This week's Monday Night Raw was the post-show after Clash at the Castle. The red brand was going to feature a Steel Cage Match for the United States Championship, along with a Fatal 4-Way No. 1 contenders match for the Tag Team Championships and some other strong in-ring action. The biggest moments of the show were the return of Braun Strowman to WWE, Dominik officially joining Judgment Day, and Dexter Lumis climbing into the cage to get at The Miz.
Here are your winners and losers for Monday Night Raw, September 5, 2022:
Edge came out to a nice ovation from the audience and talked about growing up in WWE with a young Dominik. After saying he was now old enough to make his own decisions, he was old enough to deal with the consequences. The past was the past and Edge planned to beat some sense into Dominik. Rey came out and pleaded with Edge to reconsider as Dom had screwed up, but he wasn't a bad kid. That brought out Rhea Ripley who told both veterans that they were right, Dom wasn't a kid any longer. She'd turned him into a man.
They started to make their way to the ring and Rey left, not wanting any part of physically fighting with his son. That led Edge to go solo and the rest of the group attacked. It was a chop block by Dom that turned things in the favor of Judgment Day and they left Edge laying after targeting his leg with a chair. This was a well-produced and emotionally interesting opening. Dom seems to have embraced the idea of being a heel and Ripley as the ring leader in his transition is fascinating.
Some fans will argue that Strowman's return came at the expense of the WWE tag team division, but those fans are conveniently forgetting that the history of WWE's debuting big men often comes at the expense of a number of Superstars. The Undertaker took out an entire Survivor Series team. Kane repeatedly destroyed a ring full of people. This is just the way WWE brings in their monsters and it's a formula that works. In the end, no one from the tag division will be hurt long-term because of it, but Strowman gets over in a major way.
The fans were into his return and despite a slight trip when he started making his run around the ring, he was dominant. Early indications are that WWE made the right call in bringing him back because he was massively over and few stars in WWE have the appeal and physical makeup he does.
The next match-up was a tag title defense for Aliyah and Raquel Rodriguez. It wasn't a terrible match, but fans aren't totally sold on the decision to make these two the champs quite yet. The storyline seems to be that Aliyah isn't exactly pulling her weight as part of the team and the announce crew referenced that on more than one occasion. We'll have to see if that's a theme for this duo moving forward. Rodriquez showed well, getting the pin with a physically impressive slam that looked a bit awkward but showcased her strength.
Damage Control was confirmed to be getting a shot at the tag titles next week, and backstage Nikki A.S.H threw off her mask and walked away from Doudrop, once again teasing not all is going well between those two.
Theory came out to the ring and talked about his appearance at Clash at the Castle, complaining that his jaw hurt from being knocked out by Tyson Fury. Still, he wasn't going to be deterred and his plan was to cash in the Money in the Bank briefcase and end Roman Reigns' title run. An annoyed Kevin Owens was tired of listening to Theory yammer on so he came out to the ring and made a pitch of his own to rightfully be a contender for that title. He brought out a referee and challenged Theory to a match.
Their singles bout was probably the best of the evening, going back and forth with a ton of high spots and big moves. Ultimately, Owens got the better of THeory, nailed the pop-up power bomb and a Stunner for the win. This will put Owens right in the thick of things for the No. 1 contender's spot and while Theory could use a win, it doesn't hurt his standing. He was a legit threat to win this match, even if he didn't pull it out.
Following the opening segment of the show, Rey challenged anyone from Judgment Day not named Dominik to face him in a singles match. Damian Priest was the member he'd face and Rey wound up losing after Judgment Day got involved, including Dominik who got in the way as his father tried to deliver a 6-1-9. The distraction allowed Priest to hit his finisher for the win and the group laughed, while Dom seemed pleased. Rhea Ripley issued a challenge to Edge for next week, saying Dom would take him out one-on-one.
This was a rough night for Rey who lost a handle on his son going down a dark path, he had to watch his friend Edge be destroyed and he took a beating of his own.
The storyline going into the main event seemed to be that The Miz was willing to face someone like Bobby Lashley in a Steel Cage Match just to avoid having to deal with Dexter Lumis who has been haunting The Miz in recent weeks. Even the cage couldn't keep Lumis away. He appeared from under the ring in the closing moments and as The Miz tried to climb out. The A-Lister wanted no part in the hooded lunatic and made his way back into the cage, only to take a spear from Lashley and the pin.
Lumis climbed into the ring after the match and choked out The Miz to end the show. If anyone had a rougher night than Rey Mysterio, it was The Miz.