Tonight’s episode of Monday Night Raw comes to us from Amalie Center in Tampa, Florida.
In Ring Segment:
The Judgement Day is standing in the ring, but without Dominik Mysterio. Damian Priest tells the crowd to rise for the Judgement Day. Rhea Ripley says that the Judgement Day not only runs Monday Night Raw, they run the entire WWE. Finn Balor hypes up Rhea & Damian and refers to himself as the next World Heavyweight Champion. Before he introduces everyone to the “man of the hour”, Finn wants to show everyone what Dominik did last week.
We see a video recap of last week’s episode of NXT where Dominik defeated Wes Lee to become the new North American Champion, with a lot of assistance from the rest of Judgement Day.
Rhea says that it is her honour to welcome the new NXT North American Champion, and the hottest man she knows, her “Latino Heat”, Dominik Mysterio.
Dominik comes out to the ring and he is met with loud boos from the crowd. He enters the ring and embraces the other members of Judgement Day. Dominik says that he is the fighting NXT North American Champion, but the crowd drown him out with boos. Dominik says he has a video to show us that showcases his greatness.
A video package plays, highlighting Dominik’s career and treachery.
The crowd boo the video package and chant “You Suck”. Dominik shouts that he is the new NXT North American Champion, but he is interrupted by Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn.
The Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champions come out onto the stage. Kevin Owens tells Sami to correct him if he is wrong, but didn’t this happen last week. Didn’t Judgement Day come out to the ring, looked menacing and scary, talked for a while, and then the one with the mullet tried to talk and nobody wanted to listen to him. Owens wanted to make sure that he wasn’t dreaming that. Owens said that he doesn’t like it when people don’t learn. Owens says that nobody cares what Dominik has to say, ever. Dominik is so desperate for people to respect him and he tries to convince people that he is good. If Dominik wants to help this business, then the best thing he can do is shut his mouth forever.
Dominik shouts that he will not be disrespected now that he is a champion, but he is again booed by the crowd. Sami says Dominik is right that he is being disrespected, but that is only because nobody respects him. Sami has an idea how Dominik can win some respect. He could go one-on-one with one half of the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champions tonight. They could do Dominik Mysterio vs Sami Zayn. Dominik says that if Sami wants some of “Dirty” Dom, he can have some. Sami reminds Dominik of one thing, last week when they had a match, Judgement Day made a big stink about the titles not being on the line, so if Dominik is a fighting champion as he says he is, he will put his title on the line tonight. The challenge is accepted by Rhea on Dominik’s behalf.
Match 1: Becky Lynch vs Zoey Stark w/Trish Stratus
Becky quickly sends Zoey to the corner and stomps her down. Becky punches away at Zoey before Zoey pushes her off. Becky hits a running forearm for a one-count. Becky grabs the arm, but Zoey quickly gets out of the ring and stands alongside Trish Stratus. Zoey gets on the apron, but Becky knocks her down. Zoey avoids a baseball slide, but Becky still grabs Zoey and punches her around ringside. Becky gets Zoey in the ring and puts her on the second rope. Zoey punches and kicks Becky back before hitting a springboard missile dropkick for a two-count. Zoey pulls Becky up to her feet and punches her. Bedcky avoids a knee and side steps an avalanche. Becky takes Zoey down for a two-count. Zoey goes to the apron to recover and snaps Becky’s arm off the top rope. Zoey pulls Bedcky down by the hair and hits a springboard twisting senton for a two-count as we go to a break.
We return from the break to see Becky sending Zoey into the barricade a few times. Becky gets Zoey in the ring and heads to the top rope for a diving leg drop. Becky picks up a near fall. Becky grabs the arm, but Zoey whips her off. Becky holds onto the ropes and boots Zoey back. Becky puts Zoey on the apron and hits a strike combination. Becky goes to the second rope, but Zoey avoids a dive. Bedcky lands on her feet and knocks Zoey off the apron. Becky hits a diving clothesline. Zoey is put in the ring, and the referee checks on her. As the referee is distracted, Trish head-butts Becky with her face protector. Trish gets Becky in the ring, and Zoey hits a big kick. Zoey covers, but Becky kicks out before three.
