WrestleRant
  • Home
  • Columnist Corner
  • Reviews
  • Interviews
  • Audio
  • Videos
  • Store
  • About
  • Contact
Picture

Monday Night Raw Review - July 11, 2016

7/11/2016

0 Comments

 
PictureDean Ambrose confronts Seth Rollins.
By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Darren Young Won a No. 1 Contender's Battle Royal For the Intercontinental Championship

Didn't we have a Battle Royal to determine a No. 1 contender to the United States Championship a few short months ago? While this was no different, I always enjoy an old fashioned Battle Royal, especially when the winner isn't telegraphed ahead of time. There were a few different Superstars who could have won it, but Darren Young was the right victor in my opinion. He would have been labeled a loser from the get-go had he not won, and he's a fresh face in the midcard scene. Not much time remains between now and Battleground to build a fan following for Young, but the fans chanting his name afterward was an encouraging sign.


Sheamus def. Zack Ryder

I guess Ryder vs. Rusev for the United States Championship was never officially advertised for Raw, but I was disappointed we received this SmackDown rematch instead. It might be a bout better saved for Battleground, but then why the hell would WWE have Sheamus cleanly beat the apparent next challenger to the title? That seemed like a complete waste of the momentum Ryder built up last week, and Sheamus barely benefits from the victory.

PictureDarren Young picks up a major victory.
Breezango def. The Lucha Dragons

There really wasn't a point to this match other than teasing that both tandems might be split up in next week's WWE Draft, which I would be in full favor of. There is plenty of talent in the tag division right now, but not enough depth i.e. not many of the teams mean much. At the very least, Breezango and the Dragons worked well together and Breeze's victory over Kalisto was a pleasant surprise.


WWE World Heavyweight Champion Dean Ambrose Interrupted Seth Rollins

The 'Rollins Report' was every bit as campy as I expected it to be. Rollins played his role fantastically well, but it sure seemed like WWE wanted fans to feel sympathy toward the suspended Roman Reigns with this. If they honestly think that's going to get him more over, they're out of their minds. The segment was infinitely better once Ambrose confronted Rollins and cut one of his best promos to date. The Shield Triple Threat match sells itself, but WWE has had a tough task of promoting the match without Reigns around. That said, Rollins and Ambrose have done a decent job of picking up the slack in his absence.


Kevin Owens def. Cesaro

These two have had no less than a dozen matches against each other over the last year, so although this technically wasn't anything new, their chemistry is always awesome and thus I can't complain. They were given great time and produced a very good match. Owens winning clean was necessary as he has a match at Battleground and Cesaro doesn't (as of now, anyway). Additionally, the brief bits between Owens and Sami Zayn before the bout as well as afterward effectively furthered their feud.


Titus O'Neil def. Heath Slater

If you couldn't care less about The Social Outcasts appearing on programming now, just wait until after the Draft and the Raw roster is cut in half. They are entertaining as jobbers, but crowds immediately lose interest in anything involving them. On the bright side, this was a pretty straightforward win for O'Neil and I'm glad WWE is moving forward with his push despite falling short of capturing the United States Championship last week.


WWE Tag Team Champions The New Day and The Wyatt Family Brawled at The Wyatt Family Compound

Well, this was certainly... interesting. I would applaud WWE for going outside the box and doing something different for a change, but the truth is, this came across as a blatant rip-off of TNA's Final Deletion match between Jeff and Matt Hardy from last week's TNA Impact Wrestling. The only issue is that this wasn't done for comedy. It was a brutal brawl and well-produced, but TNA definitely did it better (regardless of their intentions).


Enzo Amore and Big Cass def. The Club by Disqualification

Like I've said several times over the past week, I love the idea to incorporate Amore and Cass into this feud because they can undoubtedly benefit from the high profile program. They contested a solid match with The Club and the non-finish was wise in protecting both tandems. I had a feeling Cena might resurface when The Club were beating down the babyfaces following the match. Even if he is across the country, never count the guy out for a surprise return.


Sasha Banks def. Dana Brooke

I was shocked by how long this match ended up going, if only because Brooke is far from polished in the ring. It wasn't the train wreck I thought it would be, so I commend Banks for putting forth an extra effort to make the match as passable as possible. Holding a rematch on SmackDown this Thursday night with the stipulation that Sasha "might" get a title shot if she beats Brooke again is asinine. The Boss won clean here, so is there any doubt she won't be able to do it a second time?


Mr. McMahon Named Shane McMahon the Commissioner of SmackDown and Stephanie McMahon the Commissioner of Raw

This was almost the equivalent to an Authority promo opening. It ran just as long and there was a whole lot of nothing for over 20 minutes. Granted, it was revealed Shane and Stephanie will indeed have power over the two brands, but that was expected weeks ago. That was slightly disappointing, but at least we will have general managers running the day-to-day operations and those should be notable names. Basically, this segment was a placeholder for what should be a blockbuster week in WWE next week.


Overall Show

I have thoroughly enjoyed the most recent editions of Raw, even the Fourth of July episode, but this was a glorified filler show one week ahead of the Draft. Nothing groundbreaking happened and the in-ring action was average at best. There were a few highlights including the Ambrose and Rollins confrontation and Owens vs. Cesaro, but everything else felt like a placeholder before the Draft next Tuesday.

0 Comments



Leave a Reply.


    Categories

    All
    #AskGSM
    Battle Of The Belts
    Cruiserweight Classic
    Halftime Heat
    Hidden Gems
    Interviews
    Lists/Rankings
    Mae Young Classic
    Mixed Match Challenge
    News
    NJPW
    NWA Shockwave
    NXT PLEs
    Opinion
    Previews
    Retro Reviews
    Reviews
    RJ's Two Cents
    Satire
    Slammy Awards
    SNME
    SummerSlam Recall
    The Deadly Draw
    The World Is A Vampire
    Tribute To The Troops
    Women's Eliminator
    Worlds Collide
    WrestleMania Recall
    WWE Draft
    WWE Network Specials
    WWE PLEs
    WWE Starrcade


    Archives

    June 2025
    May 2025
    April 2025
    March 2025
    February 2025
    January 2025
    December 2024
    November 2024
    October 2024
    September 2024
    August 2024
    July 2024
    June 2024
    May 2024
    April 2024
    March 2024
    February 2024
    January 2024
    December 2023
    November 2023
    October 2023
    September 2023
    August 2023
    July 2023
    June 2023
    May 2023
    April 2023
    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    October 2011
    September 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011
    May 2011
    April 2011
    March 2011
    February 2011
    January 2011
    December 2010
    November 2010

    RSS Feed

©2025 WrestleRant. All Rights Reserved.
  • Home
  • Columnist Corner
  • Reviews
  • Interviews
  • Audio
  • Videos
  • Store
  • About
  • Contact