WWE Raw Review – June 19, 2023
Kicking off this week’s Raw with Finn Balor blindsides World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins as he basks in the song of the fans. He dumps him out of the ring then sends him crashing into the announce table spine 1st. He tosses him into the ring post then rains down right hands and fires off several stomps. Adam Pearce and other officials run down to check on Rollins and pull him off Rollins but Balor escapes their grasp and hits the Coup De Grace off the ring steps. He delivers a 2nd one off the announce table before landing another one off the ring steps & we go to a break.
After the break we see Rollins & Pearce walking around backstage. Balor blindsides him once again and throws a table on top of him then sends him crashing into a road case and stomps on his neck then he tells Rollins he’s been waiting 7 years to get his hands on him and it’s his time now. He finally backs down and Pearce and other officials check on Rollins.
Back at ringside The Miz is in the ring & says Rollins offered up an open challenge for the World Heavyweight Title that he was going to accept but that can no longer happen as a result of what just happened so he issued his own open challenge and Tommaso Ciampa answers the call in his return to WWE.
Tommaso Ciampa vs. The Miz
Tommaso Ciampa clocks The Miz before the bell rings and he fires off stomps in the corner before the action spills to the outside and Ciampa sends Miz face first into the announce table then tosses him back inside the ring and delivers a pair of splashes in the corner then delivers a leaping clothesline. Miz responds with a DDT and goes for a pin but Ciampa kicks out.
Ciampa then delivers a pair of chops before Miz lands a boot and a few kicks on Ciampa’s midsection then whips Ciampa into the corner and ascends to the top rope but Ciampa catches him with a running knee follow by Fairy Tale Ending for the win.
Winner: Tommaso Ciampa
Finn Balor calls out Seth Rollins and says his open challenge for the World Heavyweight Title was canceled because of him. He says he’s the only one who will dethrone him as World Heavyweight Champion and says fans will be singing Rollins’ song at his funeral. Rhea Ripley says the WWE Universe will be bowing to them after Balor wins the World Heavyweight Title. She says she has the women’s division on lockdown, Damian Priest will become Mr Money In The Bank and Dominik Mysterio will defeat Cody Rhodes. Priest reiterates Ripkey’s point and says the Money In The Bank contract will have his name on it. He then tells Rhodes to keep Mysterio’s name out of his mouth before Mysterio says Rhodes will see what he’ll do to him in London, England. He then tells him to find 2 other partners tonight for a 6 Man Tag Team match later on tonight.
We then head to a video recapping what happened between Jey Uso, Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns & the rest of The Bloodline this past Friday on Smackdown.
We head backstage to Byron Saxton is with Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champions Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn. Zayn confronts Owens about his anger issues but Owens denies that he has them. Zayn tells Owens that he’ll drop things if can go the whole night without blowing up but if he does then he has to admit something is going on with him. Owens agrees.
Tag Team Match
Kayden Carter & Katana Chance vs. Sonya Deville & Chelsea Green
Sonya Deville delivers a boot to Kayden Carter before Chelsea Green tags in and delivers an assisted Tijeras then tags in Carter. Deville tags in and Carter sends Green crashing into her then lands a superkick on her then tags in Katana Chance.
Change & Carter deliver a springboard moonsault leg drop combination before Chance tags back in & they hit Afterparty for the win.
Winners: Kayden Carter & Katana Chance
Cathy Kelley then introduces Cody Rhodes and Rhodes heads down to the ring. Kelley asks Rhodes about Judgment Day’s challenge for a 6 Man Tag Team Match later tonight and Rhodes says he’ll have no problem finding 2 partners then he formally accepts.
Tag Team Match
Indus Sher (Veer Mahaan & Sanga) vs. Cedric Alexander & Shelton Benjamin
Shelton Benjamin wastes no time and clocks Sanga with a knee then Benjamin & Cedric Alexander double team on Veer Mahaan then Sanga scoops up Alexander on the outside but Benjamin lands a blockbuster off the apron.
He slides back in the ring and Mahaan plants him with a splash as Sanga sends Alexander crashing into the apron.
Sanga tags in and lands a boot as Mahaan holds them in place. Mahaan tags back in and delivers an elbow drop while Sanga plants him for the win.
Winners: Indus Sher
We head backstage to Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn & someone spills water on Owens but Owens plays it cool and says it’s no big deal. They then run into Matt Riddle & Riddle starts talking his ear off. Owens becomes irate but catches himself and calms down.
After the break Logan Paul is waiting in the ring sitting on top of a ladder.
