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WWE RAW TV REPORT
MAY 1, 2023
FT. WORTH, TEX.
AIRED LIVE ON USA
Commentators: Kevin Patrick, Corey Graves
Ring Announcer: Mike Rome
Tonight after WWE Raw, join Wade Keller live with guest co-host Tom Stoup from PWTorch to break down the show with live callers and emails.
•STREAM LIVE HERE ABOUT 5 MINUTES AFTER THE SHOW CONCLUDES
•CALL: (347) 215-8558
•EMAIL COMMENTS/QUESTIONS: wadekellerpodcast@pwtorch.com
•IF YOU DON’T LISTEN LIVE, SEARCH “WADE KELLER” ON YOUR PODCAST APP TO SUBSCRIBE AND THEN DOWNLOAD OR STREAM THE FULL SHOW TWO HOURS OR SO AFTER THE TV SHOW ENDS.
[HOUR ONE]
-They opened a video package of highlights of the first night of the WWE Draft on Smackdown last Friday.
-Kevin Patrick and Corey Graves introduced the show.
-Triple H then walked out to his theme song and stood at the podium. He said the crowd was loud. He welcomed everyone to night two of the WWE Draft. He said all remaining undrafted WWE wrestlers are subject to being transferred to other brands. He said half the roster was drafted on Friday and the other half will be drafted tonight. He said as a result of Roman Reigns being drafted to Smackdown, they will be crowning a new World Hvt. Champion that will be exclusive to Raw. He pointed at the title belt to his right on a table. He said Brock Lesnar is not eligible to be drafted tonight. He said earlier today Lesnar renegotiated his status as a free agent, so he can appear on any brand at any time. (No shocker.) He said “select NXT” wrestlers are eligible to be drafted to Raw and Smackdown. (No explanation was given regarding the criteria of who from NXT was or wasn’t eligible.)
- Raw Pick: Rhea Ripley
- Smackdown Pick: Austin Theory (and his U.S. Title). Corey Graves said that stings.
- Raw Pick: Seth Rollins. Graves was excited. Fans sang Seth’s theme song.
- Smackdown Pick: Charlotte Flair.
(Keller’s Analysis: Those are the biggest names eligible tonight when you consider the titles they hold or their status or both. It was predictable and logical that Ripley and Theory would end up on Raw and Smackdown, respectively, given their equivalent title holders were drafted to the other brand. Seth needed to be a top pick to seem like a main event top tier priority. The fact that Smackdown drafted Theory instead of Seth could easily be seen as a big “miss” by the people in charge of Smackdown if their goal is to build the strongest roster.)
Triple H introduced Paul Heyman. Heyman walked out. Triple H showed off the new World Title belt to Heyman. He said it is beautiful and congratulated Triple H. “Wow,” he said. “And they call me a wiseman.” As Heyman strutted to the ring, Graves and Patrick hyped Raw matches and segment including Jimmy Uso vs. Matt Riddle, LWO vs. The Judgment Day, and Cody Rhodes and Brock Lesnar in the building.
Heyman entered the ring and introduced himself to the crowd. (A fan held up a sign that said, “Priest kips leg day.” Ouch.) He said he wanted to address that he, Solo Sikoa, and Reigns have been drafted to Smackdown. He said tonight will determine the fate of the Usos. He said they did not win back the tag titles on Friday. He sounded irked. “I will address the Usos in private about that tonight,” he said. He said this Saturday, they will team with Solo against Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn, and “of all people” Matt Riddle. He said those items will be addressed by himself, but also one week from Friday, Reigns will address the situation. He said they didn’t know where they’ll be on that Friday, “as long as it’s not the state of Texas.” He said one of the items Reigns will address is the new WWE World Hvt. Championship. “Wouldn’t that title look relevant around the waist of your Tribal Chief, Roman Reigns,” Heyman said.
