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WWE MONDAY NIGHT RAW PRIMER
WILD CARD EDITION
MAY 13, 2019
LONDON, ENGLAND AT THE O2 ARENA
AIRS ON USA NETWORK, 8:00 P.M. EDT
BY FRANK PETEANI (@FrankPeteani), PWTORCH CONTRIBUTOR
Announcers: Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Renee Young
Raw Rating Last Week: 1.63 (0.07 improvement over the previous week)
Arena and Items Advertised by WWE
WWE Raw makes its annual return to the O2 Arena in London, England. The arena, which opened in 2007 has been a host to WWE around this time every year since 2008. This is a two-night stay for WWE as tomorrow night’s Smackdown will also emanate from here. This formula has held true for the past 11 years.
Tonight and tomorrow will be a little different as the shows will be pre-taped. The arena advertises a start time of 7:00 p.m. local with doors opening at 5:30 p.m on its website. By the time this primer drops there may or may not be spoiler reports available. Nonetheless we continue to get ready for Money in the Bank which is just under a week away.
Here’s what’s advertised for the show on WWE.com
Matches & Segments:
- Double contract signing for Becky Two Belts
- Roman Reigns returns for “Miz TV”
- Women’s Fatal Four-Way Match for “Money” momentum
- Ricochet takes flight against Baron Corbin
- Braun Strowman locks up with Drew McIntyre
Storyline Follow-Up
- Seth Rollins and A.J. Styles brace for monumental title collision
- Rambling Rabbit rambles no more
- Contract Signing for Becky Two Belts
As we know, Raw & Smackdown Women’s Champion Becky Lynch will defend both of her titles in separate matches at Money in the Bank. On the Raw side, she will defend against Lacey Evans. She defends the Smackdown championship against long-time rival Charlotte Flair.
Last week, Lacey invited the Raw women (Natalya, Naomi, Alexa Bliss, and Dana Brooke) taking part in the Money in the Bank ladder match to watch her wrestle. She defeated local wrestler Allie Katrina with a Women’s Right in a matter of seconds.
After the match she warned the women that she would win the Raw women’s title, and not to cash in Money in the Bank on her otherwise they would be unsuccessful. Out came Becky Lynch to attack Lacey. They would brawl, but Lacey would scurry out of the ring after Becky failed to put an armbar on her. Here’s the YouTube clip of the segment in case you missed it:
Tonight, Becky signs the contracts for both matches as Charlotte Flair comes to Raw via the “Wild Card Rule.” Here’s your dose of Twitter trash talk:
https://twitter.com/laceyevanswwe/status/1126422802104487936?s=21
She already met you. Wasn’t impressed. #TheMa https://t.co/C5QXmPBNF3 pic.twitter.com/Y4yWK5N9vN
— The Man (@BeckyLynchWWE) May 9, 2019
Here’s your apron, Plank, now where’s The Man’s sammich? pic.twitter.com/87phdrrWIa
— The Man (@BeckyLynchWWE) May 7, 2019
Frank’s Analysis: Was the Wild Card Rule in place when Vince put Charlotte in the match against Ronda Rousey at WrestleMania? Anyway, as far as the match with Lacey I don’t have a lot to add. The build for this match has been very good. The squash match was well placed, and Lacey feels like a star and a threat. The contract signing will be interesting with Lacey involved. She at least creates a buffer between Becky and Charlotte.
Miz TV with Smackdown’s Roman Reigns
Roman Reigns arrived on Raw last week to take care of “unfinished business,” which as we know led to Vince McMahon instituting the “Wild Card” rule. Any four wrestlers from Smackdown can appear on Raw and vice versa.
Roman took on Drew McIntyre in a WrestleMania rematch which Roman won via disqualification when Shane McMahon interfered with the help of Elias. As Shane and Elias were double-teaming Roman, the Miz would appear to chase Shane through the crowd all the way to his limo. Miz is set to take on Shane McMahon in a steel cage match at Money in the Bank
Tonight, the Miz will have Roman Reigns on Miz TV. Roman makes another appearance on Raw as a result of the Wild Card. Miz and Roman feuded over the Intercontinental Championship while both were on Raw last January. Roman goes one-on-one with Elias at Money in the Bank.
