WWE Raw: Analysing and grading each segment (5 March, 2018)

With WrestleMania 34 just five weeks away, another episode of WWE Raw took place in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on Monday night.

The show featured seven matches, including a rematch between Asuka and Nia Jax and a ‘Symphony of Destruction’ match between Braun Strowman and Elias, as well as noteworthy promo segments involving Ronda Rousey, The Miz and Paul Heyman.

In this article, we take a look at all nine major segments and analyse what was good and bad about this week’s episode of WWE’s flagship show.

#1 Kurt Angle confirms WrestleMania tag match

Storyline: Stephanie McMahon slapped Ronda Rousey in the face at Elimination Chamber after the new Raw roster member put Triple H through a table. The following night, Kurt Angle apologised for saying Stephanie and Triple H only signed Ronda because they wanted to “own the b****”, and the show closed with HHH sucker-punching Angle.

Segment: When it was revealed that Ronda can choose any active roster member, excluding champions, to face at WrestleMania, she chose Stephanie. Triple H was adamant that the match cannot happen but Kurt used his right as GM and said the match will take place, only it’ll be himself and Ronda vs. HHH & Stephanie. A brawl ensued and, for the first time since her official signing, Ronda got her hands on Stephanie and slammed her to the mat with a Samoan Drop

Verdict: Okay, so Ronda was a little too quick to announce who she wanted to face at WrestleMania, saying “you” to Stephanie before the pre-prepared drum roll even started, but the rest of the confrontation was very good. This was much better than last week’s show-closing segment and everything about this storyline (good or bad!) makes for must-watch TV.

Grade: B

#2 Asuka def. Nia Jax

Storyline: Asuka maintained her undefeated streak by beating Nia Jax at Elimination Chamber. The Royal Rumble winner, who still hasn’t officially confirmed if she will challenge for Alexa Bliss’ Raw Women’s title at WrestleMania, also made Mickie James tap out in a six-woman tag match on Raw last week.

Segment: Nia was dominant for 90 percent of her rematch with Asuka but “The Empress of Tomorrow” prevailed with her trusty armbar submission, which she kept locked in for at least two minutes before Nia slowly tapped out. Later in the show, Alexa attempted to comfort her injured friend backstage but only succeeded in making her cry.

Verdict: Another week of Raw, another week with no confirmation on who Asuka will face at WrestleMania! Still, this was another impressive match between the two women. The backstage segment between Alexa and Nia was put together well and planted the seeds for a potential ‘Mania match between the two best friends.

Grade: B

#3 The Bar def. The Revival

Storyline: Sheamus and Cesaro bragged last week how they have already beaten every team in the Raw tag division. The Revival hit back on Twitter, listing all the teams they have defeated in WWE, and they were told they’d be given a title match against The Bar at WrestleMania if they could defeat them in a non-title match on Raw.

Segment: In a relatively short match (excluding TV advert time), it looked for a moment that The Revival would win when Dash Wilder hit Cesaro with a splash from the top rope. However, “The Swiss Cyborg” kicked out and pinned Scott Dawson a minute later after a Neutraliser.

Verdict: With five weeks to go until WrestleMania, this didn’t really tell us much about the direction WWE will take with the Raw Tag Team titles. Will we see another multi-man match? Will an unlikely alliance form to challenge The Bar? With every other Raw tag team seemingly out of the picture, we suspect the latter might happen.

Grade: C

#4 John Cena def. Goldust

Storyline: John Cena revealed on Raw last week that a dream WrestleMania match against The Undertaker will not be possible. The next night on SmackDown, Cena defeated AJ Styles to earn a place in the WWE Championship six-pack challenge match that will take place on Sunday at Fastlane.

Segment: Cena stated his intention to become a 17-time champion at Fastlane and revealed that, if he wins, he will grant Styles his rematch for the title in a Triple Threat match, also involving Shinsuke Nakamura, at WrestleMania. Then, to the surprise (and bemusement) of the crowd, Goldust appeared and vowed to stop Cena from going to ‘Mania. Of course, he didn’t, and “Big Match John” won relatively easily with an AA.

Verdict: This segment began as an advert for SmackDown and Fastlane, which the crowd didn’t seem to appreciate much, and it turned into a first-time meeting between Cena and Goldust. The match was short and felt meaningless, especially for a road-to-WrestleMania episode of Raw. Just why was it happening again?!?

Grade: D

#5 Bayley def. Mandy Rose

Bayley rejected Sasha Banks' offer of a hug

Storyline: Sasha Banks eliminated Bayley from the Royal Rumble and then stabbed her friend in the back for the second PPV in a row at Elimination Chamber. On last week’s Raw, Bayley got some revenge by refusing a tag from Sasha in a six-woman tag match.

