6 Ups And 9 Downs From Last Night's WWE Raw (Feb 18)

Ups...

6. Riott Gets Better Showing

ruby riott ronda rousey
WWE.com

Not every moral victory is a big one. Sometimes, just unraveling a bad knot is good enough.

In Ruby Riott’s case, getting a rematch on Raw after getting absolutely squashed at Elimination Chamber the night before was that opportunity.

Riott tangled with Ronda Rousey in a Raw Women’s Championship rematch and actually scored a couple near-falls during the bout, hitting her finisher off the top rope at one point for a super-close 2 count. But in the end, Rousey snapped off an inverted Alabama Slam into the turnbuckle, hit a rana and rolled right into an armbar for the tap-out.

Yes, it was a predictable win for Ronda, but it was necessary. For Ruby, it was redemption in terms of having a competitive match to show she’s more than just cannon fodder for Rousey. Not a great night, but better than Sunday.

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Contributor

Scott is a former journalist and longtime wrestling fan who was smart enough to abandon WCW during the Monday Night Wars the same time as the Radicalz. He fondly remembers watching WrestleMania III, IV, V and VI and Saturday Night's Main Event, came back to wrestling during the Attitude Era, and has been a consumer of sports entertainment since then. He's written for WhatCulture for more than a decade, establishing the Ups and Downs articles for WWE Raw and WWE PPVs/PLEs and composing pieces on a variety of topics.