WWE Raw Results: Winners, Grades, Reaction and Highlights from September 10
Roman Reigns, Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins were looking for revenge as WWE Raw hit the USA Network airwaves Monday night, just six days from the annual Hell in a Cell pay-per-view extravaganza.
The reunited Shield members were the victims of a beatdown by the heel Superstars of Raw a week ago, and with a showdown between Reigns and Braun Strowman on tap for Sunday's spectacular, The Hounds of Justice would look for an opportunity to send a message loudly and clearly to the rest of the locker room.
Would they succeed, or would they find themselves in a similar position to last week: beaten down and left in a heap?
What else would the red brand have in store for its fans when it hit the USA Network airwaves? Find out now with this recap of the September 10 broadcast.
Braun Strowman, Dolph Ziggler and Drew McIntyre Kick Off Raw
1 of 11A week after perpetrating an assault that left The Shield lying to close out Raw, Braun Strowman and Raw tag team champions Drew McIntyre and Dolph Ziggler kicked off Monday's show. They were followed to the squared circle by the heel roster.
"We told you so!" Ziggler bragged at the top of the promo, touting the success of the trio at the end of last week's broadcast. McIntyre threw to a video package recapping last week's show.
"Roman, you have your hounds of justice...I have my dogs of war," Strowman said, letting out an evil laugh.
McIntyre claimed the balance of power had shifted in WWE, and Strowman said the attack last week was nothing compared to what he'll do to Reigns at Hell in a Cell.
The Shield's music played, and the babyfaces hit the ring, taking the fight to the heels surrounding the ringside area. Grabbing clubs, they cleared the area and stood tall in the center of the ring before staring McIntyre, Ziggler and Strowman down to close out the segment.
Grade
C-
Analysis
The entirety of the heels' promo was rendered meaningless the minute The Shield hit the ring and beat the hell out of every other heel on the Raw roster. Everyone from Kevin Owens to Jinder Mahal to Elias was done a tremendous disservice here—they're lackeys for Strowman, Ziggler and McIntyre, and worse, punching bags for The Shield.
A babyface is only as good as their villain, and unfortunately, the heels of Raw have zero credibility because of nonsensical booking like this. It was horrendous booking that benefits no one other than the otherwise bulletproof Ambrose, Rollins and Reigns.
Not the most promising way to kick off this show.
Nikki Bella vs. Ruby Riott
2 of 11After The Riott Squad vandalized The Bella Twins' locker room earlier in the day, Nikki Bella battled Ruby Riott in singles competition Monday night.
Riott controlled the match early until a frustrated Bella fired off a flurry of rights and lefts heading into the commercial break.
During the timeout, Riott regained control of the match. Bella, though, cut her off again with a thunderous spinebuster.
Riott capitalized on a momentary distraction from Sarah Logan and Liv Morgan, but Bella still kicked out at two. Brie would prevent Morgan from getting involved, and Bella delivered the Rack Attack 2.0 to score the pinfall victory on Riott.
Result
Bella defeated Riott
Grade
B-
Analysis
The match itself was fine for what it was, but the outcome was predictable and did nothing to help anyone but the already established act.
Riott could have used the heat that comes from beating a popular fan favorite such as Bella, but as has become the case with the current WWE product, management is more interested in putting emphasis on babyfaces while weakening their opposition to the point that beating them means nothing.
AOP vs. Ronnie Ace and Nathan Bradley
3 of 11Gone were The Authors of Pain, and in their place, the newly christened AOP, who were accompanied to the squared circle by Drake Maverick for a squash match with Nathan Bradley and Ronnie Ace.
It did not go well for the smaller, unknown competitors.
The match was a one-sided squash that saw Akam and Rezar score another uncontested victory.
Result
AOP defeated Bradley and Ace
Grade
D
Analysis
Remember that time AOP squashed that one tag team? And that other time they squashed another tag team?
How about that time they had a real, honest-to-goodness rivalry that furthered their careers and resulted in character development of some sort?
Any sort.
If you said "yes" to No. 3, you're a liar.
AOP is that dominant team management has no idea how to use them, and it hurts them with every passing week. Their contributions to the show are meaningless and will continue being that way until WWE Creative does something of note with them.
Giving them a new mouthpiece is not it.
Triple H Addresses the WWE Universe
4 of 11
Triple H followed up last week's showdown between Undertaker and Shawn Michaels with a promo in which he jokingly discussed The Phenom being so rattled by HBK's comments that he made an appearance.
He followed up by saying Undertaker's comments about Michaels made him mad because he felt The Deadman had lost respect for HBK.
For him.
For himself.
Triple H claimed the streak, aura and mystique went away with every one of their wars until all that was left was a reputation.
"That series of matches was his last epic moment of greatness, and he blames us for his demise," the chief operating officer of WWE said. "I will put you down," he promised, citing the last little bit of respect he has for his opponent at Super Show-Down on October 6.
