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WWE Monday Night Raw comes waltzing back into our lives tonight (July 16, 2018) from the Keybank Center in Buffalo, New York, featuring the fallout show from the Extreme Rules pay-per-view (PPV) that went down just last night in Pittsburgh.
Advertised for tonight: Kurt Angle has made some demands of Brock Lesnar, and more!
Come right back here at 8 p.m. ET when the Raw live blog kicks off once the show starts on USA. It will be below this line here. (REMINDER: NO GIFS OR PICS ARE ALLOWED IN THE COMMENTS SECTION. OFFENDERS WILL BE BANNED.)
WWE RAW RESULTS AND LIVE BLOG FOR JULY 16
Ticking away the moments that make up a dull day, fritter and waste the hours in an offhand way. Kicking around on a piece of ground in your home town waiting for someone or something to show you the way. Tired of lying in the sunshine staying home to watch the rain. You are young and life is long and there is time to kill today and then one day you find ten years have got behind you. No one told you when to run, you missed the starting gun, but me, I’m ready to liveblog this here pro wrestling show for you.
The show opens with an “In Memory...” graphic for the late Masa Saito.
Kurt Angle is live in the ring with a microphone. He thanks all the Raw superstars who competed last night and says they make him proud, but there’s one superstar who hasn’t shown much effort, and that’s Brock Lesnar. Last night he gave Brock an ultimatum-- show up on Raw, agree to terms on a defense, or be stripped of his Universal Championship.
It’s been over a day and he hasn’t heard anything from Brock or his representatives, so he’s stripping him of the title right now!
This brings Paul Heyman out, furious and smug. Kurt cuts his intro off and tells him if Brock doesn’t come out right this second he’s wasting his time. Paul says it’s interesting that he says it that way, because his client is not here tonight. Angle says he’s got no choice but to strip him, and Heyman screams and runs to the ring, asking him to hold on.
Paul says he’s got it wrong, everybody thinks Lesnar doesn’t care about being Universal Champion and he only cares about becoming UFC Heavyweight Champion again, but nothing could be further from the truth. Brock loves being in WWE, but what he wants to do is represent the entire WWE Universe and challenge for the UFC title with the Big Red Belt firmly around his waist so that when he wins the UFC title, he does it representing WWE.
He wants to be a two-sport champion the same way Kurt Angle did, you see. Angle says if that’s his goal, more power to him, but he’s gonna keep it simple-- Brock will defend at SummerSlam or he’s no longer champion. Paul freezes and Kurt demands an answer, so he says he drives a hard bargain and Lesnar will defend at SummerSlam. Paul congratulates the crowd for making their voices heard, that they want more Brock, and this just gets a pile of boos.
Heyman finishes talking about how they get their choice of who gets victimized by Brock, and Bobby Lashley makes his entrance. Bob says when he came back to WWE, he had two goals in mind, and he accomplished the first last night when he beat Roman Reigns, and now it’s time to accomplish the other, to beat Brock Lesnar for the Universal Championship.
Drew McIntyre makes his entrance and talks about he came here with goals, too, and phase one was keeping the Intercontinental Championship around Dolph Ziggler’s waist, and now it’s time for phase two, the Universal Championship.
Enter Seth Rollins. He gets in Drew’s face and says if Kurt is looking for an opponent for Brock, he’s right here.
This brings Elias out, playing his guitar on his way down the ramp. He says nothing sounds nicer than Elias as Universal Champion and next week, July 23, his debut album drops, so it only makes sense that they ride that success to SummerSlam and put him in against Brock Lesnar.
Finn Balor joins the pile and says if you’re talking about what makes sense, he has one question-- who was the very first Universal Champion? Ergo, it only makes sense that he should be the one to challenge Brock.
One more, you knew he was coming out, it’s the Big Dog. He doesn’t have any excuses, and he doesn’t care about Brock Lesnar, he just wants to fight somebody tonight. Kurt says they’re all deserving to be out here, so he’s gonna run a mini-tournament-- two triple threats tonight, and the winners wrestle in a #1 contender’s match next week.
