WWE Raw: May 25, 2015 - 5 things that worked

WIth less than a week left for the return of the Elimination Chamber, the WWE had to come up with a stellar RAW as a prelude to the upcoming PPV. The creative team did their bit as RAW did indeed have some promising moments. From Dean Ambrose’s weird contract stipulation to Kevin Owens going 2-0 up over John Cena, RAW pretty much solidified certain bouts heading into the stanic structure. Besides this, two back to back PPV’s is always a tough task to pull of and the build storylines for.

Let us now look at some top moments that defined the show and how the WWE coped with all the pressure heading into RAW.

Authority opens RAW

Setting up the show night after night

Opening segment was solid yet again as the Authority walked out to a sold out crowd on WWE RAW. They took turns talking about how Rollins was a great superstar and how Ambrose was not really a threat to the WWE world heavyweight champion. Just to make matters interesting, Triple H called out the challenger to sign the contract to solidify the latter’s deal for the match at the Elimination chamber.

Just when Ambrose strode out to the ring, Stephanie McMahon reminded him about his assault on a WWE cameraman and that he must settle his legal dispute before he gets his hand on the contract. The stipulation was indeed an interesting one and this kept the fans at the end of their seats awaiting what would happen at the end of the night.

Rusev – Lana patch up attempt

Patch up gone in vain

In a strong show of emotion, the Bulgarian brute Rusev strode down to the ring and professed his admiration for Lana. He intended to patch things up and summoned the ravishing Diva to the ring. They hugged one another much to the crowd’s dismay. That is when Rusev’s ego kicked in. He wanted her apologise for what she did at Payback and Lana couldn’t care less. She lambasted him in PG language before proceeding to lip lock with Ziggler for the second week in a row.

A feud built around a diva once again for Ziggler. Rusev too showcasing himself in a different light was great to see.

Zack Ryder

Zack’s still got it

Zack Ryder being popular was a thing of the past, one might say. But this edition of RAW proved otherwise. The Long Islander attempted to take Cena’s U.S championship and the crowd went nuts over their internet sensation.

From the time he was introduced by the Entourage team till the very end of the bout, Ryder was cheered every bit of the day. Despite losing the bout, he made the most of his in ring time and the WWE certianly would have taken notes from the proceedings.

Ambrose defies the odds

Driving the law

Dean Ambrose has often been likened to WWE stalwart Stone Cold Steve. Both of them have glorified the ‘anti hero’ character and the WWE has cashed in on it effectively. To replicate Austin’s feats, the WWE came up with a clever plan on RAW involving Ambrose’s legal tussle.

The lunatic fringe was given a deadline to clear his assault charges and sign the contract for Elimination Chamber. And, he did that in style as he entered the arena in a police van and cleared the ring before going on to sign on the dotted line. Police truck – Check. Beer truck?

Reigns and Ambrose vs Kane and Rollins

Feud cooking?

This fixture might seem very ‘used and abused’ in recent times, but the WWE chose to use it yet again to get things started off and it did wonders for them. In a match set up by the authority, the former Shield members took on Kane and champion Rollins in RAW’s opening bout.

The match was well crafted as each superstar got ample ring time to put some offence into position. Rollins and Ambrose were expected to steal the show, but it was Kane and Reigns who did it otherwise. Their impressive performance and compatability would make one predict of a solid feud in future. Ambrose pinned Rollins after Kane was taken out by Riegns to win the bout.

Rollins’ reaction to the loss was priceless.