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Emanating from New York’s Madison Square Garden, this week’s Raw had everything from star power, guest celebrities, and most of all, the progression on the road to WrestleMania.
Out of everything that was on the show, what stood out the most was the main event. After their match on the Raw premiere on Netflix in January that could’ve gone either way, C.M. Punk and Seth Rollins had their highly anticipated rematch this week. With their feud filled with so much bad blood and personal animosity, it was only fitting for this rematch to take place inside a Steel Cage. For as many memorable Steel Cage matches that have taken place at MSG, this one went down as arguably the best.
With a surprise return during the match that played into the outcome, it seems that their issues will continue going into WrestleMania with other major personalities added to the mix. In addition to that, we had Gunther once again sneak attack Jey Uso, WWE Champion Cody Rhodes send another message to John Cena, and the fallout from last week’s shocking ending to the Women’s World Championship match. As there’s usually a different feeling for WWE shows at the Garden, this show exemplified why that’s the case.
Gunther vs. Jey Uso
Latest Developments:
Over the last few weeks, World Heavyweight Champion Gunther has dished out brutal beatings to his opponents in order to send a message to Jey Uso. After making an example of Akira Tozawa two weeks ago, the champion defeated Otis last week but despite the win, he continued attacking him afterwards. Jey Uso came to the rescue of Otis and Speared Gunther but was attacked moments later by Grayson Waller and Austin Theory from behind as he stood on the second rope. After Jey fought them off, Gunther snuck up from behind and trapped him in the Sleeper.
This week, Jey opened the show by going one on one with Waller. Despite interference from Theory, Jey Super Kicked him off the apron and then hit Waller with a Spear for the win. Waller and Theory attacked him from behind after the match, but Jey quickly fought back when he back dropped Waller out of the ring and hit Theory with a Spear and a Splash from the top rope. As Jey was getting up, Gunther once again snuck up from behind and trapped him in the Sleeper. After officials eventually got him to release the hold, Gunther raised his hands up in triumph as he had one foot on top of Jey’s chest.
Analysis:
For as consistent as the Gunther and Jey Uso feud has been since the Royal Rumble, what happened this week is starting to make it feel repetitive. Gunther sneaking up from behind and trapping Jey in the Sleeper was no different from what he did to him last week. The only difference here besides the arena they were in was the fact that it happened after Jey’s match as opposed to after Gunther’s. Not only that, the match we got before that happened last week was also a lot better than the match we got here. While it wasn’t anything you could call bad, this match between Jey and Grayson Waller was short, basic, and didn’t have much of a story worth investing in.
In all honesty, the highlight of this whole segment was Jey’s entrance. Considering that they were in the Garden and the fact that Jey hasn’t done his entrance on TV in a month, there was no way that they could skip it this week. With WrestleMania still over a month away and this feud starting to feel repetitive, it would be a good idea to keep the two of them apart for the next week or two. While people will still be hot for the match by the time it happens, continuing to have their segments end like this is only cooling off one of their biggest stories heading into WrestleMania that started out so strong. Whether they do an injury angle to write Jey off TV for a few weeks or if they just keep him and Gunther separated, taking a break from this feud until we get closer to their match would do it a lot of good.
Grade: C
New Day vs. Rey Mysterio & Dragon Lee
Latest Developments:
Ever since Kofi Kingston & Xavier Woods turned on Big E and kicked him out of the New Day, they have constantly been at odds with Rey Mysterio and the L.W.O. After both losing to Mysterio in separate singles matches, they finally got the upper hand with a win over Mysterio and Dragon Lee on the February 3 Raw due to outside interference from Logan Paul. The following week, the New Day attacked Mysterio following his loss to Paul and injured his leg when Xavier hit it with a chair. Two weeks later, Kofi & Xavier continued to get the better of the L.W.O. as they defeated Joaquin Wilde & Cruz Del Toro. Last week in a pre-taped promo, Mysterio & Lee challenged the New Day to a Texas Tornado Rules match for this week that was made official later that night.
