The October 14th, 2019 episode of WWE RAW aired live from the Pepsi Center in Denver, CO. Here are 5 takeaways from the show:
Becky Lynch Earned RAW The First Pick Tonight
RAW Women’s Champion Becky Lynch boasted about being the first pick in the draft. Lynch added that she was expecting to beat up Sasha tonight but Banks cannot make it because of the last beating she gave her. Flair interrupted and stated that she didn’t even want to fight Becky tonight and just wanted to be friends again. Charlotte claimed that she missed Becky and just wants to be her friend. Flair then hit Lynch with a cheap shot and the two superstars brawled in the middle of the ring before WWE officials separated them.
Charlotte Flair then faced Becky Lynch to determine which brand gets the first pick during tonight’s show. Flair took control of the match early and slammed Becky to the canvas. Charlotte then bounced Becky’s face off the canvas several times before applying a submission hold in the middle of the ring.
Flair sent Becky to the corner and hit her with a few chops before smacking her in the face. Lynch battled back and sent Flair tot he outside. Becky followed her out there and wound up getting slammed face-first into the ring post as RAW went to a commercial break.
When RAW returned, Becky was in control and hit Charlotte with a Clothesline. Becky followed it up with a Dropkick off the top rope for a near fall. Flair battled back and locked in a Boston Crab in the middle of the ring. Becky escaped and booted Flair out of the ring.
Back in the ring, Becky went for a flying forearm but Flair got out of the way. Charlotte then hit Natural Selection and went for the cover but The Man kicked out at two. Flair leveled Lynch with a big boot and went for the cover but Lynch was able to kick out at two. Becky hit a Reverse DDT and followed it up with a Leg Drop off the middle rope for a two count.
Charlotte battled back with a Spear but Lynch was able to kick out once again. Becky quickly rolled up Flair for the victory and RAW will get the first selection tonight in the WWE Draft.
Rollins Is Staying On RAW, Lesnar Is Going To SmackDown
Stephanie McMahon welcomed the crowd to the final night of the WWE Draft. Stephanie added that USA and Fox have an influence on each brand’s selections.
RAW’s Picks: Universal Champion Seth Rollins, Charlotte, Andrade w/ Zelina Vega, The Kabuki Warriors, Rusev, Aleister Black, Cedric Alexander, Humberto Carrillo, Erick Rowan, Buddy Murphy, Jinder Mahal, 24/7 Champion R-Truth, Samoa Joe, Akira Tozawa, Shelton Benjamin, Rey Mysterio, Titus O’Neil, Liv Morgan
SmackDown’s Picks: WWE Champion Brock Lesnar, New Day, Daniel Bryan, SmackDown Women’s Champion Bayley, Intercontinental Champion Shinsuke Nakamura, Ali, Dolph Ziggler, Robert Roode, Carmella, The Miz, King Corbin, Shorty Gable, Elias
The Viking Raiders Are The New RAW Tag Team Champions
Bobby Roode & Dolph Ziggler defended their RAW Tag Team Championships against the Viking Raiders tonight on RAW.
Erik and Ivar dominated early and sent Roode to the outside. Ivar connected with a massive Suicide Dive as Erik planted Ziggler with a Powerbomb in the ring. Ivar followed it up with a massive Splash off the top rope and went for the cover but Roode dragged Dolph to the outside.
Back in the ring, Ivar leveled Dolph with a shoulder tackle and tagged Erik in. Ziggler and Roode took control and isolated Erik in the corner. The action spilled to the outside and Erik hit Ziggler with a shoulder tackle that sent both superstars into the timekeeper’s area as RAW went to a break.
When RAW returned, Ziggler was taunting Erick int he ring and smacked him in the face. Erik got pissed off and leveled him with a right hand. Ivar tagged in and connected with a Clothesline on Dolph before tagging Erik back in.
Ziggler booted Ivar in the face and knocked him out of the ring. Roode sent Erik into the ring post and rolled up a two count. Ziggler and Roode hit Erik with Zig Zag/ Spinebuster combo and went for the cover but Erik was able to kick out at the last second.