He said they are almost 1,000 days into a historic title reign, and maybe three titles would be better than two. He said if you create a championship, Reigns will dominate it. He said Reigns cannot compete for the title, though, because he won’t be on Raw. He said all the children in the locker room who think they’re men are flapping their gums about Reigns who should know better. He said men who are jokers and jokes, and clowns living off past accomplishments. Seth Rollins’ music interrupted Heyman.
Seth danced out and eyed that belt. Fans sang Seth’s song as Seth danced out and Heyman glared at him. Seth walked up to Heyman and got right next to him and smiled and then cackled as fans sang his song. Seth asked Heyman, “Why the long face?” He said tonight should seem like Christmas for him because Reigns is on Smackdown and he is on Raw “which means Roman doesn’t have to run from me anymore.” He said Heyman won’t have to waste energy pulling strings backstage to make sure he didn’t get a shot against Reigns. He said he can focus instead on making sure The Bloodline doesn’t go poof.
Seth told Heyman that since he loves spoilers, at Night of Champions, he is going to win the WWE World Hvt. Title. He said the entire world will finally see what a real champion looks like. Heyman got a call and answered it. “Excuse you,” said Seth. Seth said an arena full of people signing could hurt Heyman’s ability to talk on the phone. Heyman snapped, “I can’t hear my Tribal Chief!” Heyman said, “Seth Rollins, you’re pissing off your Tribal Chief.” Seth went “awww.” He said if he’s upset with him now, he really won’t like what he has to say. He asked the fans how long it’d take him to get Heyman on the mat so he could stomp his head. Seth asked if he thinks it’d take five seconds or maybe just three. Solo Sikoa marched to the ring. Patrick said that’s a scary sight. Heyman said the Tribal Chief told him that all strings are being pulled and a match is being made official for tonight featuring Seth vs. Solo. Seth said if Solo wants to fight tonight, he’s on. Seth cackled. Graves called it a massive match-up.
(Keller’s Analysis: I’m not sure when Seth and Reigns will eventually have a match, but segments like this plant seeds for it to seem like a mega-match when it does happen. Seth and Heyman were entertaining playoff off of each other. This seems to indicate Seth is going to win the title, but there’s a good chance WWE wants to make it seem that way only to have a heel win instead so Seth can chase him for it.)
-Patrick hyped the women’s tag match up next. [c]
-Adam Pearce approached Cody Rhodes backstage. He said it’s a huge night and he’d love for it not to spiral into chaos. Cody didn’t anything, but smiled and then turned and walked away.
-As they did on Friday, they showed doors backstage with the Smackdown and Raw logos on them. Patrick said officials represented each show were deciding who to pick in the next round.
-They showed NXT wrestlers at the Performance Center acting like they’d never had the chance to be on TV before, hooting and hollering.
(2) LIV MORGAN & RAQUEL RODRIGUEZ vs. BAYLEY & DAKOTA KAI
Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez made their entrance. The bell rang 30 minutes into the hour. They cut to an early break at 2:00. [c]
When Raquel was ready to launch Liv off her shoulders onto Kai, Bayley yanked on Raquel’s legs. Liv landed on Kai’s knees. Kai landed a sunset backbreaker for a near fall. Liv gave Kai her Oblivion, but Bayley blind-tagged in and surprised Lilv with a sunset flip for a three count.
WINNERS: Bayley & Kai in 8:00.
-Booker T came out of the Raw locker room. Sharmell made her way out of the Smackdown draft room. [c]
-Lesnar was walking backstage when Pearce approached him. He said if it’s at all possible, he’d like to keep the peace tonight. Lesnar laughed and said, “Good ulck with that.” A recap aired of Lesnar attacking Cody on Raw a few weeks ago.
-Booker T and Sharmell walked out to the podium as Booker’s theme song played.
- Booker T announced that Raw selected Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn, the current Undisputed Tag Team Champions.
- Sharmell announced the Usos for Smackdown. Patrick called it a massive pick.
