Welcome to Fightful.com's live coverage & discussion for Monday Night RAW. We'll be bringing you full, fight-by-fight results of every match on the card.
— The show opens with a video package highlighting Brock Lesnar's WWE Championship win over now former champion Big E as well as Bobby Lashley, Kevin Owens and Seth Rollins this past Saturday at the Day 1 pay-per-view.
— We then cut to the live arena where our commentary team of Jimmy Smith, Byron Saxton and Corey Graves welcome us to tonight's show. Smith confirms that Big E, Bobby Lashley, Kevin Owens and Seth Rollins will compete in a Fatal-4-Way match to determine the number one contender for the WWE Championship. Commentary also announces that United States Champion Damian Priest will defend his title against Dolph Ziggler, Women's Tag-Team Champions Carmella and Queen Zelina Vega will defend their titles against the two women they took the titles from in Rhea Ripley and Nikki A.S.H and lastly, former RAW Tag Champions AJ Styles and Omos will compete in a one-on-one matchup, later tonight.
— The lights cut out and when they come back up, Paul Heyman is in the ring. Heyman says he's there to welcome his client, the NEW WWE Champion, Brrrrrock Lesnarrrrr. The new WWE Champion makes his way down to the ring, tosses the WWE title at Heyman then grabs the steel steps and launches them over the top rope before entering the ring and retrieving the title from Heyman. Lesnar's built himself a make-shift podium, stands atop the steps and thanks Heyman. Lesnar says he wants to give a shout-out to his 'good buddy', Roman Reigns. Brock says Roman's [probably] at home, hanging out, watching Monday Night RAW and watching the 'REAL' champion, Brock Lesnar, who wishes Roman 'well'. Lesnar tells the fans in attendance in South Carolina to 'acknowledge him' then says he wants to acknowledge his advocate, Paul Heyman, who 'pulled all the strings' to make his participation in the WWE Championship match this past Saturday, as well as his free agency negotiations possible and Brock hands the mic to Heyman. Paul says you don't wanna see what goes on behind the scenes with negotiations in WWE. Heyman says Lesnar wasn't focused on only winning the WWE Title but also defending it, which he'll do at the Royal Rumble against the winner of tonight's aforementioned fatal-4-way match. Heyman runs down the challengers of tonight's number one contender's match. Heyman calls Owens a jackal, then says Rollins had a 'vision' that went nowhere and his wife [Becky Lynch] will leave him if he doesn't beat Brock for the WWE Title, which Heyman says won't happen. Heyman says Reigns' has had one week without him as his special counsel and he caught Covid. Heyman says you can get over 'the Rona' but karma can be real bitchy. Heyman says lets talk about MVP...but actually he won't because nobody else will, but he'll talk about Bobby Lashley. Heyman says Lesnar and Lashley have never met and the first time that they did, Lashley speared Lesnar through the wall...the second time, Lesnar f-5'd him...and the final time, Lashley put Lesnar in the hurt lock and it didn't look like Lesnar was going to get out of it, which proves how great Lashley is but if Lashley wins tonight, he'll have to face Lesnar face-to-face which is a whole different story rather than hitting them from behind and Lashley will just be the Almight Brock Lesnar wannabe. Heyman says he has nothing bad to say about Big E, he's done everything right and he was a great champion that WWE and the fans should be proud of. Heyman says Big E would still be champion if Lesnar wasn't in the match at Day 1 and if he wins tonight, he can't wait to see the match between he and Lesnar...but he'll lose to the 'greatest WWE Champion in WWE history'...BRRRRROCK LESNARRRRR! Heyman tosses the mic down and he and Lesnar make their way out. Commentary announces that the RAW Tag Team Champions RK-Bro will face Chad Gable and Otis in a non-title matchup after a commercial break.
