CM Punk opened this week’s Raw by celebrating that he was able to overcome the odds and beat Brock Lesnar and his former manager, Paul Heyman. Punk talked about how Heyman tried to get involved, but Punk saw it coming. He added that despite the circumstances, he proved that he’s still the best in the world.
This brought out Heyman and Lesnar. Heyman asked, “Best in the world? More like luckiest in the world.” Heyman began to remind Punk that Lesnar had him beat if it weren’t for an inept referee. Heyman continued to goad Punk, saying his reign and legacy as WWE Champion would be forever tarnished if he would not give Lesnar one more shot. Punk said no, telling Lesnar that he had his shot last night and lost. Punk added that he’s onto the next opponent.
Heyman went further, suggesting Punk knows that he almost lost the title and doesn’t want to risk it once again. Punk shot back saying he wasn’t afraid of anybody. Heyman told him to prove it then, as he and Lesnar walked away.
In the opening match, Edge faced off against Money in the Bank briefcase holder Daniel Bryan. A fantastic match between the past and future of the WWE, the two went back and forth, impressing the fans with a fast paced tilt. Trading moves throughout, it seemed like the match could on for an hour.
It eventually slowed down as Bryan took control with submission holds. Edge fought out and the crowd chanted “yes” and “no” as the two traded blows. Bryan whipped Edge and hit him with a high knee, calling for the Yes Lock. Edge scooted out of the ring and the battle continued.
Eventually, Edge wore Bryan down enough to whip him into the corner. He called for the Spear, but Bryan moved out of the way, leaving Edge to hit the ringpost with his shoulder. Bryan capitalized, grabbing Edge and putting him into the Yes Lock. Edge eventually tapped, despite his efforts to get to the ropes, giving Bryan the victory.
The Rhodes Scholars may have been all smiles before their match with the Shield, but did they have the same look after the match?
Following, the Shield, represented by Roman Reigns and Dean Ambrose, squared off in tag team action against the Rhodes Scholars. The Scholars had been on a bit of a roll as of late, but the Shield were furious about their tag team title loss at Summerslam. The Shield beat on the Scholars mercilessly and picked up the win following a Roman Reigns spear on Cody Rhodes.
Backstage, someone came up to the APA in their office and told them that he would pay them to fight Batista for him. Faarooq remarked that it was a lot of money and that this person really didn’t want to face the Animal.
Dolph Ziggler was next in line to fight R-Truth. Truth had returned from his Commissioner-ordered hiatus. Ziggler had the upperhand throughout and was looking to put Truth away quickly. However, the veteran Truth fought back and used every trick in the book.
However, Ziggler was able to hit a sneaky Zig Zag to put Truth in a pinfall. Truth got a foot on the rope, but the referee missed it and counted three for Ziggler. Truth argued the result, glaring at Ziggler and the referee with his wide eyes. Truth shouted, “next week!”
Jack Swagger came out to the ring to a chorus of boos. Swagger ripped into WWE officials for disqualifying him at Summerslam. He said this is the second time he’s had a championship match won and failed to hold the gold. The started to chant at Swagger being a whiner and Swagger had enough, flipping on the crowd.
He berated the fans for cheering for guys like CM Punk and Chris Jericho, two guys, he added that shouldn’t be holding their current titles. He also criticized the fans for liking a “corrupt commissioner who has no control over the show.” He continued his rant, adding that there’s one more thing the fans should know, but just then the mic was cut off. Swagger attempted to speak into it once more, but failed. He threw it down and stormed up the ramp.
Batista came to the ring for his match. His paid opponent, Bradshaw, came out. A tough match between two massive heavyweights, Batista had the upper hand early but the momentum was traded back and forth as neither could put the other man away. Both wore each other down. Late in the match, Bradshaw went for a Clothesline from Hell, but missed, allowing Batista to set him up for the Batista Bomb, hitting it and scoring the victory.
After a tough match, Ryback’s music hit and he charged the ring to beat up on a downed Batista. Ryback punished the Animal and left him in ruins in the ring.
In Diva’s action, Trish Stratus took on newcomer Kaitlyn. Trish, still upset from Kaitlyn’s debut at Summerslam, mounted her best offense against the bigger Diva, but the Kaitlyn dominated the match from start to finish. One Spear later and Kaitlyn had won her debut match in impressive fashion.
Jack Swagger was seen storming the halls of the arena looking for Commissioner Real Deal, but to no avail.
The main event of the night was Steve Austin taking on Antonio Cesaro. Cesaro wanted a bit of revenge for Austin’s attack on him during his match with Kurt Angle last week on Raw. Cesaro put on an impressive showing against the Rattlesnake and almost had the match won at times.
But Austin was resilient as ever and continued to fight back. He started to counter Cesaro’s moves and even blocked a Neutralizer attempt.
The tide finally turned after Austin stomped Cesaro in the corner and followed with a Lou Thesz Press. Just then, Kurt Angle came flying out of the back and attacked Austin. Austin was the victor by DQ, but didn’t feel like a winner after he was hit by an Angle Slam. While laying on the mat in pain, Cesaro glanced at Angle as the show went off the air.
Real Deal vs Roose: Road to Wrestlemania 