The upcoming Extreme Rules PPV has been subtitled ‘The Horror Show.’ In preparation for it, we’ve got a double contract signing set for tonight’s show – Drew McIntyre and Dolph Ziggler, and Asuka and Sasha Banks – not two separate ones, both at the same time. There is a title match, which may contain ninjas, as Akira Tozawa defends the 24/7 title against R-Truth. The Viking Raiders face Andrade & Angel Garza. Apollo Crews has a non-title match against MVP. Big Show and Ric Flair will be making an appearance, which means probably Randy Orton as well. And the ‘Monday Night Messiah’ will continue to terrorise the Mysterio family.

I’m Amanda and this is the RAW review

Match Results

Andrade & Angel Garza def. The Viking Raiders

R-Truth def. Akira Tozawa

Seth Rollins & Murphy def. Aleister Black & Humberto Carrillo

Peyton Royce def. Ruby Riott

Big Show def. Andrade & Angel Garza

MVP def. Apollo Crews

Bobby Lashley def. Ricochet

Dolph Ziggler & Sasha Banks def. Drew McIntyre & Asuka

The Show

♦ The show opened with Bayley and Sasha Banks beating up Asuka in the ring with Samoa Joe calling for officials. It was supposed to be the contract signing but it was completely out of control. Joe eventually got to do the introduction to the show, but they had to be pulled apart again before Dolph Ziggler was brought out. Ziggler insisted on giving Drew McIntyre a very disrespectful introduction, and finally, everyone was in the ring.

Ziggler was the first to sign, after a long soliloquy about how well he knows McIntyre and how McIntyre would be nothing without him. McIntyre signed first, then had a go at getting in Ziggler’s head, reminding him he’s always the bridesmaid and never the bride. He offered Ziggler the chance to pick the stipulation for their match, but Asuka interrupted before he chose one, eager to sign her contract. Banks said she and Bayley are taking over the whole damned company and signed with a stamp, then it all kicked off again. We’ll have to wait to find out what the stipulation will be.

A Champions vs Challengers mixed-tag match was set for later in the show.

♦ Angel Garza looked to be trying to sweet-talk ref Jess because she’s refereeing their match. Charly Caruso seemed a little jealous when she appeared and asked what he was talking to her about. Zelina Vega wouldn’t let them talk though. She insulted Caruso, who only wanted to ask them if they thought they were next in line to face the Street Profits for the titles (they do). Big Show arrived and told them he was taking their match slot and bumping them down the card.

Big Show came to the ring and called out Randy Orton, but he got Angel Garza, Andrade, and Zelina Vega instead. Show apologised for interrupting their interview, but warned them not to push him. They didn’t listen. There was trash-talk as Andrade and Garza went either side of the ring, then Ric Flair showed up.

He told Vega nicely he wanted to have a word with Big Show. He said Randy Orton was in the back and would only appear when he wanted to, and warned Big Show off trying to take him on. When he was done he told Vega to let Garza and Andrade have some fun at Big Show’s expense, but The Viking Raiders turned up before they could figure out how to get in the ring without getting knocked out.

Andrade & Angel Garza vs The Viking Raiders started during the break. Big Show was nowhere to be seen, but Zelina Vega joined commentary for the match. It was a decent opener. Going into a break, Zelina Vega had to chase after Andrade and stop him walking out on his teammate, but when she got back to commentary she wouldn’t elaborate on why. She just said she’s the best manager in the business. It finished with a Wing Clipper from Garza on Erik. Andrade kept Ivar from breaking the pin up, but left alone.

♦ The IIconics approached Ruby Riott backstage, just to insult her. Ruby Riott challenged one of them to a match.

♦ Backstage, Ric Flair approached Vega, Andrade, and Garza while they were sorting out their difference and asked to speak to them privately. A little later, it turned out he had arranged a 2 on 1 handicap match for Andrade and Garza against Big Show.

♦ Akira Tozawa (C) vs R-Truth – 24/7 Championship match – did indeed contain ninjas. They stayed on the outside until after R-Truth won the title back by feigning a knee injury and rolling Tozawa up. Once the title had changed hands one of the ninjas tried to pin Truth, then another, and he ran off pursued by them all.

♦ Bobby Lashley said Apollo Crews turning down MVP was disrespectful to them both. He made sure MVP wasn’t planning to give him another chance. MVP said no, the offer was dead but he was planning to ‘drop a few gems on him’ before they take everything from him.

♦ Seth Rollins delivered his most important message to date (according to him, no one else). He’s still going on about Rey Mysterio being a sacrifice for the future on Monday Night RAW. He said he gave him every opportunity to go out on his own terms but Mysterio has defied him at every turn. He asked Mysterio’s forgiveness, not for the things he’s about to do, but for the things he will be forced to do in the future. Every time Rey Mysterio gets in the ring, Rollins will be forced to take a piece of him and, little by little, he will tear him apart until there’s nothing left.

Rey Mysterio and Dominik appeared on the big screen. Rey asked Dominik to forgive him for what he has to do to Seth. He told Rollins, ‘An eye for an eye’. Dominik told his dad he forgives him, but told Rollins he will never forgive him and Rollins will never forget what his father does to him.

Rollins said if Dominik continues to interfere with the greater good, he’ll end his career before it begins. Aleister Black and Humberto Carrillo turned up then and Rollins and Murphy scarpered to the outside.

