Welcome one and all to the RAW RECAP presented by THE REVELLEUTION!
The Royal Rumble is in the history books, and it saw Raw’s Liv Morgan finally win the Women’s match after so many years of being close and a runner-up to book a title match for WrestleMania. Considering she eliminated her teammate Raquel Rodriguez along the way, will there be more drama between The Judgement Day members? And how will that affect this week’s World Championship Match as Rodriguez challenges Stephanie Vaquer in a Street Fight? Let’s get into it, and find out…
This week’s ‘Arrived Earlier Today’ videos included Women’s Royal Rumble winner LIV MORGAN and Women’s World Champion STEPHANIE VAQUER.
MAXXINE DUPRI was interviewed as it was announced she’d face ‘Nattie’ next week. Dupri lamented about how Dupri mentored her, only to humiliate her. She said the old Dupri would have just gone home, and called herself a new woman and a former Champion. Vowing to break ankles and said she elevated herself, before promising to give Natalya the biggest lesson of her life next week. Dupri would briefly appear in a backstage skit with Alpha Academy, vowing to break Nattie’s ankle again.
WWE Hall of Famers BRIE and NIKKI BELLA went to the ring for a promo. Still getting booed from the fans before Nikki said it had been seven years since both twins had appeared in WWE. Brie gushed about finally being home, joking that Nikki was getting her butt kicked every week before saying that the Bella Twins were the original tag team and wanted the Women’s Tag Team Championships. The segment just ended with Nikki’s music playing and the Twins left without any interruptions.
After being introduced by a returning Dominik Mysterio, Liv Morgan went to the ring for a promo. Morgan bragged about being the greatest Rumble winner, and said the fans would have to wait for her decision about who she’s going to face and would go to Smackdown to ‘evaluate’ her options. She then introduced her ‘best friend’ RAQUEL RODRIGUEZ with an overly big intro. Rodriguez immidately called Morgan out for eliminating her from the Rumble, and Morgan heaped on praise and claimed a win for one was a win for all in The Judgement Day. Rodriguez kept a fake smile on and told Morgan to stay in the back, claiming that it would make her win tonight even sweeter and Morgan, with a similar smile, agreed to leave (for now) with Mysterio.
Women’s World Championship Match – Street Fight Match
Women’s World Champion STEPHANIE VAQUER defeated RAQUEL RODRIGUEZ to retain
Vaquer got Def Rebel’d and came to the ring with new music that wasn’t as good as her last theme. The match started off with Rodriguez using her power for Shoulder Thrusts in a corner then soon after the Diesel Elbows. Vaquer would use her speed to get her 120% Roll-up for barely a two count, only to be flattened by Rodriguez’s Rewind Clothesline. The Blanchard Suplex got a near fall for Rodriguez but right after she missed a Big Boot, getting caught over the top rope to leave her open for a couple of Superkicks from Vaquer.
Vaquer set up Rodriguez to lean against the apron, setting up for a Knee Drop across the chest before hitting a Plancha to the floor. Vaquer would pull out a table, but Rodriguez took advantage to deck her before tossing her into the barricade. Setting up the table herself on the outside and when Vaquer tried for a Flying Headscissors off the ring steps, Rodriguez’s power blocked before she Powerbombed Vaquer clean through the table!
During a commercial break, Rodriguez tossed a trash can in the ring then grabbed a length of chin, wrapping it around Vaquer’s ‘bad ankle’ (Vaquer hadn’t been selling it or wearing any brace or boot for the match) and dragging her around ringside with a couple of chain-aided slams. A chair and some Kendo Sticks were brought out but Vaquer fought back with Headbutts and Shoulder Thrusts against the apron. Rodriguez delivered a Snake Eyes to the apron then wrapped the chain around her first to pummel Vaquer’s ankle a few times. Rodriguez set Vaquer up, sitting her on top of the ring steps against the post with her bad leg down stuck in the gap between, but she fought off the attack with Headbutts as the show went back to live action.