The matches are Elias vs. Rollins vs. Lashley and McIntyre vs. Balor vs. Reigns, and the latter will start right now!
Or, well, after the break.
Back from commercial, Kurt Angle’s walking backstage when he runs into Constable Baron Corbin.
He berates Angle for booking matches without asking him nor putting him in either of them. Angle points out Finn beat him last night and keeps moving.
Drew McIntyre vs. Finn Balor vs. Roman Reigns (WWE Universal Championship #1 Contender’s Qualifying Match)
Reigns slugging it out with McIntyre, backing him into the corner, getting shoved down, Balor replaces him with punches, big slicing right takes Drew out and Finn goes for a schoolboy on Roman but comes up empty. McIntyre puts the Big Dog in the corner, chops and punches, over to Balor, giving him a chop, front kick for Reigns, goozle on Finn. Off the ropes, Balor with a dropkick and Roman clotheslines Drew out of the ring!
Balor clotheslines Reigns out and hits a tope con giro on both men! Finn chopping McIntyre in the corner, whip reversed, he takes the buckles hard, Roman ducks a lariat but gets caught by a belly-to-belly suplex for two! Putting boots to the Big Dog, right hand, smashing his face into the turnbuckles but Balor comes over for punches. Back elbow drops the Irishman, Mafia kick for Reigns and Drew is in control!
Drawing Roman up, straight suplex, only good for two and McIntyre goes back over to Finn. Smashing his face into the turnbuckle, big chop, back to Reigns, knocking him down with a punch and getting a cover into mounted punches. Referee Dan Engler warns him off the hair, Drew knocks Balor off the apron and goes back to Roman with a hangman’s neckbreaker for a nearfall as we go to break.
Back from commercial, McIntyre still in control, slamming Balor on the floor before taking him back inside for stomps. Boots to Roman as well, he makes a comeback with the leaping lariat, Finn clobbers him with a forearm, whip reversed and the Big Dog drops him with a lariat! Balor counters the Drive-By, double stomp on the apron! DREW MCINTYRE TOPE CON GIRO!
Finn with a double stomp to the back of Drew’s neck off the apron! In with Reigns, double stomp for him, only a nearfall! Half-halch but Roman rams him into the corner to block 1916, Finn sidesteps the charge, enzuigiri connects, Reigns down and out but Drew catches the Irishman with a chairshot and knocks him to the floor! Waffling Roman with the chair, he gets cut off with a slicing right, punches in the corner, but he manages to put the Big Dog into the post for a nearfall as we go back to break.
Back from commercial, Roman stalks up on Drew and launches into the corner lariats, finishing with the big boot. Calling for it, pounding the mat, McIntyre counters with a spinebuster! Thinking about a powerbomb, Balor waffles Drew with a chair this time, knocking him out of the ring with a pair of shots! Chair in hand, Finn calls his shot and wails on the Big Dog!
Repeated shots, he’s fired up, Roman spills to the floor and Balor heads out after, shotgun dropkick puts Drew into the barricade, front chancery applied, but Finn steps aside and Reigns spears McIntyre to hell! Sling Blade on Roman! Another one back in the ring, but when Balor charges to capitalize he takes a Superman Punch... NOT ENOUGH! Howling, Finn blocks the spear with a knee, shotgun dropkick, Coup de Grace... MCINTYRE WITH THE SAVE!
Drew throws Finn into the steel steps, heads back in, Superman Punch counters Claymore, Finn with a roll-up, Superman Punch for him and McIntyre clocks Reigns with a headbutt! Superman Punch takes Drew out, off the ropes..
Roman Reigns wins by pinfall with a spear on Finn Balor, qualifying for next week’s WWE Universal Championship #1 contender’s match.
Bayley is backstage with Kurt Angle asking where Sasha Banks is, but she’s not here. Angle asks her about the counseling and she says she really tried, did everything she could to meet Sasha halfway, and she thinks Sasha tried too, but it just didn’t work and she doesn’t think they’ll ever be together again. Kurt says he thinks she’s wrong and wants them to settle it in the ring in a tag match against Dana Brooke and Alicia Fox.
