WWE RAW Review – May 8, 2023
Kicking off this week’s Raw with Cody Rhodes asks Jacksonville what they want to talk about then says he appreciates the reception he received. He says Jacksonville was his home during the pandemic where lots of good memories were made before addressing Backlash. He says he didn’t get to celebrate all the pomp and circumstances since he was preparing for his match with Brock Lesnar. He says he discovered what Lesnar was made of because it was all over his fist. He brags about his win then says now that Lesnar is in the rear view mirror, it’s clear what’s next for him the World Heavyweight Title. He then calls for the bracket of the tournament to be pulled up as he makes his way to where the World Heavyweight Title is sitting on the top of the ramp and says he intends to fight tooth and nail to become the World Heavyweight Champion. He says he has the honor of calling for the tournament to begin.
Seth Rollins’ music hits and he appears & he stares down Rhodes then makes his way to the ring.
After the break we head to a video recapping the San Juan Street Fight at Backlash.
Quarter Final Match Of The World Heavyweight Title Tournament
Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Seth Rollins vs. Damian Priest
Match starts off with Damian Priest delivers a forearm to both Shinsuke Nakamura & Seth Rollins then fires off right hands on Rollins before catching Nakamura with several stomps. Nakamura responds with an enziguri and Rollins sends him crashing to the outside. Rollins & Nakamura then stare one another down.
Nakamura delivers a knee to Rollins’ midsection, and follows it up with a kick to his head. Nakamura rolls to the outside and Priest looks for a boot. Nakamura sends Priest colliding into the apron then executes a running knee and a knee to the back of his head as we go to a break.
After the break Rollins & Priest go back & forth with forearms in the center of the ring. Rollins gains the upper hand and delivers a knee then sends Nakamura face first into the middle turnbuckle. He ascends to the top and delivers a crossbody to both men. Priest & Nakamura both wind up on the outside and Rollins delivers a tope suicida to each man.
He looks for a 2nd one on Priest but Priest delivers a right hand. He gets back in the ring and whips Nakamura into the corner but Nakamura drapes him on the top turnbuckle before he ascends to the top and delivers a flying knee. Rollins rolls up Nakamura but Nakamura kicks out.
Priest delivers a right hand to Nakamura’s jaw but Rollins looks for a springboard. Priest catches him with an elevated flatliner and looks to level Nakamura with one but Nakamura is thinking the same thing and they level each other with kicks. Rollins then hits Priest with a superkick and Nakamura then delivers a kick of his own to Rollins. Nakamura looks to plant Rollins but Rollins lands on his feet and hits a discus lariat.
He ascends to the top rope but Priest knocks him up and sets up for Razor’s Edge. Rollins escapes and delivers a Curb Stomp then goes for a pin but Nakamura breaks the fall and begins exchanging right hands with Rollins.
Nakamura then plants Rollins and sets up for a Kinshasa but Priest levels him and tosses Rollins out of the ring. Nakamura locks in an ankle submission but Rollins breaks the hold with a splash off the top rope then delivers a Pedigree to Nakamura for the win.
Winner: Seth Rollins (Recommend)
We then go backstage and see Imperium’s Giovanni Vinci & Ludwig Kaiser parading around. Imperium runs into Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champions Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn and they tell Imperium they’re in the middle of something. Imperium express their frustrations with feeling disrespected and tell Zayn & Owens to watch their backs and their Undisputed Tag Team Titles.
Otis vs. Mustafa Ali
Mustafa Ali locks in a sleeper but Otis quickly escapes then delivers a shoulder tackle and sets up for a gorilla press. Ali escapes before Otis catches him with a clothesline that turns him inside out. He delivers a splash in the corner and sets up for the Caterpillar.
Chad Gable encourages him to land it but Maxxine Dupri tells him not to and tries talking him out of it.
Otis then charges at Ali but Ali ducks out of the way and Otis is sent crashing into the ring post shoulder. Ali then ascends to the top and delivers a 450 Splash for the win.
Winner: Mustafa Ali
Quarter Final Match Of The World Heavyweight Title Tournament
Finn Balor vs. The Miz vs. Cody Rhodes
Finn Balor is sent to the outside then The Miz then rolls up Cody Rhodes but Rhodes kicks out. Balor then rolls up Miz but Miz kicks out. Rhodes hits him with a side Russian leg sweep then sends Miz crashing on top of him with a delayed vertical suplex then the action spills to the outside and Rhodes hits both men with a tope suicida as we go to a break.
