6 Ups & 4 Downs For WWE Raw (28 July - Results & Review)
2. Women Nail The Party Match
WWE isn’t known for having the weekly party match, cramming six or eight wrestlers into a contest and just blowing the doors off the barn.
But the eight-woman tag match on Raw did a pretty good job of rising to that level, not taking itself too seriously and giving every woman an opportunity to shine. The babyface team – Iyo Sky, Nikki Bella, Stephanie Vaquer, and Rhea Ripley – clearly was the all-star squad that had to be the favorites coming in, but Naomi, Chelsea Green, and the Secret Hervice kept them off-balance for a while.
The match broke down (in a good way) when Vaquer got the tag, leading to a flurry from La Primera before Naomi tried to leave. This led to Iyo and Nikki downing the Women’s World Champion and doing Sky’s taunt, only for Piper Niven to rise up from behind, flatten both women, and mock Iyo’s taunt. Rhea planted Piper with a Riptide, allowing Vaquer to finish Green with an SVB.
This was a perfectly fun and entertaining match that gave each woman something to do. Vaquer picking up the pin was a nice cherry for her, while Bella was able to hide in plain sight as she continues to reacclimate to the ring.
Given how well they did, perhaps a women’s party match on WWE programming could become a semi-regular staple?