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WWE RAW TV REPORT
JUNE 5, 2023
HARTFORD, CONN. AT XL CENTER
AIRED LIVE ON USA
Commentators: Kevin Patrick, Corey Graves
Ring Announcer: Mike Rome
[HOUR ONE]
-After “Then, Now, Forever, Together,” they cut right to the crowd as Kevin Patrick introduced the show and said for the first time, the new World Hvt. Championship will be defended.
-Seth Rollins made his ring entrance. Fans popped for him dancing onto the stage in a golden reflective outfit (which made Seth resemble a glittery pineapple) his belt wrapped around the waist. Seth absorbed cheers for a while. He then said it’s been nearly two years since there was a WWE Title match on Raw. Fans booed. He said he thought that was too damn long, so he issued an open challenge on Twitter and Damian Priest answered the challenge. He began saying he’s a revolutionary when The Judgment Day’s music interrupted. Finn Balor and Priest walked out. Seth asked if Dominic Mysterio or Rhea Ripley were hiding somewhere.
Priest said Ripley and Dom have their own interests to worry about. Priest said just worry about them. Seth asked if they do everything together, such as holding hands on the playground or holding the door for each other or “what about when you go to the bathroom, does he hold your…” at which point Balor interrupted. (Yikes, that was some embarrassing material from Seth there.) Balor interrupted and said Seth is going to beat him and take his title from him tonight.
Priest said Seth is a deserving champion with an impressive resume. He said it was foolish of Seth to issue the open challenge, but it showed he “has a set.” He said he didn’t know this chance would come so quickly. He said he doesn’t need Ripley, Dom, or Balor to beat him. Seth said he likes that confidence, but he doesn’t actually stand a chance against him one on one.
Seth told him to put his money where his mouth is and vow to leave his crew in the back. Seth said Balor doesn’t fare well when he gets in fights with him. As Balor began to yell at Seth, Priest told Balor he’s okay with it and he accepted Seth’s terms. Priest said he will be the champion at the end of the night whereas Seth will go down in history with one of the shortest reigns ever.
-The announcers hyped key Raw matches and segments.
-Becky Lynch made her ring entrance. [c]
(1) BECKY LYNCH vs. SONYA DEVILLE (w/Chelsea Green) – Money in the Bank qualifier
As Deville made her entrance with Green, a soundbite aired with Sonya and Green. Sonya predicted victory and Green said big, big changes are happening. The bell rang 18 minutes into the hour. An early distraction by Green led to Deville taking control. At 3:00, Trish Stratus’s music played. Trish and Zoey Stark walked out to watch. Sonya tried to roll up a distracted Becky from behind. Becky came right back and scored a two count. Sonya bailed out to ringside. They cut to a break. [c]
Back from the break, Sonya landed a superplex as Trish and Stark continued to watch from the entrance area. Both Becky and Sonya were slow to get up. Becky had enough of Green after she jumped onto the ring apron, so she attacked her. Graves lamented Becky “taking her eye off the ball.” Sonya went after Becky, but Becky threw her into the barricade. They cut again to Trish and Stark watching intently.
Becky threw Sonya back into the ring. She set up a Manhandle Slam, but Sonya slipped free and rolled up Sonya for a two count. Becky came right back with a Disarm Her attempt. Sonya powered out and then rolled up Becky. She put her boots on the middle rope for illegal extra leverage. Green held her boot in place. Becky still kicked out.
Becky avoided a second rope leap by Sonya and then landed a sudden Manhandle Slam for the win.
WINNER: Lynch in 11:00 to earn a slot in Money in the Bank.
(Keller’s Analysis: Good match. They did a lot to try to stack the odds against Becky to at least add a sliver and doubt that she’d win.)
-Patrick hyped that a video recap up next of the Bloodline angle on Smackdown was up next. [c]
-Patrick and Graves touted 40 million views of the Bloodline angle from Smackdown on Friday. Graves said it easily surpassed the most views of any segment on Smackdown this year.
-The nearly four minute video recap aired.
-Byron Saxton interviewed Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens backstage to get their reaction. Sami said he’s not the type to say “I told you so.” KO shot him a look. Sami said it was great to see Jimmy do what he should have done months ago and they still have to wait to see what choice Jey makes. He said it’s not really his problem anymore. Ludwig Kaiser and Giovani Vinci interrupted. Kaiser said they will be their problem as long as they are tag champs. KO flipped out that they interrupted them when they didn’t call them out. Gunther then said KO lacks discipline, and he’s a disciplined man, so he he wants to teach him discipline. KO said he has a great idea. He said there’s a ring set up where people can settle their differences. He headed to the ring in a rage. Sami smiled and followed KO.
