Imperium VS The New Day and Jey Uso
Amazingly, Monday Night Raw actually started with a match this week as Imperium took on the team of The New Day and “Main Event” Jey Uso. I thought this was a pretty decent match, everyone involved here is so talented, and the way Imperium carry and present themselves is sublime. I also really enjoy watching Jey Uso, and yeah, this was good. Jey even had Gunther beat at one point, but in the end, it was Giovanni Vinci who took the pin courtesy of an Uso Splash. It’s worth mentioning that we’re getting Gunther-Uso for the Intercontinental Championship next week which should be pretty good fun!
Grade: B-
Bobby Lashley VS Bronson Reed: World Heavyweight Championship Number 1 Contender’s Elimination Chamber Qualifying Match, Cody Rhodes Promo, Liv Morgan VS Zoey Stark: Women’s World Championship Number 1 Contender’s Elimination Chamber Qualifying Match
We got a cool video package telling us the story of Andrade’s career (including his run as NXT Champion) before it was time to see who would be the next man to qualify for the Elimination Chamber as Bobby Lashley took on Bronson Reed. When I saw this match get announced last week, I was 100% confident that Bobby was going to win. However, I thought about it this morning that Bronson is from Australia so it would be cool to see him get to wrestle in front of his family and friends. I thought about this so much that whilst the action here was decent, Lashley delivering a Spear to Reed to get the victory actually ruined it slightly for me. I don’t really understand why Bronson didn’t win here and I certainly don’t understand what’s happened to Triple H’s method of letting home favourites wrestle on big shows (i.e. Zelina Vega, Sami Zayn, Butch).
Grade: C-
Sami Zayn was talking to Jackie Redmond in another already pre-taped interview before Shinsuke Nakamura appeared on the screen to warn Sami of what was to happen in tonight’s Main Event. Not only was this different, but it was effective. Especially as Sami and Shinsuke have a lot of history together. Cody Rhodes then made his way down to the ring to discuss what happened at last week’s WrestleMania Kickoff event in Las Vegas. Cody thanked the crowd for always having his back before he showed a video on the titantron of The Rock talking about “The Cody Cry-Babies” on The Pat McAfee Show. Rhodes then said he was going to get Rocky back for his slap last week before Seth “Freakin” Rollins arrived to tell Cody that he has to “Finish His Story”. Seth then told Cody that, unlike last year, he doesn’t have to do it alone and he knows someone who’s perfect to be “his Shield”. I thought this was superb, Rollins’ promo was especially great as he made it clear that he is partly to blame for this version of Roman Reigns. Also, I did pop for the World Heavyweight Champion making a Moana reference!
Grade: A-
Cathy Kelley confirmed backstage that Gunther will put his Intercontinental Championship on the line against “Main Event” Jey Uso next week before it was time for Liv Morgan to take on Zoey Stark with a spot in the Women’s Elimination Chamber on the line. This was a totally fine match, but you also wouldn’t really miss anything if you skipped it. Once again, that was partly down to the fact that the winner was so blatantly obvious. Despite Zoey putting in a strong performance, an ObLIVion from Morgan to Stark was enough for Liv to get the victory. For me, Liv should win in Australia.
Grade: C+
JD McDonagh VS R-Truth, Becky Lynch Promo, Ivar VS LA Knight: World Heavyweight Championship Number 1 Contender’s Elimination Chamber Qualifying Match
R-Truth found The Judgment Day backstage before Damian Priest made it clear to Truth that he’s had enough of him and tonight will be his execution. Truth then tried to call The Miz to get help before it was time for R-Truth to go one-on-one with JD McDonagh. JD out-wrestled Truth which makes total sense given he’s the better wrestler, but Mr. 24.7 was able to stay in the contest by just hitting all of John Cena’s moves (because of course he did). In the end, though, it wasn’t enough for Truth as a Devil Inside was enough for McDonagh to get the victory before The Judgment Day, including “Senor Money in the Bank” Damian Priest, started to beat down on Truth. However, they were chased off by DIY which I liked, but it does make me question why Ciampa and Gargano lost last Friday.
Grade: C+
Cody Rhodes told Sami Zayn to keep believing in himself before Becky Lynch arrived to hype up Elimination Chamber. Becky talked about having to have hard conversations with her 3-year-old daughter, including why her “Daddy wants to fight Maui”. Keep these Moana references coming! Anyway, Becky then raised a toast to her winning in Perth, Australia on her way to dethroning Rhea Ripley for the Women’s World Championship before Nia Jax arrived to make it clear that she’s beating Rhea at The Chamber. This brought out Ripley who started a brawl with Jax before Becky’s involvement ultimately saved The Eradicator from yet another beatdown. This was simple, but it was also fairly effective.
Grade: C+
Drew McIntyre praised Cody Rhodes for making the right decision regarding WrestleMania, but he made it clear that if Cody chooses to fight him next week, The American Nightmare won’t be making it to Mania, just like CM Punk! R-Truth then thanked DIY for coming to his aid, but the funny thing was Truth actually thought he was talking to DX. I actually think that was a really good compliment and comparison. Valhalla then arrived without the antlers as she was about to watch Ivar take on LA Knight in an Elimination Chamber Qualifying Match. I was slightly less confident when it came to predicting a winner here and I actually thought both guys did a decent job with the time they had. Despite attempted interference from Valhalla, a BFT was ultimately enough for The Megastar to pin Ivar to pick up an important victory.
Grade: C+
Sami Zayn VS Shinsuke Nakamura
After Drew McIntyre got in Sami Zayn’s way and Chelsea Green complained at Adam Pearce (rightfully so), it was Main Event time as Sami Zayn took on Shinsuke Nakamura. I like both of these guys and I enjoyed this contest, especially as I’m well aware of the history these two individuals have. Also, Sami Zayn has had two of the better TV Main Event matches in 2024 in the space of three days is a credit to his ability. Zayn also looked in a perfect position to deliver a Helluva Kick to Nakamura, but after a distraction from Drew McIntyre, Shinsuke was able to deliver a chop-block followed by a Kinshasa to pick up a surprising win. As a fan of Shinsuke Nakamura, I’ll take any win I can get right now, especially against a top star like Zayn. After the match, Drew and Shin continued to beat up Sami before Cody Rhodes ran down to make the save. This was all good stuff in my opinion!