WWE Raw Results: Highlights, Analysis, and Grades for October 9

Source: WWE.com via Twitter

Follow along with our live WWE Raw review.

Previously on WWE Raw, Mickie James was gifted some adult diapers because 38 is old. Bray Wyatt put on some makeup after telling the WWE Universe Sister Abigail is on her way. And the former members of The Shield swore up and down that they weren’t reuniting, then got their butts kicked throughout the night. maybe it’s time to reconsider?

As of this writing on Monday afternoon, there hasn’t been a whole heck of a lot announced for this week’s episode. The only confirmed segment is a very special episode of Miz TV. The A-Lister is fresh off a successful title defense over Roman Reigns last week. Sure, he lost by DQ, but he came in as Intercontinental Champion and left the same way. Good enough for me.

The Miz will be joined on his talk show by The Bar – Sheamus and Cesaro. The former Raw Tag Team Champions have had their differences with Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose, but last week they shifted their attention to The Big Dog. In fact, The Miz and The Bar executed a patented Shield triple powerbomb on Reigns, before posing over him with a triple fist bump. Will these actions spur the former Shield to reunite ahead of TLC?

Everything else going on this week is pure speculation. According to WWE’s Raw preview, we’re going to officially get introduced to Sister Abigail. Probably. Bray Wyatt is off his rocker while he sits in his, uh, rocking chair, and he’s been muttering about Abigail for some time. After failing to beat Finn Balor – Demon or Man – Wyatt is bringing out the big guns with Sister Abigail. Who is she? Prepare to be let down!

The continuation of the drama between Alexa Bliss and Mickie James will continue this week, as well. James got a win over Nia Jax last week – via DQ when The Goddess interfered. After the match, Mickie got the news from Kurt Angle that she’ll face Bliss for the Raw Women’s Championship at TLC in two weeks. How will the story progress this week?

Finally, last week Kalisto officially joined the cruiserweight division and the 205 Live roster. The Lucha Dragon put a beating on Cruiserweight Champion Enzo Amore to close out Raw last week, then won his 205 Live debut the next night. How will Kalisto continue his forward momentum this week?

Related Story: WWE Hell in a Cell 2017 Review

Join us right here at Daily DDT for our live WWE Raw review, starting at 8pm EDT!

Source: WWE.com via Twitter

Miz TV: The Mizzies

Wow, it’s awards season already? That came up quickly. The Miz has gone full Hollywood as he hands out The Mizzies. If we’re being honest, I think a Mizzie is more prestigious than a Golden Globe. Definitely more prestigious than a Grammy.

Curtis Axel dedicates his “Perseverance” Mizzie to Bo Dallas, who’s home recovering from the beating he took last week. It’s the first thing the Axeman has won since he was Intercontinental Champion back in 1997. Wait, sorry, that was actually 2013 – it just seems like it was 20 years ago.

Out come the special guests for this edition of Miz TV, The Bar. Sheamus and Cesaro tied to win the “Best Supporting Actor” Mizzie for their role in the annihilation of Roman Reigns last week. You know, just between you and me, I don’t think the Mizzies are on the level. But The Bar and The Miz are proud of themselves for “ending” Roman Reigns.

The third and final Mizzie award, for being the “Big Dog” of WWE, goes to The Miz. He starts to dedicate the award to his unborn child, but Roman Reigns interrupts the speech. Miz antagonizes Roman, saying that Reigns won’t do anything because he’s outnumbered 4-1. Miz tells him to go back to the locker room, because rumors of the Shield reunion are just hype.

And then we get to the fireworks factory. Reigns asks, “What rumors?” as Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins come down to join him on the stage. After a beat, the trio heads to the ring, and it’s like the summer of 2013 all over again as they surround the ring before making their move.

Despite still being outnumbered 4-3, The Shield make quick work of their foes. To put a cherry on top, Miz eats a triple powerbomb, and Reigns joins the Raw Tag Team Champs for a triple fist bump to seal the deal.

This has been a long time coming since all three guys ended up as babyfaces. The Shield probably had a bit more left in their original run when it ended, but there’s no harm in reuniting right now. They don’t have to do everything together, but let them be comrades in arms. I’m excited to see where this goes.