-They cut to Graves and Patrick at ringside. Graves said they had something else scheduled, but Owens is a hot-head and apparently they’re going to see a fight. As KO came out to his music, Patrick said KO is a man on a mission. [c]
(2) GUNTHER (w/Giovani Vinci, Ludwig Kaiser) vs. KEVIN OWENS (w/Sami Zayn)
The bell rang 48 minutes into the hour. Gunther applied a side headlock right away and took KO down in the opening minutes. Graves said KO is becoming more hot-headed with age. At 2:00 Gunther gave Owens a boot to the chin and a released German suplex. Owens rolled to the floor. Gunther pursued him, but KO met him with a kick and a chop. Gunther fired back with a boot and then slammed KO’s neck into the barricade. Gunther slammed KO onto the edge of the ring apron. They cut to a break at 3:00. [c]
[HOUR TWO]
Gunther just toyed with KO methodically after the break for several minutes. Gunther got too casual and cocky, giving Owens a chance to recover and make a comeback with chops, a superkick, and a cannonball in the corner. Sami was fired up at ringside. Owens scored a two count. Gunther and Owens traded big moves, including a fisherman’s buster by Owens for a near fall at 15:00.
Gunther met KO on the top rope and suplexed him to the mat for a near fall. Gunther positioned Owens for a top rope move and quickly went for a splash. KO lifted his knees, though. He followed with a Swanton bomb for a near fall that got a big rise from the crowd. They cut to fans with their jaws dropped.
Vinci yelled at Owens from the ring apron. Sami yanked him down. Kaiser went after Sami. Owens helped Sami. When Owens rolled back into the ring, he gave Kaiser a Stunner. Gunther, though, rolled up KO from behind and got the win. Gunther celebrated in the aisle by yelling “Respect!” at Owens as he smiled.
WINNER: Gunther in 17:00.
(Keller’s Analysis: The give and take in the match portrayed Gunther as a level above Owens, but Owens as resilient and not an easy win. That frustrated Gunther and led to interference and then an opportunistic roll-up. The emotion WWE was going for there was that Gunther got cocky, could’ve lost, and cheated to win only to hypocritically yell “Respect!” afterward despite having help from his henchmen.)
-Graves and Patrick hyped Miz TV with Cody Rhodes.
-A Smackdown commercial focused on “where does Jey Uso’s loyalty lie?” [c]
-The announcers commented on the finish of the Gunther-Owens match.
-Cathy Kelley interviewed Matt Riddle backstage. He said he’s tired of seeing Gunther keep cheating. Kaiser walked up and told him to watch his mouth. Riddle asked what he’d do about it. Kaiser asked what he was going to do about it and he patted Riddle’s chest aggressively. Riddle attacked Kaiser and threw him over some crates, then applied an anklelock to Vinci. Officials separated them. Vinci clutched his ankle in pain. Kaiser checked on Vinci after Riddle left. Graves said he’s never seen that side of Riddle.
-A clip aired of Ronda Rousey & Shayna Baszler’s tag team title win last week.
-Byron Saxton interviewed Rousey and Baszler backstage. Baszler said they manifested this years ago in the Octagon. Rousey said it’s past time they legitimize the Women’s Tag Team Division. Kayden Carter and Katana Chance walked up and said if they’re looking for a challenge, look no further. Carter said they’re the life of the party. Chance said the best way to make their Raw debut would be to step into the ring with the Baddest Team on the Planet. Rousey said they apparently are in Munchkin Land. Baszler said they are brave. Rousey said that’s generous. Baszler said what offsets bravery is the sound of tendons and ligaments being torn off of their bodies. Rousey said “baptism by fire” and they’d let Adam Pearce know their wish.
-Rousey & Baszler strutted out with their new belts as Rousey’s entrance theme played. [c]
(3) RONDA ROUSEY & SHAYNA BASZLER vs. KATANA CHANCE & KAYDEN CARTER
Patrick said Pearce made the match official. Carter and Chance then made their entrance. Graves said Chance & Carter can jump to the front of the line for a title shot with a win here. The bell rang 21 minutes into the hour. Baszler cornered Carter in the opening seconds and laughed. Carter swept Baszler and rolled her up. Baszler powered out before the first count. Chance tagged in and scored a one count after a senton. Baszler tagged in Rousey. Boos rang out.
Rousey kicked Carter. Chance charged, but Rousey took her down easily. When Rousey applied an armbar on Chance while hanging over the top rope, Carter kicked Rousey. She then dove onto Baszler at ringside. Chance slingshot herself onto Rousey at ringside. Baszler yanked Chance’s arm over the top rope. Rousey then went on the attack on Chance’s arm. Baszler tagged in and landed a running roundkick to the chest leading to a two count at 3:00.
