WWE RAW Coverage & Discussion Thread - October 17th, 2016
Goldberg returns to answer Paul Heymans’ challenge
As WWE Universe members worldwide pit Goldberg and Brock Lesnar against each other in WWE 2K17, that video game matchup is beginning to materialize in the real world as WCW icon Goldberg heads to Raw in Denver to answer Paul Heyman’s challenge to “fight” The Beast Incarnate one-on-one. Will the former World Heavyweight Champion agree to this anticipated confrontation?
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– We’re live from the Pepsi Center in Denver with Michael Cole, Corey Graves and Byron Saxton. They hype Bill Goldberg’s return.
– We go to the ring and out comes WWE Universal Champion Kevin Owens with Chris Jericho. We get a look back at last week.
Fans chant for Jericho before Owens takes the mic. Owens accuses Mick Foley of having a vendetta against him for putting him inside Hell In a Cell. Jericho says Foley has it out for he and Owens. They talk about last week’s loss and Jericho blames it on the referee. They go on and Owens mentions The Kevin Owens Show, setting up Jericho to say it should be the Chris and Kevin Show. Owens suggests the referee be added to The List and Jericho adds him. Owens says Seth Rollins’ swan song will come at Hell In a Cell. Owens has already replaced him as “The Man” and at Hell In a Cell, he will retire Rollins. The music hits and out comes Rollins to a pop.
Rollins comes out and knocks Owens and Jericho. Rollins gets a “sparklecrotch” chant going at Jericho. Owens says Rollins doesn’t have any friends because he’s not a very good person. They go on with the back & forth and Jericho says he can beat Rollins any time, any place. Rollins suggest the rematch happen tonight and fans pop. Rollins wonders what Owens will do – go to the back so Jericho can prove he can beat Rollins on his own or stay out and be the world’s ugliest cheerleader to see Jericho get hit with a Pedigree for the third week in a row. Owens says he’s staying but Jericho says he’s going to the back. Owens is staying out because of what’s happened the past few weeks… Jericho knows what has happened and that’s exactly why he’s sending Owens to the back. The tension continues between the two but Jericho says this doesn’t change the fact that they are still best friends and that Owens has his back. Owens says he will be in spirit. Owens heads to the back as Rollins enters the ring.
Seth Rollins vs. Chris Jericho
Back from a commercial and the match is underway. Jericho takes control and talks some trash while beating Rollins around.
Fans chant “sparklecrotch” and Rollins turns it around. Rollins nails a dropkick and Jericho goes under the rope for a breather. Rollins runs around the ring and kicks Jericho in the face. Jericho comes back and drops Rollins’ spine over his knee for a 2 count. More back and forth with counters. Rollins makes a comeback and hits a blockbuster from the top for a 2 count. Jericho blocks another Pedigree attempt and sends Rollins to the floor. Rollins runs back up but Jericho dropkicks him to the floor as we go to commercial.
More back and forth after the break. Rollins turns it around and goes to the top. Owens’ music hits and out he comes. Jericho rolls to the floor but Rollins leaps off the top and nails him on the floor. Rollins brings it back in. A Pedigree is blocked. Jericho applies the Walls of Jericho as Owens watches.
Owens pulls the rope and stops Rollins from grabbing it. The referee sees this and Owens backs off. Rollins gets the rope and breaks the hold. Rollins rolls a distracted Jericho up but he kicks out. The Pedigree is blocked. Rollins blocks a Codebreaker and nails the Pedigree for the win.
Winner: Seth Rollins
– After the match, Owens heads up the ramp as Rollins watches. We go to replays. Owens watches from the stage as Rollins hits the corner to celebrate.
– Cole leads us to a video package on Goldberg.
– Still to come, Goldberg returns. Also, Lita talks to Charlotte and Sasha Banks about Hell In a Cell. Back to commercial.
– Back from the break and Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper is shown at ringside.
– Cole leads us to a sitdown interview with Charlotte and WWE Hall of Famer Lita to discuss Hell In a Cell. Charlotte doesn’t have to prepare for the match because she was born ready for moments like this. In regards to Forbes calling her the greatest female WWE Superstar, she says it could go as far as her being the greatest WWE Superstar, male or female. Charlotte goes on talking about Sasha and the match. She says she will be the one to beat at Hell In a Cell. She will become a three-time champion and nothing will stop her. Still to come, Lita talks to The Boss.
Golden Truth and Mark Henry vs. The Shining Stars and Titus O’Neil
We go to the ring and out comes Goldust and R-Truth. Their partner Mark Henry is with them. This match was made after a backstage segment on the RAW Pre-show. Back to commercial.
Back from the break and Primo and Epico are out. Titus O’Neil is out next. They go at it to start. Epico keeps Goldust down as Henry rallies fans. Goldust comes back and nails a powerslam. Truth eventually gets the tag as does Titus. Truth unloads and hits the heel kick to the face. Truth with the scissors kick for a 2 count as Primo breaks the pin.
