WWE Raw Results, Winners, Live Grades, Reaction and Highlights From Sept. 29

The march to Crown Jewel in Australia on October 11 continued Monday night in an edition of WWE Raw featuring a championship clash pitting Rusev against intercontinental titleholder Dominik Mysterio and a Tornado tag team match featuring The Usos against The Vision.

What went down in those two matches and how did affect the build to its next international premium live event?

Find out with this recap, including grades and analysis of all of the night's action.

Match Card

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Announced in advance of Monday's show were:

• Tornado Tag Team match: The Usos vs. Bronson Reed and Bron Breakker
• Intercontinental Championship: Rusev vs. Dominik Mysterio (c)
• Bayley vs. Raquel Rodriguez
• Rhea Ripley appearance

Rhea Ripley Promo

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Last Time in Action: Rhea Ripley defeated Asuka (Raw, September 22)

Seeking revenge for the attack she and Iyo Sky suffered at the end of last week's Raw, Rhea Ripley called out Asuka and Kairi Sane.

The Genius of the Sky joined Mami in the squared circle, clearly still heartbroken after the events of a week ago.

Sky said, despite the beatdown, she loves her friends. The Kabuki Warriors appeared on the video screen and Asuka took credit for Sky's success before offering her a way back into the fold: an apology.

The former women's world champion walked out on Ripley, refusing to stand up for herself. From behind, the heels attacked Ripley, picking up where they left off last Monday. Sky rushed to the ring to make the save, but found herself on the receiving end of the poisonous blue mist.

Asuka flattened Ripley and Kairi Sane added an In-Sane Elbow to conclude the assault.

Grade

B

Top Moments and Takeaways

• Ripley has badly needed a storyline away from the women's title to keep her busy for months now. It breaks up the monotony of the chase and keeps her relevant, all while elevating the former Damage CTRL teammates in the process. The matches should be excellent, which is another major plus.
• This was a solid start to the show that immediately showed Sky that there is no trusting The Kabuki Warriors, allowing her to focus on teaming with Ripley to combat them, presumably as soon as Crown Jewel.

Intercontinental Championship: Dominik Mysterio vs. Rusev

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Last Time in Action: Rusev defeated JD McDonagh (Raw, September 22); Dominik Mysterio defeated El Hijo del Vikingo to win the AAA Mega Championship (AAA x WWE Worlds Collide, September 12)

After weeks of dodging Rusev and his call for an Intercontinental Championship bout, Dominik Mysterio had no choice but to defend his gold against The Bulgarian Brute in Monday's opening contest.

Like he had in the weeks leading into the match, Mysterio avoided Rusev until the challenger slammed him into the commentary table. Through the break, he controlled the pace until the champion created a bit of separation.

As the underdog, Mysterio benefited from a red-hot crowd being behind him and his pursuit of a successful title defense. Rusev cut him down with a Machka Kick, though, and a two-count only further infuriated him.

Mysterio tossed the IC title at Rusev and feigned injury, a la Eddie Guerrero, but referee Eddie Orengo caught him. As the official got rid of the gold, Mysterio caught Rusev with an undetected low blow and scored the roll-up victory.

Result

Mysterio defeated Rusev to retain the title

Grade

B

Top Moments and Takeaways

• When WWE finally pulls the trigger on Mysterio as a babyface, it will have a massive star on its hands, especially given the enormous reaction he received for his win here.
• This was a fun match. It did not reinvent the wheel, but it put the champion over as a resourceful wrestler who can win on his own. It also set up Rusev to continue chasing Mysterio, which could make for some fun TV.

Bayley vs. Raquel Rodriguez

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Last Time in Action: Bayley defeated Roxanne Perez (Raw, September 22); Raquel Rodriguez defeated Lyra Valkyria (Raw, September 8)

Backstage, Lyra Valkyria was fed up with Bayley's "mind games," and she told The Role Model that she could not have her back Monday night.

In the arena, Bayley struggled early and often against Rodriguez, with the former tag champion overwhelming her with her size and strength advantage. An attempted hurricanrana by Bayley on the floor proved unsuccessful as the heel caught her and flung her into the guardrail to maintain control.

Back from the commercial break, the babyface paid homage to The Hardy Boyz with a Twist of Fate on the floor that sparked momentum. She delivered a Swanton Bomb, a la Jeff Hardy, for a two-count as she continued to struggle with her personalities.

Later, Perez interfered on behalf of Rodriguez, raking Bayley's eyes to break up a Figure Four. Rodriguez followed with the Tejada Bomb for the victory.

After the match, Perez unloaded on Bayley until Valkyria made the save. The heels beatdown the inaugural women's intercontinental champion until Bayley fired up and cleared them from the ring. She stood tall with her on-off friend to close things out.

Result

Rodriguez defeated Bayley

Grade

C+

Top Moments and Takeaways

• A pre-taped video package told the story of Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins' long history ahead of their match at Crown Jewel.

• A backstage confrontation in Adam Pearce's office led to the Raw general manager making LA Knight vs. Kofi Kingston official for later in the show.
• Bayley and Rodriguez had a solid match that probably would have been better with a more extended heat period for the heel.

LA Knight vs. Kofi Kingston

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Last Time in Action: LA Knight lost to Jey Uso (Raw, September 22); Kofi Kingston, Xavier Woods, and Grayson Waller lost to The War Raiders and Penta (Raw, September 22)

While Knight remains focused on his pursuit of the World Heavyweight Championship, he was sidetracked Monday night by The New Day, leading to a match with Kofi Kingston.

