Posted on 8/26/125 by Bob Magee
LA Knight lost to Bron Breakker in the main event. Jey Uso
laid out CM Punk and Knight as the show ended, with Seth
Rollins looking on in amusement. Rollins defends the World
Championship against Knight, Punk and Jey this Sunday at
Clash in Paris.
There will not be a match for the vacant Women’s World
Championship on Sunday, but instead, Becky Lynch will defend
the Women’s Intercontinental Championship against Nikki
Bella.
Raw in Paris next week begins at 2 pm ET/11 am PT.
**********
Show Recap —
LA Knight, Rhea Ripley, and Nikki Bella arrived at the
building in Birmingham.
There is only one level of stands in this arena, so the
stage is smaller than usual, but the arena is completely
packed.
Roman Reigns opens Raw
The crowd anxiously chanted “OTC” and sang Reigns’ name
before he even got to the ring. The singing continued in the
same cadence as usual after his music cut. They followed
with a different song and more “OTC” chants before Reigns
finally spoke 10 minutes into the show.
Reigns had big plans for tonight, for the rest of this year,
and next year. But he had to be honest with himself. The
fans acknowledged him, but there was something he had to
acknowledge. The fans were loud as always, like old times,
but Reigns was not the same guy he used to be. The fans
chanted, “Yes, you are.”
Reigns responded, “Maybe I can be.” Cody Rhodes predicted it
a year and a half ago. (There was a smattering of boos upon
hearing Rhodes’ name, and Reigns responded, “Interesting.”)
Reigns said Seth Rollins and The Vision followed through on
everything Rhodes said. They took everything from him. The
crowd chanted, “F—k you, Rollins,” and Reigns felt the same
way.
Reigns didn’t have what he used to have. He didn’t have a
Bloodline. After the crowd chanted, “Yeet,” Reigns said he
was proud of Jey Uso. People complained about Jey being in
the title match instead of him, but Jey was the one who
scored the pinfall in their match. He deserved to be in the
title match (instead of him).
The Vision took his Bloodline, his wiseman, and his titles.
They ran out of things to take, so they had to find
something else. He was about to bring up Bronson Reed, but
Paul Heyman interrupted with Reed.
Heyman said it’s been five years since Brock Lesnar’s
wiseman joined Reigns. They changed the entire industry
together. Reigns was all alone now, but Heyman missed him.
Heyman loved him five years ago and loved him now.
The fans sang Reigns’ name, so Heyman instead sang Reed’s
name to the same tune. He tried to lead the fans, but they
sang for Reigns’ instead. Heyman said the fans disrespected
him, but they weren’t tough enough to live in Manchester or
rich enough to live in London.
Heyman did not want to disrespect Reigns. But what Reigns
needed was tough love. Heyman wasn’t man enough to beat the
tough love into him, but Reed was.
Reigns called Heyman a dumbass because Heyman would kiss his
ass after he kicked Reed’s ass.
Reed gave Reigns a history lesson. He said Reigns’ tribe
from Samoa is civilized, but Reed’s isn’t. Reed’s tribe was
exiled to Australia. Reigns’ tattoos were all paid for, but
Reed’s were earned. Reed was the Samoan that Reigns’ dad and
uncle warned him about, and he was about to find out why.
Reigns responded, “Hold up, this guy’s Samoan? That means
your ass belongs to me.” The crowd popped for that. Reigns
invited him to the ring to return his shoes, apologize to
the fans, and acknowledge him. (The fans chanted, “Give his
shoes back.”)
Reed turned him down, so Reigns left the ring. They met at
the aisle and brawled into the ring. Security got between
them, so Reed broke through and squished everyone in the
corner. Reed went up for a Tsunami as officials tried to
stop him, but Reigns popped up and gave him a Superman
punch. Reigns went after Reed again outside the ring, but
they were held back by security as they went to break.
The show was 27 minutes old by the time the opening segment
ended.
*******
Like last week, Finn Bálor couldn’t find Dominik Mysterio
backstage, but at that moment, he bumped into Dom speaking
to El Grande Americano (Ludwig Kaiser). Bálor asked him what
was up. Dom said not to worry about it and he’d join them
later.
Dragon Lee vs. JD McDonagh (w/Finn Bálor)
Bálor was tossed from ringside early in the match. The fans
seemed disappointed as this was a very rare occasion where
the fans actually booed the referee for tossing a heel from
ringside.
McDonagh took control as they went to break 90 seconds into
the match, and Dragon Lee made his comeback the moment they
returned. Dragon Lee hit a snap German suplex and
poisonrana, but McDonagh hit a Spanish fly for two. Lee
followed later with a great-looking Liger bomb for a
nearfall.