They had the match this week and as the New Day had the advantage in the first half, Mysterio and Lee rebounded when Mysterio jumped from the top rope of one side of the ring to hit Xavier with a Hurricanrana as he stood on the second rope of the other side. Lee then hit Xavier with a Hurricanrana from the apron as Xavier barely went through the table down on the floor. After Lee leaped over the top rope onto Kofi, a mystery man in a Lucha Dore mask (presumably Chad Gable) showed up out of nowhere and hit Lee with a Hurricanrana from the top of the announce table. Mysterio went after the mystery man, but he put down Mysterio with a delayed German Suplex onto the floor before being taken away by security. That allowed Kofi & Xavier to hit Mysterio with the Midnight Hours for the win.
Analysis:
While this match could’ve been a little longer, it was fun for the time it lasted. For as good as this match was, the main takeaway from it was the appearance from the mystery man in the Lucha Dore mask who we all know was Chad Gable. After we saw Gable receive something in a box last week during his trip to Mexico containing the secret to Lucha Libre, there was a good chance we were going to see what was in that box this week. Now that we saw what we did here, it’s looking like this is going to be a storyline similar to when Edge & Christian dressed up as the Los Conquistadors and when Hulk Hogan dressed up as Mr. America. Even though it’s a storyline that’s been done before, Gable has enough comedic chops to make this work.
In addition to the appearance of Gable in the Lucha Dore mask, what this also accomplished was giving the New Day another win. As their heel turn has really cooled off compared to how it began, consistently winning matches like this at least helps them maintain the heat that they do have. Now that they defeated Mysterio & Lee, this should put them in line for a shot at the World Tag Team Titles. This feud with Mysterio and the L.W.O. feels like it’s gone on long enough and it’s time for them to move on to something else. With it being this close to WrestleMania and the momentum the War Raiders have had in recent months, challenging them for the titles feels like the biggest thing Kofi & Xavier could do at this point.
Grade: B
ARTICLE CONTINUED BELOW…
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Cody Rhodes Cuts a Promo on John Cena
Latest Developments:
At Elimination Chamber, John Cena won the Chamber match to earn a shot at the WWE Championship against Cody Rhodes at WrestleMania. Immediately after the match, Cena stayed in the ring for the segment where Cody was going to decide if he would accept the offer from The Rock to be his champion. Cody refused The Rock’s offer and as Cena celebrated the decision and gave him a hug, the expression on Cena’s face changed when he stared at The Rock, and The Rock did the throat sliding symbol. Cena then shocked the world when he kicked Cody below the belt, hit him in the head multiple times with his Rolex and the WWE Title, and The Rock whipped Cody with a leather belt as Cena and Travis Scott held him down. When Cody came out last Friday on Smackdown sporting a black eye to discuss what happened, he said to Cena that clearly you want some, so come and get some.
Cody came out to the ring this week to speak on Cena some more. Cody compared Cena to a coach that stands on the sideline and still calls plays when you’re in the midst of the game and he said at some point you have to look over and say, “John, sit down you Goddamn moron.” He continued by saying no one defined best for business more than John Cena did, but the business has changed. Cody mentioned that there is a stat that will never be that is one man’s delusion, and that one stat is 17. He ended the promo by stating 17 doesn’t happen but what does happen is that he gets the heartbreaking privilege of beating his hero in his last chance and Cena will find out in real time that he’s the captain now.
Analysis:
Although this promo wasn’t as strong as his promo on Smackdown, this promo from Cody had great intensity and it accomplished what it needed to. As Cena isn’t scheduled to be on TV again until Raw next week, this segment felt like a means of killing time until then. However, this segment really succeeded in building anticipation for when Cena and Cody will cross paths next week for the first time since Elimination Chamber. The Cena heel turn was one of the most shocking angles we’ve seen in wrestling in years, and it’s made this road to WrestleMania arguably more interesting than last year’s was. While a babyface vs. babyface match between Cody and Cena would’ve been a big deal, having Cena be a heel for this feud instead is a much better direction to go in.