Angle says if they can’t get along, one of them will get traded to SmackDown.
Dolph Ziggler is shown backstage with a crew member polishing his title to send us to break.
Back from commercial, Dolph Ziggler makes his entrance and we get a recap of his match against Seth Rollins from last night.
He gets on the mic and says all he did last night was everything he said he was going to do, he put on an absolute clinic. He’s more of a Black Sabbath fan than Robert Downey, Jr., because he is Iron Man (Name all five records with Tony Martin singing on them, poser!) and he is the Intercontinental Champion. He put the entire roster on notice and he wasn’t kidding.
He always gives credit where it’s due and he respects everything Seth has done for the title, but he’s no Dolph Ziggler. He not only beat Rollins once, but he beat him five times.
Enter Bobby Roode. He says he knows Dolph was trying to give credit where it’s due but he hasn’t heard him give any credit to Drew McIntyre, without whom he wouldn’t be out here bragging right now. He should be on his hands and knees thanking Drew, because if not for him he’d be down at the stand-up comedy club telling bad jokes.
That reminds Ziggler, when he was headlining Extreme Rules last night, how fun was it watching him from the sidelines? Being honest, the sidelines suck, and that’s why he’s out here right now, to challenge Dolph for the title right now. Ziggler begs off and Bobby mocks him as afraid of doing it on his own and Dolph agrees, calling a referee down!
...but Dolph gets on the mic and says he’s giving him a match, not a title match.
Bobby Roode vs. Dolph Ziggler
Roode with a kick to the gut, Glorious DDT blocked and Ziggler grabs a hammerlock. Shift to a side headlock, shot off, shoulder block, off the ropes, hip toss, side headlock takeover and Bobby’s got him grounded. Dolph to his feet, into the corner to break dirty with a kick over the objections of referee Shawn Bennett and Ziggler hits a side headlock takeover of his own.
Bobby to his feet, wrenching his way out of it and reversing, Dolph shoots him off and takes the shoulder block. Off the ropes, pass Ziggler to the floor, headed out after him, ramming his face into the barricade and taking him back inside. Dolph begs off, Roode jaws at him and gets low bridged to the floor and dropkicked in the face when he returns to the ring.
Cover gets two, and Ziggler grabs a reverse chinlock and Roo breaks with blody blows. Dolph with a neckbreaker, another two count, and Bobby comes back with chops and punches, backing the champion into a corner. Whip reversed, hard out the corner with a lariat, Ziggler puts him into the turnbuckle and we go to break.
Back from commercial, Dolph has a bodyscissors reverse chinlock in, but Bobby starts shaking life back into himself and sits up. To his feet, body blows get a boot to the midsection, back elbow up on the charge, boot up, sidestep the corner body avalanch, Ziggler lands on his feet on a back body drop and puts the sleeper hold on! Roode slips out, lariats connect and he gets a huge uranage!
Corner lariat, bulldog denied, boots up, to the second for the diving blockbuster and the Glorious One is fired up! Glorious DDT countered with a back body drop into a rana pin... NOPE! Kick to the knee, Fameasser denied, O’Connor roll, reversed, Glorious DDT countered again, Zig Zag... ROODE KICKS OUT! Lying in wait, Ziggler tunes the band up, superkick blocked, leg pick to a catapult, spinning spinebuster... ONLY A NEARFALL!
Dolph snaps Bobby’s neck over the ropes, Zig Zag blocked, boots up in the corner, to the second, nobody home, comes up lame, kick to the leg, big DDT blocked but Ziggler’s got a followup in the chamber...
Dolph Ziggler wins by pinfall with a superkick.
We then get a recap of our opening segment, because Raw is three hours long, and an explanation of the process to crown Brock’s next challenger.
Toss backstage to Bobby Lashley shadowboxing, he says they say the Beast fears no man, but he says the Beast has never fought anyone like him with the skills and ability to slay him, and we go to break.
Back from commercial, Bobby Roode is walking backstage when he runs into a slow-clapping Mojo Rawley who asks if he’s supposed to be glorious before walking away.
