As the late, great philosopher Guru of Gang Starr once said, “Give the credit y’all, where it is due.” And in this case, the credit is due Dominik Mysterio as he prepares to defend his NXT North American Championship on tonight’s episode of WWE Raw in Ontario, California.
No, really. Though Dom is definitely the person you love to hate at the moment, he’s gone from “get this guy off my screen” heat to “we hate you because you’re a big heel” heat. In that respect, strapping him up only helped, which is why WWE did the right thing by doing so even though most people griped at the time.
He’ll have one of his biggest showcases tonight, trying to fend off Dragon Lee. There’s no question Lee reminds Dominik of his famous father in all the ways that get under his skin most, which is why a loss would definitely burn. WWE could potentially help make Lee a star with a win, so it will be interesting to see how this plays out, and if Mysterio needs help from his teammates in The Judgment Day to pull out a victory.
If they can’t help him, it might be because they’re busy too. Damian Priest and Finn Balor won the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship from Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn, but now they’ve got to keep the Canadians from getting it back. Plus there’s lots going on around the champs, what with trying to recruit The Usos and that JD McDonagh guy always wondering “How can I be down?”
All that plus Drew McIntyre on Miz TV, Shinsuke Nakamura addressing Seth Rollins’ challenge and Cody Rhodes kicking off the show. Sounds like a night, doesn’t it? Let’s find out.
WWE Raw results from Ontario:
(please scroll down for full details on any match or segment in bold)
- Cody Rhodes gets interrupted again, but he finds plenty of allies rally to his side against The Judgment Day
- Bronson Reed def. Otis by pinfall
- Becky Lynch asks Tegan Nox why she didn’t take the open challenge last week and says she’s next in line once she wins at No Mercy
- Nox and Natalya get into an argument in front of Adam Pearce over who deserves a shot at Lynch next, so he proposes they battle it out in the ring
- Tommaso Ciampa def. Ludwig Kaiser by pinfall despite, and indeed perhaps thanks to, Giovanni Vinci’s attempt to help his Imperium mate
- A hype video puts over the skill and athleticism of Dragon Lee
- Tegan Nox def. Natalya by pinfall
- A furious Priest kicks McDonagh out of The Judgment Day’s dimly lit dressing room
- Seth Rollins gets his answer from Shinsuke Nakamura, and he is undeterred in agreeing to a Last Man Standing match at Fastlane
- Even on crutches, Ricochet says he has unfinished business with Nakamura no matter who wins at Fastlane
- Dominik Mysterio def. Dragon Lee by pinfall to retain the NXT North American Championship
- KO and Sami say their actions earlier weren’t about helping Jey Uso but about getting their hands on The Judgment Day and winning the titles back together
- Michael Cole has the unenviable task of interviewing Nia Jax, who brags about squashing Rhea Ripley, Shayna Baszler and everyone, really; Zoey Stark heads to the ring and gets in Jax’s face, seemingly unafraid of being squashed, and they brawl into a commercial break while referees try to pull them apart
- Nia Jax def. Zoey Stark by pinfall
- Jey Uso tells Byron Saxton that he’s not joining any groups of any kind and will be keeping a close eye on The Judgment Day the rest of the night, especially during the tag team title match
- Finn Balor celebrates with Mysterio and tells him Priest needed to cool off, but they’d all be celebrating by the end of the night
- Miz TV welcomes Drew McIntyre for a bit of a morality discussion involving The New Day, and Miz ends up on the receiving end of some well deserved violence
- Chad Gable tries to console Otis, then tells Kaiser, who is creeping on Maxxine again, to deliver a message to Gunther: Master Gable still has his eyes on him
- Drew McIntyre def. Kofi Kingston by pinfall, undeterred by Ivar beating up on Xavier Woods during the match and doing the same to Kingston afterward
- Gunther lays into Kaiser, making Vinci his responsibility while he takes care of his responsibility as IC champ, saying he’ll beat Ciampa himself
- Asked about beating up The New Day, Ivar says it’s for taking out Erik, and Valhalla says “an eye for an eye”
- Damian Priest and Finn Balor def. Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn by pinfall to retain the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship, with a huge assist from McDonagh
- After the main event, KO, Zayn, Uso and Rhodes continue to take part in a massive brawl with The Judgment Day and McDonagh