WWE Raw results, recap, notes: Seth Rollins wants answers, Crown Jewel builds mostly falls flat



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One night after being congratulated on the fun and brilliant way of achieving its first all-women pay-per-view program, Monday's episode of Raw would require quite a stiff-wire run for WWE to maintain goodwill flowing in the street. Home Episode Before the Friday Jewel Event Despite a handful of fun segments, including the fallout from Dean Ambrose's heel overturn on Seth Rollins, the task has turned out to be impossible. Not only did WWE fail to capitalize on Evolution's buzz, but the decision to avoid mentioning the site of the weekend's controversial event did not exceed its goal.

The WWE's final decision to stay in business with Saudi Arabia has been criticized by the WWE, despite a number of negative headlines now forming part of the overall narrative that it was difficult to To ignore, especially after John Cena has been removed from the map without explanation, while rumors circulated that he refused to take part in the political turmoil.

If Raw had reversed his running order and closed with the action-packed segment including Braun Strowman and Brock Lesnar, who will participate in the Crown Jewel for the vacant championship, it is possible that the show ended on a note much higher. Instead, insightful fans were forced to juggle the complicated feelings surrounding the event and see how Crown Jewel contradicts Evolution's message to WWE stars on Friday's map.

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Seth Rollins asks Dean Ambrose for answers

After thanking Reigns fans for all the love they showed, Rollins turned his attention to Ambrose about his attack to close the episode of Raw last week. At first, Rollins was openly wondering if he was responsible for Ambrose 's actions, referring to his 2014 heel shift that had originally broken with The Shield. Asking a friend and a brother a question, Rollins called his Raw team championship teammate in the ring saying, "You wanted the star, Dean, yours to play, get down here and take it."

Ambrose was initially a non-show after hitting his music before slowly appearing in the crowd with a crazy look on his face. Rollins cried out to him to have at least the same decency as he had done four years earlier to look him in the eyes and face him as a man to explain himself. Ambrose just looked back as the crowd chanted, "You've been sold." Rollins got angry and shouted, "You know what man, you're really a bastard with a cold heart … I'm attached to you as long as I live and I'm going to make your life hell." Rollins, who later called him "soulless lunatic," stepped out of the ring to follow him as Ambrose slowly moved away.

Here, the way the WWE chose to follow the breathtaking development of last week has sparked a lot of interest. Keeping Ambrose silent not only added an extra layer of deviance to his new character, but also allowed the script to continue for another week without alienating the audience. One can also attribute to the WWE writing team Rollins' numerous references to his own heel turn four years ago, even going so far as to blame himself. If the WWE plays its cards well, it could be a blood feud that spreads to WrestleMania 35 as the main manifestation of the great story of all time told in NXT between former teammates Johnny Gargano and Tomasso Ciampa. Grade: B +

Brock Lesnar and Braun Strowman stage the jewels of the crown

Acting General Manager Baron Corbin opened the show with the vacant Universal Championship on his shoulder, boasting about the quality of the belt. Paul Heyman and Brock Lesnar came out, the latter guaranteeing Lesnar's win on Friday in Saudi Arabia. "It's not a prediction, it's a spoiler," Heyman said. "It's a clearer guarantee than if the results were predetermined."

Braun Strowman went out to promise Lesnar that he would "get those hands". But after Corbin tried to prevent Strowman from getting noticed by Lesnar's face, Strowman pushed him and countered Corbin's attack with a loud snap as Lesnar laughed. Strowman then struck a powerful second blow on Corbin. With the crowd cheering "once more" and Lesnar laughing and pointing, Strowman closed with a third slam of power. Lesnar finally snuck out from behind to hit Strowman with an F5 before leaving.

Say what you want about Lesnar's Q-rating with the WWE Universe after Vince McMahon has spent the last year booking it as little as possible for Roman Reigns to be applauded. It was good to see Lesnar again from Raw, a bearded and interested man. While Reigns' leukemia diagnosis, which drew him from the game for the triple title with a Friday threat, is certainly disappointing, a Lesnar-Strowman match has all the qualities to be a surprise hit if the physical levels were off the charts. The release of Reigns also gives Strowman a chance to earn the deserved title he has been waiting for for almost a year. Monday's teasing was strong. Category B

D-Generation X surpasses the Brothers of Destruction

Kane and Undertaker closed the broadcast by cutting an evil promo focused on their plans to take the souls of Triple H and Shawn Michaels and send them to "the fiery gates of hell" in Saudi Arabia. "It will not be fast, it will be a slow and agonizing pain," Undertaker said. "It will not only be the end of an era, it will be the end of your mistake." Triple H responded to Kane's challenge by fighting for HBK to be right behind him. Instead, Michaels snuck behind Taker inside the ring and dropped him off with Sweet Chin Music before escaping just as Kane came running. The D-Generation X is closed with two chops in the crotch before Taker gets up to end the show.

