WWE Monday Night Raw Review – January 30, 2023
This week’s Raw kicked off with a recap of Royal Rumble from this past Saturday.
Speaking of the Royal Rumble here comes the winner of the 2023 Royal Rumble Cody Rhodes as he makes his way down to the ring.
Rhodes jokingly asks fans what they want to talk about, then says he’s not the same person he was when he started working for WWE. He recalls pulling up to the OVW training facility for the first time and recounts thinking that he would be WWE Champion in 2 years. He says he was ambitious and thought he would be the next John Cena. He says if he could talk to himself back then he would tell him that it wouldn’t go down that way. He questions if he would tell him about his WWE journey, and talks about all the things he has gone through including winning the 2023 Royal Rumble and securing his spot at WrestleMania 39.
He continues on to say he wouldn’t tell him a single thing about his time in WWE because every single moment has been worth it. He says he hears fans singing it, and the first words on the track are his: Wrestling has more than one royal family. He says it’s not only wrestling that has more than one royal family, but WWE does as well and for that to be true, he has to stand across from another one Roman Reigns & The Bloodline. He says he respects Reigns but at WrestleMania 39 someone else will be the one to eat rather than The Head of the Table. He warns Reigns that he will not be the Undisputed WWE Universal Champion by the end of the night.
Judgment Day’s music hits & they head to the ring. Finn Balor asks Rhodes if he’s here to do something original, or just steal his old stuff as per usual. Dominik Mysterio tells Rhodes he ruined Judgment Day’s plans at the Rumble then says he was supposed to win. Balor taunts Rey Mysterio for being unable to make it to the ring on Saturday before Mysterio says Rhodes put his hands on him and ruined his moment. Damian Priest says Dominik should be the 2nd generation Superstar main eventing WrestleMania then calls him a suck up and puts over Rhea Ripley. He calls Rhodes the golden boy and says he was handed the #30 spot.
Rhodes asks Judgment Day if they’re trying to scare him straight then tells Mysterio he has respect for his family. Mysterio cuts him off then says he has no respect for Rey Mysterio or anyone else’s father, including Dusty Rhodes. Rhodes says he could play it safe until WrestleMania or he could be himself and kick any of their asses.
Edge’s music hits and he runs out. He blindsides Judgment Day and beats them down, causing officials to head down and separate all the men. Rhodes joins the fight and provides Edge with some back up.
United States Title Elimination Chamber Qualifying Match
Seth Rollins vs. Chad Gable
Match starts off with a lock up then Chad Gable trips Seth Rollins then looks to lock in the Ankle Lock. Rollins makes it to the bottom rope to prevent him from doing so, and Gable delivers a German suplex. Rollins rolls to the outside and Gable follows him out there with a cannonball off the apron. He tosses him back in the ring, then ascends to the top rope and delivers a diving headbutt. He goes for a cover but Rollins kicks out that takes us to a break.
Back from the break Gable is working on Rollins’ knee. Rollins delivers a pair of chops, but Gable fires back with a dragon screw. Gable ascends to the top and looks for a moonsault but Rollins rolls him up. Before the referee can finish his 3 count Rollins picks him up and delivers the Buckle Bomb then he follows it up with a pair of clotheslines and a kick then delivers a superkick and a Falcon Arrow.
He goes for a pin, but Gable kicks out. Rollins looks for the Pedigree but Gable reverses it into a pinning predicament. Rollins reverses the fall and they continue pinning one another until Gable gets Rollins up on his shoulders and plants him with a Cliffhanger DDT. Rollins delivers a back elbow, then looks for an enziguri.
Gable catches Rollins then locks in the Ankle Lock. Rollins rolls Gable up to escape but Gable kicks out and locks it in again. Rollins escapes by reversing the hold and kicking Gable off him then manages to deliver a Pedigree for the win.
Winner & Gets Into The United States Title Elimination Chamber Match: Seth Rollins
Women’s Tag Team Champion Iyo Sky vs. Candice LeRae
Candice LeRae trips Iyo Sky before Sky looks for a dropkick but LeRae moves out of the way and hits a senton. Sky sends LeRae crashing into the middle rope then follows it up with a flapjack and a stomp to her back. She then delivers a body slam but LeRae manages to hit a single leg dropkick. Sky rolls to the outside, and LeRae delivers a dropkick through the middle rope. Sky comes back with a crossbody, then tosses LeRae back in the ring. LeRae keeps Sky from getting back inside then goes flying and takes her down that sends us to a break.
