Paul Heyman’s grizzled tears were a promised sign to come- Brock Lesnar will be back and has something to prove at the Royal Rumble. Participating for the first time in years, Lesnar’s involvement in the Rumble and a great main event from Charlotte Flair and Sasha Banks made an otherwise flaccid RAW entertaining.
Matches:
Braun Strowman vs. R-Truth: Strowman got the squash win with the Running Powerslam. After the match, Strowman latched on a Bearhug on Goldust, but Sami Zayn hit the ring and got in a few licks before Strowman hit the Big Ending variation. Mick Foley then hit the ring to stop the onslaught. Zayn then told Foley he was a hypocrite and walked out of the ring.
Tony Nese w/Drew Gulak vs. Cedric Alexander: Thanks to interference from Gulak, Nese got the win with the ugly Pump-Handle variation.
WWE RAW Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair vs. Sasha Banks: A double-count-out in what was a pretty much uneventful match. After the match, Mick Foley hit the ramp and announced the match would restart later in the show and be a no-count out, no DQ, falls count anywhere match.
Rusev w/Lana vs. Enzo Amore w/Colin Cassady: Rusev got DQed for the blatant low blow.
Noam Dar vs. Rich Swann: Dar was crafty, but Swann got the win with the Rich Kick.
WWE United States Champion Roman Reigns vs. WWE Universal Champion Kevin Owens: This was a long match that saw Reigns dominate despite Owens’ early advantage. After a Superman Punch on the outside, Reigns got the win with a Spear.
WWE RAW Tag Team Champions The New Day: Big E. Langston andXavier Woods w/ Kofi Kingston vs. Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson: After Gallows took out Langston and Kingston on the outside, Anderson nearly won with a Running Powerbomb to start the match. While Langston got his team back in the match, The Club continued to dominate and nearly won with a Powerbomb/Neckbreaker combination from the top rope. Wood got back into the match with a Roaring Elbow and then won with a Rollup counter, with a Rollup of his own and a grab of the tights.
No-Count-Out, No DQ, Falls Count Anywhere: WWE RAW Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair vs. Sasha Banks: Good flow and back and forth as both Banks and Flair traded strikes but couldn’t put each other away. It wasn’t until Flair nailed Banks with a Yakuza Kick on the apron that she got her first advantage, but Banks used a kendo stick to strike back. Flair then fought back with a Neckbreaker and the Figure-Eight, but Banks got the Kendo Stick again. Things ended up moving to the ramp area and Flair nearly won with a Moonsault off the announce table. Banks then almost got a win with the Double Knee Attack off the Guard Rail and followed it up with more kendo stick shots. With the action spilling into the stands, Banks got the win with the most innovative version of the Bank Statement to date as Banks locked in the maneuver as Flair was stuck in the guard rail.
After the match, Ric Flair hit the ring and raised Banks’ hand in victory.
Leave a Reply