Original Air Date: January 22, 2018
Event Date: January 22, 2018 (aired live)
City: Brooklyn, New York, NY
Venue: Barclays Center
City: New York, NY
Venue: Manhattan Center
Commentary (Brooklyn): Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Booker T
Commentary (New York City): Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler
Ring Announcer: Jojo (BR), Greg Hamilton (NY)
Ring Area (NY)
Jim Ross and Jerry Lawler welcome everyone to RAW25!
Ring Area (BR)
Michacel Cole, Corey Graves, and Booker T, calling the action from ringside tonight, also welcome everyone to the show.
Already in the ring, Stephanie and Shane McMahon thank every superstar who has ever been on RAW, all the unsung heroes who produce RAW every week, and the fans for supporting the show for 25 years.
Video
A video package featuring clips of some of the many memorable moments from RAW.
Ring Area (BR)
Stephanie says there is one person who truly deserves thanks. Vince McMahon struts to the ring.
Vince keeps it short, saying he’s not one to pat himself on the back. He tells everyone to enjoy the show and turns to leave the ring. Stephanie stops Vince. She and Shane have something for him. They present Vince with a commemorative plaque paid for by the fans.
Vince looks at the plaque and isn’t impressed. He thinks it looks cheap. After everything Vince has done for the fans for 25 years, all they can do is give him a plaque? Vince is pissed. He only has one person to thank for RAW’s success. It’s not the fans, it’s not his family, and it’s not anyone who worked on the show. The only man Vince has to thank is himself.
The glass breaks and Stone Cold Steve Austin heads to the ring.
Vince speaks to Austin, telling him things have changed since they were last in the ring together. Vince is older. He’s a senior citizen with health issues. Shane is in him prime though. He still competes in the ring from time to time. Austin raises Shane’s hand. Then he gives Shane a stunner.
Vince says Shane had it coming, and he gives Austin a beer. The two men share a drink, the Vince hugs Austin. They share another drink and hug while Austin’s music plays, but then the music stops. Vince slowly turns toward Austin, and Vince gets a stunner as well. Austin celebrates with a lot of beer and another stunner to Shane.
Match 1 (BR)
Alicia Fox & Sonya Deville & Mandy Rose w/ Paige & Nia Jax vs Sasha Banks & Bayley & Mickie James & Asuka
(referee: John Cone)
Result: Sasha Banks forces Alicia Fox to submit to a Bank Statement
Time: 5:10 (2 breaks)
Match Thoughts
Pretty good match. The action was fine, but half of the women in the match never even got tagged in. Nia Jax attacked Asuka before the bell which started a brawl, then once the match started it ended up being Sasha versus Alicia after the first few minutes. I like what they were doing, but they didn’t really capitalize on the eight-woman aspect like they maybe should have since the Royal Rumble is this weekend. Chaos probably would have been better than a glorified one on one match.
Ring Area (BR)
Asuka, Bayley, Mickie, and Sasha celebrate in the ring when Asuka decides to make a point. Asuka attacks the three other women, striking them and throwing them all over the top rope. Asuka dances as the segment ends.
Backstage (BR)
Kurt Angle talks to referee Dan Engler about trying to keep control with Strowman, Kane, and Lesnar in the same ring tonight. Jonathan Coachman then walks in the door!
Coachman is grateful that Angle invited him to the show tonight. Harvey Wippleman and the Brooklyn Brawler join Coach and Angle. Teddy Long then bursts in and dances. Brother Love follows next. The party gets weird when The Boogeyman appears with a mouth full of worms. Boogey gives Coach a handful of worms before backing out of the room.
Video
A video package of The Undertaker as he has appeared on RAW throughout the years.
Ring Area (NY)
The Undertaker heads to the ring. He says he has been digging holes for 25 years and burying legends. Austin, Foley, and even Kane answered to the reaper. On the sacred ground of the WWE ring, Undertaker tells all those who have fallen to “rest in peace.”
Backstage (BR)
Heath Slater and Rhyno play (and lose at) cards with Bradshaw and Ron Simmons. Someone walks into the APA’s office and drops a wad of cash. It’s The Million Dollar Man Ted Dibiase!
