8 Ups & 3 Downs From WWE Raw (20 Jan - Results & Review)

WWE Raw had a tall task heading into Monday night. The show, rebounding last week from a subpar Netflix debut the week prior, needed to sell an upcoming Royal Rumble PLE as well as a Saturday Night’s Main Event program this weekend.

While not the most electrifying show, WWE successfully navigated those challenges, delivering a solid effort that set up a new match and effectively promoted two more for this weekend’s television special. But more importantly, Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens began overtly sowing the seeds of a WrestleMania main event dream match that felt more like a fever dream a couple of years ago and seemed just wishful thinking a few months ago. Nonetheless, there they were on Monday night in the middle of the ring saying all the things that make you believe it’s possible.

Bayley officially joined the Raw roster and turned in a solid underdog performance against Nia Jax, while Penta continued his introductory tour of Raw, winning another well-received match against Pete Dunne. However, WWE’s effort to make heel New Day happen faltered on Monday night, with the group finally theoretically advancing the story beyond backstage promos, and it fell flat in several ways. While not a disaster – the crowd reaction was still strong enough – it wasn’t on par with the initial turn, and one can’t help but worry that we’re going to be in the land of diminishing returns.

Still, Raw gets passing marks with another solid show.

Let’s get to it…