SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
WWE RAW TV REPORT
DECEMBER 9, 2024
WICHITA, KS. AT INTRUST BANK ARENA
AIRED LIVE ON USA
REPORT BY MAURICIO POMARES, PWTORCH CONTRIBUTOR
Commentators: Joe Tessitore, Wade Barrett
Ring Announcer: Lilian Garcia
[HOUR ONE]
– The show opened with Gunther making his way to the ring, as a recap of Finn Bálor’s attack from last week was shown. Gunther said that Finn had made a grief mistake, only for Finn and the rest of Judgment Day to interrupt. Finn called Gunther out for trying to mess with him by giving Dominik a shot instead of him. Finn said that at Saturday Night’s Main Event he would walk out as the new World Heavyweight champion.
– Gunther said that Finn didn’t earn his shot, but his audacity did. Gunther said that he once looked up to Finn, only to start cutting corners, hang with a bunch of weirdos and play second fiddle to Damian Priest. He said that Finn was the best in the world for one night while his title proves that he is the best in the world.
– The Judgment Day tried to assault Gunther, only for Priest to show up and beat all of them down. Gunther and Priest sent Finn out of the ring before Gunther clobbered Priest with a lariat. Finn hit Gunther with a sling blade stopping him from putting Priest through the announce table. Finn nailed Gunther with a shotgun dropkick and crushed him wiht a Coup de Grace. Priest took Carlito, JD McDonagh and Dominik out, until Finn hit him with a reverse DDT. Finn crushed Priest with a barrage of Coups de Grace to stand tall.
(Pomares’s Analysis: I appreciate the attempt to give this match a bit of story, but this might be the least meaningful world title match since they gave Jinder a shot earlier this year. Finn doesn’t feel at all like a threat to the title and a beat-down angle where Damian Priest had to be heavily featured to give him the advantage doesn’t really help his case. Hopefully Gunther’s reign can pick up into a better story after Saturday Night’s Main Event.)
– A recap of Damian Priest and Finn Bálor brawling after Survivor Series was shown.
[Commercial Break]
– Backstage, Adam Pearce confronted Finn Bálor to inform him that his title match would now be a triple threat match including Damian Priest. Pearce told Finn that he would defend his tag titles next week against the War Raiders and the Judgment Day would be banned from ringside.
(Pomares’s Analysis: Still not fully invested in this match, but adding Damian Priest is a welcome move.)
(1) THE WYATT SICKS (Uncle Howdy, Erick Rowan, Dexter Lumis & Joe Gacy w/Nikki Cross) vs. THE FINAL TESTAMENT (Karrion Kross, Akam & Rezar w/Scarlett) & THE MIZ
The Wyatts immediately sent the Final Testament and Miz out of the ring, as WWE Raw went to commercials.
[Commercial Break]
Back from break, AOP dropped Gacy with a double spinebuster. Gacy knocked Kross and Kama off the apron before nailing Rezar with a handspring clothesline. Rowan got the hot tag to lay Miz and Akam with a series of clotheslines. Rowan threw Miz out of the ring and blasted him and Akam away with a sliding dropkick. Miz tried to kick Rowa’s chest, but Rowan shut him down with a slam. AOP knocked Lumis and Gacy off the apron before dropping Rowan with a double powerbomb. Lumis and Gacy sent AOP out of the ring, setting them up for a suicide dive and a top turnbuckle thrust fall.
Howdy tagged in to put Miz down with a spinning suplex before Kross tagged himself in. Howdy clotheslined Kross out of the ring, but Scarlett tripped him off his feet. Nikki Cross showed up to scare Scarlett and hit her with a Thesz Press. Howdy evaded a clothesline from Kross, only for Miz to attack him from behind. Howdy put Miz in a Mandible Claw, until Paul Ellering showed up to throw powder on his face. Kross immediately hit Howdy with the Final Prayer to pick up the win.
WINNERS: The Final Testament & The Miz at 9:01
(Pomares’s Analysis: A decent match with a surprising result. I’m not particularly invested in this feud, so I was hoping the Wyatts would win and move on to someone else, but I guess the story goes on.)
