Gunther and Chad Gable.WWE Welcome to WWE PK's live coverage and recap of WWE Raw on August 21 from Quebec City.
WWE is still setting up for the Payback pay-per-view on September 2, but that doesn't mean we won't get some big matches before then.
In fact, a highly anticipated bout took place this week when Gunther defended his Intercontinental Championship against Chad Gable.
We also saw The New Day take on Drew McIntyre and Matt Riddle for a future shot at the tag team titles, and Shinsuke Nakamura revealed what he said to Seth Rollins before attacking him last week.
Let's take a look at what happened on this week's episode of Raw.
Opening Segment
1 OF 8
Sami Zayn opened the show to a raucous ovation from his countrymen north of the border. He didn't say a word for the first 10 minutes because of the crowd's chanting.
After he finally welcomed us to the show, he was immediately interrupted by the entirety of The Judgment Day.
They surrounded the ring and prepared to attack, but Kevin Owens made his return and helped Zayn clear them out of the ring.
KO and Zayn issued a challenge for a tag match later in the show, which The Judgment Day accepted.
This was a simple segment, but the energy of the crowd is what made it all work.
Grade: B+
Notable Moments and Observations
- Zayn is over everywhere, but Canada always gives him the best reactions.
- The pop KO got when he came out was huge.
The New Day vs. Matt Riddle and Drew McIntyre
2 OF 8
The first match on this week's show saw Xavier Woods and Kofi Kingston back in action for the first time in several weeks taking on Riddle and Drew McIntyre for a shot at the tag titles.
Woods and Riddle started the match. The former King of the Ring winner mocked The Original Bro for not being a real tag team as he and Kingston cornered him for a double-team spot.
Riddle was never able to tag in McIntyre because Erik from The Viking Raiders pulled him off the apron. This allowed New Day to pick up the win, but they were all attacked by Erik and Ivar right away.
Honestly, this match was fine but not as good as it could have been. Not allowing McIntyre to get physical until after the fight felt like a mistake, and the way it all ended was a little cheap.
This might start a new feud with Riddle and McIntyre against The Viking Raiders, but it would have been nice to get more action and a clean finish.
Winners: The New Day
Grade: C+
Notable Moments and Observations
- When Owens was speaking French, he said "We will give you a volley," which is slang for a beating.
- Woods mocking Riddle was hilarious, especially because The Bro reacted exactly how you would expect.
Gunther vs. Chad Gable (IC Title)
3 OF 8
WWE played a couple of promo videos from Chad Gable and Gunther before they came to the ring for their Intercontinental Championship match. Both men arrived alone, so it was a fair fight.
The crowd chanted for Gable as they locked up, and Gunther backed him to the corner. The Olympian countered and hit a quick chop to show his rival he wasn't intimidated. The Ring General made him regret that by slamming him with one arm.
The champ continued to dominate through the break and into the next segment. He put Gable through the wringer with stiff strikes and suplexes, but the challenger kept showing signs of life.
Everybody expected this to be a great match, and Gunther and Gable did not disappoint. They worked incredibly well together to tell a great David vs. Goliath story.
After throwing him into the timekeeper's area, Gable beat the count back into the ring to get the win, but since this was a count-out, he did not win the title. Gunther lost it at ringside as the Olympian celebrated being the first person to beat him in a singles match on the main roster.
This was a perfect way to keep the belt on Gunther while giving Gable a win and setting him up to be the man who eventually beats The Ring General for the belt.
Winner: Chad Gable
Grade: A
Notable Moments and Observations
- The pre-match videos were good. It's cool how Gunther includes the word "heavyweight" when he talks about the IC title. Nobody does that anymore.
- Samantha Irvin gets so much power out of her voice when she says Gunther's name.
- Some of the transitions Gable used looked so smooth. He is on another level sometimes.
- When Gunther Irish-whipped Gable into the corner and he hit chest first, you could see the ring shake. He hit that turnbuckle at full velocity like Bret Hart used to do for the same spot.
Rhea Ripley vs. Candice LeRae
4 OF 8
After facing Indi Hartwell last week, Rhea Ripley found herself standing across the ring from Indi's adopted wrestling mom, Candice LeRae.
This match followed the pattern you would expect. Ripley used her power to control her smaller opponent, and LeRae would occasionally find a way to get in a little offense.
The bout didn't last long and ended with The Eradicator locking her in a submission for the win.
Raquel Rodriguez came out and attacked Ripley before announcing she was cleared and would get a title shot at Payback.
