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WWE Monday Night Raw comes waltzing back into our lives tonight (Oct. 23, 2023) from the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas, featuring all the latest build to the upcoming Crown Jewel premium live event scheduled for early next month in Saudi Arabia.
Advertised for tonight: The Judgment Day celebrate holding all the gold once again before Damian Priest takes on Jey Uso in singles action, Becky Lynch defends the NXT women’s championship against Indi Hartwell, Logan Paul makes a special appearance, Drew McIntyre vs. Sami Zayn, The New Day vs. The Alpha Academy, and a whole lot more.
Come right back here at 8 pm ET when the Raw live blog will kick off once the show starts on USA Network. It will be below this line here. Reminder: GIFs and pics allowed, but no links to illegal streams, please.
WWE RAW RESULTS AND LIVE BLOG FOR OCT. 23
How happy is the human soul, not enslaved by dull control. Left to dream and roam and play, shed the guilt of former days. Walking on the foggy shore, watch the waves come rolling home through the veil of pale moonlight, but me? I’m just here to liveblog this pro wrestling show for you, folks.
The show opens with a recap of Judgment Day reclaiming the WWE Undisputed Tag Team Championship in last week’s main event.
Finn Balor and Damian Priest make their entrance and crow about having the titles back.
Enter Cody Rhodes.
He confronts them about how Rhea Ripley is pulling strings and cutting deals, including with the Bloodline, but he wants to talk to Damian Priest specifically. He believes that last week Priest gave him a low blow, and if he thought that was the final shot in this fight, he is wrong.
They go back and forth about having another match, Damian says not tonight because he’s gotta wrestle Jey Uso tonight, but maybe they should have a match at Crown Jewel. Rhodes accepts!
But... what now? Why not give everyone a preview? Priest likes that idea and looks past Cody, which leads to Rhea Ripley and Dominik Mysterio coming down the ramp to surround Cody... JEY BLASTS DOM FROM BEHIND! Damian and Rhodes going at it, Cody sends him to the floor and smashes his face into the announce desk!
Rhodes clearing the desk, McDonagh blasts him from behind, and he and Priest work Cody over against the steps... AND PILLMANIZE HIS LEG AGAINST THE STEEL! Adam Pearce, Shane Helms, and Shawn Daivari come down with a gaggle of referees to break it up and attend to Cody!
And so we go to break.
Back from commercial, we get a recap of what we just saw, because Raw is three hours long. (Three hours long.)
Adam Pearce is backstage with Cody Rhodes and Jey Uso, as they help the American Nightmare limp along.
Alpha Academy (Chad Gable & Otis Dozovic) vs. New Day (Kofi Kingston & Xavier Woods)
Gable and Woods to start, intense mat grappling, big waistlock takedown from Chad! Tag to Kingston, a sequence of double-teams gets a nearfall! Whip reversed, monkey flip, Kofi lands on his feet and Xavier helps him block Chaos Theory! Gable with an ankle lock, Kingston slips out, back suplex, lands on his feet, duck Trouble in Paradise, Cactus Crossbody to the floor!
Xavier hops down and Otis blasts him with a shoulder block! Back body drop for Kingston and we go to break!
Back from commercial, tags made and Woods comes in hot on Gable with lariats! Whip reversed, duck a lariat, rolling elbow connects! Backsplash caught, Xavier fights out with elbows, off the ropes, tilt-a-whirl side Russian legsweep sets up a senton! Off the ropes, chest kick, schoolbody pin in return for two!
Fireman’s carry from Xavier, corkscrew powerslam... NOPE! Rolling German suplexes from the Olympian, only a nearfall! Dozovic electric chair, Gable off the top... ODE TO THE BULLDOGS BUT KOFI BREAKS IT UP! Otis blasts him, tears his shirt off... CATERPILLAR! Woods still the legal man, he returns and eats a headbutt but manages to post Dozer!
Gable with a blind tag, X is feeling it, inverted worm but Chad grabs an ankle lock on him! Struggling in the middle of the ring, tag to Otis! Scoop and Woods slips out, superkick, Kingston with a tag, diving double axehandle, Superkick Party, tag back to Woods, Trouble in Paradise sets it up, tope con giro takes care of Gable...
