As Gang Starr once said, it’s called betrayal. Seth Rollins, Bron Breakker and Bronson Reed weren’t wrestling yet when that song came out (27 years ago, that can’t be right), but if they were, it’s possible Guru and DJ Premier might have been talking about what went down seven days ago among the members of The Vision.
The real life reason for the Brons having a change of heart about teaming with Rollins is that he needs time off to heal from a serious injury. In storyline reasons … well, we’re going to have to wait and see. Let’s get into it.
In case you weren’t up early enough last week to catch Raw from Perth, the show begins with a replay of The Vision turning on Rollins. That covers the when and how, with the why expected to be a big part of what will unfold tonight.
The Vision makes its mission statement
Adam Pearce welcomes the fans to the show and says he has a “physical update,” but his words trail off as he sees a black SUV pull up on the big screen. Breakker gets out, still holding Rollins’ championship belt, joined by Reed and Heyman as they head to the ring.
Pearce claims he’s actually happy to see them while simultaneously blaming them for Seth’s major surgery. With Rollins on the shelf, he strips the World Heavyweight Championship and declares we’ll have a new champion on Saturday Night’s Main Event in Salt Lake City. CM Punk has already earned a shot at it, while a battle royal will determine his opponent … and that battle royal is taking place tonight in Sacramento.
“Bron, I’m going to need you to hand over that championship,” Pearce bravely says. “But what if I don’t?’ is Breakker’s response. Heyman has a word with Breakker, who says he just wants to be asked nicely and shown some respect.
When Pearce’s next request is not quite what Breakker has in mind, and no doubt egged on by the “CM Punk” chants, Bron asks Adam to say please. That seems to work although neither man looks super pleased by the process.
Perhaps rhetorically, Heyman asks why everyone “is so mad at us.” He doesn’t understand what they did that was so wrong, explaining that he did what he did because he knew Breakker was the future of the industry and that Reed was better than Roman Reigns. Paul punctuates his point by calling Seth a “bum shoulder bitch,” praising Breakker and Reed for having the intensity and initiative to become WrestleMania main eventers.
Some of the other players on tonight’s card are shown making their walks in, including Maxxine Dupri, Stephanie Vaquer and Rusev.
We also get another look at the action from last week’s episode, in this case Dominik Mysterio’s victory over Penta, as well as AJ Styles talking his way into a title shot. Back in the present, Finn Balor and JD McDonagh express their displeasure to Dirty Dom about having to defend their titles tonight. Roxanne Perez tells Dom not to worry about it and Raquel Rodriguez likewise suggests to Roxanne that she should focus on her own match.
AJ Styles and Dragon Lee vs. Finn Balor and JD McDonagh (c) – World Tag Team Championship Match
Joe Tessitore hits us with a pretty eyebrow-raising stat: Balor and McDonagh have been tag team champions for 111 days but this is only their second defense. It’s crazy but true, as the duo won the belts on the June 30 edition of Raw but since then only faced the LWO with the titles on the line. Wow.
The Judgment Day doesn’t look like it’s operating as smoothly as it sometimes does early on, but McDonagh is able to turn the momentum around with some sneaky tactics on more than one occasion, to the delight of Wade Barrett. Dragon Lee gets to show off with several crowd-pleasing spots, but McDonagh is able to counter him when it matters most.
The crowd erupts as Styles connects on a Phenomenal Forearm that looks like it has Balot down and out, but McDonagh makes a last second save. Lee makes an even more amazing save seconds later, leaping over McDonagh to break up a pin.
When Balor tries to pull off a Styles Clash on its originator, Styles turns it around, connecting on it to seal what could be his final WWE title.
Winners … and new Word Tag Team Champions … AJ Styles and Dragon Lee by pinfall
We flash back to see Jey and Jimmy Uso bickering before Big Jim got beaten by Reed. Jey saved his brother’s bacon after the bell, however.
Back in the here and now, Jey claims he was mad at himself for making the same mistake he did at Paris. Jimmy tries to get his brother to see that Jey lost his championship because “Jey stopped believing in Jey,” which makes Jey ponder though he says it’s possible Roman is right. The Usos at least agree to give it their all in the battle royal and agree they are good for now.
Dominik Mysterio (c) vs. Rusev – Intercontinental Championship Match
Perhaps no WWE wrestler has gone from legit heat to admiration from the fans like Dirty Dom has over the last year to 18 months. But he assuredly still has his haters, and they are likely eating up the first part of this match where Rusev is throwing him all over the ring.
Surely we aren’t going to see two championships lost by Judgment Day members on the same night though, right? Penta makes an appearance when Mysterio tries to walk out on the match, though he runs afoul of Rusev and takes a mean right hand for his trouble.
Dom tries to use the timekeeper’s hammer to win, then switches to a low blow when the ref catches him. A 619 sets up a frog splash, and yet again, Mysterio proves to have too many tricks up his sleeve. And the fans seem to not mind that at all.
