WWE Raw will air live tonight on the USA Network and emanate from the ystar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, FL.
Fallout from Backlash
The launch of the new Raw roster, which was established in this year’s 2023 WWE Draft.
The World Heavyweight Championship tournament is set to begin. Cody Rhodes, Seth Rollins, The Miz, Finn Balor, Shinsuke Nakamura, and Damian Priest will be featured in the tournament matches.
The social media storyline between Chelsea Green and Sonya Deville is expected to continue.
Possibly see more on the feud between Beck Lynch and WWE Hall of Famer Trish Stratus
SmackDown No. 1: The Bloodline (Undisputed Universal World Champion Roman Reigns, Solo Sikoa & Paul Heyman); the World Heavyweight Championship thereby exclusive to Raw
RAW No. 1: Cody Rhodes
SmackDown: Raw Women’s Champion Bianca Belair
RAW: Becky Lynch
ROUND 2:
SmackDown: The Street Profits
RAW: Imperium (Intercontinental Champion GUNTHER, Ludwig Kaiser & Giovanni Vinci)
SmackDown: Edge
RAW: Matt Riddle
ROUND 3:
SmackDown: Bobby Lashley
RAW: Drew McIntyre
SmackDown: The O.C. (AJ Styles, Luke Gallows, Karl Anderson & Michin)
RAW: The Miz
ROUND 4:
SmackDown: Damage CTRL (Bayley, Dakota Kai & Iyo Sky
RAW: Shinsuke Nakamura
SmackDown: Alba Fyre & Isla Dawn (NXT Women’s Tag-Team Champions)
RAW: Indi Hartwell (NXT Women’s Champion)
Undrafted superstars:
Candice LeRae
Sonya Deville and Chelsea Green
Omos
Hit Row
Maximum Male Models
Dolph Ziggler
Dexter Lumis
Natalya
Mustafa Ali
Viking Raiders
Lacey Evans
Additional picks will be announced on today’s edition of “The SmackDown LowDown”.
AJ Styles returned from injury last night after he was drafted along with the rest of The O.C. Styles has been off TV since suffering a broken ankle at a live event in December.
The O.C. was interrupted by the Viking Raiders, but Styles had The OC “handle their business” and the group made short work of their opposition.
The 2023 WWE Draft will kick off on tonight’s episode of WWE SmackDown and then carry over to Monday’s edition of RAW.
On Thursday, WWE posted a complete list of stars eligible to be drafted on each night. While the NXT brand will be involved, the names who could potentially be called up from that specific brand have not been announced.
You can check out a complete list of the eligible names below:
Night One: Friday on SmackDown
Becky Lynch
Bianca Belair
Bobby Lashley
Candice LeRae
Chelsea Green & Sonya Deville
Cody Rhodes
Damage CTRL (Bayley, IYO SKY & Dakota Kai)
Dexter Lumis
Dolph Ziggler
Drew McIntyre
Edge
Hit Row (Top Dolla & Ashante “Thee” Adonis w/ B-Fab)
Imperium (GUNTHER, Ludwig Kaiser & Giovanni Vinci)
Lacey Evans
Matt Riddle
Maximum Male Models (ma.cé, mån.sôör & Maxxine Dupri)
Mustafa Ali
Natalya
Omos (w/ MVP)
Shinsuke Nakamura
The Bloodline (Roman Reigns and Solo Sikoa)
The Miz
The O.C. (AJ Styles, Luke Gallows, Karl Anderson & Michin)
The Street Profits
Viking Raiders (Erik & Ivar w/ Valhalla)
Select NXT Superstars
Night Two: This Monday on Raw
Akira Tozawa
Alpha Academy (Otis & Chad Gable)
Angel Garza & Humberto Carrillo
Asuka
Austin Theory
Baron Corbin
Braun Strowman & Ricochet
Brock Lesnar
Bronson Reed
Cedric Alexander & Shelton Benjamin
Charlotte Flair
Dana Brooke
Elias
Emma
Johnny Gargano
Judgment Day (Finn Bálor, Damian Priest & Dominik Mysterio)
Karrion Kross (w/ Scarlett)
Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn
LA Knight
Liv Morgan & Raquel Rodriguez
Nikki Cross
Piper Niven
Rhea Ripley
Rick Boogs
Riddick Moss
Ronda Rousey & Shayna Baszler
Seth Rollins
Shotzi
Tamina
Tegan Nox
The Brawling Brutes (Sheamus, Ridge Holland & Butch)
The LWO (Rey Mysterio, Santos Escobar, Cruz Del Toro, Joaquin Wilde & Zelina Vega)
According to F4WOnline, although Vince McMahon was not at tonight’s Raw in Chicago, he has still made major changes to Monday’s show.