Ring Area (BR)
Some of the “greatest” GMs in RAW history are introduced and come out to the stage: John Laurinaitis, William Regal, and Eric Bischoff. Daniel Bryan is then introduced as a special guest for the night.
Bryan’s music in interrupted by The Miz’s entrance them. Miz comes out and gets in Bryan’s face. The two stare at each other before Miz smiles and heads toward the ring. Curtis Axel and Bo Dallas are with him.
Match 2 (BR)
Intercontinental Title Match
The Miz w/ Curtis Axel, Bo Dallas vs Roman Reigns (IC Champ)
(referee: Chad Patton)
Result: The Miz wins via pinfall after a Skull Crushing Finale and becomes an eight time IC Champ
Time: 9:18 (1 break)
Match Thoughts
Good match. After the first minute or so, the Miztourage started some shenanigans that got them sent to the back. The match was a pretty good one-on-one from then on, and The Miz cheated as much as he possibly could. The match wasn’t great, but I liked how the finish developed over the course of the match. It seemed like a decent amount of thought was put into it. I liked it.
Backstage (BR)
Jeff Hardy, MVP and The Usos have joined the APA’s card game! MVP wins the hand.
Ring Area (BR)
Christian is in the ring for a Peep Show! Christian’s guests tonight are the RAW Tag Champs, Jason Jordan and Seth Rollins. Rollins starts talking, but Jordan interrupts. The crowd attempts to overpower Jordan with boos, and they succeed to a certain extent. Jordan still gets to speak, giving congratulates to his dad Kurt Angle for putting together a great show. He tries to get a round of applause for Angle when Sheamus and Cesaro interrupt.
Sheamus and Cesaro head to the ring while saying that all the RAW legends have been waiting to get pictures with The Bar. They say the legends expect The Bar to win on Sunday, and they thanked them in advance for taking back the RAW Tag Titles. Cesaro tells Jordan that he sucks, starting a sing-along with the crowd. Jordan starts a brawl that ends up with Rollins accidentally hitting Jordan with a springboard high knee.
Backstage (BR)
Charly Caruso welcomes Alexa Bliss and asks her if she’ll still be RAW Women’s champ at Wrestlemania. Alexa thinks the question is dumb. Charlotte walks up and says Alexa is only champ because Charlotte is on SmackDown. Ric Flair walks up and says Alexa might be champ now, but Charlotte will be champ until she decides to hang up her robe.
Backstage (BR)
Apollo Crews, Titus O’Neil, Dana Brooke, and Natalya have joined the APA’s card game. Slater loses again.
Match 3 (NY)
Bray Wyatt vs Matt Hardy
(referee: Shawn Bennett)
Result: Bray Wyatt wins via pinfall after Sister Abigail
Time: 2:38 (1 break)
Match Thoughts
An okay match, but it was surprisingly short. I expect it will play into their ongoing story, but the finish to this was fairly definitive in a way that seems odd within the context of the feud. It could work as an interesting plot point though.
Ring Area (BR)
Some of the female superstars from RAW’s past are introduced: The Bella Twins, Maryse, Kelly Kelly, Lilian Garcia, Jacqueline, Torrie Wilson, Michelle McCool, Terri Runnels, Maria Kanellis, and Trish Stratus.
Backstage (BR)
Elias walks in the back, and he comes across Chris Jericho. Jericho has a song for Elias. It’s about being on The List.
Ring Area (BR)
Elias has a song. The crowd seems to like Elias, but they don’t want him to sing. Elias threatens not to sing, but he does anyway. After all Jimmy Fallon is in the arena. I guess Elias wants to sing for him, so he does. Elias sings about some of the RAW legends and how they suck. John Cena interrupts and heads to the ring.
Cena starts talking, but Elias tells him to shut up. No one wants to hear Cena, they came here to hear Elias. Cena tells Elias to do something about it. Elias says he doesn’t take orders from Cena. Elias turns to leave, but then attempts to attack Cena from behind. Cena is ready, and he takes Elias down. Before Cena can hit an Attitude Adjustment, Elias hits Cena with a low blow. Elias grabs his guitar and smashes in on Cena’s back. He then hits Cena with Drift Away.
