WWE Raw Results, Winners, Live Grades, Reaction and Highlights Before SNME 42
Welcome to Bleacher Report's live coverage of WWE Raw on January 19.
The roster is still in Europe, so this week's show has an early start time of 3 p.m. ET for fans in the U.S.
Two big title matches were scheduled for Monday's episode at the SSE Arena in Belfast, Northern Ireland. First, Maxxine Dupri and Becky Lynch had a rematch over the Women's Intercontinental Championship.
Then we saw Finn Balor challenge CM Punk for the World Heavyweight Championship in a match many fans have wanted for years. They have been in two Royal Rumbles and one six-man tag match, but this was their first one-on-one encounter.
Let's take a look at everything that happened on Monday's Raw.
The Career Killer
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We got the usual array of Superstars arriving at the arena in Belfast before we went live in the arena for Gunther's entrance.
The Ring General was all smiles as he made his way to the ring to a chorus of boos and chants of "You tapped out."
He only spoke for about a minute before he was interrupted by AJ Styles, who challenged Gunther to a rematch at the Royal Rumble. Gunther said he plans to win the Rumble and doesn't feel like pulling double duty.
Styles accused him of being scared, which finally took the smile off Gunther's face. The Career Killer said he would do the rematch if Styles puts his career on the line.
Styles didn't give him an answer and Gunther walked off to let him think about it to end the segment.
This was a decent exchange between two rivals to set up their next encounter. It was nothing groundbreaking, but they played their parts well.
Grade: B-
Notable Moments and Observations
Becky Lynch vs. Maxxine Dupri
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Last time in action: Lynch defeated Dupri (Raw, Jan. 5)
For the sixth time since their feud started, Dupri and Lynched stepped into the ring to fight over the women's Intercontinental Championship. Before the match, Natalya surprised Maxxine and said she wanted to be in her corner tonight.
The Man took control momentarily, but Dupri took her down with a Thesz press and then almost had her in an ankle lock. Lynch was sent out of the ring and taken down with a cannonball from the apron.
Even though she might not be at the level of a lot of main roster talents, you could see a marked improvement in Dupri's in-ring ability since this feud began.
Working with a veteran like Lynch on the road has likely helped, but training with Natalya is not just part of the storyline. Dupri has been putting in a lot of work to improve and it has definitely helped.
She looked more confident in the way she moved around the ring, and having Lynch as a dance partner helped her look even better.
This might not end up on many lists of the best matches of the week, but it might be the best they have done since this feud began, and part of the reason why is that they had the fewest awkward moments and mistakes during this one.
Natalya's betrayal of Dupri was pretty predictable, but it was done well. Having Dupri see it right in front of her eyes before turning around and taking Lynch's finisher was a good way to tie up this feud while beginning a new story for Nattie and Maxxine.
Natalya attacked Dupri after Lynch had left with her title, officially turning her heel and kicking off her and Dupri's feud. The crowd was on Maxxine's side as The Queen of Harts beat her down mercilessly.
Result: Lynch defeated Dupri
Grade: B-
Notable Moments and Observations
The Vision vs. Rey Mysterio, Penta and Dragon Lee
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Last time in action: Mysterio defeated Theory (Raw, Dec. 29), Dragon Lee and Penta defeated The Vision (Raw, Dec. 1)
After a couple of minor backstage segments involving Paul Heyman and Judgment Day, Jey Uso's music hit in the arena and he made his way to the ring through the crowd. He gave a quick promo from the stands about declaring himself for the Rumble.
After a break, Austin Theory, Logan Paul and Bronson Reed took on Rey Mysterio, Penta and Dragon Lee in a six-man match.
The first couple of minutes were a back-and-forth fight with both teams making quick tags to stay fresh. We saw Theory against Lee, Paul against Penta and Mysterio against Reed.
Once The Vision had Rey cornered, they took some time to punish him with triple-team tactics as all three men took turns in the ring with the high-flyer.
This was a fast-paced match with some fun spots and creative moments involving all of the competitors. This is the kind of bout that's hard not to enjoy because it had so many fun exchanges.
Mysterio, Penta and Lee were the stars of this bout thanks to their high-flying offense, but The Vision looked good, too. The crowd was hot from start to finish for this one.