The Netflix feed lagged, and the action happened in slow
motion. It was fixed as they got to the finish.
Dom tried to interfere, but AJ Styles ran out to attack him
and chase him off. (Corey Graves called Styles hater of the
year for once again travelling overseas just to attack
someone.) Dragon Lee hit Operation Dragon for the pinfall
win.
Match result: Dragon Lee defeated JD McDonagh (8:42)
Not including NXT, this was Dragon Lee’s first win on TV
since April, and his first singles win since November 2024.
********
LA Knight interview
Jackie Redmond interviewed LA Knight. He wondered if CM Punk
maybe put him through the table on purpose last week. Even
if it was an accident, Punk shrugged his shoulders and left.
Knight agreed with Punk that they should have worked
together against Rollins, but Punk created an environment
where that could no longer happen.
Knight knew Punk was hungry, but they were all hungry.
Knight would make sure everyone else went to bed hungry
because he would win the title in Paris. He found it very
convenient that he was the only one from the four-way that
had a match tonight. Knight planned on smacking Bron
Breakker back to factory settings.
********
There was a Rusev video package.
Judgment Day met backstage. Raquel Rodriguez stopped an
argument between Dom and Bálor. Dom said Bálor has known
Styles the longest and suggested he deal with him tonight.
Bálor got in Dom’s face and said he’d talk to Adam Pearce
and deal with Styles. After he left, Rodriguez told Roxanne
Perez to be ready for her match tonight.
Styles vs. Bálor was made official during the next match.
********
Penta vs. Kofi Kingston (w/Xavier Woods & Grayson Waller)
The New Day continue to wear all-black as they continue to
mourn their tag title loss. Woods wore a black neck brace
and had a black cane.
Penta set up for a flip dive early in the match, but
Kingston sprinted away up the aisle as they went to break.
Kingston took control during the break and gave Penta a back
body drop onto the announce table. It took Penta a full nine
seconds to make it back to the ring.
As Penta made his comeback, Michael Cole said it would be
embarrassing if New Day lost to him for a second straight
week. Graves wondered what he meant, and Cole said it was
because New Day talked so much trash.
They traded moves, which led to Penta going for a Canadian
Destroyer, but Kingston countered it with a back body drop.
Kingston followed with a fameasser for two. Penta botched a
potential rana off the ropes, so he hit a superplex to bring
Kingston down instead.
Penta followed with a Penta driver, but Kingston kicked out.
(Graves said this may have been the first time someone
kicked out of this move, and reminded us that Kingston was a
former world champion.)
Penta kicked Waller in the face, and his papers went flying,
before hitting Kingston and Woods with a flip dive. Penta
went to the ropes for a Destroyer attempt, but was
distracted by Waller (who didn’t technically do anything).
Kingston tripped Penta off the ropes and hit Trouble in
Paradise for the pinfall win. The crowd groaned at the
finish.
Match result: Kofi Kingston defeated Penta (10:21)
********
Iyo Sky approached Rhea Ripley backstage. She thanked her
for having her back last week. She respected Ripley, but
Asuka and Kairi Sane were her family. They didn’t like that
Ripley got in her business, so they should probably keep
their distance for a while.
At this moment, Asuka and Sane appeared in the background
and watched the rest of this transpire. Ripley understood
Sky’s sentiment. Ripley was about to leave, but Sky pulled
her back for a hug. The hug caused Asuka to storm off in the
background.
(I get what they’re doing, but this was overly dramatic.)
********
There was a video package of Naomi’s announcement.
Pearce informed Stephanie Vaquer that she was still the
number one contender, but her match was not happening in
Paris. Pearce asked her to give him a week to find her an
opponent. Vaquer was disappointed she wouldn’t be wrestling
in Paris, but said she’d be ready when Pearce found her
opponent.
********
Becky Lynch and Nikki Bella segment
Lynch entered first. Like she did on Smackdown, Lynch played
babyface for a brief moment before quickly turning on the
crowd. She called Birmingham a dump, just like Nikki Bella.
They advertised this as Bella calling out Lynch, but Lynch
didn’t plan on getting called out like a dog by anyone.
Nikki entered. She said if Lynch wasn’t a dog, then she
should stop acting like a bitch. Nikki suggested Lynch give
her a title shot.
Lynch said she wasn’t about to give out title shots,
especially to broke-neck Barbie. Nikki said she kicked her
ass last week. And thanks to her blazing a trail, Lynch had
a page to write history on.