– Earlier today, Jackie Redmond interviewed CM Punk about his favor with Paul Heyman. Punk said that it was personal and it wasn’t the right time to speak about it. Redmond asked Punk about Seth Rollins and Punk said that he doesn’t understand his hate for him. He said that Rollins was living in his shadow and that he had accomplished what he did before and better. Punk said that Rollins did good while he was gone, but now that the star was back, Rollins could move to the side.
[Commercial Break]
– A recap of Dakota Kai winning her first round match from last week was shown.
(2) DAKOTA KAI vs. LIV MORGAN
Kai knocked Liv down with arm drags, followed by a jackknife pinfall for a two count. Liv launched Kai out of the ring onto the steel steps, as WWE Raw went to an ad break.
[Commercial Break]
Back from break, Pure Fusion Collective showed up at ringside while Liv hit Kai with suplexes. Kai attacked Liv with forearm strikes and a sliding boot to the face, followed by a stomp to the back. Kai caught Liv with a Scorpino Kick and kicked PFC away to stop them from interfering. Liv missed Oblivion, but caught Kai with a Codebreaker and a jumping knee. Kai countered a missile dropkick with a powerbomb and knocked Sonya Deville off the apron. Liv avoided a corner big boot and knocked Kai out with Oblivion.
WINNER: Liv Morgan at 7:23
– After the match, Pure Fusion Collective attacked Dakota Kai, until Damage CTRL ran down to make the save. Kairi Sane crashed into PFC with a diving elbow drop off the top turnbuckle. Liv Morgan hit Iyo Sky with an Oblivion from out of nowhere.
(Pomares’s Analysis: In terms of in-ring wrestling, this was a solid match and a rare case of Liv actually getting to wrestle a singles match on TV. My problem with this match was that they had Dakota Kai who is currently in the IC tournament already lose; and that Liv’s booking continues to be weak since she can’t win a match without any interference. As for the post-match angle, it was just okay. I hope Iyo Sky wins the title, but by the looks of it, they are stretching the Liv and Rhea title match even further.)
– Backstage, Drew McIntyre talked about the possibility of being wrong after losing to CM Punk. Drew said that he saw Survivor Series and saw Sami Zayn and the Usos sell their souls for nothing, so he decided to return and target them.
[Commercial Break]
Check out the latest episode of the Wade Keller Pro Wrestling Post-show covering the latest episode of Raw: CLICK HERE to stream (or search “wade Keller” on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or any other iOS or Android app to subscribe free)
[HOUR TWO]
– A recap of the New Day turning their back on Big E last week was shown.
– Backstage, Cody Rhodes walked past New Day to tell them that they should be ashamed of themselves.
– Seth Rollins made his way to the ring to call CM Punk a master politician. Rollins said that he respected Punk, he helped get into WWE and was his friend. Rollins said that he called Punk after he left, but he ghosted everyone that tried to check on him. He said that Punk spent the past 10 years trying to tear WWE down and only returned because he burned every bridge and was short on money. Sami Zayn interrupted to admit that he was wrong about Rollins being Jey Uso’s attacker and apologized.
– Rollins called Sami out for thinking that it was him that attacked Jey. Sami said that he thought so because last week Rollins was speaking like he was Drew McIntyre. Sami told Rollins that he was better than Drew McIntyre and said that he shouldn’t have gotten involved in his business. Rollins accepted Sami’s apology and warned him that he had to deal with Drew McIntyre on his way out. Sami said that he had already spoken with Pearce and announced that he would take on Drew at Saturday Night’s Main Event. As Sami walked away, Drew showed up and took a cheap shot at him.
(Pomares’s Analysis: A really good segment to further the stories of both Sami Zayn and Seth Rollins after their encounter from last week. Rollins’ part to build to the CM Punk match was well done and Sami challenging Drew to a match at Saturday Night’s Main Event is a welcome addition.)
[Commercial Break]
(3) ZELINA VEGA vs. LYRA VALKYRIA vs. IVY NILE – WWE Women’s Intercontinental Championship Tournament 1st Round Match
Vega knocked Nile down with a dropkick and caught Lyra with a shot into her knee. Vega hit Lyra with a 619, only for Nile to pull her off the apron. Nile dropped Lyra with a tilt-a-whirl slam, as WWE Raw went to a commercial break.
