Before 1999, Raw was not broadcast live. Instead, it would often air three weeks late in countries like Mexico and Central and South America due to being preempted by events like Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show.
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The History of Raw
Raw has featured numerous opening themes over its 20-year run. Some commemorate milestones, like Raw 1000; while others address recent events of wrestling such as Chris Benoit’s death. Additionally, episodes are sometimes introduced with unique opening videos tailored specifically to match its theme.
Vince McMahon served as the inaugural host of Raw along with Randy Savage and Rob Bartlett who provided traditional commentary. McMahon would remain as host until being succeeded by Jerry Lawler in April 1995.
In 2002, WWE implemented its brand split, splitting Raw and SmackDown into separate shows with separate rosters, titles, and storylines. As part of this change, Raw became the first program taped at the WWE Performance Center; its TitanTron set was upgraded. Furthermore, Raw is broadcast globally through local TV stations around the globe.
The Main Event
Even though several major championships are at stake on Raw, storylines for WrestleMania remain at a premium. Triple H began the show by thanking fans and then passing off control to Cody Rhodes who then spoke briefly before handing back control for Cody Rhodes to deliver an impassioned speech on behalf of all WWE Superstars and NXT Superstars alike.
Rhodes immediately attacked GUNTHER before even giving him time to react, using an effective stepover knee drop armbreaker for victory.
Backstage, Judgment Day members were hanging out. Damian Priest told JD McDonagh and Finn Balor they needed to restore titles from WWE. Additionally, he mentioned being in the business of taking hope away and pulling people back towards reality.
Rhea Ripley made her return and almost caught Dom Morgan and Liv Morgan kissing, prompting chants for Mami toward the end of the match. Additionally, Ripley teased a potential showdown between herself and Dominik Mysterio as well as teased an impending feud between Sheamus and Bronson Reed.
The Tag Team Matches
As we began the show, Chad Gable and the Kabuki Warriors defeated Zoey Stark and Shayna Baszler before Liv Morgan made an unexpectedly awkward suicide dive before unleashing a spectacular codebreaker while Becky Lynch was midair.
Next was a tag team match in which teams were eliminated when one member crossed over the ring ropes – this variation on battle royale utilizes tag teams as teams are eliminated when someone gets thrown off balance over them.
As the announcers ran through tonight’s card, fans chanted loudly for Cody Rhodes. Sami Zayn and Jey Uso entered separately to a huge response from fans; next week they’ll face Finn Balor and Damian Priest in an exciting tag matchup. Drew McIntyre then entered and made comparisons between himself and CM Punk; Rollins then told him to be quiet.
The Women’s Matches
The Women’s Championship holds immense value beyond wrestling ring walls. It has helped trailblazers break barriers, while inspiring countless women to pursue their goals with unflinching determination.
R-Truth has found favor among both live fans and Twitter users for his latest run. Paul “Triple H” Levesque even expressed admiration for him publicly!
He successfully defended his title against Liv Morgan and Nia Jax in an entertaining Last Woman Standing match that proved very exciting. Jax hit both women with Samoan drops while Morgan used Codebreaker moves against Jax.
Following this was a backstage interview with Damian Priest who informed R-Truth that it will soon be his turn to win Money in the Bank ladder match and cash in. This led to a brief battle royal where Truth beat Priest before eliminating Morgan and Jax from contention in quick fashion.