Raw Review 01/16/2017

Tonight on Monday Night Raw we see the return of The Beast Brock Lesnar. This is Lesnar’s first appearance since losing to Goldberg at Survivor Series. What will he have in store for the WWE Universe? Plus after winning The United States Championship last week Chris Jericho and Kevin Owens stand at the top of Raw with two titles now. With both the Universal and U.S. titles what will these best friends do next? Also after losing last week to Charlotte and Nia Jax will Bayley and Sasha Banks be able to get some retribution? We have seen a mean streak in Neville since his return and as he aims to claim his crown at the Royal Rumble what will The King of the Cruiserweights do to gain more of an edge? Most importantly last week we heard The Undertaker will be in the Royal Rumble, with the match taking shape who will be next on the list of entrants? This is a fun time of year in the WWE and anything can happen on Monday Night Raw!

Raw is live tonight from the Verizon Arena in North Little Rock, Arkansas.

Raw kicks off with us being welcomed to the show by Michael Cole, Corey Graves & Byron Saxton.

In Ring Segment: Roman Reigns
Kicking off the show is the former United States Champion Roman Reigns. Roman says he can’t complain about losing a fight because he was outnumbered. He says that Owens will be complaining after the Royal Rumble. Roman says that right now no one can beat him one on one right now. He says he will go down the road and main event WrestleMania for the third time. He is then interrupted by Paul Heyman.
Heyman says he is the calm before the storm. He says The Beast is here tonight. Heyman says Goldberg is not here after the crowd chants his name. Heyman says the Royal Rumble goes eat sleep elimination repeat. Roman then steps to Heyman and says Brock isn’t here with you. Out comes JeriKO.
Owens says that he finds it funny about Heyman and Reigns making WrestleMania plans when him and Chris hold both titles. Jericho says they are the ones with the date with destiny. Jericho says Owens will be Roman and he will win the Rumble. He says it will be him and Owens at Mania and they will remain with their titles no matter what. He says everyone better watch it. Owens says he stands here tonight as the longest reigning Universal Champion. He says no matter who he faces he will remain champion. Out comes Seth Rollins.
Rollins says you can not have the conversation of the main event of WrestleMania without Seth Rollins. He says there is no better way to get back on the map then by winning the Royal Rumble. He says anything can happen. Out comes Braun Strowman.
Braun sizes up Braun and out comes Brock Lesnar. Sami Zayn comes from behind and jumps on Strowman. Reigns hits a Superman punch on Strowman and then a running knee from Rollins. Lesnar then comes in and cleans house. Strowman backs down from Lesnar. Reigns hits Brock with a Superman Punch. As Roman is distracted The Beast gets back up and hits a F5 on Roman.
My Opinion:
A good way to kick off the show. It as very interesting seeing some of these matchups. I can’t wait to see Lesnar and Strowman in the ring together so hopefully it happens. It was an also good for Roman to show he is The Big Dog. He needs that momentum in order to capitalize and win The Universal Championship. I wish Seth would get more love. I think Seth is the guy and I don’t like seeing him as the second option. It definitely was a good show starter though, it was fats interesting and good action.

Match 1: Rusev & Jinder Mahal vs Enzo & Big Cass
Enzo and Mahal start off. Enzo starts with rights and left but is knocked down. Mahal throws Enzo into the corner but Enzo stops him with a boot. Enzo tags in Cass. They hit a double team and Cass goes to take down Rusev. He hits some rights and lefts and big knee shots to Rusev before sending Mahal over the ropes as we go to break.
As we return Enzo and Cass are double teaming Mahal. Mahal is able to get the tag and Rusev takes it to Enzo. Rusev slams Enzo and lands a running elbow. Jinder gets the tag and hits a big knee. He lands another and puts pressure on Enzo’s neck. Rusev comes back in and locks in a bear hug on Enzo. Enzo lands a boot to Rusev and hits a tornado ddt. Enzo hits the tag and Rusev does as well. Cass hits a couple of shoulder tackles and a fall away slam. He hits a splash in the corner and then capitalizes with the Empire Elbow. He goes for the cover but Rusev breaks it up. Mahal tries to steal one but Cass kicks out. Cass hits a big boot and tags Enzo. the duo hits the Ba Da Boom Shakalaka for the win.
Winners: Enzo & Big Cass
My Opinion:
It was good to see Enzo back in the ring. He and Cass looked good tonight. They need to get back to this and work for it and hopefully eventually they are taken more seriously and can get in the title mix. Right now it feels like they are a tag team but are not considered as challengers. They are in a rivalry with Rusev and it is almost like they use the duo as singles competitors. It’s like it is two in one. The rivalry thing was good at first but it getting old and it seems like it doesn’t matter. It feels these matches happen just to keep them on tv. Rusev to me is way better than this and same for Big Cass. I just don’t get why they make them do meaningless things and waste their talent.

