WWE Raw Results: Winners, Live Grades, Reaction and Highlights from September 18
Welcome to Bleacher Report's live coverage of WWE Raw on September 18 in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Following the events of last week's show, Jey Uso and Drew McIntyre met in a singles match on Monday to settle their differences.
The rest of the advertised card was full of rematches from past feuds such as Cody Rhodes vs. Dominik Mysterio, The New Day vs. The Viking Raiders, and Ricochet vs. Shinsuke Nakamura.
WWE is still building up the card for the Fastlane event on October 7. No matches have been announced as of Monday morning, so WWE needs to make setting up the PLE its top priority.
Let's take a look at what happened during Monday's episode of Raw.
Dominik Mysterio vs. Cody Rhodes
1 of 9Cody and Dom kicked off the show with a verbal exchange in the ring. Mysterio claimed Nia Jaxx hurt Rhea Ripley last week to explain her absence, so he didn't have that crutch to lean on when Rhodes started saying things to get inside his head.
Finn Balor and Damian Priest showed up to lend support for Dom right before the show went to a break. When it returned, The American Nightmare immediately took control and started schooling his younger opponent.
Balor yanking Rhodes off the apron gave Mysterio the upper hand, but a Cody Cutter quickly turned things around again. Cody finished him off with the Cross Rhodes to win in just a few minutes.
This wasn't a squash, but it was about as decisive as a win can get. Not only did Rhodes pin Dom clean with his finisher, but he did it after overcoming Balor's interference. The few minutes we saw were fine, but we didn't get nearly enough.
This made Dom look bad without actually doing anything to help Rhodes, so nobody came away from this benefitting in any way.
Winner: Cody Rhodes
Grade: C
Notable Moments and Observations
- It would be fun if WWE had a decibel meter to show how loud every crowd was when booing Dom.
- Rhodes is so good that he even makes a standard vertical suplex stand out sometimes.
- Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens came out to make sure Judgment Day didn't take Rhodes out after the match, but KO called Rhodes back to the ring to talk about something as the show went to a break.
Kofi Kingston vs. Ivar
2 of 9KO asked why Cody thought it was a good idea to bring Jey Uso to Raw after everything he had done. Rhodes said he deserves a second chance to prove he has changed. KO said he trusts Rhodes and Zayn, and he hopes they aren't wrong. That was all that happened.
What was supposed to be a tag team match between The Viking Raiders and The New Day was turned into a singles bout between Kofi Kingston and Ivar after it was revealed Erik was not cleared to compete.
This match was all about Kingston trying to find ways to combat the power and shocking agility of Ivar. He might be the bigger member of his team, but Ivar is also the quicker of the two Vikings.
What could have been a throwaway match in a feud that will continue past this week turned into a David vs. Goliath-like battle between these two rivals. They did a lot to make themselves and each other look great. Kingston picked up a clean victory with Trouble in Paradise to cap off a great performance from both men.
Winner: Kofi Kingston
Grade: B+
Notable Moments and Observations
- Ivar still had Valhalla with him, so why would Xavier Woods come out with Kingston?
- There is no way having a guy like Ivar do a senton on top of you feels anything but terrible. Some moves look like they don't hurt the person taking it too much, but there is no way to fake 300+ pounds falling on top of you.
- The crowd started chanting for Kingston early in the match. He still has a special connection with the crowd.
- Ivar doing a moonsault is always a joy to witness.
Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Ricochet
3 of 9Seth Rollins tried to attack Nakamura before his scheduled match with Ricochet, but Adam Pearce and the security team prevented the champion from getting to him.
Ricochet made his entrance after a break that allowed the officials to clear Rollins from the area so the match could take place.
Even though The King of Strong Style has been the one with the change in attitude recently, Ricochet showed some aggression whenever he was in control.
These two have known each other for years and have been in the ring together many times, so they were able to use the chemistry they have developed to make this into a fun encounter that didn't just feel like another random match on a Monday night.
The high-flyer stopped Nakamura from using a steel chair, but he ended up getting himself disqualified when he used the chair instead. He argued with the ref until Nakamura took out his leg and hit him with a Kinshasa.
It almost felt like this was all part of Nakamura's plan. Rollins tried to attack him again, but Nakamura went after his injured back to take him down.
Winner: Shinsuke Nakamura by Disqualification
Grade: A-
Notable Moments and Observations
- The outfit Rollins had on was the most subdued thing he's worn in months, maybe years.
- The way Ricochet hit a dropkick made it look like he had so much force behind it.
- The dropkick Nakamura hit while Ricochet was doing a handspring looked painful. Being kicked is bad enough, but being kicked while you are upside down has to be worse.
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Piper Niven and Chelsea Green vs. Shayna Baszler and Zoey Stark
4 of 9The women's tag champs were in a non-title bout this week when Chelsea Green and Piper Niven faced the new duo of Zoey Stark and Shayna Baszler.
Stark immediately took control and began taking Green apart with a series of power moves. Baszler wanted to show what she could do, so she tagged in and kept dishing out punishment.
It turned into a game between Stark and Baszler to see who could outdo the other. Niven helped Green take advantage of an opening to gain the upper hand.
Nia Jax ended up attacking Niven and Stark to cause the match to end in a no-contest decision. The former women's champion dismantled everyone. Once again, the women's tag team division is made to suffer so a singles star can look good. It's a pattern we see far too often.
