WWE Raw wasted little time setting the stage for SummerSlam, with major championship rivalries taking shape, a blockbuster Hell in a Cell match becoming official, and several personal feuds intensifying throughout the night. Alongside in-ring action, the show featured returns, musical performances, backstage drama and plenty of chaos as the fallout from Night of Champions continued.
Raw opened with a video package recapping the key moments from Night of Champions before Michael Cole and Corey Graves welcomed viewers to the show. Oba Femi then made his way to the ring to address his victory in the King of the Ring final.
Femi soaked in the reaction from the crowd before declaring that while they had greeted him like “The Ruler”, he now deserved the reception of a king. After receiving an even louder ovation, Femi reflected on defeating Jey Uso, insisting destiny had been on his side all along. With SummerSlam looming, he admitted an important decision now lay ahead.
Before he could continue, Brock Lesnar interrupted alongside Paul Heyman. Heyman mockingly introduced Femi as the 2026 King of the Ring, while Lesnar offered him a handshake. Femi refused, prompting Lesnar to suddenly strike with a low blow before planting him with an F5.
As Lesnar and Heyman headed up the entranceway, Femi recovered enough to grab a microphone. He accused Lesnar of always showing up, delivering an F5 and leaving without consequence before confronting him directly.
“You’ve called me names behind my back,” Femi said. “Well, I’m calling you one to your face. You’re a b****.”
Femi challenged Lesnar to meet him at SummerSlam. Lesnar accepted immediately but raised the stakes by demanding the bout take place inside Hell in a Cell. Femi had his answer, giving Raw one of its biggest SummerSlam announcements of the night.
Backstage after the commercial break, Paul Heyman boasted about Lesnar’s actions while speaking with Raw General Manager Adam Pearce. Austin Theory was briefly interrupted before Pearce later sought out Femi to make sure he understood the significance of giving up a potential World Championship opportunity in favour of facing Lesnar inside Hell in a Cell. Femi made it clear he had no intention of changing his mind.
Rey Mysterio vs. Ethan Page
The night’s first match saw Rey Mysterio square off with Ethan Page.
Page immediately attempted to use his power advantage, flattening Mysterio with a shoulder tackle before driving a boot into his midsection. Mysterio answered with a hurricanrana and targeted Page’s body with repeated shoulder strikes, but Page regained control by driving Mysterio face-first into the top turnbuckle.
The pace continued to swing back and forth as Mysterio bounced Page into the middle rope before Page responded by sending the WWE Hall of Famer spine-first into the turnbuckles. During the commercial break, Page slowed the contest with a series of submission holds while continuing to wear Mysterio down.
Once back from the break, Mysterio found an opening with a Sidewalk Slam before sending Page tumbling over the top rope. A sliding splash under the bottom rope followed as Mysterio attempted to build momentum.
Page cut him off once more, planting Mysterio face-first before attempting an elevated attack from the top rope. Mysterio escaped with repeated elbows and countered with another hurricanrana.
That proved to be the turning point. Mysterio connected with the 619 before following it up with a Frog Splash to secure the victory.
Winner: Rey Mysterio
Backstage, Dominik Mysterio and JD McDonagh searched through Danhausen‘s laboratory looking for money. Instead, Dominik discovered a large gift sent to Danhausen by the New York Knicks and decided to steal it in an effort to lure Danhausen out into the open.
Joe Hendry headed to the ring next and promised the audience a special concert before introducing the new World Tag Team Champions, The Street Profits.
Montez Ford and Angelo Dawkins thanked the WWE Universe for their support following last week’s title victory. Ford also thanked Seth Rollins for inadvertently helping them capture the championships before thanking Hendry himself.
Hendry then performed a new song that took aim at Austin Theory and Logan Paul, and celebrated The Street Profits’ championship success.
Theory interrupted Hendry before his performance could continue. Furious over losing the tag team titles, he accused Ford and Dawkins of stealing the championships before reminding everyone that he defeated John Cena at WrestleMania after Hendry had previously included Cena in one of his songs. Theory also revealed that he had secured a World Tag Team Championship opportunity for next week’s Raw, despite Dawkins questioning whether Bron Breakker was medically cleared to compete.
