Welcome to Ringside News’ coverage of WWE Raw for March 25, 2019!
Today we got the unsurprising, yet nonetheless awesome, news that Ronda Rousey Vs. Becky Lynch Vs. Charlotte Flair would main event WrestleMania in less than three weeks. As for tonight, WWE is teasing repercussions for Ronda and her husband, Travis Browne, after attacking officials last week.
Elsewhere tonight, Kurt Angle’s farewell tour rolls on as he faces the United States Champion from SmackDown Live: Samoa Joe. Obviously, Angle and Joe have a storied history from their time together in TNA and it will be great to see them mix it up one last time. Tomorrow night, Angle moves on to SmackDown Live, where he will face another former TNA frenemy, AJ Styles. While Angle’s abilities are severely limited these days, this farewell tour has been a brilliant idea.
Then there’s the continued story between Roman Reigns and Drew McIntyre. Last week McIntyre challenged Reigns to a match at WrestleMania, and Reigns returns to Raw tonight to answer the call. Meanwhile it doesn’t seem that Brock Lesnar will be on the show at all tonight, so maybe Seth Rollins gets involved here.
That’s the preview for tonight’s show. Let us know what you’re excited for by downloading the Ringside News app or following us on Instagram. Enjoy the show!
Monday Night Raw
WWE Raw opens with the announcers discussing the women’s Triple Threat match headlining WrestleMania.
The Raw Women’s Champion then comes to the ring, and she will compete in a Beat The Clock Challenge tonight, as will Charlotte and Becky. Before Rousey speaks she is booed by the crowd.
She reminds us what the main event of WrestleMania is going to be. Then says “you’re welcome”, and drops the mic. However she comes back and lifts the mic and says she promises she will tap them both out at the same time, then drops the mic again. She goes back and lifts it a third time, and says she doesn’t know what a Beat The Clock Challenge is, but it sounds like another dumb gimmick we have around here.
The Riott Squad make their way to the ring for the Challenge, then Becky Lynch comes out, as her match will be second. Lynch says it’s good to be back in Boston, and tells Ronda to “stop being a little weirdo”. She says Ronda was given a huge contract and given every opportunity, but nobody gave a damn until the man came around. Lynch says she saved Ronda’s title run and that she’s the reason they are the main event of WrestleMania. Then she guarantees that WrestleMania will end with her holding the title and Rousey’s skull beneath her boot.
Charlotte Flair is out last and she says “blah blah blah blah blah”. Yes the women are the main event, but not because of Ronda and Becky have been doing for the past six months. It’s because of what she’s been doing for the last seven years, which is why she was handpicked to be the main event.
Beat The Clock Challenge
Ronda Rousey Vs. Sarah Logan
The bell rings and Sarah Logan slides outside but Ronda chases her around. They do another lap of the ring and Ronda knocks both Ruby and Liv over. Logan dropkicks Ronda as they attempt to get back into the ring.
Logan whips Ronda into the ropes, then applies a modified Texas cloverleaf. We’re a minute into the match and Ronda uses the ropes to pull herself up off the mat and apply an armbar. The referee forces the break with the five count. Ronda connects with a Superman punch to Logan, then applies the armbar for the win.
Winner: Ronda Rousey
Time To Beat = 1:25
Ronda leaves as soon as her match ends. However she stops on the stage to watch the next match.
Charlotte Vs. Ruby Riott
The match begins and Rubt kicks Charlotte from the ring. Charlotte comes back in and starts attacking Ruby but is kicked back out and she’s getting frustrated.
Charlotte tries to hit Ruby with Natural Selection but Riott dodged it. Riott tries to keep Charlotte grounded but Charlotte knocks her down and applies the Figure Eight with 8 seconds left….but Ruby holds out!
Charlotte Failed To Beat Rousey’s Time
Becky Lynch gets in the ring for her match but Charlotte Flair floors her with a big boot. Liv Morgan gets in the room anyway and implores the referee to start the match.
Becky Lynch Vs. Liv Morgan
The bell rings and Liv attacks Becky in the corner. She stomps the Lasskicker down before applying a sleeper hold. Becky fights to her feet and looks for the Dis-Arm-Her but Liv kicks Becky off and into the turnbuckles. Liv looks to hit Becky with a move, but she tips her over and pins her for the win!
Winner: Becky Lynch
Time = 1:18
Lynch wins the Beat The Clock Challenge by 7 seconds. After the match Lynch and Rousey talk trash to each other from the ring to the ramp.
