WWE RAW after Saturday Night's Main Event - Best and Worst - The Judgment Day dethroned, former AEW star’s debut imminent?
After both Gunther and Liv Morgan defended their titles at Saturday Night's Main Event, RAW's focus shifted to its other titleholders. CM Punk and Seth Rollins also resumed their war of words.
The tension between The Judgment Day ramped up as Liv Morgan, Dominik Mysterio, and Raquel Rodriguez mocked how she won, but Finn Balor lost at Saturday Night's Main Event.
The locker room further expressed its disapproval of how The New Day treated Big E when Rey Mysterio told them to find somewhere else to change. Drew McIntyre and Sami Zayn fought backstage while a different feud refused to die.
Here's the best and worst for RAW after WWE Saturday Night's Main Event.
#4. Best - Another fire feud for CM Punk
RAW opened with CM Punk hitting the ring to address his verbal exchange with Seth Rollins from last week. He admitted to being the villain in the situation before trolling Rollins to come out.
When The Visionary obliged, he did so through the crowd. He played up how he's always been a fan and wanted to see Punk from their point of view. After standing in the bleachers for a few minutes, his opinion didn't change.
Rollins commented that he's had more WrestleMania main events, and The Best in the World responded by jumping the barricade. It's great to see others get under Punk's skin; otherwise, the feud would be lopsided.
Drew McIntyre approached Rollins backstage to claim they were doing the same thing against similar threats (Punk/Roman). The Architect rejected the overture to take out The OG Bloodline because they helped him end Reigns' run at WrestleMania 40.
#3. Best - Bron Breakker survives a calculated attack from Ludwig Kaiser
The story of Bron Breakker's Intercontinental title defense against Ludwig Kaiser was the challenger targeting the Champ's arm all match. It put into question if Breakker would be able to use his power game to win.
WWE does this all the time, including recently when Bianca Belair beat Piper Niven with bruised ribs. However, Niven happens to outweigh THE EST by almost 80 pounds, so the match wasn't as believable.
The Champ outsmarted Kaiser when he went for a basement dropkick on the outside. He chased Kaiser around the ring for a monster shoulder block, displaying his freak athleticism. It showed why Breakker is a future WrestleMania main-eventer.
#2. Worst - Only three matches in two hours
This week's RAW was heavy on storytelling and promoting everything other than matches on the show. Breakker vs. Kaiser took place a third of the way through the first hour.
The second match didn't happen until nearly an hour later. Instead of action, WWE aired way too many recaps, quick interviews, and non-wrestling segments before Raquel Rodriguez faced Zoey Stark and Kayden Carter.
When Rodriguez made it to the ring, they wasted even more time for Morgan, Dominik, and Rhea Ripley to have a brief face-to-face. When the bell finally rang, there was about a half hour left on RAW.
#2. Best - Two Faces of Fear on RAW
Karrion Kross, The Miz, and The Final Testament had to nail their promos since they were given minimal time. As usual, Kross did. He nearly choked Miz with his tie three times as The A-Lister tried to bail on the feud with The Wyatt Sicks.
The Tollman reiterated that the battle wasn't over until he said so since The Wyatt Sicks attacked Paul Ellering and Scarlett. He instructed Miz to have Adam Pearce book him against Dexter Lumis next week. Kross then said, "You don't go back on a deal with the devil."
Fans may have missed another quick teaser among the constant promotions during RAW. A red circle with a red slash through it quickly aired during one of the breaks. Who could it be for? A certain Luchador without fear??
#1. Worst - American Made can't get Alpha Academy out of its head
Some feuds just never die. Rhea Ripley claimed her feud with Liv Morgan had to end, and it will likely do so at or before RAW's Netflix Premiere.
Alpha Academy conversed backstage with R-Truth and Pete Dunne but was interrupted by Chad Gable and American Made.
He berated Otis, Akira Tozawa, and Maxxine Dupri but didn't say anything different. Gable then said he would "kill" his creation, starting with Tozawa.
Acting so superior doesn't make sense since American Made hasn't won many more matches than Otis and Tozawa. There's nothing better for them to do?
#1. Best/Worst - Zoey Stark endures a long wait to advance
Zoey Stark advanced to the semifinals of the Women's Intercontinental title tournament by beating Raquel Rodriquez and Kayden Carter. Each star looked great and had their time to shine.
It was nice to see Carter do more than just dance. It felt like Raquel Rodriguez's match to lose. However, as WWE always does with its Triple Threats, they protected the powerhouse by having the least viable winner take the pin. The problem with the match was the amount of time it took for it to start.
Rodriguez made her entrance but had to wait through a Morgan and Ripley promo, more PLE promotions, Stark's entrance, and finally Carter's. The pacing was way off all night due to the constant need to hype RAW on Netflix, the Royal Rumble, the upcoming Netflix launch show, and everything else under the sun.
#1. Best - Good storytelling ends a lackluster title run
Before Ivar and Erik stepped into the ring for the main event, they cut a promo about how they both nearly lost their careers to serious injuries. They were lucky enough to return from them, and Erik finally got to hold his newborn son.
Joe Tessitore played up how Ivar came up in the Boston indie wrestling scene and how he's a native of New England. Since RAW took place in Boston, this created the perfect spot for a title change.
If the Judgment Day had escaped with the win, it would have made all the earlier storytelling pointless. Damian Priest prevented Balor from using a chair to cheat. However it happened, WWE needed to end one of the worst tag title reigns in recent memory.