{"id":77868,"date":"2019-04-08T13:28:28","date_gmt":"2019-04-08T18:28:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/?p=77868"},"modified":"2019-04-08T13:28:28","modified_gmt":"2019-04-08T18:28:28","slug":"wwe-raw-primer-4-8-wrestlemania-fallout-the-man-brings-the-gold-rollins-is-the-beast-slayer-the-big-dogs-yard-the-demon-is-two-sweet-hawkins-ryder-in-the-win-column","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/2019\/04\/08\/wwe-raw-primer-4-8-wrestlemania-fallout-the-man-brings-the-gold-rollins-is-the-beast-slayer-the-big-dogs-yard-the-demon-is-two-sweet-hawkins-ryder-in-the-win-column\/","title":{"rendered":"WWE RAW PRIMER 4\/8: WrestleMania Fallout, The Man brings the gold, Rollins is the Beast Slayer, The Big Dog\u2019s yard, The Demon is \u201ctwo sweet,\u201d Hawkins &#038; Ryder in the win column"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"pwtor-744262346\" 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><h3>WWE MONDAY NIGHT RAW PRIMER<br \/>\nAPRIL 8, 2019<br \/>\nBROOKLYN, N.Y. AT THE BARCLAYS CENTER<br \/>\nAIRS ON USA NETWORK, 8:00PM EST<br \/>\nBY FRANK PETEANI (@FrankPeteani), PWTORCH SPECIALIST<\/h3>\n<p><em>Announcers: Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Renee Young<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Arena, WrestleMania results pertinent to Raw, and Items Advertised by WWE<\/p>\n<p>If you can believe it, WrestleMania is now behind us and we get ready for the ever-so famous \u201cRaw after \u2018Mania\u201d as WWE pulls back into the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y. after another amazing Takeover this past Friday night and the WWE Hall of Fame ceremony on Saturday. Raw\u2019s last appearance in the Barclays Center was the night after SummerSlam this past August.<\/p>\n<p>Here are the results of WrestleMania pertinent to Raw:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Braun Strowman won the Andre the Giant Battle Royal, which took place on the kickoff show.<\/li>\n<li>Curt Hawkins &amp; Zack Ryder defeated The Revival to win the Raw Tag Team Championship, also on the kickoff show.<\/li>\n<li>Seth Rollins defeated Brock Lesnar to win the WWE Universal Championship.<\/li>\n<li>The IIconics defeated Bayley &amp; Sasha Banks, Nia Jax &amp; Tamina, and Natalya &amp; Beth Phoenix to win the WWE\u00a0Women\u2019s Tag Team Championship<\/li>\n<li>Roman Reigns defeated Drew McIntyre<\/li>\n<li>Triple H defeated Batista in a No Holds Barred match<\/li>\n<li>Baron Corbin defeated Kurt Angle in Kurt\u2019s retirement match<\/li>\n<li>\u201cThe Demon\u201d Finn Balor defeated Bobby Lashley to regain the Intercontinental Championship<\/li>\n<li>Becky Lynch defeated Ronda Rousey and Charlotte Flair to win the Raw and Smackdown Women\u2019s Championships<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Tonight, I\u2019m sure we will be told by the announcers that the crowd will normally \u201ccheer whom they normally boo and boo whom they normally cheer.\u201d \u201cIt\u2019s an unpredictable crowd,\u201d and \u201canything and everything can happen\u201d are a few others that come to mind. If the Raw after \u2018Mania in 2013 in the now defunct Izod Center in East Rutherford, N.J. is any indication of how the Brooklyn, N.Y. crowd will be tonight, it will likely be quite the wild scene. This is the first time we get a Raw after \u2018Mania in the Barclays Center, which opened in 2012. Here\u2019s what\u2019s advertised for tonight\u2019s show:<\/p>\n<h3>Matches &amp; Segments:<\/h3>\n<p>The Man brings the Raw and Smackdown Women\u2019s Titles to Raw<\/p>\n<h3>Storyline Follow-Up:<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Rollins slays The Beast<\/li>\n<li>The Big Dog reclaims his yard<\/li>\n<li>Second Intercontinental Title is \u201ctoo sweet\u201d for Balor<\/li>\n<li>The (Defeated) Streak ends for Curt Hawkins<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>ADVERTISED MATCHES AND SEGMENTS<\/h3>\n<p>\u201cThe Man\u201d Becky Lynch Comes to Raw as Raw &amp; Smackdown Women\u2019s Champion<\/p>\n<p>In a result that was expected by most, \u201cThe Man\u201d Becky Lynch captured the Raw &amp; Smackdown Women\u2019s Championships in the Winner Takes All triple threat match last night at WrestleMania by defeating now-former Raw Women\u2019s Champion Ronda Rousey and Smackdown Women\u2019s Champion Charlotte Flair.