WWE: Monday Night RAW was LIVE from the Century Link Center in Omaha, NE on 9/4/17!
John Cena defeats Jason Jordan via pin fall with the Attitude Adjustment.
“Big Match” John strikes early in the broadcast against Kurt Angle’s “son” Jason Jordan. The crowd wasn’t hip to the match early on, but following a beautiful rolling northern lights suplex and plenty of high octane offense from Jordan, they warmed to it.
Jordan put up a valiant effort, but in the end, he loses to two marquee talents in two weeks, falling victim to Finn Balor last week and Cena this week. A great match that ultimately will probably lead to a heel turn from Jordan in short order.
After the match, Roman Reigns is out, and he and Cena continue their “war of words” from last week. Roman calls Cena several non-PG words yet again and Cena counters with statements of his own. Roman leaves, calling Cena a coward for refusing to strike him and that’s that. This feud is really heating up and developing with each week.
Sheamus and Cesaro defeat Rhyno and Heath Slater via pin fall in a non-title match after a Brogue Kick from Sheamus on Rhyno.
Tag Team Champions Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins were on commentary for this one and it was just a showcase for the champs. They were never really in peril for any of this and we continue to see how these two in-ring technicians work together as they look towards the rematch for the belts at No Mercy.
The end came when Rhyno turned around and met the big boot of Sheamus to put this one in the record books for the former champs.
The Hardy Boyz are backstage and we continue to see continued teasing for the “broken” transition as Matt Hardy hypes his brother’s IC title match against the Miz later in the evening. He says that if Dallas and Axel interfere, he’s there to even the odds.
The Miz defeats Jeff Hardy via pin fall to retain the IC Title after a Skull Crushing Finale.
Shenanigans on the outside lead to Dallas, Axel and Matt Hardy getting tossed from the ringside area. These two developed talents put on a quality match as expected. They teased Jeff winning the title with several near falls in between commercial breaks.
After Jeff nearly put this one away with a Twist of Fate, the resilient Miz countered into a Skull-Crushing Finale and that was all she wrote. This was a fine match and was something that the fans enjoyed, as it was something fresh after Jeff’s surprise victory in the battle royale last week.
Nia Jax approaches Raw GM Kurt Angle backstage about a title opportunity at No Mercy. Kurt Angle books something unique as he teams up Nia Jax and Emma against Sasha Banks and Alexa Bliss, the women’s champion, and if Jax and Emma get the victory, it’ll be a fatal four way match for the title at No Mercy. Very cool.
Enzo Amore/Gran Metalik/Cedrix Alexander defeat Drew Gulak/Tony Nese/Noam Dar via pinfall after Enzo Amore hits Jawdonezo on Gulak.
High impact offense showcases the talents from 205 in another enjoyable contest with the allotted time as Alexander and Metalik take to the air early and often. The two took to an aerial assault towards the end of the contest as they hit suicide dives to the outside to clear out everyone sans Gulak.
Enzo took the low road, poking Gulak in the eye and hitting his new finish, which is aptly named Jawdonezo, his version of Gail Kim’s Eat Dafeet, and it’s enough to score his team in a victory in the six man tag. The crowd really enjoys watching Enzo, and if he can hone his offense, he might be a legimate threat to Neville’s crown is he can cool his backstage heat in the process.
Alexa Bliss and Sasha Banks aren’t happy about having to team up later tonight and Banks says that she’s really going to enjoy watching Bliss tap out at No Mercy as she looks to regain her title.
Finn Balor takes to the ring to a massive reaction as he and Bray Wyatt continue their feud. Wyatt appears on the screen later in the segment saying that he’s going to enjoy being the hunter, while Finn is the one being hunted. Balor has words of his own and they’ll look to settle the score at the PPV.
Nia Jax and Emma defeat Alexa Bliss and Sasha Banks via pin fall after Emma steals a pin on Banks to make the women’s title match at No Mercy a Fatal Four Way.
I summed everything up in the headline. Jax was the dominant force in this match as expected and Bliss and Banks spent most of the match bickering. Jax worked Banks over pretty hard, hitting her with a massive leg-drop that seemed to seal the deal.
The problem for her was that Emma took the opportunity to tag herself in and she stole the pin fall. The unlikely team wins the match, but Jax isn’t pleased about how it happened. Nevertheless, #GiveEmmaAChance seems to be holding weight and she will be involved in a championship match at No Mercy and she’ll either eat the pin fall or shock the world.
After Jinder Mahal won the world title, anything is possible. Dare to believe!
Braun Strowman and The Big Show will main event the show in a reinforced ring being held down and contained within the confines of a steel cage! I’m eager to see that one. Strowman says he’s going to make an example out of the Big Show to send a message to Brock Lesnar as he looks to secure the Universal Title for himself.
The world tag team champions are backstage and they don’t seem to eager to “walk with Elias” as “The Drifter” plays a tune for them backstage. They aren’t entertained and they move on with the business of readying for Sheamus and Cesaro at No Mercy.
Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins defeat Gallows and Anderson via pin fall in a non-title match after Rollins rolls up Anderson for the victory.
As expected, these two teams fired on all cylinders. This might have been the best match of the evening as we got a showcase from all four men involved. Ambrose was wacky and entertaining, and Rollins was able to execute a top rope hurricana that was something to see.
Unfortunately for the “good brothers”, the “nerds” that are the world tag team champions weren’t to be stopped this evening and Rollins was able to rollup Anderson at the end of the match for the victory.
The champs keep their momentum heading towards their rematch with Cesaro and Sheamus at No Mercy.
“The King Of The Cruiserweights” Neville interrupts a post-match celebration with Enzo Amore, Gran Metalik, and Cedric Alexander backstage, being the excellent heel that he always is. He isn’t there to deliver bad news like Wade Barrett, my words, not his.
In fact, the champ brings glad tidings and golden opportunities, all three men, along with Brian Kendrick and Tony Nese will engage one another in a fatal five way match tomorrow night on 205 Live, the winner going on to face Neville at No Mercy for the title. It sours the mood, but Enzo seems to be the favorite, but keep your eyes on Metalik or Cedric, either might surprise you in that one.
The Big Show readies for the main event as the ring in reinforced as they made reference too earlier. He talks about being a twenty year veteran and looks to put a roadblock in front of Braun Strowman’s ride to No Mercy. The main event is up next.
Braun Strowman defeats Big Show via pin fall inside a Steel Cage after a running powerslam.
They really ran over on time tonight, but this was something special. We saw Show take to the air with a beautiful elbow drop off the top rope, something truly amazing to see at this stage of the veteran’s career.
Strowman executed a massive superplex later in the match and the two beat each other from pillar to post to steel. After the superplex, Strowman scooped up Big Show with ease and he nailed the powerslam to end this one. Strowman looked to leave, but not before sending the fans home happy. He scooped Show up once again and threw him through the cage like a lawn dart. The cage gave way and Show laid in a heap atop it as the crowd roared. The road to No Mercy continues next week!