Frank’s Analysis: Does anybody know what Roman’s unfinished business was? I’m still trying to figure it out. As far as the segment tonight there’s not much to expect other than furthering Miz’s match with Shane and Roman’s match with Elias.
Fatal Four-Way: Naomi vs. Natalya vs. Alexa Bliss vs. Dana Brooke
Earlier on I talked about Lacey Evans inviting the Raw women taking part in the Money in the Bank ladder match upcoming next week to watch her match. This week we get a fatal four-way with those women as Naomi, Natalya, Alexa Bliss, and Dana Brooke go at it.
Naomi feuded with Alexa in early 2017 over the Smackdown Women’s Championship. Naomi and Natalya did the same later in that year. Dana has been in and out of the scene in the ring but appears to be getting, and I’m sorry to use this word, an opportunity. She’s been vocal on Twitter:
https://twitter.com/DanaBrookeWWE/status/1125088909468291075?s=20
https://twitter.com/DanaBrookeWWE/status/1126104369953419266?s=20
https://twitter.com/DanaBrookeWWE/status/1127351603667787776?s=20
Frank’s Analysis: There’s not much to the match, as it is a fatal four-way. Typically, as we head towards Money in the Bank, we can variations of the match in an attempt to give us a taste of what we’ll see. I did take note of Dana trash-talking Alexa on Twitter. I don’t know if it ultimately goes anywhere, but Dana could be someone WWE tries to push this year.
Ricochet vs. Baron Corbin
As the Money in the Bank participants were being announced two weeks ago, Baron Corbin and Ricochet had a few words for each other. Ricochet called out Corbin for failing to win the title after cashing in his contract. Corbin pretended not to hear Ricochet and questioned if his “mommy let him out.” Here’s the segment from two weeks ago:
In advance of Money in the Bank, Ricochet and Corbin go one-on-one for the first time on WWE TV. Here’s a clever tweet from Ricochet:
https://twitter.com/KingRicochet/status/1127329941912203264?s=20
Frank’s Analysis: I’m concerned about Ricochet here as he faces a clear-Vince McMahon favorite in Baron Corbin. While I’m overall positive on Corbin, I’m not positive on him getting a such a prominent spot just because he’s getting “heat.” It’s been well-discussed on various podcasts here at PWTorch that it may not be the right heat. Also, it didn’t help matters that Corbin basically called Ricochet a child nor did the brilliant announce team saying, “people said Ricochet would never make money in this business.”
Braun Strowman vs. Drew McIntyre
Braun Strowman and Drew McIntyre have certainly been on the dance floor for quite some time. They fought side-by-side with Dolph Ziggler towards the end of 2018 battling the Shield. Braun would eventually split from McIntyre and Ziggler, and they eventually had a one-on-one match earlier this year which Strowman won via DQ when Baron Corbin interfered. Here’s a YouTube clip of that match:
Strowman also teamed with the now-retired WWE Hall of Famer Kurt Angle to face McIntyre and Corbin. Two weeks ago, Strowman and Ricochet defeated McIntyre and Corbin.
In less than one week, they’ll partake in the Money in the Bank ladder match. Strowman will look to repeat winning last year’s event. McIntyre takes part in his first Money in the Bank match since 2010, where he made his WrestleMania debut. Tonight, Strowman and McIntyre go one-on-one.
Frank’s Analysis: Similar to other matches announced for tonight, this is to get us geared up for Money in the Bank. Given their history, I could see a screwy finish to further the feud.
The Slayer and the Phenomenal One Head Towards Clash
As we are well aware at this point, Seth Rollins will defend the WWE Universal Championship against former two-time WWE Champion A.J. Styles at Money in the Bank. It will be Rollins’ first defense of the title on a PPV after defending it against WWE Champion Kofi Kingston the night after WrestleMania. Rollins was previously WWE World Heavyweight Champion in 2015.
