Welcome to Ringside News’ coverage of WWE Monday Night Raw!
We’re 24 hours removed from Hell In A Cell 2018, and it was quite a show. Sure, the main event ended in a no contest but it protected both guys and created a heck of a lot of intrigue moving forward. Brock Lesnar returned during the Hell In A Cell match and laid out both Braun Strowman and Roman Reigns, leaving neither man able to compete. As Lesnar left the arena, there was seven bodies laying around the ring, including referee Mick Foley who had been pepper sprayed by Paul Heyman. This throws a huge spanner in the works of the main event title scene, and it seems we’ll get a three-way match at Survivor Series – which is two months away!
Elsewhere on last night’s PPV, Ronda Rousey defeated Alexa Bliss to retain the Raw Women’s Championship. The match was solid as heck, and it seems Alexa is truly moving out of the title picture for a while. Who does Ronda face next? It seems like Nikki Bella is the obvious option, in the match that will likely headline Evolution next month. We should get a step forward in that feud tonight.
Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose faced Drew McIntyre and Dolph Ziggler last night and were unable to win the Tag Team Championships. The four chaps had a great match and it’s very unlikely the feud is over, seeing as they all came back out for the main event and brawled on top of the cell. So expect this feud to continue tonight, especially because there will be a six-man tag match at WWE’s Australia show next month.
All that and more to expect on Raw tonight. So hold on to your hats, download the Ringside News app, follow us on Instagram, and enjoy the show!
Monday Night Raw opens with the WWE Universal Champion, Roman Reigns, making his way to the ring.
Roman comes to the ring and we see replays of Brock Lesnar’s return and attack at last night’s PPV. Fans cheer as the video ends. Roman walks around the ring and gets (mostly) cheered. He says last night was rough. Last night was brutal. And last night didn’t go according to plan. However, he woke up today and he was still Universal Champion. Reigns says he knew Brock had the right to a rematch but he never thought Lesnar would kick down the door of hell to get it. He then asks Brock to come out and face him right now. However It’s Braun Strowman who answers the call.
Strowman says Roman should be thankful that Roman came down last night because otherwise he wouldn’t be Champion anymore. He says that is the second time that Brock Lesnar has cost him the Universal Championship, so if anybody’s going to get his hands, it’s Brock. After that, he’s coming for Reigns.
Acting General Manager Baron Corbin makes way to the ring and tells them to slow their roll. He says last night was his first PPV, and no-one is more upset than him about how the show ended. He says he was on the phone all morning to Stephanie McMahon and they’ve come up with a solution. He says on November 2nd, at an event in Saudi Arabia called Crown Jewel, Reigns will defend the Championship against Strowman and Lesnar. The fans don’t care for that idea. Strowman says he thinks that sucks, and the fans cheer. He then says Corbin sucks, Reigns sucks, and everyone here sucks. Strowman then leaves the ring but Paul Heyman comes out to interrupt.
Heyman comes out, along with the door of the Hell In A Cell that Brock ripped off last night. Heyman says he is the advocate for The Beast that kicked in the gate to hell, then conquered a Monster and a Big Dog. The fans boo and Heyman says that’s fine, but he wants to teach them Brockanomics. A simplistic economic idea; the more powerful you are in WWE, the more money you are worth in UFC, and vice versa. And nothing grants more power than the Universal Championship. He says while Brock was Champion the WWE public stock reached new heights and massive TV deals were made. Until Strowman and Reigns conspired together to steal the title from Lesnar. That’s why Lesnar came out last night and that’s why he head to Saudi Arabia to claim his right to the title and become the crown jewel of WWE. Heyman then drops the mic and Strowman chases him off.
Inside the ring, Baron Corbin goes to speak but Reigns takes the microphone from him. Corbin then does the same to Roman, and says he doesn’t know what Roman’s thinking. He says Roman may think he’s big and bad, but as General Manager he’s privy to stuff like the medical reports. And he knows Roman is real banged up after the match last night. He tells Roman not to think about Crown Jewel, because he might not make it that far. That’s because, tonight, Roman will defend the Universal Championship against him!
Later tonight, The Undertaker will appear. Next however, Dean Ambrose will go one on one with Drew McIntyre! What do you guys think of the Crown Jewel announcement? Personally, the last event was a glaring step backwards for the women’s division and I wouldn’t go anywhere near countries that won’t let the women appear.