PWInsider said they were told there had been some major changes to Monday’s Raw script, which were done remotely at Vince McMahon’s request.
PWInsider in their Elite subscription section said that McMahon changed finishes on several matches. The report also notes the match between The Street Profits and Cedric Alexander and Shelton Benjamin was added to the show after McMahon’s changes.
Fightful reported that Piper Niven and Candice LeRae were scheduled for a backstage segment, then a match, but that The Street Profits vs. Cedric Alexander and Shelton Benjamin was done instead.
PWInsider Elite and Fightconcluded by noting It was also reported that “a number of segments” with the female talents were cut from the show. That would include a backstage segment that was planned with Candice LeRae and Piper Niven. There reportedly was another segment cut that involved Adam Pearce, Sonya Deville, and other female talent. The decision to cut that segment was reportedly made so that they could spend more time on setting up the six-woman tag team match with Damage CTRL. It is interesting that LeRae and Niven were cut because they were also cut at the last minute on the Raw after Mania. Vince McMahon was backstage and running that show.
CM Punk was backstage at “WWE Raw,” but fans shouldn’t expect to see him return to his former company anytime soon.
According to PWInsider Elite, Punk met several WWE talents and employees while they were on the same flight. After finding out that “Raw” was being held at the Allstate Arena, which isn’t far from Punk’s home in Chicago, he visited the venue and hung out in the common area for around 20 minutes. He wasn’t hidden, nor was his visit expected.
The report states that Punk had conversations with employees such as Paul “Triple H” Levesque and The Miz. Furthermore, his chat with Miz supposedly led to them clearing the air after having heat with each other. The overall impression was that people were happy to see Punk and many of them greeted him in a positive manner. Those who didn’t were more confused to see him than anything. Punk was asked to leave by WWE security shortly after arriving, and he did so respectfully.
Of course, Punk’s appearance has led some people to believe he may have been gauging interest for a WWE return. Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Radio revealed that people within AEW are under this impression; however, the PWInsider notes that he still has a lot of time left on his AEW contract and was merely there to visit some people and clear the air.
Regarding his relationship with Tony Khan’s promotion, it’s been reported that Punk will return to AEW later this year and be part of the rumored Saturday show.
On Saturday, May 27, a brand new WWE World Heavyweight Champion will be crowned. Chief Content Officer Paul “Triple H” Levesque teased a major announcement ahead of the April 24 edition of “WWE Raw,” and after praising the current reign of Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns, he delivered on it by reviving and revealing a new incarnation of the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. With the Draft set to return, starting this Friday on “SmackDown,” Levesque announced that Roman Reigns will take his Undisputed WWE Universal Championship to whichever show drafts him. As for the holder of the new title for the other show, that will be decided at the Night of Champions event in Saudi Arabia.
“This will be a champion you can be proud of,” Triple H declared. “This will be a champion you can respect, that you can admire. This will be a champion that will defend this championship anywhere, any place, any time, all over the world.”
Then, in a not-so-subtle dig at Reigns, he finished his announcement by saying, “This champion will not have to demand your acknowledgment. This champion will earn your acknowledgment, and will earn the title of World Heavyweight Champion.”
Originally, the latest editions of The King and Queen of the Ring tournaments were planned for late May in Saudi Arabia. It would’ve marked the first time since October 2021, when Xavier Woods defeated Finn Balor to become King while Zelina Vega won the first-ever Queen’s Crown tournament by toppling Doudrop (Piper Niven) in the final. Now with the WWE Draft right around the corner and the fact that almost every star from the main roster on down through “NXT” is eligible, it remains to be seen just how WWE will crown its new World Heavyweight Champion come May 27.
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