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Jey Uso Continues to Shine on Raw

Here is everything you need to know about this week’s Raw

Noelle Perry

10.) Drew McIntyre and Damian Priest’s war of words

After being taunted by CM Punk last Monday, Drew McIntyre opened this week’s show with his response.

Last week, Punk called McIntyre a coward for not meeting him face to face. McIntyre threw it back at him, pointing out that Punk only challenged him to make an appearance after he knew he’d already left the building, and sent him on an endless chase to avoid being in the same room a few weeks ago. McIntyre accused Raw General Manager Adam Pearce of being biased towards Punk, then slung some insults at Jey Uso and Damian Priest. However, Priest was not about to let it slide. The World Heavyweight Champion interrupted McIntyre’s ranting, challenging him to say his piece directly to his face. McIntyre obliged, telling Priest he does not deserve to be champion.

The Scottish Warrior believes the freshly introduced title should be held by someone who can elevate it, and Priest is not worthy of the task. Priest fired back, telling McIntyre that he needed to stop blaming everyone else for his own failures, a message he has heard many times but never internalized. While McIntyre has not been allowed to compete due to an elbow injury, Priest knew that he desperately wanted another shot at the title. He told McIntyre that could have that shot once he was medically cleared, but warned that he’d come to regret it.

Damian Priest and Drew McIntyre
Damian Priest and Drew McIntyre / WWE

McIntyre may not believe that Priest has what it takes to be champion, and Priest still has much to prove. However, he proved last night that he possesses solid promo skills, one crucial aspect of being a champion in WWE. Prior to his World Heavyweight Championship reign, Priest rarely spoke without other members of The Judgment Day to back him up. Last night, Priest not only held his own against McIntyre, one of the best talkers currently in WWE, but put him in his place.

9. Iyo Sky Advances in Queen of the Ring Tournament

Shayna Baszler faced Iyo Sky in the quarter finals of the Queen of the Ring tournament.

Sky, flanked by Damage CTRL, made her entrance, but was interrupted by a sneak attack from Baszler. This gave her a leg up before the match even started, and she continued to gain momentum once the bell rang. Baszler dominated Sky by targeting her left arm. The tide began to turn when Baszler got caught up in the corner of the ring, dangling upside down with her foot stuck in the ropes. Sky took advantage of the opportunity to collect herself and pick up the pace of the match, and went on to win the match, advancing to the next stage of the tournament.

8. Damian Priest rejects Carlito’s offer

Backstage, Finn Balor, JD McDonagh, Dominik Mysterio hung out in The Judgment Day clubhouse with Mysterio’s new friend, Carlito. Mysterio had previously brought Carlito to The Judgment Day as an ally, as they shared a common enemy in Rey Mysterio. However, no one else was eager to accept his help. When Damian Priest returned from his conversation with Drew McIntyre, he was displeased to see Carlito.

Carlito made his case, offering to help them since both Dominik Mysterio and Rhea Ripley have been injured. Priest rejected Carlito once again, but Carlito still believed that he would eventually come around.

7. Chad Gable coaches his Alpha Academy students

Chad Gable reprimanded Maxxine Dupri for losing her match against Shayna Baszler over the weekend, which disqualified her from the Queen of the Ring tournament. He also informed Otis and Akira Tozawa that they would be competing that night against Gable’s King of the Ring and Intercontinental Championship match opponents, with Tozawa scheduled to face Bronson Reid, and Otis was tasked with softening up the Intercontinental Champion, Sami Zayn.

Otis was also warned that he must take the match seriously, no “funny business” like dancing. As much as it pained Otis, he agreed to do so.

The men left to prepare for the upcoming matches, and Ivy Nile approached her friend Dupri to ask why she didn’t seek her out, as she could have helped her prepare for her qualifying match. Dupri apologized, saying that she was no longer allowed to train outside the Alpha Academy. Nile tried to tell Dupri that she shouldn’t put up with Gable’s mistreatment, but was cut off by the coach himself, who urged her to stay away.

6. Kofi Kingston fails to exact revenge on Gunther

After injuring Xavier Woods in the lead up to the King of the Ring tournament, Gunther took on his New Day teammate, Kofi Kingston, in the quarter finals.

Kingston took a page out of Shayna Baszler’s book, attacking Gunther during his entrance. He targeted Gunther's right knee, dealing significant damage before the match ever officially started. It did not seem to slow the Ring General much, however. Gunther made light work of Kingston, tossing him around like he weighed nothing. Though Kingston’s desire for vengeance fueled his performance, it was not enough to overcome the sheer size and power of Gunther. Kingston tapped out after being placed in a Boston crab, and Gunther advanced to the next round of the tournament.

5. Chad Gable’s pupils take on his King and Queen of the Ring opponents

At the behest of Chad Gable, Akira Tozawa faced Bronson Reid. The size difference in this matchup was incredibly apparent, and historically, Tozawa has not fared well against much larger opponents. He used his speed to get some offense in on Reid while Gable barked orders from ringside, but it was not much, and certainly not enough to overpower his opponent. Reid made quick work of Tozawa, and Gable exploded with rage directed at his student.