*Commercial Break*
We return from the break and out comes Dean Ambrose for his match. Seth Rollins and Dolph Ziggler can’t make it tonight after their falls off of the Hell In A Cell.
The bell rings and they lock-up. Ambrose takes the head of McIntyre but the Scotsman fires back with an elbow, a chop, then slams him into the turnbuckles. McIntyre looks to kick Ambrose but the Lunatic grabs his leg over his shoulder and drops to his knees to hyper-extend the knee.
Ambrose then leaves the ring and slams Drew’s knee around the ringpost. McIntyre then kicks Ambrose off and into the barricade. He comes out of the ring after Ambrose but gets rammed into the apron. Ambrose then slams his leg into the apron – trying to chop the big man down. Ambrose gets into the ring to break the count, then comes back out and attempts to attack the leg again but Drew lifts him up and tosses him into the barricade like a ragdoll. McIntyre gets him back into the ring for a two count and we’re off to commercial.
*Commercial Break*
We return to McIntyre grounding Ambrose with an arm submission. Ambrose fights to his feet but Drew connects with a knee to the ribs. He looks for a suplex but Ambrose lands on his feet and connects with a chop block. Ambrose then throws him out of the ring.
McIntyre gets back in and hits Dean, but the Lunatic responds with two clotheslines. Ambrose reverses an Irish whip with a head slam. Ambrose goes to work on the leg again with a modified half crab. McIntyre kicks him off and follows-up with a Glasgow Kiss (headbutt). Drew gets Dean on the top rope and looks for a superplex but Ambrose kicks his leg out and McIntyre falls into the tree of woe. Ambrose leans forward but Drew sits-up and throws Ambrose head over heels to the mat below.
McIntyre looks for the Claymore Kick but Ambrose reverses and looks for Dirty Deeds to no avail. Ambrose goes for a roll-up but Drew kicks-out, so Ambrose applies a cloverleaf! The Scotsman gets to the bottom rope to force the break. Drew climbs up the ropes on the apron but Ambrose kicks him off, then hits a suicide dive!
Ambrose gets McIntyre back into the ring but when he slides in after, Drew slides back out. Ambrose climbs to the top rope and dives off for an axe handle but McIntyre dodges it and Dean crashes and burns against the barricade. Ambrose just manages to get back into the ring for 9, but is immediately blown away by the Claymore Kick.
Later tonight, Baron Corbin will face Roman Reigns for the Universal Championship! Up next, Ronda Rousey will be here live!
*Commercial Break*
Drew McIntyre is walking backstage when he bumps into Dolph Ziggler. Before the two can talk, Baron Corbin walks-up and congratulates him. He says the individual members of The Shield don’t look so good tonight. Corbin says he is going to beat up Roman Reigns later tonight because the Universal Championship deserves better. Corbin asks Ziggler if he’s going to invoke his rematch clause for the Intercontinental Championship. Ziggler reminds him that he fell of Hell in a Cell last night. Corbin says Seth Rollins is just as banged up and isn’t even here. If Rollins doesn’t show up for a title defense, he’s stripped of the title and it goes to Ziggler. Corbin brags to a stagehand about two championships changing hands and how good a hob he’s doing.
We see still images of Ronda Rousey’s title defense against Alexa Bliss last night. Natalya is backstage with The Bella Twins when Ronda Rousey walks in. She hugs the Bellas. Rousey asks how to go about doing an open challenge. Natalya tells her to just go out there and say she wants a fight, just like the guys do. Ronda says she’s going to do it, and she isn’t scared of who shows up.
Bobby Roode and Chad Gable make their way to the ring. We see a split-screen promo from them, in which Gable talked about how he feels like a new man, he even feels glorious, since teaming with Roode. Gable will be in singles action, next.
*Commercial Break*
The bell rings, and Gable is smiling wide with Bobby Roode. Viktor wrenches the arm, but Gable does a few twists and bridges to get out. Gable takes him down and applies a side headlock. Viktor whips him off, but Gable shoulder blocks him down. Viktor kicks him down and chops the chest twice. Viktor sends him to the corner, but Gable slingshots over him and takes him down. Gable hits a butterfly suplex with a bridge to pick up a near fall.