Back from the break we see RK-Bro at Gorrilla and Orton tells Riddle 'no, no and no' to his outfit as Riddle's sporting a tracksuit and chains, which he says he took inspiration from their entrance with rap group Migos this past Saturday ahead of their successful title defense at Day 1. Orton says he needs to start listening to him more and that was proven when he stayed level headed at Day 1 when they retained their tag titles...and that happened because their name is...Riddle says 'chicka chicka RK-Bro'...Orton rolls his eyes and the champions make their way to the ring.
RK-Bro (Randy Orton & Riddle) vs. Alpha Academy (Chad Gable & Otis)
— Before the match begins, Gable says he brought his Olympic credentials and his Masters degree alongside his 'immaculate' 4.0 GPA to his wrestling career and tonight, he's giving out lessons and he's doing it with his 'protege' Otis, who's a 'tree trunk' of a man. Gable says his first resolution is for Riddle and Orton, who'll learn what acceptance means...and they'll have to accept their destiny that their tag title reign is coming to an end at the hands of 'master' Gable and 'the four most dangerous words in sports entertainment' O. T. I. S. Gable and Otis attack Riddle & Orton before the bell ring, they toss the champs out of the ring and we head to a break before the match officially gets underway. Back from the break and Gable and Riddle are in the ring to begin the matchup. Gable works Riddle's left arm and left leg over for a bit before planting Riddle with a german suplex, he goes for another, Riddle flips out of it and goes for the tag but Gable reels him back, makes the tag to Otis who drills Riddle with a power-slam, goes for the cover and Riddle kicks out at two. Otis makes a quick-tag to Gable, who reigns down a bevy of strikes to a downed Riddle, who makes another quick-tag to Otis, who flattens Riddle with a standing-splash. Otis tosses Riddle into the corner, goes for a running clothlesine but Riddle gets out of danger, runs to the corner, can't quite get the tag but Riddle fends off Otis for a moment, goes for the tag but Gable knocks Orton off the apron to prevent the tag. Otis slams Orton on the outside, Riddle hits Otis with a running knee, goes for an RKO but Otis catches him and plants him with a world strongest slam and gets the 1-2-3 to secure the victory over the champions.
Winners - Alpha Academy (Chad Gable & Otis)
— We then see Sarah Schreiber backstage with MVP and Bobby Lashley. Sarah begins asking Lashley a question about winning tonight's fatal-4-way match but MVP quickly cuts her off and says they don't need to get ahead of themselves and not talk about the future. MVP says Lashley has to come over insurmountable odds to beat Big E, Seth Rollins and Kevin Owens before walking off...Lashley stares down the camera and says Brock Lesnar fears him before we head to a break.
— Back from the break and we see Kevin Patrick backstage with Omos. The former RAW Tag Team Champion puts his hand over Patrick's face to make him stop talking and says that's how he reacts to AJ Styles talking about him.
Reggie & Dana Brooke (C) vs. Akira Tozawa & Tamina — 24/7 Championship
— Reggie and Tozawa start this one off, Reggie knocks Tozawa back with a drop-kick, Dana asks for the tag, Reggie waves her off for a moment, Tozawa uses the distraction to toss Reggie into the corner and goes for a big boot, Reggie ducks and accidentally hits Tamina, who slaps Tozawa which allows Reggie to hit a senton for the pin and the win.
Winners - Reggie & Dana Brooke (C)
— We then see a video package of Becky Lynch's successful RAW Women's Title defense over Liv Morgan this past Saturday at Day 1. 'Big Time Becks' makes her way to the ring and we head to a commercial break before we hear from the champ.