New Day win by pinfall with Limit Breaker from Xavier Woods on Otis Dozovic.
Becky Lynch is interviewed backstage about her title defenses tonight and tomorrow.
She says she came to Dallas looking for a fight and Indi Hartwell never lost her title and this title is for the ones who want to show how impressive they are, and if she has to defend it every night of the week, so be it. That brings her to tomorrow night, Halloween Havoc, and Lyra Valkyria, but she can’t look past Indi.
And so we go to break.
Back from commercial we get a Viking Raiders vignette talking about how the gods smile on great warriors.
A recap of the promo exchange between Drew McIntyre and Seth Rollins from last week follows.
Seth Rollins is walking backstage when he runs into Rhea Ripley.
She says this won’t take long and admits that there’s been history between him and the Judgment Day, but it was all based on respect, and they’re a little concerned that he might need some Judgment Day insurance against Drew McIntyre. Seth says she’s lost faith in her boy and she must not think Damian Priest will be able to successfully cash his briefcase in.
She makes veiled threats about how if he doesn’t go with it he’ll have no chance of having a long title reign with his broken back. He takes off his glasses and makes it clear— if there’s one thing he doesn’t want, it’s to be anything like Roman Reigns.
She’s smug and says that wasn’t a “no” and tells him to think about it.
Candice LeRae is getting Indi Hartwell ready for tonight when Natalya rolls up to wish her luck. Candice asks about Tegan Nox and if Nattie needs any help and Neidhart says Nox is hurt but she’s gonna be fine and it’s not about her tonight, it’s about Hartwell, and she’s here all night if she wants any advice.
Becky Lynch makes her entrance and we go to break.
Becky Lynch (c) vs. Indi Hartwell (NXT Women’s Championship)
Hartwell strong out the gates, sending Lynch to the floor, back in, up and over, backslide attempt from the champion, whip across, into Dis-Arm-Her, fireman’s carry, side slam, back to the floor, Indi throws her into the barricade and we go to break!
Back from commercial, we see Lyra Valkyria watching from the front row and Candice LeRae watching from backstage. Lynch exhorts Hartwell to her feet, off the ropes, Indi blasts her with a boot, only two! Up top and jockeying for position, superplex from the champ rolled into a cross armbar!
Becky turns it into a triangle, Indi with a pin and then the deadlift powerbomb counter! Folding press, only two! Off the ropes, Hartwell catches her with a spinning spinebuster, still just two! Trading nearfalls, Dis-Arm-Her applied in the middle of the ring...
Becky Lynch wins by submission with Dis-Arm-Her, retaining the NXT Women’s Championship.
Post-match, Lynch has a moment with Valkyria at ringside.
Backstage, Xia Li ambushes Candice LeRae and throat thrusts her, telling her it’s a message for Indi, too.
Adam Pearce is giving instructions to security for tonight’s contract signing and Nick Aldis rolls up.
Pearce tells him to make it quick, Aldis admits they got off on the wrong foot and he takes full responsibility. It was a rookie error and he was just trying to establish his authority. He just wants healthy competition between the two brands and not to tarnish their personal relationship.
He’s here hat in hand and offers his sincere apologies. Adam says he gets what it’s like to be the new guy, and it’s water under the bridge. And as a gesture of good will, instead of throwing Aldis out, he’ll let him stay and see how things go on the flagship.
A referee rolls up and Pearce tells him to double security for the contract signing, and we go to break.
Back from commercial, Adam Pearce is in the ring to preside over tonight’s contract signing.
He introduces the four challengers— Nia Jax, Raquel Rodriguez, Shayna Baszler, and Zoey Stark, and says since Rhea Ripley is the source of most of the chaos he’ll get her signature later. They all sign the contract.
Enter Rhea Ripley.
She says she got impatient and has something she needs to get off her chest, starting with Adam. This five-way is a conspiracy, a set-up, she could beat everyone in the ring individually, and the more he tries to control her, the more she’ll make his life a living hell.