Goldust takes out Primo. Epico sends Goldust to the floor. Truth nails Epico. Titus grabs Truth but doesn’t see Henry tag himself in. Henry ends up hitting a World’s Strongest Slam on Titus for the win.
Winners: Mark Henry and Golden Truth
– We see WWE Tag Team Champions The New Day walking backstage with a “Day 420” sign. Back to commercial.
– Back from the break and Jericho sees Owens backstage. The tension continues and Owens says this is exactly what Foley wants between them. Jericho almost calls Owens a stupid idiot but stops himself. Owens gets upset and says he’s not some stupid idiot Jericho can put on The List. They argue until Stephanie McMahon appears. She says they’re doing exactly what they said they wouldn’t do – let Rollins get in their heads. Stephanie brings up the SmackDown Survivor Series challenge and says she needs her two Generals to be on the same page, smarter and better than everyone else. They mumble a few more words to each other and that’s it.
Sheamus vs. Big E
We go to the ring and out comes Cesaro and Sheamus together. They’re arguing as Cesaro is live streaming on Facebook. WWE Tag Team Champions The New Day are out next. They toss boxes of Booty-Os to fans in the crowd before taking the mic. Big E says Sheamus must be a mile high if he thinks he will win their match tonight. Xavier Woods says Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton would make a more closer knit tag team than Sheamus and Cesaro. Kofi Kingston brings up his springboard slip from last week and says he was still able to beat Cesaro. They go on with more shots before Big E hits the ring.
They go at it to start and Big E drops Sheamus. They lock up and Sheamus nails a big suplex. Sheamus goes on but Big E drops him with a clothesline. Big E with a big thrust in the corner. Sheamus knocks him down with a forearm. Sheamus keeps control and lands several uppercuts as the referee warns him. Big E dumps Sheamus to the floor. Sheamus fights back to the apron and goes for the forearms to the chest but Big E overpowers him. Big E with a clothesline on the apron. Big E nails a splash on the apron. The New Day celebrates as we get a replay. Cesaro gets close to the action with his phone. Sheamus and Big E both go down at ringside as we go to commercial.
Back from the break and Big E turns it around with suplexes. He goes for the splash but Sheamus gets his knees up. Sheamus with a 2 count. Sheamus hits the Irish Curse for another 2 count. Big E catches Sheamus in a powerbomb for a close 2 count. Sheamus ends up doing a rake to the face for a close pin attempt. Cesaro gets a shot of Kofi on his stream. He also goes into the crowd with the Cesaro Section as Sheamus hits the forearms on Big E. Sheamus knocks Big E off the apron into the barrier. Sheamus follows and argues with Cesaro about his streaming. Sheamus rolls Big E in the ring and goes back over to Cesaro. He snatches the phone and yells at Cesaro’s viewers. Cesaro comes over the barrier to get his phone back and they argue on the steel steps. Sheamus enters the ring and Big E splashes him for the win.
Winner: Big E
– After the match, Cesaro films Sheamus while he’s shocked about the loss. Sheamus knocks the phone out of his hand and we go to replays, courtesy of Facebook.
– Cole leads us to another video on Goldberg, this one showing his July 1998 match against “Hollywood” Hulk Hogan.
Bo Dallas vs. Neville
Back from the break and Bo Dallas is in the ring with Curtis Axel. This match was made after Axel, who still Bo-lieves in Bo, asked Mick Foley to make it. We see a segment between Axel and Bo on the RAW Pre-show. Axel says he’s the biggest Bo-liever. Neville is out next.
They go at it to start. Bo takes Neville to the corner and beats him down as the referee warns him. Bo keeps control and mocks the fans. He drops Neville with an elbow as Axel yells about Bo-lieving in him at ringside. Bo keeps control and plays to the crowd but they boo him. Neville comes back with kicks and drops Bo to his knees. Bo dodges a dropkick but gets dropped with an enziguri. Neville goes to the top for Red Arrow but Bo rolls to the floor. Neville goes to the apron and hits a moonsault. Neville brings Bo back in and runs into an elbow, then a boot. Neville goes to head back to the top but Bo kicks him from the apron. Bo drops him with the DDT for the win.
Winner: Bo Dallas
– After the match, Axel runs int he ring and hypes Bo up. Bo attacks him from behind and sends him to the floor. Bo follows and runs over Axel with a clothesline. Bo sends Axel into the apron and then the barrier a few times. Bo leaves Axel laying and grabs his “Bo-lieve In Bo” sign before leaving.
– Still to come, Bayley vs. Dana Brooke. Back to commercial.
Dana Brooke vs. Bayley
Back from the break and out comes Dana Brooke. Bayley is out next to a pop.
