WWE headed to the UK this week and kept adding momentum towards Survivor Series. Who were the top five performers from WWE Raw this week?
WWE Raw aired from the Manchester Arena since the roster has been touring the UK. Usually, the UK tour is the time of the year when the WWE decides to play it safe. You can’t really blame them though. Like our very own Bryan Heaton said, fatigue and jet lag plays a part in this. The performers are obviously tired after a long journey. Moreover, due to the time zone differences, one or two spoilers always leaks out before most of us catch the show.
However, none of that was the case this time around. WWE made sure to give the fans, both in attendance and watching from home a stellar show. The biggest shock of the night came when The Bar defeated The Shield to win the Raw Tag Team Titles. That came right out of the blue, quite literally. If it wasn’t for Team Blue’s New Day showing up, none of this would have happened. But we never know. The hot story here is that the titles have been taken away from the Shield and something bigger could be on the works.
The men’s and women’s Survivor Series team moved closer to completion. The women’s team have a single spot left now and there seems to be a sub plot emerging from Bayley. The United Kingdom Champion Pete Dunn made his Raw debut. I am sure he would have made quite a number of new fans after silencing Enzo for the night.
As we are moving closer towards Survivor Series, Raw impending attack on SmackDown Live seems to get sweeter and sweeter. It might even happen tomorrow. Who knows? For the time being though, here are the top five stars from the night.
WWE.com
5. Jason Jordan
Jason Jordan is the number five entrant on this list for two reasons. One, he can now move on from the lethargic and waste of time feud with Elias Samson. In addition, he has literally saved Elias too. The Drifter is basically too good to be doing this now. Two, Jordan is now part of the men’s Survivor Series team. So that’s basically two reasons for Jordan to go home happy last night.
Jordan’s feud with Elias has been nothing short of a bummer. There wasn’t any kind of real heat in it. If anything, it gave us more of Elias, who seems to be getting better at playing the heel on a nightly basis. Who else can generate that kind of reaction by merely strumming a guitar. If he keeps us this, ten years down the line, we will be elated to see Elias pick up a guitar once more, much like we are when we see The Rock do it.
However, the real reason for having Jason Jordan on this list was him getting a place on the Survivor Series team. Earlier in the day, Daily DDT had posted about rumors of Jordan potentially replacing Reigns on the team. We still don’t know whether Reigns would be cleared for Survivor Series. But the commentary team did mention towards the end that he will be in action next week. But for the moment, Jason Jordan managed to get a win, hopefully wrap up his program with Elias, join hands with his storyline dad and go to battle against Team Blue. A clear win on the young man’s young career.
Credit: WWE.com
4. Braun Strowman
Braun Strowman stormed into the ring and basically did Braun Strowman things. By that I meant Power Slamming people into the mat. The Monster Among Men had a match with the Miz. It was his perk for agreeing to join Team Red for Survivior Series. Despite the three-on-one advantage the Miztourage possessed, Strowman was simply unstoppable. Until the Devil’s Favorite Demon, Kane showed up that is.
Kane played the interference card and essentially ended the match then and there. But Strowman wasn’t having any of it on this night. After blocking an attempt at a Choke Slam, Strowman would pick up Kane like a sack of rice and Power Slam him. Kane would set up once more but thanks to Strowman’s otherworldly agility, he was sent out of the ring almost immediately.
Braun Strowman is building himself as a legit main eventer. His placement at number four has nothing to do with him. It is merely because he doesn’t have anything new to do at the moment. Throw out Kane through the cage like you did to the Big Show and you will be back in the number one spot for sure. For the time being, that spot is reserved for somebody else.
WWE.com
3. Finn Balor
After what seemed like an eternity, Finn Balor has a memorable outing Monday night. Things were bright for the leader of the Balor Club for quite a while on Monday nights. He had spent many a nights fighting Bray Wyatt in an underwhelming program. When that was over, he had been jobbing out to Kane. Last week was no different either as Balor’s impressive and hard-earned victory against Cesaro was tainted by another attack at the hands of Kane.
