WWE Raw – August 3rd 2020: Results & Review
Welcome to this week’s Monday Night Raw review, right here on Nerdly. I’m Nathan Favel and we have…shit. Yeah, shit is the right word. Just…you’ll get it.
Match #1: Apollo Crews def. MVP (w/Bobby Lashley & Shelton Benjamin) – WWE United States Championship Match
The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
Despite The Hurt Business lurking at ringside and the lights in the WWE Performance Center flickering on and off during the match, Apollo Crews persevered and pinned MVP with the Toss Powerbomb to retain his United States Title and take hold of the new championship.
My Opinion: 3.4 out of 5 – I thought this turned out really well, MVP looking formidable and Apollo looking like he was a star. This had a nice pace and plenty of big-time smackin’-around action, like Shirley Temple’s last Boner-Fest (that woman could party). MVP was Apollo’s punching bag when it mattered most, so you can expect the match to serve the proper purpose…Leslie. There’s enough solid wrestling here to keep you interested, so stay glued to the screen for this one.
Match #2: The Riott Squad def. The IIconics
The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
In a spirited battle, Morgan rolled up Kay for the three-count. The IIconics tried to blindside Morgan after the bell, but Riott came to the rescue, and The Riott Squad showed some teamwork, putting Kay down with a double-team maneuver.
My Opinion: 1.9 out of 5 – This was far too short and too limited in the wrestling department to make an impression worth keeping.
Match #3: Akira Tozawa def. R-Truth and Shelton Benjamin – 24/7 Championship Match
The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
After discovering that his 24/7 Championship was stolen, Shelton Benjamin quickly found out that R-Truth had nabbed it and headed to the ring for what turned into a Triple Threat Match for the title. Thanks to his ninjas swarming Benjamin, Akira Tozawa connected with a senton from the top rope onto R-Truth to reclaim the title.
My Opinion: 0.6 out of 5 – This was just about a complete waste of time, because almost nothing happened in it.
Match #4: Sasha Banks vs. Shayna Baszler (No-Contest)
The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
Shayna Baszler was tired of waiting in line for a Raw Women’s Championship opportunity, and she went right after Sasha Banks, setting the stage for this huge non-title bout. But before a winner could be determined, Asuka attacked Bayley at ringside, resulting in a no-contest. The Empress of Tomorrow challenged Sasha to a match at SummerSlam, but The Boss responded by telling Asuka that she will only get her wish if she can defeat Bayley next week.
My Opinion: 2.7 out of 5 – This was turning into some-thing good when Asuka ran out there to cause the abrupt ending.
Match #5: Angel Garza def. Angelo Dawkins
The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
Ahead of their Raw Tag Team Title Match at SummerSlam, both champions and challengers squared off in separate singles matches on Monday night. First up was Angelo Dawkins against Angel Garza. Though Garza may have been preoccupied with flirting with Demi Burnett of “The Bachelor” fame before the match, once the bell rang, it was all business. Dawkins put up a good fight, but Garza walked away victorious after Montez Ford collapsed at ringside, causing Dawkins to turn his attention to his partner. Unfortunately, Dawkins turned back into a superkick and dropkick to the head from The Lethal Lothario.
My Opinion: 2.8 out of 5 – There’s some nice action in here, but the match ended far too early for the potential of this pairing to be realized.
Match #6: (Main Event) Montez Ford vs. Andrade (No-Contest)
The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
Though there was cause for concern after Montez Ford collapsed at ringside during Dawkins’ match, Ford was initially able to compete, and he looked to be extra fired up in battling Andrade. However, when Ford appeared to be on his way to victory, he again collapsed inside the ring, leaving the referee with no choice but to call the match.
My Opinion: 2.9 out of 5 – This was not bad, but was far too short to make a mark that would stick.
News Of The Night:
- Raw Underground, which is hosted by Shane McMahon, debuted and featured no-holds-barred fights in the same vein as illegal fight clubs in hidden locations from big cities. Erik had a fight (along with several others) and The Hurt Business took over the joint with a few fights of their own to end the show.
- Asuka must beat Bayley next week to get her Raw Women’s Title re-match at SummerSlam.
- Samoa Joe defended Tom Philips from Seth Rollins and Buddy Murphy.
- Dominik Mysterio will fight Seth Rollins at SummerSlam after challenging Seth to that match.
- Kevin Owens fights Randy Orton, next week.
- Drew McIntyre bitched about Randy Orton having his whole career handed to him.
- Five masked assailants, allegedly, poisoned Montez Ford and destroyed the Performance Center all night long before they were caught on camera blowing-up the building’s generator.
- Nia Jax was suspended indefinitely without pay by Pat Buck, who was recently accused of being a habitual thief by Ryback, so this whole thing just feels right to me.
- The Riott Squad re-united after Ruby Riott apologized for being a jerk.
Final Verdict: 2/5
A 2 feels generous here. There was about twenty minutes of wrestling on a three hour show. How are you supposed to get more people to watch a wrestling show if the majority of it was just talking? Raw Underground is a decent idea, but it should be WWE Underground and as a WWE Network exclusive. The whole “masked bastards” angle is decent enough as while, but Vince has already pushed it on the “suspension of disbelief” thing with poisoning and arson. You know what would make people watch this show? …a good wrestling match with interesting people that draw being advertised a week or so in advance.
