Welcome to the Wrestlepurists’ live coverage of Monday Night Raw for the October 16TH, 2023 episode.
SAMI ZAYN IN-RING PROMO
We are live for the Season Premiere of Monday Night Raw! Sami Zayn wastes no time coming out first, and he is rocking a Kevin Owens shirt after the shocking news that Kevin was the superstar dealt to Smackdown in the Jey Uso trade. Sami says it feels a little weird coming out by himself. He says he has a lot of mixed emotions. Sami is sad that their partnership ended this way, but he is also excited for the great things Kevin is going to do on Smackdown. Sami says he is also excited for himself because he gets to show the world what he has known for a long time, that Sami Zayn is a World Heavyweight Champion level superstar! Sami then pivots to address the elephant in the room, the fact that Kevin is no longer on Raw because of Jey Uso’s arrival on Raw. Sami was the happiest person in the locker room to see Jey come to Raw, but he is now struggling with Jey being the reason his brother is no longer here. Sami proclaims the last year of his career the best year of his career. “The reason I reached the highs that I did is because of every single one of you.” But like clockwork, here is the Judgment Day to interrupt a babyface promo nine minutes in on a Monday night. Finn Balor says the Judgment Day are the ones who should be kicking off the Season Premiere. Damian Priest takes the mic and says that they’ve had all these thorns in their side for months, but thankfully one is gone. Priest starts to go off on Drew McIntyre but Rhea Ripley calms him down. Dominik Mysterio is actually able to get out his promo this time, and says tonight Rhea will dominate Shayna Baszler and remind everyone whose division it is. Rhea says tonight Priest and Finn will become the new Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champions. She says the Judgment Day used to try and recruit the lone and lost souls like Sami Zayn, but instead they are going to end him permanently. Cue Jey Uso running down for the save with two chairs in hand. Jey hands one to Sami and the babyfaces are able to back down the Judgment Day from the apron. Jey tries to talk with Sami, but Sami throws the chair down and walks away from Jey.
Glad Sami got to kick off the show and give his mission statement as a singles star. Honestly even a year ago I’d be really worried about them breaking up Kevin and Sami but I actually have trust in the creative here. Or at the very least, I have trust in the creative’s investment in this story. In a world where wrestling had an end point, the story of Jey breaking free from the Bloodline and Sami being proud of him would be the end of it. But that’s not how wrestling works, and I’m really glad to see them being bold in just following the logic that these creative choices would put these characters in. I say all that praise to say, the fact that the brand split isn’t all that defined makes everyone kinda look like geeks. Dominik, a Raw guy, was in the ring on Friday during the trade segment. It’s like…Sami and Kevin could absolutely still be a team if they really wanted to.
BACKSTAGE WITH SAMI ZAYN & JEY USO
Sami is walking backstage where Jey catches up with him. Jey asks him if Sami is good. If they are good. Sami says he wants them to be good. He really appreciates Jey being there for him. Jey says “always.” But Sami says the whole time all he could think is it shouldn’t be Jey having his back, it should be Kevin. “But Kevin’s not here anymore, and that’s because of you.” Sami says he wants to be happy for Jey. Jey has Cody, Jey has the championships. And Sami has nothing. Jey says he didn’t know Sami had these feelings. “But you still got me. I didn’t know you felt like that.” Jey walks off and Sami freaks out on some equipment nearby. The segment looks to be over with Sami realizing how he screwed up. But in an awesome twist he chases down Jey in the hallway. Sami apologizes for acting out of whack and that its been a tough week. He says he is happy for Jey and Jey deserves everything he has. He asks Jey if they are good. Jey pauses and then says YEET and gives him a hug. Awesome, awesome segment. An honest conversation between characters with their friendship and history that we’ve seen on screen being enough to bring them through it.
