4 Ups & 8 Downs From WWE Raw (March 8)

1. Your Mileage May Vary

Just when you thought Drew McIntyre’s clean win over Sheamus last week was definitive, they pulled us back in to another match between the former best friends on Monday night.

The two battled once again, this time in a no-DQ match that saw both men batter each other with kendo sticks, steel chairs, and finally ring steps before neither wrestler could continue. The result was a bruising bout without a decisive finish, and would seem to set up a final match between McIntyre and Sheamus at Fastlane, possibly a Last Man Standing match, possibly with a WWE Championship on the line.

Now, some will say that they booked this backward, with McIntyre already getting a clean win in what was billed as a blowoff match last week. Others would point to Sheamus pinning Drew a few weeks back before Elimination Chamber to show that the “series” is tied.

Bottom line for this writer: These two have some mad chemistry in the ring, and you can feel the hatred in their matches. That’s more than you’ll ever get out of 90% of the roster these days, so we’ll take it. One more battle with real stakes should do it for this long-simmering rivalry.