WWE RAW Live Coverage - September 4th, 2023

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Gunther looks to make history in an Intercontinental Title Match against Chad Gable

Gunther’s march to make history comes down to this. If The Ring General can defeat the leader of Alpha Academy Chad Gable, he will cement his place as the longest-reigning Intercontinental Champion in the title’s prestigious 44-year history. Considering how much of a thorn Gable has been in the side of Imperium as of late, however, that’s easier said than done.


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– The usual "WWE Then. Now. Forever. Together." opening signature narrated by WWE legend John Cena airs to get the post-Payback 2023 episode of Monday Night Raw officially off-and-running.

– From there, we shoot into a lengthy video package looking back at Saturday's Payback 2023 premium live event. The package doesn't end with Seth Rollins' win over Shinsuke Nakamura, but instead a shot of The Judgment Day with all the titles.

– A new Raw video intro airs with the theme song playing and then we shoot inside the Spectrum Center for the first time this evening. Michael Cole wishes us a Happy Labor Day and then calls tonight a can't miss edition of Raw as he runs down the advertised lineup for the show.

– Samantha Irvin then introduces the newest member of the Monday Night Raw roster -- "Main Event" Jey Uso. His "Just me, Uce! Day one ish!" theme plays and out comes Uso through the crowd to a big pop. Michael Cole informs fans who missed Payback that Uso has been traded from SmackDown to Raw.

He begins by joking that it's only been a couple of weeks that he's been gone. He says now it's just him, before saying "Uce" for the first of what I'm sure will be several dozen times before the show is over tonight.

As he continues, talking the theme for Sami Zayn hits and out he comes to the ring by himself. He gets inside the squared circle and says he wanted to tell Jey to his face that he's happy for him. He says he knows Jey and everything he's done the past few months was hard, but he did it. He says he broke free and now he's standing here truly as "Main Event" Jey Uso.

Zayn gets choked up when he tells Jey he just wanted to let him know he's proud of him. He extends his hand and the "Better Than You Bay-Bay" influence is apparent once again, as the fans loudly chant, "Hug it out!" Uso doesn't shake his hand. Zayn says that's fine and tells him whenever he's ready to talk, he's here.

Sami goes to leave, but Jey stops him. "Hey Sami, now that wasn't very Ucey of me, was it?" He extends his hand to Sami, who charges forward and power-hugs him for a big pop.

As Jey Uso goes to leave, the theme for Drew McIntyre hits. Sami steps in between Jey and Drew and plays peacemaker. Jey long stares at Drew as he walks past him and heads to the ring. Matt Riddle's theme hits and out he comes and he and Jey have a tense moment, which Sami also tries calming down.

Michael Cole explains the hard stares from Drew and Matt to Jey stem from past Bloodline issues. McIntyre and Riddle head to the ring together and settle inside for our opening contest.

– We then see video highlights of the Seth "Freakin'" Rollins vs. Shinsuke Nakamura match for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship from Saturday's WWE Payback 2023 premium live event. The package features comments from Nakamura and then we see the exclusive footage of Nakamura's attack on Rollins after losing their match on the show.

– We shoot backstage and we see Ricochet talking to Adam Pearce when Seth Rollins arrives. Pearce walks over to Rollins and asks what he's doing here. He says he told him to take the night off due to his back. Rollins assures him he's fine.

Ricochet tells Seth he respects him. Ricochet tells Seth he doesn't have to carry the whole show. Seth again assures everyone that he's fine. Back in the ring, we see McIntyre and Riddle wrapping up their ring entrance as we shift gears and head into a quick pre-match commercial break.

Tornado Tag-Team Match: Drew McIntyre & Matt Riddle vs. The Viking Raiders

When we return, The Viking Raiders make their way out and the bell sounds to get this one off-and-running. We see Drew and Matt jump into the early offensive lead. Matt shoves Drew and does the "Get the tables!" thing and everyone laughs, including Drew. Drew shoves him back and Riddle goes flying. Drew says you get them. He does.

They set the table up but it never gets used. The Viking Raiders take over. We see Drew fight back and he goes to put one of the Raiders through the table, only for the other to move the table so he doesn't go through it on the way down. Drew calls for the Claymore Kick but again Erik saves Ivar.

