This week’s episode of WWE Raw emanates from the Mohammed Abdo Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia! WWE Women’s World Champion Liv Morgan and WWE World Heavyweight Champion Gunther learn who the next challengers to their titles will be. Sami Zayn reunites with The Usos, sort of. The War Raiders battle The New Day. Dragon Lee faces Chad Gable, and more!
We break it all down in this week’s WWE Raw recap!
We Hear From Liv Morgan & Crew
WWE Women’s World Champion Liv Morgan heads down to the ring with Dominik Mysterio and Raquel Rodriguez. Morgan says the Liv Morgan revenge tour is over, but her world tour is just beginning. Morgan gloats about taking out Rhea Ripley, who she claims now will be out of action for a very long time. Morgan then reiterates that she is the first ever Crown Jewel Champion, and the greatest overall champion of all time. Mysterio takes the mic and is instantly booed.
Jade Cargill and Bianca Belair interrupt, meeting Morgan and crew in the ring. Belair points out that they too walked out of Crown Jewel with gold around their waists. Cargill offers Morgan and Rodriguez a chance to get a taste of them next. Morgan tries to drive a wedge between Cargill and Belair and says the only thing keeping them together is the tag titles. Belair again offers to wrestle Morgan and Rodriguez tonight.
WWE Raw General Manager Adam Pearce comes out and tells the women to back away from each other. Morgan taunts Belair. Belair then clocks her. Pearce tells Morgan she will soon meet her next challenger after a number one contender battle royal, that takes place next.
WWE Women’s Title #1 Contender Battle Royal:
The bell rings, with Kayden Carter and Katana Chance jumping onto their opponents form diagonal turnbuckles. Carter kicks Isla Dawn off the apron for an elimination. Shanya Baszler makes Carter fade with a Kirifuda Clutch. Sonya Deville clocks her off the apron for an elimination.
Maxxine Dupri rocks Baszler with a kick then hits an elbow drop on Deville. Ivy Nile and Dupri briefly fight, which leads to Nile eliminating Dupri. Zelina Vega jumps off the rope but is caught by Nile. Vega, however, then eliminates Nile with a 619.
Back from break, Natalya targets Kairi Sane, but Sane fights back with a kick to her neck. Belair swoops in to eliminate Sane. Natalya then targets Sonya Deville, but gets eliminated by Baszler. Belair and Cargill eliminate Baszler and Deville as they’re not looking.
Belair, Cargill, Lyra Valkyria and IYO SKY emerge as the final four. Cargill sends SKY crashing into the corner. Cargill and Belair then double team Valkyria. Belair runs into a big boot from SKY. Cargill saves Belair in the corner. Cargill sends SKY to the mat, as Belair gets Valkyria over the top rope. Valkyria and SKY return to the ring to eats KOD and Jaded. While Raquel Rodriguez pulls the braid of Belair to eliminate her, as Liv Morgan pulls Cargill out of the ring as well for an elimination. Angry, Belair and Cargill chase Morgan and Rodriguez through the crowd.
SKY delivers a pair of double knees to Valkyria. Valkyria sweeps SKY’s legs then charges at her, but SKY rips her over the top rope. Valyria sweeps SKY’s legs again. SKY then swipes Valkyria off her feet and repeatedly stomps on her. SKY rains down with right hands. Valkyria responds with a kick. Valkyria lifts SKY onto her shoulders. SKY fights her off and finally eliminates her with a German Suplex.
Winner: IYO SKY
Backstage, Cathy Kelley speaks with The New Day. Xavier Woods says they should be the number one contenders for the tag titles, but Chad Gable screwed them. Kofi Kingston and Woods begin to argue over their match last week, but a Wyatt Sicks video cuts them off. The Miz is revealed to be tied up in a chair, courtesy of Bo Dallas. Dallas menacingly tells Miz that the Wyatt Sicks never cared about The Final Testament; they always wanted Miz.
War Raiders vs. The New Day
Ivar and Xavier Woods kick off the action, with Woods connecting with a backdrop. Woods tags in Kofi Kingston, who helps him double team Ivar. Erik runs in, but eats a dropkick from Kingston. Kingston tags in Woods, who tries to rock Ivar with a dropkick as well, but is instead caught. Meanwhile, Erik hits Kingston with a suplex-knee combo.
Back from break, Erik slams Ivar onto Woods for a near fall. Erik tags in Ivar. Woods tries to reach Kingston for a tag, but Ivar pulls him back. Woods stuns Ivar with a step-up enziguri. Woods finally gets the tag to Kingston as Ivar tags Erik back in. Kingston connects with a dropkick and a crossbody. Kingston hits SOS, but Ivar breaks up the subsequent pinfall attempt. Kingston ends Ivar to the outside then hits a running dive. Back in the ring, Kingston levels Erik with a Boom Drop. Woods forcefully tags himself in as Kingston looks for Trouble in Paradise. Erik clocks Kingston as Woods enters the ring. Erik tags in Ivar. Together, they double team Woods with a War Machine for the win.
Winners: War Raiders
Sami Zayn Reunites With The Usos
Sami Zayn comes down to the ring with a microphone and says he’s here to address what happened between him and The Bloodline at Crown Jewel. Jey Uso’s music hits. Uso thanks Zayn for having his back at Crown Jewel, but he saw Zayn kick Reigns at Crown Jewel. Jey asks if that was an accident. Before Zayn can answer, Jimmy Uso comes down with a microphone as well.
