saturday Night Live geeks from last week&#8217;s Raw whose segments totally bombed were being replaced <em>in toto<\/em>. Unfortunately a later video package tonight confirmed that wasn&#8217;t the case. Last week&#8217;s abysmal reaction paired with the fact that the audience didn&#8217;t know who the two guys were showed it was time for an audible. If you think WWE comedy is bad, watching 5 minutes of an &#8220;SNL&#8221; episode (yes, it&#8217;s still on the air!) will teach you that bad comedy writing isn&#8217;t unique to WWE. With Comcast Corp owning both USA and NBC\/SNL, however, I suppose such an audible would&#8217;ve been too awkward in real life. At any rate, if Braun wasn&#8217;t cold enough already, he&#8217;ll be glacier-cold after being paired with these two for the next month&#8230;.<\/p><div id=\"pwtor-2199082194\" class=\"pwtor-content-1 pwtor-entity-placement\"><!-- Tag ID: pwtorchcom_test_300x600 -->\r\n<div align=\"center\" data-freestar-ad=\"__336x280 __300x600\" id=\"pwtorchcom_test_300x600\">\r\n  <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\">\r\n    freestar.config.enabled_slots.push({ placementName: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x600\", slotId: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x600\" });\r\n  <\/script>\r\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p>I did like Michael Cole prefacing his trademark, &#8220;Here comes the big dog!&#8221; with an apology on commentary tonight. At least he&#8217;s self-aware&#8230;.<\/p>\n<p>There was excessive talk about the Shield having gone their separate ways, followed by Roman&#8217;s first singles match being derailed by a Drew McIntyre attack, followed by Seth helping Roman backstage, then followed by McIntyre laying a vicious beating on Ambrose. There is no way the Shield is over&#8230;.<\/p>\n<div class=\"pwtor-end-article-groups pwtor-entity-placement\" id=\"pwtor-2124646363\"><div id=\"pwtor-1856871613\"><div align=\"center\" data-freestar-ad=\"__336x280\" id=\"pwtorchcom_medrec_3\">\r\n  <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\">\r\n    freestar.config.enabled_slots.push({ placementName: \"pwtorchcom_medrec_3\", slotId: \"pwtorchcom_medrec_3\" });\r\n  <\/script>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\nTHANK YOU FOR VISITING<\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<div class=\"mh-excerpt\"><p>NEW INTERCONTINENTAL CHAMPION&#8230; Recap: In the show&#8217;s second segment, Finn Balor came to the ring for a match. At the end of his entrance, the Titantron showed a creepy close up of Bobby Lashley&#8217;s face <a class=\"mh-excerpt-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/2019\/03\/11\/top-3-developments-raw-3-11-new-ic-champion-ronda-embraces-her-new-persona-triple-h-vs-batista-no-holds-barred-the-shield-and-other-random-thoughts\/\" title=\"TOP 3 DEVELOPMENTS &#8211; RAW 3\/11: New IC Champion, Ronda Embraces Her New Persona, Triple-H vs Batista No Holds Barred, the Shield and other Random Thoughts\">[&#8230;]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":52287,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"episode_type":"","audio_file":"","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","itunes_episode_number":"","itunes_title":"","itunes_season_number":"","itunes_episode_type":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[52,27,5869],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-76351","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-opnionandanalysis","category-specialists","category-top-3-developments"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/post\/2017\/12\/ShieldReignsRollinsAmbrose_3x2_600.png","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76351","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/16"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=76351"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76351\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":76353,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76351\/revisions\/76353"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/52287"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=76351"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=76351"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=76351"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}