WWE RAW RESULTS: WINNERS, GRADES, REACTION AND HIGHLIGHTS FROM FEB. 13

syndicated from bleacherreport,


Ryan DilbertWWE Lead WriterFebruary 14, 2017
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    Credit: WWE.com
    Monday's WWE Raw took the audience's collective heart on a wild ride.
    Emmalina's sort of arrival left us feeling empty. Kevin Owens burning the Festival of Friendship to ash was agonizing drama. Bayley's Raw Women's Championship win then left fans soaring.
    It was a night of big moments for some Superstars in Las Vegas and a display of others' lack of momentum.
    Chris Jericho was at his finest as he poured his guts out to his best friend. Samoa Joe killed it as a fang-bearing beast in a suit.
    Under the high points of Monday's Raw, though, lie flaws like The New Day's lack of direction, the hurried nature of cruiserweight bouts and an insistence on making Roman Reigns Superman.
    Read on for a full review and recap of the red brand's trip to Sin City, from Reigns' demands to Bayley's career apex.

Roman Reigns Clashes with The Club

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    Raw commissioner Stephanie McMahon announced that she gave general manager Mick Foley the week off.
    Roman Reigns barged in to demand a fight with Braun Strowman. McMahon told him Strowman was booked to take on Mark Henry instead. In response, Reigns tried to intimidate her to get what he wanted.
    Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson came out to stand up for McMahon. Reigns clobbered the tag team champions on the entrance ramp before referees tried to restore order.

    Memorable Moments and Quotes
    • "Listen to the sound of ambivalence. These people don't care about you."—McMahon to Reigns.
    • McMahon does an impression of former SmackDown GM Teddy Long.

    Grade
    C-

    Analysis
    McMahon's purposely ridiculous impression of Long will be the most talked-about element of this segment.
    Reigns' to-the-point, aggressive side was a welcome sight. His interaction with McMahon lacked tension, though. She is a grating heel, but there's a disconnect between her and the rest of the roster, as she's essentially untouchable.
    And Gallows and Anderson aren't intimidating at this point, so their arrival had less impact than WWE likely hoped for.

Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson vs. Roman Reigns

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    Reigns survived The Club's early attack, knocking Gallows and Anderson on their backs with high-impact offense.
    The heels overwhelmed him eventually, though. The referee struggled to maintain control of the action. After he disqualified the champs, Gallows and Anderson tried to finish Reigns off.
    The Big Dog fought off both men, sending them into retreat mode.

    Result
    Reigns wins via disqualification.

    Memorable Moments and Quotes
    • Gallows and Anderson pummel Reigns on the mat.

    Grade
    D

    Analysis
    WWE's obsession with making Reigns look strong is hard to stomach sometimes.
    Why make the tag team champions a pair of stooges Reigns takes down himself? Why refuse to pin a loss on him, even when he's outnumbered?
    The only thing of interest here was the introduction of the idea that Gallows and Anderson could become McMahon's goons. It's hard to buy into The Club as formidable bruisers, though, when they are so often presented as easy to topple.

Kofi Kingston vs. Bo Dallas

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    The New Day giddily announced it has the blueprints for an ice-cream machine.
    Kofi Kingston kicked Bo Dallas out of the ring moments into the bout. Dallas tore apart The New Day's ice-cream blueprints before tearing into Kingston. Kingston responded to Dallas' brief flurry with an SOS for the win.
    The New Day hovered over Dallas, pouring its cereal into his open mouth.

    Result
    Kingston wins via pinfall.

    Memorable Moments and Quotes
    • "Are you trying to be some sort of social outcast?"—Kingston to Dallas.
    • Fans chant "We want ice cream!"
    • "Everyone knows you don't feed breakfast cereal to an unconscious man."—Corey Graves.

    Grade
    C-

    Analysis
    The New Day and Dallas made this more fun than it had any right to be, but the lack of direction for the former tag team champions has to be addressed soon.
    The trio is having a blast. Kingston, Xavier Woods and Big E continue to go full speed down the most ridiculous paths. But to what end?
    The New Day needs worthy rivals to push it. The group needs a stronger story than a desire to create ice cream.

Emmalina Arrives

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    Emmalina told everyone they waited for her transformation into Emmalina, but now they would have to see her transformation back to Emma.
    She walked off the entrance ramp shortly after appearing.

    Grade
    F

    Analysis
    WWE has gutted Emma or Emmalina's momentum by making her a running joke. The company trolled us here by not actually making good on the promises of her finally re-debuting.
    As we have seen with Fandango and Curt Hawkins, there is nothing to gain from this kind of delayed arrival.
    WWE should have just kept her as the evil, sunglasses-wearing Emma and put her in a high-profile story. This approach is a waste.

