Welcome one and all to the RAW RECAP presented by THE REVELLEUTION!
After last week’s announcement that Naomi is now out of action due to pregnancy, the Women’s World Championship has been vacated. We were promised an announcement in regards to it this week, but what will it be if anything? Hall of Famer Nikki Bella has vowed to call out rival and current Women’s Intercontinental Champion Becky Lynch. Will these two come to blows again this week? And who will come out on top between Rhea Ripley and Roxanne Perez as they face off? Let’s get into it, and find out…
This week’s ‘Arrived Earlier Today’ videos featured RHEA RIPLEY and NIKKI BELLA.
JACKIE REDMOND handled interview duties.
In the Judgement Day clubhouse, RAQUEL RODRIGUEZ played peacemaker between Dominik Mysterio and Finn Balor when they butted heads. She also sternly hyped up ROXANNE PEREZ about her match tonight. The two would also be featured in an interview during one of the ‘commerical breaks’ on the broadcast, which included stating about wanting the Women’s Tag Team titles again.
Backstage, IYO SKY approached Rhea Ripley as she was warming up and thanked Ripley for saving her, but said that her ‘family’ of Sane and Asuka were her family and weren’t happy about this friendship. Sky suggested the two should stay apart for a while. In the background, ASUKA and KAIRI SANE watched from afar as Ripley somewhat reluctantly agreed. Sky thanked her for understanding and the two had a little hug which made Asuka in the background freak out and storm off in a huff while Sane looked stunned.
In a major letdown, a backstage segment between STEPHANIE VAQUER and Raw General Manager Adam Pearce all too casually announced that Vaquer was taken off of Clash in Paris and wouldn’t get the title match then. They claimed Vaquer was still ‘Number One Contender’ and her title match would be against an opponent to be announced, along with the time for the match still to be determined. The WWE claimed the opponent at least would be named next week but at this rate, who knows when it will be!
BECKY LYNCH went to the ring for a promo. Booed anyway but she still ripped on the crowd for a louder reaction. Lynch mocked her rival Bella about trying to call her out to ‘her’ ring and Nikki Bella soon interrupted. Using Lynch’s line against her of saying if Lynch wasn’t a dog (who responded to a whistle) why was she acting like such a bitch? Before taunting Lynch that she should have no problem facing her for the title. They went back and forth with insults again, with Lynch calling Bella a ‘broke-neck Barbie’ and Bella countered that she paved the way for Lynch to write history.
Lynch said she wanted to replace Bella and never respected her. Bella said Lynch was just afraid to face her and called her the scared little girl from Charlotte Flair’s ‘sidekick’ (she perhaps meant to say sidegroup the PCB). Eventually, after more insults Bella said Lynch was a ‘C-Word’ but followed it by saying Coward, which Lynch said was ‘far worse than the other C-Word’. Lynch finally agreed to give Bella the title match, but said it would happen at Clash in Paris. A few more insults and shots at the crowd by Lynch, before Bella took Lynch’s title off her shoulder and posed with it, vowing to become the new Champion.
Lynch tried for a cheap shot kick but Bella saw it coming, countering and then decking Lynch with a ‘Nikkisawa’ Elbow Strike. Both women would escape one another’s finishers before Lynch fled the ring, mouthing off from the aisle while Bella taunted from the ring.
Singles Match
RHEA RIPLEY defeated ROXANNE PEREZ w/h RAQUEL RODRIGUEZ
Perez rolled under a lock-up attempt and hit a slap, then ducked a blow to apply a Back Sleeper but got backed into a corner. Perez hit a Low Dropkick to the knee that sent Ripley crashing into the middle turnbuckle, before Perez followed up with wild clubbing blows. Ripley would nail a Running Dropkick right after. Perez bailed from the ring after being clubbed in a corner, but managed to drive Ripley into the ring apron when she went after her. Only for Ripley to turn it around and drive Perez face-first into the apron.