— Back from the break and Becky says with a new year brings a lot of hope for everyone. It doesn't matter what you did the year before, even if you did nothing but fail it's new year, new you. Becky says she knows all the girls in the back's new year's resolution is to win the RAW Women's Championship but her own resolution is to keep the title and if we've learned anything over the last four or five years, we've learned that nobody can beat her. Becky says that she'd be remiss if she didn't mention that she hasn't taken the time to reflect over what she's done over the past year and thought about the decisions that she's made...and over the last year, she's became a work of art. Becky says if you go to a museum and see a famous Vincent Van Gogh piece, you may not understand what you're looking at and my not understand the ins and outs of it and don't understand the complexities but it still makes you feel and SHE makes you feel...because that's what greatness does. Becky says the other thing about fine art is that it reveals truth...and as WWE's resident 'Vincent Van GOAT' she wants to let the fans know that they're not going to lose those 10 pounds, they're not going to get that promotion at their job and they're sure as hell not going to get out of South Carolina. Becky says all those girls in the back aren't going to win the RAW Women's Championship and if they don't believe her, look no further than Liv Morgan, she said she was going to win the RAW Women's Championship and on the very first day of the new year...she broke the promise she made to herself and the one that she made to all of the fans. The aforementioned Liv Morgan's music hits and cuts off Lynch. Liv makes her way to the stage and says it's a new year but it's the same ugly jacket and the 'same delusional Becks'. Liv says she heard Becky say that she [Liv] came up short at Day 1 but nobody's harder on her than herself. Liv says she was thinking and they both know how close she was to taking the belt from Becky on Saturday and Becky got one thing wrong...and the only thing that she ever promised herself was that she'd give it her all and she'd leave it all in the ring every single time she got the opportunity to step inside of a WWE ring and that's exactly what she did at Day 1. Becky says that's lovely and all and maybe Liv will win the RAW Women's Championship one day but that won't be until she [Becky] retires because the title isn't going anywhere as long as she's around because that's what happens when you're big-time and there's only one Big Time Becks and it sure as hell isn't Liv. Former SmackDown Women's Champion Bianca Belair's music then hits and 'The EST. of WWE' makes her way down to the ring. Bianca says Liv isn't Big Time Becks just like Becky isn't The EST. of WWE. Bianca says she's sick and tired of Becky coming out to the ring week after week acting like she's untouchable and she and Liv aren't buying her hype. Bianca says she doesn't trust Becky as far as she can throw her...but actually that doesn't make any sense because she and Becky 'both know' that she can throw her 'pretty damn far'. Bianca says she may have taken a little Doudrop detour and she 'graciously stepped aside' to allow other people to 'catch up' but now 'Bianca Belair, The EST. of WWE' is at the front of the line for Big Time Becks. Becky says Bianca and Liv have just fell victim to her motto of 'beat, sleep, repeat' and maybe the two of them can get together and start a support group where they can 'talk about how they almost beat me but came up short' but that place already exists and it's called the WWE women's locker room. Liv says Becky doesn't know anything about the women's locker room because she hasn't been there in years. Liv says no offense to Bianca but she and Becky are in the middle of something, Bianca cuts her off and says no offense is taken but at the end of the day, she and Becky have a 'score to settle' that goes back 'way, way before yours'. Becky says they need to figure it out one-on-one and she's shared the spotlight long enough tonight so they both need 'to get the hell out' of her ring and decide who it's going to be and to let her know later. Bianca and Liv attack Becky and toss her out of the ring then start arguing before coming to blows. Bianca tosses Liv into the corner and unloads some shots, Liv pushes her off and hits a step-up kick, Bianca powers back and goes for the K.O.D. but Becky comes from behind at plants Bianca with 'The Man-handle Slam'. Becky's music hits, the champion celebrates wit her title and makes her way out.
