It’s the go-home show for The Horror Show at Extreme Rules and it’s likely to be a packed show. Sasha Banks & Bayley defend their tag titles against The Kabuki Warriors this week ahead of Banks challenging Asuka for the RAW Women’s Championship on Sunday. R-Truth goes one on one with Randy Orton… I’ve read the preview and I still don’t know why. Seth Rollins faces Kevin Owens in what will be a WrestleMania rematch. And The Viking Raiders meet Andrade & Angel Garza in a tag team elimination match.

Match Results

Andrade & Angel Garza def. The Viking Raiders

Ruby Riott & Bianca Belair def. The IIconics

Aleister Black def. Murphy (DQ)

Kevin Owens def. Seth Rollins

Randy Orton def. R-Truth

Bobby Lashley def. Ricochet

Sasha Banks & Bayley def. The Kabuki Warriors

The Show

♦ MVP’s VIP Lounge opened the show. He’s still carrying the new title belt around but he gets his chance to earn it against Apollo Crews at Extreme Rules. His guest was Dolph Ziggler.

Ziggler admired the title belt and said he’d think of getting something similar when he beats Drew McIntyre. On the subject of McIntyre, he talked about how well he knows him and took all the credit for McIntyre’s success. He feels entitled to a thank you and is angry that he hasn’t had one. Eventually, McIntyre interrupted their self-congratulatory exchanges.

McIntyre said he wasn’t going to rip up the set or Claymore MVP, he was there for Ziggler. He’s come to the conclusion Ziggler uses people. He used him as his muscle and they were never friends. Ziggler might be one of the most talented in-ring performers, but on Sunday and The Horror Show at Extreme Rules, he’s going to hurt him. He’s going to torture him and make him regret the day he brought him to RAW.

Drew McIntyre said he didn’t know if he could wait until Sunday. Ziggler tried to hide behind MVP but when he stepped out McIntyre punched him in the face and knocked him out.

♦ Charly Caruso spoke to Angel Garza, Andrade, and Zelina Vega, although she omitted Vega when she said hello. Didn’t matter, Vega dominated the interview anyway. She steered the conversation away from Caruso’s question about whether they’re on the same page and talked about how great they are. She insulted Caruso a bit too.

The Viking Raiders joined and said Garza and Andrade had dishonoured the division by cheating and attacking the Street Profits, so tonight they run through them.

Garza had been holding a rose to give Caruso. Ivar took it from him and presented it to her and it was Ivar she started after while Garza stood beside her wondering what just happened.

The Viking Raiders vs Andrade & Angel Garza – Tag Team Elimination match – was the first match of the evening. Erik was the first elimination, and fairly quickly as well, falling foul of a hammerlock DDT from Andrade. Ivar took Andrade and Garza down with a suicide dive while they were busy confirming they were on the same page, but he couldn’t capitalise. He eliminated Andrade a few minutes later but Andrade was still at ringside to drape Garza’s leg over the bottom rope and prevent him getting pinned. Garza got the pin after dragging Ivar off the turnbuckle into a sort of powerbomb. Weak end to what should have been a fun match.

♦ Ruby Riott spoke to Sarah Schreiber, or would have done if The IIconics hadn’t shooed her away so they could insult Riott again and remind her they had individually beaten her and were about to beat her in a tag match because Riott has no friends. But Ruby Riott has made a new friend. Her tag team partner is Bianca Belair.

Ruby Riott & Bianca Belair vs The IIconics was great because it got Bianca Belair back on TV. Riott and Belair is a slightly off the wall combination, but it worked pretty well. The IIconics were not at all keen on Belair entering the ring and did their best to keep Riott away from her. It was a good strategy on their part because when Riott made the tag, Belair destroyed Billie Kay. Peyton Royce broke the cover after Belair knocked her off the apron with a handspring. Ruby Riott came in to kick Royce in the head and Belair pinned Kay off the K.O.D.

♦ R-Truth was under the impression he was wrestling Ric Flair. Cedric Alexander and Ricochet had to put him right in another very confusing segment. Tozawa appeared as he was leaving and Truth tried to convince him to teach him to be a black belt in the next five to ten minutes. Tozawa declined and tried to pin him for the 24/7 title. Truth kicked out. The Ninjas arrived. Ricochet and Alexander came to back up Truth. And R-Truth declared a proper 24/7 title match for him and Tozawa starting immediately. Truth has held that title 37 times, one of 36 people to share 99 title reigns.

Before R-Truth vs Akira Tozawa could start, while Truth was questioning the presence of the ninjas, Shayna Baszler arrived and took out all the ninjas. Tozawa left when she looked at him, then she turned to R-Truth. He tossed her the microphone and ran away.

Baszler said she’d been patient and allowed everyone to have their fun, but she’s done. All the champions are deluding themselves that they’re in control, that the terror left in her wake is a distant memory. The Queen of Spades is there to shatter that illusion by hitting them with a hard dose of reality. She is that reality.

♦ Murphy is concerned about the possibility of Rollins and Mysterio trying to rip each other’s eyes out of their sockets. Rollins said nothing happens without sacrifice and told him to stay backstage to prepare for his match while he went to the ring to deliver a message.

In the ring, Rollins said he didn’t realise Rey Mysterio meant it literally until after he’d agreed. He doesn’t understand how they got there. All he wanted to do was lead RAW into the future and Mysterio kept resisting and now he’s in a match where the only way to win is to pluck your opponent’s eyeball out of its socket.