Winner … and still Intercontinental Champion … “Dirty” Dominik Mysterio by pinfall
After the bell, Penta returns to the ring to hit Rusev with a springboard tornado DDT, suggesting things aren’t over between the two of them.
Maxxine Dupri vs. Becky Lynch (c) – Women’s Intercontinental Championship Match
Pretty awesome spot for Dupri in her hometown. Doesn’t mean she’ll win, and the earlier title change almost surely says no, but let’s see how this plays out.
The fans are into all the offense Dupri is getting, and there is plenty of it as the match moves into its middle stages. A cool spot sees her roll backward to get out of an armbar and right into an ankle lock. Tessitore and Barrett express the idea that this is the best version of Maxxine we have ever seen.
Maybe because of that perceived threat, Lynch gets frustrated enough to hit Dupri with her title belt in plain view of the ref. That loses her the match but allows her to retain the championship, much to the displeasure of the crowd.
Winner: Maxxine Dupri by disqualification (Becky Lynch retains her championship)
A video package goes through the highlights of WWE’s tour of Australia and Japan, which went well beyond Crown Jewel Perth.
In a pre-taped promo, Asuka says Rhea Ripley got exactly what she deserved while the Kabuki Warriors broke Iyo Sky’s spirit. She is proud of Kairi Sane for showing how ruthless she can be and says they need a new challenge. The Kabuki Warriors declare themselves officially back and put the tag team division on notice, as one does.
Heyman is frustrated by his wait outside Pearce’s office, and he definitely won’t like the news he gets: Breaker and Reed are out of the battle royal. There’s a way for them to get back in, but Paul will need to say please. He does, but Pearce still says no and slams the door. If that wasn’t bad enough, Heyman turns and sees Lynch, forcing him to try to weasel his way out of her wrath. True to form, Paul suggests Becky could still benefit from his advice. The Man is having none of it, saying Seth knew Paul would turn and will take out his anger on everyone Heyman loves in this business. Damn.
Stephanie Vaquer vs. Roxanne Perez
Vaquer’s championship is not on the line, so she could take a loss here, but part of her promotion is that she never loses. Rodriguez is out at ringside, however, so hijinks can’t be completely discounted. Perez is able to keep up nicely with Vaquer’s mat game in the early going, and these two work very nicely together.
The way the fans respond to the Devil’s Kiss when Vaquer finally pulls it off makes me think matches should be laid out to always tease it first. The anticipation makes it better, heh.
Rodriguez tries to lend a direct hand but ends up on the wrong end of a dive from the top turnbuckle to the floor. Vaquer finishes things back in the ring right after that …
Winner: Stephanie Vaquer by pinfall
… but we aren’t done here. The Judgment Day tries to beat on Vaquer after the bell, but Nikki Bella arrives to save her from more damage.
Lyra Valkyria is promised a birthday surprise by Bayley, and perhaps understandingly, she seems a bit nervous about what that might entail.
Back in The Vision’s locker room, Breaker wants an explanation from Heyman about how things went awry tonight. Paul tries to pacify the Brons with tales of how Brock Lesnar, Punk and Reigns all improved their fortunes by listening to him. We’ll see if that works out.
Backstage, Vaquer and Bella sweetly say they will watch each other’s backs … though no one is really after Nikki at the moment, so yeah.
Over-the-Top Battle Royal for a World Heavyweight Championship Shot
Very interested observer Punk joins Tessitore and Barrett to get a closer look at things. Otis takes the center of the ring and seems like it will be hard to dislodge him, but Rusev does exactly that and eliminates him first. Meanwhile, Punk claims Mysterio is called Dirty Dom because he never washes his gear.
Mysterio is laughing a moment later though, as he gets rid of Penta and Rusev with a single move. Savvy.
Another fun spot sees El Grande Americano load his mask, which means both Usos hurt their hands when they punch him. And Mysterio’s facial expressions are amazing as Sheamus dishes out punishment to Balor and McDonagh before they are all thrown out.
Styles eliminates Mysterio, but the refs are distracted by fighting on the floor and he re-enters the fray. That might pay off later.
Jimmy saves Jey from elimination twice, but when given the opportunity to throw Jimmy and LA Knight, Jey doesn’t hesitate.
That leaves Jey and Dirty Dom as the final two, and the drama doesn’t last long as Jey throws Dom out to win his title shot at Saturday Night’s Main Event.
Winner: Jey Uso
Jimmy looks dismayed as his brother celebrates, and while Punk thinks Jey did what he should have done, the announcers are narrating highlights to emphasize the idea that Jimmy saved Jey multiple times. As Jey and Punk have a staredown in the ring, the shot nicely frames Jimmy looking on from the aisle, a perfect way to bring this to a close. See you next week!
In recent news, Penta and Rusev will go one-on-one to determine the number one contender for the IC Title on the October 27 episode of Raw.