Source: WWE.com via Twitter

Jason Jordan vs. Karl Anderson (w/ Luke Gallows)

Result: Jason Jordan defeats Karl Anderson via pinfall

Rating: 2.75 out of 5 stars

After last week’s tag match pitting Gallows and Anderson against Jordan and Matt Hardy, we get one half of the match as a singles bout. Stay tuned for Luke Gallows vs. Matt Hardy later, I guess.

This one is an uphill battle for the crowd’s attention. I mean, The freakin’ Shield reunited less than five minutes before the bell rang for this one – what do you think people are more interested in? Factor in the indifference surrounding Jordan most nights, and the utter destruction of credibility of The Club, and this one may as well take place in a vacuum.

It’s pretty good, though. Nothing too flashy early on, but it was solid. Anderson smartly worked the legs before the break – Jordan is quick and uses his legs for power. Then, coming back from the commercial break, Anderson has switched gears to the arm. Uh, sure, that makes sense, I guess. The spine buster hits big, though, but only for a two count.

Jordan begins his comeback as the broadcast team descends into madness. Booker T blathers on about how Jordan gets handed things all the time, then accuses a former NXT Tag Team Champion and a guy who’s undefeated at WrestleMania of “never being in the ring.” Sure, Book, whatever you say.

In the ring, Jordan is able to overcome attempted interference from Gallows to hit his high angle (high Angle?) neckbreaker for a victory.

Source: WWE.com via Twitter

TLC Main Event Revealed

The Miz is getting iced up in the trainer’s room, nary a Z-Pak in sight. What is in sight is Kurt Angle. The Raw GM tells Miz he ‘s getting what he’s been wishing for – a Tables, Ladders, and Chairs match at TLC. In the main event, The Miz and The Bar will team up against The Shield.

It’s a smart move, and no one needs to worry about The Miztourage being the opponents for one of the greatest trios in WWE history. All six of these competitors are top notch, and TLC matches are a big part of The Shield’s history. It should be a fantastic main event.

Source: WWE.com via Twitter

Dueling Banjos

Elias is out to do his thing – rip on the city he’s in, and tear down his opponent. Oh, and sing. And he’s doing a pretty good job of it, until Titus O’Neil interrupts with a banjo. As a music teacher, I’ve heard some pretty bad things over the years. This may have been the worst of all of them. Like, ears bleeding bad.

So rather than getting the smooth stylings of Elias and his golden pipes, we get Titus “singing” and “playing” the banjo. Oof, it was painful. Thankfully, Apollo Crews comes out, and a match is up next.

Source: WWE.com via Twitter

Apollo Crews (w/ Titus O’Neil) vs. Elias

Result: Elias defeated Apollo Crews via pinfall

Rating: 2.75 out of 5 stars

You know, I’m all for guys having a program where they wrestle each other a couple of times before moving on. It helps some guys develop consistency in the ring, and connect with the crowds on a deeper level. If you can call back to previous matches, then everything you do is must watch. No one wants to be the guy or gal who misses a reference to an earler match because you weren’t paying attention, you know?

Of course, the caveat to that is you have to vary things a little bit every time you have a match. I swear, I’ve seen Elias vs. Crews a billion times (not an exaggeration). But I hardly ever see anything new. It’s the same old same old every match. That’s frustrating, because it gets these guys stuck in a rut rather than helping them to grow.

The only new thing I noticed here was Elias busting out a new addition to his repertoire. Midway into the match, he walked the ropes a la The Undertaker. Corey Graves was quick to point this out as a “cover,” which is brilliant, hilarious, and awesome.

But other than that, Elias won – again. Apollo came close – again. And Titus looked perplexed – again. It’s time to get everyone involved here into something else, this has run its course.

Source: WWE.com via Twitter

Loserweights? And You Wonder Why They Hate You…

Seems like Enzo has fallen into a rut. It’s not all bad, and it’s actually happened before without too many ill effects. But out comes Enzo, he acts like a spoiled and entitled brat, and somehow he ends up in the main event of Raw. I don’t totally get it, but it seems to be working, so who cares what I think?