Baszler then stomped on Chance’s elbow. Carter got the hot-tag in a minute later. No crowd pop. Carter kicked Baszler and played to the crowd and got some cheers. Chance drove Baszler’s head into the mat and scored a near fall. Baszler tagged in and lifted Carter onto her shoulders. Chance tagged in. Rousey charged shoulder-first, but Carter avoided her so Rousey rammed into the ringpost. Chance then gave a stunned Rousey a top rope 450 splash for a near fall, broken up by Baszler. Carter dropkicked Baszler at ringside.
Patrick touted the debut effort of Carter & Chance, which usually precedes a forthcoming loss. It did here, as seconds later Baszler cut off Carter’s momentum and applied a Kirafuda Clutch for the tapout win.
WINNERS: Rousey & Baszler in 7:00.
(Keller’s Analysis: Impressive Raw debut for Carter & Chance. They were good opponents for Rousey & Baszler, who looked bigger and badder, but had to work hard to win. Announcers have to stop giving credit to the underdogs right before they are scheduled to go to the finish with them losing.)
-Backstage, Bronson Reed approached Ricochet. Bronson called him lucky. He said he rag-dolled him around the ring last month and beat him, yet Ricochet is now in the MITB match. Ricochet called Bronson “home boy” (do people still say that?) and said Shinsuke Nakamura ended his undefeated streak. Bronson said he dominated Nakamura. Nakamura walked in and said he still beat him. Bronson said next time the result will be different. Ricochet then told Nakamura that he deserve props for handling Bronson last week. Ricochet said he’ll hand him an L this week, though. Nakamura told him to prove it in the ring.
-Ricochet made his ring entrance. [c]
-A re-introductory vignette aired on Johnny Gargano talking about being an underdog whom people have always underestimated. He said he was a kid from Cleveland, Ohio with a dream and he traveled around the world for over ten years to live that dream. He said he was told at the Performance Center at first there was no place for him, but five years later he was the face of NXT. Clips aired of fans cheering and chanting for him. He dared everyone to underestimate him “because that is where I thrive.” He said he perseveres in his own special way and his story is just getting started.
(Keller’s Analysis: Good idea to actually introduce him like that instead of assuming knowledge. He got off to a rocky start on the main roster, but this is a good reset. He has a great upside.)
-Patrick and Graves hyped the MITB ladder match including L.A. Knight qualifying.
(4) SHINSUKE NAKAMURA vs. RICOCHET
The bell rang 38 minutes into the hour. Graves said Ricochet has a cheat code to defy gravity. As Ricochet dove through the ropes, Nakamura kicked him. Ricochet fired back and knocked Nakamura to the floor, then landed a corkscrew dive over the top rope. They cut to a break at 2:00 as Ricochet celebrated. [c]
Nakamura rallied after the break and landed an exploder. He set up a Kinshasa, but Ricochet blocked it and landed a Recoil. They battled on the top rope seconds later. Bronson charged into the ring and attacked both men.
WINNER: No contest in 9:00.
-Ricochet dove onto Bronson’s back, but Bronson splashed Nakamura with Ricochet on his shoulders. He then flattened Ricochet with his top rope splash. He stood over both men and smiled. Graves said, “Bronson Reed is a menace.” Some fans chanted “One more time” and booed when he left.
-A clip aired of Valhala chasing Maxxinne to the back last week before Imperium beat Chad Gable & Otis.
-Backstage, Maxxinne, Otis, and Chad Gable were chatting about how to pronounce Otis’s name. Otis said it’s “tomato, to-mah-toe.” (He should’ve said “doughnut, donut.”) Otis said they’d teach Maxxinne how to take on “the Viking lady.” Gable said she has to change clothes before he can begin to train her. She said she had the perfect outfit in her locker.
-They showed Cody Rhodes walking backstage and saying hi to people. [c]
-They plugged Undertaker’s one-man show dates.
-Miz TV: Miz introduced Cody. Graves said no one has the type of connection Cody has with the fans. He said Cody has something to prove and nothing will stop him. Fans sang his theme as pyro blasted. Graves said it was loud and “Hartford came to party.”
When Cody’s theme stopped, fans chanted “Cody!” Miz told Cody he looked dashing. He asked Cody about challenging Brock. He said beat him at Night of Champions and broke his arm, yet he wants to fight him again at any city he shows up in. “Don’t you think that’s kind of stupid?” When Cody called Miz “Mike,” Miz said in the ring, he’s “The Miz.” Cody said he hadn’t heard it called stupid, but he’s heard people it crazy and say it “took balls.” Cody asked, “You know a tiny little bit about that, right?” Fans chanted, “Tiny balls.” Cody said The Beast is on his annual hibernation, so they won’t be seeing him for a while.