Jack Gallagher vs. Noam Dar

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    Backstage, Jack Gallagher interrupted Neville's interview. The umbrella-wielding warrior laughed off Neville's verbal abuse.
    Gallagher then twisted Noam Dar's limbs, outwrestling him early. Dar pounded the babyface with a methodical offense.
    Relying on his unorthodox offense, Gallagher mounted a comeback that had the crowd energized. A running dropkick earned him a three-count.
    After The Extraordinary Gentleman's win, Neville came out to the entrance ramp to glare at him.

    Result
    Gallagher wins via pinfall.

    Memorable Moments and Quotes
    • "You are a boy out of your depth."—Neville.
    • Gallagher knocks Dar to the mat with a nasty headbutt.

    Grade
    C+

    Analysis
    A solid showcase and warm-up bout for Gallagher. We got to see his signature offense. He got a definitive win.
    The route to that result, however, wasn't stellar.
    The cruiserweights continue to get shorted on ring time. That makes the division's path to connecting with the crowd an uphill one.
    Gallagher, though, seems to be getting the crowd behind him thanks to his beaming charisma.

Braun Strowman vs. Mark Henry

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    Strowman and Henry barked at each other before going to battle.
    After a stalemate in the early going, Henry tagged Strowman in the corner with hard strikes. The Monster Among Men took control soon after thanks to a cheap shot behind the referee's back.
    Strowman dominated for a long stretch, clubbing Henry with thunderous blows.
    The World's Strongest Man was unable to fight back. Strowman floored him with a running powerslam for the win.
    Reigns emerged to clash with the bearded beast. The Big Dog suffered a powerslam of his own.

    Result
    Strowman wins via pinfall.

    Memorable Moments and Quotes
    • "World's Strongest Man, ha!"—Strowman.
    • Henry fails to slam Strowman, his legs buckling underneath him.
    • "You can't win!"—Strowman.

    Grade
    B-

    Analysis
    It was most certainly not a work of art, but Strowman got a dominant win against a future Hall of Famer. Even with Henry's recent lack of success, it was powerful to see him dismantled like this.
    These kinds of victories are the logical next step to all of Strowman's wins over jobbers.
    The brawl with Reigns was a good continuation of what has been a straightforward, effective rivalry. They are going to have up the ante in the near future, however. They have been cruising at the same level of intensity for the past two weeks now.

Interview with Samoa Joe

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    Michael Cole asked Samoa Joe about his recent actions.
    Joe talked about deserving to be on Raw, trusting in Triple H and being willing to do anything to accomplish his goals. He said WWE was scared of hiring him.
    Cole's questions irritated Joe, who wanted to talk about himself, not The Game.

    Memorable Moments and Quotes
    • "I came here to hurt people. And the only person's opinion I really care about is Triple H."—Joe.
    • "Redesign, rebuild, reclaim, re-injure."—Joe.
    • "I am here to change everything. I am here to wreck shop, slap people in the face and take everything from them."—Joe.

    Grade
    A

    Analysis
    WWE has been near-perfect in its introduction of Joe. The audience has now seen him hobble Seth Rollins, batter Reigns and now issue a warning to the entire roster. The interview allowed him to delve into his character, to reveal his motivations.
    Joe's goals are clear. His presence is unsettling.
    Raw now has another badass in its midst, and the show is going to benefit in a big way because of it.

Sami Zayn vs. Rusev

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    Sami Zayn failed to evade Rusev, who smothered him on the mat. Rusev left The Underdog from the Underground loopy with kicks and used his power advantage to control the bout.
    Zayn's refusal to stay down flustered Rusev.
    A crash into the ring post slowed Rusev. Zayn soon shocked him with a Helluva Kick to fell The Bulgarian Brute.
    In a post-match interview, Zayn bemoaned his loss to Chris Jericho last week. He took shots at Joe, who blindsided the babyface, battering him on the entrance ramp.

    Result
    Zayn wins via pinfall.

    Memorable Moments and Quotes
    • Fans chant "We want Lana!" while she's at ringside.
    • "Rusev has handsomeness to spare, Saxton."—Graves.
    • "Tonight was a huge win over a huge opponent."—Zayn.
    • "You say my name, you better put respect on it."—Joe.

    Grade
    B+

    Analysis
    Despite the loss, this is the best Rusev has looked in a long while. Too bad he's such a low priority at the moment.
    As for Zayn, he suddenly finds himself in a potentially great feud with The Samoan Submission Machine. He and Joe have a compelling David vs. Goliath dynamic. It gives both men something significant and interesting to do on the road to WrestleMania.
    And judging by this encounter, their future collisions are going to be red-hot.

Akira Tozawa vs. Ariya Daivari

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    Brian Kendrick sat in on commentary as Akira Tozawa and Ariya Daivari squared off.
    Tozawa and Daivari traded chops to open the contest. The Japanese pit bull then crashed into the turnbuckle, allowing Daivari to take control.
    Tozawa charged back with a relentless attack. A snap German suplex finished Daivari.

