The September 30th, 2019 edition of WWE RAW took place at the Talking Stick Resort Arena in Phoenix, AZ.
– RAW opens up with a new intro video, and then Rey Mysterio comes out to the ring to kick off tonight’s show. Rey’s son Dominic is shown in the front row. Rey gets on the mic and talks about his upcoming match with Seth Rollins later tonight, and he dedicates the match to his son. Rey says he’s bringing the Universal Championship home tonight, but then Brock Lesnar comes out to interrupt. Brock and Paul Heyman come out to the ring. Heyman gets on the mic, but Rey snatches it out of his hand. Brock grabs Rey and gives him two F-5’s in the middle of the ring. Brock steps outside and sets his eyes on Dominic at ringside. Brock grabs Dominic and throws him over the barricade. Brock slams Dominic into the ring post, and then down on to the ringside floor. Brock throws Dominic in the ring, then rolls in. Rey tries to grab Brock by the legs, but Brock grabs him and slams him down. It looks like Brock is about to leave, but he turns around and suplexes Rey and then Dominic. Referees and agents come out and try to separate the melee. Brock starts throwing people down left and right, and then he throws Rey out of the ring. Brock picks up Dominic next and throws him out of the ring by the shirt.
– Back from the break, we see Dominic being put on a stretcher. Rey is back to his feet and telling Dominic he’s sorry.
– Sasha Banks vs. Alexa Bliss: Alexa has some small pyro for her entrance. Becky Lynch is on commentary for this one. Alexa and Sasha trade strikes in the opening moments, until Sasha knocks Alexa out to ringside. Becky stands up on the announce table and Sasha gets distracted talking trash to her. This leads to Alexa dropping Sasha, and then the fight spills out to ringside. Back in the ring, Sasha hits a running knee to the face for a two count. Sasha kicks out Alexa’s knee and then rolls her up for the three count.
Winner: Sasha Banks
– After the match, Becky hits the ring and brawls with Sasha. Sasha retreats and flees through the crowd. Becky talks trash to Sasha from the ring before leaving.
– We see a recap of Bray Wyatt’s Firefly Fun House last week, and his run-ins with Seth Rollins. Then we go backstage for an interview with Seth Rollins. Seth says he’ll deal with Bray later, but next in his sights are Rey Mysterio, and then Brock Lesnar.
– Bobby Roode & Dolph Ziggler (c) vs. Heavy Machinery: Ziggler and Roode’s RAW Tag Titles are on the line in this one. Tucker starts off strong with some shoulder tackles on Ziggler. Otis tags in for a double team hand-off vertical suplex. Ziggler fights back with kicks, then Roode tags in. They look for a double team, but Otis fights them off with a double shoulder tackle on both Champions. Tucker tags in, and they hit vertical suplexes in tandem on the Champions. Ziggler fights back on Tucker now and applies a side chin lock. Roode tags in for the double team now. Otis gets the hot tag and cleans house. Otis hits a suplex on Roode and then a spinning powerslam on Ziggler. Otis hits The Caterpillar on both Roode and Ziggler. Otis looks for a slam on Roode, but Roode escapes. Otis grabs hold of Roode again, then Tucker tags in for the the double team, but Ziggler interrupts it. Ziggler superkicks Tucker, and then Otis. They throw Otis into the ring post, and then Ziggler superkicks Tucker again. Roode follows up with the Glorious DDT on Tucker for the three count.
