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WWE RAW REPORT
APRIL 28, 2025
KANSAS CITY, MO. AT T-MOBILE ARENA
AIRED LIVE ON NETFLIX (WORLDWIDE)
REPORT BY MAURICIO POMARES, PWTORCH CONTRIBUTOR
Commentators: Michael Cole, Pat McAfee
Ring Announcer: Mark Nash
Attendance: WrestleTix reports today that 10,218 tickets were distributed as of earlier this week; arena is set up for nearly 11,000. The arena has a capacity of 19,252 spectators when configured for concerts.
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[HOUR ONE]
– The show opened with a recap of Seth Rollins, Bron Breakker and Paul Heyman standing tall over CM Punk and Roman Reigns last week.
– Seth Rollins made his way to the ring alongside Bron Breakker and Paul Heyman. Rollins said that there might be people still chanting for CM Punk, but the fans were looking at the future of this industry. Rollins said that the future of this industry ran through him, only for Sami Zayn to interrupt him. Sami told Rollins that what he was doing was a load of crap. Sami pointed out that Rollins was like Punk and Roman Reigns by having Heyman by his side.
– Sami said that he just realized that Rollins was jealous of Punk and Roman. Sami called Rollins a hypocrite that had a wiseman on one side and a dog on the other. Rollins warned Sami that he would either be on their side or would become a target. Rollins told Sami that maybe they could move Sami off of Raw since he was not buying what they were selling. He told Sami that this was a favor and that he would need an answer by the end of the night.
(Pomares’ Analysis: A solid follow-up to last week’s major angle that immediately puts focus on the new faction and sets some intrigue for later on the show. Sami is great whenever you need people to show some character progression which was on clear display when seeing how his interactions with Rollins changed since the last time. I thought Rollins would have a different presentation, but I guess they could be saving it a more radical change for later down the line.)
– A recap of Roxanne Perez and Giulia interrupting the match between Iyo Sky and Stephanie Vaquer last week was shown.
– Rhea Ripley made her way to the ring, ahead of her match against Roxanne Perez.
[Commercial Break]
(1) RHEA RIPLEY vs. ROXANNE PEREZ
Perez rolled out of the ring and threw her jacket at Ripley, setting her up for a chop block. Perez slapped Ripley and tripped her into the turnbuckle with a dropkick to the knee. Ripley caught Perez with a boot to the face but couldn’t follow up with Razor’s Edge. Ripley kicked Perez away, only for Perez to sweep her off her feet and send her out of the ring with a dropkick. Perez went for a suicide dive, but Ripley caught her and rammed her into the barricade. Perez swept Ripley off her feet and smashed her leg into the ring post. Ripley blocked a headscissors takeover and clobbered Perez with a lariat before laying her out with a vertical suplex. Ripley sent Perez out of the ring with a dropkick, as WWE Raw went to commercials.
[Commercial Break]
Back from break, Perez nailed Ripley with a springboard moonsault and put her in a modified Figure 4 leg lock. Perez pummeled Ripley with forearm strikes, until Ripley kicked her away. Ripley knocked Perez down with a series of clotheslines, followed by a thrust kick, a Razor’s Edge and a dropkick to the face for a nearfall. Giulia showed up to have a face-off with Ripley, allowing Perez to get a two count with an inside cradle. Perez spiked GIulia with a basement rana, setting her up for a cartwheel knee drop to the back of the head and a two nearfall. Ripley blocked Pop Rox and cracked Perez with a knee to the face. Ripley tried to attack Giulia before cracking Perez with a headbutt. Giulia nailed Ripley with a chop block before she could hit Perez with the Riptide.
WINNER: Rhea Ripley at 11:47 via DQ
– After the match, Roxanne Perez and Giulia assaulted Rhea Ripley, until Iyo Sky ran down for the save. Perez and Giulia overpowered Sky, but Ripley quickly chased them away.
(Pomares’ Analysis: Really good match, until the same non-finish from last week. I’m happy that they protected Perez and didn’t actually beat her, but I’m slightly annoyed to see back-to-back DQs in this feud. Nevertheless, it’s cool to see Giulia and Roxanne regularly on TV as a call-up seems inevitable at this point.)
– Backstage, Finn Bálor talked with JD McDonagh about his return and wished he would have told him that he was coming back sooner. Liv Morgan informed JD and Finn that they had a match tonight and JD confirmed that he spoke with Adam Pearce to get a match with the War Raiders. Finn remained calm and asked them to keep him informed whenever things happened.
[Commercial Break]
– Logan Paul stood in the middle of the ring to gloat about his win over AJ Styles at WrestleMania. Logan insulted the crowd and took a shot at Jey Uso before saying that he hadn’t won a world title yet. He said that he was coming for the world title before Jey interrupted him. Jey said that he wouldn’t hand the world title to a punkass youtuber. Jey said that Gunther lit a fire on him that wouldn’t go down and that he would beat him. Logan said that he would make sure Jey’s run was shorter than his Intercontinental title run, only for Jey to hit him with a superkick.
