SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
Opening Segment – HIT: I have no idea who is going to win the men’s Royal Rumble. Unfortunately, that hasn’t always been the case as I think back on historic Rumbles. WWE has done a very good job of making multiple wrestlers seem like potential winners, with the potential Championship matchups at WrestleMania up in the air. This opening segment was a chance for Seth Rollins to sell his chances in the Rumble, while teasing that he could face Gunther. But, Logan Paul made his presence known, and while I don’t think that Paul will win, I can’t rule out the possibility. This opening segment at least teased the idea of a Paul vs. Gunther match or a Rollins vs. Gunther one. All of them played their parts well. It was a reminder of the crazy heat that Paul gets from the live crowds.
War Raiders vs. Mysterio & McDonagh – HIT: I just saw the news that JD McDonagh suffered broken ribs and a punctured lung in this match. I’m surprised that he didn’t suffer a neck injury or a concussion (although the concussion could easily have gone undiagnosed). The match probably should have been stopped when he had that scary landing. I am still giving the match a Hit based on the quality of the match and the work done by all four of these guys. I am definitely enjoying the Tag Team Championship run by the War Raiders. Their dippy gimmick isn’t as bad as it was with the Viking Raiders before their injuries, but I still wish they had a more realistic presentation. This is better for sure, and I won’t complain as long as we keep getting these types of strong matches.
Woods vs. Mysterio – HIT: I continue to enjoy heel New Day. The bit where even their families have turned against them is fun. They can’t even get heels like Ludwig Kaiser and Pete Dunne to like them anymore. Xavier Woods vs. Rey Mysterio was a good match with Mysterio getting another win over one of the New Day members after his win over Kofi Kingston last week. At some point though, New Day has to get some wins to take their new heel gimmick to the next level.
Morgan & Rodriguez vs. Bel Air & Naomi – MISS: The wrestling in this women’s tag match was perfectly fine. The issue is the lazy way that WWE too often falls back on to build a #1 contender. I am not a fan of non-title matches at all. When you get a team that hasn’t had a series of victories suddenly getting a non-title match and winning it to earn a title match, it feels like at least one step in the process has been skipped. WWE was also selling NXT around the main event Women’s Tag Team Title match, and some of the interest in that match was lessened when the Champions lost the night before. I don’t have a lot of interest in the women’s tag title situation right now.
ARTICLE CONTINUED BELOW…
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Heyman and McIntyre – HIT: Roman Reigns and Drew McIntyre are two more of the possible Rumble winners, particularly Reigns who could easily win to go on to face Cody Rhodes again at WM. Obviously, the main point of this segment was to announce the cover of the new WWE 2K25 video game with Reigns on the cover, but it gave Paul Heyman a chance to remind fans that Reigns is a likely Rumble winner, while McIntyre got to interrupt to make his case. He was very strong here in intimidating Heyman. It was interesting how he was actually sending a message to his old nemesis CM Punk, not Reigns.
Zayn vs. McIntyre – HIT: WWE weaved Sami Zayn’s story throughout Raw leading to his match against McIntyre. He had backstage encounters with CM Punk, Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins. They followed up the accidental kick to Rollins well. But Rollins also made it clear that while he believes Zayn, doubt would start to sink in if Zayn made more of those mistakes going forward. They also planted the seeds for the fact that Zayn has never defeated McIntyre and how important that is to him in his career. They had a very good match here which isn’t surprising. McIntyre once again got the win, so Zayn’s gaol has to be put off. That is a story that they can continue to tell over time. When will Zayn finally defeat Drew? That will be a big moment. The aftermath with Rhodes coming to Zayn’s aid only to also get accidentally kicked for his trouble was another good step. Kevin Owens’ appearance continued to tease that Zayn may end up working with him at the PLE.
Rhodes – Punk – HIT: The closing segment of Raw was another very strong moment to sell the Rumble. In this case, it was a chance for Rhodes to sell his WWE Title defense against KO, while Punk continued to make his case for winning the Rumble to challenge Rhodes at WM. Will that happen? It seems like a strong possibility, but it isn’t a certainty. This planted the seeds for that eventual Rhodes vs. Punk match whether it takes place at WM or further down the line. The performances from both of these guys was great. They have respect for each other. They like each other. They consider each other friends. But, they also both have huge egos which causes tension between them. It was a strong final sell for the PLE. Tune in to see Rhodes win the ladder match and Punk win the Rumble. But, that’s just one of many real possibilities.
Jon Mezzera is PWTorch.com’s WWE Raw Hits & Misses Specialist, providing his point of view for Raw each week. Email him at jmezz_torch@yahoo.com. Follow him on BlueSky @jonmezzera.bsky.social
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