Going into Raw tonight, there wasn’t a lot to be excited about. However, General Manager has quickly turned that around. On top of the returns of Nia Jax and Samoa Joe, both the Intercontinental and Raw Women’s Championships are being defended, with the latter being in the main event.
Opening Segment
To kick off the show, Raw General Manager Kurt Angle addresses the assault from SmackDown Live last week. After Angle apologizes to the locker room for allowing that to happen, he is interrupted by Stephanie McMahon. McMahon is the Commissioner of Raw and hasn’t been seen since she was sent through a table at WrestleMania 33. McMahon yells at Angle for everything that happened last week and in order to prove himself, he is now the Team Captain for Raw at Survivor Series.
If Angle fails to find victory at Survivor Series, McMahon will find a new General Manager.
Bayley vs. Nia Jax
Originally, Bayley was scheduled to face Alicia Fox tonight. However, Fox wants to take her duties as Survivor Series team captain “very seriously,” so she is going to spend time doing things other than facing the former Raw Women’s Champion. She found a replacement in Nia Jax, who hasn’t competed on Raw in over a month. Jax’s last match was a disqualification loss to Mickie James.
After somersaulting through Bayley, Jax finishes her off with a leg drop to pick up the dominant win. After her win, Jax is picked by Alicia Fox to join the women’s Survivor Series team. Winner: Nia Jax
Samoa Joe vs. Apollo Crews (w/Titus O’Neil)
Before the women can even head to the back, Samoa Joe makes a surprise return from injury. In his first appearance since the Universal Championship Fatal Four-Way match against Brock Lesnar, Roman Reigns, and Braun Strowman.
After the Uranage in the corner, Samoa Joe finishes Apollo Crews off with the Coquina Clutch. While Titus O’Neil is tending to his client, Joe locks him in the Coquina Clutch as well. Winner (via submission): Samoa Joe
The Miz (c) (w/The Miztourage) vs. Matt Hardy – Intercontinental Championship
Earlier tonight, The Miz arrived at Monday Night Raw late and immediately started complaining to Kurt Angle. Angle already had enough of the Miz and decided that an unprofessional Superstar should not represent the brand. This led to forcing the Miz to defend the title against an unknown opponent. Of course, that opponent is Matt Hardy. Just over a month ago, Miz successfully defended his title against Jeff Hardy.
Hardy hits the Twist of Fate, but The Miz manages to roll under the bottom rope. After slingshotting Hardy on the top rope, Miz finishes the challenger off with the Skull Crushing Finale to retain the Intercontinental Championship. If he still holds the title by Survivor Series, he will take on the current United States Champion, Baron Corbin. Winner, and STILL Intercontinental Champion: The Miz
Asuka vs. Irrelevant Wrestler
Last week at TLC, Asuka made her main roster debut by winning an incredible match against Emma. After doing the same in a rematch the following night, Asuka is continuing to build momentum through squash matches.
After toying with her opponent, the Empress of Tomorrow sinches in the Asuka Lock, showing the WWE Universe why she has been so dominant. Winner (via submission): Asuka
Daniel Bryan Visits Raw
After Raw was #UnderSiege last week, SmackDown General Manager Daniel Bryan shows up in Kurt Angle’s office to apologize for what is happening. Angle decides that Bryan is better left in his office before storming out. The lights go out and Bryan is attacked by his former tag team partner, Kane, who seemingly chokeslams Bryan in Angle’s office.
Finn Balor vs. Cesaro (w/Sheamus)
There isn’t a clear reason as to why this match is happening, but with two of the best Superstars that Raw has to offer competing, there is really no reason to complain. The outcome of this match could affect who represents Raw at Survivor Series since none of the men here are currently on the card.
After taking out both members of the Bar with a suicide dive, Balor hits the Coup de Grace on the back of Cesaro’s neck to beat the odds, pick up the victory, and redeem his loss to Kane last week. Winner: Finn Balor
As Balor heads to the back, Kane shows up on the stage. Balor tries to take the fight to Kane but instead, he gets hit with the Tombstone Piledriver on the steel flooring.
Kane vs. Seth Rollins (w/Dean Ambrose)
WWE seems to be short on time tonight because this is another overlapping of segments. After assaulting Finn Balor, Kane heads to the ring for his match with Seth Rollins.
Sheamus and Cesaro are still recovering from the previous match and they start attacking Dean Ambrose. After Rollins turns his attention to The Bar, Kane chokeslams the former WWE Champion to win his second match in a row since returning. Winner: Kane
Kane continues the assault after the match, hitting both healthy members of the Shield with Tombstone Piledrivers.
Heath Slater & Rhyno (Dressed at Santa Claus) vs. Tex Ferguson & Chad 2 Badd – Trick or Street Fight
Since it is almost Halloween, WWE has to get in the spirit with a holiday-themed street fight. Jack-o-lanterns, skeletons, and all kinds of decorations are around the ring and there are no rules. Heath Slater and Rhyno are dressed up as Santa and Mrs. Claus, respectively. Tex Ferguson and Chad 2 Badd are Southpaw Regional Wrestling characters portrayed by Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson, as almost a parody of the Fabulous Freebirds.
Chad 2 Badd tries to send Rhyno through a table while wearing a pumpkin on his head, but Rhyno counters into a spinebuster and picks up the win. Winners: Heath Slater & Rhyno
Drew Gulak (w/Enzo Amore) vs. Kalisto
Last week on 205 Live, Kalisto defeated Enzo Amore by disqualification to win the match, but not to capture the Cruiserweight Championship. Drew Gulak seems to be a slightly different character depending on the show he is on. On 205 Live, he is determined to remove chanting and high-flying from the Cruiserweight Division. On Raw, he is a lackey for Amore who tries his best to chant “S-A-W-F-T,” breaking his own rule.
Kalisto quickly wins the match with the Salida Del Sol, but he doesn’t get a chance to celebrate because he is attacked by Amore, who lays him out in the middle of the ring before celebrating with his signature dance. Winner: Kalisto
Alexa Bliss (c) vs. Mickie James – Raw Women’s Championship
Even though Alexa Bliss successfully retained the Raw Women’s Championship against Mickie James at TLC, their feud is not over. After Bliss complained to an angry Kurt Angle earlier tonight, she was forced to defend her championship against the former six-time Women’s Champion. The winner of this match will walk into Survivor Series to take on the SmackDown Women’s Champion, who as of this writing, is Natalya.
After attempting several pinfalls, Mickie James walks right into a forearm that knocks her right out, with Bliss retaining the title. Winner, and STILL Raw Women’s Champion: Alexa Bliss
