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The WWE's Monday Night Raw roster headed to my town of Lincoln, Nebraska, as part of the Road To WrestleMania Tour. I was able to be in attendance, enjoying the action from a suite at the Pinnacle Bank Arena.
The WWE Raw roster is currently preparing for the last pay per view before WrestleMania as the Elimination Chamber takes place on February 25th from Paradise, Nevada just outside of Las Vegas. Both the men and (for the first time) the women will have matches inside the Chamber.
The live event from Saturday had a total of eight matches, and while no championships were defended, there was definitely a lot of action and some good lengthy matches. There were roughly 6000 people in attendance, and they were very vocal throughout the entire evening.
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#1 - Finn Balor vs. Bo Dallas
The evening started with Finn Balor coming out to a great ovation from those in attendance. Miz's music started up next with the Miztourage logo appearing on the mini-WWE Live TitanTron, and Bo Dallas would make his way out to the ring.
Dallas would get some good heat from the WWE Universe when he would try to walk out on the match after Balor attempted a Coup de Grace. Balor would get on the mic and said that the Balor Club of Lincoln, Nebraska didn't pay their hard earned money to see a coward.
Dallas would get back in the ring and take control for a short amount of time before Balor would land the Coup de Grace to end the first match.
Result - Finn Balor defeated Bo Dallas
#2 Heath Slater & Rhyno vs. The Revival
The second match of the evening saw the first-ever WWE SmackDown Tag Team Champions, Rhyno & Heath Slater, take on The Revival. Even though it has been a while since there was the family angle with Slater, the "he's got kids" chant was very prominent in Lincoln.
There was a hot tag to Slater after The Revival worked over Rhyno, but thanks to some cheating, The Revival was able to pin Slater with one of them holding on to Slater's leg from the outside preventing him from kicking out.
Result - The Revival d. Heath Slater & Rhyno
Rhyno would get in Slater's face and praise him from starting to toughen up, but tonight was not his night. Slater wanted another tag team to come face them, but instead, Braun Strowman's music played.
Slater tried to say that he's got kids, but Strowman said he talks too much and gave him the running powerslam. Rhyno got into the ring to check on his partner, and also got a running powerslam for his troubles.
#3 - Goldust vs. Curt Hawkins
The reverse Goldberg streak for Curt Hawkins was at 167 straight losses going into tonight's show in Lincoln. If he were to break the streak, he would have to defeat the veteran Goldust.
Goldust came out to a nice pop. There was even a Goldust chant to start the match. It wasn't Hawkins' night on Saturday as Goldust would hit his vintage dropdown uppercut and then roll up Hawkins for the victory.
Result - Goldust d. Curt Hawkins
The streak is now at 168 for Hawkins, and on Sunday evening, an hour down the road in Omaha, the streak hit 170 after losing to Goldust again and then Braun Strowman.
#4 Titus WorldWide vs. Gallows & Anderson
Next up was a tag match between two teams who are currently working babyface as Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson took on Titus WorldWide, accompanied by Dana Brooke. Even though Titus WorldWide has been on a winning streak, the crowd was definitely behind the Good Brothers more.
It was a lengthy and competitive match between these two teams with Gallows and Anderson coming out on top with the Magic Killer. After the match, the WWE Universe gave Titus O'Neil and Apollo Crews an ovation when their music played as they headed back up the ramp.
Result - Gallows & Anderson defeated. Titus WorldWide
#5 Bray Wyatt vs. WOKEN Matt Hardy
The lights go out for the next match of the evening and out comes Bray Wyatt. Those in attendance would welcome Wyatt with the Fireflies.
Matt Hardy came out to possibly the biggest ovation of the evening. He would grab a microphone and state that this would be the public deletion of Bray Wyatt tonight. He would then sing the OBSOLETE song that Jeff Hardy would frequently do as Brother Nero.
Matt would get the upper hand early, and Wyatt would walk back up the ramp acting like he was walking out on the match. Hardy would start a fight chant with the WWE Universe in Lincoln and Wyatt would eventually get back into the match.
In the middle of the match, Matt would grab the microphone and start laughing while the lights would go haywire. He would then hit a Twist Of Fate for the victory.
Result - Matt Hardy defeated. Bray Wyatt
#6 Jack Gallagher vs. Cedric Alexander
After the intermission, Jack Gallagher and Cedric Alexander would come to the ring for a match. They would shake hands - which used to be a staple of the Cruiserweight Division before each match, but something that hadn't been seen in a while.
Like most Cruiserweight matches, the crowd wasn't too into the match, but the great action between these guys would eventually win them over. Alexander would counter a move by Gallagher in the corner and brilliantly turn it into a Lumbar Check to get the win.
Result - Cedric Alexander defeated Jack Gallagher
#7 Bayley & Asuka vs. Nia Jax & Alexa Bliss
The WWE Raw Women's Champion, Alexa Bliss, came out to a nice ovation, but to my surprise her tag partner Nia Jax actually would receive an even bigger one. Bayley comes out to a great reaction hugging a lot of those from the WWE Universe in the front row, followed by Asuka who received one of the bigger reactions of the night.
After Nia and Alexa would work on Bayley for most of the match, Asuka would get the hot tag and knock Nia off the ring onto the outside. That would enable Asuka to apply the armbar submission on Bliss and get the win.
Result - Bayley & Asuka defeated Alexa Bliss & Nia Jax
#8 Time to walk with Elias
It was time for Elias to give Lincoln a concert next. For some reason, the WWE Universe in Lincoln did not want to walk with Elias. I'm not sure what was wrong with them, as I certainly did!
Elias would do a song trashing Lincoln, Nebraska to the tune of Alice In Chains' hit Nutshell. Elias didn't like the WWE Universe singing along with him, so it was time to change it up and do another song with the help of The Bar.
They would (poorly) do a rendition of an Irish tune before Seth Rollins would interrupt, followed by Roman Reigns to start our main event.
The Bar & Elias v. Roman Reigns & Seth Rollins in a handicap match
Before the bell rung, the bad guys would jump the good guys to get an advantage. The Bar and Elias would work on Seth Rollins until he finally would get the hot tag to Roman Reigns.
The end of the match would see Rollins hit the Blackout to a nice ovation (the WWE Universe is definitely glad that finisher is back); while at the same time Reigns hit a spear to get the victory for him and Rollins though they were at a disadvantage in the handicap match.
Result - Seth Rollins & Roman Reigns defeated The Bar & Elias