Match 2: Ariya Daivari vs Lince Dorado
Daviari backs Dorado into the corner. Dorado lands a shot kick and then a crossbody. Daivari gets back in control and stomps on Dorado in the corner. Dorado takes down daivari and lands some slaps. He lands a springboard stunner but it is not enough for the win. Dorado hits a dropkick from the top rope and then misses a crossbody. Daivari hits a monster clothesline and goes to a Cobra Clutch. Dorado taps out to the move.
Winner: Ariya Daivari
My Opinion:
A quick but good match. I like Daivari and his hard-nosed attitude. I think he does great thing and I like that he uses moves like the Cobra Clutch. Dorado is good as a wrestler but he is just another guy. I know they are trying to hype up 205 Live but this was so quick and it just feels like a lure. The cruiserweights just get stepped over and i don’t know how long the division will last. I guess time will tell but they have had WWE without the division before and it seems it could head that way if something doesn’t change.

Match 3: Cesaro & Sheamus vs The Club (Luke Gallows & Karl Anderson): Raw Tag Team Championship Match
Cesaro locks up with Anderson. Anderson lands a hard shot but Cesaro gets a headlock reversal. Cesaro is able to catch Anderson in mid-air and hit a backbreaker. Sheamus comes in and takes it to Anderson. Cesaro comes in and a double stomp is hit on Anderson. Anderson gets cesaro stunned and backs him into the corner. Gallows gets the tag and drives an elbow down on Cesaro. Gallows hits shots to Cesaro’s midsection. Anderson gets the tag hits a snapmare and then a knee to Cesaro’s nose. Cesaro tries to fight off anderson but it does no good. Anderson gets the tag and Gallow’s stomps on Cesaro. Cesaro hits the tag and takes it to Gallows. Hitting him with a shoulder to the gut and a flying clothesline. He connects with the 10 beats of the bodhran. Anderson tries to interrupt but Cesaro takes him out. Anderson breaks away and hits Sheamus. The Club has regained control as we head to break.
Gallows slams Sheamus into the corner and Anderson comes in. The Club double teams Sheamus but it doesn’t get them the win on the pin attempt. Gallows comes back in and takes out Cesao. Sheamus gets to Gallows in the process. Cesaro and Anderson get the tags. Cesaro gets the uppercut train going and follows with a beautiful dropkick. Cesaro takes down Anderson and hits a 619. Cesaro goes to the top and takes out Gallows. He heads back to the ring and hits two uppercuts on Anderson. Cesaro goes swinging with Anderson. He tries to lock in the sharpshooter but Gallows comes in and hits a big boot. Anderson gets a two count. Anderson hits a couple uppercuts of his own but Cesaro fires back. Cesaro goes after Gallows and Anderson is able to hit a spinebuster. Chaos breaks out and Sheamus hits the ref. Sheamus is knocked out of the ring and The Club hits The Magic Killer on Cesaro. Anderson gets the three count but they are not the champions. The ref says that Cesaro and Sheamus are disqualified and so the titles will not change hands. The Club then hits The Magic Killer on Sheamus.
Winners: The Club (Luke Gallows & Karl Anderson): Via DQ The titles do not change hands.
My Opinion:
The crowd really loved this match and was into it. I agree with them. These teams are hard-hitting and really work well together. It was back and forth and I liked that. The ending I thought was good. The Club without a doubt will win the titles but I don’t think a random Raw in January should be the place. This keeps them in the hunt and makes for a good storyline going forward. I think The Club should win it at a big time show. Maybe even WrestleMania although I think they would have to do some good work to keep building the story up until then.

Backstage Segment
Sami is in the locker room with Seth and Roman. Sami says Braun is the one who needs to focus on. He gives Seth and Roman ideas on what to do in the match. Seth says they have been here before and they got this. Sami tries to do The Shield fist bump but is rejected.

Tony Nese vs Rich Swann
Before the match Neville comes through the crowd and attacks Swann. He stomps on Swann and officials try to back him off. He goes back to stomping on Swann. Swann fights back with rights and lefts. He stomps on Neville. Swann is then attacked by Tony Nese. Neville backs off Nese and tells him to get out of here. Nese jumps on Swann again. Nese is removed from the ring and Neville kicks Swann in the face.
My Opinion:
The match never took place but Neville made a statement. The cruiserweights need things like this. It isn’t about how many matches they can shove down our throats every Monday it is about impact. That makes one. It shows these two want to go at it and gives you some excitement heading into their match at the Royal Rumble.

Backstage Segment:
Neville is asked why he attacked Swann when he has his match for the Royal Rumble. He says everyone’s a hypocrite and it is deserved for what happened last week. Neville says Swann is too proud to admit defeat. He says he will break Swann at the Royal Rumble and Swann will hand over his title to The King of the Cruiserweights.

