WWE Raw: Live Updates, Match Results, Highlights and Reaction from May 22
Welcome to Bleacher Report's live coverage of WWE Raw on May 22 from Hershey, PA.
This was the go-home show before this weekend's Night of Champions pay-per-view in Saudi Arabia, so it was all hands on deck as WWE tried to tie up all of its major storylines.
Becky Lynch and Trish Stratus signed the contract for their match on Night of Champions, and Imperium battled Sami Zayn, Kevin Owens and a mystery partner in a six-man tag match.
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Erik Beaston will still have you covered with the regular recap and grades, and this will be a space for a more detailed description of what happened during each match and segment.
The most recent segment will appear at the top, so keep refreshing throughout the night.
The show ended with Triple H coming into Cody's locker room. He said he needs to get Cody some medical attention because his arm is probably broken.
Cody took offense to Triple H saying he is afraid of not being cleared to compete at Night of Champions. Rhodes said he is going to fight Lesnar no matter what.
The Game smiled and walked away to close out the show.
Imperium vs. Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn and Matt Riddle
The main event of the night was the six-man tag match with Gunther, Vinci and Kaiser taking on Riddle, Zayn and Owens.
Imperium had the upper hand at first, but The Bro was able to take Vinci down with a gutwrench suplex. Gunther tagged in and wrestled him to the corner. Riddle ducked a chop and hit a kick to the chest. The Ring General fired back with a kick to the leg before hitting a huge chop.
We returned from the first commercial break to see Riddle still being taken to school. Kaiser hit a beautiful suplex out of nowhere for a near-fall.
Gunther tagged back in and continued to dominate the former U.S. champion. Riddle dropped him with a German suplex and made the tag to a fresh Owens.
The Prize Fighter unloaded on Vinci with a long sequence of signature moves, but he could only keep him down for a two-count.
We returned from a second commercial break to see Zayn taking it to Kaiser. He hit a Michinoky driver for a two-count before he found himself on the receiving end of some of Gunther's chops.
Vinci broke up a pin after Zayn hit a Blue Thunder Bomb to kick off a sequence with everybody taking each other out.
When the dust settled, KO scored the win for his team with a swanton bomb. The tag champs celebrated with Riddle.
Winners: Riddle, Zayn and Owens
Apollo Crews vs. Dominik Mysterio
After having a backstage altercation, Crews and Dom met for a singles match in the third hour. As usual, Ripley was there by Dom's side.
The former United States champion knocked Dominik down with a shoulder tackle and did a little dance to mock him.
Crews maintained control until Dom knocked his feet out from under him to take him down from the top turnbuckle. Mami cheered as he stomped on Crews before hitting the Three Amigos. Well, he only hit one of them.
Crews began to make a comeback and hit a huge Samoan drop followed by a blockbuster. Dom got him on the middle rope, but Apollo avoided the 619 and nailed him with a clothesline.
Thanks to some help from Rhea, Dom was able to hit a frog splash to score the win.
Winner: Dominik Mysterio
Sign on the Dotted Line
Before Trish Stratus and Becky Lynch came out for their contract signing, Trish suggested to Adam Pearce that they institute a no-touch policy for the segment. He agreed.
The Man signed the contract before Trish even made her entrance. The 7-time women's champion talked a lot of trash as Bex just sat there and listened with the most ridiculous pair of sunglasses on her face.
After she had finished, it was Becky's turn. She said Trish isn't as good as she used to be, and definitely isn't as good as the current generation.
Becky brought up the time Trish was forced to bark like a dog, so Trish turned over the table and stormed out of the ring.
Raquel Rodriguez vs. Sonya Deville
Liv Morgan may be out with an injury, but Raquel Rodriguez was back in action this week in a singles match against Sonya Deville.
The Jersey Devil took control right out of the gate and scored an early two-count with a knee strike from the middle rope.
Rodriguez was able to rally and score the win with the Tejada Bomb, but Shotzi ran down to make the save.
Winner: Raquel Rodriguez
Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Finn Balor
Balor and Nakamura started off with a clean lockup. They traded simple holds and counters as they attempted to get the upper hand.
Nakamura laid him across the top rope and buried a knee into his gut. When Balor had the ref distracted, Damian Priest yanked Shin off the apron and took him out as the show cut to a break.
