Photo by WWE’s Twitter
Last night’s WWE Raw was a compelling show from basically start to finish with many positives to take away.
The Jan. 15 edition of WWE Raw was dominated by The Monster Among Men for the first hour or so with some of the most entertaining and compelling TV in a long time. The angle took an unexpected turn as well.
Outside of that, the rest of the show saw solid matches and storylines as well as the brand prepares for its 25th anniversary show on Jan. 22. With that being said, let’s take a look at five takeaways from the Jan. 15 edition of WWE Raw.
5. Titus Worldwide Finally Getting On The Map
There are very few individuals on the WWE roster as liked as Titus O’Neil. Whether it’s inside the ring or outside the ring, Titus is one of the nicest and most genuine superstars in the WWE, but hasn’t seen much success in a while.
However, the past couple weeks might suggest that he, alongside Apollo Crews and Dana Brooke in Titus Worldwide, is primed for some future success and direction. It began on the Jan. 8 edition of Raw when Titus and Apollo knocked off The Bar in a big upset, and it was furthered last night in a rematch with Sheamus and Cesaro.
Titus Worldwide battled The Bar again and just when it looked like Sheamus and Cesaro had them right where they wanted, Jason Jordan intervened. One-half of the tag team champions distracted Sheamus to allow Apollo to roll him up for another upset win. Seth Rollins wasn’t happy with Jordan’s involvement as both stood on the top of the stage, but it was another big win for Titus Worldwide.
This faction, if you want to call it that, hasn’t gotten a fair shot to do much of anything over the past few months. The WWE even made a Titus Worldwide shirt, but never let the group do anything or build any momentum. But maybe Titus Worldwide’s fortunes are beginning to change for the better after two wins over the former Raw Tag Team Champions.
It’s always great to see an underutilized superstar or group find success and the WWE needs to continue to put Titus Worldwide in positions to succeed.
Photo Source: WWE.com via Twitter
4. Raw’s Two Dominant Women Forces Impress
Arguably the two most dominant forces in the Raw women’s division are Asuka and Nia Jax. And last night, the two went toe-to-toe to prove which individual is the true force on Monday nights as the first-ever all-women’s Royal Rumble match is less than two weeks away.
The match came about following an interaction the previous week where Jax caught Asuka by surprise. And following that encounter, the match was made for last night pitting the two behemoths among the Raw women’s division against each other.
And the match was everything it needed to be with both superstars getting dominance in while trying to out-maneuver the other. This was arguably one of the best matches either individual has had on the main roster and the selling at the end by Jax was especially impressive, if not a little over the top, given her stature as a dominant competitor.
Ultimately, Jax’s leg injury caused the referee to stop the match and The Empress of Tomorrow got the win. But even in defeat, Jax looked very impressive as did Asuka, which is important heading into the Royal Rumble pay-per-view where both superstars should be considered favorites to win the match barring any last-minute changes.
The Irresistible Force took a hit last night in the win/loss column, but she impressed more than she has in a long time as the women’s division is set for a history-making night in less than two weeks.
Photo Source: WWE.com via Twitter
3. The Revival Makes a Big Statement
Arguably the most unlucky entities in the WWE in 2017 were Scott Dawson and Dash Wilder. The two make up The Revival, one of the brightest tag teams in the WWE, but bad luck struck both individuals this past year.
Both Dawson and Wilder suffered injuries that kept them out of action for months at a time and halted their would-be plans on Monday nights as an up-and-coming tag team threat. But as the calendar turned to 2018, The Revival is back healthy and ready to make a long-awaited splash for the red brand.
The Revival battled “local competitors” last night and squashed them in no time, but that wasn’t where the team made its statement. Following the match, both Dawson and Wilder cut an awesome promo on what The Revival stands for. As a throwback type of team, Dawson and Wilder touched on their beliefs about the business they are in.
They said they aren’t sports entertainers, they’re professional wrestlers. And they don’t care about getting Instagram likes, they care about winning matches. It was a very impressive promo by both individuals that should give them some positive momentum moving forward. This mindset could also result in some great feuds and matches no matter who The Revival is pitted against.
Dawson and Wilder are here to stay and their old-school mindset brings a totally different, yet welcomed, presence to Monday nights.
Photo by WWE’s Twitter
2. Chaotic Finish Caps Off Stellar Match Between Seth Rollins and Finn Balor
A year and a half ago saw a historic battle at SummerSlam between Seth Rollins and Finn Balor for the right to be called the first-ever Universal Champion. And a year and a half later, the two would square off again.
Both Rollins and Balor are in completely different positions than they were at SummerSlam 2016, but are key components to Monday nights. And last night’s encounter was set up following the reunited Balor Club’s victory over Rollins, Jason Jordan, and Roman Reigns the week before which saw Balor pin Rollins.
With Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson in Balor’s corner and Jordan in Rollins’ corner, the two put on a very stellar match as you would expect out of two of the best in the WWE. It went back and forth with high-octane offense before a chaotic ending ensued. The Bar hit the ringside area and brawled with Gallows, Anderson, and Jordan before Balor took out everybody with a suicide dive to the outside.
But the distractions from the outside would cost Balor in the end and Rollins took advantage with a move he hasn’t used in years, the curb stomp. And it led Rollins to victory to get one up on Balor after getting pinned the week before. It was a great main event and it was even better seeing the curb stomp back. This storyline should only get better moving forward as a Raw Tag Team Championship match at the Royal Rumble is on deck between Rollins and Jordan vs. The Bar.
For the first time in years, Rollins curb stomped his way to victory as the Raw Tag Team Champions got momentum back.
Photo Source: WWE.com via Twitter
1. Braun Strowman Is Back
One could make the argument that Braun Strowman was the superstar of the year in 2017, at least for the Raw brand. Strowman had a breakout year that not many saw coming and expectations were sky-high for him to follow it up in 2018.
But the final couple months of 2017 weren’t the kindest to Strowman as he dealt with a lack of direction. That all seems to be fixed now as he, along with Kane and Brock Lesnar, prepare for a Triple Threat Match at the Royal Rumble for the Universal Championship. But what the WWE universe saw last night from Strowman takes precedence over anything he’s done in months.
Last night’s Raw kicked off with Strowman and GM Kurt Angle in the ring. Angle reprimanded Strowman for his actions the previous week in a surprising fashion, which resulted in Strowman being fired. And needless to say, The Monster Among Men wasn’t too happy. Security tried to get him to leave, but he took out every one of them that got in his way and continued to rage on everyone in the backstage area.
He laid out countless superstars and backstage personnel, destroyed countless objects backstage, and even left a mark on the production truck. Strowman took his path of carnage back to the arena where he ended up throwing Michael Cole into a sea of security guards. But Angle finally stopped the carnage by saying Stephanie McMahon rehired Strowman and the match at the Royal Rumble is back on. Simply put, this was one of the most entertaining hours of Raw in a long time.
Next: WWE Raw Results For Jan. 15 Show
The Monster Among Men might have been lacking for a while thanks to poor booking, but he has returned with a vengeance and arguably is the best he has ever been.