Riddle sets the table back up inside the ring. He heads to the top rope but Valhalla hops on the apron for the distraction. The Viking Raiders hoist Riddle up to put him through the table but Kofi Kingston runs down and saves him, but then accidentally hits Riddle with Trouble in Paradise. Viking Raiders use Kofi as a weapon to knock Drew down and then they put Riddle through the table for the win.

Winners: The Viking Raiders

– After the match, A video package is shown that highlights the history of the WWE Intercontinental Championship and the many Superstars who have held it through the years.

– We then see hype for tonight's main event between GUNTHER and Chad Gable, where "The Ring General" could break Honky Tonk Man's record for the longest reign.

– The sounds of Seth Rollins' theme hits and out comes the WWE World Heavyweight Champion to the ring as the fans sing along with his music. As he soaks in the love, we head to a quick commercial break.

When we return from the break, he is still doing his dance from The Joker movie as his music plays. It finally stops and he begins by addressing the Charlotte crowd in attendance. He welcomes us to Monday Night Rollins.

From there, Rollins talks about his successful title defense over Shinsuke Nakamura at WWE Payback this past Saturday. He talks about how bad his back was doing throughout the match and afterwards. He then calls out Nakamura.

Nakamura's theme music hits and out he comes as the rock violin kicks in. The fans still sing along with it, even though Rollins joked last week about how they don't do that anymore. Nakamura stops before coming to the ring. Rollins tells him to come all the way down.

Seth Rollins then challenges Nakamura to another match tonight, right here and right now. Nakamura smiles and then responds in Japanese, while the fans in Charlotte give him the "What?" treatment. Rollins says he doesn't know what he said but he assumes he accepted his challenge. He asks what he's waiting for.

Shinsuke simply says, "No," when Rollins tells him to come down here and ring the bell. He says it's Labor Day, but it's Monday night and he's clocked in. He says whether Nakamura likes it or not, he's about to get that work. Rollins drops the mic and heads up and dukes it out with Shinsuke on the stage.

We see his back taped up and Nakamura starts kneeing him in the back as security struggles to break them up. Ricochet also comes out to try and split them apart. As they continue to try and hold the two apart, we fade into another commercial break.

– When we return from the break, we see Rollins complaining to Adam Pearce backstage about what just happened and how he wants to get his hands on Nakamura again. He storms off.

Ricochet vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

Back live inside the ring we see Nakamura and Ricochet both standing ready for our next match of the evening. The bell sounds and we're officially off-and-running with this one. We see Ricochet jump into the early offensive lead, but it isn't long before "The King of Strong Style" takes over.

Cole and Wade Barrett question why Nakamura is turning down another title opportunity from Rollins as the Japanese legend continues to take it to Ricochet. On that note, we shift gears and head into a mid-match commercial break as the action continues.

As we settle back in from the break, we see Nakamura beat down Ricochet and start to get extra violent, ramming him into the post and steps and then using a chair for a vicious attack. The ref ends up calling for the bell. After the match, Nakamura continues the attack until Seth Rollins runs out to make the save. Nakamura ends up beating him down as well and leaving him laying.

Winner via DQ: Ricochet

– Now we shoot backstage and we see The Judgment Day duo of "Senor Money In The Bank" Damian Priest and Rhea Ripley watching on a monitor. Priest is holding his Money In The Bank briefcase but "Mami" tells him not yet.

– We see highlights of Trish Stratus losing to Becky Lynch in the Steel Cage match at WWE Payback. The package also shows Trish getting rude with Zoey Stark afterwards and shoving her, only for Stark to take her out with her Z-360.

– Backstage live, we see Zoey Stark being interviewed and she mentions that she still respects Trish and all she has done, but is on her own now. She is confronted by Shayna Baszler and the two seem to have a match scheduled for later in the show.

– Back inside the Spectrum Center, the lights go down. The theme for The Judgment Day hits and out come Finn Balor and Damian Priest, the new Undisputed WWE World Tag-Team Champions, as well as NXT North American Champion Dominik Mysterio and WWE Women's World Champion Rhea Ripley.

