There will be many intriguing segments and matches on tonight’s episode of WWE Raw, but nothing can surpass the thrilling excitement behind the heartfelt yet controversial drama occurring between “former” best friends Bayley and Sasha Banks and between “potential” best friends “Monster in the Bank” Braun Strowman and Kevin Owens.
The road to Extreme Rules is building up with broken friendships, new alliances, juicy storylines, and REAL COMPETITION. On tonight’s episode of WWE Raw, Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins will potentially team up against Intercontinental Champion Dolph Ziggler and Drew Mcintyre in the main event. Meanwhile, Bobby Lashley continues to outdo Roman Reigns every chance he gets.
Raw Women’s Champion Alexa Bliss has become a huge red target in the women’s division. Nia Jax is scheduled to face Alexa Bliss at Extreme Rules for the Raw Women’s Title as she looks forward to getting her payback from Bliss’s savvy MITB cash in. However, Natalya seems to be getting involved in the shuffle as she seeks to obtain retribution for Ronda Rousey’s 30-day suspension.
Finn Balor and Baron Corbin will continue to throw jabs at each other. Braun Strowman will most likely continue to be Kevin Owens’ greatest nightmare both inside and outside the ring. Finally, Raw GM Kurt Angle scheduled a counseling session for Bayley and Sasha Banks so that they can cooperate and become assets on Raw once again. Their jobs are on the line, and it remains to be seen whether their friendship can remain intact.
5. Roman Reigns Leaves Bobby Lashley Alone To Fight Top Guys
Roman is roaming from one tag partner to the next. He transitions from teaming up with Bobby Lashley last week to teaming up with Seth Rollins this week. There’s only one slight twist. Rollins needs Reigns’s help, but Lashley does not.
Two weeks ago, Lashley won the tag match against The Revival after competitively yet vindictively tagging Reigns at the last second and SPEARING Dash Wilder to add insult to injury. Last week, Reigns tried to return the favor but failed at doing so after getting pinned by Wilder and costing his team the victory.
Since Reigns was to blame for the loss, Lashley would want to prove that he can defeat The Revival on his own. Lashley would ask Raw GM Kurt Angle for a handicap match this week on Raw against The Revival. Why? He wants to outcompete Reigns and be THE GUY who beats Brock Lesnar and becomes Universal Champion. As far as the Revival goes, I think Lashley will get the win on Raw tonight.
Although the competitive vibes between Lashley and Reigns are far from over, Reigns will focus on assisting his Shield brother, Seth Rollins, against Drew Mcintyre and Intercontinental Champ Dolph Ziggler this week. In terms of that match, I think Drew and Dolph will win tonight to maintain their momentum as the most dominant tag team on Monday Night Raw.
4. Natalya Gets Added To The Raw Women’s Title Match at Extreme Rules
ALL THE WAY FROM LAKE TAHOE! Since Ronda Rousey is suspended for 30 days due to her brutal actions against Raw Women’s Champion Alexa Bliss, Natalya found it fitting to obtain retribution for her good friend and training partner, Ronda Rousey, and join forces with Nia Jax to take down 5 feet of fury. Last week, she did just that by making the Raw Women’s Champion TAP OUT!! Tonight, I foreshadow a tag match ensuing between (1) Alexa Bliss and Mickie James, and (2) Natalya and Nia Jax, in which Natalya just might make Alexa Bliss TAP OUT again. That could mean only one thing: TITLE SHOT!
In order to avoid repeating the bully storyline between Bliss and Jax all over again at Extreme Rules, I think the plan could be to include Natalya in the title match for a more unpredictable triple threat.
It would be more unpredictable for 3 alternative reasons.
(1) Alexa Bliss can retain her title by pinning Natalya instead of Nia Jax, who was already humiliated enough from the MITB cash-in loss. She can then proceed to feud with Ronda Rousey at Summerslam.
(2) Nia Jax can win the Raw Women’s Title back and force a triple threat with Alexa Bliss and Ronda Rousey. Nia Jax still has unfinished business with Ronda Rousey from MITB and it would be fitting to keep her in the title picture for Summerslam.
(3) Natalya can win the Raw Women’s Title at Extreme Rules and turn this whole feud into a fatal 4 way frenzy at Summerslam with Alexa Bliss, Nia Jax, and Ronda Rousey. Due to her friendship with Ronda Rousey, alliance with Nia Jax, and beef with Alexa Bliss, it would also be fitting to see her involved in the title picture at Summerslam. All of these outcomes are probable due to the storylines that built up among these 4 women.