[Commercial Break]
Back from break, Lyra nailed Vega and Nile with a dropkick through the ropes. Lyra spiked Nile with a Tornado DDT, followed by a fisherman suplex for a two count. Nile and Lyra traded quick pinning attempts, until Vega hit them both with a Swanton Bomb. Vega took Nile down with a slingshot sunset flip and crushed Lyra with a Meteora. Nile floored Vega with a swinging side slam, but Lyra broke the pinfall. Nile dropped Lyra and Vega with a double German suplex for a two count. Before Lyra could react, Nile dropped her with a back suplex. Vega dropped Nile with a Code Red, only for Lyra to break the pinfall and finish Nile with the Nightwing.
WINNER: Lyra Valkyria at 7:50
(Pomares’s Analysis: Solid match to continue building the IC title tournament. The line-up for this tournament isn’t the strongest in terms of star power, but hopefully people like Dakota Kai and Lyra Valkyria can gain some real momentum coming out of this.
[Commercial Break]
– Backstage, Cathy Kelley interviewed New Day about what happened last week. New Day refused to answer Cathy and took away a cameraman’s camera. They made their way to the ring to thunderous boos from the crowd who didn’t let them speak. They tried to defend themselves by saying that they didn’t physically hurt Big E, but the boos didn’t let them speak. After being shut down too many times they dropped their mics on the mat and walked away.
(Pomares’s Analysis: A very entertaining follow-up to last week’s brilliant New Day segment. New Day becoming the biggest heat magnets in 2024 wasn’t something I expected, but it could lead to some incredibly heated matches and stories.)
– The commentary team ran down the card to Saturday Night’s Main Event.
– Rhea Ripley made her way to the ring, ahead of her match against Raquel Rodriguez.
[Commercial Break]
(4) RHEA RIPLEY vs. RAQUEL RODRIGUEZ – Anything Goes Match
They immediately started brawling on the entrance way and into the crowd. Ripley attacked Raquel with chops and tossed her over the barricade. Ripley threw a trash bin into Raquel’s head and tossed her into the ring to officially start the match. Raquel tried to kick away and withstand Ripley’s kendo stick shots, but Ripley shut her down with a missile dropkick. Ripley nailed Raquel with a dropkick through the ropes, only for Raquel to shove her into the ring post. Raquel took Ripley down with a Fallaway Slam over the announce table, as WWE Raw went to its final commercial break.
[Commercial Break]
Back from break, they knocked each other off their feet with running kicks. Ripley blasted Raquel away with a dropkick using a chair. Raquel dropped Ripley onto the turnbuckle with a reverse powerbomb for a two count. Ripley avoided a clothesline and dropped Raquel face-first onto an open chair for a nearfall. Liv Morgan showed up to distract Ripley, but Ripley quickly threw her body into the ring. Raquel hit Ripley with a big boot and put her down with a bodyslam on a pile of chairs.
Ripley avoided the Tejana Bomb, but Liv stopped her from hitting Raquel with the Riptide. Ripley took Raquel down with a thrust kick before receiving Liv’s Oblivion. Iyo Sky showed up to hit Liv with a springboard dropkick and a suicide dive. Raquel set up a table, but Ripley avoided the Tejana Bomb and drove her into a chair in the corner. Ripley immediately put Raquel through the table with the Riptide for the victory.
WINNER: Rhea Ripley at 8:08
– After the match, Rhea Ripley and Iyo Sky faced-off while holding the Women’s World title.
(Pomares’s Analysis: A short, but pretty fun main event. Ripley and Raquel’s work was a lot stronger than their series from last year and the stipulation really allowed them to go all out. The post-match angle with Iyo Sky gives me hope that the new direction for WrestleMania will be Ripley vs Sky.)
Stay right here and keep the flow going. We think you’ll like to read this next…
OR CHECK THIS OUT AT PROWRESTLING.NET: Powell’s WWE Raw Hit List: Rhea Ripley vs. Raquel Rodriguez in an anything goes match, CM Punk and Seth Rollins, Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods, The Wyatt Sicks vs. The Final Testament and The Miz
(You can always reach PWTorch editor Wade Keller at kellerwade@gmail.com. You can also send live event results and news tips to pwtorch@gmail.com. Also, we’re always looking for volunteer contributors to help us round out of coverage of the pro wrestling scene.)
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.