This week’s episode of WWE Monday Night Raw was headlined by one of the most feelgood moments of the year. Jey Uso defeated Bron Breakker to win the Intercontinental Championship in the night’s Main Event to win his first singles title. Sami Zayn beat Ludwig Kaiser but was still denied a shot at Gunther’s World Heavyweight Championship by the champion himself, and Rhea Ripley and Liv Morgan’s match at Bad Blood will now feature Dominik Mysterio suspended above the ring in a shark cage because wrestling is amazing.
Damage CTRL continued their winning run with a victory over The Unholy Union and continued putting the heat on Women’s Tag Team Champions Jade Cargill and Bianca Belair. Friction continued to eat away at The New Day as Xavier Woods snapped at Rey Mysterio and the LWO, Drew McIntyre had some violent words for CM Punk and, stealing the show, Bronson Reed and Braun Strowman continued to fight all over the state of California in an action-packed Monday Night Raw from Ontario, CA.
8 Jey Uso
All hail the new Intercontinental Champion
One small step for the Intercontinental Championship, one giant Yeet for Main Event Jey Uso. After a hard-hitting, back-and-forth contest between two men guaranteed to be WWE staples for the next ten years, Jey Uso defeated Bron Breakker to become the new Intercontinental Champion. It is Jey’s first taste of gold in singles competition and so thoroughly deserved for his 2024 up to this point.
In truth, every champion being a heel on Raw was starting to feel a little lopsided. The outpouring of joy for Uso felt universal. Jey’s future just got a whole lot brighter, both for his present as Intercontinental Champion and in his future which surely includes The Bloodline. It’s all coming up Ucey on Monday Night Raw.
7 Sami Zayn and “the strong defeat”
WWE’s roster is being given creative respect…even in defeat
Sami Zayn vs Ludwig Kaiser was an absolute blast from first bell to last. Kaiser’s shove on Sami off of the barricade and into the chair was dastardly and effective. Zayn showed his trademark grit and determination to emerge victorious, but this was another excellent showing from Ludwig Kaiser and points to much more in his future than being Gunther’s sidepiece.
Speaking of the World Heavyweight Champion, Gunther emerged ready for a fight after Sami’s victory, only to turn down the gutsy Canadian yet again. It’s unclear what it’s going to take for Sami and Gunther to revisit their WrestleMania match for the Heavyweight Championship. One way or another, this needs to be resolved as Gunther’s inaction is beginning to grow stale.
6 Bronson Reed and Braun Strowman
Chaos reigns yet again on Raw
The life of a wrestling fan is a complicated thing. It often involves intellectualizing the heart and emotion of promos, explaining how matches are determined and how wrestling is a good barometer for life itself. But sometimes, you just really want to see two enormous men smashing into each other at break-neck speed in the name of our entertainment. Bronson Reed and Braun Strowman have been the most entertaining thing on WWE television this month while doing just that.
The behemoths will face off next week in a Last Monster Standing match. The Godzilla vs Kong promo video for the bout is ludicrous but perfectly encapsulates the over-the-top fun that this feud has provided. They were brawling inside the first five minutes of Raw. Bronson Reed’s match with The Miz didn’t get started because Braun Strowman had to come give him some. No matter who wins next week, both of these men come out of this program looking harder, better, larger, and stronger.
5 Drew McIntyre
Chilling words from The Scottish Warrior
After CM Punk said he was willing to die at the upcoming Bad Blood PLE, Drew McIntyre matched Punk’s energy on last week’s Raw with his own chilling, methodical promo. The tone was sober, both men have now divulged that their families are sick of this rivalry and don’t want this Hell In A Cell match to happen. Drew’s response was to promise that Punk will bleed more than he ever has in his life.