Kingston gained the upper hand entering the break and sustained it, thanks in part to cheap shots from Xavier Woods.

Knight stayed in the contest long enough to dodge Trouble in Paradise and drop Kingston from out of nowhere with Blunt Force Trauma for the pinfall victory.

Result

Knight defeated Kingston

Grade

C+

Top Moments and Takeaways

• Imagine how much more interesting this match would have been if Kingston had a shred of credibility left after spending the last six months losing matches.
• This was little more than an exhibition bout designed to get Knight a win. There was not much to it beyond that.
• Backstage, Becky Lynch (the greatest women's wrestler in WWE history) answered Maxxine Dupri's challenge with a beatdown, particularly after she mentioned AJ Lee.

Seth Rollins and Cody Rhodes Promo

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Last Time in Action: Seth Rollins and Becky Lynch lost to CM Punk and AJ Lee (Wrestlepalooza, September 20); Cody Rhodes defeated Drew McIntyre (Wrestlepalooza, September 20)

World heavyweight champion Seth Rollins hit the ring to discuss his upcoming Crown Jewel Championship match against undisputed WWE champion Cody Rhodes on October 11.

He took exception to the fans choosing Rhodes over him, drawing out The American Nightmare.

Rhodes countered his "future of the industry" conversation by reminding The Visionary that the fans are the only ones with control of the future of professional wrestling.

The babyface hinted that Paul Heyman has control of Rollins' heel faction, to which Rollins insisted every decision runs through him.

Rhodes referenced WrestleMania 40 and how Rollins extended his hand to him; how he thought they were friends. The Architect said The American Nightmare was a means to an end and he would beat him at Crown Jewel.

Grade

A

Top Moments and Takeaways

• Rhodes and Rollins continue to have great chemistry. Their previous encounters have been extraordinary, and there is no reason to believe that trend will not continue at Crown Jewel. The meat of this promo, Rollins' gradual descent into desperation, was what it needed to be and Rhodes played off of it well.
• Backstage, Ripley checked on Sky, who revealed she went to Raw general manager Adam Pearce and had a match between them and The Kabuki Warriors made for Crown Jewel.

AJ Styles and Dragon Lee vs. Los Americanos

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Last Time: AJ Styles and Dragon Lee lost to Dominik Mysterio and El Grande Americano (Raw, August 11); Los Americanos have not teamed together in this form yet

Dragon Lee discussed his upcoming AAA Grand Championship match against Dominik Mysterio while AJ Styles hyped his Crown Jewel bout against John Cena, promising to do his favorite thing on October 11: beat up John Cena!

Los Americanos made their official in-ring debut as Rayo and Bravo battled The Phenomenal One and Lee in tag team action.

The heels controlled the action throughout the break, isolating Lee until a hot tag to Styles sparked the late babyface comeback. Styles set up for the Phenomenal Forearm but El Grande Americano interfered on behalf of his teammates and pulled him back to the apron.

The babyface laid out the lead luchador, delivered his trademark springboard finisher, and put Bravo away with the Styles Clash.

Result

Styles and Lee defeated Los Americanos

Grade

C+

Top Moments and Takeaways

• It is a shame Styles needs the match with Cena to avoid defeat here because if that contest was not on the books, it is very likely he loses here to put over the new act.
• The match was fine but too much of it took place during the commercial break to really hit home. Like the Knight match earlier, it was an extended enhancement bout.

Tornado Tag Team Match: The Usos vs. The Vision

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Last Time in Action: Bronson Reed and Bron Breakker defeated The Usos (Wrestlepalooza, September 20)

The never-ending rivalry between The Usos and The Vision wrote its latest chapter in the main event of Monday's show, this time in a Tornado Tag Team match.

Jimmy and Jey were the aggressors to start, wiping the heels out on the floor and taking the fight to them in the opening seconds.

Breakker and Reed recovered and downed the twins, with the former delivering a spear to Jimmy through the announce table.

The villains beat Jey down, using their numbers advantage to punish the former world champion until Jimmy recovered enough to make the save. Still, the dominant heels downed them and stacked them, preparing for the win when Roman Reigns' music played and The Tribal Chief made his shocking return.

The OTC unloaded on Breakker and Reed with a steel chair, setting The Usos up to deliver a double splash to the former for the win.

After the match, The Bloodline beat down the heels before Reigns told Uso the show is his to run and rule, all while Jimmy hesitantly looked on in the background.

Result

The Usos defeated The Vision

Grade

B

Top Moments and Takeaways

• Can we go a week or two without Jey Uso fighting The Vision in any match of any kind? Repetition is running wild, brother.
• Reigns' return not only allows for the resumption of his rivalry with the heel faction, but also brings him back into the fold for the latest evolution of Jey's character, which is beginning to look more and more like that of The Tribal Chief with every passing week. The match was fine, but Reigns' comeback was the newsworthy moment of the show.

Overall Grade

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This was not nearly as strong a show as last week, but it did feature the big-time return of Reigns and a show-long story involving Ripley, Sky, and The Kabuki Warriors.

Dominik Mysterio was a ton of fun in his successful title defense, and AJ Styles looked as strong as he has in months.

Still, this one felt less consequential than a week ago, with some repetition in major matches and angles, and a lack of the urgency that helped make last Monday's show an unqualified success.

Grade: C+