Back from the break LeRae delivers a dropkick off the top rope. Sky fires back with a backbreaker and the double knees before LeRae delivers a German suplex off the middle rope. They go back & forth with forearms before Sky gets LeRae up on her shoulders. LeRae escapes with a Poison Rana, then ascends to the top rope. Sky knocks her down and looks for the Over The Moonsault but LeRae gets her knees up then goes for a pin but the referee misses it due to distractions from Bayley & Dakota Kai. Bayley then distracts LeRae & that allows Sky to roll her up for the win.
Winner: Women’s Tag Team Champion Iyo Sky
We came back from the break we get a video recapping the Women’s Royal Rumble match.
Speaking of the Women’s Royal Rumble here comes the winner of the 2023 Women’s Royal Rumble Rhea Ripley makes her down to the ring.
Ripley says it’s been a while since she’s been in the ring without Judgment Day, but she wants the attention to be on her. She says she disrupted the status quo 2 nights ago by outlasting 29 other women to win the Women’s Royal Rumble Match earning herself the right to choose which Women’s Champion she wants to face at WrestleMania 39. She says her career was just getting started when she won the NXT Women’s Title 3 years ago and she challenged Charlotte Flair at that year’s WrestleMania. She said Flair rightfully put her in her place then says she keeps getting better every year. She says Flair is always at the top, but calls herself a disruptor and says she doesn’t like things that are overplayed. Ripley advises Flair to enjoy everyone bowing down to The Queen then says they will soon be bowing down to her. She tells Flair that she chooses her.
We head backstage to Cathy Kelley is with Seth Rollins. Rollins says before they discuss Elimination Chamber, they should talk about the crowd in Tulsa and his match against Chad Gable earlier in the show. He says he will take back the United States Title on February 18th at Elimination Chamber then it’s on to WrestleMania. Kelley then asks Rollins for his thoughts on being eliminated by Logan Paul in the Royal Rumble match, and Rollins walks off with a disappointed look plastered across his face.
United States Title Elimination Chamber Qualifying Match
Johnny Gargano vs. Baron Corbin
Johnny Gargano wastes no time. He goes straight to work on Corbin and beats him down. He delivers a hurricanrana and a dropkick, but Corbin catches him with a big boot and a chop. He whips Gargano into the corner but Gargano fires back with a kick to his face. Corbin rolls out of the ring and Gargano delivers a dropkick through the middle rope. He chokeslams him onto the barricade then sends his head bouncing off the announce table and whips him into the barricade that sends us to a break.
After the break Corbin rains down Hammer & Anvil elbows on Gargano. Gargano fires back with a slingshot spear, then follows it up with a pair of superkicks. Corbin delivers a back elbow, then follows it up with Deep Six. He goes for a pin but Gargano kicks out at 2. Corbin fires off several right hands then gets Gargano up.
Gargano sends Corbin into the ring post shoulder first then delivers a tope suicida. JBL tries interfering but Dexter Lumis pulls out an ax and whacks JBL’s cowboy hat with it. Gargano takes advantage of the chaos and rolls up Corbin for the win.
Winner & Gets Into The United States Title Elimination Chamber Match: Johnny Gargano
MVP welcomes fans to VIP Lounge then introduces United States Champion Austin Theory.
Theory sits on the couch and MVP tells him to make himself comfortable. Theory says he’s here to make VIP Lounge relevant again then says it should be renamed to Austin Theory Live. MVP says hot trends come and go but classics always stay. He says Austin Theory Live has a ring to it then asks Theory where his head is at going into Elimination Chamber. Fans loudly boo Theory as Theory asks MVP if he just called him champ. MVP says he did and Theory mocks him by saying he also calls Bobby Lashley a champ. Theory then recalls being given an F5 off the top of the Chamber by Brock Lesnar then calls himself the ruthless aggression of his generation.