Mojo Rawley vs. Tyler Breeze
Mojo right in with a double leg pickup into the corner and repeated shoulder thrusts. Drawing him up, Breeze floats over on a slam, dropkick, lariat to the floor, plancha but nobody’s home and Rawley destroys him with a pounce! Throwing him back in the ring, the cover gets two. Grounded half nelson chinlock, slamming Tyler back down when he struggles up and locking it right back on.
Breeze with a sunset flip, only two, enzuigiri connects and Mojo is staggered. Corner lariat, whip reversed, pass Rawley to the floor, he leaps back in and clobbers Tyler in the corner. Off the ropes... POUNCE! Off the ropes one more time, big forearm strike...
Mojo Rawley wins by pinfall with the Alabama Slam.
Bayley and Sasha Banks are shown walking backstage, their match is after the break.
Back from commercial in time for entrances.
Alicia Fox & Dana Brooke vs. Bayley & Sasha Banks
Bayley and Fox to start, Alicia backing her into the corner and popping her with a right hand. Arm wringer to a whip, up and over, O’Connor roll, no dice and Foxy goes to the ropes for sanctuary before landing a boot for a nearfall of her own. Tag to Brooke, whip into the corner, handspring back elbow, putting boots to the Hugger. Into the corner, another handspring, Bayley steps aside but Dana clears the apron before she can get the tag.
Punches from Bayley, off the ropes with the headlock punches, lariats, knock Alicia off, back elbow, but Brooke counters the tube man taunt with a lariat. Dumping the Hugger to the floor, Fox takes advantage, mounted slaps and Banks makes the save! Iconoclasm takes Dana off the apron and to the floor! Sasha throwing them into barricade and apron, warned by referee Darrick Moore, diving crossbody off the apron...
The match goes to a no contest, presumably, although no finish is announced because who cares about that, right?
Commentary hypes up an update on Kevin Owens and we go to break.
Back from commercial, Sasha is packing in the locker room when Bayley rolls up and Banks says she always cared, but she has trouble talking about her feelings. She loves a lot of things about Bayley, for some reason she can always tell when something’s wrong, but she doesn’t understand why she can’t get that she loves her, always has and always will.
Braun Strowman is interviewed backstage about his match last night. He regrets not having an opportunity to congratulate Kevin Owens on his victory last night, and he stayed out of tonight’s #1 contender’s qualifiers because he’s got the Money in the Bank briefcase that’ll get him a shot whenever he wants.
Michael Cole offers a medical update on Kevin Owens, saying he’s got bruised ribs and a neck strain and he’ll be re-evaluated later in the week.
The B-Team make their entrance, they have a match after the break.
Back from commercial and the match is in progress.
The Ascension (Konnor & Viktor) vs. the B-Team (Bo Dallas & Curtis Axel)
Axel puts Konnor into the post and tags Dallas in, he puts boots to the Wastelander and we see the Revival watching backstage. Tag back to Curtis, he snaps off a DDT for two and grabs a front chancery before shifting to a half nelson and getting kicked away. Tags made on both sides, Viktor in hot with forearms and chops, whip across, corkscrew uppercut, sidestep the second charge but the Wastelander comes out of the corner with a flying knee!
The match breaks down, Konnor low-bridged, back elbow to Viktor, tag made...
The B-Team win by pinfall with a back suplex / neckbreaker combination on Viktor.
The Deleters of Worlds cut in and Bray Wyatt says he hopes they enjoy their moment of glory but it will not last. Matt Hardy says they’ve disrupted the equilibrium of the heavens and they must pay, so they’re gonna have a rematch next week and delete the B-Team forever.
This is followed by a recap of the Raw Women’s Championship match from last night that sends us to break.
Back from commercial, Alexa Bliss makes her entrance, flanked by Mickie James.
She gets on the mic and lists off all the elements of her match last night as a way to crow about retaining the title. She says she knows we were thinking there’s no way she could beat Nia Jax, but last night she wrote the final chapter in their feud and it ended how all great stories end, with the bully looking at the lights and the goddess victorious.
