Trish Stratus vs. Becky Lynch on WWE Raw from Canada.
Credit: WWE.com WWE Raw from Winnipeg, Manitoba Canada advertised a grudge match between Trish Stratus and Becky Lynch amid controversy from their match being left off the WWE SummerSlam 2023 card.
Last week’s broadcast of WWE Raw garnered 1.890 million viewers.
WWE Raw Results on August 14, 2023 Sami Zayn def. JD McDonagh Chad Gable def. Giovani Vinci GUNTHER def. Otis The Glasbros (Riddle and McIntyre) def. The Viking Raiders Trish Stratus and Becky Lynch Battle to a Double Countout Cody Rhodes def. Finn Balor WWE Raw Ratings August 7, 2023 | 1.890 million July 31, 2023 | 1.759 million July 24, 2023 | 1.818 million July 17, 2023 | 1.88 million July 10, 2023 | 1.809 million WWE Raw Ticket Sales WWE Raw Venue: Canada Life Centre (Winnipeg, MB) WWE Raw Tickets Distributed: 9,444 WWE Raw Tickets Available: 303 AEW Is Ruining Wardlow (Pro Wrestling Bits) WWE Raw Winners And Grades Sami Zayn Def JD McDonagh Finn Balor once again did not walk to the ring with the Judgment Day, which will probably be split up by the end of the summer.
Given the fact that John Cena’s ballooned elbow led to him missing several months, it seems like nothing short of a miracle that Sami Zayn is able to compete.
Michael Cole naming the official injury diagnosis of Sami Zayn was a whole production in and of itself.
Sami Zayn defeated all conventional WWE odds (being in his home country, a repackaged heel debuting, injury outside interference) to shockingly win this match.
Sami Zayn vs. JD McDonagh Grade: B Chad Gable Def. Giovanni Vinci Backstage, Piper Niven emerged as Chelsea Green’s new tag team partner.
GUNTHER said everybody believes Chad Gable will be the one to dethrone him, and I don’t think he’s ever told a bigger lie.
After GUNTHER received some cheap heat from Manitoba by calling it the armpit of Canada, Ludwig Kaiser once again put his rizz game on display with Maxxine. He was once again denied.
Chad Gable’s Chaos Theory suplex on Vinci had an awkward landing, and they just barely pulled it off.
Chad Gable vs. Giovanni Vinci Grade: B- GUNTHER Def. Otis Wade Barrett said Kaiser and Maxxine Dupri would make beautiful children and it made Michael Cole uncomfortable.
Otis had to no-sell GUNTHER’s chops at one point, and it must have taken every fiber in his being not to flinch.
GUNTHER power bombed Otis int0 oblivion and it looked especially impressive (and jiggly) in slow motion.
After GUNTHER’s win, GUNTHER once again began arguing with Ludwig Kaiser. WWE shouldn’t even be thinking about splitting up IMPERIUM, not because they’re particularly entertaining, but because I’m certain they have no plans for Vinci and Kaiser on their own.
GUNTHER vs. Otis Grade: B Matt Riddle And Drew McIntyre Def. The Viking Raiders Drew McIntyre appeared backstage with Matt Riddle, who asked McIntyre to team with him. McIntyre seemed on the fence about it, and whether it’s this week or in the future, Riddle is going to be on the wrong end of a heel turn.
Michael Cole dubbed McIntyre and Riddle the Scottish Highlanders.
Drew McIntyre and Riddle won this match without incident, and though he didn’t get the pin, it was Riddle’s first win in God knows how long. Good on him.
McIntyre and Riddle decided on a superior nickname: The Glasbros. McIntyre wasn’t thrilled at being booked by Riddle in a match against The New Day. Heel Drew loading…
Riddle and McIntyre vs. Viking Raiders Grade: C+ Rhea Ripley Def. Indi Hartwell This was exactly what you though it would be on paper. Mostly a squash. WWE under the Triple H Era continues to employ an interesting strategy of having new wrestlers lose in their debut. I guess it’s more realistic as one has to crawl before they walk.
After the match, it took Candice LeRae and Hartwell to fight off Ripley.
Ripley vs. Hartwell Grade: C Shinsuke Nakamura Challenges Seth Rollins Michael Cole announced Shinsuke Nakamura like it was a ring announcement, but he did so at 50% speed.
Shinsuke Nakamura cut a promo in Japanese, predictably eliciting “what” chants.
After agreeing to a WWE World Heavyweight Championship against Rollins, Shinsuke Nakamura whispered something in Rollins’ ear and then took him out with a Kinshasa. Whatever Shinsuke whispered, Rollins sold it huge.
Nakamura-Rollins Grade: B- Trish Stratus, Becky Lynch Battle To A Double Countout Given the buildup, and being in Stratus’ home country of Canada, this match didn’t have as much heat as I would expect to start. But the two pros didn’t waste any time getting this crowd up for the match.
Trish Stratus’ facemask magically disappeared midway through the match and she was miraculously healed.
In the worst possible finish conceivable, this match ended in a double disqualification. After all that buildup, a match that was left off SummerSlam and moved to Canada built to a Cage Match next week in Quebec City. At least Canada gets this match twice.
Zoey Stark was banned from ringside, but reappeared in a disguise in the concession stand after the match. Why did she need a disguise? The match had already ended.
Trish Stratus vs. Becky Lynch Grade: C+ Cody Rhodes Def. Finn Balor Cody Rhodes gave these fans not one, not two but three “whoas.”
The Judgment Day got a lot of heat for continuously interfering, and things didn’t bode well for them when Priest walked down.
In a Hotel California finish, Damian Priest once again showed up with the Money in the Bank briefcase, and it once again backfired.
JD McDonagh saved Damian Priest at the end of the show, and Priest appeared to have finally warmed up to Balor’s run-in buddy.
Priest put Sami Zayn through a table to end the show, which went off the air with massive heat toward the Judgment Day.
Cody Rhodes vs. Finn Balor Grade: B+