Shooooooooosh! Shoosh, please! We’re going to need quiet for Chad Gable tonight in Quebec City as he attempts to win a singles championship on WWE Raw.
Not just any title, either, but the Intercontinental Championship that’s been in the iron grasp of Gunther since last summer. The Ring General has used power to beat many opponents, skill to best others, and underhanded tactics when necessary — though that has rarely been the case.
Gable, of course, is a technical wizard who is also exceptionally strong for his size. Plus he has the rest of Alpha Academy to keep an eye on the other members of Imperium, so theoretically, it should be a wash on the outside.
In other words, maybe this won’t be quite a simple as the IC champ thinks it could be.
Another interesting match on tonight’s card in Quebec City will see Matt Riddle and Drew McIntyre team to face The New Day. While McIntyre has been somewhat reluctant to make his recent partnership with Riddle an ongoing thing, a victory over one of the most decorated tag teams in WWE history might persuade him to change his stance. Or not, but it can’t hurt Riddle’s efforts.
Last but not least, WWE says Shinsuke Nakamura is going to tell the world exactly what he whispered to Seth Rollins last week that turned the World Heavyweight Champion white as a sheet. It’s got to be pretty good considering the reaction he got.
It would also be strange indeed if Quebec’s favorite son, Sami Zayn, wasn’t involved in tonight’s proceedings in some way, so watch for that as well.
WWE Raw results from Quebec City:
(scroll down for more details on any match or segment in bold)
- Sami Zayn is in the house, and he’s not alone: Kevin Owens is back
- The New Day def. Drew McIntyre and Matt Riddle by pinfall, but only thanks to some unexpected aid from the Viking Raiders, who attack the winning team after the bell until McIntyre chases them off
- Finn Balor and JD McDonagh are being interviewed when Rhea Ripley comes to summon Finn to decide who is competing in the main event; JD tries to come with them but Rhea says no
- Shayna Baszler says she’s out to set the whole world on fire and leave everyone in the women’s division with no chance but to let it burn
- Gunther says despite what Chad Gable believes, time is on his side, with each passing day building his legacy; Gable is interviewed backstage, and gets a pep talk from Otis and Maxxine Dupri
- Chad Gable def. Gunther by countout, so Gunther retains the WWE Intercontinental Championship
- Ripley can’t believe that Balor and Damian Priest can’t decide who is going to be in the main event and says they better figure it out shortly or she’ll make the decision for them
- An angry Gunther takes out his frustration on the rest of Imperium, and things seem to flow downhill toward poor Giovanni Vinci
- Cody Rhodes doesn’t want to be interviewed backstage and takes Byron Saxton with him out to the stage and gets the fans pumped up to be in the corner of Owens and Zayn in the main event later tonight
- In a pre-recorded segment, Shinsuke Nakamura claims he told Rollins “I know about your back,” explaining that Seth’s back has been his weakness for years and that Rollins lives in constant pain because of it; he ominously ends his bit with “watch your back”
- Rhea Ripley def. Candice LeRae by submission but soon finds herself retreating from Raquel Rodriguez, who says they will meet at Payback
- Tommaso Ciampa says he needs to be the change he wants to see since he’s tired of being close to big opportunities, and he says his mantra needs to be “do it yourself,” hmm …
- The Miz continues to insist that LA Knight will be remembered as a flash in the pan or “the Hoobastank of WWE” before introducing his opponent, Akira Tozawa, who tries getting over by saying “yeah” like Knight
- Akira Tozawa def. The Miz by pinfall as Miz is distracted by LA Knight
- McIntyre is about to tell Riddle that he thinks they should go their separate ways, but The New Day convinces them to hold on for one more day like Wilson Phillips, or at least Drew will consider it
- Ripley is ticked that the guys haven’t worked out who will compete in the tag team match, so she stomps away and says they’ll do it her way now
- Becky Lynch and Trish Stratus exchange verbal jabs again
- Chelsea Green says she handled having WWE authorize making her and Piper Niven the official tag team champions, but Niven makes it appear she’s the one calling the shots
- Chelsea Green and Piper Niven def. Kayden Carter and Katana Chance by pinfall
- Rollins lets the fans sing for a second before responding to questions about his back, admitting that he has been living with a lumbar injury for four years that could shorten his career, but he says it’s part of the gig and says Shinsuke isn’t man enough to face him man to man; Seth gives Shinsuke one more chance to prove he’s an honorable warrior next week
- Damian Priest and Finn Balor def. Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn by DQ when KO is caught using the MITB briefcase as a weapon, but …
- … Rhodes comes down and chases away The Judgment Day before suggesting a six-man tag to end the show; Adam Pearce agrees, so let’s try this main event again
- Cody Rhodes, Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn def. The Judgment Day (Damian Priest, Dominik Mysterio and Finn Balor) by pinfall
- Zayn has a bilingual last word for The Judgment Day