Anyway, Enzo seems to be confused as to why the 205 Live roster always wants to beat him up. Heck, he got a “no contact” clause added in his contract because of their willingness to hit him at any opportunity. Uh, buddy, you just called them all “loserweights.” Funny as that may be, I think we have established the cause of this particular effect.

Anyway, Enzo demands Kurt Angle come down to the ring to discuss some things. When Angle comes out, Enzo asks why Kalisto is getting a championship match when the no contact clause states he should be fired. Angle points out that Enzo should read more closely, as Kalisto is unaffected by the clause because of timing.

You would think someone with Enzo’s considerable resources would have had a lawyer look the clause over, but he’s stunned speechless over this revelation. Angle decides, though, to placate Enzo by voiding that title match at TLC – making it for tonight instead. Enzo agrees, but only if the match is in the main event. Angle then agrees, and we’re at three weeks in a row with 205 Live headlining Raw.

Before he leaves, Angle tells Enzo not to be too confident – the entire 205 Live roster is being released from the no contact clause for tonight only, because tonight’s main event is a lumberjack match. Interesting move, but I don’t think Enzo loses the title just yet. He’s doing too good in his current role to drop the championship so soon.

Source: WWE.com via Twitter

Braun Strowman vs. Matt Hardy

Result: Braun Strowman defeated Matt Hardy via pinfall

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

The announcers are alluding to the fact that Matt Hardy may not be himself without Jeff around. Is this how we finally get more of a Broken/Woken/No Jokin’ Matt Hardy in WWE? He’s doing more “deletes” at once in his entrance. His hair seems to have more of the blond/white section in it than in recent weeks. Maybe they’re finally going all in with it.

Or, maybe instead, Braun Strowman is going to hit him so hard with some move that Matt will just literally break. Either or, you know?

Credit to Matt for going all out against Strowman here, though. If you hold anything back, you don’t stand a chance against The Monster Among Men. So, ineffective as it may have ultimately been, it was a good idea for Hardy to just go at 110%.

It almost worked for a brief, shining moment. Hardy connected with a tornado DDT to finally take Strowman off his feet. He followed up with a Twist of Fate, but the resulting pin attempt only got a one count. MAtt was stunned, and went for another, but Strowman reversed it into a chokeslam. After a second chokeslam and a running powerslam, Strowman picked up the victory.

Braun was looking to continue punishing Hardy, carrying him up the ramp, but he was stopped by The Shield. Don’t forget, Strowman defeated Ambrose and Rollins over the past two weeks, and there’s a lot of history between Reigns and Strowman.

The Numbers Game proved effective against Braun, who ended up getting triple powerbombed through the announce table on the stage. So it takes three people to put down Strowman? Good information to have.

Source: WWE.com via Twitter

The Shield Runs This Place

After putting down Braun Strowman, The Shield are gloating backstage. Charly Caruso tries to ask a question, but Seth cuts her off and they kinda just rambled. Roman says they run this place now. I guess he has no problem with Dean and Seth not helping him out for all those months that Braun was trying to shoot murder him with ambulances and such.

Source: WWE.com via Twitter

Mickie James, Ageless Wonder

You know, I’m 34 years old. If Mickie James, at 38, is old, I’m running on borrowed time. It’s been nice knowing all of you out there!

So we’re still centering this whole rivalry on the age thing, huh? One of the superstars is old, the other is a baby? All I can say about that is, at least there hasn’t been a “Mickie James: This Is Your Life” segment just yet.

Although, this week, we did get something close – a “Superstars of Yesteryear” video mocking Mickie’s advanced age. I have to admit, that was pretty funny. I’ve always like those old style newsreel videos. (Oh, man, I am old!)

After a few more “You’re old!” comments, Mickie challenges Alexa to get in the ring. ALexa fakes her out with a move that’s “as old as [Mickie] is.” But Mickie is smart enough to, you know, go after Alexa. She gets a few shots in on the champ, but Alexa escapes.

Source: WWE.com via Twitter

Who Is Ready For Asuka?