After a break, Rollins questioned them on why they stick up for Rey Mysterio. The answer was basically that Rey Mysterio is a better man and Rollins is evil. Rollins said they’ve seen nothing yet, this ends now, and we got a tag team match.

Seth Rollins & Murphy vs Aleister Black & Humberto Carrillo was brutal but fun to watch. Annoyingly, it finished with a Stomp on Carrillo from Rollins then turned into a brawl. Aleister Black was left lying in the timekeeper’s area. Murphy and Rollins tried to do the eye on the corner of the steps thing with Carrillo, but he fought back so Murphy hit him with them. Rollins put Mysterio’s mask on Carrillo and dragged him to the steps, but Black came back in time to stop that. While he dealt with Murphy, Rollins Stomped Carrillo’s head into the steps.

♦ Drew McIntyre and Asuka were interviewed together. McIntyre said they were just going to have fun with their opponents tonight. The reason he allowed Ziggler to pick their Extreme Rules match stipulation was so there can be no excuses when he loses. He also said Sasha Banks is not ready for Asuka. Asuka said Dolph is not ready for Drew.

♦ There was a tribute to The Undertaker who has now retired… probably… almost definitely. He really has had an unrivalled and exceptional career.

♦ Lana approached Ruby Riott backstage and tried to befriend her, or recruit her to be some kind of follower of Natalya.

♦ Charlotte Flair has a fractured left collarbone, so she’s out for a few weeks.

♦ Ruby Riott vs Peyton Royce, with Billie Kay, was short and sweet. Peyton Royce targeted Riott’s surgically repaired shoulders which gave her the advantage early in the match. She lost it and Billie Kay had to distract Riott to stop her delivering the Riott Kick. It worked and Peyton Royce picked up the win.

♦ Big Show told Charly Caruso he is fully expecting Randy Orton to be lurking during this match. He said that, growing up, Ric Flair was his hero but when he got into the business he learned he really is the dirtiest player in the game. And now he’s mentoring Randy Orton, Orton is the most dangerous apex predator WWE has ever seen. He’s taken out a few legends, but he’s ready. As far as Andrade and Garza go, they picked the wrong night. They’re not getting the friendly happy Big Show, they’re getting one angry giant.

♦ Andrade & Angel Garza vs The Big Show started with neither Andrade nor Garza wanting to start the match. Andrade tricked Garza into it. The faces Vega pulled when one of her clients took chops from Big Show were one of my highlights of the match, and they took a few each. Andrade didn’t fare any better than Garza. Angel Garza managed to get Big Show down but Andrade tagged himself in and they argued. Garza left him to it and Vega tried to convince him to come back. She didn’t manage to and she left with Garza while Andrade was being chokeslammed into the mat and pinned. After his hand had been raised in victory, Big Show pulled Andrade up by the hair and hit him with the KO punch.

♦ R-Truth met up with Apollo Crews, Cedric Alexander, and Ricochet backstage. He got everyone’s name wrong, but they had a nice friendly conversation.

♦ There was a lot of talk about respect from MVP and Apollo Crews before their match. MVP feels disrespected that Crews doesn’t want him as a manager. Crews feels disrespected by MVP’s persistence and said the only person he cares about helping is himself. MVP vs Apollo Crews got out of hand fast. It was immediately clear MVP couldn’t compete with Crews. Lashley rescued him then took a dive over the top rope from Crews, but MVP dodged it and threw Crews into the steps going into a break.

When we came back, MVP had control of the match. Crews gradually recovered and came back and it took another distraction from Lashley to allow MVP to finish it with a fisherman’s suplex.

Post-match, Lashley locked the full nelson on Crews and it took Cedric Alexander and Ricochet to make the save.

Bobby Lashley vs Ricochet was in progress when we came back. Ricochet got thrown around a lot, including being bounced off the announce desk by MVP and being run into the ringpost by Lashley. Ricochet was barely moving when Lashley went for the full nelson. Somehow he fought out of it and regained the advantage by sending Lashley into the post. With Cedric Alexander neutralising MVP it looked like the comeback would end in victory, but Lashley got the full nelson on again and Ricochet tapped. It took Lashley much too long to let go, and he put Cedric Alexander out the same way when he came to check on his tag partner.

♦ Dolph Ziggler asked Bayley and Sasha Banks to let him take the reins. They laughed at him and told him not to screw it up.

Bayley joined commentary for Drew McIntyre & Asuka vs Dolph Ziggler & Sasha Banks. Ziggler nearly knocked the ref out by crashing into him. Asuka versus Sasha Banks is going to be great (as is Banks vs Io Shirai on Wednesday’s NXT). On the whole, mixed tag matches annoy me because all momentum is lost when a tag happens, but this was an entertaining main event. Bayley managed to get involved, distracting Asuka from commentary and nearly costing Asuka and McIntyre the match. Sasha Banks got in McIntyre’s face for throwing Ziggler out of the ring then elbowing him off the apron after she’d tagged it. She spent to much time yelling at him she got kicked in the head by Asuka.

That didn’t get her the pin and neither did the Bank Statement, but she flipped out of the Asuka lock and kept Asuka’s shoulders on the mat for the three.

With the pandemic appearing to have it WWE in the past week, everything has a ‘subject to change’ feel to it. Join us next week to see if anything has changed.