WWE Raw Recap, Grades & Opinion: August 19, 2019

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Evan Gomes
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WWE Raw Recap: August 19, 2019

A.K.A. The One Where Banks And Lynch Brought It

Results:

  • Roman Reigns def. Dolph Ziggler
  • Ricochet & The Miz def. Baron Corbin & Drew McIntyre
  • Braun Strowman def. A.J. Styles by disqualification when The O.C. interfered
  • Samoa Joe def. Cesaro to advance in the King of the Ring Tournament
  • New Day def. Revival by disqualification when Randy Orton interfered
  • Nikki Cross & Alexa Bliss def. Mandy Rose & Sonya Deville
  • Cedric Alexander def. Sami Zayn to advance in the King of the Ring Tournament
  • Seth Rollins & Braun Strowman def. The O.C. to win the Raw Tag Team Championships

Match of the Night: Samoa Joe def. Cesaro by submission to advance in the King of the Ring tournament.

This match started off on fire. Cesaro came charging out the gate and demolished Joe with an uppercut. From there, the match never really slowed down. As expected with these two bruisers, it was a hard hitting affair. Both of these men were popular picks to win the King of the Ring tournament before the bracket was released. In the end, Joe caught Cesaro in a Coquina Clutch and forced him to tap out. 

Three Thoughts:

The Man Returns, The Boss Responds

After Sasha Banks returned last week to attack Natalya & Becky Lynch, we were promised an interview from Banks. Before that, Becky Lynch gave a backstage promo that was one of her best. She was scathing in her remarks, mocking Banks for “crying at home” after Wrestlemania. This promo brought a fire back in Lynch we haven’t seen in a few months. Lynch hit Banks with one of the best lines in recent memory:

Later in the show, Sasha Banks responded. After deflecting at the beginning of the interview by talking about her new hair, Banks eventually did give fans something of a response to their question of why. It was two simple words:

Banks wasn’t done though. Later on she’d attack an injured Natalya and tell her to go to hell to say hi to Nattie’s deceased father, Jim Neidhardt. Sasha Banks has come back ready to go, and a heel Boss is must-see television. If you want proof, go back and watch her NXT Women’s Championship run.

KOTR Dominating the Conversation

The King of the Ring tournament kicked off on the show, and had it’s fingerprints all over it. In the first matchup, Cesaro and Samoa Joe laid into one another. After a hard fought match, Samoa Joe prevailed and advanced. Later in the night, Sami Zayn lost to Cedric Alexander in a quick match.

WWE had a tag match between the four Raw participants whose matches weren’t this week. The stage also had the crown, scepter, and throne for the new king. Booker T joined the broadcast to talk about who he thought would win. WWE seems very committed to making King of the Ring a meaningful tournament again, which is great to see.

Latest Wrestling News

So Many Happenings!

There were so many storyline advancing moments on the show, so here’s a quick-hit recap.

  • Randy Orton interrupted the New Day-Revival match and caused chaos. He seemingly has aligned with The Revival, and they worked together to take out the New Day. Orton held Kofi Kingston back as the Revival hit a devastating move on Xavier Woods’ knee. Based on how Woods sold it, it could be broken. The Revival and Orton may be a faction now, and I am invested in it.
  • Rey Mysterio was going to announce his retirement, but was talked out of it by son Dominik. Dominik wants them to tag together like Rey promised before. This is how we’re going to get Dominik, “El Hijo de Mysterio”, debuting in WWE. It is definitely a storyline to watch.

  • Seth Rollins saved Braun Strowman from a three-on-one beat down at the hands of The O.C. This lead to them getting a Tag Team championship shot later in the night. To the surprise of many, Rollins and Strowman won the match and the tag straps. Strowman seemed to be interested in challenging Rollins for the Universal Championship. Where will these two go from here? It’s all very intriguing. 

Grade: A-

This show was so enjoyable because it all made sense. The King of the Ring tournament and the Strowman-Rollins team up were threads that went throughout the show. Many storylines were advanced and no segment overstayed its welcome. Sasha Banks and Becky Lynch turned up the heat in a feud that could main event Clash of Champions. All of this plus some quality wrestling leads to a standout great this week.

One More Thing:

The Fiend is back. This time his target was another legend: Jerry “The King” Lawler. Lawler tried to run, but Fiend appeared behind him on the stage and took him out. You have to love the unpredictability of Wyatt now. When will he appear? What are his motives? We are all waiting for him, and that makes him scary.

– Evan Gomes is the Managing Editor of Pro Wrestling for Full Press Coverage. Like and follow on and Facebook.

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