But we can forget all that and move on because this week Finn Balor was the man. After Samoa Joe cleared the house, which we will discuss shortly by the way, Balor answered Joe’s challenge. The two rivals reignited their memorable feud from NXT and breathe fire into a live crowd that was beginning to get tired. The two performers made each other look like a million bucks by the time the match ended in a double count out.
It’s not very often that a count out is a satisfying conclusion for any match. But last night, that was indeed the right call. Creative needs to build up both these stars ahead of Survivor Series. Then, once the smoke has settled down, they can revisit this rivalry. A decisive ending can wait until then. A memorable outing, a great match and a place on the men’s team? You’re a clear winner Finn Balor. Now pull up your collar once more for the fans.
WWE.com
2. Samoa Joe
Samoa Joe was on a roll before an ill-timed injury took him out of action. But it seems like he has lost zero momentum because of it. After making a quick example out of Titus O’Neil this week, Joe issued a challenge that was answered by Finn Balor as we found out. We discussed bits and pieces about how good that match was and how it made both Joe and Balor look like bad asses.
The brawl at the end was a nice touch. Though Balor had the last laugh courtesy of a diving forearm at the very end, Joe was the bigger star. He is basically untouchable. Not by Kane, not by Strowman, not by anyone. Unless you are Brock Lesnar and is being ridiculously backed up by creative. Joe is able to maintain the bad ass aura around him so well that you know you’re in trouble when his entrance music plays.
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I wonder what kind of pills was Titus on, when he challenged Joe to a one-on-one match. Even in a handicap match, the Samoan Submission Machine would wipe the floor clean with the Titus World Wide brand. There was a sense of clear urgency and purpose to the way Joe took out Titus and Apollo. He didn’t have time for meddling distractions. He wanted to get back to title contention at the earliest. It can be said that he wouldn’t mind being on the Survivor Series team by the way. But Joe chose to make his case by way of example and not by talking. It’s the little things like this that make him a favorite heel among many wrestling fans.
A quality match against Finn Balor and ensuring your place on the Survivor Series team is a win on any night. If it wasn’t for the curve ball WWE threw at us at the very end, Samoa Joe would have ended the night as the biggest star of the night. But then came the Bar! They took the Raw tag titles, a spot on the Survivor Series card and the number one spot on this list.
WWE.com
1. The Bar
Whether they play babyfaces or ravaging heels, you have got to admire the work ethics of Cesaro and Sheamus. This is not the first time that this team of seeming random rivals put together by Mick Folley captured the gold. But it just never gets boring. These two men are so good and hard-working that they had deserved the gold every time.
The Bar would do a phenomenal job once again this week. In what was their last shot at recapturing the tag titles, Cesaro and Sheamus battled Rollins and Ambrose. The two teams have had some show stealing matches over the past few months. It was a fitting climax to it all. The way in which Cesaro and Sheamus dressed themselves up in Liverpool FC’s kit in Manchester Arena? Pure gold. Take a note fellow heels on the roster. That is how you play the crowd to generate heat.
The match itself was good if not great. These four men have such great chemistry that they find ways to ensure no matches are repetitive. The finish was a bit controversial with the New Day showing up and ensuing chaos. But you can’t take anything away from Cesaro and Sheamus. Rollins and Ambrose took their eyes off for a moment and that was enough for the opportunistic duo. One Brogue kick and three seconds later, they had marked themselves on to the Survivor Series card.
It is a shame that Rollins and Ambrose Vs The Usos has been sacked. But in all fairness, The Bar vs The Usos will more than compensate for it. Moreover, with the Shield being reunited and all, having them compete in different matches was always weird. We might just get the Shield Vs New Day at Survivor Series or later down the line at this rate. That means one more thing – the real winners from the night are us; the fans.
Next: WWE Raw: Results and Grades for November 6
What do you make of the list? I contemplated adding Pete Dunne to the list. But creative messed it up by having Kalisto assist him. The Bruiserweight don’t need any help to put down Enzo. Sasha Banks and Asuka will need to do something a bit more memorable to earn a spot on this list too. Hopefully, they do just that in the weeks ahead.