WWE Raw – March 02, 2020 (Review)

WWE Raw – March 02, 2020 (Review)

Greetings SWAFT Nation!

Sorry to be late with this Raw Review, but I was in the middle of a large international gathering this previous week, so when I got home I immediately slept.  So I’m watching Raw a day late, and let’s look at what was advertised for Raw.

Looks like the Street Profits get to take on Rollins and Murphy in hopes that the Raw Tag Team Titles go to an actual tag team.

Beth Phoenix makes an appearance to discuss Edge, in case you were unaware that they were a Hall of Fame power couple.

And in a change to the previously advertised match, Kairi Sane is replacing Asuka against Shayna Baszler.  Considering their history in NXT, this is a very welcome match.

The Best of Raw

Get your Kicks

The show starts off with an appearance by WWE Champion Brock Lesnar and his advocate Paul Heyman.  Heyman discusses McIntyre’s fluke elimination of Brock Lesnar, proposing that it was the unexpected trip to Dick Kick City that caused Lesnar to be vulnerable to elimination.  Not having any of that, Drew McIntyre comes out to face off against Lesnar in the ring.

Claymore County takes over Suplex City as Drew not only Claymores Lesnar in the ring, but comes back to give him one more on the ramp for good measure.

Honestly, this was quite fun and not only did it continue some great storytelling, but Lesnar is money when it comes to selling and gets Drew over even further.

So Sayeth the Profits

Street Profits are up next against Murphy and Rollins.  They are incredibly over, with the crowd chanting that they want the smoke, and apparently if the Street Profits lose, they never get another shot at the titles.  Murphy and Rollins come out, with AoP on the Ramp, and the match gets going after a brief exchange on the outside.

Very athletic match that has a very engaged crowd,  and a balanced performance between both teams.  With a kerfuffle on the outside distracting the ref, Kevin Owens slides in and delivers a stunner to Rollins. As AoP chase him off and Murphy gets slammed into the barricade by Dawkins, Ford delivers a Frog Splash with the pin to win the titles for the Street Profits!

https://twitter.com/WWEUniverse/status/1234654159988822016?s=20

Glad to see the Tag Team Championships on an actual tag team, and the match was fun, plus I’m sure it builds to further the Rollins/Owens feud. Plus we got a pretty great promo from Rollins after the match, declaring they want those titles back at Elimination Chamber as well as what I’m sure is a WrestleMania tease.

Women of War

On to the Shayna/Kairi match, which looks to no longer be an Ironwoman Match as was scheduled with Asuka.

The connection between these two is pristine, with each of them getting offense in with each other, but Shayna gets to the limb manipulation and takes control.  Becky then comes out mid-match dressed to impress and joining the commentary table.

Becky continues putting over Shayna on commentary, though Shayna quickly wins after blocking an InSane Elbow and turning it into a Kirafuta Clutch for the submission.  Solid match, even if it was shorter than expected.

Good Lucha Things

Continuing the intertwined Mexican feud, Rey and Humberto Carrillo face off against Andrade and Angel Garza. This is the first Raw since Andrade’s suspension has expired, and I forgot that he was still the US Champion.

These superstars all have excellent chemistry, and this is a match given a ton of time.  I’m not sure what the primary feud will be now, but it looks like Humberto may now have a path to the US Championship as he pins Andrade after a crisp Moonsault.

The Viper and the Phoenix

Beth Phoenix comes out to give a medical update on Edge but is quickly interrupted by Randy Orton.

Beth is clearly having none Randy’s polite handshake, telling him that She needs her husband and her children need their father. Crowd is chanting RKO throughout this.

Orton prepares his explanation and gives a history lesson on the past between Edge and himself. Claims that he took Edge out so he can go home and be a husband, a father, and places the blame on Beth for endangering his health by enabling him. This promo is intense, incredible, and ends with an expected, yet shocking move.

The show ends with Beth left lying in the center of the ring as he exits to no music. Hawkins, Ryder, and others are out in the ring with Beth as we end the show on that visual.

The Mixed Bag of Raw

Phenomenal Fade

AJ Styles comes out to cut a promo about his loss at Super Showdown, and to prepare to fight Aleister Black. Once Black appears, however, AJ reveals that before he gets a match with AJ, Black must first go through Anderson.

Aleister makes short work of Anderson, but after that victory, AJ claims that Black must also get through Gallows, and a match between those two begins. Doesn’t go long before Luke Gallows refuses to break the corner count and gets disqualified.

Black puts up a valiant fight, but is unable to make it past the prior abuse to last long, and loses to a Phenomenal Forearm. Rubbing salt in the wound, AJ crosses Black’s arms and pins him Undertaker style to end the match.