<\/p><div id=\"pwtor-3115803204\" 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 match of course was the historic first-ever women\u2019s main event at a WrestleMania. It went about 25 minutes and featured Becky and Charlotte working together at times, Charlotte &amp; Ronda going one-on-one, and of course what most wanted to see in Becky vs. Ronda. At one point a table was brought into the match to which Ronda said, \u201ctables are for bitches.\u201d In the end, Becky pinned Ronda by countering Piper\u2019s Pit. There was controversy as Ronda\u2019s shoulders were not down at the one-count; however, they were down for two and three. Ronda protested to no avail, and the WrestleMania crowd celebrated as Becky held up both titles. Here\u2019s Becky on Twitter and in a WWE.com exclusive following the match:<\/p>\n<p>https:\/\/twitter.com\/BeckyLynchWWE\/status\/1115224797439508480?s=20<\/p>\n<p>Both Charlotte and Ronda were quiet on social media. Most expect Ronda to take a leave from WWE, and there are indications she hurt her hand during the match. Nothing is confirmed though, and thus we\u2019ll standby on those fronts. As far as the finish to the match there are mixed theories as to whether or not it was a work, or it was a botch. Tonight, Becky arrives on Raw with both championships.<\/p>\n<p><em>Frank\u2019s Analysis: I have to admit I had Charlotte winning this, especially given the fact she was shoehorned into this match and won the Smackdown Women\u2019s Championship not two weeks ago. I questioned the purpose of Charlotte being in the match, but I suppose at this point it was to move the Smackdown Title to Becky. As far as the finish, it\u2019s out there that the botch was Ronda\u2019s shoulder coming up, and the plan was for Becky to pin Ronda clean. That\u2019s odd because why did Ronda act surprised? The announcers didn\u2019t necessarily act shocked either. A second replay did not show Ronda\u2019s shoulders being up. Who knows the real story, but the bottom line is, they\u2019ve pulled the trigger on Becky and it will be interesting to see if she remains as popular going forward. Sometimes when the \u201cchase\u201d is over, the character loses a bit of steam. It\u2019ll also be interesting to see how Ronda reacts after losing considering how baby-like she reacted to her two MMA loses prior to arriving in WWE. At some point, you wonder if we get the one-on-one match between Ronda and Becky that everyone truly wanted at this event.<\/em><\/p>\n<h3>STORYLINE FOLLOW-UP<\/h3>\n<p><strong>New WWE Universal Champion Seth Rollins<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>In a somewhat unexpected turn of events, the WWE Universal Championship match between Seth Rollins and Brock Lesnar was the opening match of WrestleMania. Following the opening segment where host Alexa Bliss introduced WWE Hall of Famer Hulk Hogan, Lesnar\u2019s advocate Paul Heyman made his way out. He said since Lesnar wasn\u2019t going on last, let\u2019s get this over with so they could jet to Las Vegas.<\/p>\n<p>(Was their airplane and crew standing by in Teterboro or Newark airport? My guess is Teterboro. Does he have a Gulfstream, a Learjet, a Citation? Does he have his own plane, or did he charter that bad boy from NetJets? Hey, I used to fly corporate before I went to the airlines. I care about these things.)<\/p>\n<p>Anyway, the match went just under three minutes and saw Brock gain the early advantage on Rollins. Rollins shoved Lesnar into the referee and gave him a low blow as he did on the previous Monday Night Raw. Three curb stomps later, Rollins pinned Lesnar to become Universal Champion.<\/p><div id=\"pwtor-3635561090\" 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>Rollins was involved in the first Universal Championship match at SummerSlam in 2016. His first WrestleMania was in 2013, where ironically the last time the event was in MetLife Stadium and his match opened the show. That night the Shield (Rollins, Roman Reigns, and Dean Ambrose) defeated Randy Orton &amp; Sheamus &amp; Big Show. Here he is in a WWE.com exclusive following the match:<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Seth Rollins promises to be a fighting Universal Champion: WWE Exclusive, April 7, 2019\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/eeJDxhS32Uo?