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Seth Rollins and Cody Rhodes appeared in the opening moments of WWE RAW this week to build towards their rematch at WrestleMania Backlash. The segment led to a dream match between Cody and a surprise opponent in the night's main event.
Theory got a United States Championship match against Finn Balor on RAW. The young superstar surprised many fans by defeating The Prince for the title. Vince McMahon was overjoyed by Theory’s win and came out to congratulate him after his victory.
Edge and Damian Priest attacked AJ Styles in the locker room after the latter accepted Edge's challenge for a match at WrestleMania Backlash. The pair slammed Styles' arm in the locker several times. It will be interesting to see how The Phenomenal One returns the favor in the weeks to come.
On Monday night, Rhea Ripley & Live Morgan challenged Sasha Banks and Naomi for the WWE Women's Tag Team Championship & Championship. Plus, Ezekiel appeared for his lie detector test on an episode of The Kevin Owens Show.
It was an enjoyable night of wrestling with a few top matches. Take a look at the five things WWE got right on this week’s RAW.
#5. Seth Rollins dared Cody Rhodes to face an opponent of his choice to kick off WWE RAW
The show kicked off with Seth Rollins taking to the ring to talk about his rematch against Cody Rhodes at WrestleMania Backlash. The American Nightmare came out soon after to join Rollins in the ring.
The two showed some respect for each other as Rollins claimed that Rhodes had the advantage walking into their bout at WrestleMania. Rhodes took a few digs at his opponent to the delight of the WWE Universe.
The Visionary said that Rhodes would also have problems facing an unknown opponent in the ring. He dared The American Nightmare to face an opponent of his choice in the main event of RAW. Cody wasted little time in accepting the challenge.
It was a good segment between the two superstars to kick off the night. Cody Rhodes already feels like a big deal on the RAW roster. He is now getting a chance to fully showcase his talent in front of the WWE Universe.
The show is without a top men’s title, and a rivalry between Rollins and Rhodes will keep fans interested in the product. The American Nightmare is slowly becoming the top babyface of the Red brand.
#4. Rhea Ripley turned heel after attacking Liv Morgan on the show
The WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship match kicked off with Rhea Ripley and Sasha Banks in the middle. The Nightmare used her power to work over Banks and isolated her for some time.
Banks recovered and tagged Naomi in to take down Liv Morgan and regain control of the contest. Ripley dragged Banks outside the ring and hit her with a Riptide on the barricades.
Ripley & Morgan kept the upper hand for some time before The Boss 'n' Glow mounted a comeback. They hit Ripley with their finisher, and The Boss covered her soon after to pick up the win for her team.
Rhea Ripley was unhappy with the loss and snapped at Liv after the match. She attacked her from behind and unloaded on her before hitting the Riptide to turn heel.
It was a decent match that allowed the right team to pick up the win. WWE needed to turn Ripley heel, and the change in character could help her get a few matches against Bianca Belair for the RAW Women’s Championship. The writers should ensure that Liv also gets a singles push following this angle.
#3. Ezekiel proved that he is Elias’ younger brother during the lie detector test
Kevin Owens came out on WWE RAW to host a lie detector test on The KO Show. He brought along Chad Gable to conduct the test on Ezekiel.
The newcomer joined the two superstars in the ring before the test started. He acted like he was setting up to say his old catchphrase before saying, "Who wants to hear Zeke speak?"
Gable asked him some baseline questions before jumping to the main ones. He inquired if his name was actually Ezekiel. The test also confirmed that Ezekiel wasn’t lying when he said he was Elias’ brother.
KO freaked out and kicked Gable out of the ring before walking out himself. The former RAW Tag Team Champion returned to the ring to attack Ezekiel, and a match was set between them.
The two men put on a decent show before Otis ran out to save his partner and cause a disqualification. It was a great segment that made the feud between KO and Zeke more entertaining. The two men will likely compete in a few matches down the road. It’s good to have Ezekiel on RAW as he can compete in some top matches moving forward.
#2. The Street Profits picked up a big win over RK-Bro on Monday night
The WWE RAW Tag Team Champions RK-Bro took on The Street Profits in a non-title match. Randy Orton took control of the match early and punished Angelo Dawkins for some time.
Riddle kept the pressure on and got a near fall before Montez Ford tagged in. Ford and Riddle exchanged some excellent moves and kept the action ticking. RK-Bro then hit tandem draping DDTs to the delight of the fans.
The champions prepared to finish the match before The Usos’ entrance music hit the speakers. Ford and Dawkins took advantage of the distraction and hit their finisher on Riddle for the win.
It was good to see Ford and Dawkins pick up a big win on RAW. They have been the most prominent tag team on the RAW brand behind RK-Bro.
The two men could find their way into the title unification match at WrestleMania Backlash to act as a cushion for The Usos and RK-Bro. Street Profits teased a heel turn after the win to keep things interesting.
#1. Cody Rhodes defeated Kevin Owens by count-out to end the night
The main event of the night saw Cody Rhodes come out for a match against a mystery opponent of Seth Rollins’ choice. The Visionary revealed that Cody’s opponent would be none other than his best friend, Kevin Owens.
KO got down to business right away and dominated Cody for some time. He countered a dive from Rhodes and dropped him onto the barricades.
The two men traded the advantage as they continued to build their match. Rollins walked out to watch the match up close soon after and acted as a distraction for The American Nightmare.
Owens hit some of his signature moves in the ring but failed to put Cody away. Rollins began taunting his best friend and shouted at him to get in the ring and finish the job. The Prizefighter decided to walk away from the match and award Cody a count-out victory.
RAW ended with The Visionary knocking The American Nightmare from the middle turnbuckle to the floor as he tried to celebrate. It was a good match between two of the top competitors in the company. WWE did well to protect both superstars on RAW with the finish.
The former Universal Champion failed to put Cody Rhodes on the back foot, with the former TNT Champion coming out on top. Rollins and Rhodes will meet in a rematch at WrestleMania Backlash to conclude their rivalry.