- Booker announced that The Judgment Day (Damien Priest, Finn Balor, Dominik Mysterio) were drafted to Raw.
- Sharmell announced that the LWO were drafted to Smackdown (Rey Mysterio and Legado del Fatasma’s foursome).
They went to Graves and Patrick to react to the draft so far. Graves said he was satisfied.
-Braun Strowman and Ricochet made their entrance. Patrick noted both teams were still eligible to be drafted. [c]
(3) RICOCHET & BRAUN STROWMAN vs. ALPHA ACADEMY (Chad Gable & Otis)
Alpha Academy made their entrance after the break. Maxxinne accompanied them. Graves said Otis is “a little aesthetically challenges at times” yet Maxxinne is bringing out the best in him. The bell rang 53 minutes into the hour. Ricochet and Gable battled at first. Otis and Braun tagged in. Otis went on the attack at first, but Braun countered and landed a leaping running bodypress on Otis. He taunted Maxxinne and then bodyslammed Otis. Braun then tagged in Ricochet and launched him off his shoulders onto Otis for the win.
WINNERS: Strowman & Ricochet in 2:00.
(Keller’s Analysis: Why was that match so short? I guess they were up against the end of the hour and maybe the show was running long, so they needed make sure they fit in a final break before the segment scheduled to start hour two.)
-They showed Shawn Michaels and Pearce heading to the stage for the next pick announcements. [c]
[HOUR TWO]
-A video package aired on the Bad Bunny-Damian Priest feud with hype for Bad Bunny appearing on Friday’s Smackdown.
-Michaels came out to his “Sexy Boy” theme song. Pearce came out to a theme song. Graves said Pearce was the only one to applaud Pearce’s arrival. Michaels was about to make the next pick when Lesnar’s music played. He walked out onto the stage. Pearce pleaded with Lesnar not to interrupt the draft. He asked Ft. Worth, Tex. how it felt to be looking at the only real cowboy in the state. Fans booed. Pearce interrupted and said he asked respectfully because the draft trumps all other matters. He said his group of security guys will make sure he leaves. Lesnar said it’d take more guys. Even more guys in security outfits ran to ringside. Pearce said, “Please Brock, please.” Cody’s music then played. Cody attacked Lesnar from behind, bypassing the entrance stage. Security ran into the ring to pull them apart. Lesnar dropped to ringside. Cody fought free, but was caught before he could get to Lesnar. Cody yelled as Lesnar was backed away by a crowd of security guys. Lesnar had a small cut on his nose. He smiled after wiping away some blood.
(Keller’s Analysis: Solid way to show the intensity of the feelings Cody has for Lesnar. How convenient that Pearce happened to be out there as a draft announcer for when Lesnar decided to come out.) [c]
-A commercial hyped Bad Bunny would be on Smackdown on Friday.
-Michaels was at the podium and said, “Let’s try this again.”
- Michaels announced Rodriguez & Morgan were Raw’s next pick.
- Michaels said he’d take Pearce’s place and announced Asuka as Smackdown’s next pick.
- Michaels announced that Raw picked New Day’s Xavier Woods & Kofi Kingston.
- Michaels announced Smackdown picked The Brawling Brutes (Sheamus, Butch, Ridge Holland).
-They cut backstage to Sami and Owens talking when Riddle walked up to them. He said they all got drafted to Raw, so they can hang out all the time. Riddle left when his music played. Owens expressed concern to Sami that Riddle wants to hang out all the time.
(4) MATT RIDDLE (w/Sami Zayn, Kevin Owens) vs. JIMMY USO (w/Jey Uso)
Owens and Sami followed behind Riddle. A clip aired of Riddle cutting of Solo as he was heading to the ring during the tag title match last Friday on Smackdown. The Usos made their entrance next. The bell rang 18 minutes into the hour. Jey kicked Riddle from behind on the ring apron to give Jimmy an early advantage. Owens yelled at Jey, then collapsed. Sami threw Jey a chair. Jey caught it. The ref turned and kicked Jey out of ringside. Graves said despondently that Jimmy is on his own. They cut to a break a minute into the match. [c]
Graves really pushed that Jimmy was on his own. Jimmy lifted his knees on a top rope splash. He pulled the top turnbuckle pad off, but Owens rammed Jimmy’s head into it. Riddle then hit the Floating Bro for the win. They replayed the Floating Bro in slo-mo even though Riddle largely overshot it and barely grazed Jimmy.