It was nothing short of brutal. Forget all the nostalgic positives that could be deduced from this tired quarrel that is completely devoid of anything that looks like a convincing scenario. It's the physical embodiment of the greed surrounding the latest WWE business in Saudi Arabia, and nothing less than a bastard way to end Michaels's retirement for eight years. Triple H, who has played his dual role in recent years as head of Raw's heel and NXT's babyface patriarch, is just too old at 49 to throw neon glow sticks at the crowd and wave his hands on his genitals. What a waste of time. Grade: D

What happened to Raw?

Finn Balor def. Bobby Lashley via disqualification: Lio Rush is teasing Balor with a pre-game promo that called him "lucky" for his "fluke" win over Lashley last week. Rush then ensured an embarrassing presence throughout the match by shouting "Lashley" in the microphone and constantly threatening the interference. Twice Rush pushed Balor from the top rope late to prevent the coup de grace, and the second time drew the eyes of the referee for the DQ. Later, Lashley hit Balor and held his arms as Rush slapped and taunted him several times.

John Cena excluded from Crown Jewel: Shortly after Lashley's victory, he joined Rush to answer Corbin's summons in the coaching hall. After Corbin congratulated Lashley for beating Balor, he named him Cena's replacement at Friday's World Cup in Saudi Arabia. Although no reason was given beyond Corbin's disgusting argument that Cena was a person who was not qualified for the tournament, the news seems to coincide with information that Cena had retired for protest WWE's engagement with Saudi Arabia and increased political tensions. Later, Kurt Angle made a promo video promising that he was neither too old nor too crazy to win the tournament. The stands were also unveiled with first-round clashes Seth Rollins vs. Bobby Lashley, Angle vs. Dolph Ziggler, The Miz vs. Jeff Hardy and Randy Orton vs. Rey Mysterio.

Lita, Trish Stratus, Natalya, Bayley and Sasha Banks def. Mickie James, Alicia Fox and Riott Squad bid in a match of 10 women: This one was felt like a free package of best hits for everything that happened the day before at WWE Evolution. The babyfaces took turns taking part in tandem movements, and most of the large Sunday recurring spots were recurrent, including a Bayley elbow and another Litasault. The finish line experienced another retreat when Natalya hit a Hart Attack on Fox to honor her late father, Jim "The Anvil" Neidhart, and forced the tap through the Sharpshooter.

Elias def. Jinder Mahal via pinfall: Elias started playing the guitar saying that he was "the living truth and the truth will make you free". He then sought revenge on Corbin for attempting to sabotage his performance last week, which led Elias to look for him behind the scenes. After rejecting Dana Brooke's song request, Elias played a melody outside the Corbin locker room with words that made fun of him. Mahal snuck in from behind to attack him brutally, including throwing a football kick in the face. Corbin instantly reserved them for a match and, after the advertisement, Elias was forced to work from below as a newly turned face. Despite the intervention of the Singh brothers, Elias won the match with a late rally and his Drift Away finisher.

Bobby Roode and Chad Gable def. The Ascension via Pinfall and AOP in triple threat: This one was surprisingly fun as long as it lasted. AOP was attacked by both teams even before it started. The end came when Gable hit Viktor at a great bedtime party, just when Roode followed up with a naked boy for the 1-2-3. After the match, AOP held out by eliminating the four players, including hitting a Super Collider on Roode & Gable.

Nia Jax def. Ember Moon via pinfall: This match had been booked earlier in the night when Jax had had trouble with Moon, who had asked too many questions during a behind-the-scenes interview and then accepted Moon's challenge. The two old friends continued to separate while Jax dominated widely despite the dangerous Swanton bomb put by Moon on the floor. The match was interrupted late by the music of Tamina Snuka, forcing both wrestlers to stop and watch. Jax then grabbed Moon with a sneaky bend and wedged her up after a leg crash. Snuka and Jax came face to face before Snuka smiled and walked away.

Kalisto & Lince Dorado def. Waking up by jamming: This random appearance of the 205 Live Lucha House Party featured fun places, including a suicide dives from Dorado. The brief match ended when Kalisto hit Scott Dawson at a Salida del Sol, just when Dorado hit a cross body to steal the target and intercept Dash Wilder's attempt to run.

Dolph Ziggler def. Apollo Crews via pinfall: Ziggler first showed respect towards Angle before Friday's World Cup, saying he respected him almost all his life as an amateur wrestler. But backtracking was fast, as Ziggler reminded: "The worst thing that ever happened to this area, I'm the best in the world." During the match, the crews had a good run of early attacks and a near fall following a press slam and a permanent card game as part of his recent thrust. But Crews could only find a pair of knees during an attempt to hit the top rope frog, followed by Ziggler with a super kick for the win.

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