WWE Raw live results: Title match set for SummerSlam & a new champion is crowned
The Big Takeaway: Now this was a show of change. Sasha Banks won the WWE Women’s Championship from Charlotte in probably the most heated women’s match ever on Raw. It was also among the most emotional matches in recent Raw history where Banks broke down after winning.
Stephanie McMahon and Mick Foley announced the creation of the WWE Universal Championship, which is basically the top title on Raw. The champion will be crowned at SummerSlam when Seth Rollins (who was given an automatic slot into the match with no explanation) faces Finn Balor.
On his first night on Raw, Balor won a four-way match to qualify for the main event, then stunned Roman Reigns for the championship shot. Also, Brock Lesnar will return next week for the first time since WrestleMania.
Show Recap:
There’s a new show opening with a theme by Shinedown. Michael Cole, Byron Saxton and Corey Graves have a new location that hovers over the ring. JoJo did the ring announcing instead of Lillian Garcia, who was never mentioned.
Stephanie McMahon and Mick Foley were in the ring to introduce the fans to a new era of Monday Night Raw. Then Foley introduced the entire Raw roster. Foley said he wanted to work hand-in-hand with every superstar to make Raw the most physical, action-packed show every week.
Stephanie said Roman Reigns let the entire roster down when he lost the WWE World Heavyweight Championship to Dean Ambrose. She said he wasn’t a good guy, he wasn’t a bad guy, he was a loser. Some cheers for that. She said through 1,209 episodes of Raw, there has always been a heavyweight champion because the fans demand it. (well, there were times it was vacant.)
And the fans would get it tonight. Foley announced tonight would have two Fatal Four Way matches. The winners of each match would meet in the main event.T he winner of that match would face Seth Rollins at SummerSlam for the new championship. Foley said the new championship would be named the WWE Universal Championship.
Foley called down the eight men who would participate in the two four-ways tonight: Sami Zayn, Sheamus, Reigns, Rusev, Chris Jericho. Cesaro, Kevin Owens, and the first draft pick from NXT, Finn Balor.
Stephanie told Charlotte to step forward. Foley mentioned Charlotte lost to Sasha Banks last night, so she would face Banks for the WWE Women’s Championship tonight.
Finn Balor defeated Rusev, Kevin Owens, & Cesaro in a Fatal Four Way to advance to the main event (20:26)
Balor won with the Coup de Grace and pinned Rusev. Owens had just hit the Cannonball on Rusev, but Balor ran in the ring, dropkicked Owens into Rusev and gave Owens the Sling Blade. Rusev tried to give Cesaro a hip toss over the top rope, but they both fell to the floor. Owens took a bump to the floor, leading to Balor hitting a tope on all of them.
Balor used the 1916 on Owens for a two count. After a commercial, a Tower of Doom spot where Rusev power bombed Owens and Balor, leading to Cesaro taking the big bump. Owens hit a frog splash on Balor, but Cesaro broke it up. Then Owens got the Pop-Up Power Bomb on Balor, but again Cesaro made the save.
Cesaro used a springboard corkscrew uppercut on Owens. His attempt at the Giant Swing was broken up by Rusev’s superkick. Rusev gave Owens a superkick and applied the Accolade. Again, Cesaro broke that up and gave Rusev a vertical suplex. Very good match. Balor was given his full ring entrance, the announcers built him up huge and he really shined on this stage.
The announcers tried to build up a rivalry between SmackDown Live and Raw by admitting that SmackDown beat Raw in the ratings last week, but Raw would be back on top after tonight because they’re live.
Nia Jax defeated Britt Baker (1:18)
A squash match where Jax pinned her with a legdrop. Jax lifted Baker up when she had her pinned to punish her more.
Banks was in the back when Goldust and R-Truth walked up on her with a cell phone. Banks wanted to know if they were trying to take a picture of her. Goldust said they were playing Pokemon Go. Banks did an interview about beating Charlotte and beating the WWE Women’s Championship tonight, and it would be a dream come true.
She said the WWE Women’s Championship would have some new swag tonight and it’s about to get lit.
Brock Lesnar is scheduled for next week’s Raw.
Roman Reigns defeated Chris Jericho, Sami Zayn, & Sheamus in a Fatal Four Way match to advance to the main event to face Balor (17:12)
Reigns won after Jericho missed a charge to the corner and Reigns hit a spear. Reigns, Jericho and Zayn used their finishers at some point in the match, leading to a kickout or a rope escape. Zayn hit the Helluva Kick on Sheamus, but Jericho made the save.
Jericho put Zayn in the Liontamer, but he made the ropes. Jericho also used the Codebreaker on Reigns for a near fall towards the end. Sheamus hit the Irish Curse on Zayn and was about to use the White Noise, but Reigns caught him with the Superman Punch. Reigns used the Niagara Driver (which Graves actually called by name) on Zayn for a good near fall.
Another very good match. This was featured guys kicking out of finishers as opposed to the opener, which was better laid out. New show. New look. New roster. Same old reaction to Reigns. Early on, Jericho and Sheamus took out Reigns for several minutes by throwing him into the barricade. Zayn got some high spots. Reigns got booed when he gave Zayn a back suplex.
They showed highlights of Shawn Michaels beating Ric Flair in Flair’s retirement match at 2008 WrestleMania.
The New Day came out for a celebration of their 337th day as World Tag Team Champions. The ring was decorated with balloons designed with unicorns. Kofi Kingston had Booty-Os cereal.
Xavier Woods admitted their match with the Wyatt Family didn’t go the way they wanted last night. Big E. said 337 days ago, Gwen Stefani and Jennifer Garner were still married, though not to each other. Kingston said Booty-Os wasn’t a real product, but now it is.