Gable also accompanied Otis to the ring when the number one guy faced Intercontinental Champion Sami Zayn. At the King and Queen of the Ring, Gable will face both Reid and Zayn in a triple threat match with the Intercontinental title on the line. Gable seems to view Zayn as more of a threat than Reid, as Otis was specifically instructed to soften him up for the upcoming championship match. Otis was also specifically instructed not to do his signature caterpillar, a crowd-favorite move. However, when he knocked Zayn down to the match, and the champion was laid out in perfect position to receive the maneuver, Otis could not resist. Though the caterpillar was effective in dealing damage to Zayn, it was not enough damage to defeat Zayn.

Gable’s fury at ringside surely did not help Otis to focus on the match. He continued to berate Otis after he lost the match, but Zayn ran back into the ring to attack Gable in defense of Otis. Despite the cruel treatment, Otis still cared for Gable and tried to help him backstage. Gable shoved him off, blamed him for the attack, and slapped him across the face. Despite pleas from the audience begging him to stick up for himself, Otis put his head down and followed his coach back behind the curtain.

4. Lyra Valkyria advances in the Queen of the Ring tournament

Lyra Valkyria and Zoey Stark faced off in the quarter finals of the Queen of the Ring tournament. Though it was only her second match on the main roster, the audience was fully behind Valkyria from the moment she made her entrance. Stark talked a lot of trash during the match, and though she had some impressive moments, she ultimately could not back up her words. Lyra won the match, and advanced to the next round of the tournament, where she will face Iyo Sky.

Sky, who qualified earlier in the night, encountered Valkyria last week when Sky and her Damage CTRL teammates attacked Becky Lynch, and Valkyria rushed to the Women’s World Champion’s aid. There is already bad blood between the two competitors, making this semifinal tournament match much more personal.

3. Becky Lynch vs. Dakota Kai ends in disqualification

After a chaotic confrontation last week, Women’s World Champion Becky Lynch took on Dakota Kai of Damage CTRL. Kai’s Damage CTRL stablemates, Iyo Sky and Kairi Sane, accompanied her. With her cheerleaders at ringside, Kai took Lynch to her limit. However, Lynch nearly had the match won when Sky jumped into the ring to break up the submission hold she had locked in on Kai.

This forced the match to end in disqualification, and opened the floodgates for Damage CTRL to dogpile on Lynch. Lyra Valkyria once again rushed to Lynch’s defense, and the two took out Damage CTRL one by one. Suddenly, Liv Morgan emerged from the audience to attack Lynch, who she will challenge for the Women’s World Championship at King and Queen of the Ring. Damage CTRL and Morgan jeered as Valkyria and officials tended to a down-and-out Lynch.

2. Number-one contenders for tag titles determined

The Creed Brothers, New Catch Republic, Authors of Pain, and Finn Balor and JD McDonagh of The Judgment Day competed in a fatal four-way match to determine the number one contenders for the World Tag Team Championships.

Any one of these teams would have made great challengers, and each team scrambled for that spot. The Authors of Pain were dominant, using their sheer size and brute strength to their advantage. New Catch Republic and The Creeds each worked together like a well-oiled machine, something The Judgment Day has struggled with as of late. However, last night, McDonagh and Balor managed to get mostly on the same page. Towards the end of the match, New Catch Republic looked poised to clinch the win, but a surprise appearance from Carlito upended that. As Pete Dunne had McDonagh in his clutches, Carlito popped up and delivered a backstabber to Dunne. This allowed McDonagh to escape, and Balor to drag Dunne into the ring to finish him off and win the match. Carlito has been trying to gain the trust of The Judgment Day, and helping the team earn a shot at the World Tag Team Championships was a good way to do so.

After the match, Priest talked to Carlito to express his appreciation. Priest also wanted to make it clear that The Judgment Day was not just going to do Carlito’s dirty work for him, and Carlito would have to handle his own business.

1. Jey Uso advances in the King of the Ring tournament

In the main event, Jey Uso faced Ilja Dragunov for the quarter finals of the King of the Ring tournament. The winner of this match would advance to face Gunther in the semifinals, and both of these men have plenty of history with The Ring General. Uso took Gunther to his limit and likely would have beaten him were it not for outside interference, while Dragunov was the last person to successfully defeat Gunther before Sami Zayn won the Intercontinental title from him at WrestleMania.

The intensity of Dragunov made him a worthy opponent to Main Event Jey Uso, and the two were neck-and-neck during the match. However, this intensity also proved to be Dragunov’s downfall, as he lost the match after running full force into Uso’s spear. Uso advanced to the semifinals, where he will face a familiar opponent in Gunther.

As the crowd erupted in celebration of Uso’s victory, Gunther made his way down the ramp. He paused to smirk at a defeated Dragunov before staring down his future opponent.

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Noelle Perry
NOELLE PERRY

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