Hendry quickly responded with his trademark “Joe says no” before challenging Theory to an immediate match.
Joe Hendry vs. Austin Theory
Theory jumped Hendry early, driving his face into the canvas before Hendry battled back with a DDT.
Momentum shifted repeatedly as Hendry landed a back elbow, a corner splash, a Fallaway Slam and the Hit Single, only for Theory to survive the pin attempt. Theory answered with a shoulderbreaker before both men exchanged strikes in the middle of the ring.
Hendry eventually created enough separation to connect with Standing Ovation, scoring another impressive victory.
Winner: Joe Hendry
Fresh off becoming Queen of the Ring, Iyo Sky addressed the WWE Universe.
Sky said she was proud to return to the United States as the 2026 Queen of the Ring and vowed to leave SummerSlam as Women’s World Champion.
Liv Morgan interrupted, accusing Sky of boasting about a victory that only happened because Danhausen had cursed her at Night of Champions. Morgan insisted things would be different at SummerSlam and reminded Sky what had happened to competitors, including Finn Balor, Stephanie Vaquer and Rhea Ripley, after crossing her. She promised Sky would suffer the same fate.
The confrontation quickly escalated as Raquel Rodriguez and Roxanne Perez surrounded the ring. Sky initially fought them off, knocking both women from the apron before countering Morgan with a German suplex.
However, the numbers game eventually caught up with her.
Rodriguez draped Sky across the top rope by her injured knee while Perez repeatedly stomped on the leg. Morgan then connected with Oblivion before applying a Half Boston Crab as officials rushed to the ring to force Judgment Day to release the Queen of the Ring.
LA Knight vs. Jimmy Uso
The action resumed with LA Knight making his entrance for a singles match against Jimmy Uso, while former World Heavyweight Champion Jey Uso joined Michael Cole and Corey Graves on commentary to watch the action unfold.
Knight started aggressively, forcing Jimmy into the corner and unloading with stomps before following up with a Hip Attack. Jimmy weathered the early pressure and fired back with a right hand before delivering a Hip Attack of his own. He then climbed to the top rope and connected with a crossbody for a near fall.
Jimmy maintained control by sending Knight over the top rope and launching himself through the middle rope with a suicide dive. The momentum shifted during the commercial break, however, as Knight took advantage on the outside. He repeatedly smashed Jimmy’s head off the announce desk directly in front of Jey before returning the action to the ring.
Back from the break, Jimmy battled back with a Fallaway Slam before Knight answered with a clothesline. Jimmy then exploded with a spear that nearly earned him the victory.
Knight’s attention soon shifted away from his opponent. He taunted Jey at ringside by teasing that he was about to throw Jimmy into his brother, only to turn and strike Jey instead. Knight followed with a reverse DDT and his trademark top-rope elbow drop, but Jey climbed onto the apron in response.
Knight knocked Jey back to the floor with a right hand, but the distraction proved costly. Jimmy capitalised immediately by rolling Knight up to steal the victory.
Winner: Jimmy Uso
After the bell, Knight attempted to attack Jimmy from behind. Jey stepped in to help his brother, but Solo Sikoa suddenly appeared from nowhere and tripped Jimmy before disappearing into the crowd. As Jey turned his attention towards Solo, Knight struck him with a BFT to leave both brothers laid out.
Backstage, Maxxine Dupri apologised to Chad Gable for her actions the previous week. Rather than criticising her, Gable assured Dupri she had nothing to apologise for before heading off for his scheduled match later in the evening.
Raquel Rodriguez vs. Maxxine Dupri
Raquel Rodriguez looked to continue Judgment Day’s successful evening when she faced Maxxine Dupri.
Dupri enjoyed a bright start by taking Rodriguez off her feet, but the size and strength advantage quickly swung the contest in Rodriguez’s favour. She used the ropes to halt Dupri’s momentum before trapping her in a Torture Rack.