As the gold-heavy group heads to the squared circle to a ton of boos, we shift gears and head to another quick commercial break.

When we return from the break, we see The Judgment Day in the ring. Priest tells us, "All rise for The Judgment Day." Dom-Dom goes to speak next but as usual, you literally can't hear what he's saying due to how loud the boos are.

They each take a turn, with Balor even giving a special thanks to JD McDonagh for having his back the last 20 years. JD McDonagh comes out and Priest warns him, saying he's actually starting to like him so be careful what you say.

McDonagh references Ripley saying things need to change. He tells Priest that his briefcase needs to go. He says he doesn't need it. They've got all the gold. He says you don't need that briefcase, you need this one. He unveils a special Judgment Day purple-colored briefcase that says "Senor Money In The Bank" on it.

Priest likes it and begins speaking saying that with this briefcase and all the gold, but before he can finish the thought, the theme for Sami Zayn hits. "Gentlemen ... and Dom," he begins.

He says Kevin Owens isn't here tonight and then calls The Judgment Day championship-stealing turds. He says a special beating is owed to the biggest turd of them all - Dominik Mysterio. Zayn asks Dom if he has the cojones to fight him. McDonagh says Dom isn't fighting anyone tonight. He asks how about him. Zayn vows to kick his ass.

– We shoot to another video package looking at the various Superstars who have held the Intercontinental Championship throughout the years. After it wraps up, we shoot to GUNTHER in front of a blank white background.

GUNTHER asks Chad Gable who he thinks he is. He says he's just a foot-note on his journey to creating a legacy as the longest reigning Intercontinental Champion in WWE history. He hypes their main event showdown for the title tonight and the quick segment wraps up.

Shayna Baszler vs. Zoey Stark

Now we head back inside the Spectrum Center where we hear the familiar sounds of Shayna Baszler's theme music. As "The Queen of Spades" heads down to the ring for our next match of the evening, we shift gears and head into a quick pre-match commercial break.

When we return, we see Chelsea Green backstage complaining to Adam Pearce before we return back inside the arena where Zoey Stark's theme hits. She makes her way to the ring and settles inside.

The bell sounds and it's time to find out who the toughest woman in the Raw locker room is, as this one is now officially off-and-running. Baszler takes it to Stark early on as Cole sings her praises on commentary. Baszler slaps on her clutch submission finisher on Stark. Stark escapes and kicks Baszler out to the floor.

On the floor at ringside, Baszler again slaps her choke finisher on Stark. Stark slams Baszler into the commentary desk to escape. She hops onto the apron and comes flying off onto Baszler on the floor. On that note, we head to a mid-match commercial break as the match continues.

As we settle back in from the break, we see Stark beating down Baszler in the ring. She hits a picture-perfect springboard drop kick for a close near fall. Baszler shifts the offensive momentum back into her favor after that. Stark tries hitting a Z-360 but Baszler avoids it. Starks knocks Baszler to the floor and hits a big splash.

Back inside the ring, we see Baszler lock in her submission finisher and chokes out Stark. Stark struggles and makes it to her feet but fades back down. She gets up a second time while fighting it but fades down again and goes out. Baszler gets the win. After the match, Baszler tells Stark off-mic, "You gave me a better fight than Ronda (Rousey) ever did." Stark says the same to Baszler about Trish (Stratus).

Winner: Shayna Baszler

– After the match, we shoot backstage where we see The Judgment Day talking. Finn Balor talks about JD McDonagh and how he helped he and Damian Priest capture the tag titles.

Balor asks what Dom thinks. Dom says he's cool and asks Ripley what she thinks. Ripley says let's see how he does tonight. Balor and Priest walk off. Dom goes to follow but Ripley stops him.

She tells him he needs to make sure everything goes according to plan with McDonagh. He says he will and heads off.

Raquel Rodriguez vs. Chelsea Green

We shoot back inside the arena where we hear the familiar sounds of Raquel Rodriguez's theme music. Fresh off her hard fought battle against WWE Women's World Champion Rhea Ripley at WWE Payback 2023 over the weekend, Rodriguez heads to the ring as we head to another commercial break.