— Cameras cut backstage where we see Seth Rollins, who's approached by Kevin Owens. Rollins says he's glad that Owens showed up because he needs Owens to help him figure out what to do with his 'problem' Paul Heyman. Rollins asks if he should staple Heyman's lips shut or if he should just rip his tongue out of his mouth altogether? Rollins says that he debated castration but he doesn't think Heyman uses 'it' much anyway. Owens says he likes the staple idea but they can figure that out later and they should figure out what they're going to do tonight instead. Owens says they have the same problem that they had before Day 1 and they're about to have the same fatal-4-way match that was originally scheduled for last Saturday's pay-per-view. Owens says he and Rollins should 'stick to the plan' of taking Big E and Lashley out and then it's down to them to win the match and vie for the WWE Title. Owens says it doesn't matter who wins as long as it's one of them and the one who DIDN'T win, can help the one who DID win, win the Royal Rumble and then they can face-off for the WWE Title at WrestleMania. Owens says it's a great plan, Rollins says he 'loves' it and he can trust Owens and Owens can trust him. Rollins says it sounds like a plan and walks off. Owens asks if Rollins is lying but Rollins is already gone. Nikki A.S.H and Rhea Ripley make their way down to the ring, where they'll face Carmella and Queen Zelina Vega, who also make their entrances, for the WWE Women's Tag Team Titles after the break.
Carmella & Queen Zelina Vega (C) vs. Rhea Ripley & Nikki A.S.H — WWE Women's Tag Team Championship
— Ripley and Vega start this one out. Ripley drills Vega with a one-arm suplex, goes for the cover but Vega kicks out at two. Carmella's standing on the outside with her 'protective mask'. Back in the ring, Ripley tags-in Nikki, who hits Vega with a slam, goes for the cover but Vega, again, kicks out. Vega reverses the momentum and trips Nikki up, lays into her with a few strikes and locks-in a choke. Nikki eventually powers out, drags Vega to the mat with an arm-drag but Vega tosses Nikki to the mat by her hair, knocks Ripley off of the apron and reverses a fireman's carry from Nikki with a roll-up and the three-count to retain the titles.
Winners - Carmella & Queen Zelina Vega (C)
— We then see the Instagram clip from earlier this week of comedian and daredevil Johnny Knoxville declaring for the 2022 Royal Rumble. Montez Ford and Angelo Dawkins of The Street Profits then make their way to the ring for the match against Apollo Crews and Commander Azeez, which is right after the break.
— Back from the break and we see Rey and Dominik Mysterio backstage, who both officially declare for the 2022 Royal Rumble Match.
Street Profits (Montez Ford & Angelo Dawkins) vs. Apollo Crews & Commander Azeez
— Ford and Azeez start this one out. Azeez tosses Ford into the corner, misses a running clothesline, Ford unloads strikes to Azeez's midsection but Azeez tosses Ford across the ring and drills him with a running headbutt, goes for the cover but Ford kicks out at two. Ford counters a clothesline, hits a drop-kick, tags in Dawkins, Azeez tags in Apollo, dawkins lays out the latter with a cross-body, goes for the cover but Azeez breaks up the pin. Apollo, now in control goes for a suplex, Dawkins ducks out and lays Apollo out with a slam, Ford tags himself in, goes to the top rope, hits his patented frog-splash and gets the 1-2-3 for the win.
Winners - Street Profits (Montez Ford & Angelo Dawkins)
— Commentary announces that Damian Priest, who will lose his title if he's counted out or disqualified, will defend his United States Championship against Dolph Ziggler after the break.
Damian Priest (C) vs. Dolph Ziggler (with Robert Roode) — United States Championship
— Priest and Ziggler start exchanging heavy strikes early and often, Priest knocks Ziggler down with an elbow, hits a running elbow to follow-up, Ziggler spins out of danger and plants a flying knee onto Priest, goes for the cover but the champ kicks out at two. Ziggler continues the offense with a stomp to the back of Priest's head then smacks him a few times while yelling at the champion. Priest powers back with some heavy shots, a spinning-back kick and an elbow directly on the chin of Ziggler. Priest plants Ziggler with and inverted DDT, goes for the cover but Ziggler stays alive after lifting the shoulders after a count of two. Ziggler sneaks between Priest's legs, tosses him into the corner, goes up top, Priest throws him down, goes up himself, Robert Roode sneaks behind and knocks Priest off the top rope, Ziggler hits the fame asser, goes for the cover and Priest somehow kicks out at two. Priest sees Roode on the outsid and starts unloading on him, Priest grabs a chair and stops himself from hitting Roode with it, he gets back in the ring, Ziggler begs for him to hit him, Roode is yelling for him to do it, Priest tosses the chair at Roode, Ziggler hits Priest with the zig zag, goes for the pin but Priest again kicks out at two-and-a-half. Ziggler goes for a super-kick but Priest counters with The Reckoning, gets the three and retains his title. What a match.