SHINSUKE NAKAMURA DEFEATS RICOCHET (FALLS COUNT ANYWHERE)
Richochet is out first with Shinsuke Nakamura following. Nakamura goes for his drop down pose and Ricochet attacks him! Nakamura gets the upperhand right back though and hits the reverse exploder suplex. Ricochet nails Nakamura with a Recoil but that only gets a two count. Big shots from these two early in the match. Ricochet dives to the outside onto Nakamura and as Wade Barrett says, it’s even more effective in a Falls Count Anywhere match as he doesn’t have to waste time getting him back into the ring. The two men fight up the ramp and back to the Gorilla position. Nakamura shoves the referee in-front of him but Ricochet uses the ref’s body to spring off of and knee Nakamura. Oh man, Nakamura Irish whips Ricochet into the tron but Ricochet walks right up it, lands, and nails Nak with a superkick. Nakamura picks Ricochet up for a GTS (eye emoji) but Ricochet counters with a leg whip. Ricochet connects with a running Shooting Star Press for a two count as we head to break. Back from break and these two are now fighting in the crowd. Ricochet is above one of the sections and holds onto one of the fans hands to keep his balance. OH MY GOD Ricochet hits a freaking shooting star press onto Nakamura and a bunch of security guys (thank god.) One of the coolest shots they’ve had in a while and it’s gonna be in a lot of Raw opening packages from now on. Nakamura gets the advantage as they head back towards the ringside area. He pulls out a table and a pair of nunchucks that my dude Nakamura can whip around with ease. Back in the ring the two trade reversals before Nakamura does connect with the GTS (double eyeball emoji.) OH WOW Nakamura goes for the Kinshasa but Ricochet counters by walking up Nakamura’s body. This match is insane. Ricochet hits a springboard 450 onto Nakamura but it’s just not enough to get the three. Ricochet climbs the turnbuckle again but Nakamura is back up to meet him. Nakamura tries to break Ricochet’s finger, and then connects with a round kick to send Ricochet crashing into the table on the outside. Nakamura hits the Kinshasa as soon as Ricochet gets up and pins him for the win!
WHEW boy, innovative stuff from Ricochet and Nakamura is proving that at his age the stipulation/plunder matches are where he can really maximize his minutes. Go out of your way and watch this one if you didn’t catch it live. Glad Nak won after losing the feud to Seth, but were gonna need to give Ricochet a big win soon.
BACKSTAGE WITH TEGAN NOX, CHELSEA GREEN & PIPER NIVEN
Tegan Nox is backstage with Kayden Carter, Katana Chance and I guess Nikki Cross who is brooding. Chelsea Green and Piper Niven come in and insult Tegan. Tegan brings up Chelsea needing Piper to save her championship reign. Chelsea lets out a shocked expression and Tegan mocks it. Short but fun segment, super glad were still giving Tegan TV time.
GUNTHER VIDEO PACKAGE
We see a video package for Imperium, more specifically GUNTHER. “A general knows there is no ends that justify the means, there is just the means.” Oh man, what a badass.
PIPER NIVEN DEFEATS NATALYA
Man I gotta continue to give flowers to Chelsea Green. Talking about maximizing your minutes, that girl knocks it out of the park every time. She’s in Piper’s (or P as Chelsea calls her now) corner as Natalya comes down to the ring. Natalya is trying to stick and move as much as possible with the much bigger opponent. Piper goes for a senton splash but Natalya reverses it into a pinfall attempt for a two count. Natalya calls for the Sharpshooter but Piper pushes her off right into Chelsea who is on the apron. Piper takes advantage and hits the Crossbody on Natalya for the win. After the match Chelsea and Piper are berating Natalya before she fights back. This earns her a beatdown until Tegan Nox runs in for the save! Tegan takes out Cheslea and Natalya and Tegan attempt a double team on Piper, before Piper dips out of the ring.
BACKSTAGE WITH THE JUDGMENT DAY
Damien Priest tells the Judgment Day boys that even though he wanted to see JD McDonagh beat up last week, he does feel a little bit bad after seeing with Drew McIntyre did. So tonight Priest thinks the Judgment Day should take out Drew. Finn and Dominik can’t agree until Rhea comes in. Priest asks her where she has been. Rhea says she had a phone call handling “Judgment Day business.” Priest seems very suspicious of it, but not enough to push any further.
