WWE Raw Results: Winners, Grades, Reaction and Highlights from February 26

The follow-up to Sunday's Elimination Chamber pay-per-view saw Roman Reigns cut the promo of his career, the seeds planted for Ronda Rousey's first WrestleMania match, the clarification of John Cena's WrestleMania plans and the instigation of The Miz's Intercontinental Championship program for The Showcase of the Immortals.

An explosive episode of the flagship show, it set in motion several rivalries and angles that will result in high-profile WrestleMania matches for some of the most prominent stars in sports entertainment.

In anticipation of the next stop on the road to WrestleMania, relive Monday's broadcast with this recap of the USA Network presentation.

Alexa Bliss Kicks Off Raw

Mickie James accompanied Raw women's champion Alexa Bliss to the squared circle to kick off Monday's broadcast, just 24 hours removed from Elimination Chamber.

Bliss complimented James on her showing at Elimination Chamber and admitted she has learned a great deal from the six-time women's champion.

Bliss proceeded to run down the women she defeated at the pay-per-view before turning her attention to Asuka. She vowed to become the first woman to beat her at WrestleMania, but before she could continue, The Empress of Tomorrow arrived.

Bliss brought up Nia Jax and her performance against Asuka, insinuating The Irresistible Force deserves to be in the WrestleMania match. This brought Jax out and incited a brawl featuring the six top female stars on Raw.

Grade

C

Analysis

It was nice to see Bliss get the promo spot at the top of the card, and as usual, she thrived, but this was really all for the sake of bringing together top Superstars for another multi-woman tag match.

How often do fans have to be exposed to that formula before they lose interest in the division?

Given the incredible performances of the women Sunday night at Elimination Chamber, this felt like a somewhat disappointing follow-up.

Sasha Banks, Bayley and Asuka vs. Nia Jax, Mickie James and Alexa Bliss

Just one night removed from a grueling and physically punishing Elimination Chamber match in which she came oh-so-close to winning the Raw Women's Championship, Sasha Banks found herself isolated from partners Bayley and Asuka and under the oppressive assault of Alexa Bliss, Nia Jax and Mickie James in the night's opening Six-Woman Tag Team match.

After a big suplex put Bliss down, Banks inched toward Bayley, only to have her friend drop down off the apron and refuse the tag.

It was a betrayal months in the making.

Banks continued to fight back, and Asuka exploded into the match. She laid waste to the opposition in time for Bayley to re-enter the match and catch Bliss with a suplex.

Asuka ultimately forced a tapout of James with an armbar. After the match, Bayley stood over Banks, looking down at her on the arena floor.

Result

Asuka, Bayley and Sasha Banks defeated Alexa Bliss, Nia Jax and Mickie James

Grade

B

Analysis

Asuka's undefeated streak handcuffed bookers here, as the babyfaces still needed to go over despite the Bayley betrayal.

Ideally, Bliss and Co. would have won, making the teased turn that much more significant, but it was not an option thanks to the presence of the No. 1 contender.

The match itself was longer than one would have expected, but WWE officials really need to cut back on the largely meaningless Six-Woman Tag Team matches, as it hurts the freshness of the divisions on both Raw and SmackDown when it is literally the only match type fans are exposed to.

John Cena Promo

John Cena cut a promo Monday night discussing his latest failure at Elimination Chamber.

He said the measure of a man is judged on how he reacts to failure and disappointment, how he responds to having his back against the wall.

He claimed no other Superstar would have the guts to admit their failures.

"Failure has made me who I am today." He said you can either stay down or you can get up, and tonight, he is doing something he should have done a long time ago: put out a WrestleMania challenge to The Undertaker.

The challenge was met with tremendous excitement from fans, who broke out into a "Yes!" chant.

Cena revealed there are 39 WrestleManias between them and they have never stood toe-to-toe on the grandest stage of them all...but that match is not happening.

Cena says that match is not happening because he does not make the matches. He revealed he would head to SmackDown Live Tuesday night and hopefully earn a spot on the WrestleMania card.

Grade

A

Analysis

There are those who will claim this was the same preachy Cena promo he always cuts, but it has become such a staple of his character that the whole "get back up and keep going" mentality is essential to his story. It works in this case, whereas it might not for a guy like Roman Reigns.

