WWE Raw Results: Highlights, Analysis, and Grades for June 12

Elias Samson vs. Dean Ambrose

Result: Elias Samson defeated Dean Ambrose via pinfall

Rating: 2.5 out of 5 stars

Man, there’s so much on Raw every week that makes you scratch your head because of how bad it is. But the stuff that clicks is firing on all cylinders. That includes Elias Samson, the first man to have more success on Raw than in NXT.

This week, Samson takes on Dean Ambrose, which was supposed to happen last week but never got under way. The brief portion of the match where Samson had the upper hand, he showed a real edge in his work. Watch the way he locked in the chinlock – there was no window between his elbow and Ambrose’s jaw. And the back and forth chops were definitely louder coming from Samson than Wacky Dean.

But there was another half of the match, where Ambrose took the lead. As good as Samson made his offense look, that’s how weak Dean’s seems. Clotheslines look more like silly string, the suicide dives are like he’s jumping into a foam pit – it’s getting worse.

The finish is the best kind of dumb – logical in its stupidity. As soon as Miz came out and specifically avoided making contact with Ambrose, you knew how this one was ending up. To be honest, I was expecting the count out victory, but the way it worked out was better. Maybe it’s because I really like Samson’s finisher – yeah, it’s been used by a million guys before, but it’s a relatively simple move that looks devastating.

Backstage, Kurt Angle runs down Miz about causing chaos. Miz wants Ambrose punished in some way, and blames Angle’s personal problems for the situation. Angle – rightfully – refuses to take the bait and removes himself from the Ambrose-Miz beef.

Goldust

Back in 1996, people had longer attention spans, so these numerous Goldust vignettes worked. They still work in 2017, but we’re getting to the point where something needs to change a little bit.