Jimmy accuses Zayn of kicking Roman on purpose and tells Jey that they can’t trust Zayn. Zayn says Jimmy was the one who previously brought Zayn into The Bloodline, but it he was also the one to kick Zayn, Roman, and Jey in the face in the past. Jimmy insists that he isn’t the bad guy.
Zayn says Jimmy isn’t a bad guy, but he makes bad decisions. Zayn says he only came out at Crown Jewel for Jey, but for a minute, it felt like the good old times in the ring. Zayn says that minute quickly went away though. He won’t be put on trial again by The Bloodline, and says he is out. As Zayn begins to walk away, Jey asks Zayn to come to SmackDown to talk it out like family. Jimmy reiterates that Zayn isn’t family. Jey counters by saying that while Zayn isn’t blood-related, he is indeed family. Jey signs off by saying he hopes to see Zayn on SmackDown.
Backstage, Seth Rollins says his resume earned him a spot in tonight’s four-way contenders match. Reed then pivots to Bronson Reed. Rollins says he respects Reed and foresees another dance between in the future. For now, though, Rollins is focused on securing himself a shot at the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. Rollins says after Crown Jewel, he realized who is — a visionary, a revolutionary, and Seth “Freakin” Rollins.
Dragon Lee (w/ Zelina Vega) vs. Chad Gable (w/ Ivy Nile)
Gable drops Lee onto the mat then looks for a German Suplex, but Lee blocks it. Gable puts him in a headlock, but Lee fights out of it. Gable pushes him down to the mat again. Lee taunts Gable by grabbing his singlet straps. Lee hopes off the top rope, hitting a crossbody for a near fall. Lee follows Gable out to the apron, where the two trade strikes. Lee rocks Gable with a knee. Lee charges at him, but Gable lifts him up, causing him to drop to the floor.
Back from break, Lee delivers a double stomp. He then charges toward him, but Gable sends him crashing into the turnbuckle. Gable drops Lee on his back. Lee catches Gable with an elbow and a kick. Lee kicks him again, this time in the face. Lee follows up with a dropkick for another near fall. Gable and Lee trade forearms to each other’s faces. Lee lands a German Suplex, but Gable responds with one of his own.
Lee and Gable jockey for positioning until Gable seizes control. He lays out Lee with two more German Suplexes. Lee escapes and hits a sit-out powerbomb. Lee goes up top, only to have Gable join him. Gable connects with a superplex. Gable follows up with a cliffhanger DDT and goes for the cover. Vega, however, breaks it up. Nile runs over and chokes her out until Rey Mysterio comes down to check on Vega. As Nile distracts the referee on one side, Mysterio kicks Gable on the other. This allows Lee to hit an Operation Dragon for the win.
Winner: Dragon Lee
Backstage, Gunther says Cody Rhodes was the better man at WWE Crown Jewel. Gunther then looks ahead to the number one contenders match for his title, which he says has three very capable competitors, and then Dominik Mysterio. Regardless of who wins, though, Gunther says he is still the champion. And now, it’s up to him do better than he did at Crown Jewel.
WWE World Title #1 Contenders Match: Dominik Mysterio vs. Damian Priest vs. Seth Rollins vs. Sheamus
Mysterio leaves the ring, only to have Priest follow him. Rollins and Priest then corner him, with Sheamus laying in with a series of forearm strikes on the apron. Meanwhile, Rollins tries to roll up Priest. Sheamus lifts Priest onto his shoulders, but meets a kick to the knees from Rollins. Rollins then kicks Sheamus out of the ring. Sheamus pulls Priest out of the ring and fights. Rollins wipes out Sheamus, Priest, and Mysterio with dives.
Back from break, Mysterio is in control. He stomps on Priest, then levels Sheamus and Rollins with dropkicks. Mysterio hits a DDT on Priest and stomps Rollins out of the ring. Mysterio rains down with right hands on Priest. Mysterio follows up with a neckbreaker for a near fall. Mysterio trash talks Priest. Priest fights back with a clothesline and a facebuster. Priest follows up with a big forearm, a big elbow, and an elevated Flatliner. Sheamus knocks Mysterio out of the way, then lands a trio of backbreakers on his opponents. Sheamus comes down with a big knee to Dominik. Priest wipes out Rollins with a clothesline.
Back from the second break, Sheamus hits White Noise on Priest for a near fall. Mysterio sets up Sheamus for a 619, but Sheamus counters with a running powerslam. Sheamus calls for a Brogue Kick, but Rollins intercepts with a kick of his own. Mysterio rolls Rollins up for a two count. Rollins responds with a Pedigree.
Bronson Reed enters the ringside area, leveling Sheamus and Priest. Reed takes down Rollins with a clothesline on the outside. Sheamus and Priest try to take down Reed, but Reed hits them both with Death Valley Drivers. Reed ascends the top and hits a Tsunami on both Priest and Sheamus. He then turns his attention back to Rollins, who he sends crashing through the announce table via another Tsunami.
Meanwhile, Mysterio hits a Frog Splash on Sheamus, but Priest breaks up with subsequent pinfall attempt. Mysterio lands a 619 on Priest then looks for a Frog Splash, but is caught in the midst of a South of Heaven. Priest covers him for the win.
Winner: Damian Priest
After the match, Priest comes face to face with Gunther.