8 Ups & 3 Downs From WWE Raw (19 Aug - Results & Review)

1. Target Acquired

Last week’s match between Bronson Reed and Miz was a disappointment if only because Miz got way more offense than he probably should have in a straight wrestling match.

WWE course-corrected Monday night, running the match back but adding a no-disqualification stipulation, which allowed Miz to plausibly hang in there with chair shots and kendo sticks. The weapons also allowed Reed to absorb punishment and keep coming back, like a monster at the cinema. For example, Bronson kicked out of a tornado DDT onto a chair at one. He put Miz through a table with a Death Valley Driver and finished with a Tsunami.

After demolishing Seth Rollins and R-Truth with a plethora of Tsunamis, there was the risk of overdoing it by going back to the well. Instead, having Reed win a plunder brawl where he overcame the bulk of the weapons shots worked really well, with the one Tsunami serving as the kill shot that got fans out of their seats.

And perhaps the best part of all of this came moments afterward when Braun Strowman power-walked to the ring to stare down Reed, setting up a physical clash for next week. That match has a ton of potential behind it, particularly if WWE lets both men just air it all out next week.