Monday Night Raw Review - January 20, 2025

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Jey Uso Attacked World Heavyweight Champion Gunther

The World Heavyweight Championship match between these two at Saturday Night's Main Event came together on such short notice, but they've done a nice job of building toward it with these promos. This was another quality exchange from them and I liked that Jey stood tall since it sent the message that he has a chance of taking the title (even though I'd argue the timing would be terrible so close to WrestleMania 41).

Rey Mysterio def. Kofi Kingston

JBL's appearance was advertised in advance, but all he did was sit in on commentary for this match and not say much. That's quite the downgrade from what he did at TNA Genesis on Sunday night, where he interfered in the main event. At any rate, this was the enjoyable outing you'd expect from Mysterio and Kingston. Mysterio didn't win decisively, so The New Day will be fine, but I do question where this is headed because they're basically spinning their wheels at the moment.

Kevin Owens Confronted Sami Zayn

Zayn was discussing his desire to win a world title when he was interrupted by Owens, which was a pleasant surprise because I don't believe we've seen them interact since Owens turned heel months ago. I already thought there was a strong chance they'd have a match at 'Mania, but now it looks even likelier coming off this segment with Owens implying that Zayn should help him at the Royal Rumble because he'd have his back as his best friend if the roles were reversed. This was an intriguing development.

Nia Jax def. Bayley

It was made official that Bayley has been transferred to Raw, yet she still can't escape Jax it seems. While it would've been logical for Bayley to finally beat her after losing to her at SummerSlam and Bad Blood last year, I understand putting Jax over ahead of her Women's World Championship clash with Rhea Ripley at Saturday Night's Main Event. Yes, Jax and Ripley have rekindled their rivalry and I had no idea why (other than WWE not having any credible challengers waiting in the wings for Ripley). The match itself was solid and the post-match brawl between Jax and Ripley was well done.

Penta def. Pete Dunne

The crowd in San Jose was hotter for Penta's debut bout against Chad Gable last week than the Dallas crowd was for this, but it was another very good, well-wrestled match, regardless. There's been no resolution to Dunne's rivalry with R-Truth and he lost to Truth one of the last times we saw him compete, so there was no question surrounding the outcome, but Penta maintaining his momentum was key. It's worth noting that he was also over in front of this crowd.

Jackie Redmond Interviewed CM Punk

It was cool how this took place in its own section of the arena while still in front of the fans. Punk was firmly focused on the Royal Rumble and ran down everyone he intends to eliminate (including Hulk Hogan, which was hilarious, but we definitely don't need to see Hogan in the Rumble let alone wrestle ever again). It was short and sweet and didn't overstay its welcome. Plus, I appreciated his intensity.

Damage CTRL (IYO SKY and Dakota Kai) def. Pure Fusion Collective (Shayna Baszler and Zoey Stark)

I'd be content if I never saw another Damage CTRL vs. Pure Fusion Collective match for the rest of my life, just because I feel like we've seen it a thousand times since the summer. This wasn't bad by any means, but I continue to not give a single shit about Pure Fusion Collective. Here's hoping Kai doesn't get dragged back into the tag team scene after breaking out in the Women's Intercontinental Championship Tournament.

Seth "Freakin" Rollins def. Drew McIntyre

The pre-match video package for this match hyping it up as a big deal with it being a WrestleMania rematch was great and made it more meaningful. This was on par with their other encounters in that it was entertaining and the crowd was into the action. I figured we'd get some sort of a non-finish, so Rollins winning clean (albeit barely) was refreshing. Both guys lost on Raw's Netflix debut, so this easily could've gone either way. The loss for McIntyre won't matter depending on his direction for WrestleMania. As for Zayn accidentally kicking Rollins, I'm interested to see how that will be followed up on.

Overall Show

While last week's Raw was a bit better and more eventful on the whole, this was a thumbs-up effort as well, especially in regards to the hype for the Rumble and Saturday Night's Main Event. The Zayn and Owens confrontation was perhaps the most must-see aspect of the episode, but the two-and-a-half hours once again breezed by and were effectively filled. Raw has quickly found its footing on Netflix while SmackDown is still struggling with the three-hour format on Friday nights.

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