WWE Raw Review – February 5, 2024
Kicking off this week’s Raw with a video recapping the confrontation between Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns & 2024 Royal Rumble Winner Cody Rhodes this past Friday on Smackdown as well as the surprise return of The Rock.
World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins welcomes fans to Monday Night Rollins and introduces himself then says it’s been quite the week in WWE. He says after this past Friday on Smackdown like the fans, he wants Cody Rhodes. He then calls him out to the ring.
Rhodes’ music hits and he makes his way down. He asks Rollins and St. Louis what they want to talk about and Rollins says he stands by his words last week in saying that the World Heavyweight Title is the most prestigious in the industry. He says he needs their WrestleMania match as much as Rhodes does, and says he needs to know that he’s the best. He says the only way to do that is if he tests himself against the best, and asks him if he’s choosing to face him at WrestleMania 40.
Before Rhodes can answer Drew McIntyre’s music hits and he makes his way down. He says he thinks he speaks on behalf of everyone in saying what the hell. He says he led them both up perfectly for WrestleMania but they’re about to screw it up. He tells Rollins he knew that he hated CM Punk as much as he did and he had a t shirt commissioned making fun of Punk being unable to main event WrestleMania. He tells Rhodes that he has to finish the story seeing as he’s been talking about it for 2 years now. He says Rhodes has earned the moment and tells him not to let everyone down. He tells him not to let his father down.
Rollins asks McIntyre what makes him think that he’ll be facing him for the World Heavyweight Title at WrestleMania should Rhodes choose not to face him. He reminds him that he’s lost twice to him and McIntyre in turn reminds Rollins that he’s lost to Rhodes 3 times. McIntyre gives Rollins credit for making the World Heavyweight Title the workhorse title, and says everyone knows that Roman Reigns’ matches for the Undisputed WWE Universal Title will end with help from his family. He says Rollins has done an amazing job taking the title as far as he has then lands a Glasgow Kiss on Rollins. Rhodes then fights McIntyre off.
Fatal 4 Way Undisputed WWE Tag Team Titles #1 Contenders Qualifying Match
Creed Brothers (Julius & Brutus) vs. Imperium (Giovanni Vinci & Ludwig Kaiser) vs. DIY (Tommaso Ciampa & Johnny Gargano) vs. New Day (Kofi Kingston & Xavier Woods)
Match starts off with Tommaso Ciampa & Xavier Woods lock up then Ciampa hits a shoulder tackle but Woods responds with a dropkick and tags in Kofi Kingston.
Kingston hits a crossbody off the top rope then tags Woods back in & New Day double teams on Ciampa & Woods connects with an elbow drop on him.
Kingston tags back in and ascends to the top rope then hits a double stomp to Ciampa’s arm as Woods holds it extended.
Ciampa delivers a boot to Kingston & Kaiser becomes legal. He & Giovanni Vinci then hit a double dropkick to Kingston as we go to a break.
After the break Kaiser delivers an elbow to Kingston but Kingston flies out of the corner to level him. Woods tags in and levels Vinci with a leg lariat then hits a forearm to Ciampa.
Julius Creed gets into the ring and Woods takes him out then Gargano levels Woods with a spear through the middle rope then flies over the top with Ciampa to take down Creed Brothers on the outside.
Kingston lands a double dropkick on #DIY and runs the ropes but Imperium trips him and pulls him out of the ring.
They fire off right hands on him but Gargano flies over the top to take them down.
Julius then ascends to the top and hits a Swanton Bomb before Woods & Ciampa find themselves teetering on the top rope.
Ciampa gets Woods up on his shoulders and connects with an Air Raid Crash to take out the 6 other men as we go to a another break.
After the 2nd break New Day pulls Imperium & Ciampa off the top rope then Brutus ascends to the top rope and hits a moonsault to Kaiser then goes for a pin.
New Day breaks the fall before Vinci tags in and levels Brutus then lands a stomp on him but Julius takes him down. Gargano levels Julius & Kingston takes him down with Boom Drop.
Kaiser lands a clothesline on Kingston & Woods connects with a gutbuster on him.
Ciampa sends Woods crashing to the outside but Brutus lands a shoulder pounce on him and cinches in an Ankle Lock on Vinci.
Ciampa looks to lock in a Sleeper on Brutus but Julius pulls him off and levels him and Woods with a double suplex. Vinci is about to tap but everyone else breaks the hold up before he can.
Julius gets Vinci up in an electric chair position and Brutus hits Brutus Ball from the top rope.
Gargano hits a superkick to Julius and #DIY hits Meeting In The Middle to Vinci for the win.