MVP says he’s been in the same spot as Theory then says he knows he’s scared. He says he’s doing a good job of not letting people know that’s the case then says you never know who will be in the Elimination Chamber. Theory asks if that’s a threat and MVP says Lashley is more dangerous to him than The Undertaker. Theory says Lashley won’t be in the Chamber, then asks to talk about something not in the past. MVP voices his concerns about Theory’s health before Theory tells him to worry about his own health and Lashley’s. He calls Lashley the meal ticket of MVP.
Lashley’s music hits and he heads to the ring. MVP initially prevents him from attacking Theory, but Theory keeps running his mouth. MVP lets him loose and Lashley beats down Theory. He looks for a spear but Theory pulls MVP in front of him and MVP absorbs the blow.
We head backstage to Byron Saxton is with Judgment Day. Saxton asks Finn Balor about their altercation with Edge earlier tonight and Balor tells Saxton to let Edge know he works Monday nights. He then addresses Cody Rhodes and says Rhodes has stolen from him for years.
When we came back from the break The Miz is in the ring. He complains about not being prominently featured on Raw 30 and being eliminated 1st in the Royal Rumble Match. He puts his hand up, then asks fans if they know what it means. He says when his hand goes up, their mouths go shut. He complains about not having an Elimination Chamber Qualifying Match then demands to have a match.
Adam Pearce comes to the ring and says he has an opportunity for him. He then says there is someone who has been knocking on his door for an opportunity all day & newest member of the Raw roster Rick Boogs.
Boogs’ music hits and he parties the night away as he heads to the ring. Miz asks Pearce if this is who he wants him to have a match with Boogs & Pearce says yes. He says Miz is always telling everyone how awesome he is then calls for a referee and makes the match official.
The Miz vs. Rick Boogs
Rick Boogs sends The Miz into the top turnbuckle face first. Miz delivers a left hand but this only angers Boogs. He delivers a gutwrench followed by a fallaway slam and a modified military slam for the win.
Winner: Rick Boogs
We then head backstage to Alpha Academy as Otis & Chad Gable get separated before a nearby Maximum Male Models takes notice of Otis. Maxxine Dupri calls him perfect.
Back from the break we head to a video of Sami Zayn betraying The Bloodline and the subsequent attack that followed.
Bayley gloats about attacking Becky Lynch at Raw is 30 then says Damage CTRL dominated the Women’s Royal Rumble. She says her favorite moment of the match was eliminating Lynch, then says she’s done with her.
Becky Lynch’s music hits and she heads to the ring. Lynch tells Bayley to shut up, then says the two of them aren’t done until she says they are. She says she has already won the Rumble, but entered the 2023 Rumble match to take out Damage CTRL. Bayley says that sounds like excuses to her and Lynch says excuses are depriving fans of a Steel Cage match amongst other ones.
Bayley denies that she’s doing that as fans tell her that’s exactly what she’s doing. Bayley says she doesn’t care that it’s Lynch’s birthday, then tells her that she thinks she’s overrated. She says she isn’t good enough to be champion or in the ring with her then says she’s not good enough for her husband, Seth Rollins.
Bayley says Rollins only married her because she got pregnant, and Lynch says she thought they were only fighting only wrestling. Lynch says all the animosity between them on NXT in Orlando. She challenges Bayley to a Steel Cage match next week in the place it all started.
Bayley declines her challenge, and Lynch says she thought Bayley would say that. She heads to the back and drags Dakota Kai out with a chair around her ankle. She picks it up and asks her what it’s going to be. Bayley accepts her challenge to save Kai & Lynch then tells her to check on Iyo Sky in the back.
We head backstage to Cathy Kelly is with Adam Pearce & Kelley says Pearce has 2 huge announcements. He says he’s made the Steel Cage match between Becky Lynch & Bayley official for next week then announces Bianca BelAir’s WrestleMania 39 opponent will be decided in an Elimination Chamber Match. He says the final 4 women in the Royal Rumble match have already qualified Raquel Rodriguez,Liv Morgan,Nikki Cross & Asuka. He then says one of the final 2 competitors will be determined in a Fatal 4 Way Match next week between Candice LeRae,Michin,Piper Niven & a returning Carmella.
Chelsea Green walks in and tells Pearce she wants to talk about the unacceptable conditions and treatment she’s received since returning this past Saturday. Pearce escorts her off and says they can discuss.
