Welcome to Fightful.com's first ever recap of WWE Monday Night Raw. I'm Managing Editor Sean Ross Sapp. Starting next week, you'll be led by the colorful Alex Pawlowski for Raw, Lucha Underground, Main Event and Superstars, while Ryan Cook will be bringing you the top Smackdown, NXT, NJPW and ROH coverage online. Starting next week, myself and Rob McCarron of the Shake Them Ropes Podcast will be providing you with a post-Monday Night Raw Podcast, while his Shake Them Ropes co-host Jeff Hawkins will handle post-Smackdown shows, starting with the WWE Draft.
- The show starts off with the entire roster in a star spangled catering room, with New Day stretching, Golden Truth rapping, and several other corny things going on. The Vaudevillains take the stage and start singing to very poor reception, before being hit with food. The Miz tries to calm everyone down, but a food fight breaks out. Heath Slater ends up getting chokeslammed through a table. Kevin Owens hid under the table until everyone was gone and says this wouldn't have happened on Canada day. He's hit in the face with a pie and goes off.
- Lillian Garcia sings the National Anthem.
United States Championship
Rusev (c) vs. Titus O'Neil
Titus starts off really strong, despite the fact that he's wearing absolutely ridiculous striped pants in honor of Independence Day. He looks like a Globetrotter. Rusev dumps him to the outside of the ring, throws O'Neil into the stairs, and then dropkicks Titus upon re-entering the ring. Titus mounts a comeback and hits a huge powerslam and a Clash of the Titus, but Rusev manages to grab the bottom rope!! Rusev recovers with a kick and applies the Accolade for the win.
Winner: Rusev via submission (Accolade) to retain the United States Championship
- Rusev applies the Accolade again, and then takes the mic and trashes the USA and the 4th of July.
- The Social Outcasts hit the ring dressed as minutemen. Enzo and Cass come out, and Enzo recites all of the former Presidents and said they'd be ashamed to see this. It's ON.
Enzo & Cass vs. Social Outcasts (w/ Heath Slater)
Bo Dallas and Curtis Axel attack Enzo in the corner, but this doesn't last very long at all. Enzo fights back and tags Big Cass, who runs through the Outcasts. The Rocket Launcher gets the victory for Enzo and Cass.
Winners: Enzo & Cass via pinfall (Rocket Launcher)
- Charlotte comes out with Dana Brooke and trash talks the crowd. Sasha Banks comes out and says that Charlotte has accomplished everything in the WWE this year, but she never beat Sasha Banks. Banks defines what it means to be a boss, but is attacked. She briefly gets the upper hand, but Charlotte lands a big boot. Sasha answers by applying the Banks Statement, but Charlotte scampers out of the ring with Dana Brooke.
-We're shown a pretty cool Baron Corbin vignette.
The Miz vs. Dean Ambrose
This match is heavily interrupted by a commercial. We get back-and-forth action very similar to their match on last week's Smackdown. The commercial break comes after Miz sends Ambrose into the barricade. When we come back, Miz is firmly in control, working over Ambrose. Ambrose breaks a Figure Four and lands a suicide dive, then connects with Dirty Deeds for the win. That's your Champion vs. Champion match. Skydome in 1990 all over again!
Winner: Dean Ambrose via pinfall (Dirty Deeds)
Ambrose celebrates his victory until he's interrupted and ignored by Seth Rollins. Ambrose decides to hang around and goes over to the announce table.
Seth Rollins vs. Dolph Ziggler
Ambrose is yakking it up with the Spanish announce team as we return from a commercial. Rollins can't take his focus off of Ambrose throughout the match. Rollins and Ziggler fight to the floor, where Ziggler is knocked off the apron and Rollins stares at Ambrose. Ziggler and Rollins are competitive after the commercial break, but Rollins counters a Zig Zag and connects with a big Pedigree for the victory.
Winner: Seth Rollins via pinfall (Pedigree)
After the match, Rollins is unhappy that Reigns is still in the Battleground match. He keeps on until Ambrose shuts him up.