Last week on Raw, Rollins and Styles were forced to team together against the dynamic duo of Baron Corbin and Bobby Lashley. Deep into the match, Styles attempted a Phenomenal Forearm on Corbin when he inadvertently hit Rollins. Following that, Styles walked out on Rollins. They would officially lose the match when Corbin hit his End of Days on Rollins to score the pin. Here’s a clip of the segment from last week:
It’s hard to say what WWE has in mind for these two tonight, as they’ve done the contract signing and the reluctant tag team match.
Frank’s Analysis: Why did Styles walk out on Rollins and not the other way around? It doesn’t make any sense. In addition, I agree with Wade Keller in that it looks bad for Rollins to tell Vince McMahon “no chance” he’ll team up with Styles, and two minutes later he’s doing it anyway. Have him walk out for instance, and Vince tells him he’ll have to relinquish the title if he doesn’t agree to team with Styles by the end of night. Let’s have a top babyface stand up for himself for a change rather than being subservient to the brand.
Rambling Rabbit Rambles No More… Ya Know What I Mean
Last week we got episode three of Bray Wyatt’s Firefly Funhouse. In the episode, Mercy the Buzzard was caught eating Rambling Rabbit. In case you missed it, here’s the clip:
During the clip, Mercy made a reference to 1990s wrestler Waylon Mercy when he said “ya know what I mean.” The “picnic” scene with the kids at the end is supposedly a tribute to a Waylon picnic promo. Here’s that clip:
Nonetheless I suppose it’s the end of Rambling Rabbit, and thus tonight we can expect episode four. Bray has left “clues” as to what’s coming on the show on Twitter:
https://twitter.com/WWEBrayWyatt/status/1124823200792231937?s=20
I have decided to drop the answer to the game next Monday.
Some of you have come eerily close, but know one has cracked the code.
Until the grand reveal I have decided to give some clues….#FireflyFunHouse
— Bray Wyatt (@WWEBrayWyatt) May 7, 2019
Clue #1
Treat it more as a poem than statement
— Bray Wyatt (@WWEBrayWyatt) May 7, 2019
Clue #2
It begins with a question, answered vaguely several lines later. #FireflyFunHouse
— Bray Wyatt (@WWEBrayWyatt) May 7, 2019
Clue #3
Limbo#FireFlyFunHouse
— Bray Wyatt (@WWEBrayWyatt) May 7, 2019
*no one
— Bray Wyatt (@WWEBrayWyatt) May 7, 2019
Clue#5
The lines ARE in order.
But it’s not ME talking to YOU
IT was talking to ME
The message came from me subconsciously
— Bray Wyatt (@WWEBrayWyatt) May 8, 2019
Frank’s Analysis: I have no idea what to make of this. As I tell my passengers at work, I’m just going to sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride on this one. If somebody figured out what Bray was talking about from 2015, let me know. Ultimately, this has to end up in the wrestling ring.
Not Advertised for Follow-Up
The Viking Raiders (Ivar and Erik) defeated Raw Tag Team Champions Curt Hawkins & Zack Ryder in an unadvertised, non-title match
Braun Strowman threw Sami Zayn into a dumpster. Since Sami challenged Kofi Kingston for the WWE Championship the following night on Smackdown, I assume all is well, unless he still smells really badly.
Lucha House Party defeated a local Cincinnati jobber. (Insert eye roll)
Ricochet defeated Robert Roode in a Money in the Bank qualifying match. The match was made when Roode complained to management about beating Ricochet two weeks ago and then Ricochet being put into Money in the Bank. Good for Robert, even though he lost and will likely get buried.
There was that Ucey-Hot segment. The Revival just made themselves a fortune or at least will go down as heroes once they go somewhere else, and good for them. Why do this to the Usos, who looked worse more than anything?
Kofi Kingston retained the WWE Championship over Daniel Bryan in the main event. Kofi and Bryan wrestled on Raw via the Wild Card rule.
Start Time & Matches Advertised on the Arena Website
I discussed the start time & doors opening earlier. There are no specific matches advertised, but rather a list of wrestlers.
Follow me on Twitter @FrankPeteani. Questions and discussion are welcome. Thank you for reading!
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