The men and women of WWE RAW took one step closer to Extreme Rules last night, as the stars of the flagship show took their live event tour to Reading in Pennsylvania.
WWE Universal Champion Brock Lesnar was nowhere to be seen, but all the other top stars of the red brand were in action. The show was headlined by a double main event featuring Seth Rollins vs. Samoa Joe and Roman Reigns vs. Bray Wyatt. Elsewhere, two championships were also on the line. The full results can be found below.
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#1 Apollo Crews, Kalisto, R-Truth & Curtis Axel vs. Goldust, Bo Dallas, Elias Sampson & Titus O’Neil
The show opened in a rather underwhelming way, as the dissension in the Titus Brand continued. Eight of RAW’s mid-carders did battle in an eight-man tag team match, with Kalisto, Curtis Axel, Apollo Crews and R-Truth eventually picking up the win over their unusual opponents.
Result: Apollo Crews, Kalisto, R-Truth & Curtis Axel def. Goldust, Bo Dallas, Elias Sampson & Titus O’Neil
#2 Finn Bálor vs. Curt Hawkins
The first major pop of the night was afforded to Finn Bálor, with the Irishman being welcomed like a long-lost hero in Reading. Bálor made easy work of Curt Hawkins, gaining himself a little more momentum going into the Fatal 5-Way Extreme Rules main event this Sunday.
Result: Finn Bálor def. Curt Hawkins
#3 WWE Cruiserweight Championship: Neville [c] vs. Austin Aries
The WWE Cruiserweight Championship was up for grabs next, as the Reading fans were given a taste of what they can expect inside the purple ropes at Extreme Rules. Neville and Austin Aries continued their feud on the show, with the King of the Cruiserweights coming out on top and retaining his title in the process.
Will he be so lucky at Extreme Rules?
Result: Neville def. Austin Aries to retain the WWE Cruiserweight Championship
#4 Sasha Banks, Bayley & Mickie James vs. WWE RAW Women’s Champion Alexa Bliss, Alicia Fox & Nia Jax
The women of the red brand were up next, as the babyface trio of Sasha Banks, Bayley and Mickie James took on WWE RAW Women’s Champion Alexa Bliss, Nia Jax and Alicia Fox.
Nia has become something of a non-entity since failing to win the number one contender spot ahead of WWE Payback, and she once again found herself on the losing side here, with the victory going to The Boss and company.
Result: Sasha Banks, Bayley & Mickie James def. Alexa Bliss, Alicia Fox & Nia Jax
#5 WWE Intercontinental Championship: Dean Ambrose [c] vs. The Miz
Another encounter that will take place at Extreme Rules was up next in the shape of Dean Ambrose defending his WWE Intercontinental Championship against The Miz, although the duo didn’t have any sort of stipulation here.
This was a straight wrestling match, with Ambrose getting the better of the number one contender to his championship after hitting Dirty Deeds. Whether Ambrose will still be holding the championship come Monday morning remains to be seen.
Result: Dean Ambrose def. The Miz to retain the WWE Intercontinental Championship
#6 Enzo & Big Cass vs. Gallows & Anderson vs. Heath Slater & Rhyno
The RAW Tag Team Champions and the number one contenders to their titles were absent from the show, so it was left to the rest of the division to represent RAW’s tag teams in Reading.
Enzo Amore was able to shrug off his recent backstage issues on RAW to team up with his buddy Big Cass, and the Realest Guys in the Room were able to pick up the victory in this triple threat match.
Result: Enzo & Big Cass def. Gallows & Anderson and Heath Slater & Rhyno
#7 Seth Rollins vs. Samoa Joe
The first of the night’s two main events saw longtime rivals Seth Rollins and Samoa Joe battle it out, with both men looking to get a big victory ahead of the huge Fatal 5-Way at Extreme Rules.
Joe has been a true thorn in Rollins’ side all year, and The Kingslayer was able to get a modicum of revenge by defeating the Samoan Submission Machine here. Rollins and Joe have been feuding for what feels like forever, so here’s hoping both men can move on to new programs over the summer.
Result: Seth Rollins def. Samoa Joe
#8 Roman Reigns vs. Bray Wyatt
The main event of the evening saw two more long-time rivals do battle, as Roman Reigns and Bray Wyatt closed out the show in Reading. Reigns and Wyatt make up the field for the Fatal 5-Way at Extreme Rules, with Bray a major outsider whilst Roman winning is generally the norm in WWE.
However, the two young stars ticked all the right boxes in Reading. Reigns hit Wyatt with a spear to pick up the win and sent the fans home relatively happy.
Result: Roman Reigns def. Bray Wyatt
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