WWE Raw Review – September 4, 2023
Kicking off this week’s Raw with a recap of Payback.
Jey Uso welcomes fans to Raw then says he knows he was only gone for 2 to 3 weeks. He says it felt like a lot longer but he felt like he kept hitting his breaking point on television every week. He says Cody Rhodes unexpectedly called him hence why he’s here on Main Event Mondays by himself.
Sami Zayn’s music hits and he makes his way down to the ring. He tells Jey that it’s crazy to see him on Raw. He says there are a lot of people that will have a big problem with him being here and himself and Kevin Owens haven’t always seen eye 2 eye about him. He says he wanted to be the 1st person Jey say on Raw and says he’s happy he’s here. He says he knows the kind of guy Jey is and despite how hard it was he broke free and he’s standing on his own 2 feet to become who he’s always been. Zayn says he knows that him and Jey have a long history but he’s proud of him. He then extends his hand out to Jey but Jey doesn’t shake it. Zayn says that’s fine and he’s around when he’s ready to talk. He looks to head to the back, but Jey stops him and says that wasn’t very Ucey of him then extends his own hand out to Zayn but Zayn doesn’t take it opting to hug him instead.
Drew McIntyre then makes his way down to the ring and stares down Jey as he looks to head to the back. Zayn explains that it’s his 1st night back and McIntyre proceeds. Matt Riddle follows and does the same thing as McIntyre.
We then head backstage to Adam Pearce chatting with Ricochet about his future. Pearce becomes distracted by World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins and asks what he’s doing here given that he wasn’t cleared by medical. Rollins assures him that he’s fine and Ricochet tires reasoning with him. Rollins reiterates his previous remarks and walks away.
Tornado Tag Team Match
Viking Raiders (Erik & Ivar) vs. McRiddle (Drew McIntyre & Matt Riddle)
McRiddle go straight after Ivar then Drew McIntyre executes a spinebuster then assists Matt Riddle in flying. Ivar responds with a splash on Riddle but McIntyre gets him up on his shoulder then Erik provides Ivar with a helping hand before delivering a knee to Riddle and raining down right hands on McIntyre with Ivar.
Ivar delivers a boot to McIntyre’s face but McIntyre clotheslines him out of the ring and hugs Riddle then suplexes him on top of Viking Raiders on the outside then Riddle pulls a table out from under the ring as we go to a break.
After the break Riddle lays atop a table as Ivar ascends to the top rope. McIntyre delivers a series of right hands to his face and spine then joins him up there as Riddle slips off the table and joins McIntyre & Ivar on the ropes & they hit a superplex but Erik pulls the table out of the way to soften the hit for Ivar.
Viking Raiders then set up a table in the corner before McIntyre levels them then he takes down Erik with a neckbreaker and gets Ivar on his shoulders & plants him with a Death Valley Driver then sets up for Claymore but Erik helps Ivar out of the ring and McIntyre joins them on the outside.
He clears the announce desk and looks to send Erik crashing through it but Ivar delivers a right hand to his spine before he can. McIntyre fires off right hands on Erik and delivers a belly 2 belly suplex. Ivar then hits Viking Splash to him off the announce table.
Riddle delivers a knee to Ivar then delivers one to Erik off the apron. He sets up a table in the center of the ring and sets him up on it then looks to ascends to the top rope but Valhalla distracts him allowing Ivar to deliver a spinning back heel kick.
Viking Raiders look to plant Riddle through the table but Kofi Kingston runs down to provide a hand to Riddle as he lands a series of strikes on Viking Raiders and looks to land a Trouble In Paradise on Ivar but he ducks out of the way and Kingston accidentally hits Riddle.
Viking Raiders then use Kingston to level McIntyre and deliver a double powerbomb to Riddle through the table for the win.
Winners: Viking Raiders
World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins welcomes fans to Monday Night Rollins and introduces himself then says 2 days ago Shinsuke Nakamura did everything he said he would. He says Nakamura dropped bombs on his back all night long and he didn’t know at certain points during that match where he didn’t know if he could get up or continue but despite that he’s still World Heavyweight Champion. He says something hasn’t sat right with him since Payback and that’s the fact that Nakamura was able to walk out of the building while he was pushed out in a wheelchair by his wife then calls Nakamura out to the ring.