Winners & Gets Into The Undisputed WWE Tag Team Titles #1 Contenders Match: DIY
Backstage Shayna Baszler cuts a promo and talked about tearing Becky Lynch apart limb by limb.
Becky Lynch was shown walking through the backstage area and she said she had to be perfect when she faced Baszler because her future is on the line.
Women’s Elimination Chamber Qualifying Match
Becky Lynch vs. Shayna Baszler
Match starts off with a lock up then they take turns locking one another in submission holds.
Baszler delivers an arm drag and a knee but Lynch dumps her to the outside and lands a dropkick under the bottom rope.
She looks to land a right hand from the apron but Baszler blocks it and delivers a kick to her head then follows it up with a boot as Lynch sits next to the ring steps as we go to a break.
After the break Lynch hits a flying shoulder tackle but Baszler catches her with a German suplex and a sliding knee. Lynch sets up for Manhandle Slam but Baszler blocks her from hitting it.
She then looks to lock in the Dis Arm Her but Baszler blocks it once again and sends Lynch crashing into the bottom rope.
Lynch hits a pair of kicks and ascends to the top rope but Baszler pulls her down and delivers a running knee. She goes for a pin but Lynch kicks out.
Lynch sends Baszler crashing into the mat and looks to land the Manhandle Slam.
Baszler transitions into an Ankle Lock but Lynch fights her way out and looks to land a leg drop off the top as Baszler is draped from the middle rope.
Baszler avoids it then ascends to the top rope as Lynch follows her up there and hits a superplex then transitions into the Dis Arm Her but Baszler escapes.
Lynch & Baszler exchange open palm strikes and Baszler locks in the Kirifuda Clutch. Lynch reverses into a pin but Baszler kicks out. Lynch then hits Manhandle Slam for the win.
Winner & Gets Into The Women’s Elimination Chamber Match: Becky Lynch
Backstage Cathy Kelly is with Liv Morgan & Morgan said she had nearly a full year taken away from her due to injury. She said that’s a really long time. Morgan looked into the camera and said next week is about her revenge and her revenge is about Rhea Ripley.
We see footage of Shinsuke Nakamura spraying mist in the eyes of Cody Rhodes while they were backstage at a live event over the weekend.
Backstage Raw General Manager Adam Pearce scolded Drew McIntyre for taking out CM Punk & Seth Rollins even though they were not medically cleared. Pearce indicated that he fined McIntyre and threatened to double it if he continued to wear his t shirt mocking Punk. They both noticed Rhea Ripley’s entrance video starting on the television behind them.
Women’s World Champion Rhea Ripley says while Lynch may have qualified for the Women’s Elimination Chamber match & she’s here for Nia Jax and calls her out.
Adam Pearce marches down to the ring and says they won’t be doing that right now. He informs Ripley that he’s given her Nia Jax for the Women’s World Title at Elimination Chamber and invites her to leave the ring.
Before she can Nia Jax’s music hits and she makes her way down. She pushes past Pearce and clocks her with a right hand. Ripley sends Jax crashing into Pearce and fires off shoulders on Jax in the corner. She fires off right hands as security runs down to separate them. Jax fights off security and ascends to the middle rope. She connects with the A Nia Lator and heads to the back with a giant smile on her face.
We then head over to a video recapping what happened between Bayley & Damage CTRL last Friday.
Mixed Tag Team Match
Alpha Academy (Akira Tozawa & Maxxine Dupri) vs. Viking Raiders (Ivar & Vallaha)
Valhalla levels Maxxine Dupri as Akira Tozawa lands a tope suicida on Ivar outside the ring.
Dupri rolls up Valhalla but Valhalla kicks out then Dupri lands an enzuigiri and a handspring back elbow. Tozawa & Ivar tag in and Tozawa looks to fly off the top rope.
Ivar catches him but Dupri levels him with a crossbody off the top rope then Valhalla hits a clothesline to Dupri but Dupri responds with one of her own on the outside.
Back in the ring Ivar lands a back heel kick and climbs up to the middle rope as Dupri captures his attention but Valhalla takes her down with a headbutt.
Tozawa tries taking advantage but Ivar catches home with a World’s Strongest Slam from the middle rope for the win.
Winners: Viking Raiders
Highlights aired of Judgment Day taking out Awesome Truth last week.
Backstage Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champions Mr Money In The Bank Damian Priest & Finn Balor spoke about their potential Elimination Chamber opponents and said it makes no difference. Dominik Mysterio shows up and said Ripley was good but she wasn’t happy and needed space.
R Truth shows up and acted like nothing happened. McDonagh said he was about to wipe the floor with Truth’s buddy Miz in their match. Truth assumed that last week was a re initiation. Balor said there was no initiation and asked Truth what planet he was on before walking away. Priest gave up and told Truth to make himself at home.