She sees what he’s doing but the only thing that will happen is he’ll have four less women in her division by the time she’s done. None of these women can beat her and she’ll prove she’s the most dominant woman in the division. Nia gets on the mic and blathers for a while before a brawl inevitably breaks out!
The brawl continues through security trying to break it up until finally it’s just Nia and Raquel, and then Jax lays Rodriguez out with a Samoan Drop!
Ludwig Kaiser gives Giovanni Vinci a pep talk backstage about how he needs to take Johnny Gargano out tonight.
Bronson Reed rolls up and says GUNTHER gave him a hell of a fight last week and to let him know that whenever he’s ready for round two, he’ll have a go.
Akira Tozawa taps Reed on the shoulder and asks for a match. Bronson says no, Akira chops him and demands a match. Reed tells him it’s his funeral.
Maxxine Dupri rolls up to scold him for picking a fight with Reed.
Johnny Gargano makes his entrance and we go to break.
Giovanni Vinci vs. Johnny Gargano
Vinci hot out the gates, shoulder thrusts in the corner, uppercuts for forearms as Gargano gets back into it. pop-up backbreaker from Giovanni! Back and forth, Ludwig Kaiser runs interference and Vinci hammers his kidneys with a forearm! Slip out of a powerbomb, superkick connects!
Johnny keeps the pressure up...
Johnny Gargano wins by pinfall with One Final Beat.
Tommaso Ciampa is back and slides in the ring to raise Johnny’s arm and celebrate with him.
Shinsuke Nakamura gets a promo on Ricochet about how he was a good opponent but now he’s looking for someone that will release the expression trapped in his dream and set him free.
Logan Paul makes his entrance and we go to break.
Back from commercial, Logan Paul gets on the mic.
He says not only did his opponent last week lose the fight, he lost his job, sucks to be that guy. Since he’s a free agent he might be a little harsh because technically he’s a free agent too, so go run to you keyboards, because when he defeats Rey Mysterio at Crown Jewel and becomes United States Champion, he’ll give us something to talk about.
And once he is, he might have to come back to Raw and defend his title.
Enter Dominik Mysterio.
Logan tells the crowd to shut up and give Dirty Dom some respect, but they do not. Paul says Rey was right about how similar they are but he left out what hardships they had to overcome. He calls out Samantha Irvin as his favorite ring announcer and asks her to join him in the ring.
He says he owes her a genuine, heartfelt thank you and that she deserves her flowers for everything she does in this organization, and she skeptically gets up and joins them in the ring. He admits he made it hard for her when she had to announce him as the winner after he beat Ricochet, but she kept it professional and she did an incredible job, and he asks her to give the crowd a preview of Crown Jewel and announce him as the new United States Champion.
She refuses to do it and Ricochet hits the ring and takes Paul down with a double leg! Fighting Mysterio off as well, duck a lariat, big knee lift! He goes for a shooting star press but Logan pulls Dom out of the way!
Chelsea Green and Piper Niven make their entrance and we go to break.
Back from commercial, we learn that Nikki Cross is Natalya’s tag partner tonight.
Chelsea Green & Piper Niven vs. Natalya & Nikki Cross
Natalya and Green to start, looking for a quick finish, trading nearfalls, Nattie ends up on the wrong side of town, Piper tags in, seated senton, back to Chelsea, Nikki decides to take a walk and Neidhart takes advantage of the distraction! Slingshot atomic drop, sliding kick, discus lariat connects... SO CLOSE!
Nattie fights her hardest but gets double-teamed, Killswitch connects and Piper finishes her...
Chelsea Green & Piper Niven win by pinfall with a freight train crossbody from Niven on Natalya.
We get another recap of our opening segment and are informed that Cody Rhodes has suffered “an ankle injury.”
Jey Uso is warming up backstage when Drew McIntyre rolls up.
He apologizes for last week because he can’t possibly imagine how it feels to have the Bloodline cost him a championship before chuckling and telling him to get over it, and that whatever happens in this match with Sami is on him.
Sami Zayn makes his entrance to send us to break.
Back from commercial, the Miz is pestering Adam Pearce.