Nakamura’s music hits and he appears on the ramp. Rollins tells him to get inside the ring because he has a proposition for him. Nakamura remains on the ramp and Rollins says there’s only one way to get him in the ring. He offers him another shot at the World Heavyweight Title and Nakamura slowly heads to the ring. He turns back around and speaks in Japanese. Rollins says he’s assuming Nakamura is accepting his challenge but Nakamura clarifies that he isn’t.
Rollins has had enough and meets Nakamura on the ramp & they begin brawling with one another before officials run down to separate them. Ricochet pulls Nakamura off Rollins and begins brawling with him until officials separate them.
After the break we see Adam Pearce chewing out Rollins backstage. He explains that he’s trying to protect him but Rollins is having none of it and storms off.
Ricochet vs. Shinsuke Nakamura
Shinsuke Nakamura slides out of the ring & they begin brawling on the outside but Ricochet gets Nakamura back in the ring before he delivers a hurricanrana and a dropkick. He follows it up with an uppercut.
Nakamura fires back with a knee across his chest off the top rope as he hangs from the middle rope then fires off several more knees across his chest then lands a kick to his spine and a German suplex as we go to a break.
After the break Nakamura delivers a knee to Ricochet’s midsection before Ricochet fires back with a springboard elbow then Ricochet delivers a Tijeras and goes flying then lands a running Shooting Star Press and drags Nakamura to the corner then he ascends to the top rope and looks for a 450 Splash but Nakamura avoids it.
Ricochet then delivers a single leg Codebreaker and looks for a splash in the corner then delivers a running knee to his chest then delivers a cannonball off the apron and charges at him but Ricochet dumps him into the timekeepers area. Nakamura grabs a chair and cracks it across Ricochet’s spine & the ref calls for the bell.
Winner By DQ: Ricochet
After the match Nakamura hits Ricochet with the chair again and gets his head between it. He looks for Kinshasa but Seth Rollins runs down to the ring and attacks Nakamura. He then goes flying over the top rope and levels several officials on the outside. Nakamura then further beats down Rollins.
Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champion Mr Money In The Bank Damian Priest calls for all to rise for Judgment Day and NXT North American Champion Dominik Mysterio looks to speak. Mysterio gets cut off by boos but continues to speak anyways and brags about Rhea Ripley holding onto the Women’s World Title and Priest & Finn Balor becoming the new Undisputed Tag Team Champions. Balor congratulates Mysterio on 1 year in Judgment Day and thanks Ripley for being the voice of reason. Balor then tells Priest that despite their ups and downs they managed to make it to the top and gives a shout out to both JD McDonagh for having his back for the past 20 years and himself for becoming Grand Slam Finn. Ripley says she gave Priest & Balor an ultimatum last week but they managed to rise to the occasion. She says one thing has been aggravating her and that’s the fact that the focus hasn’t been on them and their accomplishments. She expresses her frustrations with Jey Uso taking the attention away from them as the newest member of Raw then says as far as she’s concerned The Bloodline has fallen as they have risen.
McDonagh then makes his way down to the ring with a covered item in hand and Priest tells him to make his reason for coming out good. McDonagh says it is good and they owe him one for what he did at Payback to help them out. He says he’s out there because of Ripley saying changes are needed in the Judgment Day and tells Priest that his briefcase has to go. He says he doesn’t need it anymore then unveils the item holding he’s holding in his hand a custom purple Money In The Bank briefcase just for him. He hands it over to Priest & Priest holds it up.
Sami Zayn’s music hits and he appears & says even though Kevin Owens isn’t here tonight they didn’t seriously think that him & Owens would let their loss slide. He says when he looks in the ring he doesn’t see 5 champions but rather 5 championship stealing turds. He says a special beating is owed to Mysterio for being the deciding factor at Payback then challenges him to a match. McDonagh intervenes and says Mysterio won’t be fighting anyone tonight. He says Mysterio wasn’t the only one who interfered and challenges Zayn to a match between them. Zayn accepts.