For all the buzz that has surrounded Cena’s turn since it happened, finally getting his explanation for it combined with sharing the ring with Cody are going to make next week’s Raw one of the most must watch episodes in years. As great at cutting promos as Cody is, Cena is in a class of his own when it comes to that. Especially with Cena being a heel now, whatever shots he takes at Cody are going to hit even harder now. For as long as Cena was the top guy and the face of the company, Cody has in many ways become his successor. With their star power, promo skills, and the comparisons between them, this has the potential to be one of the most compelling stories of the teacher vs. the student that we’ve ever seen play out.
Grade: B
Iyo Sky vs. Bianca Belair vs. Rhea Ripley
Latest Developments:
Last week, Rhea Ripley defended her Women’s World Championship against Iyo Sky with number one contender Bianca Belair sitting at ringside to see who she’d be facing at WrestleMania. At one point, Rhea got angry at Bianca for encouraging Iyo to get back into the ring to avoid being counted out. This led to Rhea getting into Bianca’s face outside the ring and the two of them having a shoving match. As Rhea was about to hit Iyo with a Riptide from the top rope, she told Bianca that she’ll see her at Mania. This distraction cost Rhea as Iyo reversed the Riptide attempt into a Hurricanrana followed by the Over the Moonsault to win the title.
This week, Iyo came out to the ring for an interview with Michael Cole to celebrate last week’s title win. Bianca Belair then appeared to discuss what happened during the match last week until Rhea came out to interrupt. As an angry Rhea told Bianca that she should’ve let her handle her business with Iyo while she handled her own with Naomi and Jade, Bianca responded by saying Rhea’s only trying to blame her for the loss because she knows she can’t beat Iyo. Iyo attempted to get in between them before she was pie faced by Rhea, followed by being pie faced by Biaca when she tried again. Tired of the disrespect, Iyo slapped both Rhea and Bianca as she stomped up and down and pointed out the fact that she’s the champion.
Analysis:
Other than the main event (which we’ll get into later), this was the best segment of the whole show. While there was uncertainty surrounding the title situation at WrestleMania after the way last week’s match ended, now it’s clear that we have our answer. You could really feel the tension here between Rhea and Bianca, and Iyo played her part perfectly as the overlooked champion demanding respect. For the way both Bianca and Rhea treated her as an afterthought, Iyo slapping the both of them was the only logical way for her to respond. As appealing as a singles match between Bianca and Rhea would be, what happened here showed that Iyo will only add to this storyline rather than take away from it.
From what we saw last week and here in this segment, it’s starting to feel like this is all leading to a heel turn for Rhea. Considering that she got so upset with Bianca just for cheering for Rhea and the fact that she blames her for losing the title, she doesn’t really come off likeable in this story at all so far. While it is a risk to turn her with her popularity and cool factor, this direction with her character in the last two weeks has been the best work she’s done since the peak of her feud with Liv Morgan last summer. Even though this storyline is still new, this Iyo, Bianca, and Rhea situation is already one of the three most compelling feuds heading into WrestleMania. As any good storyline should do, what we saw here has built great anticipation in seeing what’s going to happen next.
Grade: B+
C.M. Punk vs. Seth Rollins
Latest Developments:
After both being eliminated by C.M. Punk from the Royal Rumble match, Seth Rollins nailed Roman Reigns with a double Curb Stomp onto the steel steps and Reigns hasn’t been seen since. At Elimination Chamber, Rollins was eliminated from the Chamber match by Punk following a GTS from Punk and an Attitude Adjustment from Cena. Several moments later, Rollins Curb Stomped Punk onto the steel floor of the Chamber and that led to Punk losing the match to Cena. Last week on Raw, Rollins and Punk got into a wild brawl that spilled throughout the entire ringside area that took officials multiple attempts to break up. After they continued brawling backstage later in the show, Adam Pearce made a match official between them official for this week inside a Steel Cage.
In the show’s main event, each man kicked out of everything that the other dished out including three Flying Elbow Drops from Punk, a Superplex from the top of the cage by Rollins, and even from each other’s finisher’s multiple times. As Rollins was sitting by the cage door following a Curb Stomp to Punk from the second rope, he was pulled out of the cage by a returning Roman Reigns. Since both feet of his technically hit the floor because of this, Rollins won the match. Reigns hit Rollins with a Superman Punch, a Spear, and a Curb Stomp on the floor and as he was about to Curb Stomp him on the steel steps, multiple officials ran out to stop him. Reigns then noticed Paul Heyman checking on Punk inside the cage, which led to him going inside of the cage to throw Punk into it and he laid him with a Spear as the show went off the air.