Paul says the best people in the world come from Cleveland and says he became great when he left Ohio. He rags on his home state and says he’s the best that Cleveland has to offer. He says people from Cleveland keep losing, but he will single handedly put respect back on Cleveland’s name. He says he talked to some executives and he’ll be in the Money In The Bank Ladder match.
Ricochet appears and congratulates Paul on entering the Money In The Bank Ladder match. He says the only reason Paul was added to the match was because Ricochet made him go viral at Royal Rumble. He says it doesn’t matter that Paul was added because he’ll still win.
Shinsuke Nakamura heads down to the ring and says he cares Paul was added to the match because he’ll win before LA Knight’s music hits and he makes his way down. He says he sees 2 useless guys in Nakamura & Ricochet and says Paul isn’t a megastar. Santos Escobar then appears and welcomes Paul to the party but declares that he’ll be the 1 standing tall at the end of the day. Butch marches down to the ring and clocks Paul. Knight then starts brawling with Nakamura as Ricochet & Escobar go at it. Paul dumps Butch out of the ring before he goes flying over the top rope before going back in the ring climbs the ladder & holds the briefcase.
Matt Riddle vs. Ludwig Kaiser
Match starts off with a lock up then Matt Riddle fires off a couple of kicks on his chest then cinches in an Ankle Lock but Ludwig Kaiser quickly escapes by grabbing the bottom rope before he lands a dropkick. Riddle fires back with a pair of gutwrench suplexes and a Broton.
The action spills to the outside and Riddle delivers a knee off the apron then he gets in Gunther’s face allowing Kaiser to sneak up on him and lands a chop block before planting him on the floor off of the apron as we go to a break.
After the break Kaiser teeters on the top rope then Riddle meets him up there and lands a superplex before they go back & forth with right hands. Riddle lands Sole Food and a forearm then looks for a standing moonsault. Kaiser moves out of the way and Riddle looks for another Broton but Kaiser gets his knees up.
He dumps Kaiser to the outside and lands the Floating Bro then gets him back in the ring and hits a fisherman’s buster. Kaiser fires back with an uppercut and an enziguri but Riddle lands a ripcord knee.
Kaiser delivers another enziguri and a double underhook suplex then looks for an uppercut off the middle rope before Riddle catches him with a German suplex mid air then lands the Bro Derek for the win.
Winner: Matt Riddle
After the match Gunther attacks Riddle. He plants him & Kaiser joins in & he rains down right hands before Gunther targets his leg and stomps on it.
After the break we go backstage to Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn before Imperium approaches them and Owens asks what they want. Kaiser says he hopes they saw what he did to Riddle and tells him that if they aren’t careful the same thing will happen to them. Owens asks Kaiser why he drags out his sentences but Zayn cuts him off and says they have something to deal with after seeing a message on his phone.
Tag Team Match
Viking Raiders (Erik & Ivar) vs. Alpha Academy (Chad Gable & Otis)
Erik & Chad Gable lock up to get this match started then Gable delivers a suplex before Ivar & Otis tag in. Otis levels Ivar but Ivar fires back with a spinning heel kick. Erik tags in and wears Otis down then tags Ivar back in.
Otis plants Ivar with a suplex then tags in Gable. Erik tags in and Gable delivers a kick to his midsection then follows it up with a rolling neckbreaker and an exploder suplex.
The action spills to the outside and Gable ascends to the top rope & connects with a moonsault that takes down Viking Raiders then tosses Erik back in the ring and ascends to the top rope & lands a diving headbutt and goes for a pin but Erik kicks out.
Valhalla distracts Gable but Maxine Dupri levels her with a suplex on the outside & this opens the door for Erik to deliver a kick to Gable’s spine for the win.
Winners: Viking Raiders
Non Title Match
Women’s World Champion Rhea Ripley vs. Natalya
Rhea Ripley blindsides Natalya and knocks her off the apron then she tosses Natalya into the barricade then sends her crashing into the ring steps and the ring apron then lands a headbutt and tosses her inside the ring. Ripley then delivers Riptide and officials run down to check on Natalya.
Winner: No One (Match Never Got Started)
Ripley then encounters Raquel Rodriguez in the Gorilla position and they have a brief heated exchange of words before Rodriguez heads out to the ring.
After the break we go backstage to Cody Rhodes preparing for his upcoming 6 Man Tag Team match Akira Tozawa walks up to Rhodes & offer to be his partner before Sami Zayn & Kevin Owens walk in and Zayn says he got his text. He says they would be proud to be his tag team partners.