He never meant to hurt Mysterio. Mysterio came to him in a time of need and he just tried to fulfil the prophecy for the greater good, to be the person the WWE Universe wanted him to be. This year, Extreme Rules is called the Horror Show and that’s what it’s going to be. He’s going to blind Rey Mysterio.

Kevin Owens interrupted before Rollins finished and said the thing he finds most disturbing about Mysterio’s stipulation is that Rollins managed to push someone so nice that far. He gets it though, he was prepared to end his career to beat Rollins. He brought Rollins an eye patch as a gift, courtesy of former WWF legendary pirate Jean-Pierre Lafitte. Rollins called out Murphy to beat Owens up, but Aleister Black intercepted him before he got to the ring and the brawl began.

Murphy vs Aleister Black was in progress when we returned from a break. It was decent but finished in a DQ when Seth Rollins pulled Black off Murphy and out of the ring. Rey and Dominik Mysterio came out leaving Rollins in the ring with a laid-out Murphy and nowhere to go.

Seth Rollins vs Kevin Owens started as we got back from the next break. Aleister Black and Rey and Dominik Mysterio were on the outside. Murphy appeared to have vanished. It got nasty, in and out of the ring. Owens had a lot of support and they effectively prevented Rollins from running away or from taking advantage when Owens was down on the outside. After a brutally tough match, it looked like Rollins had Owens beaten. Black, Dominik, and Rey got up on the apron, keeping Rollins’ attention for long enough for Owens to recover and deliver a stunner for the win.

After the match, Mysterio warned Rollins that while he’ll be walking into their match with two eyes, he’ll be carried out with one.

♦ Ric Flair and Big Show had a chat backstage. Flair had a lot of nice things to say about Big Show’s career, but warned him he’s picking a fight he can’t win if he’s picking on Randy Orton. He advised Show to stick to Hollywood. Big Show had a question in response. He was Flair if he was willing to sacrifice his own friendships so Randy Orton can be the Legend Killer.

We also got a full-on Legend Killer history lesson/hype package, leading into Orton’s promo. He said he had the handful of friends it’s said you’re lucky to get out of the business with. He had Edge and Christian, Big Show, and Ric Flair. When Edge made his miraculous return all he had to do was become RKO again, but he didn’t trust him so he sent him home to be a father. Then Christian arrived to defend his friend’s offer. But the selfish mistake Christian made was to agree to one more unsanctioned match. Now it’s the Big Show and they’ve got history. Orton doesn’t understand why he’d Ric Flair is family which is why it would be a shame if Ric did anything to jeopardise their friendship.

His opponent tonight, R-Truth, has his respect, which is why it’s going to be a shame when all he amounts to is one more chapter in the history of the Legend Killer.

R-Truth vs Randy Orton sounded like a terrible idea from the off. Ric Flair came out before the match and said nice things in celebration R-Truth’s two-decade career. He said Orton likes Truth as much as he does so he’s not going to kick his head off, he’s just going to RKO him. Truth tried to talk to Flair after the bell rang, but was ready for Orton’s attack. Didn’t matter though, R-Truth still had his jacket and title belt on when Orton RKO’d and pinned him. Ric Flair tried to talk Orton out of going back to Truth but Orton pushed him aside and lined up to punt Truth’s head off his body. Big Show came down but Orton stopped him by threatening Truth. Orton challenged Big Show to an unsanctioned match next Monday and Big Show agreed and rushed the ring. Orton escaped and said he was never going to kick R-Truth, it was always about Big Show.

Backstage, Big Show confirmed to Charly Caruso that he has accepted the match. Weird that they’re doing it after Extreme Rules when an unsanctioned match would seemingly fit right in.

♦ MVP is still trying to recruit Cedric Alexander and thinks his victory in his match on Sunday is a foregone conclusion.

♦ Dolph Ziggler attacked Drew McIntyre while he was being interviewed. He was just in the middle of saying that the Scottish Psychopath has come out so the stipulation doesn’t matter.

♦ Bobby Lashley, with MVP, vs Ricochet, with Cedric Alexander, was ok. Just ok. Ricochet tapped out in the full nelson but Lashley wouldn’t let go. Alexander came in to help, decked MVP, and ended up in a full nelson himself.

♦ Sasha Banks & Bayley (C) vs The Kabuki Warriors – WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship match – main evented the show. The entrances started over half an hour before the end of the show, but Banks and Bayley showed their tribute package to themselves before The Kabuki Warriors came out. Banks and Bayley tried to get the quick jump start of their opponents but were kicked out of the ring to make way for an ad break.

The match itself was great. Kairi Sane was on fire and if WWE let her leave they’re idiots. Asuka had control of Sasha Banks for a good while, a potential preview of their match on Sunday. Bayley caused a distraction by pulling Asuka off the apron to prevent Sane finishing Banks off. Sane was catapulted into the plexiglass by Banks and Bayley going into the break and was in trouble for a long time after we came back. She was isolated in Banks and Bayley’s corner but eventually got to Asuka after landing a spinning backfist on Banks.

Asuka cleaned house when she came in, but couldn’t finish the job. Bayley and Banks started to look worried and pin attempt after pin attempt failed. Asuka nearly secured the titles with an Asuka lock, Sane even prevented Bayley’s interference, but Banks got to the ropes. Bayley pulled Sane off a cover on Banks following the InSane Elbow. Sane came close again, but got caught in a Bank Statement while winding up to finish Sasha Banks off and tapped out.

That felt like a busy episode of RAW, but go-home shows usually are. Not bad though, all things considered. Enjoy The Horror Show at Extreme Rules and join us next week for all the fallout.