She’s dominated the women’s division for so long because her strongest muscle is her brain and if she’s being honest outsmarting Nia wasn’t that hard. She’s beaten everyone in the locker room, and Ronda Rousey doesn’t count because she’s suspended and thus, not in the locker room. After last night, she should be suspended indefinitely, because she was supposed to be out here as a fan--
Ronda makes her entrance down the steps and Alexa bids everyone a good night and to drive safe and makes a break for it. Rousey cuts them off on the stage! They run off to the ring but Ronda catches up to them and hits a Death Valley Driver on James before grabbing an armbar! Bliss pulls her pal out of the ring with some help from referees but Rousey gives chase, taking the whole pile down!
Drawing the champion up, she drags her to the ring, judo throw into the armbar but Kurt Angle rushes down the ramp to call her off! He tells her she needs to calm down after what she did last night. She has two days left on her suspension and she needs to go home and wait it out. Baron Corbin comes out and says Rousey needs to be reprimanded and that Angle needs to put his foot down and do his job.
Angle agrees and adds another week to her suspension, but that’s not enough for the Constable. He says Stephanie McMahon isn’t going to be happy and he’s calling her right now... or he would if he hadn’t left his phone in the office. He orders Kurt to stay where he is, and after he leaves, Angle reveals that he has the phone. He tells Ronda he’s giving her a match with Alexa Bliss once her suspension is up, but if she pulls another stunt like that it’s going away.
Even better, it’s for the title at SummerSlam!
Commentary recaps all our Brock Lesnar-related stuff from tonight.
This is followed by a backstage interview with Seth Rollins. After last night he has to be honest, it wasn’t his night, but tonight is a different story, as is next week and SummerSlam. As for Roman Reigns, he’s got all the respect in the world for him, he’s his brother, but if his road to SummerSlam goes through him, he has to do what he has to do. And if he knows Roman like he thinks he does, he’d say the same thing to him.
On that note, we go to break.
Back from commercial we get some hype for Akira Tozawa vs. Lio Rush on 205 Live tomorrow night.
A locker room promo from Titus Worldwide sets up their match against Authors of Pain, talking about respect and how they’ll hit back and take care of business.
Authors of Pain (Akam & Rezar) vs. Titus Worldwide (Apollo Crews & Titus O’Neil)
Crews and Akam to start, Rezar runs interference and Akam clubs him down. Knee lifts and a smash into the post take O’Neil out and he gets run over with a lariat on the floor! Back in, Apollo with an enzuigiri and a dropkick, but Akam gets him in the corner and tags Rezar in. Full nelson slam, fired up, shoulder thrusts in the corner, tossing him aside and tagging Akam back in.
Manhattan Drop into a boot, quick tag back, double team half nelson gutbuster, another quick tag, drawing Crews up...
Authors of Pain win by pinfall with the Last Chapter on Apollo Crews.
Backstage, the Riott Squad run into No Way Jose and his conga line, Sarah Logan has a match against Ember Moon after the break.
Back from commercial in time for entrances.
Ember Moon vs. Sarah Logan
Collar and elbow, flip out, Moon handsprings to her feet and Logan takes her down with a waistlock. Front chancery, Ember reverses, into a gutwrench, to a waistlock, Sarah breaks with a back elbow and is fired up. Whip, Moon to the second and she gets clobbered to the floor with a forearm! Throwing Ember back inside, cover gets two, choking her over the ropes, stomping away, Liv gets a cheap shot in from the floor but it’s not enough to put Moon away.
Front chancery, suplex reversed to a small package for a nearfall. Sidestep a kick, Logan hits a cradle German suplex... NOPE! Following it up with a grounded cobra clutch, reversed to a cover but Sarah rolls her back to seated, shifts to hit a cobra clutch backbreaker and keeps the hold locked on as Ember begins to fade. Kick to escape, lands on her feet off a back suplex, sidestep and clobber her with a forearm!
