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SummerSlam is just a week from Sunday, and the WWE is preparing for the event in Brooklyn with live events throughout the northeast. The Monday Night Raw brand stopped by Bangor, Maine on Friday to entertain the WWE Universe.
Wade Keller of PW Torch was in attendance and provided a live report. He estimated a crowd of around 2,000 people in an arena that seats about 5,500. It was Wade's belief that splitting up the house shows between Bangor and Augusta, Maine was the reason why this show wasn't full.
Overall there were eight matches on the card with a six-man tag match to start the night off.
#1 Finn Balor & The Hardy Boyz vs Luke Gallows, Karl Anderson, and Elias Samson
Elias Samson made his way to the ring under the cover of darkness during the Raw intro video to set up a personal concert to the fans of Bangor. He bashed the town, leading into the entrance of his teammates Gallows and Anderson.
The Hardy Boyz got a nice pop as they entered the arena, followed by Finn Balor. Keller believes it's the first time since 2009 that Hardy's were at a show in Maine. The Bangor crowd was well versed with the Broken Brilliance of Matt Hardy as DELETE chants echoed throughout.
Elias worked over Jeff for most of the match until Balor received the hot tag. All six men were in the ring as Matt and Jeff hit their Twist of Fate; while Balor hit the Coup De Grace to get the victory.
Finn Balor & The Hardy Boyz defeated Elias Samson & Gallows and Anderson
#2 Goldust vs R-Truth
Keller described this match as a "weird one." Truth hyped up the crowd with his usual "What's Up" song, but when Goldust made his way to the ring, Truth attacked Goldust on the ramp as referees separated the two.
The bell rang and only a minute into the match, Goldust rolled up R-Truth and cheated by using the ropes as leverage to defeat his former tag team partner.
Goldust defeated R-Truth
#3 Neville vs Akira Tozawa - WWE Crusierweight Championship
Ring announcer Mike Rome announced that the following match was for the WWE Cruiserweight Championship, but according to Keller, the crowd fell silent. A noticeable trend for the division as of late.
The crowd woke up a bit when Tozawa made his entrance as they yelled along with his patented chant; while the crowd had some jeers and some cheers for the champion Neville.
Keller and the crowd enjoyed the match and the fast-paced action. In the end, Tozawa fell into the Rings Of Saturn and had to tap out for the loss, but he'll get his shot at Neville at SummerSlam in a little over a week.
Neville defeated Akira Tozawa to retain the Cruiserweight Championship
#4 Enzo v. Big Cass
Keller mentioned that as a tag team they got one of the loudest pops last year, but it was considerably more subdued for this show. Enzo cut his usual promo as the crowd chanted along.
The match never began as Enzo tried to jump Cass as soon as he got in the ring. A minute later Cass landed a big boot to knock Enzo out and he left the ring. Keller noted that the crowd seemed disappointed at the outcome of this match.
The match was ruled a no contest
#5 Seth Rollins & Dean Ambrose vs Bo Dallas & Curtis Axel
Keller mentioned that both former members of The Shield received a great reaction from the crowd as they took on the Miztourage. There were some comedy spots in the early going to entertain the crowd, and oddly enough, Axel wrestled the match in slacks.
Ambrose and Rollins hit their finishers on Dallas and Axel at the 14-minute mark to get the victory. Keller noted that there was not any dissension between Ambrose and Rollins as seen over the past few weeks on Monday Night Raw.
Dean Ambrose & Seth Rollins defeated The Miztourage(Bo Dallas & Curtis Axel)
#6 Sasha Banks, Mickie James, & Dana Brooke vs Alexa Bliss, Nia Jax, & Emma
After the intermission, Sasha Banks made her entrance to a nice reaction, followed by Mickie James, Dana Brooke, Emma, and Nia Jax, all of whom received warm applause. The lights went out as the Raw Women's Champion, Alexa Bliss, made her way to the ring.
For most of the match, the heels worked over Brooke, until she made the hot tag to Sasha. After cleaning house, Banks landed the Bank Statement on Emma to get the victory for the babyfaces.
Sasha Banks, Dana Brooke and Mickie James defeated Alexa Bliss, Nia Jax, and Emma
#7 Sheamus & Cesaro vs Titus O'Neil & Apollo Crews
Keller mentioned that there was a warm reaction for the Titus Worldwide group, but a really good ovation to the current tag champions of Monday Night Raw. That is proof that they have really gelled as a tag team since forming late last year.
The match was fairly short and the outcome was never in doubt considering who the challengers were. Cesaro hit the Neutralizer on Crews to get the victory as they head towards SummerSlam, potentially against Ambrose and Rollins.
Cesaro & Sheamus defeated Titus Worldwide(Apollo Crews & Titus O'Neil) to retain the RAW Tag Team Championships
#8 Roman Reigns vs Braun Strowman
Braun Strowman came out to a very positive reaction to kick off the main event of the evening. It's been previously reported that Roman Reigns typically gets cheered at house shows since those are mostly made up of more casual fans and children, but in Bangor, the greeted him with a chorus of boos.
Keller described the match as "very solid" between half of the main event of SummerSlam for the WWE Universal Championship. The match ended when Reigns attempted the Drive-By but Strowman hit Reigns with the steel steps causing the disqualification.
Roman had the last laugh back in the ring when Strowman attempted to deliver a third of his patented powerslams, but Reigns slid out of the move, hit two Superman Punches, and then speared Strowman through the table to send the crowd home.
Roman Reigns defeated Braun Strowman by Disqualification
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