TOP 3 DEVELOPMENTS – RAW 1/22: Miz wins Intercontinental Title, Undertaker is Vague, Strowman is Last Man Standing

Miz Wins the IC Title…

Recap: The Miz entered the ring for his Intercontinental Title match during a brief interlude honoring GMs. On his way to the ring, he had a stare down with Daniel Bryan. Roman Reigns then came down the ramp, to loud boos. He was again very loudly booed when announced before the match began.

As expected, the Miz won the title. During the match, Miz slyly exposed a turnbuckle while Roman was distracted by the Miztourage. Roman would miss a spear on the Miz, flying directly into the exposed turnbuckle. Miz followed with a Skull Crushing Finale for the win.

Evaluation: This was a fun, fast-paced match. It served its purpose of taking the title off of Roman to allow him to focus on his anticipated upcoming match with Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania.

Were the boos for Roman louder than normal due to this week’s steroid news? Or were they louder solely because the show was in New York? We probably won’t know until we have a few more weeks to compare.

Forecast: The Miz had a great 2017 and really reinvigorated his career. He deserves this Intercontinental Title, and will hopefully have a long 2018 run. He’s the best guy to hold the title right now, at least until such time WWE determines he’s ready to move into the Universal Title picture.

The Undertaker is Vague…

Recap: At the Manhattan Center venue, the Undertaker cut a promo which ended with the line, “For all those who have fallen, it’s time to rest in peace….” This wording was unusual and vague.

Evaluation: I interpreted this promo to mean that the Undertaker is finished and won’t be at WrestleMania this year. His facial expression when leaving the ring seemed to back up this interpretation.

Forecast: I hope my interpretation is correct, as it’s time for the Undertaker to hang it up. He’s done a few matches now that should’ve been “final” and hasn’t looked good in the ring in his old age.

Strowman is the Last Man Standing…

Recap: In the show’s final segment, a melee broke out between Braun Strowman, Kane, and Brock Lesnar. After Lesnar took out Kane with an F5, Strowman ended the brawl by putting Brock through the announce table with a running powerslam. The show went off the air with Strowman standing victorious.

Evaluation: This is booking 101. Lesnar needs to retain the title Sunday so he can face Roman Reigns at WrestleMania. However, Braun Strowman needs to be protected. As a result, Braun came out on top tonight, and won’t be the one to take the pin from Brock in Sunday’s Triple Threat Match.

Forecast: My forecast is unchanged from prior weeks. Brock pins Kane to retain the title on Sunday, while Braun will come out of the match looking like a monster.

Random Thoughts…

-Raw in a tiny venue like the Manhattan Center was pretty cool. Adding to the old school feel were the ICOPro banners. Someone in the crowd even had a “Silk Stalkings on USA” sign…

-WWE wasn’t totally avoiding wrestlers with highly publicized checkered pasts. They used various stills of Chyna with Eddie Guerrero, Triple H name checked Chyna and Rick Rude, and Sean Waltman appeared during the penultimate segment. They did, however, continue to avoid any stills, footage, or references which included Chris Benoit. Footage, stills, and references to Hulk Hogan were also missing, although he had far less of a history on Raw than Benoit…

-It was a strange decision to give away Matt Hardy vs Bray Wyatt one-on-one tonight considering they’ve been building the feud for a while. The match wasn’t even promoted beforehand…

-Not only did Chris Jericho appear tonight, but he did so in his Alpha Club shirt from Wrestle Kingdom. Between this and the recent Bullet Club references in promoting Finn Balor, rather than ignoring the New Japan buzz. WWE seems to be embracing it…

NOW CHECK OUT THE PREVIOUS COLUMN: TOP 3 DEVELOPMENTS – RAW 1/15: Braun Rampages, Jordon continues to overstep, Miz marches toward IC Title, plus Revival, Paige, more