WWE Raw Results: Winners, Live Grades, Reaction, Highlights Before Money in the Bank
Welcome to Bleacher Report's live coverage and recap of WWE Raw on June 26.
This was the go-home episode of Raw before this weekend's Money in the Bank pay-per-view, so WWE was trying to tie a bow on all of its major storylines.
Following multiple sneak attacks from Finn Bálor, Seth Rollins addressed his condition heading into his world title match against the Irishman at the O2 Arena in London on Saturday.
We also saw Dominik Mysterio talk about his feud with Cody Rhodes, and Ronda Rousey battled Raquel Rodriguez in singles action.
Let's take a look at what went down during Monday's show.
Dominik Mysterio Addresses Cody Rhodes
1 of 8Raw opened with a video package recapping the feud between Dominik Mysterio and Cody Rhodes.
When we went live to the arena, Dom and Rhea Ripley were already in the ring. The crowd booed Mysterio heavily as he tried to welcome everyone to the show at the Enmarket Arena in Savannah, Georgia.
The American Nightmare came out to a huge ovation. As soon as he got into the ring, Dom went to the apron while Ripley stood strong.
Rhodes dished out some insults, and Dom ended up trying to walk away. The American Nightmare almost baited him to come into the ring and fight him, but the son of Rey Mysterio backed down.
This was a pretty tame opening segment. Rhodes is always good on the mic and Dom always gets great heat, so the crowd seemed invested even if what we saw in the ring was rather uneventful.
Grade: C+
Notable Moments and Observations
- You have to give Dom credit for never laughing when the crowd boos. It would be so easy to break when trying to keep a serious face.
- The pop Rhodes got for his entrance was enormous. It's always big, but this one sounded louder than usual.
Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Ricochet
2 of 8Bronson Reed sat ringside so he could check out two of his rivals up close when Ricochet battled Shinsuke Nakamura.
These two have had some issues in recent weeks, so this bout gave the babyfaces a chance to work out their frustrations.
The King of Strong Style cornered Ricochet with some kicks and used his boot to choke him for a moment before hitting a jumping knee for a two-count.
Reed looked impressed when Nakamura used the ropes to apply a rear-naked choke for the full five-count. He taunted them after both men landed in front of his feet at ringside, so they ended up kicking him before getting back into the ring.
The Aussie Destroyer tried to interfere but was booted from the area by the ref. The match continued through the break and into the next segment. After avoiding the Kinshasa, Ricochet scored the win with a nice shooting star press.
The One and Only and Nakamura were both saving their energy for the PPV this weekend, but they still managed to put on a serviceable match. These are two veterans who are as good at what they do as anyone in the world, so they would almost have to try to put on a bad match at this point.
Winner: Ricochet
Grade: B-
Notable Moments and Observations
- We have not seen every combination of singles match between these three men, but they've all been fun so far.
- When Reed is in street clothes, he looks like the main henchman for a movie villain. He's like the last guy James Bond has to kill before getting to the mastermind. It's a good look for him. He's well-dressed but intimidating.
- Ricochet's shooting star press is about as perfect as it gets, and he makes it looks easy, which makes it even more impressive.
Ronda Rousey vs. Raquel Rodriguez
3 of 8Fresh off successfully unifying the WWE and NXT women's tag titles, Ronda Rousey was in singles action against Raquel Rodriguez, who was joined by Liv Morgan.
Rowdy showed no hesitation in locking up with the powerhouse, and she ended up being shoved to the mat as a result. She tried to grab Rodriguez in a guillotine but found herself being suplexed instead.
Shayna Baszler offered an assist to Rousey, and Morgan made her pay by diving off of the steps onto her. Back in the ring, The Baddest Woman on the Planet was able to steal the win with a pinning combination.
This match was short and didn't do much to advance the feud, but Rousey and Rodriguez seem to understand how to work together. Most of what they did looked good, especially when the latter was showing off her power.
Winner: Ronda Rousey
Grade: C
Notable Moments and Observations
- It's a little surprising WWE didn't have Rousey and Baszler carry both sets of titles like the men's tag champs and Roman Reigns after they unified titles.
- Rodriguez turning a guillotine into a suplex was a nice display of her strength. Her counter of an armbar into a throw was also impressive.
Dominik Mysterio vs. Akira Tozawa
4 of 8Seth Rollins gave a promo about his upcoming match against Finn Bálor at Money in the Bank.
The Prince tried to attack him with a steel chair, but Rollins saw it coming. They fought in and around the ring until Carmelo Hayes, who was seated at ringside, prevented Bálor from using a chair.
The Visionary chased him off but was still clearly feeling the effects of the attack.
Tommaso Ciampa was heading to the ring for his first match back from injury when his opponent, The Miz, attacked him from behind. The A-Lister beat him down and hit the Skull Crushing Finale on the floor.
There was a lot of filler before we actually got to the next match, which was Dominik Mysterio against his handpicked opponent, Akira Tozawa.
Dom took control after the bell, but Tozawa didn't just go down without a fight. He hit a nice hurricanrana and a shining wizard before he knocked Dom out of the ring with a flying shoulder.
Tozawa drilled him with a suicide dive, but a distraction from Ripley allowed Mysterio to recover and hit a frog splash for the win.
The goal of this match was for Dom to get an easy win over someone we are supposed to perceive as being lower than him on the card. All it really did was let us know what management thinks of Tozawa.