When we return from the break, one-half of the WWE Women's Tag-Team Champions, Chelsea Green, makes her way down to the ring. She settles inside the squared circle and her theme music dies down.

The bell sounds and we're officially off-and-running with this one. Immediately we see Green focusing her offensive attack on the injured knee / leg of Rodriguez. Rodriguez ends up catching Green during a splash attempt and Donkey Kong'ing her. She hits a massive clothesline and then her finisher for the quick and easy victory.

Winner: Raquel Rodriguez

– After the match, Rodriguez gets on the mic and says she spoke to Adam Pearce earlier tonight. She says she has her rematch next week against Rhea Ripley for the WWE Women's World Championship. She says Dominik Mysterio won't be a factor this time, because he is banned from ringside.

– We see another video package looking at various Superstars who have held the Intercontinental Championship over the years. After it wraps up, we shoot backstage to Chad Gable, Otis and Maxxine Dupri. They are wearing special gold jackets.

Gable talks about how he has held every tag team title available in WWE and tonight he'll add his first singles title to the mix when he beats GUNTHER to capture the Intercontinental Championship.

– Now we head back inside the arena where we hear the familiar sounds of The Miz's entrance music. "The A-Lister" makes his way out and heads to the ring as we head to a quick commercial break.

When we return from the break, we see Drew McIntyre and Matt Riddle talking backstage when up walks Kofi Kingston. He apologizes for kicking Matt Riddle on accident earlier. Riddle accepts but McIntyre doesn't, questioning how Kofi made a "mistake" just a week after his own mistake on Raw last Monday night.

As we head back inside the arena, we see The Miz in the ring and Michael Cole informs us it's time for an impromptu installment of Miz TV. He talks about what happened last night with his match against LA Knight, which saw John Cena serve as the special guest referee.

Miz then introduces his guest at this time, the greatest of all-time, John Cena. Cena's theme hits and the crowd goes insane, but Cena never comes out. Like Cole on commentary, Miz has some fun with Cena's "You can't see him" catchphrase.

The Miz continues to tough-talk an empty chair, pretending like it's Cena. He then threatens him and orders him to get out of his ring. Apparently invisible Cena doesn't listen, as Miz again tells him to leave. And again. He starts attacking the invisible Cena and even hits him with a Skull Crushing Finale.

He goes on to challenge LA Knight to a rematch without any special guest referees or surprises. He then throws invisible Cena out of the ring. His theme hits again to end the entertaining segment. Miz is good, folks. Like it or not, he's good!

– We head back inside the Spectrum Center in Charlotte where we hear the familiar sounds of Sami Zayn's entrance theme. As his Mighty Mighty Bostones-sounding theme plays and he heads to the ring, we shift gears and head to a pre-match commercial break.

– As we return from the break, we see "Main Event" Jey Uso walking the hallways. He runs into Adam Pearce. Pearce says there aren't a lot of happy people to see him here because of The Bloodline history. He mentions how there will be someone from Raw traded to SmackDown to even things out with him being moved to Raw.

Now we see Tommaso Ciampa approach Adam Pearce and ask if now is a good time to talk. They head into Pearce's locker room and shut the door.

Sami Zayn vs. JD McDonagh

Back inside the arena, we see Zayn wrapping up his long entrance and his music finally shuts off. The theme for JD McDonagh plays and out he comes by himself for our next match of the evening.

The bell sounds and we're officially off-and-running with this one. Zayn takes it to McDonagh straight out of the gate. Zayn immediately works over the back of McDonagh, while the commentators remind us that McDonagh was taken out with a pop-up power bomb by Kevin Owens onto a commentary desk at WWE Payback.

Zayn continues to work over McDonagh's back until finally the newcomer to the scene on Raw and friend of The Judgment Day begins to shift the offensive momentum into his favor. We see him ram Zayn into the steel ring post as we head into a mid-match commercial break.

When we return, we see Zayn fighting his way back into the offensive driver's seat. As it looks like he's got JD finished off, we see Dominik Mysterio interfere. Zayn lays him out but then gets rolled up by McDonagh. McDonagh pulls off the win.

