The September 16th, 2019 episode of WWE RAW aired live from the Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville, TN. It was the first episode of RAW following WWE Clash of Champions. In addition to the takeaways below, Kane also won the 24/7 Championship during the show but lost it back to R-Truth later on.
Here are 6 takeaways from the show:
Bray Wyatt Interrupted Seth Rollins
Universal Champion Seth Rollins kicked off this week’s episode of RAW. Seth lost the RAW Tag Team Championships last night alongside Braun Strowman but was able to defeat Strowman in the main event to retain the Universal Championship. After the match, The Fiend attacked Rollins and will face him for the title at WWE Hell in a Cell.
Seth ran down what it took to defeat Braun last night (4 Stomps and a Pedigree) and gave Strowman props. The crowd chanted “yowie wowie!” as Rollins turned his attention to The Fiend Bray Wyatt. Rollins hyped their match at Hell in a Cell but was interrupted by an episode of Firefly Funhouse.
Wyatt referred to Seth as his future best friend and said that he was glad he was here. Bray told Rollins that he was glad that he was okay and Ramblin Rabit interrupted and told Rollins that he has no idea what he is doing and he needs to run.
Bray noted that Rollins has made a lot of mistakes in the past and plenty of people have forgiven him. Wyatt added that The Fiend never forgets and maybe that is why he said hello last night at Clash of Champions. Bray said that The Fiend might even have more to say Seth tonight. Bray stood in silence for a few moments then laughed before saying “see you in Hell” to conclude the segment.
Braun Strowman Buried The Tag Team Division
RAW Tag Team Champions Robert Roode & Dolph Ziggler and SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Revival came down to the ring to boast about their victories last night. Roode told everyone to take a good hard look at greatness.
Braun Strowman marched down to the ring and single-handedly beat the hell out of everyone as the crowd chanted “get these hands!”. Strowman got out of the ring and hit everyone with a couple of shoulder tackles. Roode retreated out of the ring as Strowman posed in the ring.
I couldn’t think of a dumber segment if I tried. WWE once again reminded everyone that they don’t care about tag team wrestling with this segment. They also reminded everyone at Clash of Champions that all Braun Strowman does is come up short in big matches. So, why would anyone bother caring about the tag team divisions or Strowman at this point?
Baron Corbin Won The King Of The Ring Tournament
Chad Gable faced Baron Corbin in the finals of the King of the Ring Tournament. Corbin and Gable locked up to start things off. Gable applied a Headlock but Corbin broke free and connected with a right hand to the face.
Baron beat Gable down in the corner as Graves argued that Gable let his country down by not winning a gold medal. Michael Cole then bickered with Graves instead of calling the action. Corbin knocked Gable out of the ring and then launched him over the barricade as RAW went to a commercial break.
When RAW returned, Corbin connected with a massive Clothesline and taunted the crowd. Corbin dominated the next few minutes of the match but Gable was able to apply the Ankle Lock. Corbin broke free but Gable connected with a Dropkick off the second rope.
Corbin hit Gable with a Powerslam for a two count and brought Chad back to the outside. Corbin threw Gable into the barricade a couple of times. Corbin charged at Gable but he was able to get out of the way and Baron launched himself into the steel steps.
Gable wrapped Corbin’s leg around the steel ring post a couple of times and followed it up with a Dropkick to the knee. Gable unloaded a flurry of right hands but Corbin shrugged them off and hit Deep Six for a near fall. Gable hit a German Suplex and then applied the Ankle Lock in the middle of the ring. Corbin fought through the pain and grabbed the bottom rope to break the hold. Baron then planted Gable with the End of Days to win the tournament.
Rusev Returned During A Ridiculous Segment
Maria Kanellis said Ricochet was actually the father of her baby and this led to a match with Mike Kanellis. Ricochet won the match with ease and after the match Maria scolded Mike and said that she was just trying to motivate him.
Kanellis then claimed that Rusev was the father of her baby and Rusev came down to the ring. Mike said that he was having a bad night and was not looking for a fight. Kanellis congratulated Rusev on being the father of the baby and tried to run away.
