The August 12, 2019 episode of WWE RAW aired live from the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, ON. It was the first episode of RAW following WWE SummerSlam 2019. In addition to the takeaways below, it was announced that King of the Ring will make its return on next week’s episode of RAW. Elias also captured the 24/7 Championship during tonight’s episode.
Here are 7 takeaways from this week’s show:
Seth Rollins Accepted AJ Styles’ Challenge
Universal Champion Seth Rollins kicked off the show to a great reaction from the crowd. Rollins told the crowd that last night he didn’t know that he had what it took to beat Brock Lesnar.
Seth stated that the last few weeks have been the toughest of his career and he was not as confident as he should have been. The crowd chanted “Beast Slayer” as Seth complimented Brock on being everything he is touted to be in the ring. Rollins said the crowd came alive last night and took him to a place that he has never been in his entire career. Seth added that he remembered last night that he is Seth “Freaking” Rollins and that is why he is standing here as Universal Champion.
United States Champion AJ Styles and the RAW Tag Team Champions Anderson & Gallows interrupted. The OC posed on the entrance ramp and made their way down to the ring. Styles claimed that The OC would be like to be the first to congratulate Rollins on his victory last night. AJ told Rollins that while he doesn’t have to worry about Brock Lesnar anymore, but he does have to worry about the man standing right in front of him.
Styles challenged Rollins and said that he wanted to prove that he is a much better champion than Seth. Rollins told AJ that he has used to have a ton of respect for Styles and the crowd broke out in a “yes” chant. Seth told Styles that he doesn’t respect Styles anymore and accepted the challenge.
Samoa Joe Doesn’t Forgive You
NXT Tag Team Champions the Street Profits were backstage cutting a promo when Sami Zayn interrupted. Zayn went on a rant about how Seth Rollins has turned into a pandering idiot and Becky Lynch as The Man now seems manufactured. Dawkins asked Sami Zayn about Samoa Joe and Sami called Joe soft for helping Roman Reigns last week. Samoa Joe overheard this and challenged Sami Zayn to a match.
Sami went right after Samoa Joe to start off the match and hit him with a couple of chops to the chest. Joe sent Sami flying with a shoulder tackle and followed it up with a few headbutts. Samoa Joe locked in the Coquina Clutch for the quick victory and then grabbed a microphone.
Joe said that he does forgive Roman Reigns for thinking he was the one that attacked. However, he will not extend that same forgiveness to the crowd. Joe ended the promo telling the fans that he will never forgive them as the crowd booed.
Dolph Ziggler Had Another Rough Night
The Miz was scheduled to face Dolph Ziggler tonight on RAW. Ziggler came down to the ring in his street clothes and called Miz a coward. Dolph claimed that it was all part of Miz’s master plan to sick Goldberg on him at SummerSlam. Ziggler said that he was not medically cleared to compete tonight because he got hit with so many Spears from Goldberg last night.
The crowd chanted “Goldberg!” as Ziggler threw the microphone out of the ring. Ziggler ambushed Miz in the corner and beat the hell out of him as the referee tried to pull him away. The match then started and Miz quickly connected with the Zig Zag but Miz was able to kick out at two.
The Miz took Ziggler to the mat and was able to lock in the Figure Four. Dolph tried to reach for the ropes but The Miz brought him back to the center of the ring and Ziggler had no choice but to tap out.
Dolph grabbed the microphone and said Maryse was a better wrestler than The Miz. Ziggler added that Miz was nothing but a reality show wannabe. The Miz got into the ring and hit Ziggler with the Skull Crushing Finale and made his way back up the entrance ramp.
Cedric Alexander & Drew McIntyre Had An Excellent Match
Drew McIntyre battled Cedric Alexander once again tonight on RAW. Before the match, McIntyre vowed to put an end to this rivalry tonight by caving in Alexander’s skull.
Alexander started off the match in control with a Dropkick. Cedric Clotheslined McIntyre to the outside and flipped onto him. Back in the ring, Alexander made his way to the top rope and connected with another Dropkick for a two count.
McIntyre hit Cedric with a Buckle Bomb and went for the cover but Alexander kicked out at two. Alexander battled back with an awesome DDT for another near fall. McIntyre slammed Cedric to the canvas off the second rope for another two count.
Drew brought Alexander out of the ring and hit him with a chop that echoed throughout the arena. Alexander sent McIntyre into the ring post and then planted him with the Lumbar Check outside the ring. Alexander went for a Suicide Dive but McIntyre caught him and hit an Overhead Suplex onto the entrance ramp.
Back in the ring, McIntyre geared up in the corner as Alexander stumbled to his feet. Cedric fell down before McIntyre could hit the move. Alexander rolled up McIntyre out of nowhere for a two count and followed it up with an epic Spanish Fly off the top rope for another near fall. McIntyre hit a Claymore Kick that sent Alexander flipping in the air for the pinfall victory.