Winners & still Champions: Bobby Roode & Dolph Ziggler
– The Miz comes out to the ring to host tonight’s special edition of Miz TV. Miz briefly talks about tonight being the season premier of both RAW and Miz TV, but he says he doesn’t want to keep his first guest waiting any longer. Miz introduces his guest, the 16-time World Champion, Hall of Famer, Ric Flair. Ric Flair makes his way out to the ring and grabs a mic. Miz introduces his next guest, 13-time World Champion, Hall of Famer Hulk Hogan. Jimmy Hart comes out with Hogan. Hogan and Jimmy get in the ring. Miz talks about how much of an honor it is to talk to these two legends. Miz, Flair, and Hogan have seats in the ring, Jimmy stands. Hogan gets on the mic now, “Well let me tell you somethin’ brother!” Hulk talks about how great it is to be in Phoenix, and how great it is to be in the ring with the best of all time – Ric Flair. Flair says Hogan, Austin and Undertaker might be the biggest draws in the his business, but in terms of in the ring, Ric Flair is the best ever. Flair says he has no equal in the ring, and that includs Hulk tonight. Hulk says it sounds like Ric wants to take one more run at the 24-inch pythons. Ric rips off his jacket and gets in Hulk’s face. Ric bounces off the ropes, but then he calms down. Ric tells Hulk he’s just messing with him. Hulk says they may not be spring chickens anymore, but that doesn’t mean they can’t add one more page on their legacy. The Miz announces that at the Oct 31 pay-per-view in Saudi Arabia, there will be a Team Hogan vs. Team Flair five-man tag match, with Hogan and Flair serving as team coaches. Seth Rollins comes out, and it’s revealed that he will be the leader of Team Hogan. Ric Flair introduces his team captain, Randy Orton. Orton gets on the mic and tells Rollins to get out of Hogan’s ass. Orton then challenges Rollins to a captain’s match, right here and now, and Rollins accepts.
– Production assistants clear the red carpet out of the ring, and Flair and Hogan leave. Orton and Rollins get ready to go at it, but Baron Corbin comes out to interrupt. Corbin and Orton double team Rollins now, but then Rusev comes out for the save. Rusev and Rollins clear the ring, then they pose with Hogan on the stage.
– We’re told that Rey Mysterio will not be returning tonight after Brock’s beat-down earlier in the night. Rollin’s opponent for his Universal Title is now to-be-determined.
– Rusev is backstage for an interview. He says he doesn’t want to talk about his personal life, he just wants to talk about what he’s owed. Rusev says Rollins owes him for saving him from a 2-on-1 beat-down, so Rusev wants a shot at Rollins’ Universal Title tonight.
– We see a brief pre-taped promo from the Authors of Pain, talking about the violence they’re capable of.
– The Viking Raiders vs. Gallows & Anderson: The Raiders start off strong against Anderson. Gallows finally gets the tag and he tees off on Ivar with strikes in the corner. Ivar fights back, then Erik and Anderson tag in, and Erik cleans house. Ivar tags back in and drops both Anderson and Gallows again. Erik tags back in for the double team on Anderson, but Gallows breaks up the pin attempt. Gallows tags in now and hits a choke-bomb on Erik for a two count. Ivar runs in but Gallows stuns him with some right hands. Ivar changes his direction and hits a dive on Anderson at ringside. Erik hits a back suplex on Gallows, then Ivar tags in and hits a splash off the top on Gallows for the three count.
Winners: The Viking Raiders
– Cesaro is backstage for an interview. He says he enjoyed what Brock Lesnar did earlier tonight, but he stole Cesaro’s opportunity to beat the crap of Rey and his son himself. Ricochet interrupts and calls out Cesaro. It looks like they’re going to settle it in the ring.
– Ricochet vs. Cesaro: The opening bell sounds and Ricochet immediately starts with some kicks on Cesaro. Ricochet looks for a hurricanrana, but Cesaro escapes and tackles Ricochet down. Cesaro charges, but Ricochet dumps him out to ringside and then hits a dive on him. Back in the ring, Cesaro fights back and applies a side headlock. Ricochet fights up, but Cesaro drops him again with a knee to the face. Cesaro misses a spot in the corner, and Ricochet fights back with kicks. Ricochet follows up with a version of the West Coast Pop for the three count.