After the break The Miz was interviewed by Jackie Redmond. Miz said Truth still believes he is in Judgment Day. Miz said he doesn’t know if that makes Truth crazy or a genius. Miz said Truth finds a line between crazy and genius and that’s why we love him. Miz said JD McDonagh & Judgment Day have no idea what he has in store for them.
JD McDonagh vs. The Miz
JD McDonagh wastes no time as he fires off stomps on Miz then sends him crashing into the top turnbuckle face first and fires off kicks.
He hits a back elbow but Miz catapults him into the corner and turns him inside out with a clothesline.
He fires off knees on his midsection and lands a back body drop then clotheslines him out of the ring and sends him over the barricade near the timekeeper’s area.
He brings him back into ringside with a vertical suplex then gets him back inside.
Dominik Mysterio grabs Miz’s ankle while the referee is distracted allowing McDonagh to send him crashing into the announce table face first as we go to a break.
After the break, McDonagh delivers a uranage and a moonsault to Miz. He drags him into the corner then ascends to the top rope.
Before he can fly R Truth makes his way down to the ring with his bootleg Judgment Day merch in hand.
He tosses several shirts out into the crowd capturing McDonagh’s attention.
McDonagh looks for a moonsault but Miz gets his boots up and follows it up with a pair of left hands then hits IT Kicks and a crossbody off the top rope.
Miz sets up for Skull Crushing Finale but McDonagh escapes so Miz sends him crashing out of the ring then hits a dropkick to Mysterio through the middle rope and lands a hurricanrana on McDonagh.
He tosses him back in the ring before Truth puts one of his shirts on Mysterio.
Mysterio then walks into a kick from Miz but McDonagh waits in the ring with a headbutt when he gets back inside.
McDonagh then hits a moonsault off the top rope and goes for a pin but Miz kicks out.
R Truth hops up on the apron and hands McDonagh his cut of the merch profits & this opens the door for Miz to hit Skull Crushing Finale for the win
Winner: The Miz
After the match Truth collects the money scattered around the ring as Mysterio yells at him for messing things up.
A vignette spotlighted Kayden Carter & Katana Chance while they included brief comments about facing Kabuki Warriors for the Women’s Tag Team Titles. Once we get our hands on you, party over.
We then head over to Adam Pearce’s office where Ludwig Kaiser & Giovanni Vinci are making sure that everything is ready for Gunther’s Intercontinental Title celebration. Pearce tells them to leave seeing as he has a meeting before Bron Breakker walks in and they discuss a potential Raw contract for him to sign following his meeting with Nick Aldis last Friday.
After the break we head over to a video of CM Punk undergoing successful surgery for his torn triceps.
Ludwig Kaiser demands the fans give their gratitude for Gunther and introduces him then makes his way down to the ring.
Gunther says he is celebrating over 600 days as Intercontinental Champion to the surprise of no one, and thanks Kaiser for setting up his celebration. He tells him he doesn’t want him to go through the trouble as it’s a given that he will always be the greatest and longest titleholder in history. He says he is running out of competition and no one is worthy of challenging him.
Jey Uso’s music hits and he makes his way down to the ring. Jey tells fans he’s in their city, and Gunther says he understands his simple gestures for a simple audience. He says the last time they saw each other, Gunther eliminated him from the Royal Rumble. He says he senses disrespect in Jey & Jey says he sees the work Gunther has put in. He acknowledges Gunther being the longest reigning Intercontinental Champion and Gunther says he appreciates it. He says Jey holds the record for being the longest reigning Tag Team Champion of all time and he only had to put in 50% of the work. He says he’s confused because he achieved becoming the longest reigning titleholder on his own and Jey rattles off all his accomplishments. He tells fans to say yeet if they want to see him become the new Intercontinental Champion and fans do so.
Gunther says Jey is finally achieving something for himself and says he isn’t the first or the last to ride on his coattails. He says he’ll beat him worse than his own family ever did when he defeats him and says he’ll beat him into the good old days when people couldn’t tell him & Jimmy apart.
Jey & Gunther then begin to brawl but Kaiser & Vinci overpower him. New Day then runs down to the ring and Imperium retreats.
A Shinsuke Nakamura video aired with subtitles. He said Cody Rhodes chose to fight him in a Bullrope match because he thought it would give him an advantage but he will just embarrass his family when Nakamura beats him in the match that his family made famous. Nakamura said he hears people saying they want Cody. No, no, no, no I want Cody Nakamura concluded.
Women’s Tag Team Titles Match
Kabuki Warriors (Kairi Sane & Asuka) (c) vs. Kayden Carter & Katana Chance
Asuka & Katana Chance lock up then Chance fires off strikes on Asuka but Asuka hits her with a shoulder tackle.