SETH ROLLINS IN-RING PROMO
Our World Heavyweight Champion is out and looking crazier than ever. We are just two weeks away from his huge title defense against Drew McIntyre at Crown Jewel. Seth says Drew is one hell of a guy. Comes out last week, challenges him to his face, and says he wants Seth at one hundred percent. But then when Priest comes out and attacks Seth, Drew doesn’t do anything. But then when Dominik comes down with the briefcase, Drew is suddenly Seth’s white knight. Seth says he has a lot of questions but the only one who can answer them is Drew McIntyre. He invites the number one contender out to the ring who doesn’t make Seth wait long. Drew tells Seth that when he said he wanted Seth at one hundred percent, it involved things like Seth not standing in the ring by himself. Drew is not going to babysit Seth for the next two weeks. Seth insures Drew that he can handle business on his own, but the question is – is Drew doing the same? Seth shows us footage last Monday of Drew and Rhea chatting in the background of an Adam Pearce/Ricochet segment. Love that Seth is bringing this up! Drew says that Rhea came to him, and what they talked about is none of Seth’s business. The only thing Seth has to worry about is Drew talking that title from him. Seth says that nobody is taking this championship from him, especially Drew. Seth brings up Drew’s last few years of big opportunities with big failures. Seth assumes Drew’s fear of failure has led him to the Judgment Day. Drew says Seth sounds rattled and he should be, because the last time they had a World title match, Drew beat Seth. Drew says he doesn’t need anyone, and all those opportunities he lost was because of interference from groups like the Bloodline. This is where Seth jumps on Drew and tells him to get over it. The Bloodline has moved on, so should he. This visibly pisses off Drew. Oh man. Drew says his dream was the one that Seth lives right now with the fans cheering and signing his song. When Drew won the title, there was no one there because of the pandemic. It wasn’t a just tough time for WWE but a tough time for the world. Drew carried this company through a pandemic. And then when Drew caught lightening in a bottle again in the UK, one on one with Roman Reigns it was the Bloodline who screwed him over. “So I’m sorry if I’m not getting over it so quick.” But now the third time lightening is in the bottle for Drew, and Seth needs to think real hard how Seth is going to reinvent himself for the fifty-third time after Drew takes the title from him at Crown Jewel. Seth tells Drew that no one knows what Drew is dealing with better than him. Seth spent four years clawing to get back to the top of the moment. But all he is hearing from Drew is a bunch of excuses. Seth promises that will not get Drew where he wants him to go. “I will beat you at Crown Jewel and I promise you it will be the best thing to happen to you. Because for the first time in a long time, you will have no one to blame but yourself.”
WHEW, loved this. Drew has a ton of good points but Seth is absolutely right that he has been through similar things. If Drew isn’t working with Judgment Day now, I’ve got to wonder if this segment convinces him to turn that way.
BRONSON REED VIDEO PACKAGE
We see a video package for “BIG” Bronson Reed. Reed says he has gotten to where he is now because of fear. If someone disrespects him, he hurts them. It’s inter-cut with his impressive offense, and we are off to the races towards this big Intercontinental championship match tonight.
LOGAN PAUL & REY MYSTERIO HYPE
We see Logan Paul challenging Rey Mysterio after his fight, and then Rey Mysterio’s response. Honestly Logan is absolutely going to win the title and why the hell not. That’s a title that has been lifeless for awhile, and letting Logan carry that thing around and have baller matches can’t be a bad thing. Him and Rey are going to have a good one.
LUDWIG KAISER DEFEATS JOHNNY GARGANO
After last week’s attack, Johnny Gargano runs straight into the ring and jumps Kaiser as soon as the bell rings. Commentary tells us Tomasso Ciampa is not here because he is not medically cleared, but Giovanni Vinci is here. Kaiser tosses Gargano into the post and then hits a beauty of a hesitation dropkick in the corner. Gargano is wrestling with the intensity one should have after they were attacked last week. But that also means he is making mistakes that a wrestler the caliber Kaiser is able to take advantage. Kaiser hits an uppercut on Gagrano that knocks him off the apron to the outside. Kaiser works the neck for a few minutes before Gargano hits a slingshot spear to regain momentum. Gargano hits a sunset flip bomb off the middle rope on Kaiser but it only gets two. Gargano kicks Kaisers head in in the corner and the referee has to pull him out. That momentary distraction allows Kaiser to nail an uppercut followed by a Fireman’s Carry driver for a two count. Gargano sends Kaiser outside and Vinci tries to help him up. Kaiser wants nothing of the help from Vinci and that allows Gargano to nail Kaiser with the Willows Bell. Gargano then connects with the One Final Beat that should have the three count, but Vinci pokes Gargano in the eye! Awesome. Gargano chases Vinci through the ring and runs right into the enziguri of Kaiser. Gargano is then planted with Kaiser’s inverted DDT for the win. Vinci stares Kaiser down from the ramp. Lots of tension in Imperiumland.