Pearce prevented Theory from using the brass knuckles and argued with Heyman at ringside. The GM dropped them, so Mysterio ended up using the knucks on Theory, allowing Penta to hit the Mexican Destroyer on him for the win.
Result: B+
Grade: Mysterio, Lee and Penta defeated The Vision
Notable Moments and Observations
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Rhiyo Hypes SNME
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Rhea Ripley and Iyo Sky were out after the break to hype their title match coming up at Saturday Night's Main Event against Liv Morgan and Roxanne Perez.
Ripley said they have Judgment Day's number and will retain the titles before both women focus on the Royal Rumble.
As expected, Morgan and Perez came out to issue a response. Morgan said Ripley is going to turn on Sky because that is what she always does to her partners.
Raquel Rodriguez attacked Ripley from behind to kickstart a three-on-two assault. Judgment Day ended up getting the better of Rhiyo.
This felt like a copy-and-paste segment we have seen hundreds of times in WWE. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't anything to write home about either. They weren't given much to work with, so you can't blame the talent for a lack of material.
Grade: C
Notable Moments and Observations
El Grande Americano vs.
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Last time in action: Americano lost to Vikingo (AAA, Jan. 17), Evans defeated Bravo Americano (Raw, Jan. 12)
Bayley and Lyra Valkyria had a backstage segment where they both said they would enter the Rumble before we went to the ring for El Grando Americano's match against Je'Von Evans.
The Young OG came into this bout with victories over Rayo and Bravo Americano, so he was looking to go three for three against the Europeans posing as luchadores.
They began with a quick exchange of takedowns and pin attempts, but neither man could get better than a one-count.
Both men had periods where they controlled the pace, but Evans seemed to have the upper hand a bit more than El Grande during the first half.
When we returned from a break, Evans was down outside the ring and Americano was declared the winner. It appears Evans suffered a real injury and was escorted out of the arena by medics and officials.
Due to the real-life injury, we won't be providing a grade for this match. We wish Evans the best in his prognosis and recovery.
Result: Americano won by forfeit
Grade: N/A
Notable Moments and Observations
CM Punk vs. Finn Balor
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Last time in action: Punk defeated Breakker (Raw, Jan. 5), Penta defeated Balor (SmackDown, Nov. 21)
This week's main event in Ireland saw Punk defend the world title against Balor, who was hoping having his countrymen in the crowd would give him an edge over the champion.
Balor came out to a huge ovation with his old entrance music, and he didn't have anyone else from Judgment Day with him for once. When they first locked up, Punk was getting booed when he took Balor down in a headlock.
They had a pretty clean exchange during the first half. They were focusing more on mat wrestling than striking, but it was just a matter of time before they started throwing chops and punches.
The Irish crowd was firmly in Balor's corner as he started building up a head of steam. The fans were all on their feet when Balor kicked out of the GTS.
This was a well-paced match that didn't try to be anything more than a good showcase for two talented wrestlers. It was especially nice to see Finn work as more of a babyface again after spending the last few years as a heel.
Punk kicked out of the Coup de Grace and managed to hit the GTS to get the win, crushing the dreams of thousands of Irish people at the same time. They had the crowd on the edge of their seats, but you could feel the energy drop in the crowd the moment Punk won, which is to be expected under these circumstances.
Punk offered Balor his hand to help him up and held his arm up as a show of respect after the match. They hugged and the show ended with Punk celebrating his win. Whether this leads to a permanent face turn for Balor remains to be seen.
Result: Punk defeated Balor
Grade: A-
Notable Moments and Observations
The Final Word
7 of 7Even though this was a pretty average episode of Raw, the main event made it feel like a bigger show than usual.
Evans getting injured during his match with Americano put a bit of a damper on the episode, but it had a couple of highlights.
Dupri put on what might just be her best performance to date against Lynch, the six-man match had a bunch of fun spots, and the world title bout that closed the show was the first time Punk and Balor have ever faced each other in a singles match.
The show did a good job hyping Saturday Night's Main Event this weekend while also keeping The Royal Rumble in focus.
As a whole, this was a standard episode of Raw, but the main event and the six-man match are worth taking the time to watch.
Grade: B
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