Back in the ring, Ripley hoisted Perez up just to drop her down hard to the mat. Ripley tried for Riptide but Perez escaped and bailed from the ring. After a cat-and-mouse switch, Perez tried for a Suicide Dive but Ripley caught her, only for Perez to escape off the shoulders. Perez would hide behind Rodriguez to catch a break, but an attempt at a cheap shot was easily blocked. Ripley would get distracted Rodriguez again and that allowed Perez to hit the Diva. Perez then quickly went after Ripley’s leg with a shot to the apron, and a leg DDT. She tried to drive the leg into the ringpost but Ripley countered. They fought on the apron and it led to Ripley’s leg being draped on the corner post connector, open for Perez to hit a Knee Drop.
Perez hit the European Uppercut to the back spot, then the Double-bounce Lionsault for a near fall. After the ‘commerical break’ Ripley went House on Fire mode with Short-Arm Clotheslines then a Hook Kick. She tried for a Razor’s Edge but unseen by the referee, Rodriguez grabbed Perez’s foot and hauled her down. Ripley went after Rodriguez and pulled her to the apron, but Perez took advantage with a cheap shot that set up a Frankenscreamer. The Satomura Special got Perez a near fall. Perez talked trash, hit slaps and kicks to the bad leg but ate a Headbutt for her troubles. Ripley hit the Razor’s Edge then a Sliding Kick for a two count.
Ripley would charge towards the ropes and hit a Baseball Slide to wipe out Rodriguez when Perez moved out of the way. Perez caught Ripley with a Low Dropkick to the bad knee when she came back in. PopRox was countered, but Perez got a 120% Roll-up for a near fall. Perez tried for the Tilt-a-Whirl into the Side Russian Legsweep but Ripley blocked, hit a Headbutt and then landed Riptide for the clean victory.
After the match, Rodriguez decked Ripley from behind. Ripley fought back with her counter kick from the mat then a Headbutt, but when she tried for Riptide Perez grabbed a leg. It allowed Ropdriguez to escape and deck Ripley with a Clothesline. Iyo Sky would come out to make the save and hit Rodriguez with a trio of Shotei strikes then a Flapjack to Perez, followed by a Buzzsaw Kick. Rodriguez took a Headbutt from Ripley that set up a Springboard Dropkick by Sky who kipped up and DID THE THING. The heels were left fuming at ringside while Sky checked over Ripley in the ring.
Backstage Ripley joked to Sky about keeping her distrance, but thanked her for the back-up. When Ripley left, Sky was confronted by a furious Asuka who had to be held back by Kairi Sane. Asuka ranted in her native tongue, and yelled that Ripley wasn’t family like they were. Sky tried to talk sense to her former friend but Asuka just ranted more and told Sky to stop talking to Ripley. Asuka stormed off, and Sky asked Sane to trust her but while torn, yet again Sane left to follow Asuka.
BAYLEY had another video where she heard the voices of her past selves/gimmicks taunting her. This week her old NXT hugger era and her unhinged Role Model went back and forth until Bayley yelled basically at herself to stop.
That video was followed up by LYRA VALKYRIA asking Adam Pearce for an update on Bayley (despite claims weeks ago that Valkyria had nothing to do with Bayley’s situation and beyond that wanted Bayley to stay away). But there was no update ‘officially’ on what was going on with Bayley.
FINAL THOUGHTS:
It’s rather shameful that the WWE invested so much time into Vaquer, giving her the big moment at Evolution only to do almost nothing with her and relegate her to backstage segments. Now she gets no match at Clash in Paris and only a vague ‘maybe’ of a title match in the future. It’s a complete mess and doesn’t bode well for Vaquer’s future even this early into her main roster career. You have to imagine that Bella versus Lynch being rushed onto the PLE was to replace the lack of a World Women’s title match. I can’t be too mad at that since it’s had a solid build of a few weeks but at the same time it feels out of place. It will be a major test of it Bella can hang in a singles match or if this has all just been a failed experiement.
Elsewhere, the story around Iyo Sky and her friends continues to grow with a slow enough burn. There can only be so many weeks of yelling backstage before things have to turn physical. Lastly, the Bayley videos are telling the rarely told story of internal conflict and how wrestlers who change gimmicks/turn face and heel still have their past selves in them. It’s interesting to see where this all heads to and how Valkyria will be involved. A tag team? Another rivalry? I’m looking forward to the payday of this all.
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!