After the break Rhodes delivers a missile dropkick to Balor and Miz off the top rope. He fires off right hands and kicks on Miz & Balor then delivers a right hand and a shoulder tackle to Balor. He then delivers a scoop powerslam to Miz before hitting a double Cody Cutter on both men then he catches Balor with a Disaster Kick but Miz comes back with a double DDT to Rhodes & Balor.
Miz looks for the Skull Crushing Finale but Rhodes clotheslines him to the outside. Balor delivers an elbow drop and a dropkick to Rhodes then ascends to the top and sets up for the Coup De Grace. Rhodes ducks out of the way but Miz sends him to the outside and delivers a Skull Crushing Finale to Balor then goes for the pin but Rhodes breaks the fall.
Rhodes then sends Balor crashing to the outside and delivers Cross Rhodes to Miz. Miz tosses him out of the ring and goes for a pin but Rhodes prevents him from doing so. He hits Miz with 3 Cross Rhodes and goes for a pin but Brock Lesnar appears out of nowhere and pulls him out of the ring.
He then delivers an F5 to Rhodes on the outside which allows Balor to hit the Coup De Grace on Miz for the win.
Winner: Finn Balor (He will face Seth Rollins in the Semi Finals)
After the match Lesnar delivers a F5 to Rhodes through the announce table then he grabs a mic and mocks Rhodes by asking what he wants to talk about then says he wants to talk about himself. He tells Rhodes to look into his face and tells him he wants a fight. He challenges him to a fight at Night Of Champions and asks Rhodes what he has to say to that. Lesnar then leaves ringside as Adam Pearce and other officials check on Rhodes.
After the break we go backstage and see Rhodes being escorted to the medical area by an official.
Non Title Match
Smackdown Women’s Champion Rhea Ripley vs. Dana Brooke
Dana Brooke delivers a dropkick then she fires off right and left hands but Rhea Ripley responds with a headbutt. Brooke delivers a modified bulldog and ascends to the top rope but Ripley catches her and delivers a gutbuster then follows it up with a Riptide and locks in the Prism Trap for the win.
Winner By Submission: Smackdown Women’s Champion Rhea Ripley
After the match Ripley hits a 2nd Riptide and locks in the Prism Trap once again then we hear Natalya’s music hits and she appears. Ripley relinquishes the hold on Brooke as Natalya heads down to the ring and hops inside then stare one another down.
Non Title Match
Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champions Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn vs. Imperium (Giovanni Vinci & Ludwig Kaiser)
Match starts off with Sami Zayn & Ludwig Kaiser lock up then they go back & forth with submission holds before Zayn dumps Kaiser to the outside. Giovanni Vinci tags in and delivers an uppercut but Zayn sends him face first into the middle turnbuckle.
He ascends to the top rope but Kaiser knocks him off. Kaiser then tags in and delivers a right hand to Zayn. He fires off several stomps and tags Vinci back in. Imperium then double teams on Zayn and gloat as we go to a break.
After the break Zayn makes the hot tag to Kevin Owens & he fires off right hands and stomps on Kaiser then delivers a right hand to his head and a back body drop. He follows it up with an inverted atomic drop and a clothesline. He ascends to the top and delivers a Swanton Bomb then goes for a pin but Vinci breaks the fall and tags in.
Vinci continues to wear down Owens, then tags Kaiser back in. Kaiser delivers an enziguri, but Owens levels him. Vinci tags in and Owens lands a superkick on then Zayn tags in and delivers a Helluva Kick for the win.
Winners: Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champions Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn
We then head backstage and see Sonya Deville & Chelsea Green getting signatures for a petition. They run into The Way’s Candice LeRae, Johnny Gargano & Indi Hartwell. They explain that they’re petitioning to get a rematch for the Women’s Tag Team Titles as the y pass the petition around and Hartwell asks an unseen person next to her what they think. The camera pans over to Dexter Lumis & he gives Deville & Green a thumbs down.
