While Roadblock: End of the Line (Raw’s next exclusive Pay-Per-View) is in a few weeks, tonight’s episode of Raw features two championship matches: The New Day vs. Gallows and Anderson, and Charlotte defending the Raw Women’s Championship against Sasha Banks.
Chris Jericho’s Highlight Reel feat. Kevin Owens
For the first time ever, the Highlight Reel is featuring the same guest two weeks in a row. Last week, Owens and Jericho fooled the entire audience by teasing the end of their friendship. This week, they celebrate Kevin Owens’ successful Universal Championship defense against Seth Rollins. Right after announcing that Rollins isn’t medically cleared to be in the arena (he got powerbombed on the apron), United States Champion Roman Reigns shows up.
After some trash talk (and Owens telling Jericho to shut up about his list), Reigns challenges Owens to a match, and the Universal Champion accepts. If Reigns wins later tonight, he will get a Universal title opportunity at Roadblock: End of the Line in a couple weeks.
Backstage Segment
It looks like the Highlight Reel was the straw that broke the camel’s back, and now Chris Jericho and Kevin Owens are no longer best friends.
R-Truth (w/Goldust) vs. Braun Strowman
Strowman destroys R-Truth, Goldust, and then Sami Zayn after Zayn tries to help. Winner: Braun Strowman
Before Strowman deals some significant damage to Zayn, Mick Foley calls a stop to it. Zayn gets offended that Foley keeps stopping Zayn’s fights, which is ironic considering Foley’s wrestling career.
Cedric Alexander vs. Tony Nese (w/Drew Gulak)
Tonight’s Cruiserweight Division match is mostly an advertisement for 205 Live, a Cruiserweight-only show premiering tomorrow night on the WWE Network. It also seems like Cedric Alexander might have a love interest in Alicia Fox.
Drew Gulak provides enough of a distraction for Nese to take advantage and hit a pumphandle slam for the win. Winner: Tony Nese
Backstage Segment
Chris Jericho is on his way out of the building when Seth Rollins (who isn’t supposed to be here tonight) attacks Y2J from behind and finishes him off with a Pedigree on top of a car.
Charlotte (c) (w/Dana Brooke) vs. Sasha Banks – Raw Women’s Championship
Now that Charlotte and Sasha Banks are done teaming up for Raw bragging rights, Sasha Banks has cashed in her obliged rematch for the Women’s Championship, which she lost at Hell in a Cell. Charlotte has already beaten The Boss in her hometown of Boston, but now she tries to retain the title in her own hometown.
Charlotte purposefully ends the match in a double count-out, which would give her the title, but Mick Foley doesn’t want the feud to end that way. Foley says that this needs to be more historic, so this match will restart later tonight as no count-out, no disqualification, and falls count anywhere. Result: To be continued…
Rusev (w/Lana) vs. Enzo Amore (w/Big Cass)
Rusev decimated Enzo Amore last week after Lana saw the Certified G naked backstage. Tonight, Amore gets a rematch.
Rusev, clearly furious with Amore’s antics, hits Muscles Marinara with a low blow to go with injury over a win. Winner (via disqualification): Enzo Amore
Rich Swann vs. Noam Dar
Rich Swann, who has two victories over Brian Kendrick, faces the Cruiserweight Champion in a title match tomorrow night on 205 Live. Tonight, he tries to get ready for the biggest match of his career against the recently debuted Noam Dar.
After a brutal spinning kick to Dar, Swann gives us a potential spoiler for tomorrow night when he picks up the victory. Winner: Rich Swann
Roman Reigns vs. Kevin Owens
If Roman Reigns wins tonight, he gets a Universal Championship match against Kevin Owens at Roadblock: End of the Line in three weeks. However, he is going to have a harder time since Owens attacked him before the match got underway.
Without Chris Jericho by his side, Kevin Owens can’t take out Roman Reigns, and ends up eating a spear. Winner: Roman Reigns
Backstage Segment
Michael Cole interviewed Paul Heyman earlier today, and Heyman says that there is a new side of Brock Lesnar. After his 86 second loss to Goldberg at Survivor Series, the man who destroyed all of WWE now has something to prove. Since Goldberg is going to be in the Royal Rumble Match, so is the Beast Incarnate.
The New Day (c) vs. Luke Gallows & Karl Anderson – Raw Tag Team Championships
The New Day is only 17 days away from becoming the longest-reigning WWE World Tag Team Champions of all time. Cesaro and Sheamus tried to stop that last week, and tonight Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson try to do the same. If history is doomed to repeat itself, the New Day has nothing to worry about.
Karl Anderson tries to roll Xavier Woods up with tights for leverage, but Woods counters and uses the tights to his own advantage to actually get the pinfall and get that much closer to the record. Winners, and STILL Raw Tag Team Champions: The New Day
Charlotte (c) vs. Sasha Banks – Raw Women’s Championship (Falls Count Anywhere)
Since their match earlier ended anticlimactically, Mick Foley added the Falls Count Anywhere stipulation.
Banks and Charlotte live up to their Hell in a Cell match, and Sasha Banks wins her third Raw Women’s Championship put using a staircase railing to lock in a very unique Bank Statement, forcing Charlotte to tap. Winner, and NEW Raw Women’s Champion: Sasha Banks
After the match, Ric Flair raises Sasha Banks’ hand in victory (which is huge considering their in Flair Country).