Woods then introduced a video package showing mainly highlights of the New Day dancing. Woods announced they would select one member of the crowd to become an honorary member of the New Day.
They picked out a really obvious looking plant at ringside wearing a Booty-Os t-shirt. Big E asked “What’s your name, Sonny Boy.” The man said Sonny Boy. The New Day thought he was kidding, but he wasn’t. They kept asking his name over and over and he simply replied “Sonny Boy.” As intended, it got the crowd chanting.
Kingston told him his first order of business was to start celebrating with them. Sonny Boy started chanting “New Day Rocks.”
Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows ran in to jump Kingston and Woods. They gave Big E. the Magic Killer after throwing Kingston and Woods into the steps. Saxton was a heel on commentary saying how the New Day started to bore him.
Then Anderson and Gallows walked up to Sonny Boy in the front row. Gallows blew his nose into a New Day t-shirt and threw it at Sonny Boy.
Neville defeated Curtis Axel (3:43)
Neville pinned Curtis Axel with the Red Arrow. A disappointing reaction for Neville upon his return in the very building where he was injured in March. Axel was referred to as “Mr. Irrelevant” since he was picked last in last week’s draft. He also didn’t have on his Social Outcasts t-shirt, so that gimmick may be dead and buried.
Bob Backlund talked with Darren Young backstage. Young said he had the Intercontinental Championship right in his hands against the Miz, but when Miz pushed down Backlund, then the title wasn’t important. Backlund said Young would learn from the loss.
Goldust and R-Truth walked in and said there was a Pokemon character under Backlund’s bow-tie. Backlund screamed at them to get out.
Charlotte and Dana Brooke did a promo about Banks. Charlotte said Banks had a partner last night, but tonight she was alone. Charlotte said Banks didn’t know what pressure was about. Charlotte said Banks would bow down to the queen tonight and she could bank on that.
Sasha Banks defeated WWE Women’s Champion Charlotte to win the title (16:51)
Banks won the championship with the Bank Statement in another very good match that had the best atmosphere for a women’s match on Raw ever. Crowd never lost interest. Banks got the Bank Statement, but Charlotte made the ropes. Charlotte subsequently told Banks that she would never beat her, which led to Banks winning.
Charlotte hit Natural Selection, but Banks got to the ropes. Charlotte followed with the Figure Eight, but again Banks escaped. There were two spots that looked scary. One was a botch where Charlotte was supposed to do a somersault senton, but Banks was going to get her knees up. But Charlotte didn’t get all the way over.
Banks followed with a tope where she appeared to land on her face. They fought on the top rope, where Charlotte dropped Banks on the ropes, then followed with a moonsault to the floor. Brooke grabbed Banks’ boot early. Later when action spilled out to the floor, Charlotte threw Banks into the barricade.
In a great spot, Charlotte grabbed the championship belt and held it in front of Banks’ face. Charlotte got back in the ring, but Banks threw the belt at Brooke, then fell down. The referee saw Brooke with the belt thinking she had decked Banks with it and ordered Brooke to the back. It was a spot straight from a Eddy Guerrero match.
Charlotte had tears in her eyes after losing. Banks was overcome with emotion finally achieving a dream she had since she was 10 years old. Saxton did an interview with her saying this was a new era in the WWE and she was the person who would lead the women’s division.
She vowed to defend the championship week after week against the very best and she would prove she was the Boss. Banks could barely get through the promo because the crowd chanted for her. Really a remarkable scene.
Braun Strowman defeated James Ellsworth (1:09)
This was unique in its own way. Saxton did a pre-match interview with Ellsworth, who looked like an equipment manager, in the ring wondering why he would take this match against a man he gave up 300 pounds again. Ellsworth stumbled through the interview saying if he pulled the upset, it would do wonders for his career.
Saxton said he hoped Ellsworth still had a career after the match. Strowman, who was never mentioned as being in the Wyatt Family and has new music, won with a reverse chokeslam. Another attempt to make Strowman the new monster and they had the right idea. Have him wrestle 70 seconds and get him out.
Enzo Amore and Big Cass came out. Amore started singing Ol’ Dirty Bastard’s “Shimmy Shimmy Ya,” which includes the lyric “Oh, baby I like it Raw.” Cass started listing things he liked Raw when the Shining Stars showed up to remind us they were still alive.
Epico said they would beat Enzo and Cass and send an invitation to leave your ugly Steel City behind and come to Puerto Rico, “the Shining Star of the Caribbean.” Cass gave them the Sawft line.
Goldust and Truth still searched for Pokemon characters. Truth saw the Pittsburgh Penguins logo on a dressing room door and thought he found one, but Goldust had to tell him otherwise.
Enzo & Cass defeated The Shining Stars (1:53)
Finish came when Truth wondered in the ring looking for Pokemon characters. Cass hit Primo with the Big Boot.
Balor and Reigns had a tense exchange backstage. They wished each other luck. Balor said he’s Irish, they invented luck. Reigns said “I’m Samoan. Enough said.”
Finn Balor defeated Roman Reigns for the right to face Seth Rollins for the WWE Universal Championship at SummerSlam (13:51)
Balor stunned everyone by pinning Reigns clean with the Coupe de Grace. Reigns went for the Spear, but Balor caught him with a Sling Blade. Reigns got the majority of the offense since he was doing the job. He threw Balor around like a rag doll in the early minutes. A good match. They panned for crowd shots after the upset, but most of the fans were shown leaving.
Reigns did a post-match ringside interview saying he wants Balor to beat Rollins because he wants to face Balor again. He said he respects Balor.