Dana stalls to start the match. Bayley turns it around and nails a Facebuster. Bayley with more offense. She slams Dana’s head into the turnbuckles repeatedly. Dana drops her with a right hand and launches her into the turnbuckles. The referee checks on Bayley and Dana kicks her while she’s down. Dana talks trash and taunts Bayley.
Bayley comes back but Dana ends up getting the win, shocking the announcers.
Winner: Dana Brooke
– The announcers take us live to Paul Heyman. Fans chant for Bill Goldberg. Heyman says last week’s challenge was rhetorical. Heyman says it’s obvious Goldberg is coming to say yes tonight. Heyman says Goldberg should think about this… why didn’t Lesnar challenge Goldberg face to face, icon to icon? Because Lesnar doesn’t even think of Goldberg anymore, Goldberg isn’t even worth Lesnar’s sweat anymore. Heyman says it’s fantasy, it’s a video game. He advises Goldberg to just show up and say no tonight because maybe, just maybe if he says yes, he’s going to piss Lesnar off. It already pisses Lesnar off that Goldberg beats him 12 years ago and thinks he can do it again. Heyman gets fans to chant for Goldberg again. He says that’s going to piss Lesnar off too. Heyman says if Goldberg says yes, he will be beaten, victimized and conquered.
– Still to come, Lana and Rusev have a message for Roman Reigns. Back to commercial.
Handicap Match: Braun Strowman vs. The Mile High Trio
Back from the break and out comes Braun Strowman. Byron Saxton is in the ring with The Mile High Trio, a group of enhancement jobbers. They get a local pop when shouting out Denver and they seem confident about taking out Braun. He enters the ring and they surround him.
Braun kicks one guy to the mat and sends the other two out of the ring. He launches the first guy onto the other two on the floor. Braun goes to the floor and continues to dominate for several minutes before pinning two at once.
Winner: Braun Strowman
– After the match, Braun takes the mic and says if Foley won’t give him the competition he wants, he’s coming to get it. The music hits and out comes Sami Zayn to a pop. Sami stares Braun down and slowly enters the ring. Braun just shoves him to the mat and walks off as his music plays.
– Back from a break and Charly Caruso asks Sami Zayn why he picked a fight with Braun. “Because nobody else will.” Sami walks off.
– We go to the ring and Lana introduces her husband Rusev. Out he comes to talk about Roman Reigns and Hell In a Cell. He gets the “what?!” treatment and is frustrated. Lana runs everyone and Reigns down. Rusev starts ripping on Reigns’ family for being barbaric. He shows us a family photo album of The Rusevs on the big screen, praising each member.
WWE United States Champion Roman Reigns eventually interrupts. He says he does have a big family, but he’s not talking about the bloodline, he’s talking about The Roman Empire. Reigns says Rusev doesn’t look like his dad with the sweet mustache, he looks more like the family dog. Reigns is in the ring now. Reigns tells Rusev to call the whole family because it doesn’t matter as it’s just the two of them at Hell In a Cell. Reigns says when he’s done, the only place Rusev is going to call is 911. Rusev gets angry but Lana tries to calm him down. Lana approaches Reigns and slaps him in the face. Rusev superkicks Reigns and sends him to the floor.
Rusev charges against the barrier and whips Reigns into the steel steps. Rusev takes half of the steps and rams them into Reigns’ head. Rusev sends Reigns in and brings part of the steps in. Reigns fights back but gets kicked in the face. Rusev sends Reigns into the steps. Rusev places Reigns on top of the steps and stomps on his back. Rusev applies The Accolade on top of the steps and leaves Reigns laying as fans boo. Rusev’s music hits and he stands tall as we go to a replay. Lana and Rusev leave as Reigns tries to recover.
– Cole leads us to another video package on Goldberg, looking at his WWE debut in 2003 when he interrupted The Rock.
– Back from the break and we get another vignette for Emma’s return as Emmalina.
Karl Anderson vs. Big Cass
We go to the ring and out comes Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson. Enzo Amore and Big Cass are out next with promos.
Anderson charges to start but Cass quickly responds and unloads. They go to the floor and Cass takes out Anderson. Cass launches Enzo into Gallows on the floor. Cass comes back in but gets caught with a kick to the head. He ends up hitting the East River Crossing to quickly put Anderson away.
Winner: Big Cass
– We go backstage to Brian Kendrick, Tony Nese and Drew Gulak. It appears they have some sort of agreement between the two. TJ Perkins walks in and knocks all three. He wonders what Kendrick has promised to give Gulak and Nese if they soften him up before their title match at Hell In a Cell. The back and forth leads to Rich Swann and Cedric Alexander coming in. We’ve got a six-man for later.