It is an unusual position to put Black into, as I’m now curious if this means that there will now be some Taker-Black connection, and I’m not sure whether or not this helps or hurts Black overall.  At least he was protected, unlike Ricochet earlier.

The Worst of Raw

Chronicle of Riddick

Ricochet faces Riddick Moss for the 24/7 Championship. Brooklyn crowd chants “Who Are You?” to Moss, who gets the jobber-entrance.

Quite a bit of action between the two, with Moss looking dominant but Ricochet showing off his good flippy stuff. However, after an STO Neckbreaker, Riddick Moss wins, meaning that in the same week Ricochet has lost his chance at both the top title and bottom title.

This may be good for Riddick Moss, but having Ricochet in this position seems to do nothing to serve him, especially since the loss was completely clean.

Squad Goals

The Riott Squad is all involved in a match as Ruby Riott faces off with Liv Morgan and Sarah Logan serves as special guest referee.

Another short match which, ends when Sarah Logan, who attempts to play peacekeeper, gives a fast count to Morgan so she gets the win on Ruby.  Following the match there is a quick celebration before Logan also betrays Morgan, leaving her lying with a swift kick.

This is definitely a story that could be compelling, but feels like it isn’t developing at the right pace.

It wasn’t Gwenyth Paltrow’s Head

No Way Jose makes his way through the halls of the arena, and runs into Rowan and his cage. Rowan says he’s been waiting for somebody to ask politely, and he pulls out a large toy robot spider…

I don’t know what we expected, but it wasn’t that…

Overall Rating for the Show (From best to worst: RawSome, Cor, AvRAWge, Poor and RawFul)

There was little not to like on this Raw, but what was negative was downright confusing or awful. I don’t know if Ricochet sneezed on Vince McMahon while yawning and smoking a cigarette or what, but that seemed like a pretty hard burial. Also, I feel like we need a little more exploration of the Riott Squad’s story. However, this show also Opened and Closed hot, with some good action in-between.

This Raw gets a: Low Cor

Follow WrestleTalk on Twitter to stay up-to-date with all the latest wrestling news.

4 years ago by Wrestle Talk

Trending

Related Stories

Former AEW Star ‘Speaking’ With WWE
Former AEW Star ‘Speaking’ With WWE

26 mins ago by Jamie Toolan

Cody Rhodes Reveals When He Believes The Rock Saw He Was ‘A Player’
Cody Rhodes Reveals When He Believes The Rock Saw He Was ‘A Player’

3 hours ago by Connel Rumsey

Triple H Comments On Potential WWE Raw Viewership Drop After Netflix Move
Triple H Comments On Potential WWE Raw Viewership Drop After Netflix Move

4 hours ago by Connel Rumsey

AEW Name Reacts To WWE Abandoning ‘Sports Entertainment’
AEW Name Reacts To WWE Abandoning ‘Sports Entertainment’

5 hours ago by Dave Adamson

Backstage WWE Reaction To ‘Anomaly’ Logan Paul
Backstage WWE Reaction To ‘Anomaly’ Logan Paul

5 hours ago by Dave Adamson

WWE Names Behind Sheamus’ In-Ring Return Revealed
WWE Names Behind Sheamus’ In-Ring Return Revealed

6 hours ago by Dave Adamson

Latest Stories

Big Change To AEW Championships Confirmed
Big Change To AEW Championships Confirmed

8 mins ago by Jamie Toolan

Tony Khan Reveals TBS’ Reaction To Airing CM Punk & Jack Perry AEW All In Footage
Tony Khan Reveals TBS’ Reaction To Airing CM Punk & Jack Perry AEW All In Footage

2 hours ago by Jamie Toolan

Tony Khan Responds To CM Punk Claims He Had To Pay For Own Surgery In AEW
Tony Khan Responds To CM Punk Claims He Had To Pay For Own Surgery In AEW

1 hour ago by Jamie Toolan

Cody Rhodes Could Have Been A Paul Heyman Guy
Cody Rhodes Could Have Been A Paul Heyman Guy

6 hours ago by Dave Adamson

WWE Star Shares Emotional Message To ‘Bigger Kids’
WWE Star Shares Emotional Message To ‘Bigger Kids’

6 hours ago by Dave Adamson

WWE Star Declares Himself ‘Better Than The Undertaker’
WWE Star Declares Himself ‘Better Than The Undertaker’

7 hours ago by Dave Adamson

Get the latest wrestling news straight to your inbox

By submitting this form, you are consenting to receive marketing emails from WrestleTalk