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Welcome to another edition of Monday Night Raw!
Last week we saw Liv Morgan successfully retain the World Women’s Championship against Becky Lynch. After last week, Becky Lynch’s contract has expired with no mention of reaching a new deal, so for the unforeseeable future we’ll see how well the Raw Women’s Division adjusts without The Man.
Liv Morgan is out to open the show and welcomes everyone to the Liv Morgan Revenge Tour!! Great reaction for the World Women’s Champion. Liv, with some impressive white platform boots on, boasts on being able to do what no one else on this roster has been able to… taking out both Rhea Rhipley and Becky Lynch. Morgan is really shining here and the segment only gets more interesting as Dominik Mysterio comes out to HEAVY boos.
Dom Dom can’t get much dialogue in with the reaction he’s getting, but he does warn Liv that when Mami returns, she’s going to kill her. Morgan responds with a zinger that even I gasped at when she told Dom she’d make everything worth his while. Liv closes the gap between her and Dom only for Finn Balor to interrupt the seduction going on in the ring.
Liv really turned the volume up to a level we haven’t seen much from WWE in the modern era. What’s great about it here is Liv leaning into her sexuality to seduce Dom fits within the storyline of infiltrating Judgment Day. Taking Dom from Rhea feels too simple at this point, shattering Judgment Day from its core feels like a much grander story.
Maxxine Dupri shines in her segment with Alpha Academy & Sami Zayn. The crowd was very much behind her, looking forward to seeing where this storyline goes!
Natalya vs. Kiana James
Kiana has a really strong back and forth with Nattie in making her in ring Raw debut. The veteran didn’t slow down the pace once throughout this bout once but James did well in keeping up but I didn’t really feel like she got a chance to shine much. Personally, I feel like Kiana has all the potential for a major ascent on the main roster but she hasn’t been given the same presentation in juxtaposition to other newcomers as of yet. That being said, it’s only been a month since being called up so perfectly fine with letting this play out. Kiana hits the 401k for the victory.
Winner: Kiana James
Nattie is seen walking backstage after the match and is approached by Sonya Deville. The queen of harts quotes “Enough is enough and it’s time for a change” and I’m not sure if that hints at a heel turn or Natalya hinting at something else considering her contract status then walks out of the frame, only for Sonya to try her hands again at recruiting Shayna and Zoey. The pair turn Sonya down on her offer once again.
Liv Morgan makes her presence known again during Carlito and Braun Strowman’s match. I do enjoy the story progressing more throughout the show as opposed to the booking from the previous regime which we’d have to wait until the next week for more follow up.
Jade and Bianca are out next and making their presence known on Raw! Incredibly happy to see the EST back on Raw and this is my first time getting to cover Jade! The champs wasted no time in calling out their challengers either!. Zoey and Shayna are out next and accuse the champs of ducking them. Some good back and forth here then out comes Adam Pearce to make the tag team title match official!
Bianca Belair & Jade Cargill vs. Shayna Baszler & Zoey Stark
Match starts with Bianca very much in the driver’s seat with Shayna not getting a ounce of offense in to start the match. Zoey tried turning the tide in the challengers favor by hitting her impressive springboard missile dropkick but as soon as Jade tags in her power overwhelms Stark’s offense. Really cool standing vertical suplex spot.
Back from the break, the camera work covering Bianca’s offense really show’s how incredible of an athlete she is. It gives me a new appreciation for just how talented the EST is! Just as Bianca is about to win after hitting the KOD on Zoey, Isla and Alba attack Belair!!! Jade tries to make the save but the champs end up getting beat down by the four challengers. Triple threat at Class of the Castle? I’m not mad about it and making it a triple threat gives booking an out if they want to pull a swerve and take the titles off Belair and Cargill (potentially in preparation for match at SummerSlam?)
Winners by DQ: Bianca Belair & Jade Cargill
Lyra is backstage being interviewed by Cathy Kelley where the runner up to the QOTR declares herself for Money in the Bank but then is attacked by IYO SKY! Iyo is on a rampage backstage assaulting Valkyria, still a little salty after her loss in the QOTR, and the match is made next week!
Great show overall from Raw last night! Advanced multiple storylines and having Bianca & Jade appear on Raw is a welcome addition while the rest of the division finds its footing without Rhipley and Lynch. Sound off in the comments below!
