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The Nov. 12 edition of WWE Raw was the final chance for the red brand to showcase itself before this Sunday’s Survivor Series pay-per-view where the superstars of Raw will battle SmackDown’s best.
Last night’s WWE Raw wasn’t a great show, but it did have a few important moments that will profoundly affect Survivor Series this Sunday.
Monday nights will look to defeat Tuesday nights for the third straight year at Survivor Series, but it won’t be easy. With that being said, let’s take a look at five key takeaways from the Nov. 12 edition of WWE Raw.
5. Nia Jax And Tamina Partnership Could Be Mutually Beneficial
The WWE has rolled the dice with the character of Nia Jax as of late, a superstar that was one of the purest babyfaces on the entire roster earlier this year. The Irresistible Force has gone from that to a powerhouse heel again, courtesy of a recently-returned family member.
Tamina made her return after being out with injury for several months and since returning, she has aligned herself with Jax last week in a move that has been described as blood being thicker than water. These two took their frustrations out on Ember Moon last week and would do the same last night when Tamina went one-on-one with Moon.
The outside presence of Jax distracted Moon on several different occasions, which would end up spelling doom for Moon. Just when it looked like she had Tamina on the ropes, another Jax distraction caused Moon to lose focus and Tamina took advantage with a Superfly Splash for the win. To add insult to injury, Jax dished out some extra punishment to Moon after the match.
Many questioned turning Jax heel, but this partnership with Tamina could be good for both women. Tamina hasn’t had this much traction on the main roster in a long time and Jax is starting to look like that dominant force she was in the past. Keep in mind, she is next in line for a Raw Women’s Championship opportunity after Survivor Series.
There’s still a long way to go, but the Jax and Tamina partnership has potential despite some fans having reservations about it.
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4. The Raw Tag Team Division Doesn’t Get Taken Seriously Enough
Many consider tag team wrestling a non-factor on the red brand given the lack of attention it gets. And while many still care about tag team wrestling, nights like last night prove that the WWE just doesn’t take it seriously enough.
Last night’s show was set to open up with a tag team battle royal to determine the captains of Team Raw’s tag team elimination match against Team SmackDown. However, the match wouldn’t get going because Braun Strowman decided to come out and take out his aggression on everyone in the match.
He laid waste to everyone in the ring and cleared the ring in the process. When you actually think about it, one man taking out an entire tag team division is as big of an indictment as anything. It just screams that the WWE doesn’t respect its tag team division on Monday nights, and while the match did take place later in the night, it wouldn’t get much better.
The battle royal took place later on and in less than five minutes, Bobby Roode and Chad Gable won to become team captains at Survivor Series. So, not only did the match get stopped dead in its tracks because of one person, but it also ended in way less than five minutes where a makeshift tag team gets the win.
Things aren’t looking good for this division right now and the WWE needs to address this issue head-on
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3. Braun Strowman Will Be The Next Universal Champion
There seems to be three guarantees in life: death, taxes, and Braun Strowman coming up short in Universal Championship matches. That final one has driven fans crazy over the past year-plus with The Monster Among Men coming up short time after time in his quest to capture the big red belt.
The latest instance was at Crown Jewel when Strowman lost to Brock Lesnar for the vacated Universal Championship thanks in large part because of a pre-match attack by Baron Corbin. Strowman didn’t take too kindly to that, as you might imagine, and he attempted to get his hands on Corbin last week, only to miss out.
The Monster Among Men decided to take matters into his own hands last night when he broke up the tag team battle royal to call out Corbin. Instead of Corbin coming out, Stephanie McMahon came out to try to get Strowman’s mind right heading into Survivor Series. Strowman said he only cares about getting his hands on Corbin and getting another Universal Championship shot against Lesnar.
Stephanie said that if Strowman helps Team Raw win at Survivor Series, he will get another title shot and a match with Corbin where he can pick the stipulation. But the bigger picture is that pending title rematch with Lesnar, a match that should finally see Strowman capture the Universal Championship. Lesnar reportedly has a new contract with a two-match deal, so that suggests that he will lose the title after his match with AJ Styles at Survivor Series.
It’s time for The Monster Among Men to capture the top prize on the red brand, after a long time of coming up short.
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2. Drew McIntyre Is The Best Heel On Raw
Drew McIntyre has been a different superstar since making his return to the WWE’s main roster earlier this year. He has been a pending world champion for a while now, but as of late, he has really started to shine through and get closer to that level.
The Scottish Psychopath has been on a tear lately and it started with a match against Kurt Angle last week. McIntyre had one of the most diabolical victories in a long time with mind games at the forefront. He talked to Angle like he was a child and even hit him with an Angle Slam and made him tap out to an Ankle Lock. As expected, McIntyre had a lot to say last night.
Alongside Dolph Ziggler, McIntyre addressed last week’s actions by reliving it almost moment for moment. He said when Angle began to get tears in his eyes, he had never been so disgusted in his life. This was a phenomenal heel promo, which continued when Finn Balor decided to get involved. McIntyre’s words continued to hit home later on as well.
He said he didn’t want to lower himself to compete in a match with Balor, but Ziggler fought Balor instead before Balor got a win by the skin of his teeth. In terms of just McIntyre, however, he is red-hot right now and most would consider him the top heel on Raw at the moment. His words become more menacing every week and his actions do as well.
The sky is the limit for The Scottish Psychopath and don’t be surprised to see him in the Universal Championship picture in the near future.
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1. Women’s Division Adds Intrigue To Survivor Series Buildup
Survivor Series is dubbed as the one night a year that Raw battles SmackDown in a brand supremacy war. However, the buildup towards this event hadn’t been going very well before the final segment of last night’s show where that all changed dramatically.
Last year’s buildup towards Survivor Series was excellent with Raw invading SmackDown and vice versa. Fans did not see any of this for this year’s buildup, but when Alexa Bliss chose her team for Survivor Series coupled with Sasha Banks vs. Bayley, fireworks were on full display when The Man decided to get involved.
Nia Jax, Tamina, Mickie James, and Natalya were four of the five members of Team Raw, but a match between Banks and Bayley was set to determine the final member. However, the match ended after the other members of the team got involved. Bliss said the actual fifth member of the team would be Ruby Riott, but after that was announced, SmackDown’s Becky Lynch was shown backstage locking in the Dis-Arm-Her on Ronda Rousey, her Survivor Series opponent.
Lynch then marched out to the ring with the Raw women standing tall. However, Lynch wasn’t alone and the rest of the SmackDown women’s team invaded and took it to the red brand. It was pure chaos and despite Rousey coming out to help stop the attack, she suffered more punishment at the hands of The Irish Lass Kicker, who led the charge through the crowd on the way out.
This was a great segment and a much-needed one that has sparked more interest in Survivor Series that was previously lacking.