BACKSTAGE WITH BECKY LYNCH
NXT Champion Becky Lynch is walking down the hallway when Indi Hartwell and Candice Lerae catchup to her. Indi asks when Becky will give a shot to the woman who never lost the NXT Women’s Championship. Becky agrees and says she has always wanted to wrestle Indi. Becky tells her she will go and talk to Adam Pearce which satisfies Indi and Candice. Gonna need a Candice/Becky match soon please. As Becky walks off she runs into Rhea, who stares her down before smiling. Love the slow burn build up to what should be a Wrestlemania main-event between Rhea and Becky if done right.
BACKSTAGE WITH DREW MCINTYRE
Drew McIntyre is walking backstage and catches Sami. He says he respects Sami for stepping in between Drew and Jey last week. And he also wants to say that he respects Sami leaving the Bloodline and doing the work to earn trust and leadership in the locker room. Sami thanks Drew, but Drew tells Sami that he wasn’t finished. Drew tells Sami that he felt that way until Sami decided to forgive Jey. Sami says he doesn’t know what’s going on with Drew but he does agree with Seth that Drew needs to move on from the Bloodline. Sami says he can relate to Drew with how everything went down with Sami and the Bloodline. Drew is upset that everyone keeps saying the can relate to him. He tells Sami that, with all due respect, Sami can’t relate because he’s never been a World Champion. Sami tells Drew that he can find out how wrong he is next week. Another great segment involving this cast of characters, and the Drew/Sami match next week is going to rule.
RHEA RIPLEY DEFEATS SHAYNA BASZLER BY DQ
Rhea Ripley is out first in this non-title match with Shayna Baszler. I do like that they went non-title, as this was Rhea wanting revenge on Shayna. Rhea has a mic and says everyone wants a part of Monday Night Mami. In Rhea’s brief absence the division has been trying to prove their the baddest woman in WWE. “The reality is this is my division, and Mami will always be on top.” The match starts and Shayna quickly is able to grab the ankle lock of the champion. Rhea gets out and Shayna arm drags Rhea into the mat. Oh god, Rhea lands right on her head. She seems okay, but that looked nasty. Shayna is going after the left arm of Rhea, trying to take some of the power out of her game. Even with one good arm Rhea is able to fight off Shayna with kicks and elbows. Shayna nails Rhea with a German followed by the knee combo but that only gets a two count. Rhea fights Shayna off and is able to hit a missile dropkick off the top rope. Rhea lifts Shayna up for the Riptide but Shayna reverses into an arm-bar! Shayna may tap out Rhea, but the champion is able to power through and powerbomb Shayna to the mat. The boos of the crowd signal the incoming of Nia Jax, but Raquel Rodriquez cuts her off before she can interfere. Nia headbutts Raquel, but then Zoey Stark dives from the crowd onto Nia! Nia flings Zoey into the barricade but then Raquel is right on her. She runs right for Nia who is laying on the stairs, but Nia moves. Back in the ring Zoey kicks Rhea and we have a DQ. Ugh. Rhea turns her attention to Nia and challenges her to bring it. Nia charges but Rhea ducks and Nia eats a kick from Zoey. Rhea picks up Nia (!!) and Zoey dropkicks the pair so that Nia lands on top of Rhea. If these five end up fighting for the title at Crown Jewel, this was absolutely the right move to have Zoey stand tall here. Just annoyed at the non-finish we could all see coming.