Winner: Ricochet
– It’s time for Bray Wyatt’s Firefly Fun House. The puppets are talking among themselves, and then Bray enters, and it looks like the rabbit is dead. The witch puppet and buzzard puppet talk about the horror that Seth Rollins is in for when he faces The Fiend. Bray says it’s ok to be scared, and he’s scared too, because there’s nothing like Hell In A Cell.
– AJ Styles (c) vs. Cedric Alexander: AJ’s U.S. Title is on the line in this one. Cedric starts off strong and drops AJ early on with a kick to the face. Cedric continues the offense in the corner, but AJ catches him and drops him throat-first over the top rope. Cedric falls out to ringside, and AJ hits a dive on him. Back in the ring, Cedric fights back with a facebuster. Cedric hits a spinning kick next, but then AJ fires back with some kicks of his own. Cedric fires back with an elbow to the face, then he hits a kick to the head for a two count. Cedric looks for the Lumbar Check, but AJ fights out and hits an inverted DDT for a two count. AJ hits an elbow to the face, and then he looks for the Phenomenal Forearm but misses. Cedric comes back with a Michinoku Driver for a two count. Cedric looks for the Lumbar Check again, but AJ escapes. They scramble on the mat and AJ gets the upper hand, and he gives Cedric the Styles Clash. AJ covers for the three count.
Winner & still U.S. Champion: AJ Styles
– The Street Profits are backstage talking about tonight’s season premier of RAW. They say everyone wants to know when the Street Profits are going to be in action, and the answer is: this Wednesday on NXT on USA Network.
– Lacey Evans vs. Natalya: Lacey starts off strong, but Natalya quickly drops her and stomps on her. Natalya misses a shot in the corner and Lacey rolls her up after a short match for the three count.
Winner: Lacey Evans
– Immediately after the match, Natalya gets to her feet, but Lacey drops her with the Women’s Right.
– Paul Heyman is backstage for an interview. He says his client’s actions tonight were reckless, and he apologizes to the Mysterio family, but don’t blame Brock, blame Vince McMahon. Heyman says The McMahons should have known better. Heyman says Brock is going to do it again this Friday to Kofi Kingston. Heyman says it’s not a prediction, it’s a spoiler: Brock will be the new Champion on Friday.
– Maria Kanellis is backstage for an interview. Maria says Rusev is not the father of her child, and says Rusev has enough going on with Lana. Maria walks off, and then Sasha Banks walks over and takes the mic. Sasha looks in the mic and says at Hell In A Cell she is going to make Becky tap out.
– A white limo pulls up to the back of the building, and we go to commercial.
– Seth Rollins (c) vs. Rusev: Seth’s Universal Title is on the line in this one. Baron Corbin and Randy Orton are standing up on the stage to watch this one. The opening bell sounds and Seth looks for a knee to the face early on, but Rusev dodges it. Rollins hits a flurry of strikes on Rusev, but Rusev no-sells them and hits a fallaway slam on Rollins. Rollins rolls outside for a breather. Back in the ring, they trade right hands and chops. Rolling runs the ropes and hits the Sling Blade on Rusev. Rollins looks for a suplex, but Rusev fights out. Rollins dumps Rusev outside and hits two dives on him. Back in the ring, Rollins looks for a dive, but Rusev reverses it. Rusev hits a side slam for a two count. Rollins comes back with the Falcon Arrow for a two count. Rusev fights back again and drops Rollins. All of a sudden, Bobby Lashley’s music hits, and Lashley comes out to the stage. Lashley points to the stage, and Lana comes out to the stage. Lana comes out and hugs and kisses Lashley on the stage. They continue kissing on the stage, and it goes on for an uncomfortably long time. All of a sudden, the lights go out, and The Fiend appears. The Fiend grabs hold of Rollins at ringside and gives him the mandible claw. The lights keep flashing, and then the screen goes black and we just hear Bray laughing as RAW goes off the air.
Winner: No contest