Winner - Damian Priest (C)
— We then see WWE Chairman Vince McMahon backstage, who has a knock on his door, Vince asks who it is and in comes Austin Theory. Vince tells Austin that he never told him to come in, Austin apologizes, Vince says when people apologize, it's a weakness, which is why he never apologizes. Austin nearly says sorry again but catches himself and says he didn't mean to interrupt. Vince says when people say they don't mean to interrupt, that means they absolutely meant to interrupt. Austin says he just wants to know about his rematch with Finn Balor. Vince says he lost to Balor but then he made up for it and then some by attacking him from behind and 'beat the holy hell' out of him, which is an 'admirable quality'. Vince says if you can't beat someone one way, you need to find a kniving way to do it. Austin says Vince taught him to make everyone else expect the unexpected. Vince says he has a surprise for Austin, which is an entry into the Royal Rumble.
— We cut to the ring where The Miz and Maryse make their way to the ring for an episode of Miz TV, which will happen after the break. Back from the break and The Miz says he and Maryse stand before the crowd 'outraged' after what happened at Day 1. Miz says he had Edge 'right where' he wanted him and should've won this past Saturday. Miz rattles off his accomplishments and says for some reason he has to prove himself against an 'only' one-time grand-slam champion. Miz says he was going to 'lay Edge to rest' before his wife AKA his 'mommy' Beth Phoenix came down to the ring and allowed Edge to 'steal' the victory at Day 1 and everyone knows that he deserved to lose this past weekend. Miz then shows the footage of what happened last Monday during he and Maryse's 'vow renewal' last week on RAW. Miz says the reason the fans enjoyed Edge ruining their vows last week is because their lives are 'pathetic' but that's okay because 'true love always wins'. Miz says he vowed to end Edge's career at Day 1 but the Edge that got into that ring Saturday night wasn't the old Edge, it was a man who hid behind his wife and he doesn't deserve or have he or Maryse's respect. Maryse says Miz would ever rely on his wife to fight his battles for him and says if Beth Phoenix was there tonight, she'd 'punch her right in the face'...and sure enough WWE Hall of Famer Beth Phoenix makes her way down to the ring alongside her husband and fellow WWE Hall of Famer Edge. Beth asks Maryse what she said...Edge says most men would 'take the L and move on' but he [unfortunately] knows him better than that and knew he'd use every excuse in the book to explain why he lost. Edge says for once, The Miz is at a loss for words and says he doesn't ask Beth to fight his battles. Beth says everything that happened at Day 1 was her idea. Edge says speaking of ideas, he's crazy enough to give him what he wants...then corrects himself and says THEY will give THEM what THEY want. Edge says imagine this...The Miz and Maryse, the IT couple versus The Rated R Superstar and The Glamazon...the GRIT couple at the Royal Rumble. Miz asks if Edge is serious then runs down Maryse's accolades, Beth interrupts and says a simple yes or no will suffice and The Miz accepts their challenge. Maryse doesn't appear happy and starts yelling at Miz, Beth fakes a punch hurled in Maryse's direction, she falls and Miz drags her and himself out of the ring.
