Tonight’s RAW is the ‘go-home’ episode for Elimination Chamber this Saturday. With RAW at the Heritage Bank Center in Cincinnati, Ohio, and Logan Paul scheduled to be in attendance, it is likely that they push his status leading up to the Chamber match. As it stands, CM Punk, John Cena, Drew McIntyre, and Seth Rollins (along with Logan Paul) are all set to compete in the Elimination Chamber for the shot at Cody’s world title now that Jey has officially chosen Gunther.
CM Punk And Jake Paul Pull No Punches
Logan Paul started off RAW tonight, and it felt like the right call as the Ohio native’s online hype has hit new heights within the Twitter Wrestling world. He delivered his typical heel promo, complete with a trolling reference to the city’s pro sports team.
Punk’s music hit, and the crowd went nuts. WWE has attempted to test Logan with different superstars as they check the temperature of potential WrestleMania opponents. But Logan came out firing on Punk. “Your career are a series of you just failing upwards,” Paul said to Punk. “Is that why you don’t like me.”
Punk responded with the promo that Paul’s detractors have been waiting for since the day he donned those yellow tights with ‘The Maverick’ logo. “I don’t know you well enough to have a problem with you; this is just business, the Elimination Chamber,” Punk responded directly to Logan as the preference of some incoming promo that he knew would be ‘nasty work.’
“What I see of you, honestly, dime a dozen loudmouth kid does and says incredibly stupid and ignorant things for the reactions, for the shock of it.
“And you think that makes you a generational talent, no character, no substance. These people, they deserve better,” Punk went on to say.
These were strong words, but if you looked closely at Punk, you probably noticed an extra layer, or five, of makeup. Those in the ‘biz’ would recognize (admittedly high-level) the ‘close-up concealer’ — not to mention the eyebrows and edges with fewer grays — as a tip-off that Punk was at least conscious of ‘looking old’ on TV next to Logan.
Logan decided to flex his fandom in response by name-dropping “Stone Cold” Steve Austin as a schtick Punk has ‘borrowed’ from as an anti-authority figure. He accurately claimed that the biggest names in WWE change over time and then claimed that his name was sure to surpass the current era’s best now that he is a “full-timer.”
Punk took jabs that hark on the oldest criticisms of Paul. The final ‘act’ of Punk’s promo played as a ‘diss’ but was more of a ‘challenge.’ He said the names Logan mentioned, his included, were “legends” and “moment makers,” and Logan was ‘barely a flash in the pan.” He said that Logan would not stick around long enough for fans to remember him before claiming he would eliminate Logan personally as a “receipt” for Logan eliminating Punk at the Rumble.
The segment ended with Logan pulling a ‘punk move’ on Punk by slapping across the face before running out of the ring and keeping the distance. Punk promised that when he got his hands on Logan that he would understand why the fans ‘chant his name.’
Cody Rhodes Contemplates Corporate Rock’s Offer
The Final Boss turned into Shang Tsung on Friday Night SmackDown as he asked for Cody’s soul. It was a promo that had the entire wrestling world talking, and it is probably because the question begs for clarity. The Rock, being referred to more and more as ‘my boss’ by superstars, gave Cody until this Saturday’s Elimination Chamber to answer Rock’s request.
It seems funny to give someone that amount of time only to have him answer on such a public stage—especially because most “soul-selling” takes place behind closed doors in the entertainment business. However, it is genius, really, because your sureness of Cody’s goodness starts to question itself. Why does he need all that time? Who can get in his ear from then till now? Is Cody truly the ‘good guy’ he portrays?
The self-doubt creeps in, and the mind games from the Rock are like the “Mr. Burns” tactics that we expect from ‘men of power.’ So, Cody’s job tonight was to sell its plausibility while maintaining his place as a ‘baby-faced’ white knight. He spoke about the hardships of this business and referenced his father’s own struggles to ‘provide for his family’ by tearing down his body night after night on the road. It made you truly contemplate the weight of ‘saying no’ to The Rock, and it also made you aware that Cody is aware.
Seth Rollins’s music hit, and he ruined what could have been some terrific solo character architecture. Rollins said he wanted to shake his hand and congratulate him on his near year as World champion, but he could not. He said, instead, he must ask Cody, ‘What the hell is he thinking?’
“The fact that you did not slap [The Rock] to his face on the spot is a slap to my face,” Seth said to Cody before asking him not to make him regret helping him last year. Seth mentioned potential movie roles, part of his massive social media following, and the burden of carrying the championship as potential reasons for Cody to accept The Rock’s offer.
Cody took the offensive route and accused Seth of being ‘overly judgemental’ before claiming The Rock might have asked Cody instead of Seth’s because it was already sold—a reference to Seth’s time under the thumb of Triple H. He brought up Seth’s backstabbing turn on his Shield brothers but then claimed that Seth was his shield and MVP of WrestleMania 40.
