WWE RAW is live tonight from Amway Center in Orlando. Here’s the latest from the WWE to get you ready for the show:
The big happenings booked for tonight include appearances on RAW from Universal Champion Brock Lesnar and challenger Braun Strowman, who is returning from elbow surgery, the RAW return of John Cena as well as a RAW Tag Team Championship lumberjack match between the champs Bobby Roode and Chad Gable and The Revival. Also, Alexa Bliss will become the first female Superstar to host a talk show “Moment of Bliss” starring special guest RAW Women’s Champion “Rowdy” Ronda Rousey.
RAW Opening Segment
After an in memory to “Mean” Gene Okerlund: 1942-2019 visual, we go backstage to see Seth Rollins and Bobby Lashley brawling. RAW superstars are trying to break them up, but to no avail. They fight through Gorilla Position and out onto the stage. Rollins knocks Lashley off the stage and dives onto him. They continue to brawl until Lashley throws Rollins onto the stage. The fight is finally broken up, and they’re brought to the back.
Drew McIntyre’s music hits, and he comes out to the stage. McIntyre has been waiting for this moment for years. Unlike everyone else, he doesn’t care who Cena shares his bed with or his haircut. What McIntyre cares about is Cena’s 16 World Championships. McIntyre cares that Cena has main evented multiple WrestleManias. McIntyre cares that Vince McMahon called Cena the greatest of all time. McIntyre agrees with McMahon in that Cena is the greatest of all time. Cena asks what his point is. McIntyre says he has a reputation for taking out the greats. Maybe Cena can check out The Shield. Oh wait, McIntyre dismantled them. Maybe Cena could check with Dolph Ziggler. No, McIntyre destroyed him in a Cage Match last week. Maybe Cena could call Kurt Angle and ask how destructive McIntyre is. McIntyre submitted Angle with his own ankle lock. McIntyre says he is the most dangerous man in WWE. McIntyre is coming for Cena now.
John Cena, Seth Rollins & Finn Balor vs. Drew McIntyre, Bobby Lashley & Intercontinental Champ Dean Ambrose
We join the match in progress. Cena leapfrogs Lashley and clotheslines him before tagging in Finn Balor. Balor comes off the top rope with a sledge to the arm. Lashley quickly takes him down and hits a scoop slam. Dean Ambrose tags in, but Balor quickly takes him down with a pair of arm drags. Ambrose has a whip reversed, but he tries for a sunset flip. Balor rolls through and dropkicks him in the face. Ambrose quickly powers him to the corner, and McIntyre tags in. McIntyre punches Balor down and applies a front facelock. McIntyre then hits an impressive vertical suplex for a two count. McIntyre talks a little trash, so Balor fights back. McIntyre quickly floors him and stomps away at him before taunting Cena. Lashley tags in and punches Balor in the ribs. Lashley applies a chin lock, but Balor fights up. Lashley quickly elbows him in the neck to take him down. Balor quickly fights out of a move, but Lashley stops him from making a tag. Lashley sends Balor to the corner, but Balor boots him back and fights off the heel side. Lashley quickly stops the tag and powers him to the corner for some shoulder thrusts. Ambrose tags in and wildly stomps away at Balor. Balor boots Ambrose back and hits an overhead kick.
We come back from the break to see Cena elbow Lashley and hit Ambrose with a dropkick. McIntyre tags in, and he punches away at Cena. Cena fights back and hits the ropes, but McIntyre counters with a spinebuster and a jackknife pin for a two count. Lashley tags in and takes Cena down for a near fall. Lashley starts posing before blindsiding Rollins. Cena then floors Lashley with an AA. Both men are down. Ambrose manages to tag in, and he applies a sleeper hold to Cena. Ambrose takes him down and cinches in the hold. Cena soon fights up, but Ambrose knees him in the midsection to take him down. Ambrose drops an elbow, and Cena rolls out of the ring to recover. Ambrose follows him outside and sends him into the ring steps. And another commercial break.
We come back from the break to see Ambrose hit a snapmare on Cena and pick up a two count. Ambrose applies another sleeper hold, but Cena fights up. Ambrose is on his back, and Cena is walking to his corner. Ambrose quickly rakes the eyes and knocks Rollins off the apron. Ambrose and Cena then take one another out with a double clothesline.
Winners: John Cena, Seth Rollins & Finn Balor
Rollins Demands Shot at Ambrose Backstage
Triple H is shown on the titantron talking to Bayley and Sasha Banks. Rollins is irate that he wasn’t watching the match and storms backstage. Rollins finds him and slaps the coffee cup out of his hand. Rollins says he wants Dean Ambrose tonight. Triple H grants him the match, but it’s Falls Count Anywhere. Triple H welcomes Rollins back and walks off.
Backstage with Hulk Hogan
Hulk Hogan is walking backstage with a shirt that says “Mean Gene-O-Mania.” Hogan will celebrate the life of “Mean” Gene Okerlund, next. We go to commercial.
Back from the break and we get a quick video of wrestling stars reacting to the passing of WWE Hall of Famer “Mean” Gene Okerlund on Twitter. The video shows their tweets along with a photo of Gene working with them, including Vince McMahon, The Rock, Triple H, WWE Hall of Famer Steve Austin and others.
We go back to the ring and Mike Rome asks everyone to stand for a ten-bell salute to pay tribute to “Mean” Gene Okerlund.
Hulk Hogan Remembers “Mean” Gene Okerlund
The familiar “Real American” music hits as WWE Hall of Famer Hulk Hogan makes his way out to a pop. Rome does the introduction. Hogan is wearing the Gene t-shirt with his red & yellow feather boa. The Hulkster hits the ring and does his signature poses for the crowd.
