Raw July 18th 2016

Raw

A highly anticipated Raw tonight was on the eve of WWE's 2016 Draft. With the GM picks and the WWE Championship Main Event, this Monday Night Raw was set to be a good one.

General Manager Picks

The show kicked off with Stephanie McMahon coming out. As she was doing an intro for Monday Night Raw, Shane McMahon interrupted her and Stephanie reminded him it would be his last night on Raw. Stephanie also announced that with the popularity of the Cruiserweight Classic they would be launching a Cruiserweight division that would be exclusive to Monday Night Raw. I'm assuming that this means they'll also have a Cruiserweight Championship and I think it'd be cool if the winner of the CWC wins the Inaugural Cruiserweight Championship that everyone is anticipating to return.

Stephanie McMahon then announced that the General Manager for Raw would be Mick Foley. I don't know Mick Foley and his career that well but I think that it's cool they brought back a WWE Hall of Famer to manage Raw. Shane McMahon then announced that his General Manager for Smackdown would be Daniel Bryan! I was super excited about this I think Daniel Bryan is a legend. He could really bring Smackdown to the top and I'm very happy he's back with a purpose.

Sami Zayn and Cesaro defeat Kevin Owens and Chris Jericho

Sami Zayn won by rolling up Jericho and it's good that Zayn didn't pin Owens leaving some mystery for their match at Battleground, however I don't think we really needed this match and I normally am not a fan of matches that don't have a purpose.

Darren Young defeats Alberto Del Rio

Darren Young rolled up Del Rio to win after a failed distraction attempt on Darren from The Miz. This match was good as it builds up some credibility for Darren Young but it would've been better if instead of rolling up Del Rio he got a clean pinfall via his finisher, which we haven't seen since he's been back may I add and he's already challenging for the Intercontinental Title.

The Wyatt Family and The Club defeat Enzo, Big Cass, John Cena, and The New Day

There was an overly long promo before this match which had some humour but for the most part was just a filler and I think it was too long. Leading to the end of the match though, The New Day and The Wyatts began brawling all the way backstage, leaving Enzo, Cass, Cena, and The Club. Enzo inadvertently took down Cena allowing AJ Styles to hit Amore with the Styles Clash and pick up the win. Glad that The Club picked up the win but I'm afraid that because of this the opposite may happen at Battleground.

Baron Corbin defeats Sin Cara

Before the match it was announced that the Lucha Dragons had actually broken up and will be entering the Draft as singles competitors. That didn't change where Sin Cara is on the totem pole as Baron Corbin easily took care of him. After the match however Corbin kept beating down on Sin Cara when his former tag team partner Kalisto came to his aid.

He drove Baron out the ring and went to check on Sin Cara, only to get dragged out the ring from behind by Corbin and clotheslined to the ground. When Kalisto came out though I was kind of hoping that Sin Cara would attack him or something because maybe it's just me but I kind of want to see the Sin Cara and Kalisto feud. Either way I think this match was there to ensure us that even though they are no longer a tag team they are still friends...or some BS like that.

Sasha Banks and Becky Lynch vs Charlotte and Dana Brooke

In Sasha's search for a tag team partner for Battleground against Charlotte and Dana Brooke, she found herself teamed with Becky Lynch against them on Raw. However their match would be interrupted when Natalya once again FOR NO GODDAMN REASON attacked Becky Lynch. With the match over and the two on one advantage Charlotte and Dana Brooke assaulted Sasha Banks ending with Natural Selection from Charlotte. I hate Natalya. Please beat her Becky...so then maybe she can finally retire.

Rusev and Sheamus defeat Zack Ryder and Dolph Ziggler

Sheamus and Rusev didn't seem to be getting along too well at first but I guess they worked it out? I missed that part but Rusev ended up making Ziggler tap to the Accolade which is good, keep the champion looking strong but not against the challenger. 

Randy Orton Video Package

This video package in my opinion was awesome. Some of the quotes and the banter coming from Orton reminded how much I've missed seeing him in WWE and gets me a bit more excited for his segment on the Highlight Reel with Chris Jericho this Sunday at Battleground.

Seth Rollins vs Dean Ambrose for the WWE Championship

This one is a bit confusing to write about. It was a pretty good match, both GMs and Commissioners were at ringside for it, but the finish was very confusing. Basically after a Super Plex off the top rope both Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose rolled each other up for the three count, and both mens shoulders were on the mat for the three seconds. Stephanie McMahon intervened after the awkward silence and arguing and declared Seth Rollins the winner and the new WWE Champion. However what I didn't know was after the show on the WWE Network the situation kept unfolding and apparently Dean Ambrose is still the champion because the match was ruled a draw, and due to the Champions advantage Dean was still champion.

This was super confusing and they didn't even tell us it would keep going on the Network, so by the time I got the notification on my phone they were already playing a rerun of the CWC. However due to the confusion it was announced that tonight on Smackdown Live Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose would fight once again in a rematch for the WWE Championship. I'm glad Seth gets another opportunity but I feel like they're digging their own grave here. How is WWE supposed to make them both look strong again? I guess we'll have to wait and see.

Star Of The Night: The Cruiserweight Division

I'm excited that the Cruiserweight Division is coming back and hopefully with that they'll bring back the Cruiserweight Championship. Now it's exclusive to Raw and that's not necessarily a bad idea, but Smackdown needs something exclusive too. Perhaps Smackdown could get the Womens Division?

This episode of Raw was eventful with announcements as well as confusing with finishes. However most, if not all of our questions should be answered tonight during the Draft so watch out for my post covering the first ever Smackdown Live.

Until next time,

Devon Wizard