We see Finn Balor warming-up backstage, he’ll have a match after the break.
*Commercial Break*
Finn Balor makes his entrance, followed by Bobby Lashley and Lio Rush. Lio tells Balor that his road to WrestleMania runs through them – if Finn wins tonight he gets a shot at the Intercontinental Championship at the show of shows. He says Finn should have quit while he was ahead, because they’re going to leave him a mess. However Rush isn’t fit to compete tonight, so someone else will be taking his place…
Finn Balor Vs. Bobby Lashley & Jinder Mahal
Lashley starts and forces Balor into the corner. Lashley maintains control with right hands, but Finn dodges him running into the corner. Balor starts to mount a comeback and hits Mahal from the apron, but the Singh Brothers distract him and Lashley knocks Finn from the apron to the floor.
*Commercial Break*
We return to see Balor shoulder tackled repeatedly in the corner by Lashley. Finn fires back with a sling blade that Bobby didn’t sell properly, then tags out.
Balor manages to knock Jinder into Lashley and he goes off the apron. Balor shrugs off more distractions from the Singh Brothers and connects with a dive over the top, followed by a Coup de Grace to Mahal for the win!
Winner: Finn Balor
Balor has earned his title shot at WrestleMania and Lashley is irate. Bobby attacks the Singh’s after the match and stares down Balor on the ramp.
We see a video of Elias in Times Square, practising his routine for WrestleMania. A guy approaches him with a guitar but Elias disparages him and New York.
Back live, Aleister Black makes his way to the ring. Ricochet will join him for tag team action after the break.
*Commercial Break*
Aleister Black & Ricochet Vs. The Revival
The match begins as soon as The Revival reach the ring as a big brawl breaks out. Eventually the match can begin after Scott Dawson was knocked from the ring.
Dawson grabs Black’s foot from the outside, so Wilder can take control. Dawson forces Black to the corner and kicks him before settling down into a hammerlock. Black fights to his feet and tags Ricochet. They clear the ring, then Black feigns a dive to the outside, while Ricochet flips off of the turnbuckles from the apron to take out Dash. Dawson dodged that one but he gets caught by Black coming off the apron with double knees.
*Commercial Break*
We return to see Dawson grounding Ricochet with a submission but the one and only fights to his feet immediately. Dawson hits Ricochet with a scoop slam as he looked for a tag. Dawson misses two elbow drops to Ricochet, then Wilder tags in and they hit him with a double-team vertical suplex. The Revival try to keep Ricochet grounded with quick tags, but Ricochet catches Wilder with a neckbreaker and makes the tag to Black!
Dawson also tags in but Aleister comes in hot. Black avoids a strike and knocks Wilder off the apron. Black hits a pair of running elbows and kicks Scott in the head. Black then hits both Dash and Dawson with a springboard moonsault and Wilder is knocked out of the ring.
Black strikes Dawson with quick slaps and elbows for a near fall. Dawson quickly DDT’s Black, but Ricochet breaks it up. Wilder tags in, and he and Dawson send Black to his corner. Ricochet blind tags in, ducks them, and hits both members of The Revival with a single Black Mass! Ricochet then tags in and hits Wilder with the 630 for the win!
Winners: Aleister Black & Ricochet
Triple H will be here live tonight to talk about his upcoming match with Batista.
Drew McIntyre makes his way to the ring. He’ll be looking for an answer from Roman Reigns after the break.
*Commercial Break*
We’re back live with Drew McIntyre in the ring.
McIntyre isn’t here for talk, he wants an answer from Roman Reigns and he wants to know why he hasn’t gotten one yet. He shows us the clip of him attacking Roman two weeks ago, and says he could easily have finished Reigns for good there, but that’s not how he wants to do it.
McIntyre says he hopes some member of Reigns’ family has the wherewithal to tell him to say no to his challenge. He says there’s nothing more for him to do because he beat the number one contender Seth Rollins, and he beat Dean Ambrose so bad that he’s just gone. He then tells Roman to think of his wife and children, and not have them watch their daddy fight for his life again.
The fans chant for The Big Dog and he answers the call. Roman makes his way to the ring, unfazed by anything Drew said. Roman gets into the ring and tells Drew that, “this isn’t coming from Roman,” then tells him never to mention his family again and punches him. As Reigns is unloading, Drew low-blows Reigns. McIntyre then connects with a Claymore Kick before leaving.
Still to come, Triple H talking WrestleMania, and Kurt Angle Vs. Samoa Joe!