We go backstage to an exchange between Women’s Tag Team Champion Chelsea Green & Raquel Rodriguez.
Shayna Baszler vs. Zoey Stark
Match starts off with a lock up then Shayna Baszler lands a shoulder tackle but Zoey Stark fires back with a dropkick. Baszler then stomps on Stark’s arm and whips her into the corner then looks to lock in the Kirifuda Clutch.
Stark escapes and lands a kick that sends Baszler crashing out of the ring then she follows her out there and gets caught in the Kirifuda Clutch once again but Stark escapes and goes flying over the top to level Baszler as we go to a break.
After the break Stark delivers a German suplex to Baszler then charges at her in the corner but Baszler sends her onto the apron. Stark lands a kick then follows it up with a dropkick off the top rope.
Baszler then lands a knee on Stark’s face but Stark fires back with a thrust kick. Baszler gets Stark up on her shoulders but Stark escapes and looks for Z360 but Baszler weasels her way out of the maneuver and ends up on the outside.
Stark lands a splash off the apron and gets Baszler back inside then looks to go flying back in but Baszler catches her with the Kirifuda Clutch and while Stark tries to fight it she can’t hang on and fades.
Winner: Shayna Baszler
After the match Baszler & Stark fist bump as a show of respect for one another.
We then head backstage to Judgement Day where Finn Balor suggests making McDonagh a member of the group. Damian Priest says he still thinks he needs to prove himself and Balor tells him they might not be Undisputed Tag Team Champions if not for McDonagh. He asks Mysterio what he thinks and Mysterio tells him he’s cool with whatever. Ripley is asked for her opinion and she tells him that she wants to wait and see how he does against Sami Zayn later tonight. She tells him to go check on McDonagh & Balor invites Priest to tag along. Mysterio looks to join them but Rhea Ripley stops him and tells him that she needs him to make sure everything with McDonagh goes smoothly.
Women’s Tag Team Champion Chelsea Green vs. Raquel Rodriguez
Chelsea Green tries running away but Raquel Rodriguez pulls her back in the ring and cinches in a waist lock before executing a mat return then Green rains down right hands on Rodriguez’s spine but Rodriguez fires back with a boot and a fallaway slam.
Green ascends to the top rope and hits a crossbody but Rodriguez catches her and gets her up on her shoulders. Green escapes and delivers a strike but an angered Rodriguez catches her with a clothesline follow by Texana Bomb for the win.
Winner: Raquel Rodriguez
After the match, Rodriguez grabs a mic and says she spoke with Adam Pearce about what happened during her Women’s World Title match with Rhea Ripley at Payback & says Pearce granted her a rematch for the Women’s World Title next week with Dominik Mysterio banned from ringside.
After the break we see an irate Drew McIntyre looking for Kofi Kingston. Matt Riddle sees him and tells him to calm down but McIntyre gets worked up. Kingston then walks in and apologizes for what happened earlier tonight. Riddle says it’s cool but McIntyre isn’t as forgiving and tells Kingston he’s keeping his eyes open in case any more “accidents” happen.
The Miz welcomes fans to Miz TV then says he did not lose at Payback because he was robbed. He then introduces his guest, John Cena.
Cena’s music hits but the real Cena doesn’t appear. Miz then welcomes an invisible Cena into the ring and invites him to take a seat. He chews him out for his job as referee then says something feels weird. He asks fans if they can see Cena then says he thinks he knows what’s going on. He says he’s been able to see through John Cena for the past 18 years then translates for “Cena”.
Miz asks if LA Knight paid Cena if he offered him a job or if he screwed him over. He says Knight’s victory should be thrown out then tells “Cena” he should be thrown out of the ring. “Cena” refuses to do so and “shoves” Miz. Miz takes off his jacket and begins to fight “Cena”. He then hits him with a Skull Crushing Finale then makes it clear that there’s nothing invisible about what happened to him at Payback. He says Knight took the easy way out then challenges him to a 1 on 1 match with no stipulations. He says Knight will fade away because his future success is as realistic as “Cena” in the ring then adds that the fairytale of Knight will come crashing and burning down by him.