The music stops and fans start chanting for Hogan. Hogan says he came out here wide open in character tonight because that’s exactly how “Mean” Gene would’ve wanted it. Hogan says Gene loved entertaining and he loved doing it for everyone in the WWE Universe. Hogan says Gene loved entertaining more than anything else. Hogan leads us to a video package of some of Gene’s greatest moments, and various Legends commenting on him.
When we return, the Lumberjacks at ringside are Heath Slater and Rhyno, The B-Team, The Ascension, and Lucha House Party.
RAW Tag Team Championship Lumberjack Match
Bobby Roode & Chad Gable vs. The Revival
On the Christmas Eve edition of RAW, The Ascension were beat in a Tag Team Championship match, but the legal man wasn’t pinned.
We come back from the break to see Gable take Wilder down with an arm drag. Roode tags in and hits a pair of clotheslines on Wilder. Dawson blind tags in while Roode hits Wilder with a back body drop. Roode hits Dawson with a belly-to-belly overhead suplex and slams Wilder. Roode wildly takes The Ascension out. Roode hits Dawson with a spinebuster for a near fall. Roode and Gable go for the neckbreaker/moonsault combo, but Dawson gets out. Gable hits a moonsault and lifts Dawson. They hit a German Suplex/Blockbuster combo, but Wilder (just barely) breaks it up. Gable hits a rolling German Suplex on Dawson, but Wilder tags in. Wilder comes off the top rope and splashes Gable for a near fall. Dawson tags in and rolls up Gable for a two count. Gable and Dawson trade pins until Roode rolls Gable over. Dawson’s foot is on the bottom rope, but the referee doesn’t see it. The referee counts the pin.
Winners: Bobby Roode & Chad Gable retain the RAW Tag belts
The Revival are furious and plead their case to the referee.
Brock Lesnar and Braun Strowman go face-to-face later tonight. We’ll also see Dean Ambrose defend his WWE Intercontinental Championship against Seth Rollins in a Falls Count Anywhere match. Coming up next, Baron Corbin takes on Elias. We go to commercial.
Lars Sullivan, Lacey Evans, Heavy Machinery, Nikki Cross, and EC3 are coming to the main roster soon.
Elias vs. Baron Corbin
Elias applies a waistlock, but Corbin powers him to the corner. Elias chops him back and hits a mule kick. Elias then clotheslines him out of the ring and hits a baseball slide. Elias goes to the top rope and dives off to the floor onto Corbin! We take a commercial break.
We come back from the break to see Corbin knock Elias out of the ring and pose. Corbin drives Elias into the barricade and puts him in the ring. Elias fights out of the corner and whips him, but Corbin does his out and in clothesline for a near fall. Corbin tells the referee that he sucks. Corbin beats Elias down while the crowd chants, “You got fired.” Corbin comes off the top rope, but Elias knees him in the face.
Winner: Baron Corbin
Backstage with the Intercontinental Champ
Dean Ambrose is angrily pacing backstage. Ambrose asks what the world is coming to. Ambrose never liked 6-man tags. Ambrose is the only man he trusts. He’s the moral compass and the last line of defense against Seth Rollins. Ambrose says he isn’t having fun or enjoying himself. It hurts him to hurt Seth. Ambrose did what he had to do to bring back balance to the WWE. Ambrose won’t let Rollins get the Intercontinental Championship back. It ends tonight. Ambrose will burn Rollins down.
Brock Lesnar-Braun Strowman Universal Championship Promo
Braun Strowman makes his way to the ring. Strowman takes a microphone, but then gives it back and tears his shirt off. Paul Heyman and Brock Lesnar appear on the titantron. Heyman introduces himself and Brock Lesnar. A monster standing in the ring looking for a face-to-face confrontation… is that what this is? Heyman knows Strowman was brought up in his household as a monster, but he’ll give him an education. Heyman knows how much money they’ve spent to hype up Lesnar in the ring with his Royal Rumble victim. Heyman says they need to understand “Card Subject To Change.” That change is for Strowman’s benefit. If Lesnar came down to the ring to get those hands, he wouldn’t have a victim at the Royal Rumble. Strowman would be destroyed. No need to thank him or Lesnar. Lesnar smirks at the camera.
Jinder Mahal & Alicia Fox with The Singh Brothers vs. Apollo Crews & Ember Moon
Crews dominates Mahal for a bit before knocking him out of the ring and hitting a plancha. Alicia Fox tags in, so Ember Moon comes in automatically. Moon takes Fox out and hits an Eclipse for the quick win.
Winners: Apollo Crews & Ember Moon
Alexa Bliss will debut her new talk show after the commercial break.
“A Moment of Bliss”
We go to the stage for the premiere of “A Moment of Bliss” with Alexa Bliss. Bliss has her own set on the stage. She insults the people of Orlando and hypes her new talk show segment. Bliss snaps for coffee and a staffer brings her cup out. She leads us to a video showing the first year that her first guest had. The video shows highlights of RAW Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey’s first year in WWE.
Bliss introduces her first guest and out comes Ronda Rousey. Rousey takes her seat and Bliss offers her hand for a shake but Rousey no-sells it. Bliss asks Rousey to tell us about her first year. Rousey thanks Bliss and the chants for Becky Lynch start up. Rousey says this year has been extraordinary but as champion, she wants to look forward, not back. Rousey says she wants to be a champion we can be proud of and in order for her to do that, she needs to chase with a vengeance. She gives major praise to Sasha Banks, while taking shots at Charlotte Flair and Becky Lynch. Bliss thought Rousey was setting her up with the praise. We hear Nia Jax gagging on a mic somewhere.
RAW Women’s Championship No. 1 Contenders Match: Nia Jax vs. Sasha Banks