Tuesday Morning RAW July 23rd
Author: Barrett Bannon
Raw: 23/07/2024
Channel: Foxtel WWE Channel/Kayo/Binge
Once again Raw was all about the build to Summer Slam with tension rising between Gunther and Damian Priest, a number 1 contenders match for the Intercontinental Championship and a special guest referee announced. We also get to see the Raw Women’s division shine with Sonya, Zoe and Shayna’s new group along with more action from the Wyatt Sick.
Gunther and Priest
Raw started with the King of the Ring and number 1 contender for the World Heavyweight Championship Gunther attempting to apologize for his words last week against Damian Priest. Gunther wouldn’t go on with the apology though as he would instead stand by everything he said last week and insult the rest of the Judgement Day as well. He would then offer Priest one more chance to give him the title and save Priest the trouble of losing it at Summer Slam. Priest would then make his way into the ring where instead of using his words he let his fist do the talking as he would attack Gunther starting a brawl between the two. Security would have to get involved but they had little success separating the two as in a backstage segment after the brawl Priest would once again attack an unsuspecting Gunther. The segment once again shows Gunther as the main heel in the feud along with casting more doubt over Gunther being successful in becoming the new World Heavyweight Champion. With the heat between Damian and Gunther heading into Summer Slam, this is the match that has the potential to steal the show and cement Priest as a true Champion.
Bron Breakker VS Ilja Dragunov
The first match of the night was the number 1 contenders match for the Intercontinental Championship at Summer Slam against Sami Zayn. Once again, Ilja vs Bron was a high-intensity hard hitting match with a lot of back and forth between the two. Breakker would end up coming out with the win after the match was ended by referee’s decision due to Ilja Dragunov being unable to continue. While the ending was a disappointment it does make Bron Breakker appear to be a real threat to Sami Zayn’s title and if the ending moments of this show tells us anything it’s that Breakker isn’t messing around this time.
Sonya, Shayna and Zoe
In this show, we saw that they are trying to make the newly formed faction of Zoe Stark, Shayna Basler and Sonya Deville appear as a real threat to the entire Raw roster with the group making several appearances. Sonya would start by defeating Lyra Valkyria with some assistance from Zoe and Shayna as Katana Chance and Kayden Carter weren’t able to do enough to keep them out of the match. Later in the night, Zoe Stark would face an injured Zelina Vega where Zelina would come out the winner after Kayden and Katana would come out to help her get the win. The trio would then make their way to visit the Tag champions Alba Fyre and Isla Dawn where they would lay out a challenge for the titles. While the group is clearly on their way to gaining some gold soon, we also get to see Zelina Vega gaining some momentum with her win over Zoe.
Drew McIntyre VS CM Punk is official
Finally, the highly anticipated match between Drew and Punk was made official with Punk announcing he has been medically cleared. Punk was ready to go right there and now but Adam Pearce had a better idea with putting the match on at Summer Slam and not allowing CM Punk or Drew McIntyre to touch each other until then unless they want to be fired. Pearce had one more surprise as he would announce a special guest referee for the match with Seth Freaking Rollins revealing himself to the displeasure of both Punk and McIntyre. While having Seth wrestle at Summer Slam would have been nice this match needed to be a 1 on 1 and with Seth announcing the rules on next weeks Raw the steaks in this match will surely be risen.
The former Alpha Academy and the Wyatt Sicks
Xavier Woods, Otis and Akira Tozawa would go up against the Final Testament in a surprisingly enjoyable match where we got to see former Alpha Academy members shine with both Tozawa and Otis having great moments as Tozawa was able to hold his own against both members of the AOP. They would however come up short with Karrion Kross pinning Xavier Woods ending the match. The former Alpha Academy’s night wasn’t over yet as their former master Chad Gabel would come out to offer them one last chance to rejoin him. Otis had to step up and tell Gabel that they wouldn’t rejoin and so Gabel would tell the Creed Brothers to take care of them. Otis would try and fight back but unfortunately, the number would be too much but luckily the Wyatt Sicks were watching. The lights would go out as the Wyatt Sicks would walk out onto the stage, but Chad should’ve been looking behind him as Uncle Howdy would attack Gabel using his brother’s finisher Sister Abigail to take him out.
Other Highlight’s:
- Bronson Reed VS Pete Dunne gets called short with Sheamus wanting revenge for last week. Sheamus challenges Dunne to a match next week.
- Dominic wins the heart of Rhea Ripley once more by telling Liv Morgan that he hates her making Liv Morgan cry and Dom getting a reward.
- This weeks VHS shows how Uncle Howdy saved Nikki
Main Event
Tonight’s main event was a tag match between the Tag Team Champions Finn Balor and JD McDonough against former Bloodline members Sami Zayn and Jey Uso. It was a great main event with lots of back and forth with some interference from Dom and Carlito for the Judgement Day and getting to see a 1D performed by Jey Uso and Sami Zayn. In the end, Uso and Zayn would get the job done making them contenders for the tag titles later down the line. The rekindling of Sami Zayn and Jey Uso could have a bigger meaning though with the new Bloodline becoming stronger on Smackdown and the potential for the Bloodline Vs Bloodline match at Survivor Series this could be the start of the original Bloodline being rebuilt.
Raw has once again given the fans a great show, with every moment of this week being a must-watch. Every match from the opener between Ilja Dragunov and Bron Breakker to the main event were all great setting high expectations for Summer Slam. There was a lot of storyline progression in the Raw women’s division and a possible tease for Survivor Series. With just one more Raw until Summer Slam on the 4th of August expect an action-packed show next week.
Barrett Bannon, lives in the ACT and a current sports media student at the University of Canberra. Trying to get a start in the world of Professional Wrestling after falling in love with it at last years Royal Rumble and never looking back. I’ll be posting the weekly Tuesday morning Raw highlights and I’m ready to talk about all things WWE.