BACKSTAGE WITH ADAM PEARCE & BECKY LYNCH
Adam Pearce is backstage with Becky Lynch and tells her that next Monday it will be Becky and Indi for the NXT title. Xia Li comes in and says what about her? Girl you should have been more clear last week, it doesn’t seem all that hard to get a title shot. Becky tells her fine she can have a shot. Xia says great, but on my time. Okay? At least when Nakamura did it he could claim he was doing it to get the right stipulation. Unless Xia is going to wait for Becky to be worn down by title defenses, this is really odd. Xia leaves and in walks Jade Cargill! Jade tells Becky “nice title” and Becky tells her to get in line. A really nice pop for Jade, just sprinkling her in with these top stars is already working wonders.
INTERVIEW WITH CODY RHODES & JEY USO
Jackie Redmond is with the WWE Undisputed Tag Team Champions Cody Rhodes and Jey Uso. Jackie asks Jey for a comment on with what happened with Sami tonight. Jey says Sami has just had a tough week and Sami is Jey’s dog. Cody says tonight is a big night and everyone is making a statement. Oh man they are trying their hardest to run YEET into the ground huh? I really am not a grump about this stuff, but let it breathe a little bit. Remember when they strangled Fandangoing to death in record time?
GUNTHER DEFEATS BRONSON REED (INTERCONTINENTAL CHAMPIONSHIP)
Since Booker T is not here I’ll say it “no bread, no water, just MEEEEAAATTT.” Been waiting on this one since it was announced last week. This has to be the biggest (literally) challenger for GUNTHER’s championship and it shows in the way GUNTHER is approaching this. GUNTHER hits a big boot and immediately follows it up with another. The champions knows his usual offense may not be enough to keep the big man down. Reed snuffs out GUNTHER’s momentum with a body block. GUNTHER is throwing heavy chops that gets him right back into it. GUNTHER tries for the powerbomb but Reed isn’t budging. GUNTHER shifts to a sleeper, which while smart, Reed was prepared for and backs him into the corner. GUNTHER actually chops the back of Reed’s neck and then locks the sleeper right back on. Man I love when a wrestler changes their approach based on the type of opponent they are fighting. Reed is able to lift GUNTHER up and slam him off his back. Reed is going up top already but GUNTHER cuts him off with a chop. Wade Barrett mentions that no one has kicked out of the Tsunami, and that if Reed hits it that could be the end of GUNTHER’s reign. Great insight from Wade. Back from break and the two are trading strikes. Reed will not go down and catches GUNTHER with a superkick followed by a ripcord powerslam for a two count. GUNTHER is just throwing lariat after lariat to the front and back of the head of the challenger but it’s still not enough. Reed catches GUNTHER and plants him with a Death Valley Driver for a close two count. Running senton from Reed but GUNTHER gets the knees up. GUNTHER hits the ropes for a lariat with all his power and still that only gets a two count. GUNTHER goes up top but Reed quickly cuts him off. These two trade chops on the top rope and OH MY GOD. These two men, standing I repeat STANDING on the top rope go over for a superplex from Reed! One…two….no! Reed goes for it all with the Tsunami but GUNTHER moves. A shotgun dropkick from the champion followed by a lariat and then a splash from GUNTHER. One…two…still no! GUNTHER is besides himself, he grabs Reed and plants him with the powerbomb! One…two…three! AND STILL. My lord. Even GUNTHER realizes he just survived one hell of a fight. I wish I could go in a time machine and tell myself during a era like the Guest Host’s that Monday Night Raw would eventually produce stuff like THIS. We are blessed. The countdown to GUNTHER as World Heavyweight Champion is on man.
MIZ INTERVIEW
Jackie Redmond is backstage for an interview with the Miz. He is pissed that Jackie called him the “self proclaimed” most must see superstar. Miz goes off on Adam Pearce waiting till the third hour of Raw to book the Miz. He says Pearce should be fired and maybe Nick Aldis should take over Monday Night Raw. Nia Jax comes in and interrupts. She grabs the mic and tells everyone that she has taken everyone’s best shot and she is still standing. She hasn’t unleashed her best shot. It’s actually probably the best promo I’ve heard from Nia. She gives the mic back to the Miz but Jackie tells him they are out of time. If I had to guess the Miz is going to get traded/signed to Smackdown because he feels disrespected. Not a terrible idea, Miz feels a bit played out on Raw. Not sure how much Smackdown would help, but a change of scenery for a veteran like that isn’t the worst idea.
