WWE: Monday Night RAW was LIVE from The Allstate Arena in Chicago, IL on 12/26/16!
A little late with the RAW posting this week because of the holidays and some Christmas get togethers, and as a result, it will be a very quick recap of the events of RAW!
Stephanie McMahon started off the show with a loud “CM Punk” chant combatting her attempts. She was savage with a brilliant quip about him losing to Mickey Gall in two minutes and change. I chuckled. Seth Rollins comes out and calls out Triple H again, but he wants Braun Strowman for what happened last week. The US Champ, Roman Reigns is out, he wants Strowman too, but it’s ultimately decided that Strowman and Rollins will do business and Roman will defend the US Title against an opponent of Steph’s choosing.
Sheamus and Cesaro defeat The New Day via pinfall to retain the tag titles after a Brogue Kick to Woods by Sheamus. The new champs were able to outwit the New Day yet again as Woods missed a blind tag by Sheamus which led to his demise.
Braun Strowman is backstage and he runs into Chris Jericho and the Universal Champion, Kevin Owens. KO tells Braun that after he beats Roman, he’ll be next in line for a title shot. Strowman is told to focus on Rollins and Reigns tonight. They try to bait Strowman by talking about what Reigns and Rollins said, but he instead gets in Jericho’s face and then walks off.
There is a backstage segment with the Golden Truth talking about Christmas movies. Bayley comes in to pitch those “Bayley Bears” again, this one is dressed up like Dusty Rhodes. Ultimately, Gallows and Anderson end the segment by destroying the bear. They call them all nerds. I chuckled.
Nia Jax defeats Scarlet via pinfall with a Samoan Drop in a squash match.
KO and Chris Jericho are backstage with Stephanie McMahon and they have issue with Roman Reigns getting another title match against KO. They aren’t the only ones to be honest. Jericho is frantic about being suspended in the shark cage and he refers to himself as a “sexy pinata”. Amazing. Steph informs them it will be Roman Reigns defending the US strap against KO later. KO is pleased, but Jericho doesn’t seem all that happy that he wasn’t chosen for the title opportunity.
After a break, Bayley heads to the ring and she talks about getting a win over Charlotte last week. It’s her third win now as she lets us all know. The controversial ending is shown and it leads to a match being booked with Dana Brooke, who we haven’t seen in a minute, being chosen as the special referee and that match is next!
Charlotte defeats Bayley via pinfall with a rollup thanks to a fast count. Dana is purged from the ring midway through the match which leads to another official heading to the ring. Dana ultimately pulls the ref from the ring and Charlotte rolls up Bayley and puts her feet on the ropes which leads to a fast count and a victory for the women’s champion.
Stephanie McMahon stops an assault by Braun Strowman on some jobber backstage after a break. Braun says he wants Sami Zayn after he takes care of Seth Rollins and Stephanie sets up a Last Man Standing Match between Strowman and Zayn!
Neville defeats TJ Perkins via pinfall with a rollup and a handful of tights. Great match for the time given and after the match, Neville cuts a promo talking about people taking him seriously when he is beating people up. He talks about how he’ll beat Rich Swann tomorrow night on 205 Live. Austin Aries was on commentary again for the match and was masterful as always.
Enzo Amore and Big Cass head to the ring with Enzo in a wheelchair after the assault by Rusev and Jinder Mahal during that counseling session last week. Big Cass calls out Rusev and the former US Champion comes out with Jinder at his side. They attempt to double team Cass, but with a miraculous recovery, Enzo is out of the chair and Rusev is disposed of. The segment ends with Jinder Mahal eating a Bada-Boom Shaka Laka at ringside.
The Shining Stars against Darren Young and Bo Dallas is ruled a no contest after interference from Braun Strowman. The crowd is appreciative with a “Thank You Strowman” chant after he tosses the ring steps at the preliminary talent as we find out his match with Rollins is next.
Braun Strowman defeats Seth Rollins by DQ after interference by Sami Zayn. Strowman controlled the match early and it got going, only for Zayn to make his presence known. Zayn attacks Braun from behind, even posting him a few times. Braun recovers and gives chase as Zayn leaves the area. Chris Jericho heads out to give a weakened Rollins two codebreakers to keep their business going as they head to another commercial.
Gallows and Anderson defeat The Golden Truth via pinfall after a rollup on Goldust by Anderson. The veterans looked strong, but were outwitted by the heels and after a distraction from Gallows, Karl gets the pinfall and another win for The Club.
Rich Swann defeats Ariya Daivari via pinfall after a spinning hook kick. This was quicker than a cup of coffee and establish the champ’s dominance as he heads into a battle with the villain Neville tomorrow night on 205 Live. The crowd is warming to Swann, but they’ve got work to do with the Cruiserweight division to get it back on track.
Roman Reigns defeats Kevin Owens via pinfall to retain the US Title after a spear. The usual spots are seen from both men, and as expected, Rollins and Jericho both interfere and make their presence known. After KO disposes of Rollins at ringside, he heads back into the ring to eat a spear from Reigns and that leads to the pinfall and the three second tan for the Universal Champion. That’s all she wrote as it relates to Raw this week.