Alexander and McIntyre put on an excellent match tonight. WWE has the ability to put on matches like this all the time with all of their talent. The King of the Ring tournament on next week’s RAW is a perfect opportunity to showcase wrestlers that have been overlooked or has not had a chance yet.
Sasha Banks Returned As A Heel
Natalya walked down the entrance ramp with her arm in a sling. Natalya stated that she tapped out last night at SummerSlam and that Becky Lynch was the better woman. Natalya said that she has a dislocated elbow and is going to get an MRI tomorrow.
Natalya claimed that she doesn’t regret anything that she said about Becky. She added that her dad spoke to her last night and congratulated her. Sasha Banks interrupted to a great reaction from the crowd.
Banks ripped off her pink wig and attacked Natalya. Banks had new blue hair and slammed Natalya’s injured arm into the turnbuckle. Sasha threw Natalya to the outside and then slammed her into the steel steps as the crowd chanted “thank you Sasha!”.
Banks grabbed a steel chair from the timekeeper’s area and brought it into the ring. RAW Women’s Champion Becky Lynch interrupted and rushed the ring. Lynch and Sasha traded punches and Becky knocked her to the outside. Sasha slammed Becky into the barricade and then grabbed the chair. Banks hit Becky in the back with the chair several times as the crowd chanted “this is awesome!”. Sasha slapped Lynch in the face and slammed her into the steel steps before finally leaving.
This was awesome and Banks got an incredible reaction from the crowd. Sasha is more entertaining as a heel in my opinion, and a feud with Becky Lynch has the potential to be must-watch television.
Bliss & Cross Retained
Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross defended their Women’s Tag Team Championships against the Kabuki Warriors tonight on RAW. Asuka and Kairi Sane dominated early as RAW went to a commercial break.
When RAW returned, Asuka and Nikki Cross were battling in the ring. Asuka connected with a German Suplex that sent Bliss to the corner. Alexa tagged herself in and hit a DDT for a two count.
Nikki tagged back and Asuka took them both out with a Bulldog and Clothesline. Sane tagged in and hit Cross with an Alabama Slam. Kairi climbed to the top rope but Cross rolled to the outside. Sane hit her with a Crossbody off the top rope and rolled her into the ring.
Kairi hit the Insane Elbow and went for the cover but Bliss broke it up. Asuka chased Bliss to the outside and tried to kick her but hit the ring post. Bliss then shoved Asuka into the ring post and rolled back into the ring. Nikki hit Sane with a Neckbreaker and tagged in Bliss. Alexa connected with Twisted Bliss on Kairi Sane for the pinfall victory.
The only possible positive here is that WWE splits up Asuka and Kairi Sane. They are terrific wrestlers that are wasting away in a tag team division that WWE doesn’t seem to care about. I’d rather see Kairi Sane having great matches in NXT than on the main roster in 6-minute matches with a commercial break in the middle of them. This is the second time Bliss has pinned Kairi Sane recently. I honestly don’t understand the point of calling her up if this is what WWE had planned for her.
Braun Strowman Saved Seth Rollins
Universal Champion Seth Rollins battled United States Champion AJ Styles in the main event of this week’s show. RAW Tag Team Champions Gallows & Anderson were ringside for the match.
Rollins hit Gallows with a Suicide Dive outside the ring. AJ slammed Rollins’ injured ribs on the floor as RAW went to a commercial break. When RAW returned, AJ was still in control and hit a Backbreaker for a two count.
Styles went for the Styles Clash on the apron but Seth was able to escape. Rollins slammed Styles on the apron and both superstars fell to the floor. Gallows and Anderson rolled AJ back into the ring and Seth got in at the last second.
Seth planted AJ with the Falcon Arrow and went for the cover but AJ kicked out at two. Rollins caught Styles with a Superkick and climbed to the top rope. Anderson distracted the referee and Gallows shoved Styles to the canvas. The referee threw Gallows and Anderson out from ringside as Seth rolled up AJ for a two count.
Anderson and Gallows ran into the ring and attacked Seth from behind. The match ended in a DQ as The OC beat Rollins down. Ricochet ran down to the ring but Gallows and Anderson hit him with the Boot of Doom. Styles hopped to the second rope but Braun Strowman’s music hit. Strowman took out Anderson with a shoulder tackle and delivered another one to Gallows. Strowman planted AJ Styles with the Running Powerslam and then another one as the crowd chanted “get these hands!”.
Braun then grabbed the Universal Championship and brought it into the ring. Strowman handed Seth the title and shook his hand as the crowd cheered. RAW went off the air with Strowman, Ricochet, and Rollins standing tall in the ring.
Strowman got a great reaction from the crowd, but it is going to take a lot for me to get invested in that character again. Overall, RAW was a solid show this week and hopefully, that trend continues tomorrow night on SmackDown.