*Commercial Break*
We see Drew walking backstage and Dean Ambrose appears. Ambrose says he doesn’t feel like Drew took him out of the picture. He asks Drew if he’d like to go again tonight, in a Last Man Standing match. Drew says he doesn’t even know how Dean is standing now, but he promises he won’t be after tonight.
Sasha Banks and Bayley make their way to the ring in The Boss’ hometown. Corey Graves compared Banks to notorious Boston gangster, Whitey Bulger.
Sasha Banks W/Bayley Vs. Natayla W/Beth Phoenix
The match gets underway with a lock-up and Nattie overpowers Banks. She then shoves The Boss, who slaps her chest before hitting a springboard arm-drag. Banks hits another springboard arm-drag.
Natalya slams Banks down and applies a surfboard stretch. Sasha escapes and connects with double knees to Natalya. Banks showboats for a minute, allowing Nattie to get her down for a Sharpshooter but she can’t lock it in. Banks kicks Natalya down and out of the ring.
On the outside, Natalya tries to throw Banks back inside but The Boss slides around 360 on the apron and hits a hurricanrana on the floor. Banks follows-up with a running knee against the barricade as we go to the break.
*Commercial Break*
We come back from the break to see Natalya applying a modified torture rack to Banks. Banks counters into a roll-up for a two count. Banks knees her in the face, but Natalya soon takes her down by spiking her on her tailbone. Natalya goes to hit the ropes, but Banks trips her and applies the Bank Statement. Natalya screams in pain, but she rolls through and applies a Sharpshooter. Banks screams in pain, but she rolls out of it.
Suddenly Nia Jax and Tamina run in and attack Bayley on the outside. Beth Phoenix fights them off. Phoenix lifts Jax up, but Tamina kicks her. Phoenix fights back and clotheslines Jax down. Phoenix then hits Tamina with the Glam Slam. Phoenix and Natalya pose together in the ring as the fans chant “you still got it”. Beth stands on Banks’ Women’s Tag Title as she tried to pull it from the ring; a statement of intent.
No Contest
The next inductees into the Hall of Fame are The Hart Foundation. We see the video package of Jim Neidhart and Bret Hart’s awesome tag team, then cut back to Natalya in the ring crying. She poses for the fans.
Charly Caruso is backstage with Kurt Angle. She asks why Angle would want to face an opponent as tough as Samoa Joe. Angle says he wants to thank Joe for coming from SmackDown Live. Then says that this farewell tour is about him facing some dream opponents of the highest calibre, and it will ensure he’s ready for Corbin at WrestleMania. Corbin then approaches and says he respects Angle but that the fans aren’t cheering for who Angle is now, that he’s half the man he used to be. He says they’re wishing he had retired 10 years ago and that he will make a fool of himself at the show.
A Moment of Bliss will take next with Colin Jost and Michael Che of SNL, and Braun Strowman. Oh joy.
*Commercial Break*
We’re back and see Banks and Bayley walking backstage. Caruso stops them and asks if they’re on the verge of imploding. Sasha cuts her off and says this is what they said they would do; defend against everyone. So they’ll do just that at WrestleMania.
A very spiky Alexa Bliss is in the ring for A Moment of Bliss. She says Raw just keeps getting better since she took over as WrestleMania host. However she’s less than two weeks away from hosting WrestleMania, and she feels her show is in jeopardy because of her guests tonight. We see replays of the past few weeks when the SNL guys annoyed Braun Strowman, then sent him a car that he destroyed. She says this has the potential to be a PR danger, so let’s make sure that doesn’t happen, and introduces her first guest.
Braun Strowman makes his way to the ring. Alexa reminds us of Braun’s many feats of strength and chaos, of which he’s proud. She asks what might happen to the SNL guys if they got his hands, to which Braun says he’d like to smash their face.
The SNL guys appear on the titantron, from New York and criticise Boston. Colin unabashedly touts his families millions, and that he could teach Braun how to eat food, do taxes, and read a book. Michael tries to stop him but he carries on. He says he knows Braun is a big guy, probably 5’11, 180 lbs, but they can settle it like grown-ups. He tells Braun he needs therapy and asks to be reimbursed for the car Braun destroyed, as well as getting an autograph from Brock Lesnar. Strowman says there is only one way to settle this; for Colin to enter the Andre The Giant Battle Royale. The guy protests but Braun says he can either do that, or he’ll find them backstage at the show and rip them both apart. Michael Che accepts the offer and convinces the other guy to do so as well. Braun then asks Alexa if she can make it official, and she jokes that she can’t, before saying she does so. They look worried and Braun says they need to show-up, otherwise he’ll hunt them down in New York.