Winner: Rhea Ripley
Grade: C
Notable Moments and Observations
- Cody Rhodes gave an interview and asked "What do you want to talk about?" in French. The Montreal crowd popped.
- It was revealed that Nakamura told Rollins he knows about his bad back.
The Miz vs. Akira Tozawa
5 OF 8
The Miz came out and immediately insulted the Quebec City crowd by saying his wife was from Montreal and would never visit QC.
He brought out Akira Tozawa as his opponent and traded some funny insults with him to reference The A-Lister's feud with LA Knight.
Once Knight showed up to distract The Miz, Tozawa took control and hit a big suicide dive to send the show into a break.
This match lasted a lot longer than expected—probably longer than it needed to—but it's never a bad thing to have a competitive bout, especially when it features an underused star like Tozawa.
After Knight distracted Miz from the commentary table, Tozawa was able to roll him up for the win.
This might not have been a memorable match, but the ending was a fun surprise and kept the feud with Knight going, so it accomplished its goal.
Winner: Akira Tozawa
Grade: C+
Notable Moments and Observations
- Tozawa is awesome and needs to be on TV more often. Anyone who has seen his work in Japan knows how valuable he is.
- Knight's organic popularity is so rare. WWE cannot let this slip through its fingers.
- Tozawa's kicks are always the right amount of stiff. They make a loud pop when he hits them, but he never leaves a mark because he is doing it at just the right velocity.
Piper Niven and Chelsea Green vs. Kayden Carter and Katana Chance
6 OF 8
Becky Lynch was delivering a promo when she was interrupted by Trish Stratus and Zoey Stark.
The WWE Hall of Famer did the usual heel thing and insulted the city she was in, but most of the segment came off as clunky and awkward. It's possible a late rewrite had something to do with it.
The next match saw Chelsea Green and Piper Niven put their new partnership to the test against Katana Chance and Kayden Carter.
This was a pretty short fight and ended with Niven pinning Chance after a splash.
This was only one step above a squash match, but it made Niven and Green look like a formidable duo, so that was good.
Winners: Piper Niven and Chelsea Green
Grade: C-
Notable Moments and Observations
- Stratus seemed to be either forgetting or stumbling over her words. It was so out of character for her.
- Michael Cole and Wade Barrett called out the ref for not seeing a tag, but it was corrected in the ring a moment later.
Cody Rhodes, Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens vs. The Judgment Day
7 OF 8
When it was time for the main event, Ripley dragged Finn Bálor out and made him team with Damian Priest to take on Zayn and Owens. Dominik Mysterio joined her eventually, and they watched as the tag champs took it to The Judgment Day.
The crowd was doing the "Olé, Olé, Olé" chant for a long time until The Archer of Infamy and The Prince took control.
JD McDonagh tried to help out by throwing the MITB briefcase to Bálor, but Owens caught it and hit his Irish opponent to get disqualified. Priest yelled at JD before The Judgment Day beat down the tag champs. Cody Rhodes ran down with his weight belt to even the odds.
We returned from a break to see the match had become a six-man bout with Mysterio and Rhodes joining their respective allies.
Most of the Superstars involved were skilled veterans, so all the action we saw was fun and frenetic. The crowd was invested and reacting to just about everything that happened. Gunther vs. Gable was the best match on this show, but putting the Canadian Superstars in the main event of a Canadian show made the most sense.
This match got the last three segments of the show, so they had more than enough time to make sure all six men got some time in the ring.
Dom ended up taking the pin when Owens hit him with a Stunner. Ripley looked furious that her boys lost, as the winners celebrated in the ring.
Winners: Cody Rhodes, Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn
Grade: B
Notable Moments and Observations
- Ripley acting like a mother at the end of her rope is hilarious.
- Even with a shirt on, getting whipped with a weight belt would be incredibly painful.
- The bump Owens took on the apron looked perfect. He landed as flat as anyone possibly could.
- Ripley slamming Owens was a fun moment, but it's unlikely to lead to a payoff.
The Final Word
8 OF 8
This week's Raw did a lot of legwork when it came to advancing storylines, but only a couple of matches stood out.
Gunther vs. Chad Gable was easily the best bout of the night, and there is a chance it ends up being the best thing we see on WWE TV all week.
The main event was also a solid performance from six guys who have helped carry Raw for the past several months, and seeing Tozawa get a win was a big highlight for anyone who is a fan of the Japanese junior heavyweight.
With Payback less than two weeks away, WWE still has some work to do. Only three matches have been booked so far, so we can expect to see more added during SmackDown and next week's shows leading into the premium live event.
Grade: B-