He complains it’s been weeks since he got something worthy of his stature and that he beat John Cena in the main event of WrestleMania and he’s the greatest Intercontinental Champion of all time and that Nick Aldis respects that.
Rhea Ripley rolls up and signs her contract and passes it off while Miz gets angry that the camera’s following her. Dominik Rolls up all hurt and sad and she wants to get ice on his chin.
Drew McIntyre vs. Sami Zayn
Collar and elbow, McIntyre backs him into the corner and breaks with a pat of his chest. Back to the lockup, shift to a side headlock, shot off, shoulder block connects! Drew hammering chops, to the floor, Zayn with a moonsault off the apron to take him out!
Back inside, off the ropes, ducking lariats, Drew reverses a crossbody into a vertical suplex! Trading strikes, lariats for chops, and Sami gets cut down! Back to the floor, Drew in control and we go to break!
Back from commercial, Zayn sidesteps and McIntyre goes into the post! Straight suplex, Sami sends him to the floor with a lariat, off the ropes... TOPE CON GIRO! Throwing Drew back inside, Zayn goes up top, McIntyre meets him with punches, jockeying for position, sunset flip powerbomb... DREW KICKS OUT!
Looking for the Blue Thunder Driver, blocked, headbutt lays Sami out! Going for the Claymore, Zayn reverses, Blue Thunder Driver... STILL NO! McIntyre with belly-to-belly suplexes, the neckbreaker and both men are down and out! Drew kips up, ready to finish it—
Enter Rhea Ripley.
Sami takes advantage, small package for two, exploder suplex into the corner, setting it up but Rhea gets on the apron to run interference...
Drew McIntyre wins by pinfall with the Claymore.
Backstage, Nick Aldis is chatting with Katana Chance and Kayden Carter when Adam Pearce rolls up.
Pearce tells him he didn’t invite him to stay so he could chat up all his superstars, and Aldis says it was jusst a friendly chat and he’s gonna take off. Adam says that’s a great idea and thanks him for coming.
Nikki Cross ambles through the frame and Pearce says he needs a drink.
Bronson Reed makes his entrance to send us to break.
Akira Tozawa vs. Bronson Reed
Tozawa throwing chops but Reed cuts him off and drops a big elbow on him! Pressing the attack, Akira starting to put a comeback together, diving crossbody caught and reversed into a Death Valley Driver! Senton follows, Bronson goes up top...
Bronson Reed wins by pinfall with the 747 Splash.
And so we go to break.
Back from commercial, Alpha Academy, New Day, and DIY are hanging out.
DIY talk about having their first tag in three years next week against Imperium and New Day tell Tozawa to keep working at it and give him one of the football belts to work out with.
Drew McIntyre and Seth Rollins run into each other backstage and bicker about Judgment Day and how neither of them need their help.
Commentary hypes up next week’s Halloween-themed show.
Jey Uso makes his entrance and we go to break.
Damian Priest vs. “Main Event” Jey Uso
Collar and elbow, Priest throws him into the corner, Uso turns it around into body blows! Big slicing right, whip reversed, Damian takes him out with a back elbow! Hammering right hands into the corner, to the floor, Uso dives on him and we go to break!
Back from commercial, Priest in control, Broken Arrow... NOPE! Trading forearms in the middle of the ring, rising intensity, Jey gets the better of the exchange and punches him into the corner! Back body drop to the apron, duck a boot, Uso with a gamengiri! Diving crossbody, only two!
Uso running hot, Samoan Drop, cover for two! Action to the floor, reverse STO into the announce desk, back inside, big lifting reverse STO... NOPE! Up for the Razor’s Edge, Jey slips out, off the ropes... SPEAR! Headed up top, diving splash, but Finn Balor comes down to distract Chad Patton from the count!
Uso gets up, right hand for Balor, taking him out with a suicide dive! Back inside, Damian meets him with right hands...
Damian Priest wins by pinfall with South of Heaven.
Post-match, Finn and Damian have a moment before getting chairs to Pillmanize Uso, but Cody limps down to even the odds and forces Balor to save Priest from the same fate!
Commentary reminds us that SmackDown will be on FS1 this week.
That’s the show, folks.
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