We’re back in New York City with Elias, outside of Madison Square Garden. Elias says he’s sold out the Garden three times, while Billy Joel never could. A random guy walks past and throws a quarter into his coffee cup. Elias is offended.
Baron Corbin makes his way to the ring for a match with Apollo Crews. Corbin is also a Boston native but the fans didn’t cheer for him like they did Banks.
*Commercial Break*
Baron Corbin Vs. Apollo Crews
We join the match in progress. Crews rolls him up three times, but Apollo kicks out each time. Crews fires back with a dropkick that knocks Baron out of the ring
Corbin comes back and slams Crews down for a near fall. Crews comes back with a big boot and sidesteps him to send him into the ring post shoulder-first. Crews hits a step-up enzuigiri and connects with a frog splash for a near fall. Corbin soon connects with End of Days for the win.
Winner: Baron Corbin
A quick and easy win for Corbin to restore the 50/50 booking. Corbin starts to leave the ring but stops and attacks Crews again with the End of Days.
*Commercial Break*
We see replays from the open of the show with the Beat The Clock Challenge. Next week Rousey, Lynch, and Flair will team to face The Riott Squad.
Seth Rollins makes his way to the ring to hype the Universal Championship match by himself. Rollins says he wants to cut to the chase; he and Lesnar are cut from different cloth. He says they are taking vastly different roads to WrestleMania. He talks about the kind of Champion he wants to be; an inspirational one like Shawn Michaels, or even John Cena. He says Lesnar doesn’t inspire anyone.
Rollins talks about meeting Bostonian’s yesterday at an autograph signing, where each person told him the same thing: please Seth, beat Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania. He says that hit him hard because he knows how much it means to him, but he didn’t know how much it meant to the fans. He says now he has to beat Brock Lesnar, he can’t let Lesnar define the industry. He can’t lose to a bully that has case a shadow over WWE and the entire industry. And Brock doesn’t understand that he is unstoppable because he has an army behind him.
Paul Heyman comes out and interrupts Rollins. Heyman thanks Seth Rollins, thanks for informing him that the match is now a handicap. It will be Brock Lesnar Vs. Seth Rollins and the entire WWE Universe at WrestleMania, and that’s fine because he likes Brock’s odds. Heyman says Seth sounds pathetic, begging for the crowd’s affirmation. He mocks millenials and their “thoughts and prayers” crap. Heyman then says that’s pretty fitting, because Rollins doesn’t have a prayer of beating Brock Lesnar. He says he wants Seth to take it personally when he and the entire WWE Universe loses at WrestleMania.
Heyman tosses the mic and walks up the ramp. Rollins jumps out of the ring and walks up after him. When Heyman realises he falls over and begs Seth off. Rollins says he’s here to answer all those thoughts and prayers, because we are going to march into Suplex City and Burn It Down!
Kurt Angle makes his entrance for his match against Samoa Joe.
*Commercial Break*
On his way to the ring, Samoa Joe cuts a promo in which he insults Boston and says it will be a cold day in hell before he allows Kurt to just ride off into the sunset. He says he has a gift for Angle, the gift of sleep, and he couldn’t think of a better farewell present that putting Angle’s ass to sleep one final time.
Kurt Angle Vs. Samoa Joe
The bell rings and Joe headbutts Kurt and lays into him with stomps. Joe chops Angle but then Kurt fires back. Joe looks for a suplex but Angle didn’t even jump, almost spiked himself. Angle looks for a German suplex but Joe elbows him off. Snapmare and a dropkick to the back from Joe.
Joe sends Angle from the ring and connects with a big suicide dive as we head to the break.
*Commercial Break*
We’re back and Joe floors Angle with a back elbow. Joe chops Kurt in the corner, and unloads some punches. Angle finally catches Joe with a German suplex, then another, and a third for a near-fall.
Angle looks for an Angle Slam but Joe elbows him. Joe catches Angle with an atomic drop, followed by a running senton for a two count. Angle dodges Joe in the corner and hits him with an Angle Slam for a near-fall!
Angle looks for the ankle lock but Joe kicks him away. Joe then catches Kurt with a snap powerslam for another two count. Joe puts Angle on the top rope, thinking about a muscle buster, but Angle kicks him away and hits a poor missile dropkick. Angle looks for a second Angle slam but Joe dodges it. Angle counters an STO but Joe grabs him with the Coquida Clutch. Angle falls to one knee but then rolls over and manages to score a pinfall on Joe!