WINNER: Riddle in 7:00.
(Keller’s Analysis: Another match that had very little air time. It was just there to build toward Saturday’s six-man tag match.)
-They went to Graves and Patrick at ringside.
-A vignette aired Iyo Sky. Graves and Patrick hyped her title match at Backlash against Bianca Belair.
-They showed Eric Bischoff leaving the Raw draft room. Then they showed Rob Van Dam leaving the Smackdown draft room. He crossed paths with Elias and Rick Boogs. [c]
-Graves and Patrick talked about Lesnar being a free agent.
-Backstage, Heyman gave Solo a pep talk. He said Reigns has faith he’ll take out the clown Seth Rollins later. Jimmy walked in and said he had a quick question. He asked why Solo wasn’t at ringside for his match. Solo glared at him. Heyman said they decided to keep Solo focused on exterminating a clown on Raw, his assignment from the Tribal Chief. Jimmy nodded, but didn’t seem happy. Heyman asked if there is something else. Heyman said they’d leave him the room to himself and left, but Heyman told Jimmy that the Tribal Chief loves him as he left the room.
-Eric Bischoff made his way out to the podium to his theme song. RVD them came out to his theme song. Fans chanted “RVD!” RVD said he loves the fans, too.
- Bischoff announced Raw drafted Trish Stratus.
- RVD announced Smackdown picked Karrion Kross with Scarlett.
- Bischoff announced Shayna “Blazer” (he meant “Baszler”) and Ronda Rousey. (Bischoff looked at his note card and seemed nervous or unsure of himself, stumbling a bit over his words there.)
- RVD said Smackdown picked L.A. Knight. Graves said he’s growing in popularity every week.
-Miz TV: Miz touted Raw’s roster including Cody, Gunther, Ripley, Seth, and himself. He introduced Shinsuke Nakamura as his guest. Nakamura made entrance. Graves said he is back refreshed and rejuvenated and more dangerous than ever before. Miz welcomed Nakamura to Raw. He said he has a chance to become the first WWE World Hvt. Champion. He asked if he thinks he has a chance to win the title. Miz said when Triple H said he wanted a workhorse champion, he was talking about him. He said he’s the epitome of a work horse. He said Nakamura would be a great number two, though. He said they could combine and merge their brands. “Miz-kay-nakamura!” he suggested with enthusiasm. He said they could watch each other’s backs. Nakamura said something in Japanese. Miz said it sounded awesome. Miz said it over and over excitedly. He asked the crowd to join in. “It sounds amazing!” he said. “What does it translate to?” Nakamura looked at Miz’s crotch and said, “It means the guy has tiny balls.” Miz was upset. Fans began chanting “Tiny balls!” Miz took a swing at Nakamura, but Nakamura ducked and then landed a kinshasha. Nakamura bowed as his music played.
-Patrick hype the Seth vs. Solo main event. [c]
(5) OMOS (w/MVP) vs. ANTHONY ALANIS
Omos’s ring entrance aired after the break. Graves said MVP negotiated free agent status so he can maximize Omos’s visibility. He said he’s also too big for just one brand. Omos brushed off Alanis’s barrage of punches. He then snarled and gave Alanis a snake-eyes on the top turnbuckle. He followed with a a big boot and a throat slam.
WINNER: Omos in 1:00.
-Patrick and Graves threw to a clip of Triple H introducing the new title last week.