BACKSTAGE WITH ADAM PEARCE & RHEA RIPLEY
Adam Pearce is on the phone, presumably with Shawn Michaels, making the Becky/Indi match official. Rhea interrupts and tells Pearce that he needs to make sure no one interferes in her matches. Pearce, now with official General Manager power, has developed a backbone and books a Fatal Five Way for Crown Jewel with all the competitors from earlier.
BACKSTAGE WITH ALPHA ACADEMY
The Alpha Academy is backstage with Maxxine teaching Otis and Chad Gable some yoga moves. Akira Tozowa is with them in an incredible get up and little five pound weights. He spends the entire segment working out with them. I’m sorry all I caught from the segment is the New Day and Alpha Academy book a match for next week. Tozowa absolutely killed me here.
BACKSTAGE WITH GUNTHER
GUNTHER is walking backstage and is greeted by Kaiser and Vinci. GUNTHER praises Kaiser for beating Gargano. He then says Vinci failed tonight. Vinci speaks up and says he helped Kaiser win the match. GOOD man, you’ve been taking way too much crap. GUNTHER then tells Kaiser that he saw Gargano walking around earlier. Next week after Gargano’s match with Vinci, if Gargano is still walking around, it will be on Kaiser. Listen I don’t know if this is the story they are telling but I just feel bad for Vinci. Man is being slighted for Kaiser lol
FINN BALOR & DAMIAN PRIEST DEFEAT CODY RHODES & JEY USO (WWE UNDISPUTED TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIPS)
The crowd is hyped for Jey Uso and they are singing along to Kingdom. Man I’m really happy for both men. After their stare-down with the Bloodline on Friday, it really does seem like Roman and Cody is the destination for Wrestlemania. It doesn’t take long for this match to go to the outside, with Priest doing some damage on Jey near the announce table. Jey is able to tag Cody back in the match who is a house on fire taking out both men. He plants Priest with a Disaster Kick but that only gets a two count. Dominik runs down to the ring but Cody knocks him off. They are speed running this match. Jey hits a superkick on Priest and Cody catches him with the Crossrhodes. It would have been a three but Dominik puts Priest’s leg on the rope to break things up. Cody chases Dominik around the ring but Finn is laying in wait with a jumping clothesline to send us to break. Back from break and Cody is going old school with his punches, but Priest cuts him off with a kick. A little too much taunting from Priest and Cody reverses him into a pedigree! Both Finn and Jey tag in, with Jey nailing a Samoan drop on Finn. Jey has him up on his shoulders again but Finn rakes the eyes. Finn wants the shotgun dropkick but Jey intercepts him with a superkick! Jey hoists Finn up and Cody connects with the Cody 1D but…that only gets a two?! Finn kicked out, really surprised there. Cody dives to the outside but is caught by Priest. Priest chokeslams Cody on the apron and starts to clear the announce table. Jey goes up to splash Finn but Dominik holds his leg. Jey gets the dive off but Finn in turn gets the legs up. Sami Zayn runs down to the ring to take out Dominik and even the odds! Priest grabs Sami from behind and throws him into the steps. Cody then comes from behind Priest and tosses him into the crowd! Jey needs the tag but Finn knocks Cody off the apron. While the referee is distracted Priest hits a low blow on Cody on the outside. Priest lifts Cody up and hits the Razor’s Edge on Cody through the announcer table! Jey takes Priest out with a dive though. He tries to get Cody up but Cody is hurt. Jey back in the ring and he eats a slingblade from Finn. Finn tries for the Coup De Grace but Jey rolls out and then hits a spear! Jey goes up again for the Splash but Priest cuts him off. Jey lands on his feet, bounces off the ropes, and hits a spear on Priest. Jey has this won on his own until JIMMY USO hits a superkick on Jey! Oh no, Finn hits the Coup De Grace from the top and we have NEW Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champions.
Listen we had to get to War Games somehow, and I don’t hate this at all. I know the brand split rules are really lax but I will say Jimmy hasn’t been on Raw since Jey has come over, so this was a legit surprise for me. A fun sprint of a main-event, that just makes me excited for whats to come.