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><em>Frank\u2019s Analysis: I\u2019m disappointed Rollins had to resort to a low blow to lead to winning the match. Again, I won\u2019t act na\u00efve and pretend like I don\u2019t know what WWE did here. I just wish their philosophy was different in this regard. I had similar issues with \u201cMacho Man\u201d Randy Savage when Hogan hit Ted DiBiase with a chair to help him win the title the first time, and Savage held the tights on Ric Flair to start his second reign. It\u2019s cheap, and not a way a babyface should win a championship. At the end of the day, the title is off Lesnar which is what desperately needed to happen at this point. The match was properly placed as the opener.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>Next Up for Roman Reigns<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>In his first singles match since returning from leukemia treatment, Roman Reigns defeated Drew McIntyre last night in around nine minutes.<\/p>\n<p>The match featured Drew dominating for the most part, and at one point he yelled \u201cYou should have said no!\u201d as he had Roman in a corner. It was a slap to the face that got Roman motivated. Drew avoided a Superman punch, but Roman eventually landed one and hit his spear for the win.<\/p>\n<p>The crowd was flat and while it was hard to tell on TV, the response did not feel at all positive for Roman. Nonetheless, he gets the win in his first singles match back, but one cannot expect this to be over. Here\u2019s clip from the match, which includes Drew yelling \u201cThis one\u2019s for Ambrose!\u201d<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Drew McIntyre and Roman Reigns trade punishing blows: WrestleMania 35 (WWE Network Exclusive)\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/a82oZPCr3S0?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><em>Frank\u2019s Analysis: This was the result I feared. It was disappointing to see Drew getting pinned off one spear and Superman punch. Just when you think WWE is going to push him to the next level, he gets brought down. I\u2019ve been concerned about Drew\u2019s push since he lost to Finn Balor at TLC in December, and I maintain that concern. We\u2019ve had our hearts broken before when Drew was here the first time from 2009-\u201914. I\u2019ll hold out hope as perhaps they wanted to get Roman a WrestleMania win considering all he\u2019s been through and even losing last year, but that doesn\u2019t mean he should win a match that hurts his opponents\u2019 position.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>Finn Balor Begins His Second Intercontinental Championship Reign<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>As expected, last night Finn Balor portraying his alter-ego \u201cThe Demon\u201d defeated Bobby Lashley to earn his second Intercontinental Championship. The match went around four minutes and featured Balor countering Lashley\u2019s powerbomb with one of his own following by hitting his signature Coup de Grace for the win.<\/p>\n<p>Balor begins his second reign as Intercontinental Champion after previously defeated Lashley and his manager Lio Rush in a handicap match at Elimination Chamber. Balor pinned rush in that match and lost the title back to Lashley a few weeks later when Rush interrupted the match by ringing the bell.<\/p>\n<p><em>Frank\u2019s Analysis: This reign would mean more if Balor didn\u2019t win the title in February in odd fashion and lose it in an even worse way weeks later. The reign accomplished nothing, other than making Balor look bad and not doing any favors for Lashley. What\u2019s done is done, and let\u2019s hope his second run is better than what we got recently.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>Hawkins &amp; Ryder Being Their Raw Tag Team Championship Reign<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>In a WWE.com exclusive last week, Curt Hawkins &amp; Zack Ryder told the Revival they wanted a Raw Tag Team Championship match at WrestleMania considering it was in MetLife Stadium near their hometown of Long Island (hey I can\u2019t blame them being from Long Island myself).<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Zack Ryder &amp; Curt Hawkins want a Raw Tag Team Title Match at WrestleMania: Exclusive, April 1, 2019\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/AHETS99CEz8?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>While the match was originally planned for the main show, it was moved to the kickoff show. In surprising fashion, Hawkins rolled up Scott Dawson for a pin as he and Ryder capture their first tag team championship in WWE since 2008 when they defeated John Morrison &amp; The Miz, Jesse &amp; Festus, and Finlay &amp; Hornswoggle at that year\u2019s Great American Bash. At the time they were a member of the stable La Familia headed by Edge &amp; Vickie Guerrero. Here they are in a WWE.com exclusive following the match:<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Zack Ryder &amp; Curt Hawkins put on the Raw Tag Team Titles for the first time: Exclusive, Apr. 7, 2019\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/uwmHwlSg0UU?