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As we head into Bad Blood, it becomes clearer that Drew has far less to lose in Georgia. This feud has seen his stock significantly rise due to his weekly brilliance. No matter who is next for The Scottish Warrior, after he’s through with Punk, Drew McIntyre is one of the most feared and respected heels on the roster. Victory in the deciding match of this feud with CM Punk would be bigger than him winning the WWE Championship. Judgment day is coming.
4 The Bad Blood Template
October’s PLE is dripping in hatred
Returning to the WWE PLE calendar for the first time since 2004, Bad Blood is about more than reviving a retro event name for a cheap pop. Across Raw, SmackDown, and the PLE itself, next week is all about the pay-off of some of the most heated feuds this year. Liv vs Rhea. Punk and Drew. the explosive Cody and Roman vs Solo and Jacob Fatu from last week’s SmackDown. Former Judgment Day brothers Damien Priest and Finn Balor. These are all high-stakes matches with a history of animosity.
In years gone by, fans have bemoaned the post-SummerSlam slump. This year, there can be no such complaints. Bad Blood as an annual fixture on the WWE PLE schedule seems likely after the success of 2024. As both the end of bitter rivalries and the start of the Survivor Series season, next week is going to be incredible.
3 Damage CTRL
A winning streak continues for Iyo Sky and Kairi Sane
Damage CTRL is on a roll. Iyo Sky and Kairi Sane engaged in a war of words with Jade Cargill and Bianca Belair before avenging their defeat over the Unholy Union from earlier this month. All signs now point to a star-studded Tag Team Championship match in the near future.
A word for The Unholy Union. It would be very easy for the Scottish Duo of Isla Dawn and Alba Fyre to be lost in the shuffle after dropping the tag titles. They were beaten in this match-up, but they remain relevant. Their ability to antagonize and the standard of their ring work should afford them many more opportunities in the future.
2 Bron Breakker
What next for the dog of WWE?
Bron Breakker’s defeat to Jey Uso being a shock speaks volumes about the rookie’s impact since arriving on Monday Night Raw. Looking at the positives, his championship reign solidified WWE’s faith in him and emphatically showed he could carry a championship on the main roster. Jey Uso had to land his best shot twice to finish the job. On the negative, where does Bron go from here?
With Bad Blood concentrating on rivalries that have been brewing for months, perhaps a rubber match between Breakker and fellow NXT call-up Ilja Dragunov is in the making. As we enter Survivor Series season, Bron hasn’t made any friends he can align with. What is certain is no longer being Intercontinental Champion does nothing to dim his shine or the attention surrounding Bron Breakker.
Bron Breakker’s 51 days is the shortest Intercontinental Championship reign since Jeff Hardy held the belt for 36 days between August and October 2020.
1 Dominik Mysterio
Despite all his rage, he is just a Dirty Dom in a cage
In a revival of a rarely used stipulation, Dirty Dominik Mysterio is to be suspended in a shark cage above the ring at Bad Blood when Rhea Ripley and Liv Morgan do battle for the WWE Women’s Championship. The rampant cheating that Judgment Day engages in has been addressed and we should get a winner fairly in the match itself. “Should” being the operative word.
Dirty Dom gets one of the loudest reactions on WWE TV, every week without fail. This stipulation however has a bad history. People like Enzo Amore and Chris Jericho have fallen flat in the cage, but this may suit Dominik (especially if it brings back the Prison Dom gimmick for a short stint).
- The last person to be suspended above the ring in a shark cage in WWE was James Ellsworth at Extreme Rules in 2018 in the women’s championship match between Carmella and Asuka.
- Lucha Lowrider, eh? Cero Miedo.
- ‘JD McDonagh Listens To Nickelback’. Sign of the night.
- The “What?” chant really needs to be retired. Come on, people.
- Wait. Where did The Miz go?!
- The New Day has only won once on Monday Night Raw since April.
- Enormous pop for Dominik calling Adam Pearce Mr Potato Head.
- The below mysterious symbol flashed up in hour 2 of Raw. The returning Viking Raiders or something new?
