WWE Raw Winners, Live Grades, Reaction and Highlights From Aug. 10

WWE returned to the Scope Arena in Norfolk, Virginia for Monday's Raw, headlined by the first match in the tournament to crown Roman Reigns' next World Heavyweight Championship challenger.

Who took a step closer to challenging for the top prize on Raw in Mexico City on September 14?

Find out with this recap of the August 10 broadcast, including grades and analysis for major segments and matches.

Lineup

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Announced in advance of Monday's show were:

• Appearance from Stephanie Vaquer
• Appearance from Becky Lynch
• Sol Ruca and a partner of her choosing vs. Roxanne Perez and Raquel Rodriguez
• World Heavyweight Championship No. 1 Contender's Tournament Match: Penta vs. Laredo Kid
• Akira Tozawa vs. Austin Theory

Solo Sikoa and Jey Uso Set Up Monday's Main Event

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Last Time in Action: Solo Sikoa, LA Knight, and Royce Keys defeated The Bloodline (SummerSlam, August 1)

Solo Sikoa and Jey Uso set up a high-stakes main event following the opening segment of Monday's Raw.

Sikoa flashed more of the personality that has endeared him to fans of late before addressing Jacob Fatu's attack on Royce Keys last week. Uso cut him off and again demanded his younger sibling fall in line with The Bloodline.

Instead, Sikoa renounced the faction, asking Uso how well that worked out for him since he went from winning the Royal Rumble and beating Gunther for the World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania 41, only to be back in the role of lackey.

Uso issued a challenge for a match Monday night with the following stipulation: If Jey wins, Sikoa joins The Bloodline.

Sikoa accepted, under one condition: If Solo wins, The Bloodline leaves him alone.

A short, sweet segment that set up a meaningful main event and allowed Sikoa to continue expressing himself on the mic. This worked and was evidence of the positives of The Bloodline story, which is that it can continue to evolve even when Roman Reigns is not present.

Grade

B+

Top Takeaways

• Uso delivering his "warning shot" catchphrase, only for Sikoa to mock it by asking "Is everyone back there good?" made for great stuff.
• Backstage, Fatu accused Uso of running his own play and disregarding The Bloodline's orders, setting up potential friction between Reigns and his Right Hand Man in future weeks. Especially if Sikoa wins Monday night.

Penta vs. Laredo Kid

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Last Time In Action: Penta and Chad Gable defeated The Judgment Day (Raw, August 3); Laredo Kid and La Hiedra defeated Lola Vice and Mr. Iguana (AAA, July 27)

Two elite luchadors took to the ring for the right to advance in the tournament to decide who will challenge Roman Reigns for the World Heavyweight Championship on September 14 in Mexico City, as Penta battled Laredo Kid in the night's opening contest.

What was an excellent match on paper did not disappoint, with both men showcasing their athleticism and wowing the fans in Norfolk. The masked men tested each other's wills, culminating with Kid wiping out and Penta taking advantage, delivering the Mexican Destroyer for the pinfall victory.

A great showing for Kid in his first major exposure on WWE TV, and Penta's typical excellence helped kick off the show's in-ring portion with a bang. The former Intercontinental champion should be considered the frontrunner to win the tournament and challenge Reigns.

Result

Penta defeated Laredo Kid

Grade

A

Top Takeaways

• If the other matches in this tournament are afforded the same amount of time, AAA may be the most over product in WWE by the time the Fall arrives.
• This was a breakout performance from Laredo Kid, who may have lost, but left a lasting impression against one of the best in-ring competitors in the company.

Akira Tozawa vs. Austin Theory

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Last Time in Action: Austin Theory and Bron Breakker defeated Alpha Academy (Raw, July 27)

Akira Tozawa attacked Austin Theory last week, looking to avenge the brutal assault on Otis. That set up Monday's match between them, where Tozawa found himself on the defensive early and often.

Theory taunted Tozawa, disrespecting and humiliating him, asking him if he wanted a kiss from Maxxine Dupri at ringside. His hubris proved costly, though, as Tozawa delivered a DDT that sparked a comeback.

A nasty forearm by Theory put the former cruiserweight champion down, though, as the heel earned the win.

Theory teased using a chair on Tozawa, drawing the attention of referees and general manager Adam Pearce. Bron Breakker teased a spear, but Oba Femi's music played, and The Ruler appeared, playing on the tense confrontation with The Badass from last week.

Pearce, producers, and referees interjected, preventing Femi and Breakker—whom Michael Cole called the "cornerstones of WWE's future"—from doing any damage.

There was solid effort from both competitors, but the match between Theory and Tozawa was little more than an extended squash win for the former. The post-match was solid, even if it was another pull-apart featuring Femi, and that impending match with Breakker will have long-reaching effects for both.

Result

Theory defeated Tozawa

Grade

C+

Top Takeaways

• Congratulations to Tozawa for 10 years with WWE. He does not get a ton of opportunities to remind fans of how good he can be between the ropes but this was a nice reminder of his unbridled energy between bells.

Stephanie Vaquer and Becky Lynch Stake Their Claims to Women's World Title

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Last Time In Action: Stephanie Vaquer lost to Liv Morgan (WrestleMania, April 18); Becky Lynch lost to Sol Ruca (Clash in Italy, May 31)

One week after a momentous return on Raw, Stephanie Vaquer hit the ring and wasted little time issuing a warning to Liv Morgan, vowing to take back the Women's World Championship, "which we all know belongs to me."