Rusev caught him and brought him back into the ring. The match officially started and Rusev connected with a boot to the face. Rusev then locked in the Accolade for the submission victory.
It is great to see Rusev back and he looks to be in phenomenal shape. However, this segment was horrific and ruined Rusev’s chance to get a great reaction from the crowd. I can’t imagine this run for Rusev is going to go well if this how WWE elects to bring him back. It also sucks that Ricochet is already being wasted away in dumb segments like this.
Charlotte & Becky Sent A Message To Bayley & Banks
SmackDown Women’s Champion Bayley and Sasha Banks faced Women’s Tag Team Champions Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross in a non-title match. Bliss and Cross dominated early and knocked Banks and Bayley out of the ring. Back in the ring, Cross hit Bayley with a Dropkick for a two count.
Sasha Banks tagged in and hit Cross with a Suplex for another two count. Bayley launched Bliss into the steel steps and then smashed Alexa’s knee on the steps as RAW went to a break.
When RAW returned, Nikki Cross was isolated in the ring while Banks and Bayley took turns beating her down. Alexa Bliss was taken to the back. Sasha sent Nikki out of the ring but Cross battled back and trapped Banks in the apron. Cross unloaded a punch of punches while Banks was trapped and then made her way to the top rope.
Nikki hit Bayley with a Crossbody for a near fall. Cross hit Sasha with a Dropkick and rolled up Bayley for a two count. Cross hit a Tornado DDT and followed it up with a Neckbreaker but Banks broke up the cover. Sasha tagged herself in and locked in the Bank Statement for the submission victory.
After the match, Sasha Banks grabbed a steel chair and brought it into the ring. RAW Women’s Champion Becky Lynch interrupted and ran down the ramp with chair of her own. Bayley slid in the ring with a steel chair as well. Charlotte Flair interrupted and booted the chair out of Bayley’s hand. Flair hit Bayley with the chair as Becky capitalized on the distraction and hit Sasha with the chair.
Sasha Banks challenged Becky to a rematch at Hell in a Cell later during the show and Becky Lynch quickly accepted and announced that it will be a Hell in a Cell Match.
This was by far the best segment of the night so far and it was the only thing besides Bray Wyatt that got any reaction from the crowd. It would be nice if WWE would stop using tag team champions to further other storylines but that is a lost cause at this point.
The Fiend Showed Up At The End Of The Show
Robert Roode faced Seth Rollins in the main event of this week’s show. Dolph Ziggler was ringside for the match. Roode controlled the beginning of the match and targetted Seth’s ribs. Rollins launched Roode to the outside and Ziggler hopped up on the apron for a distraction.
Rollins ignored him and hit a knee to Roode’s face from off the apron. Roode sent Rollins into the apron as the crowd sat in dead silence. RAW then went to a break as Roode and Ziggler taunted the Universal Champion.
When RAW returned, Roode had Rollins in a Bear Hug but Seth broke free with an elbow to the face. Roode hit a Backbreaker for a near fall and then yelled at the referee for not counting fast enough.
Seth hit a Slingblade and followed it up with a Falcon Arrow for a two count. Rollins climbed to the top rope but Robert joined him up there and went for a Superplex. Seth escaped and hit Roode with a Buckle Bomb in the opposite corner. Seth followed it up with the Stomp but Dolph broke up the cover.
After the DQ finish, Roode and Ziggler attacked Rollins and The OC joined in on the attack. Gallows and Anderson hit Rollins with the Magic Killer and AJ followed it up with the Styles Clash. Kane came down to the ring for the save and went to pose for the crowd but the lights in the arena went out. The Fiend showed up behind Kane and applied the Mandible Claw. Wyatt then crawled to Rollins in the corner and laughed in his face. The Firefly Funhouse theme played for a minute before the show went off the air.
The last few minutes of tonight’s show were very entertaining. Wyatt versus Rollins is setting up to be a great match and the crowd will definitely be into it at Hell in a Cell. Overall, this week’s episode of RAW was a mixed bag. There were a few good segments tonight but not nearly enough for a three-hour show. WWE’s tag team division (male and female) remains an afterthought and a repackaged AOP isn’t going to save that.