— We then see Big E backstage with Kevin Patrick. Kevin asks how Big E plans to win tonight's fatal-4-way match to have a chance to become a two-time WWE Champion. Big E says that being WWE Champion meant a lot to him and it also meant a lot to a ton of people as well. E says that there's no shame in losing to Brock Lesnar but what we don't do is stay down or wallow in self-pity because what he does is getting back what's his...the WWE Championship and he'll be damned if there's a soul on earth that can stop him. We cut back to the ring where AJ Styles is making his way down to the ring for his match with Omos, which is up after the break.
AJ Styles vs. Omos
— Omos immediately tosses Styles out of the ring. AJ gets some offense going by chopping at Omos' knees, hits a dropkick, continues to chop at the legs of his former tag partner but every time he gets some offense going, Omos stymies it. Styles goes up top for a phenomenal forearm but Omos grabs him by the throat, tosses him to the mouth, picks him up and plants him with a two-handed chokeslam to get the 1-2-3 and the win.
Winner - Omos
— We then see a video package of the opening segment of the show with WWE Champion Brock Lesnar and his advocate Paul Heyman before Kevin Owens makes his way to the ring and our main event is UP NEXT after the commercial break.
Big E vs. Bobby Lashley (with MVP) vs. Kevin Owens vs. Seth Rollins — WWE Championship Number One Contender's Match
— E and Lashley go right for Owens and Rollins. Lashley tosses Rollins out of the ring and throws him against the barricade, E hits a splash on Owens, who rolls out of the ring and Lashley comes back into the ring to stare down E. Both men unload with heavy shots, E nails Lashley with a back elbow but 'The Almighty' knocks the former WWE Champion off of his feet with a massive clothesline. Owens comes back into the fold but Lashley quickly dispatches of him with a power-slam, Lashley lines Owens up for a spear through the barricade but Owens slips out of the way and E nails Rollins with a belly-to-belly, knocks Owens down with a clothesline before clearing off the announce table. E looks for the big ending through the table on Rollins but Owens saves him and the pair begin the attack on the former champ. Owens and Rollins pile some debris on top of Lashley to try and take him out of the match before hitting E with a double power-bomb through the announce table as we head to a commercial break. Back from the break and Owens and Rollins are beating down Lashley as E is still down from the power-bomb before the break. We see a picture-in-picture of Owens hitting a splash from the apron to a downed Lashley on the outside of the ring that occurred during the break. Back in the ring, Owens and Rollins play up to the crowd, E takes out Rollins, Owens lays out E and Lashley blasts Owens with a clothesline. Owens and Rollins are first to their feet, E and Lashley lock eyes and decided to pair up against Rollins and Owens, who scurry out of the ring and into the crowd as E and Lashley chase closely behind. Cameras cut to the arena's concourse. Lashley applies the hurt lock to Rollins, Owens hits Lashley with a garbage can lid and E plants Owens through a table with the big ending before we head to another commercial break. Back from the break and Lashley and E are brawling through the crowd and back to the ringside area. Rollins jumps back into the fray but Owens comes out of nowhere and takes out all three men with a front-flip off of the top of an exit stand. Rollins wakes Owens up and they toss E back to the ringside area. Owens hits E with a front-flip, Rollins follows it up with a moonsault, Rollins goes for the cover and E kicks out at two-and-a-half. E gets back to his feet, goes for the big ending on Rollins, Owens takes him out, Lashley launches Owens across the ring with a belly-to-belly and tosses Owens out of the ring. Rollins drills Lashley with an elbow, Lashley spears E, then Rollins, Owens hits Lashley with a super-kick, misses a stunner and Lashley drills Owens with a spear and gets the ensuing pinfall for a three-count and the victory. Bobby Lashley will face Brock Lesnar for the WWE Championship at the Royal Rumble.
Winner - Bobby Lashley
— We cut backstage and see Kevin Patrick, who asks WWE Champion Brock Lesnar if he has any comments. Lesnar says he does have a comment...'tell Roman Reigns that I'll see him this Friday on SmackDown'. The cameras cut back to the ring where Lashley celebrates with MVP as the show goes off-the-air.