The tease of The Undertaker match, followed by the harsh reality that match is not happening, was a great way to end all speculation of said bout once and for all and propel his story forward.

A great promo from a Cena, who appears motivated for the first time in a year.

Heath Slater vs. Bray Wyatt

Bray Wyatt, hellbent on avenging his loss to Woken Matt Hardy Sunday night, attacked Heath Slater and Rhyno before a scheduled match with The One Man Rock Band.

Wyatt brutalized the former SmackDown tag team champions as the commentary team put over the more dangerous and deprived Eater of Worlds.

Bray promised the issues between him and Hardy are far from over and that they will wage war again.

Result

No-contest

Analysis

How many times have we seen Bray Wyatt become more motivated by the general crappiness of his win-loss record against a certain Superstar?

It fails to carry any weight because WWE Creative gets serious about booking his character a certain way and then gives up on it shortly thereafter.

It is a joke at this point and not one any self-respecting member of the WWE Universe will fall for.

Seth Rollins vs. The Miz

Intercontinental champion The Miz was furious after his Elimination Chamber loss, blaming everyone but himself for losing Sunday night, including Raw general manager Kurt Angle.

This eventually brought out Seth Rollins, and a match between the two was underway.

The Kingslayer frustrated Miz early, but the Hollywood A-Lister dumped him to the arena floor heading into the break. From there, Miz seized control, working the former WWE champion over.

Rollins mounted a comeback, wiped The Miztourage out at ringside and scored the win with a frog splash to a prone Miz some three-quarters of the way across the squared circle.

Before he could celebrate his victory, Finn Balor made his way to the ring as Rollins watched on, insulted by the blatant disrespect shown to him by the man who defeated him to become the first universal champion.

Result

Seth Rollins defeated The Miz

Grade

B+

Analysis

The Miz and Rollins have solid in-ring chemistry, so the match was never going to be any less than very good. With that said, it was rather formulaic and predictable, as Rollins earned some of his momentum back after losing Sunday night at Elimination Chamber.

The tease of tension between Balor and Rollins will likely create buzz and excitement among fans that WrestleMania may feature a showdown between them, but keep in mind that Miz, to this point, does not have any immediately clear plans and that a Triple Threat match over the IC title should not be counted out.

Finn Balor vs. The Miz

Credit: WWE.com

A beaten-down Miz, it was revealed, was scheduled to battle Balor in singles competition as commentators speculated on which Superstar the intercontinental champion would defend against at WrestleMania.

Instead, The Miztourage jumped Balor, leaving Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson to hit the ring and make the save.

As The Good Brothers cleared the ring of Bo Dallas and Curtis Axel, Kurt Angle appeared on the video screen and announced the ejection of the two teams at ringside and said there would be a winner between Miz and Balor or the IC champion would not go to WrestleMania at all.

Still recovering from the attack by Dallas and Axel, Balor endured a focused attack by Miz.

Resilient, he fought his way into the match and scored a victory over the titleholder.

Result

Finn Balor defeated The Miz

Grade

B+

Analysis

Like Rollins and Miz, Balor and Miz are so good, a quality match is to be expected.

Creating a dilemma for Angle in terms of the rightful No. 1 contender to the Intercontinental Championship is a fine way to utilize Balor and Rollins while emphasizing Miz's title.

It might not be the ideal use of The Kingslayer and The Demon, but it will at least ensure them a spot on the card.

Roman Reigns Addresses Brock Lesnar and Paul Heyman

Up until a half-hour before Roman Reigns took to the squared circle, he expected Brock Lesnar to be there.

The WWE Universe expected him to be there.

According to Reigns, though, something happened, and he was not.

Reigns proceeded to cut a promo in which he ran Lesnar down, saying he only shows up when the money's right. He added Lesnar and Paul Heyman will credit it to being businessmen, but Reigns was born into the business, and there is a fine line between business and respect.

Reigns, with the line of his career, said, "I don't respect Brock Lesnar...and I damn sure don't fear that b---h."