Grade
A
Analysis
The best feud in WWE is that of Triple H and Undertaker, two part-time Superstars who understand what it takes to tell a story of epic proportions. Conversely, they probably are not held to the same scripted standards as the other Superstars on the show.
Triple H playing the respect card is one that will earn the ire of The Deadman and create an even more emotional and fiery setting for their match in Australia.
Of course, this is all disappointing for the fans and Superstars who show up to Raw every week and are greeted with creative bankruptcy more times than not. Why shouldn't Reigns, Strowman, Ziggler, Wyatt and the rest of the WWE roster benefit from this type of storytelling?
Why hold them to a different standard when the overall quality of the show would benefit exponentially from freeing them up a bit?
Raw Tag Team Championship Match: B-Team vs. Dolph Ziggler and Drew McIntyre
5 of 11
The B-Team received its contractually obligated rematch against new Raw tag team champions Dolph Ziggler and Drew McIntyre Monday night.
The determined former champions were on fire at the outset of the match, with Bo Dallas and Curtis Axel raining down on Ziggler with a flurry of rights and lefts while isolating him from McIntyre.
The heels gained control of the bout during the break and practiced a little isolation of their own, keeping Axel away from Dallas, who tried desperately to generate chants of "B-Team! B-Team! Go! Go! Go!" to little avail.
A comeback attempt proved futile as McIntyre and Ziggler easily put the former champions away with a Claymore/Zig-Zag combination.
After the match, Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose hit the ring, attacking the champions and clearing them to the floor before standing tall.
Result
Ziggler and McIntyre defeated Rollins and Ambrose
Grade
B
Analysis
With this segment, WWE Creative did its best work of the entire show to this point.
Not with the match, which was a glorified squash. No, it succeeded in creating a "what will happen now?" atmosphere for the remainder of the show. Earlier, after the opening segment, general manager Baron Corbin ordered The Shield out of the arena. He said if the group returned, Rollins and Roman Reigns would be stripped of the Intercontinental and Universal Championships and The Shield would be arrested.
Now, the authority figure has to either live up to his threats or reveal he can be walked over by the Superstars he has been tasked with controlling.
Finally, something to look forward to.
Tyler Breeze vs. Kevin Owens
6 of 11
A week ago, Kevin Owens returned from a self-mandated one-week hiatus and beat down Bobby Lashley.
Monday night, Tyler Breeze would feel his wrath as KO beat him down and pummeled him with an apron powerbomb.
After the match, Owens revealed it was Corbin who brought him back after walking out. He said he joined in on the attack on The Shield because he was as tired of the team as everyone else. He then blamed Lashley for quitting, citing his attack on Sami Zayn.
"Anarchy, agony and destruction, and it is all Bobby Lashley's fault!" Owens said, describing the Kevin Owens Show going forward.
Grade
B-
Analysis
Owens is awesome, especially when he cuts impassioned promos that allow him to demonstrate his range of emotions. His performance here was spectacular. Unfortunately, the creative behind it was the polar opposite.
Are we really supposed to believe Owens quit WWE because he was pissed off that Lashley sidelined Zayn almost four months earlier?
That is a stretch, to say the least.
Does anyone want to see Owens bump around for Lashley, either?
Bobby Roode and Chad Gable vs. The Ascension
7 of 11
Bobby Roode and Chad Gable beat The Ascension in their first appearance as a tag team a week ago.
Monday night, they battled Konnor and Viktor in a rematch.
The Ascension beat down and isolated Gable for the majority of the match before a hot tag sparked the babyface comeback.
Roode cleared house, but Gable tagged himself in and scored the win with a bridging German suplex.
Result
Gable and Roode defeated The Ascension
Grade
C-
Analysis
Yes, WWE Creative is telling a story and setting up a heel turn by either Roode or Gable. That much is obvious, but did anything about this match accomplish anything whatsoever? No. Roode and Gable already beat The Ascension a week ago.
It does nothing to further establish Roode and Gable as a team and only serves to dilute whatever credibility Konnor and Viktor have left at this point.
A waste of television time and a match that existed for the sake of having a match.
Ronda Rousey and Natalya vs. Alexa Bliss and Mickie James
8 of 11
Ronda Rousey made just her second in-ring appearance on Raw Monday, teaming with Natalya to battle Alexa Bliss and Mickie James just six days before defending her title against Little Miss Bliss at Hell in a Cell.
The Queen of Harts frustrated Bliss early, outwrestling her and tagging Rousey into the match. Before the Raw women's champion could get her hands on her Hell in a Cell opponent, Bliss sprinted across the ring and made the tag to James.
A big clothesline from Rousey put James down and allowed the babyfaces to continue rolling.
