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The latest episode of RAW was yet again a topsy-turvy night with some highs and lows. While the main event segment featuring a match between Alexa Bliss and RAW Women's Champion Asuka was terrific and had some terrifying story developments, Randy Orton opened the show wearing a mask and delivering a meandering promo.
On the other hand, RETRIBUTION leader Mustafa Ali has ignited a rivalry with Kofi Kingston over the latter taking his spot in the Elimination Chamber match in 2019, where KofiMania was born. The Miz and John Morrison's segment with their chief guest Goldberg turned out to be a damp squib with the WWE Champion contender's look-alike Gillberg showing up.
While Charlotte Flair was gunning to find her winning ways back by defeating Peyton Royce on RAW, Ric Flair spoke about the nature of his relationship with Lacey Evans.
So without any delays, let's dive in and discuss the developments from this week's RAW that have already gotten the WWE universe buzzing. Do share your own thoughts in the comments section.
#5 Alexa Bliss pins RAW Women's Champion Asuka by executing Sister Abigail
Alexa Bliss put a terrifying act in the main event of RAW, where she seemingly invoked her dual personality that resembles The Fiend in more ways than one. Virtually squashing the RAW Women's Champion Asuka, Bliss ended the show in a truly memorable way.
Earlier in the night, Bliss had invited The Empress of Tomorrow to her 'playground', and everything seemed cheerful albeit subtly sinister until the point the champion uttered the name of The Fiend. Bliss turned visibly angry and scared Asuka off from the ring.
The match started on a normal note, with Asuka dominating the proceedings in the initial stages. However, soon the lights went off, and when they returned, Bliss' demeanor had changed to more sinister. Soon, Alexa Bliss found herself dominating the champion with her defensive technique. She felt no pain and even applied the Mandible Claw, though Asuka somehow managed to get out of it.
A Sister Abigail to the RAW Women's Champion ended things on a shocking note. Bliss switched back to her regular persona, with the show closing in Bliss saying 'Let Me In' in The Fiend's voice.
This was a truly great ending, and the possibilities here are endless. Bliss has become the favorite to win the Women's Rumble match, while The Fiend can return anytime now since he made his presence felt today by controlling Bliss. On the other hand, Orton can find himself in trouble during the Rumble match, with The Fiend making an appearance seems to be a strong possibility. Both Bliss and Wyatt winning the Rumble matches and continuing to terrify RAW on their way to WrestleMania 37 would be great to watch.
#4 The Miz and John Morrison fool fans into believing Goldberg is appearing on The Dirt Sheet on RAW
While there were reservations if Goldberg would really appear on RAW, since the segment wasn't promoted, The Miz and John Morrison were successful up to a certain extent in fooling the fans that he would. As it turned out, it was Gillberg who appeared. If nothing else, it was good to see him healthy after he suffered a heart attack just a couple of months ago.
Soon enough, Drew McIntyre's hit and out came some random guy dressed like the WWE Champion. There were some mildly funny moments in the ring, but soon The Miz took the center stage on RAW and made his intentions clear. He said both McIntyre and Goldberg would lose the match at Royal Rumble since he would be the one who'll walk out as the new champion.
While The Miz cashing-in his briefcase during the match at Royal Rumble is not of the question, him walking away as the champion in a clash involving megastars like McIntyre and Goldberg is too far-fetched. With no disrespect to The Miz, WWE wouldn't choose to insert him into the match, and even if they do, it would be in a losing cause.
#3 Mustafa Ali ignites a rivalry with Kofi Kingston on RAW, accuses him of taking his place
RETRIBUTION's leader Mustafa Ali has seemingly ignited a rivalry with Kofi Kingston on RAW, accusing him of taking his place in the main event scene. For the unversed, Kofi's career-defining run in 2019, where he won the WWE Championship by defeating Daniel Bryan at WrestleMania 35, was never supposed to happen. Instead, Ali was positioned to face Bryan for the championship before an injury to him changed plans.
Now that both are on the same brand, the two can mine this real-life circumstance and turn it into a memorable storyline. Earlier in the day, Ali sent out a tweet saying he hopes the former WWE Champion is out of action forever with his injury. Seeking revenge for this, Xavier Woods challenged the stable for a match after losing to T-Bar last week, though he again fell short, this time to Mace.
The return of Kofi Kingston on RAW would instantly make this rivalry a one to watch out for, considering the two are terrific in-ring performers, and most importantly, they have a great story to work with.
#2 Charlotte Flair defeats Peyton Royce on RAW, while Ric Flair says he's a mentor to Lacey Evans.
In the opening match of this week's RAW, Charlotte Flair took on Peyton Royce. Moments before the bout, Ric Flair confirmed in a backstage interview that his relationship with Lacey Evans is of a student-mentor one and that she's learning from The Dirtiest Player in the Game. As for the match, it was fantastic and one of the best single bouts of Royce's career. The two women went back and forth for over 12 minutes with minimal stalling periods.
Though Ric Flair and Lacey Evans did try to interfere in the match, with Evans coming wearing The Nature Boy's robe, their involvement was minimal as they just stood and watched the proceedings from a distance. The ending of the match saw The Queen locking in the former WWE Women's Tag Team Champion in a figure-four lock to secure the victory.
After losing for two consecutive weeks of RAW, Charlotte Flair has finally accumulated a victory. The feud can come into play during the women's Rumble match, with her father and Evans possibly costing her the opportunity to main event WrestleMania.
#1 Are AJ Styles and Adam Pearce heading towards a possible feud on RAW?
For the second week in a row, Adam Pearce appeared on RAW and had a heated interaction with AJ Styles. Last week, Pearce had booked a match between Drew Gulak and Styles, which would have allowed Gulak to find a place in the Royal Rumble match had he come up victorious. This week, Pearce booked a match for Styles, with Ricochet taking on The Phenomenal One. Styles, on the other hand, took digs at Pearce backing out from the Universal Championship match over on SmackDown.
Though he came up victorious against Ricochet after a spectacular battle that ended with an all-time great Styles Clash, Styles would still have issues with Pearce for booking him in matches that don't have any implications for him.
In all honesty, it wouldn't be a bad idea as Styles is not involved in any story on RAW at this moment, and even more so when considering there's little to no chance he's winning the Royal Rumble match. Yes, Adam Pearce was just removed from his scheduled match, but these two can certainly go out and have a decent bout while giving fans a glimpse of what Pearce is capable of inside the squared circle.