Dolph set up for the Superkick but Erik dodged it. Ziggler connected with the Fameasser for another near fall. Roode tagged in and hit the Glorious DDT but Ivar broke up the cover at two. Ivar tagged in and leveled Roode and Ziggler with an awesome Clothesline. Erik tagged in and the Viking Raiders hit Ziggler with the Viking Experience for the victory. The Viking Raiders are the new RAW Tag Team Champions.
The Viking Raiders cut a backstage promo following the match. Erik and Ivar stated that they are the first team in history to be undefeated to win the IWGP, ROH, NXT, and RAW Tag Team Championships.
WWE completely botched the Viking Raiders debut on the main roster and they spent what felt like an eternity squashing jobbers. However, they were able to overcome that and Erik & Ivar got a great reaction from the crowd tonight after winning the titles. I’m glad that an actual team is at the top of the division, instead of two randomly thrown together superstars like Ziggler and Roode.
Tyson Fury Vowed To Knock Strowman Out At Crown Jewel
Jerry Lawler moderated the contract signing between Tyson Fury and Braun Strowman for the match at WWE Crown Jewel. Lawler asked that they both remain professional and we don’t get a repeat of last week’s brawl.
Strowman told Fury that he respects him but knows he has one of the biggest egos in the world. Braun added that Fury was just at SmackDown to try and steal some of the spotlight and vowed to hand Tyson his first loss at WWE Crown Jewel. Strowman added that Tyson is going to “get these hands” at the PPV.
Fury told Strowman that he is a fan of his and that he is not out of his element in any ring. Tyson then vowed to knock Strowman out at WWE Crown Jewel. Fury then broke a pen in half and laughed in Strowman’s face before exiting the ring.
The crowd hit Fury with the “what?” chants during this promo. It doesn’t seem like there is any excitement for this match and this contract signing didn’t help that at all. Instead of being intimidating, Fury looked like he was trying to remember his lines and his words came off as unnatural. He was clearly saying something that had been written for him
Seth Rollins Attacked Wyatt At The Firefly Funhouse
RAW started off with a recap of the terrible match between The Fiend and Seth Rollins at WWE Hell in a Cell. The match ended in a stoppage because Rollins hit Wyatt with a sledgehammer, even though there was a gigantic mallet used throughout the match. Footage from Wyatt’s attack on Rollins on SmackDown was also shown to end the video package. Later on RAW, Rollins cut a promo and said that he was going “Fiend hunting” tonight.
It was later announced that Bray Wyatt will face Seth Rollins at Crown Jewel for the Universal Championship in a Falls Count Anywhere match at Crown Jewel.
Firefly Funhouse aired in the final segment of the show. Wyatt stated that people say mean things about Rollins but he thinks he is strong, brave, and smart. Ramblin Rabbit interrupted and claimed that Seth Rollins is coming to the Funhouse. Rollins showed up at the Funhouse and beat Wyatt down. Rollins broke some of the pictures on the wall and Wyatt begged Wyatt to stop. Seth leveled Wyatt and then set the Funhouse on fire as the crowd booed to end the show.
WWE had a great thing going with Wyatt and they have managed to completely ruin it. There was no explanation as to how Rollins found the Funhouse, he just up there and burned it down. Bray Wyatt was also drafted to SmackDown, so it wouldn’t make sense for him to win the Universal Championship at Crown Jewel.
The Saudi Arabia crowd won’t boo when Rollins goes over, so this just comes across as a cheap way out in my opinion. There was no reason to have The Fiend in the title match at Hell in a Cell if WWE didn’t want to give it to him. Instead, they have pretty much destroyed the character and he will now be heading to a show where the WWE Championship is held hostage by Brock Lesnar.
Overall, this week’s RAW was terrible. The WWE Draft added nothing to the RAW or SmackDown and was a complete dud. I would describe WWE as lifeless right now. Almost everything on both shows feels unimportant and most of the time is just bad television.
