WWE Raw: Results, Highlights, Analysis, and Grades for April 30

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Elias vs. Bobby Roode

Result: Elias defeated Bobby Roode via ref stoppage

Rating: 2.25 out of 5 stars

Elias goes up against Bobby Roode in a rematch from last week, where the man with the golden pipes got a shocking victory over The Glorious One. In a change from last week, Elias was actually able to deliver his pre-match concert. Those are always a treat. Of course, the performance still doesn’t actually reach its conclusion, as Roode interrupts once again.

Because the musical interlude gets its own segment this week, the match itself begins during the commercial break. Now, I’m no advertising executive, but if Raw airs on the same network as SmackDown, and the latter airs some commercials in a picture-in-picture setup, wouldn’t that be available for Raw as well? Of course it is: the same technology is used to show WWE Network event ads! So not only is the beginning of the match not seen, but Elias and Roode have to put on the brakes and hit a rest hold so we can watch a Backlash commercial.

Because of all the extraneous stuff happening, the match never really gets going. Elias displays his strength in a big way, tossing Roode halfway across the ring. But then we go right into another commercial break, so the match once again comes to a screeching halt. Once I find out about the upcoming episode of American Ninja Warrior and stop my craving for a Little Caesar’s pizza (pizza), it’s time to get to the finish.

Part of why I didn’t really buy into this match was that the main thread — Roode’s breathing difficulty/neck issues — seemed waaaaaaaay too contrived. Was it all the chinlocks that caused the throat injury? Roode kept kinda forgetting about it, which also takes you out of it. The actual finish is Roode taking more damage to the throat by clearly going shoulder-first into the ring post (thanks for that close-up, Mr. Dunn), and the doctors stopping the match.

If this one actually had some momentum behind it, it could have been pretty good. The rivalry is actually heating up, but it could be so much more. This is just one spoke in the wheel, and just because it wasn’t great doesn’t mean the whole thing isn’t good. Hopefully next time, there’s less starts and stops during the match.