Gable avoids an attack from Konnor from the apron, but Viktor capitalizes on the distraction. Viktor uppercuts and chops him before hitting a modified northern lights suplex before applying a head and arm lock. Gable fights up, but Viktor punches him back. Viktor puts him in the corner and chops the chest. Gable then applies an arm bar while hanging over the top rope. Gable hits the ropes, ducks two clotheslines, and hits a fast flying elbow – reminiscent of Daniel Bryan. Gable hits two suplexes before throwing him Viktor of the ring. He’s on fire and the fans are liking it.
Gable hits a cannonball off of the apron before getting him back into the ring. Gable hits a missile dropkick and gets fired up. Konnor gets on the apron, but he gets knocked off. Gable then hits a rolling German Suplex with a bridge for the win.
While Gable and Roode are celebrating, Konnor runs in like a bull and knocks Gable into Roode. He slides right out of the ring and storms off.
Bobby Lashley will take on Elias later tonight. Baron Corbin will challenge Roman Reigns for the WWE Universal Championship. Coming up next, The Undertaker will be live!
We see Seth Rollins walking backstage when Kayla Braxton stops him for an interview. She says she has to let him know that if Seth can’t compete tonight, Corbin will strip him of his title. Rollins says someone should remind Corbin that this is still Monday Night Rollins.
The Undertaker’s gong hits and he makes his way to the ring. Michael Cole aptly describes it as the most awe-inspiring thing in all of sports entertainment. The fans chant for the Deadman before he speaks.
Undertaker says, “They say delusion is the final recourse for the damned, that no man can spin a web of lies like a man that has a broken soul. And I have never seen anyone with a more broken soul than Triple H.” Undertaker mentions that Triple H was out last week telling the world that Undertaker has lost his self-respect. Delusion will be his downfall. There was a time with Triple H when he was wicked, savage, a warrior… but these days, he tends to play a more corporate game. His battlefield is the boardroom. His life is so filled with lies that he can no longer decipher truth. He can’t see the fear in his own friend’s eyes, and he can’t see his own demise. Undertaker puts no stock in what any man thinks. Undertaker knows that when he faces Triple H for the last time, the result will be just like the first time. Undertaker will put him six feet under. Game over.
He says Triple H will do everything he can to outrace the reaper, including enlisting Shawn Michaels. Let Triple H have his deceit, delusion, and his best friend Shawn Michaels. Right there is where the devil is in the details. Undertaker says that Shawn Michaels is not going to go all the way to Australia to sit in the audience and watch this fight. He’s going to be standing in Triple H’s corner. Undertaker is ok with that because standing in his corner will be his brother, Kane – which gets a huge pop from the crowd. He says everyone knows that he took Shawn Michaels’ career, and he’ll do the same to Triple H’s career, but it seems that he deserves far worse. Not only will he take his career, he’ll take his soul and put him down. At WWE Super Show-Down, with his brother of destruction watching his back, Triple H will rest in peace.
We see some replays of Braun Strowman Vs. Roman Reigns from last night. Later tonight, Reigns will defend the Universal Championship against Baron Corbin. Dolph Ziggler will face Seth Rollins for the Intercontinental Championship, and Ronda Rousey will host an open challenge for her Women’s Championship.
We see a fantastic video for Connor’s Cure, which operated in Texas earlier today.
*Commercial Break*
We join this match in progress. Dana Brooke is no longer a part of Titus Worldwide. Brooke shoulder blocks Bayley down before hitting a handspring back elbow. Bayley quickly comes back with a backslide pin for a two count.
Brooke knees Dana in the midsection and throws her into the corner. Brooke drops some knees on the midsection before applying a body scissor. Bayley fights out and rolls her up. Bayley hits a back elbow before snapping her off the second rope. Bayley jumps over Brooke, but Brooke quickly lifts her up. Bayley elbows out and knees her in the face. Bayley hits Bayley-To-Belly for the win.
Bobby Lashley will take on Elias later tonight. Roman Reigns will defend his Universal Championship against Baron Corbin as well.
Drake Maverick is leading AOP backstage when Rezar grabs a stagehand. Maverick tells him to save it for the ring.
