It’s the first Monday Night Raw of the New Year. How will things shape up leading to the Royal Rumble, with the WWE World Heavyweight Championship being defended in the main event?
“Welcome to the Queendom…”
Here comes Stephanie McMahon, who’s interrupted mid-entrance by Roman Reigns. They have a pointless promo segment and say nothing important.
Brock Lesnar comes back on Raw next week! Let’s hope that he starts feuding with Kevin Owens.
Kevin Owens vs. Neville
This is a rematch from last week, where Owens lost in 30 seconds. Owens and Neville are two of the best in the company, so this is a match that deserves at least a few minutes. Neville gets in some great spots, jumping all over the place. As vicious as ever, Kevin Owens hits the Pop-up Powerbomb for the win. Winner: Kevin Owens
Post-match: Owens goes to attack Neville like last week, but Dean Ambrose stops him this time. He (literally) turns the tables on Owens and puts him through the table.
Stardust vs. Titus O’Neil
Well, this is out of nowhere. To recap, Titus has been interrupting Stardust’s backstage promos over the past few months, and apparently that leads to a match tonight. Although it’s a surprise, it’s great to see some Superstars we don’t get to see too much. After the Clash of the Titus (one of the best move names ever), the master of the hot tag picks up the victory. Winner: Titus O’Neil
Charlotte vs. Becky Lynch
Two weeks in a row where Becky Lynch had a solid match. After Charlotte almost got another victory by distraction, Becky countered the pin, used the tights, and beat Charlotte at her own game. After the match, Charlotte showed her true colors and attacked Becky. The crowd is really starting to dig Becky Lynch, and she could definitely be the next star of the Divas division. Winner: Becky Lynch
Ryback vs. Big Show
Oh, great. It’s not like we saw this match last week, or multiple times in 2015. The best part of this segment is the “Rusev is Bae” sign in the crowd. DAH-
The Wyatt Family attacks Ryback! The saviors of our entertainment are here, and The Big Guy gets choked out by the Bigger Guy, Braun Strowman. And now they’re attacking the Big Show! Thank you Wyatt Family, for saving us from this match happening. Winner (via Wyatts): The WWE Universe
League of Nations (Del Rio & Rusev) vs. The Usos
It’s great that Del Rio is in a (powerful?) stable, but man I miss the U.S. Open Challenge. Ever since he’s had the title, it hasn’t been defended at all, except against Jack Swagger. Also, where’s Lana? A solid tag team match that Teddy Long would be proud of ends in a victory for the League. Winners: Alberto Del Rio & Rusev
Dolph Ziggler vs. Heath Slater
This is an obvious squash match, right? WRONG. Slater comes out with Adam Rose, Bo Dallas, and Curtis Axel. Bo Dallas distracts Ziggler, and Slater gets the roll-up victory. Winner: Heath Slater.
Post-match: Each member has a strange two sentence promo, but the important part is that Heath Slater mentions that #SocialOutcast will be trending worldwide.
New Day Promo
After making fun of Mike Tyson falling off of a hoverboard, they have a countdown for a present. 5..4..3..2..1.. It’s Chris Jericho! There’s a fun little promo battle with The New Day, and Jericho announces that he will be in the Royal Rumble match.
New Day vs. Kalisto & The Dudley Boyz
Another rematch of last week’s Raw, which played out pretty much the same. As Michael Cole put it, New Day is “very hard to beat.” Winners: New Day
Roman Reigns vs. Sheamus – WWE World Heavyweight Championship (Vince McMahon as Special Guest Referee)
Sheamus has Vince McMahon in his corner for this match, so Roman has the odds stacked against him. Even though Roman might not be the best person to be the WWE World Heavyweight Champion, he’s a much better option than Sheamus. There were expected slow counts from Vince, and even Scott Armstrong came in to replace Vince. After all the hoopla, Roman spears Sheamus and has a normal ref to count to 3. Winner, and still WWE World Heavyweight Champion: Roman Reigns
Post-Match: Vince McMahon announces that Roman Reigns will defend the WWE World Heavyweight Championship at the Royal Rumble Pay-Per-View, against 29 other Superstars in the Royal Rumble match.