(Pomares’ Analysis: Fine segment, but I could not be less interested in a Logan Paul vs. Jey Uso match.)
[Commercial Break]
– The New Day were on the commentary table for the next match.
(2) WAR RAIDERS (Ivar & Erik) vs. JUDGMENT DAY (Finn Bálor & JD McDonagh w/Carlito)
Finn and JD pummeled Ivar down, only for Ivar to lay him out with a back body drop. Erik dropped Finn with a Xploder and nailed JD with a running knee strike. Erik cracked JD with a knee to the face before he and Ivar planted Finn and JD with stereo bodyslams. Ivar missed a running crossbody into the LED board on the apron, as WWE Raw went to an ad break.
[Commercial Break]
[HOUR TWO]
Back from break, Erik blasted JD with an uppercut, reaching Ivar for the hot tag. Ivar floored Finn with a sidewalk slam and crushed him with a running crossbody. Ivar hit Finn with a seated senton and laid JD out with a leg lariat before crushing Finn with a corner senton. Finn avoided a moonsault and JD knocked Erik off the apron. JD took the War Raiders down with an Asai moonsault before crashing Ivar with a moonsault.
Erik broke the pinfall and Ivar nailed Judgment Day with a double handspring back elbow.s The War Raiders drove Finn and JD into each other. Ivar threw Finn into the New Day and hit all of them with a running crossbody. Carlito distracted the referee, allowing JD to hit Erik with a jawbreaker. Penta tripped JD off the top turnbuckle, allowing the War Raiders to beat him with the War Machine.
WINNERS: War Raiders at 10:35
(Pomares’ Analysis: A decent match to re-establish the War Raiders as the next contenders and hopefully set up a stipulation match against the New Day. They are still building to Finn Bálor leaving the group, but they are clearly taking the long road.)
– Backstage, Paul Heyman met Sami Zayn and reiterated Seth Rollins’ offer. Heyman told Sami that Bron Breakker wanted to face him and that if he were to move to SmackDown, he would immediately get a title match against the winner of John Cena vs. Randy Orton.
[Commercial Break]
– Becky Lynch made her way to the ring to confirm that she was the one that took Bayley out of WrestleMania. Lynch said that Bayley has attacked her numerous times since 2019 and never apologized. Lynch said that she showed Bayley what a real superstar looks like at WrestleMania. She said that the friend of her enemy was also her enemy. Lynch said that she tried to save Lyra Valkyria and she wouldn’t have won the tag titles without her.
– Lyra showed up to say that everyone warned her about Lynch, but she refused to believe it. Lyra said that the illusion of Becky Lynch was dead and she would make her pay. Lynch rolled out of the ring, only for Lyra to remind her that she beat her in their last match. Lyra set up a match against her at Backlash and said that she was already a better wrestler than her. Lynch tried to go on a tirade, only for Lyra to blast her with a dropkick through the ropes and force her to run away. Lyra posed atop the ramp, only for Lynch to return to attack her from behind.
(Pomares’ Analysis: A strong promo from Becky Lynch and probably Lyra Valkyria’s greatest mic performance since arriving to WWE. I had my doubts about this story, but so far they’ve done a great job at establishing Becky as a new villain. I’m very confident she’s winning the IC belt to elevate it before putting over an up-and-coming star, just like she did with the NXT title two years ago.)
– Backstage, Nick Aldis warned Penta about interfering in matches and booked him against JD McDonagh next week. Chad Gable interrupted to mock Penta and Rey Fenix for losing at WrestleMania, only for Penta to kick him away.
[Commercial Break]
– A video package was shown, featuring Rusev speaking about his exit from WWE. Rusev said that he went to the abyss and redeemed himself and now that he was back he would fix those that didn’t live up to their potential.
(3) STEPHANIE VAQUER vs. IVY NILE (w/Chad Gable)
Nile tackled Vaquer, only for Vaquer to respond with a jackknife pinfall. Vaquer surprised Nile with a headscissors into a roll-up, followed by a snap suplex for a two count. Nile blocked the Devil’s Kiss and pulled her arms back with a foot on her back. Vaquer smashed Nile’s head into the mat with the Devil’s Kiss, as WWE Raw went to a commercial break
[Commercial Break]
Back from break, Vaquer hit Nile once again with the Devil’s Kiss, followed by a double knee strike in the corner. Gable put Nile’s foot on the ropes and distracted Vaquer, allowing Nile to plant her with a German suplex on the floor. Back in the ring, Nile dropped Vaquer with a bridging German suplex for a two count. Vaquer stopped Nile atop the turnbuckle with a bunch of headbutts, setting her up for a superplex and a nearfall. They traded right hands, until Vaquer caught Nile with a kick to the abdomen. Nile blocked the SVB and laid Vaquer out with a spinning sidewalk slam for a two count. Vaquer hit Nile with a thrust kick and knocked her down with a dragon screw using the ropes, setting her up for the SVB and the win.
WINNER: Stephanie Vaquer at 9:32
(Pomares’ Analysis: Pretty good match to showcase Stephanie Vaquer and give her her first win on the main roster. It’s pretty clear that her time in NXT is countered and I wouldn’t be surprised if she dropped her title to someone like Jordynne Grace at next month’s Battleground or even sooner.)