Becky Lynch interrupted, fresh off her return last week, hitting the ring to join La Primera.

Each woman staked their claim to the Women's World Championship and warned the other to stay out of the way. Morgan attacked Lynch from behind, but The Man fended her off. The heel escaped the ring, narrowly avoiding another confrontation with Vaquer, who stared down Lynch to close things out.

A nice, compact segment that continued to highlight the mounting tension between La Primera and Big Time Becks as they pursue Morgan's title. Lynch was great, carrying the majority of the promo, while Vaquer put an exclamation point on it.

Given the rest of the division, words cannot describe how important it was to have Vaquer and Lynch back to help elevate Morgan's title reign.

Grade

B

Top Takeaways

• Vaquer and Lynch have polar opposite personalities and that makes them perfect opposition for each other.

Dragon Lee vs. Dominik Mysterio

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Last Time in Action: Dragon Lee and Je'Von Evans lost to The Vision (Raw, July 20); Dominik Mysterio and JD McDonagh lost to Chad Gable and Penta (Raw, August 3)

This match was the result of a backstage confrontation that saw Mysterio take exception to his father, Rey, leaving him out of the tournament to determine Roman Reigns' No. 1 contender while Lee was gifted a spot.

Dirty Dom gained control of the contest entering the commercial break, but Lee fought his way back into the bout. Late, Mysterio delivered a 619 and scaled the ropes for a frog splash, but Lee got the knees up.

He delivered Operation Dragon for the upset win.

After the match, Big Cass appeared and wiped out Lee. When Je'Von Evans hit the ring to avenge his attack last week, Cass weathered that storm and left him lying, too.

Mysterio, already frustrated with his recent booking, according to False Finish, must have loved the outcome here. It is increasingly alarming how he is currently being booked, especially considering he defeated John Cena to win the Intercontinental Championship this past November.

Lee winning felt like it existed exclusively so Cass could beat him down. With that said, Cass looked great here as WWE has presented him as a dominant force.

Result

Lee defeated Mysterio

Grade

B-

Top Takeaways

• The fire Evans showed when he hit the ring to fight Cass was a much-needed element of his character. More of that will help preserve the bouncy persona that has endeared the young athlete to the WWE Universe.
• Mysterio continued his downward trajectory here. From one of the more marketable guys on the roster at the end of 2025 to eating losses in mostly meaningless matches, it has been a rapid descent for the second-generation star.

Sol Ruca and Iyo Sky vs. The Judgment Day

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Last Time In Action: Sol Ruca defeated Roxanne Perez (Raw, August 3); Raquel Rodriguez defeated Ruca (Raw, July 27); Iyo Sky lost to Liv Morgan (SummerSlam, August 1)

Sol Ruca's war with the Judgment Day continued Monday as she selected Iyo Sky to be her partner against Women's Intercontinental Champion Raquel Rodriguez and Roxanne Perez.

The former IC champion avenged the recent torment suffered at the hands of the group, overcoming a beatdown earlier in the match to deliver the Sol Snatcher to Perez and score the win for her team.

The match featured solid action down the stretch, even if it was sometimes disjointed. Ruca still looks to be a step or two behind her peers, but that is to be expected as she picks up main roster pace.

She needed the win here, though, after that deflating loss to Rodriguez a few weeks back.

Result

Ruca and Sky defeated Perez and Rodriguez

Grade

B

Top Takeaways

• Sky makes everything she is involved in better and this was no different.
• Backstage, Bron Breakker asked Paul Heyman if he thinks Oba Femi is the future. Heyman replied that he respects Femi, and he will do so until Breakker does something to make him not.
• Also backstage, Chad Gable offered to defend his IC title against AAA general manager Rey Mysterio, who accepted the challenge.

Solo Sikoa vs. Jey Uso

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Solo Sikoa must join The Bloodline after losing Monday's main event.

Jey Uso may have disobeyed orders from the OTC, but it paid off as he used a spear, an Uso Splash, and some well-timed interference from his brother, Jimmy, to secure the win.

The match was fine and featured some more focus and intensity from Uso, as well as some resilience from Sikoa, which won over the fans.

The question is why WWE would look to neuter Sikoa's enormous personality, which was just starting to click with the audience, just to put him in the same position it already has Jacob Fatu: reluctant Bloodline member?

Some will insist that we let it play out and see where it goes, but this is the type of booking decision that raises eyebrows and costs a character much sought-after equity with fans.

Result

Uso defeated Sikoa

Grade

C+

Top Takeaways

• The finish felt flat, too, with the same interference-heavy stuff we saw out of The Usos four years ago, when they were in this same role. Was Jacob Fatu busy? Considering he was the centerpiece of the show-opening video package, it is a bit odd that there was no real follow-up to speak of on Monday's show.

MVP/Overall Grade

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MVP: Solo Sikoa

Sikoa bookended this show. While there are real questions about the latest development with his character, there is no denying how entertaining he was and how the audience was ready to see him beat Uso in the marquee bout.

It will be interesting to see if he remains a focal point of WWE Creative or if he fades into the background of a Bloodline story that, at least thus far, lacks the pop of its preceding chapters.

Overall Grade: B-

There was some strong stuff on this show, most between the ropes, with some intriguing storyline developments to boot. Penta and Laredo Kid tore the house down, the women's division was well represented in the ring and on the mic, and the Bloodline was all over the place to keep that story alive and omnipresent.

This was not up to the level of last week's extraordinary episode, but it was still better than expected based on the lineup.