In Ring Segment: The New Day
Xavier says that soon everyone will witness the most stacked Royal Rumble anyone has ever seen. Kofi then lists off some of the participants and then says most importantly you have The New Day. Kofi says it is every man for himself. Big E says if one wins the Royal Rumble they all win the Royal Rumble and they will go on to be The Universal Champion. Titus o’Neil interrupts.
Titus says he doesn’t want to be in The New Day and wants to replace them. He asked them to hook him up with a spot in The Rumble. They decline and Titus says he will take it. Kofi says if Titus knew when to call a hutl he would still be playing football. Big E says that when he beats Titus can have no more contact.
My Opinion:
I just find all of this pointless. No one really cares about Titus wanting to join The New Day. If they want to use Titus then do it in a way he can use his talent and not waste it. The same goes for The New Day. The New Day said everything you would expect. In this spot instead of using this to kill time do something creative. They have a creative team for a reason. This isn’t creative. Anyone could come up with this. You have the Royal Rumble in two weeks so do something to promote it and get us excited. This isn’t the hype for Rumble that they need to do.

Match 4: Big E vs Titus O’Neil: Big E’s Rumble spot on the line
Big E is getting hit in the corner but is able to regain control. Big E gets an abdominal stretch locked in and then hits a back elbow. Titus is sent to the outside and Big E meets him out there. Titus is able to hit a big boot back in the ring. Titus hammers away on Big E. Titus slams down Big E but Big E is able to kick out on the cover. Titus scoops up Big E again and hits a powerslam. He ten hits a big leg drop. Big E fights back and takes it to Titus. He is able to knock him down and hit a big splash. He then hits the Big Ending for the win.
Winner: Big E
My Opinion:
Titus displayed raw power in this match. He is very impressive with that. Big E did all his normal stuff and it just was what it was. This again seems for time reasons. When Raw gets good will be when there is something really creative going all the time. That is what made the Attitude Era so special. Everything mattered and everything felt important. As fans now a days you just know. There is just no special magic here and it is disappointing.

In Ring Segment: Charlotte & Bayley
She says she didn’t become the ppv queen or the champion over night. She says that she out worked and studied every opponent inside and out. She says that Bayley is average and just like everyone else an average fan. She then shows pictures of Bayley as a fan. Charlotte says that Bayley is also a poet and shows old poems that she wrote. She says while Bayley was doing this she was training. Charlotte says the best thing she found was an essay Bayley wrote in high school. She then shows a video of Bayley reading it. Charlotte then pulls out a copy of the essay and reads it. Charlotte says she hopes Bayley got an f because it is a pile of empty dreams. Charlotte says Bayley will never and out comes Bayley.
Bayley runs down to the ring and Charlotte retreats. Bayley asks what Charlotte is doing. Charlotte says are you ashamed because this is who you are. Bayley asks if this is her strategy. Bayley says she is not ashamed. Bayley says that she didn’t have a dad that could open doors but had a dad who took her to every show. Charlotte says that’s touching. Bayley says roses are red violets are blue at Royal Rumble I will defeat you. Hayley then recites two more poems for Charlotte.
My Opinion:
I love this. It was personal and really helped Bayley. It made people sympathetic for her and made how important this match is for her that much more real. I loved that Charlotte retreated because it gives the feeling that she is scared of Bayley. Charlotte is such a good heel and it shined tonight. She crushed it out there and this is building into a special rivalry. I don’t think Bayley will win at the Rumble but I believe it will continue to grow and at WrestleMania she will stand tall with the title.

Backstage Segment:
Strowman asks what JeriKO wants. Jericho says there is no way they will be beat. They say that they will be unbeatable. Owens says that Strowman should beat up Roman and put him out of actions for two weeks. Jericho then tells Strowman to beat Rollins. Strowman says he does what he wants how he wants and when he wants. He then says at the Royal Rumble he will eliminate everyone. He says that tonight he will make them scream mercy.

Match 5: Cedric Alexander vs Brian Kendrick
The two lock up and Kendrick is backed into the corner. Kendrick sends cedric into the second turnbuckle but Cedric fights back. Cedric takes out Kendrick with a moonsault but back in the ring Kendrick takes it to Cedric. Cedric breaks the full nelson and flips Kendrick. Kendrick hits a back elbow. But Cedric gets a boot up to counter. Cedric goes to fly and takes Kendrick down. He tries to slam Kendrick but Kendrick gets the Captain’s Hook locked in.Cedric goes to the outside to see alicia Fox and Kendrick takes advantage. Kendrick tries to get the Captain’s Hook but cedric hits the lumbar check for the win.
Winner: Cedric Alexander
My Opinion:
A good match between these two. Kendrick is fading somewhere in the background of the division so it was nice to see him. I think Cedric is exceptional and he should be in the mix for the title and not in love storylines. Nonetheless they are both impressive but Raw at this time gets stake and I think this is where they really need to improve. I just want the specialty of Raw back and if it is with the cruiserweights then fine but make them special. Give us something to sink our teeth into.