Winner: Kurt Angle
God. I love the idea of this farewell tour but watching Angle is hard, he’s just so far from his former self, and he really can’t have competitive matches. It’s kind of damaging his opponents. Anyway, he’ll be on SmackDown Live tomorrow night to face AJ Styles.
Dean Ambrose is backstage, preparing for his match with Drew McIntyre.
Triple H makes his way to the ring to talk his match with Batista at WrestleMania.
*Commercial Break*
Triple H thanks the fans for a standing ovation for the entire commercial break. He congratulates Becky, Charlotte, and Ronda for being the main event at WrestleMania. He speaks about how that spot was not just given but earned.
That’s something that makes him happy. It also makes him happy that he got a dry mic and not the one that Batista spat all over two weeks ago. He says some things don’t make him happy. He pulls an envelope out of his pocket, from Batista’s lawyer, which says Batista won’t be competing at WrestleMania unless Triple H does something. He says Batista stated that Triple H just started Evolution to protect his assets, to which Triple H is wowed it took Batista 13 years to figure that out. He says Dave also realised the moon isn’t made of cheese this week, so it was a big week. He says Dave also said Evolution didn’t improve his career, however he entered Evolution as D-Von Dudley’s weird henchman, and left as the World Heavyweight Champion. And then Batista also states that Evolution hindered his career, but Triple H rhymes off his successes and says he only quit WWE because he couldn’t beat John Cena.
Triple H says Batista wanted to know if WrestleMania could be moved to accommodate his filming Guardian’s of the Galaxy 3. He comes to the statement from the letter, and he mocks Dave from a few weeks ago by saying the letter says “Give me what I want, what I really, really want. I’ll tell you what I want. What I really, really want. I wanna, I wanna, I wanna…” and says it goes on like that for pages. He says Dave’s point is that he will only compete at WrestleMania if he puts his career on the line. Triple H says if he can’t beat a deluded douchebag like Batista he has no business being in the ring anyway. So if he wants his career, he’s got it.
We cut to Elias in New York again, and he’s racked up quite a few dollar bills. Elias says New York recognised talent and that he will put on the performance of his life at WrestleMania. He starts playing guitar and someone steals his guitar case full of money without him realising.
Up next is the main event: Dean Ambrose Vs. Drew McIntyre.
*Commercial Break*
Next week, Kurt Angle will wrestle his final ever Raw match against Rey Mysterio.
Drew McIntyre makes his entrance again.
Last Man Standing Match
Dean Ambrose Vs. Drew McIntyre
The bell rings, and Ambrose runs and starts punching and kicking Drew. McIntyre knocks him back and delivers a huge chop that knocks him down. Ambrose fights back and clotheslines McIntyre out of the ring.
Ambrose comes off the top rope with a elbow drop, but Drew moves and he lands hard on the floor. Ambrose gets to his feet at the count of eight. McIntyre then tosses Ambrose into the barricade as we head to the break.
*Commercial Break*
We’re back live and Ambrose is on the top rope. He jumps but Drew McIntyre catches him with a Kendo stick to the ribs in mid-air. McIntyre then cracks the stick over Dean’s back, before trying to drill it into his eye socket. He hits Dean twice more, but misses the third shot and gets knocked from the ring.
Ambrose connects with a suicide dive and both men are down. McIntyre lifts the ring apron, slides Ambrose underneath, and slingshots him into the steel supports under the ring. McIntyre then lifts the steps and smashes Ambrose with them in the head.
Dean just about gets to his feet and Drew slides him back into the ring. McIntyre grabs a chair and brings it into the ring with him. He props it between the turnbuckles and tries to throw Ambrose into it but Dean stops himself, and slams Drew into it. Ambrose follows-up with Dirty Deeds and waits for the ref’s count.
McIntyre gets to his feet around eight but Dean boots him down. Ambrose gets a table and props it up in the corner. He tries to throw Drew into it but McIntyre lifts him up and rams him through the table. Ambrose gets up around nine but McIntyre connects with a Claymore Kick. Ambrose tries to get up but he can’t.
Winner: Drew McIntyre
After the win, McIntyre literally steps on Ambrose then poses with the referee as we see replays.
That’s it for this week’s Raw, let us know what you thought and be sure to come back tomorrow for more news and results. Until then, safe travels.