*Commercial Break*
Akam starts out against one of the local talents and big boots him down. Akam brings the other guy in the hard way before tagging in Rezar. Akam chokeslams the one for Rezar to splash off the second rope. Rezar lifts the other guy and kills him with a death valley driver into the corner. AOP hits the Super Collider for the win.
Dolph Ziggler is complaining to Baron Corbin about Seth Rollins showing up. Corbin says Rollins is much more hurt than Ziggler. Corbin says he’s got this. Ziggler turns and sees Seth Rollins. Rollins says it sounds like he’s trying to talk his way out of it. Ziggler offers him a chance to back out. Rollins says he’s ready for a fight. Is Ziggler? Rollins walks off while Ziggler grabs his shoulder.
Seth Rollins will defend his WWE Intercontinental Championship against Dolph Ziggler, next!
*Commercial Break*
Dolph Ziggler makes his way to the ring, followed by the Champion Seth Rollins. We get ring introductions for both men.
The bell rings, and they circle the ring before going for a test of strength. Ziggler kicks him and throws him down, but Rollins comes back with a shoulder block. Rollins whips him into the corner, and Ziggler screams in pain. Dolph reverses an Irish whip to the corner, and Rollins really feels it. Rollins jumps over Ziggler, and his back gives up. Seth sidesteps Ziggler and sends him out of the ring.
Rollins gets out of the ring and chases Ziggler around the ring. Ziggler gets in the ring and punches him down on the apron. Ziggler knocks Rollins off the apron, and Rollins hits the barricade back first. Ziggler is in control and we’re off to commercial.
*Commercial Break*
We come back from the break to see Ziggler kicking and slapping Rollins in the head. Rollins takes Ziggler down and punches away at him. Rollins hits a back elbow before hitting a pair of running elbows. Dolph reverses a whip to the corner, but he runs into a boot. Rollins hits a blockbuster for a two count.
Rollins hits a running forearm in the corner before hitting the ropes. Dolph kicks him and hits the ropes before applying a sleeper hold. Rollins nearly fades away, but he fights up. Ziggler flips through a back suplex and tries for a Zig-Zag, but Rollins holds the ropes. Rollins blocks a superkick and hits the Ripcord Knee for a near fall.
Seth pulls himself up to the top rope but Ziggler cuts him off and grabs his shoulder in pain. Ziggler tries for a superplex, but Rollins slides through the legs and crotches him. Rollins goes for an inverted superplex, but Ziggler head-butts him away. Seth quickly scales the ropes and hits a superplex. Rollins rolls through in pain and goes for a falcon arrow, but Ziggler slides out. Ziggler rolls him up, but Rollins kicks out and gives him the Stomp for the win.
Charly Caruso asks Roman Reigns about being the underdog. Reigns says he’s not the underdog; he’s the Big Dog. That means he’s keeping his WWE Universal Championship.
We see Ronda Rousey warming-up backstage, she’ll be in action next.
*Commercial Break*
Ronda Rousey makes her entrance for her open challenge!
Rousey gets to the ring and embraces the fan appreciation.
*Commercial Break*
Rousey says she wants to congratulate Alexa Bliss. Last night was the best performance she’s ever seen from her. Rousey wasn’t expecting Bliss to fight at that level and push her close to her limits. Rousey has to thank her that she’s more of a champion than she ever thought she could be. Rousey wants to be the best champion anyone has ever seen. She wants to be like Bret “Hitman” Hart, Stone Cold Steve Austin, and Ric Flair. That’s why she’s issuing an open challenge right here and now. She says if any of the women in the locker room have the gumption to try to take her on, to come out now.
Natalya’s music hits, but she doesn’t come back. Ronda begins to look confused. The Riott Squad then drags an unconscious Natalya out to the stage! Ruby Riott says what they did to Nattie is Rousey’s fault. They’re here to shut this operation down. Riott says they don’t dislike Rousey, but they don’t like her either. Riott says she’s the one accepting the open challenge!
Riott gets on the apron, and Rousey punches her off. Sarah Logan gets in the ring, but Rousey takes her down. Rousey then takes out Liv Morgan. Riott soon attacks the injured ribs of Rousey and spears her. The Riott Squad triple teams her until The Bella Twins make the save and clear the ring. Rousey hits Riott with a swinging Samoan Drop to put the exclamation point on this. Rousey stands tall with The Bella Twins in the ring.