Winners: No Contest
Grade: C
Notable Moments and Observations
- Stark's twisting senton always looks awesome.
- Green hit a nice enziguiri on Stark at one point.
Chad Gable vs. Bronson Reed
5 of 9Chad Gable and Bronson Reed had a backstage confrontation that led to Pearce booking them in a match.
Gable tried to avoid him early on, but once Reed got his hands on the former Olympian, he sent him flying across the ring.
We have seen Master Gable take on a lot of big guys over the years, but Reed is a different animal. This might not have been their first time in the ring together, but it might have been the best.
Gable has become one of the most beloved underdogs in WWE, but that didn't stop Reed from pinning him with the Tsunami. Considering Gable is trying to get one more shot at the IC title, it didn't make much sense to have him lose here, but the match was still really fun.
Winner: Bronson Reed
Grade: B
Notable Moments and Observations
- Reed was saying Gable couldn't suplex him. Are we just supposed to forget these two have been in the ring together this year?
- Calling Reed "Big" as his nickname doesn't help, but calling him Bam Bam Bronson might actually catch on.
- The way WWE used the turnbuckle camera to catch Reed dropping Gable on the top rope was great. It might be the first good use of that camera since WWE put them on the ring.
Becky Lynch vs. Natalya (NXT Women's Championship)
6 of 9Becky Lynch became a Grand Slam champion when she defeated Tiffany Stratten for the NXT women's title last week, and she wasted no time getting her first title defense on the books. This week, The man put the belt on the line against
Natalya came down and got into an argument with Lynch that led to them having a match. As soon as the bell rang, Nattie threw the champion into the ring post.
This is one of those combinations that is always going to produce a good match, but we have seen it so many times that it feels like filler until WWE decides what it wants to do with Lynch during her reign.
Natalya is a great wrestler, but she is always the stepping stone for everyone right after they win a title. The Man pinned her with a roll-up to retain her NXT women's title in a decent but predictable encounter.
Winner: Becky Lynch
Grade: B-
Notable Moments and Observations
- The announcers did a good job putting Tiffany over when talking about Lynch beating her for the title.
- The way the back of Nattie's head hit the bottom turnbuckle looked dangerous. Blind bumps are always a little scary.
- Natalya sat in the corner after her loss looking sad. It might lead to something, or it might just be the camera lingering on her longer than intended.
Giovanni Vinci vs. Tommaso Ciampa
7 of 9Tommaso Ciampa gave a backstage promo where he declared his intention to win the IC title, but he had to go through Giovanni Vinci first.
Both of these guys spent a long time in NXT together, but surprisingly, they have only been in the ring a few times as opponents, so this felt like a fresh match between two guys who could both use more screen time.
Gunther couldn't be bothered to come to the ring, so he was shown watching the match from backstage. After roughly five minutes of solid technical wrestling, Ciampa scored the submission victory.
Winner: Tommaso Ciampa
Grade: B-
Notable Moments and Observations
- WWE needs to decide if it wants to push Johnny Gargano and Ciampa as a tag team or not. These singles runs they have had on the main roster have not been ideal.
- Michael Cole sounded like he was on autopilot by this point in the show.
Drew Mcintyre vs. Jey Uso
8 of 9Before he faced McIntyre in the main event, Uso was approached once again by Priest backstage. They discussed the idea of Jey joining the Bloodline, but Priest used the idea of recruiting Jimmy to get inside Jey's head.
The Scottish Warrior was looking to take out all of the frustrations he has had with The Bloodline for the past three years, but Jey is on Raw to distance himself from all of that, so he wasn't looking to jump right into this fight.
They locked up a few times so McIntyre could demonstrate his power, so Jey used his speed to avoid him for as long as possible.
Even though Jey was playing the underdog in this situation, he was still putting up a good fight. Judgment Day came to the ringside area to support Jey even though he never asked them to be there.
When everyone in Judgment Day got on the apron to talk to Uso, he took them all out with superkicks before McIntyre nailed him with a Claymore for the win.
This match was pretty much what everyone should have expected going into it. That is not a bad thing, but it certainly won't stand out either. McIntyre was having trouble deciding whether to help Uso fend off Judgment Day when Rhodes ran down to help Uso clear the ring. The show ended with Main Event Jey and The American Nightmare standing tall.
Winner: Drew McIntyre
Grade: B
Notable Moments and Observations
- At first glance, McIntyre's white kilt almost looks like he was just wearing a towel, which brings up memories of Val Venis, and nobody wants that.
- It feels like Priest's MITB briefcase is going to be less of a priority moving forward, which hopefully makes his cash-in that much more surprising.
The Final Word
9 of 9This week's show was full of rematches that did little to advance their storylines, a few strange booking decisions, and an impromptu NXT women's title match that nobody will remember tomorrow.
To be clear, this week's show being weak is solely due to the booking. The men and women of WWE always make sure they do their best to entertain the crowd in the arena and the fans at home, but they can only do so much with what they are given.
The standout match this week was probably Kingston vs. Ivar, which wasn't even the original plan heading into Monday night. Nakamura and Ricochet had a fun encounter, but something about Ivar doing a moonsault is always going to make a match stand out.
The next PPV isn't too far away. This needs to be where the majority of WWE's current storylines end. Most of what we are getting every week feels repetitive, but a fresh start for a handful of stars could help improve both Raw and SmackDown heading into 2024.
Grade: C
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