Winner: JD McDonagh

– After the match, Zayn beats down Dom at ringside. Dom begs McDonagh for help but McDonagh just stands and watches from the entrance aisle. Zayn goes for the Helluva Kick in the corner and McDonagh finally runs down and yanks him out.

He runs him into the post and then helps Dom. Zayn recovers and hits an exploder suplex on McDonagh in the corner. Dom runs off and leaves McDonagh hanging. Zayn takes him out with a Helluva Kick and leaves him laying.

– Michael Cole introduces a video package looking back at Tiffany Stratton's interaction backstage with Becky Lynch at WWE Payback 2023. He then plugs her title defense against Kiana James on tomorrow night's NXT on USA show.

– From there, we see another video package looking at various Superstars who have held the Intercontinental Championship over the years. We then head to another commercial time out with our main event waiting on the other side of the break.

When we return, we see The Judgment Day giving JD McDonagh props for his win. Dominik Mysterio then sees Jey Uso and heads over to talk to him. He tries relating to him about having a deadbeat dad.

He says not only did he have that, too, but he also relates to him finding his own family with The Bloodline. He says no one liked him either until "Mami" and The Judgment Day came into his life. He tells Jey if he wants, he'll go talk to The Judgment Day. He says this way Jey knows there's always open arms for him at The Judgment Day.

After that wraps up, we return inside the arena where Michael Cole informs us that next week on Raw we will see Rhea Ripley vs. Raquel Rodriguez with Dominik Mysterio banned from ringside, as well as the return of Cody Rhodes for the first time since WWE Payback 2023.

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WWE Intercontinental Championship: GUNTHER (C) vs. Chad Gable

GUNTHER's theme hits and out comes the reigning and defending WWE Intercontinental Champion. He settles in the ring and Chad Gable makes his way out to the Alpha Academy entrance tune and a big pop from the Charlotte crowd.

Samantha Irvin handles the formal pre-match ring introductions for the champion and the challenger as the lights are dimmed down in the building. This one has "big fight-feel" written all over it. The bell sounds and we're officially off-and-running with this one.

Early on we see "The Ring General" easily handling Gable. He dominates the much smaller challenger in the ring and then takes him out to the floor at ringside to punish him. We head to a mid-match commercial break on that note.

When we return from the break, we see Gable get in some hope spots, which brings the crowd to life. Ultimately, however, GUNTHER quickly kills any momentum he was beginning to build, slows the pace down and continues to dominate what has been very much a one-sided beat down in favor of the champ.

We shift gears once again and head into another mid-match commercial break -- our final advertising time-out for this week's show. The historical I-C title tilt between GUNTHER and Chad Gable wraps up when we return.

As we settle back in from the break, and we see Gable once again starting to show signs of life as he fights back into competitive form. He lays out GUNTHER on the floor, but unlike last week, he's got to get him back into the ring because winning via count out won't earn him the title, which Michael Cole points out on commentary.

Back in the ring, Gable leaps to the top-rope like Kurt Angle in his prime and he hits a wild overhead super-plex to bring the big man down the hard way. He slaps the Imperiun leader in an ankle lock in the middle of the ring. The camera shows Gable's family watching on with excitement from the front row.

Gable tries to roll through with the Chaos Theory, but GUNTHER avoids it. Gable ends up hitting a nice back suplex to slow down the champ. Gable pulls down the straps, also like Kurt Angle, and then connects with Chaos Theory this time for a close near fall. Gable again gets the ankle lock on the champ. Cole yells out that GUNTHER is gonna tap over and over again, but of course, he doesn't.

GUNTHER fights out of the hold and quickly turns the tables, as now he's got a deep choke sunk in on the throat of Gable on the mat. The fans loudly, loudly chant "Gable! Gable!" to try and rally him back into the fight. Gable escapes but runs into a big shot from the champ, who follows up with a power bomb and a massive lariat for the pin fall victory. With the win, GUNTHER retains the I-C title. Gable's family are shown in tears in the crowd.

Winner and STILL WWE Intercontinental Champion: GUNTHER