Seth’s presence added to this Saturday’s segment between Cody and The Rock, but his constant tug and pull into the storylines of others remains a hindrance on his personal work.
Gunther Picking His Own Shots
Gunther arrived at the arena dressed to the nines, but by the time his segment started, he was dressed for action. When he arrived earlier in the night, it seemed like you got a glimpse of “Alpha Academy” doing plyometrics on TikTok. That was the Easter egg for tonight’s program as Gunther berated Tazawa for being another clown in his Alpha circus.
Gunther said he was giving Tazawa the ‘shot of a lifetime’ and one that Jey Uso would never claim, and the match was surprisingly fun. Tazawa got in some offense early, and the crowd lit up, but he was eventually power-bombed into oblivion. If that wasn’t enough, Gunther pulled Tazawa up before the ref could count to three all so that he could apply a sleeper to instead choke the life from his victim.
The ref called for the bell, but Gunther was not finished but when he attempted to lock on another submission on Tazawa, Otis jumped in for a big pop. Gunther walked away only to run back into the ring once Otis’s back was turned. He locked a sleeper on Otis, and that is when Jey’s music hit for an even bigger pop. He cleared out Gunther, and the crowd received their “Yeet” performance for the night.
Main Event: Judgment Day (Liv and Raquel) VS Bianca Belair and Naomi(c)—WWE Women’s Tag Team Titles
After WWE pinned the “Who Attacked Jade” angle on Liv and Raquel, the feud between them and the tag team champs has escalated. Both teams have attacked one another and ruined WWE match bookings, so the heels received a tag title match for their terrible behavior.
The champs had to deal with The Judgment Day’s Dom Mysterio, who played a role throughout the match. In the end, Naomi and Biance were defeated because of the straps. Liv was able to get the pin on Naomi after hitting the rearview on Liv, but Dom played interference long enough for Raquel to disrupt Naomi’s offense. This led to Liv picking up the victory, and the heels celebrated to close out RAW.
Liv’s accomplishments were put over on commentary, and asked if the former Women’s champ can go onto Elimination Chamber to secure a title match at Mania. Everything is ‘looking up Liv,’ but the internal problems with The Judgment Day will remain a drawback on her future. The faction is contemplating adding a new member, but Liv and co. may end up in greener pastors by leaving the ‘purple crew’ altogether.
“This Is Penta”… Clap, Clap…Clap,Clap,Clap-Penta vs. Kaiser vs. Pete Dunn
The triple threat match booked last week based on a multi-week storyline between Penta and, Ludwig Kaiser and Pete Dunne. Penta has not been rushed into any truly meaningful feuds and has instead picked off mostly ‘opening card’ superstars.
Tonight’s match was almost booked as a 2-on-1, with Penta mostly pulling off incredible sequences of offense that ended with both of his opponents on the ground. In fact, Dunn and Kaiser rarely faced off in the match until the end. Penta was in control as Dunn seemed ripe for the pin, and that is when Kaiser threw Penta out to get the pinfall victory on Dunn.
Penta is on pace to break the “This is Awesome” fan chants record for most consecutive matches, but if he is going to have anything meaningful for Mania, then he is going to have to finish this feud quickly.
Intercontinental Title Matches
Two of WWE’s best young superstars (top 30 under 30 per ESPN) faced off in singles action (sort of). Dom Mysterio battled IC champion Bron Breakker, but the match was eventually called when Judgement Day involved themselves. It ended in DQ, but there is a chemistry between Breakker and ‘The Latino Cheat’ left to be explored.
Valkyria defeats Dakota Kai
Valkyria successfully defended her IC title against Dakota, but Ivy Nile came out after the match to attack the champion. She is on the hunt for gold in order to avoid letting Chad Gable down upon his return.
New Day Beat LWO
New Day continues to be directionless and simultaneously on a quest to beat as many masked wrestlers (and their friends) as they can for some reason. New Day picked up the win, but Dragon Lee came out after to make the save.
Other Tidbits:
- Sami Zayn tattled on Kevin Owens to his mom when he went to his friend’s house in an action Zayn admits was questionable behavior. In the pre-taped interview, he sold the fact that his neck is not 100% and that he understands why WWE has ‘unsanctioned’ this match. He said the violence they have planned for each other at Elimination Chamber in front of their home country fans is the real reason WWE should be worried.
- EVOLVE is being relaunched on March 5th streaming on YouTube and Tubi. The former promotion that was once one of the top indie talent pools in the world will now showcase up-and-comers. With LGF, WWE’s developmental program is shaping up to take over the world of wrestling.
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