– Back from the break and Cole leads us to Lita’s sitdown interview with RAW Women’s Champion Sasha Banks. Sasha talks about how far they’ve come and says she respects Charlotte but she’s going to show why she’s the best at Hell In a Cell. Sasha says Charlotte is good but she’s no Sasha Banks. They go on and Lita asks if a part of Sasha is afraid for the Cell. Sasha says it’s not fear because she asked for the match and she doesn’t want to say she’s afraid because she’s watching old Cell matches to prepare for the match but it will be something when she’s shut inside the Cell. She says she’s here to make history at Hell In a Cell.
– Cole leads us to another Goldberg video package, this time showing his September 2003 match against World Heavyweight Champion Triple H.
– Still to come, Goldberg returns. Also, a six-man cruiserweight match. Back to commercial.
Rich Swann, Cedric Alexander and TJ Perkins vs. Brian Kendrick, Tony Nese and Drew Gulak
Back from the break and out comes Brian Kendrick first. Drew Gulak is out next followed by Tony Nese. Cedric Alexander is out first for his team followed by Rich Swann. RAW Cruiserweight Champion TJ Perkins is out next.
Gulak and Swann start the match off. Gulak takes control first but Swann turns it around with some good offense. Cedric comes in. Nese is in next for his team. Cedric takes control and tags in Perkins. Perkins comes in over the top and then goes to the corner for a tornado DDT but Nese counters and slams him for a 2 count. Kendrick tags in but Perkins catches him in the kneebar. Kendrick makes it to the bottom rope to break the hold. Kendrick retreats to the floor for a breather as we go to commercial.
Back from the break and Gulak gets nailed by a kick from Alexander. Kendrick tags in and stops a tag. Kendrick knocks TJ off the apron. Swann and Nese tag in at the same time. Swann unloads but runs into a boot. Swann jumps and brings Nese from the top with scissors. Swann covers with a 2 count but Gulak breaks it. Cedric takes out Gulak. Kendrick comes in but Cedric clotheslines him to the floor. Cedric also tumbles out. Perkins with a wrecking ball dropkick on Gulak. Swann goes to the top on Nese but gets knocked down. Nese with a 450. Kendrick tabs in and applies the Captain’s Hook to Swann. Perkins tries to crawl in but Nese is holding his leg. Swann taps for the win.
Winners: Brian Kendrick, Tony Nese and Drew Gulak
– After the match, Kendrick taunts Perkins.
– We go backstage to Foley and Stephanie. They talk about the three Traditional Elimination matches at Survivor Series. Stephanie wonders what tricks Foley has up his sleeve for next Monday. Foley proposes Jericho vs. Owens vs. Rollins for next week’s main event. Stephanie loves the idea and it’s on.
– Back from the break and Michael Cole is in the ring. He shows us Bill Goldberg’s recent comments on ESPN SportsCenter, then last week’s comments from Paul Heyman and the challenge to Goldberg for a rematch against Brock Lesnar. Cole makes the introduction and we see the former World Heavyweight Champion walking through backstage as various people stand on the side clapping. Fans chant his name in the arena, including Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper. Goldberg hits the stage and the crowd goes wild as pyro goes off.
The music stops but fans are still chanting for Goldberg. The long welcome back continues as a “this is awesome” chant starts. Goldberg says it’s been a long time but fans didn’t forget. Cole brings up the ESPN comments and hands Goldberg the mic, saying the floor is all his. Goldberg says “12 years, never say never.” He never thought he would be in this ring again. He thanks everyone for the humble return. What makes it so special is that his wife and son are here to see him live for the first time ever. We see them at ringside with the Governor. Goldberg says he received a phone call from WWE and 2K back in January. He got the opportunity to travel around the world and promote the game. It’s been 12 years… he misses a lot of things in this business. The biggest thing, besides kicking ass, is being a superhero for kids around the world. Goldberg says in this day and age, there aren’t enough superheroes. Going around the world promoting the game gave him that opportunity. He talks about meeting kids and seeing in their eyes that he was Goldberg. It gave him the chance to be a superhero to kids again. Fans chant for him again and he thanks them. Somewhere along the way, he created a little drama back at WWE and that made him think long and hard. He thinks that maybe it’s better alone. Maybe he keeps it in the video game. But then, Brock Lesnar challenged him to a fight but he didn’t have the balls to do it himself, he made his fat little stooge Paul Heyman do it for him.
Goldberg says he thought maybe he has one more ass kicking left in him, one more badass Spear and one more devastating Jackhammer. Goldberg says not only does that mean Lesnar is next, most importantly it means Lesnar is last. Lesnar tosses the mic and makes his exit as his music hits and fans chant his name. He greets fans at ringside and comes back to bring his son over the barrier for the celebration. His son goes back over and he continues greeting fans as the “Goldberg” chants continue. Goldberg hits the stage and raises his arms before walking to the back. RAW goes off the air.