We returned to see Balor in control, but Nakamura was trying to fight back. The Rockstar blocked a kick and dropped an elbow across his knee.
He messed with Priest at ringside a bit before nailing The Prince with a kick to the head for a quick two-count. Balor took him down with a sling blade and hit a jumping double stomp.
He ascended to the top rope, but Shin avoided the Coup de Grace and hit a knee to the back of his head. Nakamura took out Priest at ringside. Balor took advantage and hit a dropkick to his back followed by the Coup de Grace for the win.
Winner: Finn Balor
Alpha Academy vs. The Viking Raiders
Maxxine Dupri accompanied Chad Gable and Otis to the ring for their match against Erik and Ivar. Gable and Erik started off with a surprisingly technical exchange. Erik blocked a drop toe hold, but Gable took him down with a few other maneuvers.
The Vikings started to take control and used some double-team offense to keep Gable in their corner. After taking some punishment, Gable finally made the hot tag to Otis.
The big man took out both raiders and hit the caterpillar on Erik, much to the delight of Maxxine and Gable. The former Olympian tagged in, but he was immediately taken out by a huge knee from Erik.
Gable prevented them from hitting their finisher and wound up stealing the win by rolling back onto Erik for the pin.
Winners: Alpha Academy
Lesnar came out and claimed that Cody would be unable to fight this weekend due to his attack earlier in the night. He issued an open challenge for the PPV to anyone who comes out.
The American Nightmare came out with his arm wrapped up, but he tore off the sling and looked ready for a fight. The Beast rushed him and locked him in the Kimura. Rhodes screamed in pain when Lesnar snapped his arm and released the hold.
Candice LeRae vs. Zoey Stark
We got a quick video for Stark before the match that firmly established that she is still a heel after her call-up from NXT.
Stark immediately took control and threw LeRae with a t-bone suplex. She beat the Poison Pixie down. Nikki Cross ran down to the ring to offer support for LeRae, but when she grabbed her for a hug, Stark sent both of them into the steel steps.
Stark hit the Z360 for the pin and the quick win.
Winner: Zoey Stark
We got part three of Corey Graves' interview with Seth Rollins this week. He made it clear that his only focus right now is on winning the World Heavyweight Championship.
Bronson Reed vs. Ricochet
The first match of the night featured the high-flying Ricochet taking on the powerhouse, Bronson Reed.
The One and Only tried to take ou Reed's base by unleashing a series of kicks to his leg. Reed almost got his hands on him, but Ricochet dropped him to his knees with an enziguiri.
Once the big man regained his composure, he ran Ricochet over like a bulldozer and hit a huge shoulder tackle off the apron to the floor that send him into the barricade.
We returned from a break to see Ricochet beginning to make a comeback. He hit a flurry of kicks and quick moves, but he failed to keep Reed down for the three-count.
The powerhouse grabbed him by the throat and clotheslined him out of the ring. He went for the shoulder tackle again, but Ricochet hit a jumping knee to stop him in his tracks.
After he was able to collect himself again, Reed hit the Tsunami to score a clean win.
Winner: Bronson Reed
Apollo crews gave an interview backstage after the match. He was approached by Dominik Mysterio and Rhea Ripley. This led to them agreeing to a match for later in the show.
A Chaotic Opening
Raw opened with a shot of Cody Rhodes walking backstage, but he was immediately attacked by Brock Lesnar. The Beast spent several minutes beating him up and smashed his arm with what appeared to be a full keg.
When we went live in the arena, Paul Heyman was standing in the middle of the ring. He said he had nothing to do with Lesnar attacking Rhodes before talking about why he is here this week.
He hyped up Roman Reigns and Solo Sikoa as the next tag team champions. Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens showed up, but Heyman left the ring faster than Steve Austin running to the bar for the last call.
Zayn joked about Heyman disappearing before he and KO addressed the crowd. He said they are feeling great heading into Night of Champions.
Imperium arrived and the champs looked like they were preparing for a fight. As they surrounded the ring, Matt Riddle ran down to the ring and joined the tag champs. Imperium backed off, but it looks like we know who KO and Sami's partner will be later in the show.
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