Becky counters a Z-360 and hits a Bexploder. Zoey avoids an avalanche and kicks Becky back. Zoey heads to the top rope, but Becky cuts her off. Becky goes to the second rope and hooks the head for a superplex. Becky immediately transitions to an armbar. Zoey fights it, rolls over, powers Becky up, and viciously slams Becky down for a near fall. Zoey sets Becky up for a 450 splash, but she lands on her feet when Becky moves. Zoey rolls her up, but Becky rolls through for a two-count. Becky immediately applies the Dis-Arm-Her, but she soon releases Zoey to knock Trish off the apron. Zoey rolls Becky up for a near fall.
Becky puts Zoey on the apron, but Zoey knocks her back. Zoey goes for a springboard, but Becky catches her and hits a Manhandle Slam for the win.
An OK match, it did seem a little off in places. There wasn’t much crowd involvement in this one, but that could just be that the crowd are disappointed in the terrible booking situation of the women's division more than anything. Grade C-
After the match, Trish sits at ringside after being knocked off the apron. She is shaking her head in denial at the thought of having to face Becky Lynch. Becky smiles and points at Trish.
In Ring Segment:
Cody Rhodes makes his way to the ring, the crowd singing along to his entrance theme. Cody gets into the ring, and asks the crowd what they want to talk about. Cody takes a moment to look at the crowd in attendance. Cody says that we have all seen the clip of Brock Lesnar beating him up with a chair in front of his mother. He says that he did not have that on his bucket list for 2023, but he isn’t surprised. Cody says that he is impressed. This is Brock Lesnar we are talking about, a man who only had 5 fights in UFC but became the UFC Champion, he never played football but made it to an NFL team. Cody says that Brock could be considered “Mr. SummerSlam”. Is he surprised, no. Is he impressed, yes. However, Cody’s mother was not impressed. This is the same woman who watched Terry Funk throw fireballs into his father’s face. The same woman who drank with Gordon Solie at the Columbia. If anything, his mother knows that Brock made a huge mistake. The mistake wasn’t beating him up in front of his mother, the mistake was that Brock left Cody breathing.
Cody says that he doesn't want to go to SummerSlam to win the rubber match, he wants to embarrass Brock. Cody says there are a bunch of people backstage that are freaking out at him wanting to embarrass Brock. They think that Cody is poking the bear, but he is slapping the bear in the face and telling him to come get it. Cody doesn’t want to beat Brock at SummerSlam only because of the positive effect it will have on his career, or because Brock made it personal by breaking Cody’s arm. Cody wants to beat Brock at SummerSlam because that's what he deserves. When he is old and grey, he will look back on his career and realise that this time wasn’t pretty, but he is pinning that final chapter in this particular story. At SummerSlam, he will end this.
Backstage Interview:
Jackie Redmond is backstage with Ricochet. She asks Ricochet about Logan Paul coming to Raw. Ricochet says that he is thrilled that Logan accepted his invitation to come to Raw tonight. Ricochet doesn’t like that Logan is late because he thinks he is a bigger star. Ricochet says they have some business to settle and whatever he wants to say to Logan, he will say it to his face.
Match 2: NXT North American Championship Match - Dominik Mysterio w/Rhea Riple & Damian Priest vs Sami Zayn w/Kevin Owens
Dominik quickly hooks a side headlock to start the match. Sami whips him off, drops down, leapfrogs him, and hits an arm drag. Dominik quickly fights up and pulls on the hair before backing Sami into the ropes. Sami reverses a whip, but Domink holds the ropes. Sami clotheslines Dominik over the top rope and hits a somersault senton as we go to a break.
We return from the break to see Sami punching Dominik down in the corner. Sami starts up the ten punches and hits them all. Moments ago, Rhea punched Sami in the face as the referee was distracted. Sami goes to the top rope. Rhea gets on the apron to distract the referee. Damian Priest pops up and slams Sami off the top rope. Kevin Owens immediately gets on the apron and punches Dominik away. The referee sees Owens on the apron and ejects him from ringside. Owens is furious, but the referee then ejects Damian and Rhea from ringside too!