We then head backstage to Jey Uso & he runs into Adam Pearce. Pearce warns him that someone from Raw will be traded to Smackdown as per orders from upper management and there are some from Raw who are bound to be angry. Tommaso Ciampa then approaches Pearce and asks to talk. Pearce invites him into his office to finish up their talk.
Sami Zayn vs. JD McDonagh
JD McDonagh slides out of the ring then he ends up back inside and Sami Zayn plants him then delivers a series of strikes and whips him into the corner but McDonagh clocks Zayn from behind and fires off right hands then fires off chops but Zayn lands several of his own before sending McDonagh crashing to the outside then he follows him out there and gets him back into the ring.
McDonagh drags him back out and sends him crashing into the apron spine and face first then sends him crashing into the announce table face first repeatedly before sending him colliding with the ring post as we go to a break.
After the break Zayn fires off right hands on McDonagh’s head then he levels him with a clothesline then rains down more right hands in the corner then follows it up with a chop and a massive back body drop then delivers a Michinoku Driver and sits him on the top rope.
McDonagh fights him off before Zayn lands an exploder and sets up for the Helluva Kick but Dominik Mysterio pulls McDonagh out of the ring while the referee is distracted and Zayn wastes no time clocking him.
He fires off right hands on Mysterio then does the same to McDonagh and gets him back in the ring. Mysterio hops up on the apron but Zayn levels him & this allows McDonagh to roll up Zayn for the win.
Winner: JD McDonagh
After the match Zayn continues to beat down Mysterio & as Mysterio tries escaping but Zayn prevents him from doing so and delivers an exploder then sets up for a Helluva Kick but McDonagh pulls him out of the ring and sends him into the ring post. McDonagh tells Mysterio to leave and he does just that. McDonagh then gets caught with an exploder and a Helluva Kick.
After the break we head backstage to Judgment Day celebrating McDonagh’s win. They look to head out but before they can Dominik Mysterio approaches Jey Uso and says he knows what he’s going through given that they both have Hall Of Fame fathers. He says from a man who didn’t have a family to the man who now has the tightest family he gets it. He says Jey has no family and no one likes him but Rhea Ripley & Judgment Day changed that. He says all of them are equals and offers him a spot in the group. He tells him to think it over and thanks him for hearing him out.
Intercontienetal Title Match
Gunther (c) vs. Chad Gable
Match starts off with a lock up then Gunther chucks Gable across the ring before they go back & forth exchanging submission holds. Gable lands a chop and Gunther looks for one of his own but Gable slides out of the ring to avoid it. Gunther looks to chase him back inside the ring but Gable catches him with a pair of dropkicks as we go to a break.
After the break Gable delivers a dragon screw to Gunther on the apron using the rope for some extra momentum then delivers a chop block before Gunther fires back with a boot to his face then follows it up with a chop and delivers an elbow to his nose but Gable fires back with a couple of chops.
Gunther lands one of his own that levels Gable then delivers a 2nd one but Gable doesn’t stay down and gets fired up then he delivers several chops of his own to Gunther but Gunther sends him tumbling to the outside as we go to a 2nd break.
After the 2nd break Gable looks to cinch in an Ankle Lock but Gunther blocks it and they go tumbling out of the ring. Gable delivers a German suplex to Gunther then tosses him back inside the ring.
Gunther catches him with a powerbomb before Gable delivers a superplex to him and ascends to the top rope & connects with a diving headbutt before locking in an Ankle Lock.
Gunther fights him off and Gable looks for Chaos Theory but Gunther escapes. Gable then delivers a back suplex and a German suplex then goes for a pin but Gunther manages to kick out and Gable looks for a moonsault off the top rope but Gunther avoids it and Gable cinches in an Ankle Lock once more.
Gunther fights him off and locks in a Sleeper but Gable makes it back up to his feet and pins Gunther but he kicks out and delivers a suplex then follows it up with a powerbomb and a clothesline for the win.
Winner & Still Intercontienetal Champion: Gunther (STILL CHAMPION!!!!) (Recommend)
Next Week’s Raw
Women’s World Title Match
Rhea Ripley (c) vs. Raquel Rodriguez