-They showed Molly Holly leaving the Raw draft room. Road Dogg was sholwn backstage excitedly looking at the Smackdown draft picks on a card. [c]
[HOUR THREE]
-Road Dogg and Molly Holly walked out to their respective music.
Holly said Raw picked Strowman & Ricochet. Graves said their performance today must’ve turned some heads.
Road Dogg revealed Smackdown picked Shotzi. Patrick called it “a big pick” for Smackdown.
Holly said Raw picked Bronson Reed. (Why is he being picked after Shotzi?!)
Road Dogg said it’ll make Michaels said, but Smackdown has picked Pretty Deadly.
-The Judgement Day made their ring entrance. Damian Priest, Rhea Ripley, Dominik Mysterio, and Finn Balor entered the ring. Priest introduced Ripley as tonight’s first pick. Ripley asked if there was any doubt who the first pick would be. She said The Judgment Day won Monday Night Raw. She said this Saturday at Backlash, Zelina Vega will regret everything she’s done to her on Smackdown when she pretzel’s her and reminds everyone why she’s the most dominant champion in WWE. Balor said she’s going to “roll up Vega like a hot snot and flick her.” He said Priest is going to tear apart Bad Bunny and leave fluffy pieces of him all over Puerto Rico.
Priest told Bunny to listen to his words carefully because he chooses them carefully. He spoke Spanish and English. He closed in English saying Bunny would receive his punishment at Backlash. Dominik was about to speak next when fans booed. He paused and then tried again. The booing got louder. He kept trying and fans kept booing. Then they loudly chanted “You suck!” He said he can’t wait to see Vega and Bunny go down at the hands of Mommy and Priest at Backlash. He said Rey and the LWO are running away to Smackdown so this is the last night they can embarrass his dad and his “loser friends in the LWO.”
Rey’s music played. He walked out with the Santos and Vega. He explained how the draft works and that they were selected to go to Smackdown, they’re not running away to Smackdown. He predicted Vega will win Ripley’s title and he can’t wait to see Priest and anyone else in Judgement Day who gets in Bunny’s way go down. [c]
-A vignette aired on Gunther, arriving from Smackdown with the Intercontinental Title. “Buckle up and grit your teeth,” Graves said during the vignette. Cole touted the length of Gunther’s IC Title reign as the longest of the 21st century so far.
(6) THE JUDGEMENT DAY (Damien Priest & Dominik Mysterio & Rhea Ripley w/Finn Balor) vs. THE LWO (Santos Escobar & Rey Mysterio & Zelina Vega)
The bell rang 18 minutes into the hour. Graves called Zelina “feisty” after an early exchange for Ripley. Escobar and Priest tagged in next. Patrick talked about neighborhood and family connections Priest has with Bunny. Priest punched Escobar and then Rey. Escobar made a comeback and fended off an interfering Dominik. Rey then leaped onto Priest at ringside. They cut to a break as Rey, Escobar, and Vega struck a pose mid-ring. [c]
Rey avoided a charging Priest after the break so Priest went shoulder-first into the ringpost. Rey then set up the 619, but Balor distracted the ref as Dominik tripped him. Santos dove through the ropes and tackled Priest. Ripley dropkicked Santos. Vega then leaped off the ring apron with a meteora on Ripley. Priest set up a Razor’s Edge, but Rey escaped and set up a 619. Balor intercepted Rey. Priest then gave Rey a South of Heaven for the win.
WINNERS: The Judgement Day in 9:00.
-Highlights of the Cody-Lesnar angle from earlier.
-Cathy Kelley interviewed Cody backstage who said Lesnar is in his head. He said now Lesnar gets to go where he wants to go whenever he wants to go there. He said Lesnar doesn’t even need to win the match with him. He said he has to win at Backlash, because if he doesn’t, the whole idea of finishing the story ceases to exist and then he moves to the back of the line and he refuses to go to the back of the line. He said he won’t ever go to the back of the line.
-Patrick and Graves hyped Cody vs. Lesnar at Backlash.
