Kofi Kingston (w/ Xavier Woods) vs. Drew McIntyre goes to a double DQ.
6/10
MVP and Lashley have some girls out there, and they say if it were up to them, no more Drew McIntyre getting title shots. I'm with you guys. He's had several. Too bad! Move on. Drew McIntyre shows up and asks if Bobby Lashley has any testicles. Normally I'd say everyone should get over wanting "their rematch" because it went away in December 2018, but considering Kofi brought up that Drew gets a ton of them, why wouldn't he? Kofi Kingston and Drew are nose to nose, and Adam Pearce tells them they'll have a match tonight for a Hell in a Cell title match.
Lashley and MVP watching at the top of the ramp with the club setup is fantastic. A solid match early between two top level performers. Kofi gets heaved around with a couple of suplexes in this match that looked awesome, especially out of the guillotine. Kofi's double stomps have become so refined and well-timed. It appears Drew has added the Michinoku Driver to his arsenal regularly. I don't like Drew McIntyre taking time out to point at Lashley. Having someone goof around for a full minute during a top contender match seems to diminish the stakes a bit. Even separate of this, it's a PPV quality match to sort of open the show. Kofi using the doubled over frog splash on Drew was fantastic. The story of the Drew/Lashley feud seems to be that Drew McIntyre's character doesn't learn from mistakes in getting distracted, but keeps getting opportunities. Or that's not a story at all and it's just bad booking. Lashley and MVP run in and cause a double DQ.
Backstage, Adam Pearce says they'll run it back next week. When this is how you kill the first 45 minutes of the show, it makes you really question how much stuff really matters. If this was something that didn't happen much, that would be one thing. It's not. Pearce threatens to suspend Lashley without pay if he gets involved.
Beat the Clock Challenge
Nikki Cross doesn't get pinned by Rhea Ripley
4/10
Why is Rhea Ripley arsed by Charlotte? She lost last week. Move on and find a contender. Nikki shows up and challenges both women to a match, and they argue over who should beat Nikki Cross in two minutes. Okay.
Rhea Ripley isn't taking this seriously at all, but Nikki is and looks great doing it. Rhea Ripley beats Nikki's ass for a minute, but time runs out. Them making Rhea Ripley look absent minded, making Nikki Cross look ecstatic to last two minutes. Who looks good here?
Other Stuff
- A new Eva Marie vignette airs.
- We see market specific "come see us on the road" promos from Braun Strowman, John Morrison and Damian Priest. It sucks that they have to do these, but cool that they are.
Charlotte Flair defeated Asuka
6/10
What exactly mandated this re-match that we've already seen twice since last month and Asuka won both times? Okay. Well the match is good, and that's cool. Charlotte's leg work is really good, specifically the chop block and knee breaker. It's followed by a cool stomping tree of woe. Charlotte going back to the moonsault and settling for a standing one was a good touch. Charlotte gets a good pin out of the Asuka Lock, to beat the person who beat her last week. Imagine if she just would have won last week, as well!
Cedric Alexander defeated Shelton Benjamin
5.75/10
There's a really good video package about The Hurt Business. He says Shelton Benjamin is washed up and he got kicked out, not Cedric. The ref keeps Shelton from beating Cedric's ass. This feels a lot more like a fight than a lot of the matches we see. Even in the headlock spot Cedric is throwing punches. This is built as Cedric being an intolerable troll until Shelton Benjamin cracks him. Shelton busts out the rolling Germans, pulling another trick out of his book. Another match, another 50/50 result. Cedric wins with the Neuralizer and a thumb to the eye.
Riddle defeated Xavier Woods
8.25/10
Holy Jesus almighty. Riddle and Woods on that monkey flip into a suplex spot. That was insane. This is a ground battle that we don't get to see much from Xavier and he's killing it. Woods does a wild Death Valley Driver on the apron that catches the ropes too. These two are absolutely KILLING IT. Riddle and Woods trade Bro Derek teases, and Woods does one into a tree of woe. Woods gets German Suplexed on his head from the middle rope. A NASTY landing and the commentary team sold it perfect. Riddle hits an RKO for the win!
Xavier Woods has been around on TV for over 13 years, it's evident how good he is and has always been, and somehow that still felt like a statement, star making singles match. Woods vs. Riddle was unreal.
Jaxson Ryker defeated AJ Styles
3/10
Under no circumstances should Ryker ever pin AJ Styles. WOOF. Well, that happened here. Ryker wins off of interference from Elias. Then Omos chases
Sheamus defeated Humberto Carrillo
5.25/10
Humberto is fine, which is good. Carrillo fights back with a big, aggressive suicide dive. Humberto Carrillo has some beautiful offense, namely the flying back elbow. Sheamus wins by holding the tights. Ricochet makes the big save and puts on an impressive flying exhibition with Humberto. I want them as a team. This ruled and was one of the best things Humberto has done.
WWE Women's Tag Team Titles
Natalya & Tamina (c) defeated Nia & Shayna to retain
4/10
Shayna is sick of Reginald's shit and wants him to stay backstage. That doesn't happen, and Reginald comes out when Shayna is in control. This match is a bit of a mess and is everywhere. Reginald accidentally distracts the ref when Shayna is pinning Natalya. Shayna for some reason is screaming at Reggie instead of beating up her opponent. Natalya wins off of an explosion distraction that almost takes out Reginald. Okay, no more Nia and Shayna title matches. Move on. We're done. Shayna challenges Reginald to a match next week. That's how Raw goes off the air.
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! Our opinions mean exactly the same amount as yours.