WWE RAW Flops and Hits: Big E becomes world champion, Alexa Bliss makes a huge statement, AJ Styles as the possible leader of new faction? (13th September 2021)
We don’t say this often, but WWE RAW had a great episode planned for this week. Between a brilliantly executed title change and multiple exciting alliances, the Red brand witnessed crucial developments ahead of Extreme Rules. We've also seen top superstars gain momentum on the show, and they will look forward to maintaining that standard in the coming weeks.
Here, we look at the biggest flops and hits from WWE RAW this week. So, without further ado, let’s begin.
#5 Hit on WWE RAW: Big E successfully cashes in his Money in the Bank contract
Tonight’s show is one for the history books and deservingly so. Big E took to Twitter earlier in the night and confirmed his intentions to cash in his MITB contract on this week's edition of the Red brand. The story-telling was brilliant throughout the episode so let’s look at the events in chronological order.
Bobby Lashley, Big E, and Randy Orton first met in the opening segment of WWE RAW. The Viper insisted that he would pin The All Mighty while Big E sent a big warning to both superstars. Their conversation eventually ended with Orton subjecting Lashley to a brutal RKO out of nowhere. Later in the show, we saw Big E talk about his cash-in during multiple backstage segments.
Lashley and Orton once again came face to face in the show’s co-main event, engaging in an epic match. The crowd rallied behind one-half of the RAW Tag Team Champions, encouraging The Viper to finish the job.
He came close to pinning the champion, but MVP’s timely interference saved his ally for a while. A frustrated Orton then delivered an RKO to take him out of the equation, but the momentary distraction allowed Lashley to recover from a previous assault.
He then hit the challenger with a devastating Spear to seal his victory and retain his title on WWE RAW. It was a great match that was met with “This is Awesome” chants as the fans remained invested in the epic title bout. Soon after that, he started attacking both Riddle and Randy Orton when the crowd rose to its feet to welcome Big E.
The New Day member cashed in his contract and immediately got a title match against Lashley. The latter tried to escape the bout by claiming that he was hurt, but Big E’s slap provoked him into accepting the challenge. The two superstars engaged in a brief but balanced encounter on WWE RAW as the crowd held their breath in anticipation.
In the end, Big E used a Big Ending to defeat Lashley and win his first-ever world championship in WWE. His historic victory was met with a deafening pop as fans immediately hailed him as a champion. Woods and Kingston rushed to the ring as an emotional Big E reunited with fellow New Day members and celebrated with them on WWE RAW.
It doesn’t matter if it was a reactionary booking decision on the creative team’s part. Big E has deserved a world title reign for a long time, and it was a perfect way to put him at the top of the roster.
It will be exciting to see how he will be booked moving forward, and he can certainly help draw more attention towards WWE RAW – something that the Red brand desperately needs. The fact that both babyfaces and heels celebrated Big E's title victory speaks volumes about how incredible it was to see him finally get his hands on gold.