– Backstage, Nick Aldis said that he had a long list of potential opponents for AJ Styles. Liv Morgan and Dominik Mysterio interrupted. Aldis confirmed that Liv got some time off, but refused to give Dominik time off. Dominik insulted AJ and AJ told Aldis that he had an idea for a potential opponent.
– Backstage, Karrion Kross told Sami Zayn to make the right decision tonight.
[Commercial Break]
– A recap of Gunther assaulting Pat McAfee on last week’s Raw was shown, as it was confirmed that he was suspended. Pat stood up on the announce table and said that there were people that forgot who he was. Pat said that when he was dead, he hoped he would be known for everything he gave to the world. He said that he would be loyal to Michael Cole and he had to protect him when Gunther attacked him. Nick Aldis showed up to tell Pat to keep things professional. Pat said that he didn’t want Gunther to be suspended and he wanted to fight him. Aldis told that Pat that he could get lift Gunther’s suspension and book him against him in a match at Backlash.
(Pomares’ Analysis: I don’t mind Gunther taking on Pat McAfee, but I’m not a huge fan of using a PPV slot for it. This feels more like a TV angle, so Gunther could write Pat off television.)
– A video package was shown, recapping the rivalry between John Cena and Randy Orton over the years.
– Backstage, Jey Uso told Sami Zayn that he believed he would make the right decision. Sami walked away and Logan Paul showed up to punch Jey.
[Commercial Break]
[HOUR THREE]
– It was confirmed that Rusev would take on Otis; and Penta would battle JD McDonagh next week.
– Seth Rollins stood in the middle of the ring to call Sami Zayn out, so they could talk things out. Rollins said that he didn’t want anything bad to happen to Sami and hoped that he would show him the same respect he showed Jey Uso last week. Rollins said that he genuinely believes that he, Bron Breakker and Paul Heyman were the right move for the future. He said that it hurt that Sami didn’t believe in him and that he believed Sami was one of his only true friends in wrestling.
– Rollins told Sami to take the pass and move to SmackDown, so bad things wouldn’t happen to him. Sami told Rollins that he believed that he was playing games by dangling the one thing he wanted. Sami said that he wasn’t one to run away and wouldn’t stand for his friend threatening him. He said that he wouldn’t be blackmailed and he would win a world title on his own and without any favor. Sami told Rollins that he loved him before telling him to go to hell. Bron Breakker showed up, ahead of his match against Sami.
(Pomares’ Analysis: Once again, Sami Zayn’s involvement elevates another segment and his role as Rollins’ first opposition has delivered in spades. Sami is the ultimate babyface and going against Rollins and Breakker, immediately establishes the new group as a villainous force willing to take on anyone to accomplish their goal.)
(4) SAMI ZAYN vs. BRON BREAKKER (w/Seth Rollins & Paul Heyman)
Breakker rammed Sami into the corner and laid him out with a belly-to-belly suplex. Sami caught Breakker with a rising kick, only for Breakker to counter an axe handle with a Xploder. Breakker planted Sami with a snap powerslam, but Sami responded with a clothesline. Sami tossed Breakker out of the ring before Breakker pulled him off the apron. Breakker smashed Sami’s head into the announce table and clobbered him with a diving lariat over it, as WWE Raw went to its final commercial break.
[Commercial Break]
Back from break, Sami pummeled Breakker with a bunch of forearms to the back, setting him up for a sunset flip powerbomb. Breakker blocked a Xploder and blasted Sami with a chop to the chest, following it with a Tornado DDT for a two count. Breakker launched Sami across the ring with a Frankensteiner, but Sami blocked a Spear with a boot to the face and a Xploder. Sami tried to go for the Helluva Kick, only for Breakker to shut him down with a Spear.
Breaker blasted Sami with another Spear and Rollins approached to once again offer him the same deal. Sami refused to accept the deal before Breakker took him out with another Spear. Medicts and security guards checked on Sami at ringside, only for Breakker to run around the ring and take him out with another Spear. Breakker tried to continue the assault, but the referee rang the bell.
WINNER: Bron Breakker at 12:31 via referee stoppage
– After the match, Seth Rollins crushed Sami Zayn’s head with a Curb Stomp and stood tall as the show came to an end.
(Pomares’ Analysis: A strong ending to keep on pushing this faction as a major threat to the rest of the roster. I don’t know what the immediate future for this group is because I don’t see Roman facing them until a bigger show like SummerSlam approaches. I’m assuming we see Sami and Punk as their first opponents to give them a strong win and jump into some title pictures. My only complaint is how positive the crowd reactions are for what is the next top villainous faction in WWE.)
Advertised Matches & Appearances
- Rhea Ripley vs. Roxanne Perez
- Paul Heyman, Seth Rollins, and Bron Breakker to address actions
- Becky Lynch to address attack on Lyra Valkyria
- Pat McAfee to address Gunther’s actions
- Logan Paul to appear
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