Lynch credited Nikki and her better twin for blazing that
trail and bringing in a new audience, but frankly, she just
didn’t care. Lynch never wanted to respect Nikki—she wanted
to replace her, and she’s done a pretty good job doing so.
Nikki said Lynch was afraid to face her. Lynch was once
Charlotte Flair’s little sidekick. Lynch said she was no
one’s shadow. She was the greatest of all time, even Sports
Illustrated thought so. Nikki didn’t care what SI thought.
She cared what the people thought—the people who made Lynch.
Lynch came off as desperate, and everyone could see it.
The crowd tried chanting “Becky’s desperate,” but she cut
them off. Lynch knew the fans were trying to take over. She
called it classic British behaviour and wondered if 800
years of oppressing the Irish wasn’t enough for them.
Nikki wondered if The Man lost her balls. Lynch assured her
by saying, “I have balls. I have balls.” Nikki said Lynch
was cheap and another c-word—a coward. Lynch thought she
meant the other c-word.
Lynch agreed to a match in Paris because she wouldn’t
wrestle in Birmingham. The only good thing to come out of
Birmingham died a month ago. At least Ozzy Osbourne had the
sense to move to LA first.
Nikki knew why Lynch was so mad. No matter how hard she
tried, her name would never be as big as Bella. Nikki said
she would win the title in Paris.
Lynch went for a cheap shot, but Nikki decked her. Lynch
bailed before Nikki could hit her finisher.
(This was one of those segments where the heel was much more
entertaining than the babyface, who, in this case, just
isn’t that interesting. Nikki accused Lynch of using cheap
insults, but Nikki was the one who called her a bitch,
insinuated she was a c-word, and accused her of not having
balls. It would also be nice if they didn’t feel the need to
tell us Nikki blazed a trail every chance they get.)
********
CM Punk interview
Redmond interviewed CM Punk. He said he didn’t put Knight
through the table, but he also didn’t care that Knight fell
through a table because he was a clumsy idiot.
Punk wasn’t just hungry—he was obsessed with holding the
title. It was ripped from him by Rollins. Punk warned all
three of his opponents that he would cripple them if he had
to and walk out of Paris as champion. He finished his promo
by saying his name in the same cadence as “L.A. Knight.”
********
There was a Sheamus video package. He said Rusev’s return
was a superstar return that no one wanted or asked for.
Rusev lost his love for the game. He was passionless,
speaking from a darkened room, and acting like a bully.
Rusev was cringe. But Sheamus noticed that Rusev had woken
up in their recent battles and won back his respect. Sheamus
wanted the old Rusev back, and they would have a banger in
Paris.
********
Rhea Ripley vs. Roxanne Perez (w/Raquel Rodriguez)
The fans sang Ripley’s name in the tune of We Will Rock You.
Perez got a lot in this match. A distraction by Rodriguez
allowed Perez to take over with a suicide dive. She worked
over Ripley’s leg during a break and spiked her with a DDT
after the break.
Another distraction allowed Perez to bring Ripley off the
top with a hurricanrana. Perez followed with a double knee
drop for two. Ripley followed with a Razor’s Edge and a
running kick for two. Ripley knocked down Rodriguez, blocked
a Pop Rox, and hit Rip-tide for the pinfall win.
— Rodriguez attacked Ripley after the match. Ripley fought
her off, but an assist by Perez allowed the heels to take
her down.
Sky ran out to make the save and sent Rodriguez out of the
ring with a missile dropkick. Ripley hugged Sky as they
smiled over the heels.
Match result: Rhea Ripley defeated Roxanne Perez (10:39)
********
Seth Rollins psyched up his buddies backstage as the fans
sang his song.
Sky checked on Ripley backstage. As soon as Ripley left, an
angry Asuka confronted Sky as Sane held her back. Asuka told
Sky to stop talking to Ripley. Asuka left. Sky asked Sane to
trust her. A very sad Kairi Sane told Sky she was sorry, and
she left.
(I guess there was no specific reason for Ripley to get
involved here, but she would’ve been close by to stand up
for Sky when Asuka confronted her, but because she was off-
screen, that meant she actually vanished.)
********
AJ Styles vs. Finn Bálor
This was their fifth-ever singles match. The crowd gave a
polite applause as the match began. They wrestled back and
forth for a few minutes until Bálor dropkicked Styles off
the apron. Styles maintained control through a break.
Styles blocked a crossbody and hit a backbreaker, followed
by a fireman’s carry neckbreaker for two. Bálor responded
with a slingblade and dropkick into the corner. Styles
avoided a Coup de Grace, and a series of counters led to a
Styles Clash for a decisive pinfall win.