Lariat into half nelson knee lifts, a huge standalone knee, off the ropes, basement reverse STO, knock Liv from the apron, Sarah with a schoolboy for a nearfall! Superkick connects, only two! Dropkick sends Logan to the floor, Moon runs the ropes for a suicide dive! Back inside, cover gets two, Liv runs interference again...
Sarah Logan wins by pinfall with a lateral press.
We go backstage with Elias as he’s getting mic’d up to send us to break.
Back from commercial, commentary hypes up next week’s tag title match.
In the ring, Elias is here to sing us a song. He says he forgot where he was for a second but when he remembered he was in Buffalo he got depressed. He then hypes up his record release on July 23, and the title of the album is Walk With Elias. Now all he needs to do is get through this performance and he’ll be on his way. His song tonight is about how Brock has to go and he’d rather watch paint dry than listen to Lashley speak and how Rollins should take a dive off Niagara Falls.
He’s cut off by the Architect’s entrance, but we go to break before the match itself can begin.
Back from commercial in time for Bobby Lashley’s entrance.
Elias puts boots to Rollins during Bobby’s entrance!
Bobby Lashley vs. Elias vs. Seth Rollins (WWE Universal Championship #1 Contender’s Qualifying Match)
Seth is good to go and we’ve got a bell!
Elias right in on him again, putting boots to him but Lashley comes from behind with right hands and puts his face into the turnbuckles. Kick to the midsection, right hand, whip across but the Drifter slips away to the floor, where he gets run over by Rollins! Seth inside against Bob, circling, collar and elbow, side headlock takeover from the Architect, reversed to a pin, back to the headlock, Lashley gets to his feet, shot off, leapfrog and a shoulder block!
Knocking Elias off the apron, Bob hits a side headlock takeover of his own, gets shot off, drop down, dropkick from Rollins! Chops in the corner, whip to the corner, charging in, back body drop to the apron, springboard countered with a kick to the gut! Looking for a suplex, the Drifter hits a knee, Rollins with a schoolboy nearfall, Elias puts him into the corner, electric chair powerbomb reversed to a Frankensteiner!
Elias with a knee... NOPE! And we go to break.
Back from commercial, Elias has a cutthroat choke locked in on Rollins but the Architect fights to his feet and gets saved by Lashley heading to the apron. Jawbreaker, lariat, back elbow, overhead belly-to-belly and the Drifter’s out of it! Bob with a swinging neckbreaker to Seth, shoulder thrust on Elias, up for the vertical but Rollins stops him short.
Off the ropes, snap scoop powerslam, the thrust spinebuster, only two! The action heads outside, Elias puts Lashley into the post and back inside, headed up top, the diving elbow drop connects... NOPE! Rollins in with a frog splash, the Drifter picks the bones... NO GOOD! Seth drags himself back into the ring, Elias gets him in the electric chair, out with elbows, to the corner, boot up on the charge, off the second with the diving blockbuster for a nearfall!
Rollins takes him up top, jockeying for position, the Drifter with an avalanche gourdbuster and Lashley comes in to join him with mounted punches. Seth runs over... BUCKLE BOMB! Running up to Elias, superplex into the Falcon Arrow! CAN’T GET THE DEAL DONE! The Drifter drifts to the floor, Rollins surveys his kingdom, off the ropes, suicide dive on Elias! Back inside, dive on Bob too!
Back in, duck a lariat, enzuigiri, Sling Blade, tuning the band up, low kick, off the ropes... BLACKOUT! LASHLEY BREAKS IT UP! Elias rolls out again, Bob and Seth slowly come to their senses and trade forearms in the middle of the ring. Rollins fired up with a rush, off the ropes, turned inside out with a clothesline! Up for the delayed vertical... AND DOWN!
Lashley calls for it but Seth leaps over the spear! Pin comes up empty, Avada Kedavra connects, off the ropes and Elias trips him up! Headed inside, Bob capitalizes...
Bobby Lashley wins by pinfall with a spear on Elias, qualifying for the WWE Universal Championship #1 Contender’s Match against Roman Reigns next week.
Lashley celebrates by slapping hands with the front row and posing on the stage.
That’s the show, folks.