-They showed JBL and Teddy Long backstage with the latest draft pick cards.
-Patrick hyped the Seth vs. Solo main event. [c]
-Byron Saxton interviewed Bianca Belair backstage. He asked her response to being drafted to Smackdown. She said it doesn’t matter what brand she is on as long as she can represent the WWE Universe to the best of her ability. Damage CTRL interrupted. Bayley asked Saxton why they aren’t interviewing them. She said Sky is going to give Belair a real reason to be blue. “Get it?” Bayley said. Belair said what makes her sad is that she has always been impressed by Sky yet she got herself influenced by two women who are holding her back. She said she hopes Sky will get a sense of what it means to step out of the control of Damage CTRL. Sky had some words for Belair. They had a staredown.
(Keller’s Analysis: They’re definitely hinting at Sky breaking from Damage CTRL with Belair rooting her on to stand on her own.)
-Teddy Long and JBL made their respective entrances. Then they hugged.
- JBL said Raw selected Chad Gable & Otis.
- Long announced Smackdown picked Rick Boogs.
- JBL said Raw picked Katana Chance & Kayden Carter from NXT. THey showed Carter & Chance reacting emotionally to the announcement.
- Long said Smackdown selected Cameron Grimes.
(Keller’s Analysis: Not a fan of Grimes being drafted at the very end. It sends a message he’s not a hot commodity and defines him down right out of the gate.)
-Patrick and Graves reacted to the draft. Patrick said he might be most excited about New Day coming back to Raw.
-A soundbite aired with Xavier telling USA Network to get ready for an injection of New Day energy.
-Solo and Heyman made their ring entrance. [c]
-A graphic said the final roster picks of the Raw will be on Raw Talk after Raw on “Raw Talk.” Graves said there are some heavy-hitters left.
-Patrick and Graves ran down the Backlash line-up.
(7) SOLO SIKOA (w/Paul Heyman) vs. SETH ROLLINS
Seth made his entrance next. The bell rang 50 minutes into the hour. They cut to a break two minutes in after Solo caught a charging Seth with a leaping spinning wheel kick. [c]
Seth leaped through the ropes and shoulder tackled Solo into the announce desk three times in a row. When Seth rallied at 9:00, the Usos charged in and got Solo DQ’d. Riddle, Owens, and Sami ran in for the save. They cut away as Graves was in mid-sentence, so it seemed the show didn’t wrap in time.
WINNER: Seth via DQ in 9:00.
DRAFT PICKS
Drafted by Raw
- Rhea Ripley
- Seth Rollins
- Sami Zayn & Kevin Owens
- The Judgment Day
- Liv Morgan & Raquel Rodriguez
- New Day
- Trish Stratus
- Ronda Rousey & Shayna Baszler
- Braun Strowman & Ricochet
- Bronson Reed
- Chad Gable & Otis
- Katana Chance & Kayden Carter
Drafted to Smackdown
- Austin Theory
- Charlotte Flair
- The Usos
- The LWO
- Asuka
- Brawling Brutes
- Karrion Kross with Scarlett
- Shotzi
- Pretty Deadly (Elton Prince & Kit Wilson)
- Rick Boogs
- Cameron Grimes
Tonight after WWE Raw, join Wade Keller live with guest co-host Tom Stoup from PWTorch to break down the show with live callers and emails.
•STREAM LIVE HERE ABOUT 5 MINUTES AFTER THE SHOW CONCLUDES
•CALL: (347) 215-8558
•EMAIL COMMENTS/QUESTIONS: wadekellerpodcast@pwtorch.com
•IF YOU DON’T LISTEN LIVE, SEARCH “WADE KELLER” ON YOUR PODCAST APP TO SUBSCRIBE AND THEN DOWNLOAD OR STREAM THE FULL SHOW TWO HOURS OR SO AFTER THE TV SHOW ENDS.
The “draft” is getting dumber by the year.