WWE: A Showdown in San Antonio

So last night’s RAW took place in San Antonio and it was definitely one of the more wrestling focused episodes in some time. One of the key match ups to start out the night was Kevin Owens vs Neville. Two of NXTs biggest stars wasn’t as quick of a match as it was last week, but it was definitely worth watching, as Neville threw out everything he had in the tank. Although Kevin Owens pulled out the win in the end, you still got to see the talent that Neville has with a high flying appearance from Dean Ambrose.

Titus O’Neil and Stardust are an interesting pair, kinda like what you see in one of those buddy cop movies. Titus O’Neil pulled out the victory, and this got the fans chanting “Cody” to only hope the writers can bring back the Cody Rhodes that they booked properly back in the day and actually gave him a shot at a title every once in a while. One match that was the downer of the night was Ryback vs. Big Show. You could tell from his entrance that Ryback didn’t even seem interested in the match, as he wasn’t as enthusiastic as he normally is entering the ring. Midway through the match, the Wyatt Family came in, took out Ryback and then proceeded to knock out the Big Show, leading to all four members declaring for the Royal Rumble.

The main Divas attraction was Charlotte vs her old friend Becky Lynch, who is slowly becoming a fan favorite. Even with WWE Hall of Famer Ric Flair in her corner, Charlotte still couldn’t pull out a victory, which led to her heel turn coming more into fruition. One of the biggest moments of the night came when WWE’s favorite stable the New Day came on. After proceeding to make fun of Mike Tyson falling off of a hover board, the fans got a pleasant surprise with the return of Y2J Chris Jericho. His return to save the WWE came with one of his classic promos about how the company needs a shot in the arm, and him coming back and declaring himself for the Royal Rumble will definitely do that. This was proceeded by New Day vs. The Dudley Boyz and Kalisto without Sin Cara who is out due to a dislocated shoulder. The New Day won in pure New Day fashion.

Another interesting point in the night came with Dolph Ziggler vs. Heath Slater. Slater, who came out with Adam Rose, Bo Dallas, and newly found Curtis Axel, was able to pull off the upset versus the one time world champion. After his victory, he deemed his new stable the “Social Outcasts”. It’s nice knowing that the well known jobbers of the company have found a new role to give themselves purpose.

Finally to end the night of RAW, it was Roman Reigns vs. Sheamus for the WWE Championship with Vincent Kennedy McMahon as guest referee. Before the match even began, the fans got to see this spectacle:

I mean come on. The man is 70 years old and he still looks like he can kick anybody’s ass that messes with him. Of course to no surprise, Vince played the role of an impartial ref, letting Sheamus get away with anything he wanted, as well as fast counting whenever Roman got pinned, but in the way only Superman can pull off, Roman Reigns was able to pull out the victory, even with all the distractions and obstacles to get in his way.

After the match is where things got interesting and many questions were left unanswered. Vince announced that Roman’s title will be on the line during the Royal Rumble match, but one thing that shocked many fans was this: Where was John Cena? Mr. Never Give Up and the face of the WWE was nowhere to be found at this event. Maybe he was giving up the spotlight to Roman Reigns, or maybe he was just warming up for Smackdown’s debut on the USA Network this Thursday. Either way, with Brock Lesnar confirmed to return to RAW next Monday in New Orleans, and with the new spot for Smackdown, it should begin an interesting road to the Royal Rumble.