Analysis:
This was hands down the best traditional Cage match in WWE since the one between Bret Hart and Owen Hart from Summerslam 1994. With how personal this feud has been between Punk and Rollins, a Steel Cage and Madison Square Garden was the perfect setting for this match. While some may complain that the two of them kicking out of each other’s finisher’s so many times was over kill, this was one of the few scenarios where those multiple kick outs worked. This match really had an old school feel that provided the type of bad blood for a Cage match that hasn’t been seen in WWE in a long time. For as great as the match was, the outcome and the aftermath turned out to be every bit as incredible.
While many thought we were going to see the return of Roman Reigns here to cost Rollins the match, the way he accidentally helped him win by pulling him out of the cage and then giving him such a brutal beating afterwards was perfectly done. In addition to this establishing his feud with Rollins heading into WrestleMania, what we saw here also created an issue between Reigns and Punk as what Reigns did cost him the match combined with the fact that Reigns attacked Punk after he saw Heyman checking on him. With the issues between Punk, Rollins, and Reigns and the potential triangle between Punk, Reigns, and Heyman, this storyline feels like it’s going to give us two three ways for the price of one. While the idea of a Triple Threat between these men seemed strange considering there’s no title or prize on the line, what happened here and considering the favor that Heyman still owes Punk has created a hot enough storyline that puts any doubts that anyone had about this idea to bed.
Grade: A
A.J. Styles Saves Andrew Schulz from Logan Paul
Logan Paul came out to cut a promo about how celebrities come to WWE events to see him and then he pointed out comedian Andrew Schulz sitting in the front row. Paul went up to Schulz to ask him why he came out to the show, and Schulz said he came to see the Steel Cage match between C.M. Punk and Seth Rollins. When Paul asked who he came out to see, Schulz told him that no one came to see him and that he wanted to see A.J. Styles. Paul pulled Schulz over the railing, threw him into the ring, and as he was about to Suplex him, Styles came out to interrupt. Styles attacked Paul, hit him with the Phenomenal Forearm, and Styles raised up Schulz’s hand to end the segment.
Analysis:
Considering all the cross-promotion WWE does with Netflix, the way they used Andrew Schulz for this segment to promote his comedy special was well done. For as much as people criticized the amount of focus that was put on all the celebrities that were at the show this week, it worked in this situation considering that it was part of an angle. Paul is just such an easy person to dislike and for him to target a celebrity like Schulz in his hometown was the perfect way to give him even more heat than he already has. In addition to that, this helped establish the feud between Styles and Paul. Whether we get that match at WrestleMania or on Raw within the next few weeks, seeing these two go against each other will be a match that stands out on any show it’s booked on.
Bayley vs. Raquel Rodriguez
This week, Bayley and Raquel Rodriguez went one on one to decide who will get a shot at Lyra Valkyria’s women’s Intercontinental Championship. Both women found themselves outside the ring at one point and as Raquel went for a Powerslam, Bayley escaped and threw her into the post. Dominik Mysterio stood on the apron to distract the referee from counting out Raquel and Liv Morgan stood on the apron on the other side before Bayley knocked her off. Bayley then knocked Dominik off the apron and as she dived through the second rope onto Raquel, Raquel caught her and slammed her on the announce table. That allowed Raquel to finish off Bayley with the Tahana Bomb for the win and to earn a shot at the women’s Intercontinental Title.
Analysis:
This match was fine for what it was, but it was easily the weakest part of the whole show. For whatever reason, the crowd didn’t seem to be that enthusiastic for this match and you could feel that throughout it. While far from anything memorable, it did succeed in setting up Raquel as Lyra’s next challenger. Lyra still needs to establish more credibility considering she’s the first women’s Intercontinental Champion. With Raquel being her first challenger that’s physically bigger than her, a potential win over her will help in establishing more of that credibility.
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