Dominik is furious and turns into a Michinoku Driver from Sami. Sami covers for a near fall. Sami sets up for a Helluva Kick, but Dominik moves. Dominik snaps Sami off the top rope and dropkicks him into the middle rope. Dominik goes for a 619, but Sami gets up and turns him inside out with a clothesline for a near fall. Sami sets Dominik up and goes to the top rope, but Dominik gets up and punches Sami. Dominik goes to the top rope and tries for a superplex, but Sami knocks him down. Sami leaps, but Dominik dropkicks him out of midair for a two-count.
Dominik mounts Sami and punches away at him. Dominik stomps him and goes to the apron for a slingshot senton. Dominik dropkicks Sami in the shoulder and sets up for the Three Amigos. Sami gets out of it and goes for a Blue Thunder Bomb. Dominik fights it and elbows Sami in the head. Dominik goes for the ropes, but Sami pulls him back for a Blue Thunder Bomb attempt. Dominik counters with a head-scissors takeover into the ropes. Sami avoids a 619 and hits a Blue Thunder Bomb for a near fall.
Sami gets to his feet, and Dominik begs him off while on his knees. Dominik tries to crawl away when Sami doesn’t take the bait. Sami grabs his feet, but Dominik kicks him in the head. Dominik knocks him into the ropes and hits a 619 for a near fall. Dominik slaps the mat in frustration. Dominik sneers at Sami and grabs him by the hair before punching him. Dominik shouts that he is the champion. Sami fights back, but Dominik kicks him and starts the Three Amigos. One Amigo, Two Amigos, and the Third Amigos connect. Dominik goes to the top rope and tries for a Frog Splash, but Sami gets the knees up. Sami is fired up and hits an exploder in the corner. Sami shouts for Dominik to get up, but he’s distracted by Damian Priest and Rhea Ripley punching Kevin Owens down on the stage. Dominik rolls Sami up for the win, thanks to the distraction.
A pretty good match. Dominik looked like he actually could hold his own in this match. A cheap win for the heel, but it was good to see that Dominik was able to pick up a victory, rather than being the one pinned. Looks like they are trying to make Dominik look better now that he is a champion. Grade C
After the match, Sami rolls out of the ring and runs to Kevin Owens. Damian Priest and Rhea Ripley back away.
Backstage Segment:
Shinsuke Nakamura is backstage. Ricochet comes up to him and asks him if he has seen Logan Paul. Nakamura says he hasn’t, and Ricochet leaves. Tommaso Ciampa comes up to Nakamura and tells him that he cost him the match last week, and he earned that kick. He says that this isn’t charity, so he isn’t getting more than one for free. Tommaso warns Nakamura to not get involved in his match with Bronson Reed. Nakamura says nothing.
Backstage Segment:
Dominik Mysterio, Rhea Ripley and Damian Priest are walking backstage. They walk past Akira Tozawa and Apollo Crews. Tozawa is intimidated by Judgement Day, but Crews isn’t. Crews steps up to Judgement Day, and Damian tells him that he will receive his punishment later tonight. Judgement Day walks away, Tozawa tells Crews that he has got this.
Match 3: Bronson Reed vs Tommaso Ciampa
Ciampa throws his jacket at Reed before the match begins. The bell rings, and Ciampa goes right to Reed. Reed quickly takes him down and goes for a suplex, but Ciampa knees him in the head a few times. Reed quickly cuts off the momentum and sends Ciampa out of the ring. Ciampa attacks Reed coming out to the apron and chops the chest. Ciampa boots him in the face and tries to lift him, but Reed is too heavy. Reed easily lifts Ciampa, but Ciampa slides back into the ring. Ciampa kicks Reed in the face and stomps him down. Ciampa hits a running knee to the face. Reed catches Ciampa soon after, slams him into the turnbuckles, and hits an Oklahoma Slam for a near fall. Reed stands on Ciampa’s injured ribs. Reed lifts him, but Ciampa slides off and jumps on his back with a sleeper hold. Reed begins to fade away, but Reed powers up and jumps back with Ciampa on his back! 300-plus pounds of Bronson Reed comes crashing down onto Tommaso Ciampa.