Pretty much the entire Raw Women’s Division is buttering up Kurt Angle to be Asuka’s sacrificial lamb at TLC in two weeks. Alicia Fox is also mad about not having a T-shirt after 10 years, and she’s mad at Emma for bailing on her in last week’s tag match. Angle does the reasonable thing and just makes all five women fight it out in the ring later tonight for the chance to lose to Asuka.

Source: WWE.com via Twitter

Cedric Alexander & Mustafa Ali) vs. Jack Gallagher & The Brian Kendrick

Result: Jack Gallagher and The Brian Kendrick defeated Cedric Alexander & Mustafa Ali via pinfall

Rating: 2 out of 5 stars

The only real negative about this match? It was way too short. Four great cruiserweight competitors in a tag match, and the whole segment lasts, what, five or six minutes? If that?

Because the match is so short, it never had a chance to get going. Aside from some enzugiris and dropkicks, there was next to no aerial offense. So somewhere backstage, I know Drew Gulak was happy with this one.

But after some solid action in the ring, Kendrick would eventually pick up a victory for his team with Sliced Bread #2. If you blinked, you probably missed this one. All four guys will be out later to be lumberjacks for the Cruiserweight Championship match, but they should get some time for their own match.

Source: WWE.com via Twitter

Words Matter

Before we get to the Sister Abigail nonsense, The Miz shows that he’s got superior listening skills. Dean Ambrose claimed The Shield can beat any number of superstars in a match. So The Miz guilts Kurt Angle into allowing him to pick another partner for the TLC match in two weeks. And Miz isn’t dumb, so he picked a very angry Braun Strowman.

Now this match is going to be the greatest TLC match in history. Sorry Dudleyz/Hardyz/Edge & Christian.

Source: WWE.com via Twitter

Abigail, Meet Finn; Finn, Abigail

Ladies and gentlemen, I’ve been watching professional wrestling for a very long time. I’ve seen some great things, I’ve seen some terrible things. There’s been segments that make me scratch my head, and others that just stand head and shoulders above all the others.

I think this Sister Abigail stuff is among the absolute dumbest things any wrestling company has done outside of giving creative control to Hulk Hogan.

As I sit here and try to make sense of it, I just can’t do it. Trying to find the words to articulate just how awful it is, it’s proving nearly impossible. I mean, I can tell you why Katie Vick was a terrible idea. Remember when Big Bossman made Al Snow eat his dog? I could write you a thesis on that. But this? I’m at a loss for words.

Part of me gets where WWE is coming from with this. Finn Balor has a “split personality,” so it’s not unprecedented for something like that to happen. But That split has been clearly articulated since day one of his WWE career, for all intents and purposes. Bray Wyatt has never been put in that position until now. Are they going for the Norman Bates reveal? Is he going to come out as Abigail, and a camera pans to his locker room so we can see a skeleton left behind?

I hope Abigail isn’t used as frequently as Finn’s Demon persona. It’s just too stupid for words, and I hope something happens to make me change my mind.

Source: WWE.com via Twitter

Fatal Five Way Elimination Match; Winner Faces Asuka at TLC

Emma vs. Dana Brooke vs. Alicia Fox vs. Sasha Banks vs. Bayley

Result: Emma eliminated Sasha Banks via pinfall last to win the match

Rating: 2.75 out of 5 stars

It didn’t take long for Michael Cole to screw up the rules of this one. Like 17 graphics showed that it was an eliminator, but he’s out there saying FIRST ONE TO SCORE A PIN OR A SUBMISSION WINS!!!! When Bayley pinned Dana Brooke, he seemed shocked until Vince screamed in his ear (I’m assuming).

Back to the action, though, Bayley eliminated Dana Brooke after about two minutes. Not long after, Sasha tried a schoolgirl rollup on Bayley, but didn’t get the pin. The Hugger was infuriated by this – even though it’s the rules – and she started throwing forearms at Banks. But in came Alicia Fox to hit a big axe kick on Bayley and earn a shocking elimination.

With the match down to just Sasha, Fox, and Emma, my mind started going to Emma winning. She’s a good victim for Asuka – remember their match at NXT TakeOver: London? It was really good.

