RAW: The Bloodline strikes again, sort of

Arin De Castro

Jimmy Uso stalking his prey, Jey Uso.
Jimmy Uso stalking his prey, Jey Uso. Photo: WWE

With WrestleMania just over a month away, many build-ups to fill the cards have started. Last night’s show was no different as The Bloodline cause some trouble again, Damage CTRL continue to cause chaos and an announcement for a gauntlet match to challenge ‘The Ring General’ Gunther.

That said, folks, let’s dig into what was a fun night.

The night starts off with Cody Rhodes responding to The Rock and Roman Reign’s counteroffer. To add some context, The Rock and Reigns challenged Rhodes and Seth Rollins to a tag team match – which, I must say, I’m totally on board. Rhodes then asks his potential partner, Rollins, to come out. He does so.

Rollins then goes off on The Rock and gives him a new nickname, ‘Diarhea Dwayne.’ Rollins said he would be at Smackdown with Rhodes to face The Rock and Reigns, but he asked whether Rhodes would have his back. Rhodes said yes – obviously.

WWE Intercontinental Champion Gunther vs. ‘Dirty’ Dominik Mysterio

With the first match of the night, Gunther absolutely wipes the floor with Mysterio. Honestly, I don’t think anyone was surprised. It was pure dominance as Gunther easily could’ve pinned Dominik but he purposely stops the pin and continues to punish ‘Dirty’ Dom. This almost costed him the match as Mysterio went off on Gunther, but he puts it to an end. The match ends with a submission in favor of ‘The Ring General.’

Winner: WWE Intercontinental Champion Gunther via submission

Katana Chance and Kayden Carter vs. Zoey Stark and Shayna Baszler

Damage CTRL joined Michael Cole and Pat McAfee for commentary to scout potential contenders for the WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions. As for the match, it was non-stop action, but it was Stark and Baszler were the ones who ended on top.

Damage CTRL entered the ring and sent a warning about a title match for next week’s show.

Winner: Zoey Stark and Shayna Baszler via pinfall

Becky Lynch vs. Nia Jax

This was by far the most competitive match of the night. The rivalry of ‘The Irresistible Force’ and ‘The Man’ continues to grow, but the bout was hard to watch sometimes. Nia Jax needs to work on selling because there were some questionable moments. The match ends with neither being satisfied as Liv Morgan causes a disqualification. Morgan and Becky get into a heated argument, leading to both getting mauled by Jax.

Winner: Nia Jax by disqualification

After the match, Becky Lynch confronts Liv Morgan and challenges her for the next Monday Night Raw. I am definitely excited for that one. Rhea Ripley also briefly appears, laughing at Lynch and goes on about her night.

Andrade vs. Apollo Crews

Not much to say about this one. Like Gunther earlier in the night, Andrade showcased dominance and why he was the former WWE United States Champion. It was nice to see Andrade finally in a match after the Royal Rumble, hopefully we’ll continue to see more matches from him.

Winner: Andrade via pinfall

Before the match, Adam Pearce announced a six-man gauntlet match to find a challenger for the WWE Intercontinental title at WrestleMania XL. In the match, the superstars will be Shinsuke Nakamura, Sami Zayn, Bronson Reed, Ricochet, JD Mcdonagh and Chad Gable.

Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champions Finn Balor and Damian Priest vs. Giovanni Vinci and Ludwig Kaiser

The Judgement Days’ duo, Balor and Priest, took care of business and got some revenge on Imperium. Priest looked like a man on a mission, and Balor did his thing. Tonight really showed the difference in their WWE2k24 overalls.

Winner: Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champions Finn Balor and Damian Priest via pinfall

Sami Zayn vs. Ivar

This was a match created off the fumes of Valhalla. She thinks Ivar deserved a spot in the gauntlet match over Sami Zayn. This created a heated exchange into a match. Ivar and Sami Zayn was a fun watch and a match-up I would like to see again. Ivar had his moments but Zayn was the victor of the night.

Winner: Sami Zayn via pinfall

Something to note – Michael Cole got to wear the antlers; his dream came true.

Jey Uso vs Drew McIntyre

‘Main Event’ Jey Uso gets to take off some steam against Drew McIntyre. The match was a build-up from when McIntyre said Jey deserved to get mauled by his brother Jimmy. McIntyre dominated most of the match, but he made a comeback in Jey Uso’s fashion. But like everyone against The Bloodline, Solo Sikoa causes some trouble. But, unlike Jey’s match against Gunter, The Bloodline hunter, Cody Rhodes, comes to the rescue and takes out Sikoa. After a favoring sequence for Jey, Jimmy Uso once again costs his twin brother a match. McIntyre hits a claymore and the match was over.

Winner: Drew McIntyre via pinfall

After the match, Jimmy stalks Jey and enters the ring with a chair, but then comes Seth ‘Freaking’ Rollins. He takes out Jimmy but his opponent at Wrestlemania XL then hits him with claymore and gets in his face, pleading to only focus on him.

Overall, the night was fun. A lot of build-up to different stories, I can’t wait to see what’s next up to bat.

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