Backstage (BR)
New Day joins the APA card game. Bradshaw goes all in. Slater wins a hand, but Dana Brooke accuses him of cheating. An argument starts, so Bradshaw tells them to take it to the ring. Dibiase ends up winning the hand after all. Ron Simmons is in disbelief.
Backstage (BR)
Mark Henry walks around the back and finds The Godfather! Godfather introduces Mark to a woman named Olivia. Mark smiles and takes Olivia’s hand, but Godfather tells Mark that Olivia is his wife.
Match 4 (BR)
Apollo Crews & Titus O’Neil w/ Dana Brooke vs Heath Slater & Rhyno
(referee: Rod Zapata)
Result: The match ends in a No Contest when a brawl breaks out
Time: 2:05 (1 break)
Match Thoughts
Crews looked good in what little time there was, but this wasn’t much of a match.
Ring Area (BR)
The Dudley Boyz head to the ring! Slater gets thrown into the ring, and he takes a What’s Up and a 3D through a table. Rhyno applauds.
Backstage (BR)
Charly Caruso welcomes AJ Styles. Styles excuses Caruso and brings in Mean Gene to conduct this interview. Styles talks about defending his title in the handicap title match against Kami at the Royal Rumble.
Ring Area (NY)
Shawn Michaels and Triple H, D-Generation X, head to the ring. Shawn tries to tell some of his favorite stories from the past 25 years, but Triple H says he can’t say any of that stuff. Shawn is frustrated that Triple is the boss of everything now.
Triple H gets serious and says that the fans are responsible for the continued success of RAW. He says the Manhattan Center is home for RAW, and this is the start of the next 25 years. Triple H asks everyone if they’re ready, because he and Shawn didn’t come alone.
The New Age Outlas come out to the ring, and X-Pac follows. X-Pac says it might be a DX reunion, but they couldn’t celebrate 25 years of RAW without someone else. Razor Ramon heads to the ring as the show cuts to a commercial.
Back from the break, Razor says that he’s been watching tonight’s show, and it’s “just too sweet.” The Balor Club comes out and heads to the ring.
Triple H holds up a “too sweet,” and The Balor Club meets it. As all the men in the ring share a moment, The Revival come out and head to the ring.
Match 5 (NY)
Karl Anderson & Luke Gallows w/ Finn Balor vs The Revival
(referee: Mike Chioda)
Result: Karl Anderson pins Dash Wilder after Magic Killer
Time: 2:01
Match Thoughts
I think they were running short on time. I suppose the match was fine, but it was super short.
Ring Area (NY)
Upset, Scott Dawson walks up to Razor Ramon. Razor throws a toothpick in Dawson’s face, X-Pac hits Dawson with an X-Factor, Road Dogg with his punch combination, and Billy Gunn hits a famouser. Dash Wilder gets up from the mat and takes a superkick from Shawn and a pedigree from Triple H. While Wilder is down, Balor hits him with Coup De Grace. Not a good night for The Revival.
Ring Area (BR)
Kurt Angle heads to the ring with a whole bunch of superstars and legends. Angle introduces Braun Strowman. Kane comes out next, and some of the superstars get between Kane and Strowman so a brawl doesn’t break out. Paul Heyman comes out next to introduce Brock Lesnar. Lesnar isn’t here for nostalgia, he’s here for a fight.
Lesnar heads to the ring, and a fight breaks out. Lesnar takes down Strowman and Kane, but Strowman gets back up and puts Lesnar through the announce table with a running powerslam. Strowman celebrates in the ring as the show ends.
Show Impressions
This was a fun show. I enjoyed all the people they brought in, though I wish there had been enough time for them all to do something other than be announced and stand around. The show was too packed for that, and I understand. It was so packing that he matches definitely took a backseat to the surprise appearances, video packages, and other nostalgia-inducing segments. It was a good time though.
Match of the Night
Intercontinental Title Match
I think Reigns and Miz could have had a better match, but this was fine. It was the most fully-formed match of the night, so it kind of wins by default.