Monday Night Raw Review - April 28, 2025

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Sami Zayn Confronted Seth Rollins, Paul Heyman and Bron Breakker

Rollins clearly still being in babyface mode during this segment was incredibly annoying. I'll give the entrance theme thing time because it could be a bit before Rollins gets new music (and he absolutely should if he's supposed to be a heel), but he was pandering to the crowd at the beginning of his promo as well. Otherwise, I enjoyed his exchange with Zayn and it was wise to drag out Zayn's answer to Rollins' offer until the end of the night.

Rhea Ripley def. Roxanne Perez by Disqualification

The commentators acknowledged that these two previously met one-on-one on an episode NXT back in late 2022. Perez has grown so much as a performer since then and thus this was an even better bout from them. This was great stuff and the non-finish was understandable so Perez could be protected in defeat. IYO SKY making the save for Ripley afterward means the tag team match with them against Perez and Giulia is imminent, possibly as soon as Backlash.

World Heavyweight Champion Jey Uso Attacked Logan Paul

One of my first thoughts after Paul beat AJ Styles at WrestleMania 41 was that Paul could be Uso's first challenger for the World Heavyweight Championship. I'm not going to say their promos here were anything out of the ordinary, but it was a solid segment to kick off a feud between them. Both guys are so over in their respective roles that the crowd should be really hot for that match when we get it.

The War Raiders def. The Judgment Day (JD McDonagh and Finn Balor)

This was a rematch from when War Raiders beat Judgment Day for the World Tag Team Championship back in December. War Raiders were also the team McDonagh was in the ring with earlier this year when he got injured. This was decent, but it was more about Penta interfering to get back at McDonagh from last week and giving War Raiders a win before they inevitably challenge The New Day to a rematch for the tag titles.

Women's Intercontinental Champion Lyra Valkyria Attacked Becky Lynch

This is what the Women's Intercontinental Championship scene had been missing prior to this point. Unlike her husband, Lynch didn't hold back acting like a heel and I appreciated it was revealed that she was the one who attacked Bayley backstage over WrestleMania weekend. Valkyria was also excellent in her role and the fact she was made out to look like an equal to Lynch was important. I have no issue with Lynch taking the title at Backlash if the idea is for Valkyria to chase and eventually win it back.

NXT Women's Champion Stephanie Vaquer def. Ivy Nile (Non-Title)

I'm curious what Vaquer's main roster status is considering this was the second straight week she's appeared on Raw. I'm assuming Perez and Giulia are definitely on Raw, but Vaquer shouldn't be moved to the main roster until after she loses the NXT Women's Championship (and that doesn't need to be anytime soon). Nonetheless, this was a nice extended showcase for Vaquer and it was long enough to not feel like a total squash.

Pat McAfee Challenged Gunther

I know there was a polarizing reaction online to last week's angle with McAfee and Gunther because some fans feel this feud is a demotion for Gunther, but honestly, I think it's the perfect use of Gunther right now. McAfee is beloved by a majority of the audience and Gunther destroying him at Backlash can get him back on track after losing the World Heavyweight Championship. The match was indeed made official for Backlash by Nick Aldis here and McAfee cut a hell of a promo setting it up.

Sami Zayn Declined Seth Rollins' Offer; Bron Breakker def. Zayn by Referee Stoppage

Zayn turning down Rollins' offer to join him, Heyman and Breakker was expected, but I did not expect to get an impromptu match between Zayn and Breakker. Why not hold on that for another week unless they're rushing into Rollins vs. Zayn at Backlash? Regardless, this was a good, well-worked main event. It told a different story than their previous encounters with Zayn having to fight from underneath throughout and ultimately falling short. This was all about establishing Breakker as a force to be reckoned with and it was certainly successful in that respect. I just wish Rollins did more to turn the crowd against him so they weren't chanting "One more time!" while he was attacking Zayn afterward.

Overall Show

Although this was an obvious step back from last week's white-hot episode, I thought this was a thumbs-up edition of Raw on the whole. The focus on the women was wonderful, there was effective hype for Backlash and they told a compelling show-long storyline with Rollins and Zayn. Sure, there's a quick turnaround between WrestleMania and Backlash, but the card as it stands has potential and it feels like they're keeping the momentum going so the show doesn't fall into the usual post-WrestleMania lull.

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