Dupri managed to escape and briefly rallied with a leg drop, but when she attempted a spinning back heel kick, Rodriguez caught her and emphatically drove her to the mat with the Texana Bomb to end the contest.
Winner: Raquel Rodriguez
The bizarre rivalry involving Danhausen and Judgment Day continued backstage.
Danhausen returned to his laboratory to find it completely trashed. Moments later, Liv Morgan entered the room, prompting Danhausen to accuse her of destroying the lab. Morgan denied any involvement before walking away, leaving Danhausen searching for answers.
Chad Gable vs. JD McDonagh
Chad Gable then went one-on-one with JD McDonagh, accompanied by Dominik Mysterio.
The opening exchange saw Gable immediately target McDonagh’s ankle, but Dominik provided a timely distraction by handing McDonagh the ring skirt, allowing him to escape. McDonagh quickly turned the tide by driving Gable’s injured knee into the steel ring steps before concentrating his attack on the limb throughout the commercial break.
McDonagh remained in control after the interval, but Gable gradually fought back with a pair of cannonballs in the corner following a German suplex.
McDonagh answered with a Spanish Fly before planting Gable with a Brainbuster for a near fall. Gable attempted a moonsault but missed, allowing McDonagh to continue targeting the injured knee.
The match took another unexpected turn when Danhausen appeared at ringside carrying a briefcase. Dominik abandoned his position to chase Danhausen into the crowd, leaving McDonagh to fend for himself.
McDonagh attempted to steal the match with a roll-up, but Gable countered straight into an Ankle Lock. This time, there was no escape, and McDonagh was forced to tap out.
Winner: Chad Gable
Following the match, Dominik and McDonagh recovered the briefcase left behind by Danhausen and found it filled with money. Before they could celebrate, the arena lights suddenly went out.
When power was restored, Danhausen had stolen back the customised New York Knicks jersey Dominik had been wearing. The celebration was short-lived, however, as Raquel Rodriguez attacked Danhausen from behind near the entranceway, recovered the jersey and returned it to Dominik.
Another backstage segment followed as Austin Theory confronted Maxxine Dupri over her earlier interaction with Chad Gable. Theory suggested their relationship might no longer work before walking away.
Otis and Akira Tozawa attempted to comfort Dupri, but she admitted she no longer knew what to think, then left the scene.
Raw concluded with Roman Reigns making his way to the ring alongside Jacob Fatu.
Reigns barely had time to demand that Atlantic City acknowledge him before Seth Rollins interrupted.
Rollins reminded Reigns that their careers have been intertwined for 14 years. He declared that the World Heavyweight Championship currently around Reigns’ waist belonged to him and insisted the time had come to reclaim it.
Reigns dismissed the challenge, telling Rollins to get to the back of the line and earn another opportunity. Rollins refused to accept that response, reminding Reigns that, unlike everyone else in WWE, he had consistently been able to beat him. He referenced taking Paul Heyman away from Reigns, ending The Shield with a steel chair, and preventing Reigns from achieving everything he wanted despite his dominant four-year reign as champion.
Rollins admitted both men were now much closer to the end of their careers than the beginning and called Reigns a guaranteed future Hall of Famer. However, he insisted there was one accomplishment Reigns would never be able to claim: defeating Seth Rollins.
Reigns acknowledged there was truth in Rollins’ words but made his own intentions clear.
“I don’t want to beat you,” Reigns said. “I need to beat you.”
He vowed not only to defeat Rollins, but to defeat his entire family if necessary, before officially accepting Rollins’ challenge for a World Heavyweight Championship match at SummerSlam.
With one of WWE’s biggest rivalries reignited, Raw came to a close with the blockbuster title clash now set for SummerSlam, while Oba Femi’s Hell in a Cell showdown with Brock Lesnar, Iyo Sky’s pursuit of Liv Morgan’s Women’s World Championship, and the growing issues surrounding Judgment Day ensured several major storylines gathered momentum heading into WWE’s biggest event of the summer.