Reed pulls Ciampa up to his feet. Reed sends him into the ropes and avalanches him down before dropping a massive elbow. Ciampa yells in pain and rolls out of the ring holding his chest. Reed goes to the apron and dives for a shoulder tackle, but Ciampa knees him out of midair as we go to the break.
Back from the break, we see Reed applying a grounded bear hug to Ciampa. Ciampa fights out, but Reed hits him with a snap powerslam for a near fall. Ciampa boots Reed back and dives, but Reed catches him. Reed goes for another Oklahoma Slam, but Ciampa gets out and hits a reverse DDT.
The men get to their feet and trade some stiff chops to the chest. Reed shoves Ciampa off, but Ciampa ducks a clothesline and hits a pair of running forearms. Ciampa catches Reed with corner clotheslines, an elbow to the head, and a leg lariat for a near fall. Ciampa sets up for a Fairy Tale Ending, but Reed easily fights it. Ciampa tries to counter with a sunset flip, but Reed sits down on his chest for a near fall. Reed pulls Ciampa to the corner, but Ciampa fights and kicks him in the face. Reed cuts him off with a senton splash. Reed goes for a powerbomb, but Ciampa gets out and strikes at him. Reed crushes him with a chop, but Ciampa comes back with a big boot. Ciampa hits the ropes, but Reed clotheslines him down. Ciampa immediately pops up and gets in Reed’s face. They exchange forearms before hitting dual head-butts. Reed hits the ropes, but Ciampa knees him in the face. Ciampa tries to lift him, but he can’t get him stable. Ciampa tries again and hits Reed with an Air Raid Crash for a near fall.
Shinsuke Nakamura walks down the ramp. Ciampa leaves the ring and warns Nakamura to go to the back. Ciampa turns into a massive diving shoulder tackle off the apron from Reed. Reed quickly gets Ciampa in the ring and hits a Tsunami for the win.
A really good match. I’m still not fully sold on the Nakamura/Ciampa/Reed feud. I think if they are going to put a feud together, it should be different from one they pretty much abandoned from just before Money in the Bank. Reed need to have a meaningful feud if they are wanting to get him over and have him be a dominant monster. Grade C+
Backstage Interview:
Byron Saxton is backstage with Liv Morgan. Liv says that Raquel is hurting, but she will recover. Liv says that Rhea is all hers tonight. Liv says that Rhea thinks she can do anything. Liv says that she is the last person to defeat Rhea. She may get beaten up, but maybe she won’t. Liv walks away.
Sonya Deville and Chelsea Green walk up. They aren’t happy that Byron didn’t interview them. They aren’t happy that he wants to talk about Rhea Ripley. Rhea Ripley walks up, Chelsea & Sonya leave, scared. Rhea says that she wanted Liv and Raquel to stay out of her way but they didn’t listen. She asks Byron if he sees a pattern.
Backstage Segment:
We see Seth Rollins in Adam Pearce’s office. He is looking over a contract.
Match 4: Liv Morgan vs Rhea Ripley
As Liv Morgan makes her entrance, Rhea Ripley blindsides her. Rhea sends Liv into the ring post before whipping her into the barricade. Rhea goes into the timekeeper’s area and snaps Liv’s arm off the barricade. Rhea grabs a steel chair as Liv gets in the ring. Rhea gets in the ring and viciously head-butts Liv in the face. Rhea sandwiches Liv’s arm in the chair and shouts, “You’re going to pay for getting in my business!” Rhea stomps on the chair, and Liv screams in pain. Liv holds her arm and acts like it’s broken. Rhea shouts that Liv should never have gotten into her business. A trainer and a referee run into the ring. Rhea holds the title up and taunts Liv. Rhea walks off and tells Liv to enjoy rehab. Rhea then returns and grabs the chair. The trainer tries to protect Liv, but Rhea shoves him off. Rhea sandwiches Liv’s arm in the chair and stomps it again. Liv screams in agony. Rhea says this is her division, and they’re lucky to live in it. Rhea walks off and laughs while continuing to talk trash. The crowd loudly boos her. Liv says she can’t move her arm.