Women’s Money In The Bank Qualifying Match
Trish Stratus vs. Raquel Rodriguez
Trish Stratus delivers a boot to Raquel Rodriguez’s midsection before Rodriguez plants Stratus and delivers a body slam then follows it up with a splash in the corner. Stratus fires off right hands but an angered Rodriguez shoves her into the corner. She whips her into the opposite corner and charges at her but Stratus ducks out of the way and Rodriguez collides with the ring post shoulder first. Stratus then delivers a DDT before hitting a knee.
Rodriguez sets up for a powerbomb but Stratus sends her into the middle turnbuckle face first then she locks in a Camel Clutch but Rodriguez escapes and delivers a sidewalk slam. Rodriguez then hits a clothesline and follows it up with a fallaway slam. Zoey Stark trips her in the apron allowing Stratus to send her into the ring post shoulder first.
Becky Lynch runs down to the ring and blindsides Stark then clocks Stratus causing the disqualification.
Winner By DQ & Gets Into The Women’s Money In The Bank Ladder Match: Trish Stratus
After the match Rodriguez & Lynch begin arguing in the ring.
Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Bronson Reed
Shinsuke Nakamura wastes no time as he delivers a running knee and a snapmare then follows it up with a knee to his neck. Bronson Reed fires back with a splash and an elbow drop then delivers a headbutt and follows it up with a German suplex as Ricochet saunters down to ringside as we go to a break.
After the break Nakamura delivers a knee off the top rope before Reed lands a powerslam before landing a powerbomb then the action spills to the outside and Reed whips Nakamura into the chair Ricochet has taken a seat at ringside.
Ricochet kicks the chair towards Reed and Reed tosses Nakamura in the ring then Nakamura charges at Reed but Nakamura inadvertently hits Ricochet & this allow Reed to nail Tsunami for the win.
Winner: Bronson Reed
6 Man Tag Team Match
Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champions Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn & Cody Rhodes vs. Judgement Day (Damian Priest, Finn Balor & Dominik Mysterio)
Match starts off with Cody Rhodes & Finn Balor lock up then Balor delivers a back elbow but Rhodes gets him up on his shoulders and plants him. Dominik Mysterio tags in but slides out of the ring and taunts Rhodes then he gets back inside and tags out to Damian Priest as Rhodes does the same to Sami Zayn.
Priest fires off stomps on Zayn in the corner but Zayn responds with an elbow drop off the middle rope. Mysterio tags in and Zayn fires off right hands. Dominik sets up for 3 Amigos but Zayn reverses the momentum into a suplex of his own & that takes us to a break.
After the break Priest delivers a back elbow to Zayn then Balor tags in then immediately tags out to Priest. Balor delivers a backbreaker before holding him in place. Priest then delivers a leg drop. He charges at Zayn in the corner but Zayn ducks out of the way. Balor tags in and Zayn catches him with a clothesline.
Kevin Owens & Mysterio tag in. Owens fires off stomps before Mysterio rolls out of the ring. Owens blindsides him with a clothesline to the back of his neck then tosses him back in the ring and lands a superkick then follows it up with a cannonball and Balor makes the blind tag. He executes an elbow drop but Owens responds with a superkick and tags in Rhodes.
Priest tags in and Rhodes lands a scoop powerslam then follows it up with a Disaster Kick but Priest fires back with South Of Heaven and goes for a pin but Zayn breaks the fall. Mysterio blindsides him but Zayn dumps him out of the ring. Rhea Ripley catches him and gets in Zayn’s face before Zayn goes flying and takes Mysterio out on the outside after Ripley ducks out of the way.
Back in the ring Rhodes lands Cody Cutter then follows it up with a back elbow and Mysterio tries to interfere but Zayn catches him with a Helluva Kick and Owens hits a Stunner. Rhodes then hits Cross Rhodes on Priest for the win.
Winners: Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champions Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn & Cody Rhodes
Matches Of The Night
Matt Riddle vs. Ludwig Kaiser- 7/10
6 Man Tag Team Match- 7/10
Money In The Bank Card (July 1st)
7 Man Money In The Bank Ladder Match
Ricochet vs. Shinsuke Nakamura vs. LA Knight vs. Santos Escobar vs. Butch vs. Damian Priest vs. Logan Paul
6 Woman Money In The Bank Ladder Match
Zelina Vega vs. Becky Lynch vs. Zoey Stark vs. Bayley or Shotzi Blackheart vs. Iyo Sky vs. Trish Stratus
Cody Rhodes vs. Dominik Mysterio
World Heavyweight Title Match
Seth Rollins (c) vs. Finn Balor
Tag Team Match
The Bloodline (Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns & Solo Sikoa) vs. The Usos (Jimmy & Jey)