Reigns ended the promo by suggesting he was going to head back and take discipline from the office for what he said and, in the process, earned the loudest cheers he has received in quite some time.

Grade

A+

Analysis

Moral of the promo: let Roman Reigns talk like Roman Reigns.

Stop forcing promos on him and let him speak with intensity and attitude. Let him be himself, and the result will be engaging and chill-inducing promos like this one, where the audience got a hint of the man who is beneath the WWE gloss waiting to break through.

A great promo from Reigns that instantly made his showdown with Lesnar significantly more anticipated than it was prior to the show.

Even if it was born of backstage frustration over the Lesnar situation.

Raw Tag Team Championship Match: Titus Worldwide vs. The Bar

Credit: WWE.com

Just 24 hours after The Bar successfully defended their Raw Tag Team Championships against Titus Worldwide, Sheamus and Cesaro would have to do so again, this time in a 2-out-of-3-Falls match.

A distraction from Cesaro allowed Sheamus to flatten an unaware Titus O'Neil with a Brogue Kick and score the first fall for the champions.

The action continued, with several dramatic near-falls between the two teams.

In the end, the experience of the champions played the determining factor, as Sheamus disposed of O'Neil on the arena floor and then joined Cesaro for a double-team finisher that spelled the end of Apollo.

After the match, the braggadocios cut a promo asking who is left for them to beat.

Result

The Bar defeated Titus Worldwide, two falls to none

Grade

B

Analysis

This was a perfectly acceptable wrestling match, but one has to wonder why it was absolutely necessary for The Bar to go over Titus Worldwide in two straight falls, essentially obliterating any credibility O'Neil and Apollo had left at this point.

The post-match promo essentially promises the ignition of a new rivalry on next week's show—hopefully involving The Revival or Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson.

Braun Strowman vs. Elias

Credit: WWE.com

Braun Strowman pinned Elias Sunday night in the Elimination Chamber, two weeks after demolishing a bass over his back.

The Superstars did battle Monday night in the main event match of the night.

The Monster Among Men overwhelmed The Drifter, punishing him with his power advantage. Everything Elias tried was met with fury. That is until Elias retrieved a fire extinguisher and sprayed it in his opponent's eyes.

Elias attempted an attack with the weapon, but Strowman regained control of the situation.

The action spilled to the entrance ramp, where Strowman appeared poised to slam Elias through the announce table. The Drifter broke free and ran away, leaving Strowman to yell, "I'm not finished with you!"

Result

Braun Strowman defeated Elias

Grade

B

Analysis

Is it possible that Strowman vs. Elias is a WrestleMania program?

It would not have seemed that way from the onset, but given the angle that was shot here and the fact that Strowman has not avenged the attack on him by Elias earlier in the show, it appears that way.

While Strowman should be involved in something a bit higher profile, the program gives Elias the chance to prove his worth against a bona fide main eventer on the biggest stage known to wrestling.

Ronda Rousey Confronts The Authority

Credit: WWE.com

Ronda Rousey put Triple H through a table and endured a slap from Stephanie McMahon at Elimination Chamber.

Monday, she was ready to demolish The Billion Dollar Princess, especially after she insinuated that The Authority owns Rousey by way of her signed contract.

Rousey was ready to destroy Stephanie when Angle, voicing his desire to keep his job as GM, admitted that he lied about Triple H and Stephanie's true intentions with Rousey.

Rousey appeared to understand Angle's position but demanded an apology from Stephanie or she would rip her arm out of its socket.

Stephanie apologized and The Authority left the ring, but not before Triple H caught Angle with a cheap shot.

The Olympian struggled to his feet as the show ended.

Grade

C

Analysis

What an ice-cold way to end what was an otherwise hot episode of Raw.

Rousey is put in her place, thanks to Angle, who gets cheap-shotted by Triple H to close out the broadcast.

It was flat, did not make a ton of sense and was not exactly the ideal usage of Rousey in her first appearance on the flagship.

At this point, it appears as though WrestleMania will pit Rousey and Angle against The Authority. Somehow, that does not feel like the most exciting or thrilling use of Rousey in her first high-profile bout, primarily because Angle and Triple H are hardly at their physical peaks.