United States Title Elimination Chamber Qualifying Match
Bronson Reed vs. Dolph Ziggler
Dolph Ziggler delivers a dropkick. He follows it up with an elbow but Bronson Reed fires back with a splash. Ziggler delivers a back elbow then follows it up with a DDT and goes for a pin. Bronson kicks out and delivers a forearm then looks for a vertical suplex. Ziggler escapes and hits a Zig Zag. He charges at Reed but Reed catches him and delivers a powerbomb. He ascends to the top and delivers the Tsunami for the win.
Winner & Gets Into The United States Title Elimination Chamber Match: Bronson Reed
We head backstage to Cathy Kelley is with Carmella. Carmella says she is back and she will secure herself a spot in the Women’s Elimination Chamber match next week. Asuka walks in and Carmella gets in her face. Asuka creepily laughs at her revealing blue stained teeth.
We go backstage to Rick Boogs,Street Profits & Elias celebrating Boogs’ win earlier tonight. Byron Saxton walks in and Boogs expresses his excitement. He then runs off and Saxton asks Street Profits how they feel going into the Elimination Chamber Qualifying Matches against Damian Priest & Elias respectively. Dawkins puts himself over and says he will beat Priest before Elias & Ford begin arguing about which one of them will win.
2023 Royal Rumble Winner Cody Rhodes vs. Finn Balor
Match starts off with a lock up before Cody Rhodes slaps Balor then delivers gets him up for a delayed vertical suplex but instead sends him crashing down face first. After the break Balor delivers a series of stomps to Rhodes as Rhea Ripley laughs and taunts him. Balor sends Rhodes into the top turnbuckle face first, then goes to work on his fingers. He hits a chop, then delivers a kick to his chest.
Balor delivers some more stomps, then delivers a knee to Rhodes’ neck. He looks for a 2nd one but Rhodes intercepts it and hits a dragon screw then he follows it up with the Disaster Kick that sends Balor to the outside, then delivers a tope suicida. Damian Priest & Dominik Mysterio try attacking Rhodes but Rhodes sends them over the announce table before getting back inside and delivering a powerslam to Balor. He looks for the Cody Cutter but Balor fires back with an elbow drop.
Back from another break Rhodes & Balor are teetering on the top rope. Rhodes manages to pull out a superplex before they exchange right hands. Rhodes delivers the Cody Cutter then goes for a pin but Balor kicks out. Balor delivers a sling blade then charges at Rhodes. Rhodes catches him with a superkick then looks for a Figure 4.
Balor avoids it and sends Rhodes to the outside. Judgment Day circles Rhodes but Edge runs in through the crowd and lays out Priest & Mysterio Ripley attacks Edge but Beth Phoenix runs down and levels her with a spear.
Inside the ring Balor delivers a double stomp and a dropkick. He ascends to the top and looks for the Coup De Grace but Edge momentarily distracts him. Balor looks to execute the move but Rhodes rolls out of the way and delivers 3 Cross Rhodes for the win.
Winner: 2023 Royal Rumble Winner: Cody Rhodes
Next week’s Raw
Steel Cage Match
Becky Lynch vs. Bayley
Fatal 4 Way Raw Women’s Title #1 Contenders Elimination Chamber Qualifying Match
Michin vs. Candice LeRae vs. Piper Niven vs. Carmella
United States Title Elimination Chamber Qualifying Match
Angelo Dawkins vs. Damian Priest
United States Title Elimination Chamber Qualifying Match
Montez Ford vs. Elias
Elimination Chamber Card (Feb 18th)
United States Title Elimination Chamber Match
Austin Theory (c) vs. Seth Rollins vs. Johnny Gargano vs. Bronson Reed vs. Angelo Dawkins or Damian Priest vs. Montez Ford or Elias
Raw Women’s Title #1 Contenders Elimination Chamber Match
Raquel Rodriguez vs. Liv Morgan vs. Asuka vs. Nikki Cross vs. TBD vs. TBD
WrestleMania 39 Card (April 1st & 2nd)
Undisputed WWE Universal Title Match
Roman Reigns (c) vs. 2023 Royal Rumble Winner Cody Rhodes
Smackdown Women’s Title Match
Charlotte Flair (c) vs. 2023 Women’s Royal Rumble Winner Rhea Ripley
Raw Women’s Title Match
Bianca Belair (c) vs. TBD