The former cruiserweight champion hit a few nice moves, but as a whole, this match was a waste of time, which was especially disappointing after it took so long for WWE to have another match after Rousey vs. Rodriguez.
Winner: Dominik Mysterio
Grade: D+
Notable Moments and Observations
- The Miz is still using that terrible shirt. He needs a new design immediately.
- It's too bad 205 Live never took off. Tozawa is a fantastic wrestler who deserves to be booked as such.
Gunther vs. Sami Zayn
5 of 8All six competitors in the women's MITB ladder match met in the ring for a summit that was hosted by Corey Graves.
Each woman had a chance to speak for a few moments and dished out the usual insults. Predictably, it turned into a huge brawl.
Becky Lynch was the last woman standing and took down the briefcase, which probably means she won't win it this weekend.
The next match was Sami Zayn vs. Gunther, which was booked after Imperium attacked Matt Riddle backstage and Zayn wanted to get revenge for his friend. Kevin Owens seemed indifferent about The Original Bro but still supported his teammate's decision.
The Ring General took control and grounded Zayn with a headlock to get things going. As the match continued, Giovanni Vinci limped his way toward the ring on crutches.
Zayn tried to hit the exploder suplex in the corner, but Gunther was too powerful for him. The Underdog from the Underground made a comeback and got a few close two-counts with some of his signature moves like the Blue Thunderbomb.
Owens attacked Ludwig Kaiser when he tried to get involved, and this allowed Zayn to take out Gunther with a dive over the top rope. Vinci attacked Zayn with his crutch while the ref was distracted, paving the way for Gunther to hit a powerbomb for the win.
Most of this match was a fun exchange between two talented veterans. The interference made sense for the feud that has been building, and Riddle showing up at the end to make the save clearly sets up a six-man match in the future.
Winner: Gunther
Grade: B
Notable Moments and Observations
- Zelina Vega carrying a flip flop with her everywhere is pretty funny if you know why.
- KO not caring about Riddle being attacked was hilarious. The way he delivers every line is so good.
- The reactions Zayn was getting in January were so much bigger than what he is getting now. He is still popular, but WWE missed the boat on making him the hottest babyface in pro wrestling by letting him beat Roman Reigns.
- Gunther has a great German suplex, which seems appropriate since Austria and Germany are neighbors.
Finn Bálor vs. Carmelo Hayes
6 of 8After a brief backstage segment with Alpha Academy calling out The Viking Raiders, Finn Bálor was in the ring waiting for Carmelo Hayes.
This bout was booked after Hayes helped Rollins fend off the Irishman earlier in the show and at NXT Gold Rush.
The leader of The Judgment Day took Hayes down by his legs and stomped on him to establish dominance right away.
After being on defense for a couple of minutes, Melo nailed Bálor with a textbook dropkick followed by a springboard backward leg drop he calls The Fade Away.
We returned from a break to see The Prince back in control. Hayes tried to make another comeback, but Bálor turned him inside out with a clothesline.
This was the first real match these two have had and that can always be tricky, but they established good chemistry right away and ended up putting on a fun showcase. Melo hit a lot of impressive high-flying moves while Bálor provided a great base.
Surprisingly, this match ended without any interference and saw Bálor score a clean win with the Coup de Grace.
Winner: Finn Bálor
Grade: B+
Notable Moments and Observations
- Maxxine Dupri has become such a great addition to Alpha Academy. She plays off of Otis and Chad Gable so well.
- Bálor had some deep marks on his chest from Hayes' strikes.
- Melo's reverse springboard DDT was awesome.
Cody Rhodes vs. Damian Priest
7 of 8Before he faces Dom in London, Rhodes had to get through another member of The Judgment Day when he faced Damian Priest in the main event.
The Archer of Infamy used his slight size advantage to take control, but The American Nightmare fought back and kept finding ways to counter his offense.
He began focusing on Priest's arm, but the big man put him in the corner and stomped him down to stop his momentum. Dom and Ripley came down to get a view from ringside and distracted Rhodes so Priest could take him down with a flatliner.
As expected, they put on a good performance to close the show. It definitely picked up during the second half, which is a trademark of Rhodes' contests.
Dom ended up tripping Rhodes while the ref was distracted, but Priest still wasn't able to put him away with South of Heaven. The American Nightmare recovered and hit Cross Rhodes for the win.
Winner: Cody Rhodes
Grade: B
Notable Moments and Observations
- The Judgment Day's titantron video is such a great part of their entrance. It looks especially good with Priest and Ripley.
- Rhodes has great balance when he runs up the ropes.
- Priest's jumping kick looked weak from the first angle but somehow looked better from the second angle used for the replay. It was smart to show a different angle.
The Final Word
8 of 8Go-home shows before a big PPV are always tricky. WWE wants to get the crowd hyped for the upcoming show, but it doesn't want any of its biggest stars getting hurt right before a major event, so we end up with a lot of filler.
Video packages, backstage segments and interviews took up a lot of time this week. We still got a couple of good matches, but a few of the other bouts left a lot to be desired.
Tozawa vs. Mysterio was barely a contest, and the bout between Rousey and Rodriguez should have had at least five more minutes.
Bálor vs. Hayes, Gunther vs. Zayn, and Rhodes vs. Priest were all highlights, but everything else was skippable with the exception of Pharaoh's backstage cameo.
Grade: C+
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