It’s another RAW In A Nutshell, and north of the border we are asking: can Chad Gable defeat Sami Zayn in Montreal?
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Just barely a week removed from winning the Intercontinental Championship, Sami Zayn is defending it in front of his hometown fans. He is defending the gold against the man who, in story line terms, helped him overcome Gunther to become the new champion.
This is not the only big happenings tonight, of course. Leading up to RAW, there were whispers that Rhea Ripley was going to have to vacate her women’s title due to injury. We can expect that to be addressed tonight one way or the other. And our new #1 contender, Jey Uso, might want to keep an eye on his back. After SmackDown, there’s at least one new Bloodline member lurking (and one less, too).
There will also be a #1 contenders match to see who takes on Awesome Truth for their first defense. Lots more, I am sure. But the big one, the big question now, is can Chad Gable defeat Sami Zayn in Montreal? Or will Sami have the hometown advantage for his first defense. Let’s crack this one open and find out!
Best Match of the night:
Sami Zayn and Chad Gable. Was there ever any doubt? Nice first defense, in Montreal. Strong win, and a strong showing in the loss by Gable. For all that Chad has done in recent time, the man deserves something, doesn’t he? Otis and Chad for tag champs at least?
Or, you know, a brutal Gable heel turn will do the trick, I suppose. All because Chad Gable could not defeat Zayn. Just like Chad Gable could not defeat Gunther.
Worst match of the night:
Maxxine and Ivy Nile against Candace and Indi. I mean, it was OK enough, but Dupri is still too green at times. I could totally see her heading down to work NXT a bit more. It would not be a demotion, but a means to get her more work and polish.
Crowd Chants of the Night:
Yeet
You deserve it
Oui
Some unsavory stuff too, but, won’t repeat that.
Star of the Night
Sami with a nice first defense. He’s joined by Gable with a heel turn that could do wonders for him, as much as I dug babyface Gable. Could heel Chad Gable defeat Sami Zayn?
Spot of the Night:
This one might do it, don’t you think?
Jobber of the Night:
I am going to go with the security guard who ate Rhea’s headbutt. He took it well, and it looked like a stiff shot too.
Upset of the Night:
Chad Gable was upset how things went. Ticked off. Angry. Gable snapped. I am ticked at myself, as things unfolded in the end of the match I was like, this would be a good time to turn Gable. But then they did the sportsmanship stuff and I was like, go figure. Nope, just a touch too soon.
Holy Sh** Moment of the Night:
Maybe not quite one, but how epic was Sami’s entrance? In a day and age where they do what they can to keep fans beyond an arm’s length, he ran through the concourse without any overly visible security. From the front door down to the ring, with the camera with him all the way. I mean, I’d call it a pretty epic entrance.
Botch of the night:
She showed improvement, but Maxxine Dupri still had a bumble.
LOL Moment of the night:
R-Truth during the World Tag Team Championship belt presentation was just hilarious. Like, he could not understand Pearce or Triple H-whom he called Tommaso Ciampa. But when The Miz started talking to him in French, he knew what was going on. Until the Oui chants perked up.
Noteworthy Moment:
Rhea Ripley did indeed relinquish her title, with them giving Liv Morgan the blame or the credit. If Morgan did legit cause the injury, it’s full circle for the Liv Morgan Revenge Tour. While Rhea checked out, we did not get an immediate answer as to how or when a new champion will be crowned. Or, here’s an update, there was a graphic later in the show, looks like we crown a new champion next week.
New tag title belts too. I wonder if we will see a similar step by Nick Aldis for A-Town Down Under. Presume those would begin to look like the bland WWE belt, but hopefully not. I didn’t like the WWE Championship design now held by Priest, but it has grown on me. What Cody holds now needs to go, it’s just so devoid of actual character.
DIY are going to be the first to challenge Awesome Truth. Ever feel like, after some longer reigns, we might be getting some shorter ones?
And did you catch the QR code? WWE going back to the white rabbit well to bring back Bo Dallas.
Overall lowlights:
Say what you will, but having Rhea drop the gold is sort of questionable. Many fans will have called it out online, and rightfully so, but we JUST saw a man hold titles for the better part of 3+ years, where he would be off television for months at a time. As in, months between defenses. If her injury is a one to two month thing, or even if it takes her into SummerSlam, what would the harm be in letting her hold it? We just saw it done for Reigns, and before him Lesnar. Heck, let her hang on for a month. If in that time the prognosis worsens, then have her vacate and crown the new champion via Queen of the Ring.
I don’t want to say I hated the Sheamus return. Rather, it was sort of a non-event? To me, he’s a guy who could have been a big surprise return, saving or attacking someone and setting up a return feud. Instead, it was just a match against Ivar. A banger, sure, but sort of just another match.
Overall highlights:
Jey Uso looked strong, and it felt like he and Cody had a bit of a passing of the torch. Maybe Rhodes knows he will be landing on Fridays for sure? DIY getting a shot at Miz and R-Truth and I am here for it. Gable and Zayn was perfectly good just as it was, but that heel turn made a ton of sense and added to it.
After the final bell:
Good show. Sad to see Rhea relinquish, but she will be back and better than ever. Hard to think Backlash is coming up that fast, but just that quick we have more matches for it, and some new belts too