And that’s exactly what happened! It’s 100% the correct decision. Sasha withstood Emma and Alicia teaming up (begrudgingly) to eliminate Foxy by submission. But as Sasha released the hold, Emma snuck in with a crucifix cover to steal a victory.

It may have been a somewhat surprising decision, but Emma can hang with Asuka long enough to allow The Empress of Tomorrow to make a statement.

Source: WWE.com via Twitter

Finn Balor Doing His Best

Finn seriously trying his hardest to sell Sister Abigail as something other than an ill advised way to get another “alternate persona” into WWE. He says that “her” words terrified him. Despite that, he knows what he has to do now. Of course, no one else knows what that means, so tune in next week to find out!

Source: WWE.com via Twitter

New Match Announced For Next Week

After a nice recap of all the Shield activities of the night so far, we get an announcement for a huge match next week. Roman Reigns and Braun Strowman will face off inside a steel cage. I’m all in for that, so long as they figure out a way to get an ambulance inside the cage.

Source: WWE.com via Twitter

Kalisto Does Some Good Lucha Things

Any time Kalisto cuts a promo, it will – fairly or not – get compared to his post draft promo. You know the one. So compared to that, this one was a home run.

What I will never understand is why so many wrestlers these days have to constantly tell the WWE Universe who their heroes were. And why does every Latino superstar need to tell us over and over that they grew up idolizing Eddie Guerrero and Rey Mysterio? Can’t one of them say, “I was all about Dr. Wagner Jr. as a kid, viva la raza!”

WWE Cruiserweight Championship Lumberjack Match

Enzo Amore (c) vs. Kalisto

Result: Kalisto defeated Enzo Amore to win the WWE Cruiserweight Championship

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

For the third week in a row, 205 Live gets the main event slot on WWE Raw. And for the first time in those three weeks, it’s actually a match to close out the show. It’s steady progress for the cruiserweights, which is always a good thing. And with Enzo Amore bringing more eyes to the show, this is the next logical step.

Before too long, the lumberjack stipulation came into play. And just like every lumberjack match in the history of the world, the lumberjacks eventually got antsy and just started attacking Enzo and Kalisto before throwing them back into the ring.

Also like every lumberjack match ever, the lumberjacks got carried away and started fighting amongst themselves. The fight in this one started when Enzo took a cheap shot at Mustafa Ali. In response to being attacked, Ali got up on the ring apron, only to be pulled down by Ariya Daivari.

More from Daily DDT

• It’s time for Adam Cole and MJF to drop the ROH tag team titles
• Tom Lawlor talks MLW return, AEW opportunity, CM Punk’s WWE return and more
• Eddie Kingston stands to gain the most from the AEW Continental Classic
• Trish Stratus on WWE NXT would help elevate that women’s division
• Randy Orton signs with SmackDown to go after The Bloodline

While all the lumberjacks were brawling, Kalisto and Enzo were still fighting in the ring. They made their way to the top turnbuckle, and Kalisto superplexed Enzo onto the pile on the floor. It was pretty incredible.

Back in the ring, with the cruiserweights separated, Kalisto went for Salida del Sol, but Enzo reversed it into Sole Food – you know, the move he stole from Chuck Taylor. But Ali made sure Enzo didn’t get the pin, pulling him out of the ring before the three count.

Kalisto and Enzo made it to the top turnbuckle again, and again Kalisto gained the upper hand. Thanks to some convenient positioning, Kalisto was able to push off the ringpost and hit Enzo with a Salida del Sol from the top rope. A three count later, and we have a new Cruiserweight Champion.

This was a much better match than I was anticipating. I figured the lumberjack stipulation would detract from the in-ring action – but it actually did the opposite. Throw in a couple of big, impressive, high-risk spots, and you have a wonderful little main event. With a new direction for 205 Live on its way with the new champ, things are looking great for the cruiserweight division.

Next: 25 Greatest WWE Entrance Themes of All Time

That concludes this week’s episode of WWE Raw, what are your thoughts? Sound off in the comments below!