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WWE RAW booked a few major matches and segments to build up towards the Money in the Bank pay-per-view. WWE Champion Bobby Lashley was scheduled to take on Xavier Woods just days before defending his title against Kofi Kingston.
The rivalry between Drew McIntyre and Jinder Mahal started to pick up on RAW as The Scottish Warrior made a big revelation. He claimed that Mahal ended up stealing and breaking a replica sword before destroying The Maharaja’s motorcycle backstage.
Nikki A.S.H picked up a major victory just days before Money in the Bank. Will the creative team allow her to go all the way and win the MITB briefcase on Sunday night?
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Ricochet and John Morrison met in the ring one more time, while Rhea Ripley took on Natalya during the show.
Take a look at the five things WWE got right on the RAW before Money in the Bank.
#5 Xavier Woods picked up a huge victory on WWE RAW
The final episode of WWE RAW in the ThunderDome kicked off with a scheduled match between Bobby Lashley and Xavier Woods. The two superstars got down to business early, and Lashley dominated Woods early with his superior strength.
Woods tried to overcome Lashley’s strength with his speed in the ring. The All Mighty threw Woods out of the ring and then slammed him face-first into the steel steps. The WWE Champion continued to dominate the action in the non-title match as Kofi Kingston watched on.
Woods fired back and hit a Superkick followed by a DDT to rock the WWE Champion. Lashley responded by slamming Woods a few times before throwing him out of the ring again.
Late in the match, Lashley hit a Spear to come close to victory. Instead of pinning Woods, he decided to make him pay and went for the Hurt Lock. The move proved to be costly as Woods rolled him up to pick up a huge victory.
Many fans would call this an upset victory. However, Woods has worked hard on RAW for several years and deserved to pick up a win over a reigning champion.
This was Lashley’s second big loss in recent weeks, and the creative team seems to be building towards a change in character for the WWE Champion. The angle could prove to work out in The All Mighty’s favor, especially if Brock Lesnar is ready to return soon.
Lashley lost his cool in the final segment of RAW. He told Kofi Kingston that he was ready to end the veteran’s career at Money in the Bank. Will fans see an even more aggressive version of The All Mighty in the weeks to come?
#4 Natalya gave Rhea Ripley a chance to shine on WWE RAW
RAW Women’s Champion Rhea Ripley took on one half of the WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions just before Money in the Bank. Natalya took to the ring to go head-to-head with The Nightmare.
The two superstars started by exchanging some holds and takedowns before Ripley broke out with a big kick. Natalya fought back with some good moves to keep the RAW Women’s Champion under control.
Tamina took a dropkick for her tag team partner at ringside as the action started to pick up. Late in the match, The Queen of Harts applied the sharpshooter to punish Ripley. The Nightmare countered and sent her into the turnbuckles.
She finished off the match by hitting Natalya with the Riptide for the win. After the match, Charlotte Flair came out to attack her opponent for Money in the Bank. She put Ripley in a Figure-Four leglock and did a lot of damage before being pulled away.
Natalya was fantastic in this match and proved to be a great opponent for Ripley. The Nightmare hasn’t had too many good matches on the main roster, and this was arguably her best one yet. The after-match beatdown helped RAW build towards the big RAW Women’s Championship match for Sunday.
#3 Ivar picked up a huge victory over AJ Styles; Omos defeated Erik on WWE RAW
WWE hosted two big singles matches between the RAW Tag Team Champions and their challengers before the Money in the Bank pay-per-view. The Viking Raiders and the team of AJ Styles and Omos delivered short promos before the first match got started.
Ivar took on Styles and the two men traded some good moves early on. Ivar used his strength to take control and nearly took him out in the corner. He stayed dominant throughout the contest and defeated the former WWE Champion with a seated senton in the corner.
Next up, Erik took on Omos. RAW fans watched on as Erik tried to outsmart and outpace the giant early in the contest. Erik tried to apply a waist lock, but Omos threw him away with ease.
Erik tried to take out the RAW Tag Team Champion’s leg, but could not keep the upper hand for long. A huge clothesline followed by a two-handed chokeslam from Omos ended up winning him the contest.
Both matches were short and did well at giving the two teams a chance to shine. It was surprising to see Ivar pick up a victory over Styles on RAW. Meanwhile, Erik did extremely well at selling Omos’ big moves and proved to be the perfect first singles opponent for the giant.
The stage is now set for Sunday, and it will be interesting to see who takes home the RAW Tag Team Championships at Money in the Bank.
#2 Damian Priest entered the United States Championship picture on WWE RAW
Sheamus made a comeback on WWE RAW this week to defend his United States Championship. He was booked for a match against Humberto Carrillo on the show.
Carrillo injured the Celtic Warrior several weeks ago on RAW. Sheamus brutalized the youngster backstage to give himself an unfair advantage before the match started.
Carrillo couldn’t even get back on his feet properly after the referee called for the bell. The Celtic Warrior delivered a single lethal Brogue Kick to pick up the win and retain his United States Championship.
After the match, Sheamus continued to vent his frustration on Carrillo. Damian Priest made an entrance and saved Carrillo, forcing the United States Champion to retreat.
The match itself was ordinary, and RAW could have done much better by giving Carrillo a fighting chance before making him lose. However, it was good seeing Priest come out to confront Sheamus after the match.
The Archer of Infamy is a former NXT North American Champion who can carry the Untied States title well. A rivalry between Sheamus and Priest heading into SummerSlam will likely help RAW build a good storyline for the mid-card.
#1 Ricochet and John Morrison put on another great show on WWE RAW
Ricochet and John Morrison were booked for a match on WWE RAW for the third week in a row. This time, the two RAW Superstars competed in a Falls Count Anywhere match.
Morrison took the upper hand early on and kept the high-flyer grounded with some standard moves. He tried to hit Starship Pain, but Ricochet countered with a German Suplex for a near fall.
The fight spilled over to the floor and both superstars fought all around the RAW arena. Ricochet sent Johnny Drip Drip through some LED screens and tried to keep control of the contest.
Ricochet pulled off some impressive moves once again, and hit a great 450 splash off the barricade but could not put his opponent away. The Miz tried to interfere in the match before Riddle appeared to take him out of the equation.
Ricochet set up Morrison on a ladder between the ring apron and the announce table before putting the former ECW World Champion through it with a splash off the top rope for the win.
The match was electric and gave fans a lot to look forward to at Money in the Bank. RAW had some decent matches this week, but the contest between Ricochet and John Morrison stole the show.
Ricochet and Morrison will probably not go on to win the Money in the Bank briefcase on Sunday. However, they’ve proven that they are amongst the best athletes on RAW. The two men will likely be a part of some of the biggest spots of the night at MITB.