[HOUR THREE]
Miz said he has a big surprise for Cody. He said his guest shares the pressure of being a multi-generational wrestler. “Give it up for Dominik Mysterio!” Graves asked, “What a get! How did Miz pull this off?” Ripley and Dominic walked to the ring.
Dom got booed as he insulted Cody. He said Cody is a bad father because he should be home taking care of his daughter. He said he’s a dead beat dad, just like Rey. Cody stood and said he has a ton of empathy for Dom. He said the 15 minutes he spent in prison was really rough on him. He said he has a worse prison tattoo than he does. He said he went on to have a match with his father at WrestleMania, but it was more of a public spanking than a fight.
Cody said nobody is perfect, and Rey likely isn’t the perfect father. He said he’s made terrible mistakes, “and I know that because I’m looking at one.” Fans “ohhh’d.” Then a “Cody!” chant started. Ripley tried to calm Dom. Dom turned and indicated he was leaving. Cody turned his back. Dom returned and slapped Cody. Ripley dared Cody to slap her as Dom hid behind her and taunted Cody. Dom then left the ring. Cody turned punched a laughing Miz. Miz went down flat on his back.
(Keller’s Analysis: Dominik is a good choice as a bridge opponent to occupy Cody at upcoming house shows and perhaps PLE before they get to the Lesnar rematch later this summer. It’s a safe opponent for Cody because he’ll be cheered and he can win clean.)
-A clip aired of the Seth-Priest angle earlier.
-Stark made her entrance. [c]
(5) ZOEY STARK (w/Trish Stratus) vs. NATALYA
The bell rang 15 minutes into the hour. Graves said Stark is going to surprise a lot of people. He listed her attributes. At 3:00, Natalya applied a sharpshooter mid-ring. Stark crawled over and grabbed the bottom rope to force a break. Natalya went after Stark at ringside and threw her back into the ring. Trish kicked Natalya from behind as she was re-entering the ring. The ref didn’t see. Stark then gave Natalya her Z360 for the win.
WINNER: Stark in 3:00.
-They cut to a locker room promo from Paul Heyman inviting viewers to tune in to Smackdown to see Jey Uso make his historic choice. He said he’s sometimes tasked with delivering unpleasant news. He said this is one of those times. He said the news is not pleasant and rip apart the family because Jey will make his choice and Jey will choose and stand by his brother (dramatic pause), Solo. He said you can share a womb with your twin, but you’ll never be closer in life to him than his Tribal Chief, Roman Reigns. He said live on Smackdown, Jey will acknowledge that fact (dramatic pause) “or else.” Boos rang out. [c]
(6) INDUS SHER vs. SHELTON BENJAMIN & CEDRIC ALEXANDER
WINNERS: Sher in under 1:00.
-They showed Seth warming up in his locker room. [c]
(7) SETH ROLLINS vs. DAMIAN PRIEST – World Hvt. Title
The bell rang 37 minutes into the hour. Seth landed a running flying knee off the ring apron at 1:00. They cut to an early break. [c]
Seth got the better of Priest at ringside after the break. Priest backdropped a charging Seth over the barricade into the time keeper’s area. When Seth leaped toward Priest off the barricade, Priest knocked him out of mid-air with a punch. Back in the ring, Priest controlled Seth. They fought back and forth for a few minutes. When Seth dove at Priest through the ropes at 11:00, Priest caught him and drove him into the announce desk. [c]
Back from the break, Seth landed a superplex. Priest tried to counter with his own suplex, but Seth blocked it and landed a Falcon Arrow for a near fall. A “This is awesome!” chant rang out. Seth dove through the ropes again. He hit a second and then a third dive, with the final one knocking Priest over the announce desk. Seth threw Priest back into the ring where he landed a superkick. Seth climbed to the top rope and landed a frog splash for a two count.
Tons of big spots back and forth for several minutes. Seth gave Priest a nasty Barricade Bomb into the barricade. Graves said that ended Finn Balor’s Universal Title dreams. Priest clutched his left shoulder in pain. Seth threw him into the ring, then fended off Balor at ringside. Priest gave Seth a South of Heaven, but kept clutching his left shoulder. He made the cover, but Seth kicked out at two. Graves said Priest was hurt badly. Priest looked upset that Balor showed up at ringside. He turned back to Seth and went for a Razor’s Edge, but his shoulder gave out. Seth then landed his Stomp for the win.
WINNER: Seth in 22:00 to retain the World Hvt. Title.
-Afterward, Balor entered the ring and had a staredown with Seth.
(Keller’s Analysis: Looks like the reason Priest got this fast title shot is they’re turning him babyface, perhaps? He came across like a babyface earlier in the night to set up this match, and then he was disappointed in Balor interfering on his behalf.)
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