Backstage Segment:
Nia says that Sasha is a wannabe and that people will see the truth. Jax says that Sasha’s hype is over and that she broke The Boss. She says everyone is going crazy over the right women.

Backstage Segment:
Alicia is asked about her relationship with Cedric and she freaks out and yells that she does not want to talk about it.

Hall Of Fame Inductee Announcement:
The first Inductee is The olympic Gold Medalist Kurt Angle

Match 6: Kevin Owens & Chris Jericho & Braun Strowman vs Seth Rollins & Roman Reigns & Sami Zayn
Teams go after each other before the bell even rings. Reigns and strowman are left in the ring but Strowman throws him out of the ring. We go to break as we await the match to get underway.
Braun has Reigns in the corner as we return. Jericho gets the tag and keeps the official occupied while Owens gets cheap shots. Jericho slaps Reigns but Roman lands a nice right. Zayn gets the tag and lands massive chops to Jericho. He lands a couple of knees and a moonsault but Jericho kicks out on the tag. Owens gets the tag and takes it to Zayn. Owens lands a nice chop and showboats. He locks in a chinlock on Zayn. Zayn fights out with a series of punches but Owens hits an enziguri. Jericho gets the tag and lands a nice back body drop on Zayn. Jericho goes to the top and jumps but is met with a fist by Zayn. Zayn goes for the tag but Owens stops him as Owens comes in off the tag. Zayn is able to get his knees up and stop Owens. Reigns gets the tag and comes in hot with right hands. He follows up with a flying clothesline. Reigns takes out Jericho and lands a big boot to Ownes. Roman looks for the Superman Punch but is held by Jericho. Strowman takes out seth on the outside. Reigns gets caught on the Superman Punch and Owens hits the superkick. Reigns is able to kick out on the pin attempt.
Reigns is being beat down as we return. Owens locks in a chinlock on Reigns. Reigns is able to get back to his feet and land right hands to Owens gut. He hits a Samoan Drop and looks for a tag. Rollins gets the tag and so does jericho. He hits a slingblade on him and then a forearm to Jericho. He hits the blockbuster and Owens tries to interfere. Zayn stops him and sends him to the outside. Zayn takes him out. Rollins goes for a cover on Jericho but he is able to kick out. Rollins looks for Pedigree but jericho counters twice. Strowman comes in but Zayn hits Strowman from behind. Rollins comes back in and tries for a pedigree but is back body dropped. Roman hits strowman and he is down to one knee. Zayn goes up top and hits a crossbody on Strowman. Zayn looks for the Helluva kick but strowman hits a running powerslam and gets the three count.
*** After the match strowman throws Zayn out of the ring. He picks him up and carries him up the stage. Rollins hits Strowman with a chair and Reigns hits a spear. Reigns and Rollins are then attacked by Jericho and Owens. Rollins comes back and takes out Owens. He looks to Pedigree Jericho but it is reversed. Owens gets up and takes out Rollins with a chair. Owens puts Reigns through the announcer’s table.
Winners: Kevin Owens & Chris Jericho & Braun Strowman
My Opinion:
A good main event considering how the rest of Raw went. This match was what it was. The same feuds and the same moves. There wasn’t much special about it but the crowd did seem into it. For as long as they have kept these rivalries going at some point there has to be some change. There has to be some shake up. I can’t wait for the Royal Rumble because I think we will finally see that. We will see a safe play heading into the event but the fun time is almost upon us when we will be in WrestleMania season.

Final Thoughts:
Not the best Raw but it was okay. The kick off to Raw was awesome. Seeing all of them in the ring was special and “The Beast” Brock Lesnar laying waste to everyone was nice to see again. I like that brock didn’t talk this week because he shouldn’t have anything to say. He needs to go out there and do what he did and that is beat people. I think they are missing with the divas. Instead of three cruiserweight matches or The New Day segment they should have had a women’s match. I think it says a lot about what they think of the division. I think there was too much waste of time and not enough creativity tonight. They had the ingredients to making it a special night and dropped the ball. Lesnar was used in the opening minutes and that was it. There was no Triple H and they announced Kurt Angle into the Hall Of Fame but he didn’t appear at all. The main event didn’t end with anything special. It just leaves you saying “yup that’s Raw” and that’s what I’m use to. It is disappointing because it could have been more special. Raw to me just doesn’t have the same vibes as its counter parts. It’s just very uneventful. It needs that unpredictability again. I also get that they want viewers so they promote people being there and I get that but I do miss the element of surprise. I mean imagine how much louder that place would have been if Brock Lesnar just showed up and no one knew. I feel there are things they really need to evaluate.
Overall Rating: 6.5/10