Timely, Rodriguez hit a stomp to the steps to hurt the leg and tried to strike with a steel chair, but Vaquer got out of the way so the chair only hit the post. Allowing Vaquer to pummel her challenger with Kendo Stick shots but Vaquer then took too long rearranging the steel steps to set up the lower part ringside, allowing Rodriguez to swing the top of the announce desk as a weapon. Rodriguez went for a Tijana Bomb on the outside but Vaquer grabbed the ropes to escape, but made the mistake of going for another apron Knee Drop and only hit the Hardest Part of the Ring when Rodriguez moved. Followed up by Rodriguez doing a Lawn Dart into the ringpost to get a near fall inside the ring.
Rodriguez set up a chair wedged in the corner, but the chair wasn’t stuck in right so it fell out right away. Vaquer used a Kendo Stick again, hit a Back Suplex and went for Devil’s Kiss but Rodriguez powered up right into the Electric Chair before dropping Vaquer over the top rope. Running into a Vaquer Superkick right after for a near fall. Rodriguez used a trash can to bash Vaquer in the head when she reached through the ropes to get a two count then loaded up the ring with steel chairs. Catching an attempting Crossbody from the top by Vaquer to hit a Fallaway Slam onto the chair pile!
Rodriguez went for a Vader Bomb Elbow onto some chairs but Vaquer dodged and then hit Devil’s Kiss to drive Rodriguez’s head into a chair, before rolling them both to the outside and hitting the move onto the steel steps Vaquer had set up for another round of nine. Vaquer was selling the leg as the show went to commerical again but she soon roughed up Rodriguez with tosses into the barricade, a Kendo Stick shot then using the trash can as a weapon in the ring. Rodriguez got in a round of stomps before she killed time by finally wedging a chair in a corner then setting up a second table on the outside.
Rodriguez hit a Clothesline on the outside, but trying to use the other ring steps as a weapon, Vaquer cut her off with a kick and then using a Running Facebuster to drive Rodriguez into the steps. Back inside, Vaquer hit her corner Dragon Screw and then set up her challenger seated in the corner with the trash can over her head to hit the Running Meteora for a near fall! Rodriguez powered out of an SVB attempt, soon decking Vaquer with a Clothlesine and booting another trash can into Vaquer’s head for a two count.
Rodriguez brought a third table but this one into the ring, set up near a corner as she went for a Tijana Bomb but Vaquer escaped to hit a Superkick, just to take a Rodriguez Clothesline off the rebound. Liv Morgan, despite being told to stay away, ran out and handed Rodriguez the World title belt to use, but the distraction allowed Vaquer to shove Rodriguez into the chair wedged in the corner before Vaquer knocked Morgan down. A Dropkick sent Rodriguez to lie on the table in the ring and went up top, and when ROXANNE PEREZ tried to interfere Vaquer nailed a Headbutt that sent Perez flying from the corner and crashing through the table on the outside!
Rodriguez cut off Vaquer up top, and tried for a Super Tijana Bomb but it eventually led to Vaquer hitting a Frankenscreamer that sent Rodriguez slamming onto the table to bend it but not fully break. Vaquer followed up with the Corkscrew Senton for the victory to retain.
After the match, Liv Morgan laid out Vaquer with ObLIVion to make a statement, standing over Vaquer with the World title before dumping it on the champ and walking away, telling without any checking of her fallen teammates.
It was announced that Elimination Chamber qualifying matches would take place next week, but it wasn’t specific if it was for both men and women or just one division.
FINAL THOUGHTS:
A great Street Fight match with a lot of time to it, and the expected outcome of Vaquer retaining to end the feud. Flowing easily into the also expected Morgan title feud with the post-match attack even if it’s not yet official. You have to imagine that Smackdown will go with a Tiffany Stratton against Jade Cargill rematch for Mania, so that leaves Vaquer free to take on Morgan but we’ll see if there’s any surprise swerve. With neither the IC nor the Tag Champs on the show, the only other point of note was the weak Bella Twins promo that showed the Hall of Famers still get a fair amount of go away heat once the fangirl screams die down, and that Dupri likes to finish her promos with yelling. The WWE is in a tough spot because no matter who wins in the match between Nattie and Dupri the loser is getting buried, but the winner won’t exactly come out smelling of roses. Especially if they’re just going to be set up to lose to Becky Lynch anyway down the road.
That’s your lot for this week! Be sure to stop by in seven days’ time for the next edition of the RAW RECAP! See you then!
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