Monday Night Raw analysis: CM Punk’s revenge and new champions crowned in an action-packed night
As we continue on the path towards the biggest date in the wrestling calendar, we take a look at five things we learned from Monday Night Raw.
Sports News Blitz writer Joe Jones talks us through the action from Madison Square Garden.
Women’s Tag Title match ends in a massive brawl
The match ended in chaos following interferences from Charlotte Flair, Alexa Bliss & The Bella Twins.
But a little before that, Nia Jax, Lash Legend, Bayley, and Lyra Valkyria competed for the championships.
The referee lost control as several storylines clashed in a single segment. The match concluded with a disqualification, enabling Jax and Legend to keep their titles.
The chaos emphasised the depth of the women’s division and implied a multi-woman storyline leading to WrestleMania.
World Tag Team Titles defended in a street fight
Another title defence on the same show from Madison Square Garden, with Logan Paul and Austin Theory of ‘The Vision’ taking on the defending champions ‘The Usos’.
Logan Paul and Austin Theory capitalised on the chaos, with surprise appearances from LA Knight after he appeared on commentary, and iShowSpeed after being dragged over the barricade by Paul, ultimately increasing the unpredictability.
Brass knuckles ultimately played a crucial role, enabling Paul and Theory to win after iShowSpeed's surprise distraction, with him striking LA Knight with the brass knuckles that secured the victory for the new champions.
Intercontinental Championship match decided for ‘Mania
A night of title defences in New York, with Intercontinental champion Penta hosting former champion Kofi Kingston.
Both competitors displayed agility and creativity, delivering a match full of reversals and near falls.
Kofi’s experience pushed Penta to his limits, but the champion ultimately retained after executing a decisive Mexican Destroyer.
Following his victory, Penta announced a ladder match for WrestleMania. The contestants have already been decided following qualifying matches on Main Event, and they are:
JD McDonagh, Dragon Lee, Je’Von Evans, and Rusev – a challenging field for Penta to navigate with such diverse styles throughout, but this match has the potential to be the best of the weekend in Vegas.
READ MORE: Monday Night Raw analysis: Five things we learned on the road to WrestleMania
Seth Rollins gets his Mania match
Following his arrest in Boston last week, the charges against Seth Rollins have been dropped, and another big bonus for the ‘Visionary’ was that he has been medically cleared to compete.
This led to Rollins sneaking up behind Paul Heyman in the ring, who had just finished a back-and-forth with General Manager Adam Pearce, and smashing a steel chair into his back.
Seth sends the former wise man to the ground and waits to find the perfect angle for the stomp onto the chair. However, he is dragged out of the ring by Gunther!
The career-killer and legendary retiree drags Rollins out of the ring and applies the sleeper hold, causing Seth to struggle at ringside.
Gunther points to the WrestleMania sign and confirms their match at WrestleMania.
Another one I’m tipping to potentially win the fight of the night.
Lesnar v Oba Femi hype reaches a new level
The hype for Oba Femi and Brock Lesnar escalated further after their encounter in the Big Apple, disrupting security left and right and glaring at each other, only to be separated by the CCO Triple H.
Oba pushed General Manager Adam Pearce aside on his way to the ring, striking most of the security that came out to stop him.
Upon leaving the ring after the stare down and separation, ‘The Beast’ vented his frustrations on a security guard as well – F5’ing him onto the ground and leaving him shattered on the floor.
Another potential contender for Mania weekend, featuring two of the most imposing men we've seen in WWE for quite some time. Prepare for a fierce battle and a hard-hitting contest.
Punk gets one over on Reigns
The show closed with this year’s main event match getting even more feisty with another brawl, CM Punk returning the favour and power bombing the ‘OTC’ through the commentary table.
Straight out of the gate, and as ‘Cult of Personality’ was echoing around the famous arena, the two Superstars exchanged punch for punch and tore into one another.
Referees and WWE higher-ups attempted to separate the two but were not very successful, with Reigns spearing an official in the midst of the brawl and Punk capitalising with a GTS.
He delivered an equalising beatdown following Reigns’ attack last week, power bombing Roman through the announce table, leaving Reigns in a heap on the floor.
Punk stood tall to end the show, shifting momentum and raising serious questions about who truly has the edge heading forward.
READ NEXT: NFL news: Nick Sirianni and Howie Roseman on A.J. Brown’s future: ‘Nothing’s changed there