Segment: Absolution leader Paige said Bayley is “nothing” without Sasha, but “The Hugger” was still able to get the win over Mandy Rose after countering a roll-up for the 1-2-3. Sonya Deville began to attack Bayley post-match but Sasha quickly rushed to the ring to help her friend, even offering her a hug. However, WWE’s resident hugger refused and walked to the back.

Verdict: This was probably Mandy’s best match since she was called up to the main roster with Sonya in November 2017. As for Bayley, this is the most compelling her character has been in a long time and it’ll be interesting to see if WWE can find space on the main card (not kickoff show) for her to face Sasha at WrestleMania.

Grade: B-

#6 Braun Strowman def. Elias

Braun Strowman was "The Monster Among Music" this week

Storyline: Braun Strowman eliminated Elias, along with four other Superstars, from the seven-man Elimination Chamber match last week. The following night, the one-on-one match between the two on Raw ended in a disqualification win for Strowman after Elias sprayed a fire extinguisher in his face.

Segment: The two men met again on this week’s Raw, this time in a Falls Count Anywhere ‘Symphony of Destruction’ match with weapons (pianos, drums, guitars and a double bass) surrounding the stage. Despite Elias’ best attempts to drive away in a car outside the arena, Strowman chased him back to the ring and picked up the victory after crushing him with a piano on the stage (yes, really).

Verdict: Strowman and Elias have been two of the most entertaining Superstars on Raw over the last few months, so they were never going to disappoint in the first (and probably last) ‘Symphony of Destruction’ match, were they?! If you’re a fan of seeing people “get these hands”, this was arguably the best segment of the night.

Grade: B+

#7 Bray Wyatt def. Rhyno

Storyline: Bray Wyatt lost a one-on-one match against long-term rival Matt Hardy at Elimination Chamber. The following night on Raw, he attacked Heath Slater and Rhyno before his scheduled match with Heath and declared that “The Great War” with Matt is far from over.

Segment: In the shortest match of the show, a more intense and focused Bray made light work of Rhyno and defeated him inside two minutes with his Sister Abigail finisher. Matt then appeared on the big screen and challenged Bray to yet another match, with this one taking place on a different battlefield: The Hardy Compound.

Verdict: Well, “The Woken One” was never going to keep battling inside the safety of a WWE ring for much longer, was he? Matt had some epic moments at The Hardy Compound pre-WWE, but Bray’s last battle outside the ring – The House of Horrors with Randy Orton – didn’t exactly live up to its billing. Will this encounter be any better? Let’s hope so!

Grade: C+

#8 Seth Rollins & Finn Balor def. The Miz & The Miztourage

The Miz will face Seth Rollins & Finn Balor at WrestleMania

Storyline: Seth Rollins and Finn Balor set their sights on winning the Intercontinental Championship at WrestleMania 34 after defeating The Miz in singles matches on Raw last week.

Segment: One night on from The Oscars, The Miz hosted the third-annual Mizzies, with this year’s derogatory prizes being awarded to Rollins, Balor and Kurt Angle. The ceremony didn’t last long, with Rollins and Balor soon appearing to face – and defeat – The Miz and The Miztourage in a handicap match. Kurt announced following the match that “The A-Lister” will be forced to defend his IC title against both Rollins and Balor at WrestleMania.

Verdict: As ever, Miz was absolute gold on the mic. He had the best one-liner of the night when he informed the crowd that Kurt couldn’t collect his award because “he’s too busy sucking up to Ronda Rousey”, while he also aimed a couple of hilarious digs at Balor. The match itself was decent, with the babyface duo getting the win despite some dissension towards the end.

Grade: B

#9 Paul Heyman responds to Roman Reigns

Roman Reigns will meet Brock Lesnar face-to-face next week

Storyline: Roman Reigns won the seven-man Elimination Chamber match to become #1 contender for Brock Lesnar’s Universal title. The following night, Reigns claimed Lesnar no-showed Raw and, in his greatest promo to date, he called his WrestleMania opponent “an entitled piece of c**p who hides behind his contract”.

Segment: The war of words continued when Paul Heyman claimed that the Universal Championship is simply Lesnar’s “b****” and that there’s every chance “The Beast” could hold both the Universal title and the UFC Heavyweight title at the same time this year. Reigns hit back, once again getting the crowd on his side, by demanding that Lesnar “shows up for work” next week on Raw, where he wants his rival to “dress not for a promo segment, but for a fight”.

Verdict: This was one of the best promos from Heyman in a while. He blurred the lines between storyline and reality numerous times and, like Reigns last week, made the WrestleMania main event feel a lot more interesting than it previously did.

Grade: A-

Edited by anirudh.b