*Commercial Break*
We return from the break and get replays of what just happened with Rousey, the Bella’s, and The Riott Squad. It is announced that the six women will compete in a six-woman tag match at Super Showdown.
Elias is in the ring and plays a lil’ diddy for us. He finishes and says he knows how bad the show is without him. He says if it were up to him, this show would be three hours of Elias. He says he knows he gets interrupted each week, whether it’s Trish Stratus, Bobby Lashley, Mick Foley, or whoever, but they’re all just jealous. Because they know that WWE stands for Walk With Elias.
Elias says tonight he has to face Bobby Lashley. He says Lashley looks great and has all the tools, but he doesn’t get it done… kinda like the Dallas Cowboys. The fans boo and Elias says he sees so many of them wearing the journey, it’s as if they like failure. Before Lashley can really get started playing, he’s interrupted by someone a little surprising…
Lio Rush comes out and says he’s looking at a rock star. “But you know what’s sad?” Instead of giving the people what they want, he comes out each week and plays the same diss track. Elias suddenly stands up and says “who’s kid is this?” Brilliant. Rush says he needs to reintroduce himself: he’s the 23 year-old piece of gold, the man of the hour, Lio Rush. He says he represents… but Elias says he doesn’t care. He tells him to go to lost and found until his parents find him. Rush says Lashley told him Elias had jokes, or maybe he said Elias is a joke. It doesn’t matter. He says if we thought Lashley was angry when Kevin Owens powerbombed him on the apron, you won’t believe what he does tonight to Elias. And out comes big Bobby.
*Commercial Break*
Lio Rush has joined the commentary team and we join the match in progress, as Elias has Lashley in a headlock. Lashley fights back and takes Elias down with a clothesline. Lashley shoulder tackles Elias in the corner.
Elias tries to make a comeback but gets caught with a powerslam for a two count. Lashley runs at Elias but nobody’s home in the corner. Elias is caught with a back elbow, then Bobby takes to the top rope. Lashley jumps but Elias catches him in mid-air with a big jumping knee to the jaw. Both men are down as Kevin Owens makes his entrance.
Owens goes right for Lio Rush but he flips over the top of Owens and runs towards the ring. Elias runs out of the ring towards Rush but Lio leapfrogs him. Rush then jumps onto the apron and flips backwards over Elias. He then catches Elias with an enziguiri and the referee calls for the bell.
Owens grabs hold of Rush and looks to powerbomb him on the apron but Bobby pulls him into the ring. Lashley forearms Owens off of the apron, then lifts Rush above his head and throws him over the top rope onto the heels at ringside. Rush gets back into the ring and Lashley outs him on his shoulders and they celebrate.
We get a quick and pointless promo from Alexa Bliss, Mickie James, and Alicia Fox. They will face Ember Moon and a partner of her choice next. We get a trailer for Season 8 of Total Diva’s.
*Commercial Break*
We return from the break to see Mickie, Alexa, and Alicia already in the ring. Moon makes her entrance, followed by her partner…
Nia starts the match but neither Mickie nor Alicia want to get into the ring, so Nia tags Ember. Alicia Fox enters the fray and locks-up with Ember. Foxy flips Ember over, then hits a shoulder tackle but Ember kips-up.
Moon knocks Alicia down, then applies a wrist lock. She looks to tag Nia Jax but Foxy makes sure that doesn’t happen and tags Mickie. James and Fox hit Ember with a head slam, then James follows-up with a running kick. Mickie whips Ember to the ropes but Moon catches her with a headscissors takedown. Mickie rolls from the ring and regroups with Foxy but Moon wipes them both out with a suicide dive.
Moon gets on the top rope but Foxy shoves her off to the mat as the referee is arguing with Jax. Mickie then kicks Ember in the chest and tags Fox back in. Alicia applies a headlock to ground Moon. She tags Mickie back in and the former Women’s Champion kicks Moon for a two count. James applies a modified chicken wing. The fans rally Moon to her feet but James knees her in the gut. Moon hits an arm-drag takedown and looks to tag Nia but gets kicked onto her back by James. Fox is back in and she floors Ember with a big boot. Moon then reverses a back drop, ducks Foxy and makes the tag!