    Result
    Tozawa wins via pinfall.

    Memorable Moments and Quotes
    • Tozawa knocks Daivari off the ring with a running knee.
    • Kendrick seemingly takes a shot at TJ Perkins, saying that some wrestlers are content with playing video games backstage.

    Grade
    B-

    Analysis
    Similar to the Gallagher-Dar match, this was a quick showcase for the babyface. Tozawa's energy is infectious. And he already has the crowd doing his battle grunt along with him.
    There's an intriguing subplot brewing, too.
    Kendrick seems to be obsessed with Tozawa, He's a wannabe mentor who is likely to start lashing out against a man who hasn't paid him any attention. That's an outside-the-box story with plenty of potential.

Festival of Friendship

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    A silver-garbed Chris Jericho danced and grinned as he welcomed Kevin Owens to the Festival of Friendship. KO struggled to get into the festive mood.
    Jericho revealed a sculpture to honor his friendship with Owens. He also showed Owens a mock version of "The Creation of Adam" featuring the best friends.
    Y2J introduced Friendship the Magician, whose tricks didn't impress KO.
    To top it off, Jericho called out Goldberg, promising to take him out for Owens. Gillberg stepped out instead. Owens throttled Gillberg before griping about not getting to fight the real Goldberg.
    Owens soon assaulted Jericho, destroying the Festival of Friendship set.

    Memorable Moments and Quotes
    • Showgirls line the entrance ramp to welcome Jericho.
    • "The art of Jericho, sculpt it in, man!"—Jericho.
    • "It's art. You don't need pants."—Jericho.
    • "I'm going to guarantee you you're going to beat Goldberg at Fastlane. I'll make sure of it."—Jericho.
    • Owens slams Jericho's head into the Festival of Friendship sign.

    Grade
    A+

    Analysis
    The funniest thing on WWE TV in recent memory.
    Jericho went all-out with the silliness here. The segment brimmed with energy and fun, and then it deftly slid into serious, emotional territory.
    It was as emotional as it was bizarre.
    WWE milked the power of Jericho and Owens' friendship. And Owens got major heat by destroying Jericho.
    The audience has been waiting for this implosion. It couldn't have gone any better.

Enzo Amore vs. Cesaro

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    Credit: WWE.com
    Enzo Amore trash-talked Cesaro, mocking his various gimmicks. Big Cass and Sheamus stood at ringside in support of their respective tag team partners.
    The wild-haired loudmouth didn't stand a chance. Cesaro rag-dolled Amore. He blasted him with uppercuts until Amore couldn't move off the canvas.

    Result
    Cesaro wins via pinfall.

    Memorable Moments and Quotes
    • "I'm going to save you the Hasselhoff."—Amore.
    • Amore dribbles marshmallows onto the mat.

    Grade
    C-

    Analysis
    Cesaro vs. Amore is definitely a fresh matchup, but it didn't end up being a memorable one. Fans seemed unsure who to root against with the two babyfaces at odds. And Amore fired off more one-liners than offense.
    The Realest Guys in the Room will be intriguing rivals for Cesaro and Sheamus, however. Amore should be able to carry the verbal side of things while Cesaro and The Celtic Warrior do the heavy lifting in the ring.

Charlotte Flair vs. Bayley (Raw Women's Championship)

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    Backstage, Flair insulted Sasha Banks.
    The Queen then outworked Bayley on the mat, staying atop the challenger. Bayley battled back but struggled to escape Flair's grip.
    The champ snuffed out each of Bayley's potential rallies.
    Dana Brooke tried to interfere, but Bayley fought her off. Banks came out to even the odds, swinging her crutch like a baseball bat. The Boss attacked Flair with the crutch.
    Bayley followed up with a Bayley-to-Belly suplex for the win.

    Result
    Bayley wins via pinfall to win the Raw Women's Championship.

    Memorable Moments and Quotes
    • "You're going to sit your pretty, little self over there and watch The Queen do what you can't do—win."—Flair to Banks.
    • Flair slams Bayley's head into the bottom turnbuckle.
    • Flair hits a moonsault off the security barricade.
    • Bayley clamps on the figure-four leglock.

    Grade
    A-

    Analysis
    Both champion and challenger played their roles perfectly. Bayley thrived as the gutsy underdog. Flair was her usual hard-hitting, predatory self.
    The chaos at the end of the bout took away from it being a great match, but it sure makes things interesting going forward. Bayley may feel guilty once she realizes how she won. Banks' role in all of this could go in a variety of directions, too.
    It's odd that WWE is playing hot-potato with the women's title again and delivering WrestleMania-worthy moments on Monday nights. The company simply has to be more patient with its storytelling when it comes to its women.

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