Raw airs tonight (Feb. 2) with a live show from Xfinity Mobile Arena in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. This is the first episode of Raw during the four week build to Elimination Chamber, which takes place
on February 28.
It’s the start of yet another new era in WWE under Triple H
During the Royal Rumble post-show in Saudi Arabia, Paul “Triple H” Levesque indicated that it’s the start of a new era in WWE:
“I think this might be one of my favorite Rumbles, for a lot of reasons. I think the moment that you see here tonight where Roman Reigns and Liv Morgan winning the Royal Rumble, but in another sense, almost a passing of the torch moment for a lot of talent coming in the door. Oba Femi, Je’Von, Trick, Royce Keys, Lola Vice, Sol Ruca, Jacy Jayne, Kelani Jordan, Kiana James, Lash Legend, right? All of those folks coming in here, making a statement, putting the top people on notice that a new era is upon us, and the future is bright.”
I’m losing track of how many new eras WWE has entered ever since Triple H took over as the head of creative. I imagine we’ll be closing in on half a dozen or so by WrestleMania 42 when Seth Rollins fools us all with another incredible angle for the next season of WWE Unreal. Jokes aside, Je’Von Evans and Oba Femi did have the longest survival times in the men’s Royal Rumble match, so maybe it finally is time for all of these kids to start getting over.
Femi is the one who is being hyped up as the future face of the company and WrestleMania main eventer. Will WWE officially assign him to the Raw brand tonight and feed him a jabroni like Rusev? Could there already be a match brewing between Femi and Brock Lesnar for WrestleMania 42?
Prior to the Rumble, it seemed like Je’Von’s gimmick was to do all of his important things during commercial breaks. That’s just a coincidence and it won’t happen again tonight, right?
NXT’s Sol Ruca has yet to join the main roster, but she has the coolest move in wrestling and should probably be called up ASAP. If it’s truly the start of a new era in WWE, could her call-up be made official tonight in Philadelphia?
Then there is 35-year-old Royce Keys, who eliminated Damian Priest from the Royal Rumble. Could this be a sign that AEW’s former Powerhouse Hobbs is headed over to the blue brand? If not, will WWE feed him a jabroni like Rusev tonight on Raw?
Tune into Raw tonight to see if it’s truly the start of a new era in WWE, or if this is just a nonsense talking point that Triple H will use again in a couple of months.
The rest of the card
Women’s World Champion Stephanie Vaquer defends the gold tonight in a Philadelphia Street Fight against Raquel Rodriguez. The outcome of this match may directly affect Royal Rumble winner Liv Morgan’s choice for which women’s champion she will challenge at WrestleMania 42. Will the numbers game of The Judgment Day be a factor in this title match where there are essentially no rules? Or will Raquel tell Morgan to stay out of her business after Liv took so much joy in eliminating her from the Rumble?
Other stuff to keep an eye on
– Finn Balor was denied a spot in the Royal Rumble by GM Adam Pearce, so he took matters into his own hands for securing a future title match by attacking World Heavyweight Champion CM Punk. Is CM vs. Finn taking place at Elimination Chamber? Will Royal Rumble winner Roman Reigns wait for these two guys to settle their business before he names which championship he’s coming after at WrestleMania 42?
– The Vision’s plan for Bron Breakker to win the Royal Rumble quickly blew up when he was attacked by a masked mystery man during his entrance and eliminated in 11 seconds. Paul Heyman thinks it was Seth Rollins who stomped Bron’s face into the ground. If the mystery man strikes again tonight, will anybody in The Vision start to suspect Austin Theory might be a double agent who is secretly working for Rollins? Is the masked man actually working at the direction of Adam Pearce? The Vision might not be able to get to the bottom of this mystery while LA Knight is busy hunting them down now that he’s back in WWE.
– Women’s Intercontinental Champion Becky Lynch may be done with Maxxine Dupri, but she has a new problem on her hands in the form of Nattie, who is different from Natalya. Does Nattie have to decimate Dupri first before she gets a shot at The Man’s belt?
– GUNTHER seemingly killed another career at Royal Rumble when he beat AJ Styles, but could the Phenomenal One show up on Raw tonight after refusing to leave his gloves in the ring in Saudi Arabia?
– The Usos will defend the world tag team championship at some point against Otis and Akira Tozawa, but it can’t happen until Jimmy Uso returns from his current absence. Actually, Jey can probably beat these guys by himself while simultaneously running back his entrance, so maybe GM Adam Pearce should book the match anyway.
– The Kabuki Warriors are having major problems after Kairi Sane accidentally eliminated Asuka from the Royal Rumble. How will Asuka punish Kairi for screwing up so badly?
– Will a date be announced for the WWE women’s tag team championship match between RHIYO and Giulia & Kiana James? Now that Hall of Famer Brie Bella is back in WWE, will the Bella Twins confront RHIYO tonight about their intention to become champions? Considering how many teams are now in the division, could this year’s women’s Elimination Chamber match be focused on tag team gold?
– The original El Grande Americano returned at Royal Rumble to square off with the imposter who has been running around under the mask for the last several months. How will the Americanos settle this dispute over who is the rightful El Grande going forward?
– Is there any chance Chris Jericho returns tonight on Raw in Philadelphia, or do WWE fans have to wait until after he is removed from AEW’s roster page?
– Speaking of returns, when will Pat McAfee be back in WWE to take Corey Graves’ job again?
– Where the f*** is Omos?
What will you be looking for on Raw?