The match never got started. Just a vicious beatdown from Rhea, showing her dominance over the women’s division.
Backstage Segment:
Otis, Chad Gable and Maxxine Dupri are backstage. Gable says that nobody knows what a Viking Rules match is, how about they have an Academy Match. Maxxine tells “Val” that she has embarrassed her multiple times. Just because Valhalla got one over on her, doesn't mean she will fall off. Maxxine challenges Valhalla to a match next week.
In Ring Segment:
Ricochet makes his way to the ring. He asks where Logan Paul is. He says it is time for Logan to show his “stupid face”. Ricochet says that he knows Logan isn’t backstage because there is a locker room full of people who know that Logan doesn’t belong here. He says that we are in an arena full of people who know that Logan doesn’t belong here. Ricochet knows that Logan doesn’t belong here. He says it's not because Logan didn’t put in the work, because Logan did. He says it's not because Logan isn’t good, because he is, some might even call him special. But Ricochet is here every week and is special every week. Ricochet says that Logan doesn’t belong here because he is an arrogant little prick. Logan doesn’t respect anything that they do. Ricochet says he has dedicated his life to this, he has sacrificed so much to be here. Ricochet challenges Logan to a match at SummerSlam. Ricochet says that Logan can go around and run his mouth looking for a fight, so if it's a fight he wants…
Ricochet is attacked from behind by Logan Paul. Logan accepts Ricochet’s challenge for a match at SummerSlam. Logan says he will show why he is the best in the WWE. Logan points to a random fan and tells him that he will make him famous. Logan says that the fan needs to get laid and he is a stupid virgin. Logan turns and walks into a SuperKick from Ricochet. Ricochet then hits Logan with a standing Shooting Star Press. He then picks up Logan’s phone and says that he will see him at SummerSlam. Ricochet walks off. Logan gets to his feet, looking angry.
Backstage Interview:
Jackie Redmond is backstage with Shayna Baszler. Jackie asks Shayna how she feels about everything that is going on with her and Ronda Rousey. Shayna says she is sick and tired of hearing that name. To have Ronda’s name brought up with everything she has done, she can’t handle it. She says that they have to settle this without words. They will settle this in a language that Ronda can understand. At SummerSlam, she will fight Ronda.
Backstage Interview:
Logan Paul is walking backstage. He is stopped by Byron Saxton. Logan says that he is coming to Raw next week to pop Ricochet’s stupid bald head off.
Match 5: Damian Priest vs Apollo Crews
Damian Priest immediately kicks Apollo Crews down as the match begins. Damian puts Apollo in the corner and uppercuts him. Apollo fights back, but Damian knees him in the midsection. Apollo ducks a pair of clotheslines and applies a waistlock. Damian throws him off and hits the ropes, but Apollo leapfrogs him and stumbles him with a dropkick. Damian is furious and charges, but Apollo pulls the top rope down. Apollo gets on the apron and kicks Damian back before hitting a moonsault block to take Damian off his feet. Apollo gets Damian in the ring and hits a flying cross-body block for a two-count. Apollo tries to lift Damian, but he gets out and claps the ears. Damian hits a running back elbow followed by a Broken Arrow for a two-count. Damian sizes Apollo up and goes for a chokeslam, but Apollo flips through. Apollo knees Damian in the face and hits a step-up enzuigiri. Damian doesn’t leave his feet. Damian hits a spinning forearm and applies a hammerlock followed by a stiff clothesline. Damian pulls his top down and hits South of Heaven for the win.
Well, this one went exactly as expected. Just a glorified squash match really. It was good to see Apollo getting a little bit of offence on Damian, but there was never any doubt over who was winning this one. Grade D
Backstage Interview:
Becky Lynch is stopped by Jackie Redmond. Becky says that she was too focused on winning her match and not getting tattooed, that she forgot to say “The Man has come around to Tampa”. Now that she has her rematch with Trish, this isn’t over until she wins.
Backstage Segment:
The Viking Raiders and Valhalla are backstage. Valhalla says that she accepts Maxxine’s foolish challenge. She tells Maxxine to consult the God’s, because she will need them.
