'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
#4 Brock Lesnar vs. Samoa Joe
Though it was nowhere near as bad as SmackDown became, the post-WrestleMania season on RAW was far from good. Numerous problems were strewn throughout the show. Mercifully, Stephanie McMahon was gone, but not many other positives were to be found. The main event scene was directionless with no Universal Champion around and the mid-card was dominated by the endless Miz/Ambrose feud, while the women's division suffered from the worst feud of the year in Bayley vs. Alexa Bliss.
Trending
RAW needed a kick in the rear, badly. It got that with Samoa Joe.
Did you know a top WWE Superstar just wrestled outside the company? More details HERE
Winning a match of the year contender at Extreme Rules, Samoa Joe became the challenger for Brock Lesnar's title, and when the Beast finally returned in June, sparks flew everywhere.
For a month, we got intense segment after intense segment. Samoa Joe was on fire as he ambushed Brock Lesnar and got the better of him numerous times, choked out Paul Heyman, and declared to the entire world that he didn't fear the Universal Champion. Joe showed just how good he is on the mic and Brock showed how great he can be at making other people look awesome as well.
To put it bluntly, RAW's main event scene, and the entire red brand itself felt like it went from 0 to 100 in seconds.
The match at Great Balls of Fire wasn't a classic, but it was a solid effort that did what it needed to do. Brock Lesnar barely escaped, which would ultimately lead to this feud intersecting with another great one, setting the stage for a colossal war at SummerSlam. In other words, RAW's main event would only get hotter.
Samoa Joe didn't have a prominent role before this. In fact, he wasn't even on the WrestleMania card. That won't be the case in New Orleans next year. He'll certainly have a big spot and it's partially thanks to this feud, which elevated him from an afterthought into one of RAW's key players.
