What is the story about?
WWE
taped episodes of Monday Night Raw and Friday Night SmackDown in Cleveland this evening, and this is what we’ve been able to cobble together from social media and various other places:
Raw
- The Usos brawl with Royce Keys & OTM to start the show, with Jacob Fatu running in to force Keys & his duo to retreat.
- Raquel Rodriguez def. Sol Ruca to retain the women’s Intercontinental championship thanks to Lyra Valkyria’s interference.
- Dragon Lee def. Ethan Page in a match to determine who would face Chad Gable in Mexico City for the Intercontinental title.
- Joe Hendry made his return, alongside Je’Von Evans in a tag team match against Dominik Mysterio & JD McDonagh. The Judgment Day won with Mysterio pinning Hendry.
- Roman Reigns was back for a confrontation with LA Knight but a scene unfolding in the parking lot is shown where Royce Keys and OTM where they kidnap The Usos before Jacob Fatu can catch up to them.
- Penta def. Rey Fenix in the final of the No. 1 Contender’s Tournament to book a match against Reigns, who shows up for a staredown. Penta does the CERO MIEDO gimmick right in front of him as they end the show.
SmackDown
- Kevin Owens, GUNTHER, and Finn Balor all wanted Sami Zayn for what he did in the number one contender’s match this week.
- CM Punk offered up a WWE championship match to Johnny Gargano, and that’s what finally got him to stand up from his stupor. He accepted and they booked the match for later in the show.
- Charlotte Flair & Tatum Paxley def. Fatal Influence in tag team action but Jade Cargill & B-Fab & Michin showed up to attack after the fact.
- Paige vs. Nikki Bella was made in a backstage segment, with the two scheduled to square up on the Sept. 11 episode.
- Danhausen called GUNTHER “Gooner” and WWE is playing with fire with that one.
- Chelsea Green is medically cleared now, and that led to Nia Jax to interrupt her segment. She would get a match against Tiffany Stratton, win, and it was announced she will challenge Green for the title on the Sept. 11 show.
- Randy Orton and Cody Rhodes sit down with Corey Graves for an interview before their match at Sunday Night’s Main Event.
- Bakusai, the team name for Kyoki & Shinsuke Nakamura, defeated The Miz & Kit Wilson, with the MFTs coming out to confront them after the fact.
- Blake Monroe vs. Giulia never started, once again.
- CM Punk defeated Johnny Gargano in the main event, with the latter using his “Rebel Heart” music. Balor, Owens, and GUNTHER were all involved in some capacity but the time all was said and done, Punk challenged Sami Zayn to a title match on the Sept. 11 show. It looks like that is official too.
Thoughts on both shows?