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><em>Frank\u2019s Analysis: This may be more punishment for Dash Wilder who punched the Bret Hart attacker at the Hall of Fame rather than giving Hawkins &amp; Ryder a surprising win in their hometown. Vince McMahon has not shown a propensity for doing that number one and number two, say what you want but the Revival\u2019s reign was defined down by several loses. You can\u2019t expect a long reign from Hawkins and Ryder.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>Other Possible Items for Tonight<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Usually WWE keeps things close to the vest when it comes to the night after WrestleMania, so it\u2019s hard to say who may or may not show up. Given they\u2019ve called up several NXT talents but haven\u2019t placed them on specific shows, you wonder if people get placed tonight or they wait until the superstar shakeup next week.<\/p>\n<p>Speaking of NXT callups you wonder if any of the women involved in the fatal four-way at NXT: Takeover could be headed up. Shayna Baszler retained the NXT Women\u2019s title. Bianca Belair could be ticketed for the main roster.<\/p>\n<p>With the IIconics winning the WWE Women\u2019s Tag Team Championship, we can expect them on the show to brag and perhaps defend in a straight tag match.<\/p>\n<p>Look for nuclear heat on Baron Corbin after defeating Kurt Angle in his retirement match last night. Regardless how you feel about Corbin he has a chance to go to that next level, but that\u2019s on him and WWE creative.<\/p>\n<p>I think we can be spared horrible segments with the SNL guys now that Braun Strowman won the Andre the Giant memorial battle royal.<\/p>\n<p>Start Time &amp; Matches Advertised on the Arena Website<\/p>\n<p>The Barclays Center\u2019s website advertises a start time of 7:30 p.m. local. They advertise no matches nor any specific wrestlers appearing, but they do acknowledge that it\u2019s the Raw after WrestleMania.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><em>Follow Frank on Twitter @FrankPeteani or e-mail fpeteani@gmail.com. Questions and discussion are welcome. Thank you for reading!<\/em><\/p>\n<div class=\"pwtor-end-article-groups pwtor-entity-placement\" id=\"pwtor-2353561245\"><div id=\"pwtor-1042448777\"><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>WWE MONDAY NIGHT RAW PRIMER APRIL 8, 2019 BROOKLYN, N.Y. AT THE BARCLAYS CENTER AIRS ON USA NETWORK, 8:00PM EST BY FRANK PETEANI (@FrankPeteani), PWTORCH SPECIALIST Announcers: Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Renee Young Arena, WrestleMania <a class=\"mh-excerpt-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/2019\/04\/08\/wwe-raw-primer-4-8-wrestlemania-fallout-the-man-brings-the-gold-rollins-is-the-beast-slayer-the-big-dogs-yard-the-demon-is-two-sweet-hawkins-ryder-in-the-win-column\/\" title=\"WWE RAW PRIMER 4\/8: WrestleMania Fallout, The Man brings the gold, Rollins is the Beast Slayer, The Big Dog\u2019s yard, The Demon is \u201ctwo sweet,\u201d Hawkins &#038; Ryder in the win column\">[&#8230;]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5642,"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":[2,52,4354,27,5893,3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-77868","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-prowrestlingnews","category-opnionandanalysis","category-raw-primer","category-specialists","category-tvprimers","category-news_wwe"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/BalorFinnTB_3x2_600.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77868","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\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=77868"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77868\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":77869,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77868\/revisions\/77869"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5642"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=77868"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=77868"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=77868"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}