Nikki Cross vs. Zoey Stark
Zoey Stark slaps Nikki Cross then delivers a knee to her midsection then fires off several stomps and sends Cross into the top turnbuckle face first. She then delivers a clothesline but Cross hits a kick to her knee and follows it up with a kick to her face.
She delivers a splash in the corner and sets up for a Tornado DDT, but Stark gets out of the way and delivers a superkick then follows it up with Z360 for the win.
Winner: Zoey Stark
We then head backstage to a video of a confrontation between Dominik Mysterio & Xavier Woods.
Trish Stratus points to her shirt that features a missing poster of Becky Lynch and asks if anyone has seen her then she says she’s worried about her but she will likely be found in a corner of Ireland. She says Lynch won’t be coming to Raw because it’s her show and no one will steal her spotlight.
Lynch’s music hits but Lynch herself doesn’t appear. Stratus starts to laugh and calls fans gullible for thinking it was Lynch. She tells a story about a doll that she bought for her daughter. She says her daughter wanted to name the doll Becky Lynch because she was pretty but before she can continue Lynch’s music hits once again.
Lynch appears behind Straus and clocks her with a right hand. She follows it up with an uppercut and a Bexploder. Lynch then grabs a mic and tells Stratus if she wants her then she’s right here.
Xavier Woods vs. Dominik Mysterio
Xavier Woods & Dominik Mysterio lock up to get this match off then they go back & forth with submissions before Woods delivers a dropkick and fires off several right hands. He delivers a series of stomps and follows it up with right hands but Mysterio dumps him out of the ring as Rhea Ripley laughs at him as we cut to a break.
After the break Mysterio delivers a forearm and 3 Amigos but Woods responds with a series of chops and forearms then follows it up with a clothesline and a shoulder to his midsection.
He then delivers a tornado DDT and trips Mysterio on the apron before draping him across the top rope and delivering a dropkick then climbs up to the top rope and looks for an elbow drop but Ripley pulls Dominik out of the way then rolls up Woods for the win.
Winner: Dominik Mysterio
After the break we go backstage to Shinsuke Nakamura & The Miz. Miz tells Nakamura he should’ve listened to him last week because Raw is not the same as Smackdown. He appeals to him once again and asks them to team up, and Nakamura declines his offer opting instead to challenge him to a match next week.
We head backstage to Chelsea Green & Sonya Deville looking over the signatures on their petition. Women’s Tag Team Champions Raquel Rodriguez & Liv Morgan walk in and tell Deville and Green that if they wanted a rematch for the Women’s Tag Team Titles all they had to do was ask then they sign the petition.
Semi Final Match Of The World Heavyweight Title Tournament
Seth Rollins vs. Finn Balor
Match starts off with a lock up then Seth Rollins & Finn Balor go back & forth with submission holds before Rollins delivers a shoulder to Balor’s midsection then Balor fires back with a dropkick and clotheslines Rollins out of the ring then joins him.
Rollins hits a Sling Blade and tosses Balor back in the ring but Balor executes a series of knees to his head as he goes to get back in the ring then powerbombs him into the barricade as we go to a break.
After the break Rollins fires off several chops then hits a clothesline and a superkick then executes a 2nd clothesline. He ascends to the top and goes flying but Balor rolls him up. Rollins kicks out and Balor locks in an arm submission. Rollins escapes and Balor catches him with a Sling Blade. Rollins fires back with a superkick and knocks Balor out of the ring.
He follows him out there and they send one another face first into the ring apron. Rollins tosses Balor in the ring and delivers a rolling elbow, then follows it up with a kick. Balor ascends to the top rope but Rollins meets him up there and rolls through. He looks for another suplex but Balor escapes and plants him.
He then fires off several stomps on Rollins in the corner then delivers a dropkick and ascends to the top rope & looks for a Coup De Grace but Rollins rolls out of the way. He delivers a Pedigree and looks for a Curb Stomp but Balor rolls out of the way then delivers an inverted Curb Stomp and follows it up with a Curb Stomp for the win.
Winner: Seth Rollins (Recommend)
Matches Of The Night
Nakamura vs. Rollins vs. Priest – 8/10
Semi Final Match Of The World Heavyweight Title Tournament- 8/10
Balor vs. Rhodes vs. The Miz- 7/10