In Ring Segment:
Imperium stands in the ring, awaiting Drew McIntyre. Drew makes his entrance. He says that he heard what Gunther had to say when he issued the challenge. Drew says he is ready to fight, so they can do this right now. Gunther says after all that has happened, he wants to fight for the title tonight. Drew dares Gunther to put the title on the line. Gunther says that he has put prestige back on the Intercontinental Championship, and has raised it to a level it has never been at before. He says that it is unacceptable to put the title on the line in front of all the degenerates in the crowd. Gunther says he can see why Drew connects with all these people. He says that just like them, Drew doesn’t get anything done in life. He says that Drew failed at Clash at the Castle, and Gunther embarrassed Drew at WrestleMania. Gunther says if Drew wants to ride his coattails, then he accepts. Gunther says he will humiliate Drew at SummerSlam.
Drew says they can talk about WrestleMania if he wants. Drew says when he and Sheamus first met, Drew was 19 and Sheamus was about 42. They always dreamed of having a singles match at WrestleMania. Drew says they had a singles match for about 10 minutes, and when they were at their weakest, Gunther took advantage, as he should have because at WrestleMania it was a Triple-Threat Match. Drew says that he and Sheamus let their personal issues get in the way. At SummerSlam, it will be one-on-one. Gunther will find out why Drew has been called “The Chosen One”, “The Psychopath” and “The Scottish Warrior”. After SummerSlam, Drew says it will also be “New Intercontinental Champion”.
Ludwig Kaiser is not happy with how Drew is talking to Gunther. Drew says that he actually likes Kaiser. Drew says he has moxie and charisma and that Kaiser is more exciting than Gunther. Drew says that Kaiser should be the leader of Imperium. Kaiser says that he will not stand here and listen to Drew disrespect Imperium. Drew says that since Gunther isn’t going to do anything about it, but they are both dressed to compete so they should fight. Kaiser gets in Drew’s face, Drew says they need a ref.
Match 6: Drew McIntyre vs Ludwig Kaiser w/Gunther & Giovanni Vinci
The men lock up, and Drew powers Kaiser to the corner. Kaiser pushes his face. Drew shoves Kaiser to the corner and locks up with him. Kaiser shoves him back by the throat. Drew runs over Kaiser with a shoulder tackle, followed by a delayed scoop slam. Drew clotheslines Kaiser over the top rope. Drew stares at Gunther as he walks by him. Drew chops Kaiser’s chest before sending him into the ring post. Drew chops the chest again and puts Kaiser in the ring. Kaiser quickly rolls back out. Drew follows him and chops the chest. Kaiser fights back with some right hands, but Drew takes him down with a chop. Drew sends Kaiser into the LED barricade and points at Gunther. Drew chops Kaiser’s chest in front of Gunther.
Drew puts Kaiser in the ring. Kaiser attacks Drew on the apron and sends him into the ring post. Kaiser pulls Drew into the ring and continues to attack. Kaiser sends Drew shoulder-first into the ring post before hanging him up in the ropes. Drew hangs precariously toward the floor. Kaiser then dropkicks him off the ropes to the floor. Imperium stands over Drew as we go to the break.
We return from the break to see Kaiser standing on the second rope, but Drew stuns him with a chop to the chest. Drew crushes Kaiser with White Noise off the second rope. Drew hits a pair of clotheslines before sending him into the ropes for an overhead belly-to-belly suplex. Drew hits him with a second belly-to-belly suplex followed by a neckbreaker. Drew kips up and waits for Kaiser to get up. Kaiser gets out of a Future Shock DDT, but Drew quickly takes him out with a Glasgow Kiss. Drew counts down and goes for a Claymore Kick, but Kaiser counters with a kick to the face for a near fall.
Kaiser forearms away at Drew before hitting an uppercut and a step-up enzuigiri. Kaiser hits the ropes, but Drew catches him with a Claymore Kick to pick up the victory.
