If you’re one of the few people who might have missed this episode of Monday Night Raw, here is the recap. After the news that Daniel Bryan is retiring, this episode of Monday Night Raw is going to be interesting.
Opening Promo
Stephanie McMahon is already in the ring to start Raw for the contract signing for the main event of Fastlane, which features Roman Reigns, Dean Ambrose, and Brock Lesnar in a triple threat match to determine the #1 contender for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. Because Raw tonight is in Daniel Bryan’s home state of Washington, there are going to be plenty of “Daniel Bryan” chants throughout night.
All three competitors in the Fastlane main event come down to the ring, and Stephanie continues to try to drive a wedge in between Dean Ambrose and his best friend Roman Reigns. As contract signings usually go, all hell breaks loose and Brock Lesnar proceeds to throw the table into Reigns and then delivers an F5 to Ambrose.
Kevin Owens vs. Dolph Ziggler
Just as I predicted in the Smackdown recap, Kevin Owens and Dolph Ziggler are versing each other for three episodes of Monday Night Raw in a row. I also wouldn’t be surprised if this match also happens at Fastlane. WWE isn’t really known for saving matches for the Pay-Per-View, just look at New Day vs. The Usos.
Dolph Ziggler dodges Kevin Owens’s attempt at a cannonball in the corner, and pins Owens while using the ropes for leverage for the win. Winner: Dolph Ziggler
Charlotte (w/Ric Flair) vs. Alicia Fox
Before this match starts, Michael Cole announces that Charlotte will defend her Divas Championship at Fastlane against Brie Bella, who picked up a victory over the Divas Champion last week on Raw.
After a particularly boring and slow paced match, Charlotte locks in the Figure Eight for the win. Winner (via submission): Charlotte
MizTV feat. Chris Jericho
The Miz goes on about himself as usual, and Jericho decides to interrupt like every other guest on MizTV. Jericho decides to take over the show and turn it into the Highlight Reel.
Highlight Reel feat. The Miz
The Miz ended up getting a couple of his teeth broken by AJ Styles on Smackdown, which cost an astounding $10,000 each to fix. Jericho and Miz have something in common: They have both lost to WWE’s biggest recent signee, AJ Styles.
Speaking of which, AJ Styles makes his way down to the ring and the Miz attacks Jericho from behind. The three of them fight briefly, and Styles and Jericho tease their rematch on Smackdown this Thursday.
Bray Wyatt (w/The Wyatt Family) vs. Ryback
The match starts and Ryback immediately gets the “Goldberg” chants, presumably because of his new black trunks. Even though they have a similar look, Ryback has been diversifying his moveset much further than Goldberg’s was.
Bray Wyatt catches Ryback during his attempt at a Meat Hook clothesline, and hits Sister Abigail for the victory. Winner: Bray Wyatt
After the match, the Wyatt Family just pick Ryback apart, and Bray Wyatt hits another Sister Abigail outside of the ring while delivering one of his sermons.
Titus O’Neil vs. Adam Rose (w/Social Outcasts)
This match has shown how truly annoying JBL can be on commentary. Sometimes he’s great, but when he yells about Twitter and other things he doesn’t really know about, he gets really bad really fast.
After several distractions from the Social Outcasts, Adam Rose rolls up Titus O’Neil for the win. Winner: Adam Rose
Promo
Dean Ambrose is back in the ring, but this time he’s calling out Brock Lesnar. After some failed attempts, Ambrose just keeps making fun of Lesnar. Ambrose gets what he asks for, and Lesnar comes out and starts decimating him. Roman Reigns comes in for the save (from the entrance ramp for some reason), and distracts Lesnar enough so Ambrose can give him a low blow, and live to fight another day.
The Lucha Dragons vs. Alberto Del Rio & Rusev (w/King Barrett)
Sin Cara has finally returned after being away with an arm injury. Between this tag team match and the main event feud, WWE is showing it doesn’t care for the midcard titles at all.
Del Rio hits a double knee drop on Kalisto for the win. Winners: Alberto Del Rio & Rusev
Becky Lynch vs. Tamina (w/Naomi)
Before the match starts, Sasha Banks joins Michael Cole, Byron Saxton, and JBL on commentary to talk about her former teammates. Michael Cole announces that Becky Lynch and Sasha Banks will take on Tamina and Naomi in a tag team match at Fastlane.
Outside the ring, Naomi throws Banks into the stairs, causing Lynch to go outside the ring and deliver an exploder suplex to Naomi. The distraction gave Tamina a chance to hit a superkick for the win. Winner: Tamina
The New Day & Mark Henry vs. The Dudley Boyz & The Usos
Remember when I mentioned that the New Day vs. the Usos was repetitive? Well, here we go again. Also, this match goes against the #SaveTheTables movement the New Day tried to start several months ago.
Mark Henry decides to leave in the middle of the match because the New Day keep telling him what to do. After a bunch of superkicks, The Dudleys hit 3-D on Big E for the win. Winners: The Dudley Boyz & The Usos
After the match, one of the Usos looks to have hurt his left leg, but it doesn’t seem too serious. While celebrating, the Dudleys turn on the Usos, hitting 3-D to put Jimmy Uso through the table, then powerbombing Jey Uso through another table.
Daniel Bryan
Daniel Bryan took almost 20 minutes saying goodbye to the WWE Universe. It’s sad, and if you want to be sad, watch it on WWE.com. Bryan gives a very heartfelt speech to the hometown crowd, and ends Monday Night Raw with a sea of “Yes!” chants. Thank you Daniel Bryan.