A straight kick to the face of Natalya and double-teaming allowed the heels to take control of the bout. "Ronda! Ronda!" Natalya screamed in pain, in need of a tag in the worst way. Countering an armbar, she rolled Bliss up but could net only a two-count.
Bliss made the mistake of slapping Rousey and paid for it, running away from her rival and right into a double-team Hart Attack that paid homage to the late Jim "The Anvil" Neidhart and Hall of Famer Bret "Hitman" Hart. The heels were reeling heading into the break.
Back from the break, the heels beat down Natalya, throwing in the occasional taunt of Rousey when able.
When Rousey made the tag, Bliss and James immediately targeted the ribs of the champion, which were injured a week ago.
Rousey sold the injury, appearing vulnerable for the first time in her WWE career. Chants of "Ronda" fueled her comeback, but James knocked Natalya from the ring apron, preventing a tag.
Rousey fought off the pain and mounted a comeback, striking James and backing her into the corner. Her ribs still ailing her, she momentarily stopped but was able to muster enough energy to apply the armbar while staring Bliss down and scoring the submission victory.
After the match, Bliss delivered a cheap shot to the ribs and ran away.
Result
Rousey and Natalya defeated Bliss and Mickie James
Grade
B+
Analysis
Was it the prettiest match? Absolutely not, but this did set up a story for Rousey and Bliss' match Sunday night at Hell in a Cell.
Rousey, for the first time in her career, is hurt. Her ribs are less than 100 percent, and Bliss will look to exploit the injury to her benefit as she seeks another championship victory.
There will be those who argue it is too early for Rousey to look that vulnerable, but in order to avoid repetition Sunday, it was necessary. For someone who has not been asked to sell that much thus far in her career, she did a good enough job of it.
A quality segment on a show that had not featured many of them to this point.
Ladies and Gentlemen...Elias
9 of 11
On a night in which Raw emanated from the Bayou, Elias claimed to have perfected jazz, strumming his guitar and even earning a round of applause from the audience.
He turned the tide, getting heat for mentioning the New Orleans Saints' loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers Sunday afternoon.
Mick Foley interrupted the proceedings, there to celebrate the 20th anniversary of his infamous Hell in a Cell match with The Undertaker at King of the Ring 1998.
Elias revealed that he watched that night in Pittsburgh as Undertaker beat, mangled and brutalized Foley in the match. The Hardcore Legend took exception to his words and relived the emotion and electricity that surrounded the hardest and most damning match of his career.
It all culminated in Foley announcing he will be the special guest referee for Roman Reigns vs. Braun Strowman inside Hell in a Cell.
Elias insulted Foley, who revealed he was allowed the opportunity to make one match for Monday night's show and introduced his opponent...Finn Balor.
Grade
B+
Analysis
Short, sweet and to the point.
The segment revealed the big news for Sunday's show, featured the typically phenomenal promo from Foley, and allowed Elias to share the spotlight with another legend and set up a match. While the latter part of that equation is typical of WWE Creative, the rest made up for it.
Finn Balor vs. Elias
10 of 11
Balor continued his pattern of being involved in the main event without being treated like a consistent main event attraction, battling Elias in the final match of the night.
Balor rolled heading into the break, but Elias seized control coming out.
Just as the match got rolling, though, it ended rather abruptly.
As Elias attempted a superplex, Balor fought out. He tried for the Coup de Grace, but Elias rolled out of the way.
Elias tried for Drift Away, and the first universal champion countered with a small package rollup for the win.
Result
Balor defeated Elias
Grade
C
Analysis
There was nothing inherently wrong with this match, but it was largely meaningless, featuring two guys who do not figure to be a part of Sunday's Hell in a Cell in any significant way.
Balor winning is the right decision, but Elias has lost so often that beating him is inconsequential.
Yet another match for the sake of having a match and continued disappointing use of both men.
Roman Reigns and Braun Strowman Brawl
11 of 11
Strowman hit the ring to close out Monday's show and wasted little time calling out Reigns.
When The Big Dog did not immediately answer the call, Strowman vowed to make the injuries suffered by Mick Foley at King of the Ring 1998 look like child's play if the special referee gets in his way.
Reigns eventually answered, and a brawl between the two Superstars ensued at the top of the ramp.
Strowman punished Reigns, but the universal champion fought back and delivered a Samoan Drop off the announce table and to the arena floor.
Reigns stood tall, his title in his hand, to close out the show.
Grade
C
Analysis
Even this felt subdued given it was the final hype to Sunday's Hell in a Cell match.
Reigns and Strowman have a long and storied history that includes each man attempting to maim the other. Yet here, in the final build to their monumental clash, the most they did to each other was throw punches before a glorified table spot?
It did not capture the hatred or tone of the rivalry to this point and was a major letdown given the table Foley nicely set for them about 30 minutes earlier.
Then again, given the rest of the show, it was appropriately disappointing.