A good match between these two. Ludwig Kaiser is brilliant in the ring, he definitely needs to be showcased more. Drew is always a solid worker. If Drew vs Gunther isn’t the match of the night at SummerSlam, I’ll be shocked. Grade B
After the match, Gunther gets into the ring and hits Drew with a German Suplex. Vinci holds Drew for Gunther to stomp him. Matt Riddle runs down to make the save. Riddle manages to chase Vinci off before being hit with a big boot from Gunther. Gunther then hits Riddle with a Powerbomb. Gunther leaves the ring and hits Drew with a big boot. Gunther clears the commentary table, which gets a huge pop from the crowd. Gunther attempts to Powerbomb Drew, but Drew is able to counter with a back body drop. Drew then hits Gunther with a Powerbomb through the commentary table.
Backstage Interview:
Jackie Redmond is backstage with Ronda Rousey. Rona says that Shayna can’t challenge her to a fight, because anytime Ronda is in a fight, it is THE fight. Ronda accepts Shayna’s challenge.
In Ring Contract Signing for the World Heavyweight Championship at SummerSlam:
Finn Balor is in the ring. He says that Adam Pearce was meant to be here to oversee the contract signing, but he is preoccupied by all the chaos the Judgement Day has caused. The crowd begin to sing Seth Rollins’ theme song, which annoys Finn. Finn says that he and Seth are professionals and can sign this contract.
Seth Rollins makes his way to the ring, the crowd loudly singing his theme song. Seth picks up the pen and signs the contract. He then turns the contract around to face Finn. Seth then sits down and puts his feet up on the table. Finn takes the pen, and he goes to sign the contract, but he looks angrily at Seth. Seth says that Finn has finally worked out what everyone else has known for a long time. That Finn has zero chance of walking out of SummerSlam as the World Heavyweight Champion. The best case scenario is that Seth will beat Finnn’s ass and Finn will limp out of the ring while the world sings Seth’s theme song. The crowd happily oblige and sing Seth’s theme song again. Seth says that miracles happen every day, and if Balor is the better man, his title reign will be shorter than his Universal Championship reign was. Seth says that Finn’s boy Damian Priest will cash in his Money in the Bank Contract right then and there. Seth and Finn know it, because they would do the exact same thing. Seth tells Finn to keep chasing the ghost. Seth says that SummerSlam will not be the coronation of the Judgement Day, instead SummerSlam will be the end of the Judgement Day.
Finn smiles at Seth as he signs the contract. The World Heavyweight Championship Match at SummerSlam is now official. Finn says Seth thinks he is so smart and has it all figured out. Seth thinks he runs this place, but he doesn’t. The Judgement Day runs Monday Night Raw now. Seth says if Finn loses, he’ll lose. But he also said if Finn wins, he loses. Finn says he has been losing for seven years now. Damian Priest, Dominik Mysterio and Rhea Ripley make their way through the crowd and down the ramp to ringside. Finn says that losing is like an itch that you can’t scratch. It’s all Seth’s fault. It feels like a seven year itch. At SummerSlam, Finn will make Seth his “seven year Bitch”.
Seth flips the table and hits Damian before going to attack Finn. Dominik then attacks Seth, but Seth is able to send Dominik out of the ring. Damian then hits Seth in the face with the Money in the Bank briefcase. Sami Zayn runs down to the ring with a settle chair and begins to clear the ring. Rhea rips the chair out of Sami’s hands and Finn takes out Sami. Rhea and Dominik clear the ring of the furniture. Damian hits Sami with the South of Heaven and buries him under the furniture at ringside.
In the ring, the Judgement Day is surrounding Seth. All four members of Judgement Day begin to beat down Seth. Damian hits Seth with a Razor’s Edge. Dominik goes to the top rope and hits Seth with a Frog Splash. Finn then finishes Seth off with a Coup De Grace. The Judgement Day stands over Seth. Finn says it's over at SummerSlam.
A really good episode of Raw, but again it was spoiled by the endless recaps of what has already happened and replays of SmackDown. If we just cut Raw down to 2 hours, we could achieve the same great show, without all the unnecessary stuff thrown in to pad the time out. The matches are able to be lengthy (when needed), which is great for the wrestlers to be able to tell a good story. SummerSlam is looking to be a really good event, and there is still time to make it even better.
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