Nia storms the ring and knocks Foxy down with shoulder tackles, then slams her into the corner against Mickie. She then throws Alicia around the ring with several biels. Fox looks to catch Nia with a sunset flip pin but Jax stays on her feet and throws Foxy for a two count, thanks to Mickie. Jax grabs Mickie by the throat, then pishes her away and Ember comes out of nowhere with the Eclipse. Fox then runs in and Nia hits her with the Samoan drop for the win.
We see Baron Corbin backstage with a referee. He says even though he is the referee’s boss, and controls his family’s destiny, he wants the guy to call it down the middle. The guy says “yes Mr. Corbin”, but the GM forces him to call him by his whole title. Corbin will face Roman Reigns for the Universal Championship, next!
Michael Cole asks us to visit the Red Cross website, or call the hotline, and donate money to those in the Carolina’s and Virginia being affected by the hurricane.
*Commercial Break*
Acting General Manager Baron Corbin makes his way to the ring. The WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns is out next. We get ring introductions for both men.
The match gets underway and they lock-up. Corbin starst with some right hands and goes for a quick pin. Corbin then tackles Reigns and goes for another pin. He gets no luck so he starts punching Reigns against the ropes. Reigns ducks a big punch and clotheslines Corbin out of the ring.
Roman walks around the ring, then hits a Drive-By Kick. Reigns gets Corbin back in the ring and runs at him in the corner but Corbin moves and Reigns tackles the ring post. Corbin runs at Reigns but the Champion moves, Corbin slides out of the ring, round the post and back in, then clotheslines an unsuspecting Reigns for a two count.
*Commercial Break*
We return to see Corbin holding Reigns on the mat with a modified chinlock. Reigns begins to fight out but Baron hits him with a chokeslam backbreaker for a near-fall. Corbin wastes time by posing for the fans as the announcers say he is very close to taking the title.
Corbin goes back to the rear chinlock for a few minutes. Reigns eventually fights back and connects with an uppercut, followed by a lariat. Corbin whips Reigns into the ropes and he gets hit with another lariat. Reigns hits Corbin in the corner with multiple lariats, followed by a big boot. Reigns heads to the corner and readies for a Superaman punch but Corbin rolls from the ring.
Corbin hits Reigns with a right hand, then runs back into the ring and is caught with a Samoan drop for a two count. Reigns looks for a Spear but again Corbin rolls from the ring. This time Reigns rolls out, runs around the ring, and hits a Superman punch off of the steel steps. He gets Corbin back inside and looks for the Spear but again Corbin rolls out. Reigns runs around the ring again and looks to Spear Corbin but the GM throws a chair into his face! The referee calls for the bell and Corbin is furious!
Corbin and the referee argue after the bell as Reigns’ music plays. Corbin yells at Jojo to restart the match, which she announces to the fans.
Corbin leaves the ring and throws Reigns back inside, along with the chair. He slides in and lifts the chair but Reigns hits him with a Superman punch for a near-fall.
Reigns wanders over to the chair while the fans chant “we want tables”. Reigns lifts the chair but then Braun Strowman’s music hits. Reigns looks at Strowman, chair in hand, but then Corbin attacks him from behind. Strowman gets into the ring and headbutts Reigns. Braun then spashes Reigns in the corner twice before lifting him up for a powerslam but Reigns climbs off. Reigns then sidesteps a charging Strowman and the big man hits the ring post.
Corbin hits Reigns from behind. He then runs at him but the Big Dog sidesteps him and he slides out under the ropes and around the ring again. This time when he slides back in, Reigns ducks the clothesline and goes for the Spear but Corbin catches him with Deep Six and both men are down.
Dolph Ziggler and Drew McIntyre make their way back down to the ring, followed by Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose. The four of them brawl at ringside and the babyfaces get the better of them. Strowman climbs onto the apron but Reigns hits a Superman punch. Ambrose and Rollins get into the ring and and hit simultarenous suicide dives onto McIntyre, Ziggler, and Strowman. Reigns then looks to dive over the ropes and onto all of them but Corbin reappears and punches him. Corbin runs into the ring but is caught with a Spear and that’s all she wrote.
Strowman, Ziggler, and McIntyre retreat angrily up the ramp, while The Shield stand tall in the ring.
That’s it for tonight’s Raw. Let us know what you thought of it and be sure to come back tomorrow night for SmackDown Live! Until then, safe travels!