This week's Raw opened as chaos featuring many of the top female competitors on the red brand. Rollins then called out Mysterio but had to go through Aleister Black and Christian tried to motivate his best friend.
The Viking Raiders and Street Profits competed again and Bobby Lashley got a huge push heading into Backlash.
Finally, Nia Jax made her presence known in a fantastic main event.
Here are your winners and losers from Raw, June 8, 2020:
Loser: WWE Jobs The Iiconics, Gives Us More Charlotte
While one can argue the opening match on Monday's Raw was fairly entertaining and the women involved delivered the goods, the booking decisions made by WWE are certainly questionable. Not only is WWE dipping into the Charlotte Flair well far too often, but WWE jobbed out one of the teams in this Sunday's WWE Backlash Triple Threat Match for the Women's Titles, and to a team not even in the match.
Banks and Bayley interrupted Asuka who thought she was going to be dealing with Charlotte in respect to their singles match. Declaring that as the champs they could go to any brand they wanted, Charlotte then came out to say she knew about moving from brand to brand. That brought out the Iiconics who called out the new tag team champions on Twitter last week.
A few more insults led to the conversation breaking down and all competitors in the ring fighting and eventually an impromptu Triple Threat Match. The ending was sudden when Asuka upstaged a braggadocios Flair and picked up the submission win for their team.
Flair attacked Asuka after the bell for showing her up.
Again, the match was entertaining, but why book it this way? WWE featured two women who were going to get their own screen time later in the show, and overshadowed the match they should have been promoting, the Backlash Triple Threat Match for the titles.
Winner: Rollins Promo Leads to Aleister Black Sacrifice
The second segment on Raw was booked much more strongly than the first. Rey was ready to talk to the announce crew from his home but Seth Rollins was ringside to hijack the interview. Taunting Rey and inviting him to Raw next week, Aleister black flew in from out of nowhere to attack Rollins.
Coming back from commercial, there was a tag match featuring Rollins' disciples (Murphy and Austin Theory) and Black with his partner Humberto Carrillo. A short bout saw Black and Carrillo pick up the win, but Rollins had his disciple attack, leaving Black as the winner of the battle, but the loser of the war.
This match featured members that were all interconnected to the Rollins and Mysterio storyline and everyone effectively played their part. It builds anticipation for next week if Rey and Dominick show up and suggests their could be pure pandemonium.
Winner: The Peep Show
Randy Orton teased before Christian made his way to the ring that there could be a surprise guest on The Peep Show. As the show came back and Edge was now in the ring, the unexpected happened. Christian started laying in truth bombs, saying what a lot of fans have been thinking. Edge was running on fumes and isn't going to be able to live up to the expectations placed upon his match with Orton on Sunday. In fact, Christian didn't think Edge had it in him to put on the "Greatest Wrestling Match Ever" in his prime.
As Edge fired back Christian began to smile, then said, "That's what I was looking for." Christian's plan was to get Edge riled up and motivated, ensuring his best friend went into Sunday's match with the Viper's antivenom.
Orton showed up on the big screen and told both to stop talking, suggesting all they were doing was fooling themselves and that Edge's redemption story was over.
Without Christian being able to get physical, this really was the best way for WWE to use him. They finally addressed the concern of the match moniker and didn't shy away from its billing. That was smart.
Winner: The Decathlon
The Street Profits and Viking Raiders games have officially gone on too long. That said, it's starting to work.
This time, the decathlon was the flavor of the day and they squared off in everything from actual Olympic-style competitions to who could eat the most turkey legs.
Again, there was no winner as the results ended in a tie. With the two teams coming out as friends to aid Drew McIntyre later in the show, it's becoming evident these vignettes aren't going to end in a feud, but a new friendship where the two sides have accepted each other's differences.
This has now officially become a buddy-buddy comedy. It could work if fans decide to tak it for what it is.
Winner: Andrade
Apollo Crews came out to say he'd be defending his United States Championship at Backlash against the winner of the upcoming Triple Threat Match, one that seemed extremely lopsided for Kevin Owens. Andrade and Angel Garza did work together for a little bit, but as each grew more selfish and wanted their shot at the title, they turned on each other, hurting Zelina Vega in the process.
This was a strong match with an interesting story behind it. WWE is continuing the growing friction between Garza and Andrade but Andrade picked up the surprise win when he pinned Garza. He'll move onto Backlash. Unfortunately, he got an earful from a incensed Vega backstage after the match.
Winner: Lashley
Tonight's Raw was very much about giving Lashley his final push headed towards Backlash. Severely outnumbered, he and MVP took on The Viking Raiders in a tag team match. That said, The Raid had Drew McIntyre and The Street Profits all down at ringside, cheering them on and getting involved. Still, Lashley seemed to be the unstoppable force, locking in a Full Nelson to get the win and then refusing to go down after a Claymore Kick merely broke the hold but didn't take him out.
It's easy to see that Paul Heyman and WWE are pushing Lashley and the Full Nelson strong. No one should be surprised considering Heyman once said he wanted to take Mark Henry and build him as an unstoppable force around a Bear Hug. His plan seems to be working.
If there was a downside here, it's that the match was quite long and MVP seemed like he couldn't hang.
Winner: Charlotte vs Asuka
Charlotte and Asuka have great chemistry, plain and simple. This match was excellent, both women showcasing why they should be considered two of the best female competitors in the world.
It's a shame the predictable end was Nia Jax interfering, but it made sense to keep both women strong. Asuka losing without the distraction would have been a shame.
Charlotte stood tall and she was the bulk of Raw tonight, but it's hard to say she hasn't earned it. She's at the top of her game and she might be the brand's biggest star.