Asuka then fires off kicks on Chance’s face but Chance manages to roll her up but Asuka kicks out before Carter makes the blind tag in.
She pulls Asuka out of the ring but Kairi Sane starts to beat her down then Carter sends Asuka crashing into Sane then helps Chance fly to level them both as we go to a break.
After the break Asuka hits a bulldog to Carter & Sane follows it up with a dropkick before Sane tags in and ascends to the top rope then hits a stomp.
Chance tags in and trips Sane then hits a bulldog and a dropkick then whips Sane into the corner then fires off stomps and hits a splash.
She ascends to the middle rope and delivers a stomp to Sane’s spine but Asuka tags in and connects with a codebreaker. Kabuki Warriors then hits a clothesline/running knee combination.
Carter tags back in and launches Chance into Asuka then Chance ascends to the top and lands the After Party with Carter, then goes for a pin.
Sane breaks the fall before Chance tags in and they look to land the Kegstand on Asuka.
Sane pulls Carter out of the ring and Asuka connects with a kick to Chance’s head.
Sane tags in then ascends to the top rope and hits In Sane Elbow as Asuka holds Chance in place for the win.
Winners & Still Women’s Tag Team Champions: Kabuki Warriors (STILL CHAMPIONS!!!)
Footage aired of Sami Zayn being interviewed in the empty arena by Jackie Redmond & she asked him what was going through his mind and how much of hit had to do with Drew McIntyre. Zayn conceded that it had a little to do with McIntyre. He recalls coming close to beating Roman Reigns 1 year ago at the Elimination Chamber.
Zayn recalls Triple H pulling him aside and telling him that he had nothing to be disappointed by. Zayn recalls Triple H saying that he was Rocky (Balboa). Zayn said he will still fight like an underdog but he’s a contender now. Redmond asked Zayn if he still felt like he had something to prove. Zayn said he wants to prove to the people that they didn’t believe in him for nothing. He said proving them right is what it’s all about.
Bullrope Match
2024 Royal Rumble Winner Cody Rhodes vs. Shinsuke Nakamura
Shinsuke Nakamura goes after Cody Rhodes with a kick to his head and several knees to his midsection.
They fire off right hands on one another and Rhodes looks to use the cowbell.
Nakamura slides out of the ring and looks to retreat through the crowd but Rhodes pulls him back into the ringside area with the rope as we go to a break.
After the break Rhodes uses the rope to send Nakamura crashing into the ring post shoulder first 3 times then they get back inside the ring and Rhodes looks to land Cody Cutter.
Nakamura trips him up with the rope and delivers a pair of kicks to his chest.
He places Rhodes’ hand under the cowbell and stomps on top of it then fires off kicks across his chest.
Rhodes catches one then hits a dropkick to Nakamura’s knee and cinches in a Figure 4 Leg Lock as we go to 2nd break.
After the 2nd break Rhodes takes Nakamura down and whips him into the corner then hits a powerslam and a Disaster Kick but Nakamura responds with a German suplex and more knees to Rhodes’ midsection.
Rhodes connects with a Cody Cutter and a right hand before Nakamura responds with one of his own and they go back & forth.
Nakamura hits a kick to Rhodes’ head then hits a suplex. Rhodes hits Pedigree and looks to hit Nakamura with the cowbell.
Nakamura prevents him from doing so by spitting the red mist in his face but Rhodes still manages to land Cross Rhodes and go for a pin.
Nakamura kicks out and hits Rhodes with the cowbell and rope but Rhodes then uses the rope to low blow Nakamura twice and land Cross Rhodes for the win.
Winner: 2024 Royal Rumble Winner Cody Rhodes
After the match Drew McIntyre attacks Rhodes and fires off right hands on him. He follows it up with a Claymore Kick and kips up then he stands tall to close out this week’s Raw.
Next Week’s Raw
Women’s Elimination Chamber Qualifying Match
Zoey Stark vs. Liv Morgan
6 Man Tag Team Match
Imperium (Intercontinental Champion Gunther, Giovanni Vinci & Ludwig Kaiser) vs New Day (Kofi Kingston & Xavier Woods) & Jey Uso
R Truth vs. JD McDonagh
Elimination Chamber Card So Far (Feb 24th)
Undisputed WWE Tag Team Titles Match
Judgement Day (Mr Money In The Bank Damian Priest & Finn Balor) (c) vs. TBD
Women’s World Title #1 Contenders Elimination Chamber Match
Becky Lynch vs. Zoey Stark or Liv Morgan vs. 4 TBD
Women’s World Title Match
Rhea Ripley (c) vs. Nia Jax
