'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
WWE RAW once again had a few big matches scheduled for this week. The WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions were scheduled to defend their titles against Naomi and Lana. Expectedly, Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler managed to retain their titles.
The new partnership between Randy Orton and Riddle continued to prosper. Meanwhile, former RAW Tag Team Champions broke up on this week’s episode.
Omos and AJ Styles made their first WWE RAW appearance since winning the tag team titles at WrestleMania 37. Former 205 Live superstar Mansoor made his move to RAW and immediately found himself in a match against Sheamus.
Damian Priest defeated John Morrison yet again on this week’s episode. Will The Archer of Infamy finally find himself in another meaningful rivalry following his constant run-ins with The Miz and Morrison?
The final match of the night saw Bobby Lashley defeat Braun Strowman thanks to interference from Drew McIntyre. Will McIntyre stand tall at the end of WrestleMania Backlash?
Here are five things WWE got right on this week’s RAW.
#5 The WWE RAW Tag Team Champions returned to pick up a victory
The new WWE RAW Tag Team Champions made their first appearance after WrestleMania 37. Before The New Day arrived, AJ Styles claimed that he and Omos had been busy celebrating their victory after WrestleMania.
Styles reminded fans he became a Grand Slam Champion in just five years, before Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods made their way out. The Phenomenal One took the fight to The New Day before Omos made his way to the ring.
He overpowered Woods and threw him into the corner just so he could tag in Kingston. Omos shook off everything the former WWE RAW Tag Team Champions could throw at him and dominated the competition.
Styles called for a high five and the referee took that as a tag. This nearly allowed Woods to pick up the victory for his team. But once Omos made it back into the ring, he crushed the challengers.
A Phenomenal Forearm to Woods from Omos’ shoulders allowed Styles to pick up the win for his team. The match was decent and allowed Styles and Omos to cement themselves as the new WWE RAW Tag Team Champions.
The New Day seems to be out of contention for the titles for now, which will allow some other teams to stand up to Styles and Omos. The Lucha House Party could move into that position for some time before the creative builds another team to challenge the new champions.
#4 Cedric Alexander snapped on WWE RAW
Cedric Alexander and Shelton Benjamin came out for another match on this week’s WWE RAW. Since parting ways with The Hurt Business, the two superstars have had it tough on the WWE RAW brand.
The duo took on The Lucha House Party this week. Alexander tried to pick up the victory early by hitting a few impressive moves on Gran Metalik.
Benjamin was tagged in but was unable to keep control of the match. A massive clothesline nearly took Lince Dorado out for good, but he managed to stay in the match.
After some time, Metalik hit Benjamin with an elbow drop from the top rope to pick up the victory. After another loss, Alexander grabbed a microphone and vented his frustration. He called out Benjamin for being the weak link in the team and the reason why they are constantly losing, even though they were the RAW Tag Team Champions.
He said that things were done between them, before storming off. The angle should allow Alexander to move back into singles competition.
Alexander was doing well as a singles star on WWE RAW initially before he stopped getting many opportunities. Hopefully, this newfound aggression will help the former Cruiserweight Champion reach for the stars once again.
#3 Sonya Deville showed off her powers on WWE RAW
Charlotte Flair and Dana Brooke competed in a match on WWE RAW. Flair mocked Brooke early on, and Brooke tried to teach The Queen a lesson.
While Brooke delivered some good, clean moves, she was no match for Flair’s skills. Brooke did manage to inflict a lot more damage than one might expect but was unable to take Flair down for the pin. It did not take too long for The Queen to apply the Figure Eight to pick up the submission victory.
After she refused to release the hold, Mandy Rose entered the ring to attack her. At that moment, Sonya Deville appeared and claimed that she had just as much power as Adam Pearce.
Deville agreed to add Flair to the WWE RAW Women’s Championship match between Rhea Ripley and Asuka at WrestleMania Backlash.
Ripley hit the ramp and claimed that nobody liked Flair. Asuka joined in next to make the segment even more interesting. This led to a brief scuffle that ended with Asuka left as the lone woman standing.
Flair’s inclusion into the RAW Women’s Championship match was inevitable. However, it’s Deville’s new role that is turning more heads. She wasn’t doing much in her backstage role up until last week.
WWE could be preparing her for an in-ring return, and this storyline could move her into the WWE RAW Women’s Championship picture right after WrestleMania Backlash.
#2 Eva Marie made her return to WWE RAW; someone caught Lily’s eye
Rumors have been circulating online regarding the return of Eva Marie to WWE for some months now. However, not many were bothered by the rumors up until this week.
During this week’s WWE RAW, Marie announced her official return in a vignette. Marie last appeared for the company nearly five years ago, and it was interesting to see her back on WWE RAW.
While not too much was revealed regarding Marie’s return, she still managed to make headlines on Monday night. The WWE Superstar could either make her way back into the ring or appear as a manager for some superstar.
Fans could end up watching Marie manage someone like Cedric Alexander or Parker Boudreaux on WWE RAW in the months to come.
Meanwhile, Alexa Bliss revealed that someone had caught Lily’s eye on the Red brand. The Goddess did not reveal who the superstar was, but hints were dropped throughout this week’s episode of RAW.
Lily was seen watching Angel Garza and Sonya Deville backstage, implying there is more to come for these two if Bliss and Lily have their way.
#1 The R-K-Bro continued to rally on WWE RAW
A backstage segment on WWE RAW led to one of Monday night's most exciting matches. Elias and Jaxson Ryker were trying to get revenge on The New Day by hitting them with some tomatoes. However, they ended up hitting Randy Orton by mistake. Orton decided to team up with Riddle again to go after Elias and Ryker.
Elias started the match well and took control immediately. However, a thumb to the eye allowed The Viper to tag Riddle into the match. The Original Bro kept the pressure on the heels and locked in the Bromission to do some damage.
Elias and Ryker did better than expected in this match and delivered some big moves. Elias suplexed Riddle onto Ryker’s knee for a near-fall, and Riddle tagged Orton back into the match after taking some punishment.
The Viper went on a roll and took out both Elias and Ryker. He hit a drapping DDT and tagged Riddle back into the match to hit The Floating Bro for the win. It was an entertaining match that confirmed that Riddle and Orton will continue as a team.
The two superstars are working well together and could emerge as contenders for the RAW Tag Team Championships. WWE RAW’s fragile tag team division could benefit from this new pairing.
What makes Sting special? His first AEW opponent opens up RIGHT HERE.