- The Wyatt Family are on their compound, in a pretty outstanding vignette. Bray Wyatt invites the New Day to their compound. This was a really good contrast to most of the Wyatt Family vignettes and promos we've seen.
- The familiar “Excuse Me!” blares across the speakers, and Vickie Guerrero appears on the stage. She makes her case to be Smackdown's COO, saying that she's experiences. Security escorts her away from the stage. Backstage, Dolph Ziggler pretends like he doesn't know who she is.
- Big Show is backstage rallying team USA. Ironically, Apollo Crews is the shortest member of the team.
Golden Truth vs. Vaudevillians
Well, this one is short. Breezango is at ringside, but they don't get to watch much, because after a quick, even exchange, Golden Truth win with an assisted Powerbomb.
Winners: Golden Truth (Assisted Powerbomb)
- John Cena comes out to a good ovation from the crowd, and said that AJ Styles didn't stand on his own two feet when he needed to, and leaned on the shoulders of The Club. Cena said he just wants to fight the whole Club.
This brings out the whole Club, who clown on Cena. They're mad that they went back to Japan last weekend, but John Cena's face was everywhere. They say that Cena found out quickly that the Club runs things in Tokyo, and will run WWE soon. They make some burying jokes and say that nobody is coming to help John Cena, before surrounding him. Enzo and Cass make the save, running The Club off. It is later announced that The Club will face John Cena, Enzo & Cass at Battleground.
Becky Lynch vs. Summer Rae
Natalya is shown watching from backstage as Summer Rae takes control of the match. There's a nasty botch during the match where Summer Rae leaves her feet for a snap suplex, and Becky starts going over and is spiked on her head. Becky blocks a suplex and gets a nearfall before striking Summer in the corner repeatedly. An Exploder and a Disarm Her get the win for Becky.
Winner: Becky Lynch via submission (Disarm Her)
- We see the International team backstage, and Jericho is sick of hearing about Independence Day. Everyone argues and Owens says he wants to beat up some dirty Americans. They all end up finally agreeing with each other before the break.
- The New Day come out and make fun of the Wyatt Family, until an Erick Rowan and Braun Strowman vignette airs from their compound. Bray Wyatt shows up on the screen and invites New Day again, and asks them how far they're willing to go for positivity. Kofi Kingston agrees, but Xavier Woods isn't happy. He says the Wyatt Family are dangerous and isn't sure New Day can survive if they can't see how real the threat is.
16-Man Elimination Match
Dudley Boyz, Big Show, Kane, Apollo Crews, Mark Henry, Jack Swagger vs. Alberto Del Rio, Lucha Dragons, Sheamus, Cesaro, Sami Zayn, Kevin Owens, Chris Jericho
Sin Cara is eliminated pretty quickly by Bubba Ray Dudley, then Sheamus returns the favor by putting Bubba Ray out with a Brogue Kick. We come back from a commercial break to see D-Von eliminated not long after, having to tap out to a Cesaro Sharpshooter. We get a bit of a Real Americans face-off as Cesaro and Swagger slug it out, but Jericho pins Swagger following a Codebreaker. The whole match breaks down after Kane chokeslams Jericho.
Our final commercial break ends and Apollo Crews is duking it out with Del Rio, but Mark Henry ends up in the ring, flattening Kalisto with a World's Strongest Slam to bounce Kalisto from the match. Henry's success is short-lived as Kevin Owens lands an impressive pop-up powerbomb to pin Henry. Kane and Owens are then DQ'd for their use of a chair, and Zayn is eliminated after an Apollo Crews standing moonsault. Sheamus Brogue Kicks Apollo Crews and sends him packing, and in a shocker, Zack Ryder pins Cesaro. The crowd was surprised by that one. Big Show blasts Jericho with a KO punch and Chokeslams Del Rio, eliminating both respectively. Show then sends Sheamus into a Rough Ryder and team USA wins!
Winners: Zack Ryder and The Big Show