No matter the outcome, adding the cat lady to the Raw Women’s Title match will be new and more intriguing for the fanbase to invest in. It will also maintain Natalya’s relevancy while Ronda Rousey is gone. Furthermore, she could even get the job done for Ronda and end Alexa Bliss’ title reign once and for all. Meow!
3. Finn Balor Defeats Constable Baron Corbin
Baron Corbin has been an entertaining constable with his smug comments and sadistic laughs. He has also obtained sufficient momentum after picking up a tag team victory with Kevin Owens over Finn Balor and Braun Strowman two weeks ago on Raw. Finn Balor and Braun Strowman just can’t seem to get on the same page when tagging with each other.
They not only lost against Kevin Owens and Baron Corbin but also lost against Dolph Ziggler and Drew Mcintyre back on May 14, 2018 when Dolph pinned Finn for the victory. Check out the link from WWE’s YouTube page below.
It almost felt like deja vu when Baron Corbin pinned Finn Balor 2 weeks ago. However, Baron Corbin will have to join the “Finn Balor Kicked My Ass” Club tonight because Finn Balor NEEDS a win. The last time Finn Balor won a televised singles match via pinfall was on February 26, 2018 against The Miz. Check out the link from WWE’s youtube page below.
That was 4 months ago. As the first ever universal champion, Finn Balor should get more singles match victories than that. I think it’s time for him to win his first ever televised match with Baron Corbin on the main roster. When he does, it will be TOO SWEET!
2. Bayley And Sasha Banks Lose Their Jobs On Raw
BAYLEY TURNED HEEL! The time has come! The various colors of the rainbow have shot across the sky! The inflatable Bayley buddies have shot up to the roofs! The hugs are OVER! Bayley was relentless in her attack against Sasha Banks, and it was certainly worth the wait. However, Raw GM Kurt Angle decided to discontinue the pure-fist brawl and put two great horsewomen in counseling.
Hopefully, this will not be a similar storyline to Team Hell No’s anger management counseling with Doctor Shelby back in 2012, in which Daniel Bryan and Kane actually resolve their issues and become best friends. Well, Bayley and Sasha have been best friends for long enough. As far as I know, best friends make the best rivals since they know almost everything about each other. Triple H and Shawn Michaels, Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn, and even Johnny Gargano and Tomasso Ciampa are classic exemplifications of this claim. Consequently, I think Bayley and Sasha will fail to resolve anything and lose their jobs on Monday Night Raw.
This could be a blessing in disguise. Bayley and Sasha Banks have competed against nearly everyone on the Raw roster. This could be an opportunity for them to move to the Smackdown brand and battle in fresh feuds as well as maintain their long-term and worthwhile feud with each other. Nonetheless, Sasha Banks and Bayley’s match should payoff at either Extreme Rules or Summerslam, and I can BANK on that.
1. Braun Strowman Continues To Test His “Friendship” With Kevin Owens
From tossing Kevin Owens off of a 20 foot ladder at MITB to tipping over his car, Braun Strowman has been making Kevin Owens’ life miserable on Monday Night Raw. Kevin Owens claimed that he simply wanted to be Braun Strowman’s ally, but his history with the likes of Sami Zayn and Chris Jericho seem to portray him as untrustworthy. When all is said and done, Braun Strowman has every right to not trust Kevin Owens. However, this rivalry seems a tad one-sided, and I’m starting to think that Braun might actually have a long-term plan in mind with Kevin Owens.
Braun probably wants Kevin Owens to be so afraid of him that he would never turn his back on him if they were to become allies. Once that fear is established, Braun can assure himself that Kevin Owens will have his back, no matter what. Why would Braun Strowman ask Kevin Owens to be his tag team partner? Why would he want Kevin Owens to imitate his charges to Finn Balor and Baron Corbin outside the ring?
I think Braun Strowman is testing Kevin Owens, and he’s going to push him to his limits until his tears hydrate him. It may seem like Braun does not need anyone, but he has a huge target on his back as Monster in the Bank. Thus, it’s always good to have some sort of insurance, and Kevin Owens knows a lot about insurance after the incident with his car. Braun continues to propose these tag matches probably because he wants an ally. Unlike Finn Balor, Kevin Owens is capable of winning with Braun Strowman, as indicated last week on Raw. With Sami Zayn and Nicholas gone, Braun Strowman just could be Kevin Owens’ new guardian angel.