Orton's next target
- A Randy Orton video airs and he makes his way to the ring.
- He says he's always done exactly what he wanted to do and that's never going to change, but he's missing something. He wants to become WWE Champion again.
- Orton notes that Drew McIntyre was around ten years ago when Orton was on top, but he had his head so far up his ass, that Drew got himself fired.
- Randy Orton challenges Drew McIntyre to a WWE Championship match at Summerslam. He says that Drew will never see his RKO coming.
Shayna and Nia
- Nia Jax meets Orton on the ramp, and says she's in the same boat and wants to be WWE Raw Women's Champion.
- She says she got screwed out of the title the last time she faced Asuka. I think she got more screwed by not showing up on WWE TV after writing off Charlotte Flair.
- Shayna Baszler comes out and says nobody cares what she say, and the two brawl. Hey, cool! I'm down for this.
- It's different, and not a title match, so I like it. Then I realize they're burning through it on TV.
- Well, they don't burn through much of it. They brawl to a double countout. But they never do a first time at a PPV. Besides my point of bitching, this was good.
- Please make Shayna Baszler vs. Nia Jax the Peter Griffin vs. The Chicken angle I've always wanted. They fight everywhere.
Top Contender Match
Angel Garza & Andrade (w/ Zelina) defeated Cedric Alexander & Ricochet and Viking Raiders
6/10
- Street Profits do in-ring introductions.
- I like early on that all the teams are like "forget the rules." There are none besides legal men.
- Viking Raiders do a great assisted German Suplex.
- We come back from the break to see everyone going 110 MPH. The action is crazy here. The strikes are really crisp.
- Ivar does a somerault senton onto the pile.
- Wing Clipper on Cedric gets it done.
- This was way, way too short. Within the scope of the show, you have to see this, though.
THE GREATER GOOD
- Rollins asks if Murphy is there with him tonight, and Murphy confirms.
- Rollins calls out Dominick. The latter hesitates, but comes out.
- He gets jumped. What a dummy! Dom sells pretty well.
- Rollins says it's not his fault and Dom asked for it.
- Aleister Black tries to make the save, but he gets jumped, too. He has a cast on.
- Rollins tells Murphy to take care of this. Black has embarrassed him time and time again. Murphy takes out Black's eye on the stairs.
- Vince just REALLY wanted pirates and eye patches on WWE TV this year huh?
- Dom comes back with a kendo stick and wails away on the heels and they run off.
Bobby Lashley (w/ The Hurt Business) defeated Ali
6.25/10
- R-Truth says he has his eyes on "Mufasa" Ali.
- MVP brings Ali on the show, and they take shots at each other.
- MVP makes a proposal to Ali and says otherwise, he can be like Apollo Crews and sit on the couch.
- R-Truth tries to win the 24/7 Title, unsuccessfully.
- Lashley is dominating Ali. Very one sided.
- Tozawa's ninjas come out and Lashley FREAKING KILLS ONE on the ringpost with a manual F5 on the ringpost. We're gonna call it the BivensBuster, whether it was him or not.
- Ali fights back briefly, but gets sent into the ringpost. I haven't seen anyone since Bret Hart use a ring post better than Bobby Lashley.
- Lashley does his best elevated Flatliner ever, in large part due to Ali.
- There was a great sequence into the finish. Ali fights back with a Tornado DDT, but misses his finish and gets submitted with a Full Nelson.
WWE Raw Women's Championship
Can Win The Title By DQ Or Countout
Sasha Banks defeated Asuka (c) to become Raw Women's Champion
7/10
- Bayley is out with Sasha. Banks says Asuka is jealous of her and Bayley.
- Kairi Sane runs off Bayley.
- Banks does a Backstabber out of the ropes.
- Apparently Sasha Banks forgot that she can get counted out. Instead, she tries to get Asuka DQ'd, but the ref sees it.
- Asuka head kicks Sasha before the break. When we come back, Sasha is working over the leg.
- Banks does an incredible frog splash, but doesn't get the win.
- Outside the ring, Sasha drops the leg of Asuka across the desk to try to get a countout win.
- Banks Statement by Banks, into an Ankle Lock. Asuka is distracted by Bayley beating Kairi senseless backstage.
- Asuka goes out to help Kairi Sane, and gets counted out!!
- Another fuck finish, but another outstanding match.
- Bayley and Sasha are celebrating backstage.
- Asuka is emotional and tearful and livid.
Other Happenings
- We see a Regis Philbin tribute video.
Buddy Murphy defeated Humberto Carrillo
5.75/10
- Where the hell was Humberto earlier? No explanation, and that kind of already takes me out of this. No consistency.
- They knock the shit out of each other with stiff strikes.
- Carrillo has a really good missile dropkick.
- Murphy's gear is a choice. He looks like he's going on a snowboarding vacation.
- Murphy catches Humberto off the top rope with a knee and does Murphy's Law for the win.
- If this had consistent story, I'd have liked it a bunch more. Good match though.
WWE Championship
Extreme Rules
Drew McIntyre (c) defeated Dolph Ziggler
5.5/10
- Drew is on board with the Summerslam title match with Orton and cuts a promo on him.
- He tells Ziggler their match is Extreme Rules.
- Chairs, canes and plexiglass -- Ziggler gets beaten up until a ballshot.
- Drew comes back and ECW Gores Ziggler through a barricade before the break.
- Coming back, Ziggler does a nice FameAsser.
- Ziggler counters a Claymore with the Zig Zag.
- Claymore through a table gets the win.
- Ziggler has now lost seven WWE Title matches dating back to December 2016. He's lost ten straight world title matches in total, going back to 2013.
- RKO out of nowhere!
Rating Guide
10- Perfect, 9- MOTY Territory, 8- Excellent, 7- Great, 6- Good, 5- Average to above average, 4- Slightly below average, 3 or below: Poor
Each match starts at a 5 and slides up and down based on entertainment, execution, time, environment, reaction and stakes. The ratings are in no way an indication of a "star rating," which is a completely different system. A standard, non-offensive "TV match" lands at a 5. The gap between 5.75-6 is generally the largest, with anything reaching 6 being recommended viewing.
These are opinions, and incredibly inconsistent ones that may change upon a second viewing, or sitting on the match for a period of time. Don't take them too seriously, and have (and share) your own!
Get exclusive pro wrestling content on Fightful Select, our premium news service! Click here to learn more.