Match result: AJ Styles defeated Finn Bálor (8:05)
There was nothing wrong with it, but this was as standard a
match between these two men as you will ever see.
*******
Jey Uso and Roman Reigns segment
Jey Uso was all wound up as he met with Reigns backstage.
Reigns warned him to never trust Punk. Reigns also wondered
why Jey was so uptight. He told him to stop helping people.
He’s helped enough. He’s helped Reigns, their family, the
locker room and the company. It was time for Jey to do it
for himself. It wasn’t about being one of the boys or making
friends. It was about cashing in on the moments and locking
in a legacy. Reigns said that was his perspective—it was up
to Jey to be Jey. They shook hands.
This was good.
********
Bayley video, Judgment Day segment
There was another Bayley video where she could hear her
inner voice(s), and we, the audience, can hear it too. It
started with the younger, upbeat version of Bayley talking
to her, before the heel version interrupted. The two voices
argued until the real Bayley told them to stop.
Backstage, a concerned Lyra Valkyria asked Pearce if they
had checked on Bayley or if there was an update on her
medical state. He said he has called her, but there’s no
official status. He promised an update.
The male members of Judgment Day confronted Pearce about
Styles. Dom wanted things to end with Styles. Pearce agreed,
so he put Dom in a match against Styles next week on Raw in
Paris for the Intercontinental champion. Dom wasn’t happy,
and he referred to Pearce as Charles Xavier.
Bálor was selling in the background after just wrestling,
but he looked up and smiled when Pearce made the
announcement. That was funny.
********
Official card for Clash in Paris:
Roman Reigns vs. Bronson Reed
Sheamus vs. Rusev – Good Ol’ Fashioned Donnybrook Match (no
DQ, no countout)
John Cena vs. Logan Paul
Becky Lynch (c) vs. Nikki Bella for the Women’s
Intercontinental Championship
Seth Rollins (c) vs. CM Punk vs. Jey Uso vs. LA Knight for
the World Heavyweight Championship
*******
As Bron Breakker walked through the back, Reigns suddenly
shoved him into an equipment box. Reed tried to get
involved, so Reigns knocked him down with a Superman punch.
Reigns was taken away by security. Pearce told Breakker he
still had a match, and Breakker wasn’t pleased.
Knight jumped in next to attack Breakker and dragged him out
to the stage.
LA Knight vs. Bron Breakker (w/Paul Heyman)
Knight continued to beat up Bron before the match began and
attacked him around ringside. They entered the ring, and the
match started. Despite Knight attacking Bron for a good five
minutes (and after Reigns blindsided him earlier), Bron made
his own comeback and took control.
After a break, Bron gave Knight a Frankensteiner. Knight
slipped out of a press slam and hit a DDT. Knight made his
comeback and hit a neckbreaker. Bron cut him off and went
for a running spear or tackle, but Knight booted him. With
Bron standing on the top, Knight leaped to the top and
brought him down with a superplex. Knight followed with a
flying elbow drop.
Rollins’ music hit, and he ran down to ringside. Knight
chased him around ringside like an idiot and ran into a
spear by Bron. The crowd chanted for Punk, but he did not
show.
Bron followed with a spear in the ring for the pinfall win.
— Rollins and Bron attacked Knight, but Jey Uso made the
save. Jey hit Rollins with a superkick and turned his
attention to Bron, but Rollins grabbed him and hit a
Pedigree.
Punk finally entered to his music. They cut the song, but
the fans sang it anyway as Punk posted Bron. Punk attacked
Rollins, but Bron pulled Rollins out of the ring to safety.
(The crowd chanted, “Seth’s a p—sy,” which was censored.)
Punk helped Jey to his feet, but Knight confronted Punk. Jey
tried to settle them down, but Knight brushed him off. Punk
and Knight traded fists until Punk shoved Knight into Jey.
Punk grabbed Knight for a GTS, but Knight slipped out and
stumbled toward Jey, who laid him out with a superkick. Jey
stood next to Punk—then laid out Punk with a superkick, too.
Rollins was amused by this.
Rollins looked on confidently as Jey Yeeted with the crowd
as the show ended.
Match result: Bron Breakker defeated LA Knight (13:45)
Knight came across so poorly here. Breakker was blinded by
both Reigns and Knight, allowing Knight to have complete
control of the match. Breakker came back anyway and
basically won clean because Knight was too stupid to focus
on the match. I don’t think Breakker should be losing, but
beating Knight this close to the title match was not a good
idea either, especially in this manner.
Jey at least got to shine at the end, but I’m not sure any
of this would make you feel like Rollins is losing the belt
on Sunday.