Last night’s WWE Raw came live from the Capital One Arena in Washington DC and saw more dramatic build up to the upcoming Clash at the Castle, which is set to go ahead in Cardiff next month.
The episode saw Riddle return for an exclusive interview on his status following his SummerSlam altercation with Seth Rollins.
Meanwhile, after successfully defending his title against Ciampa last week, Bobby Lashley went up against two-time WWE Champion AJ Styles for the first time ever in a battle to defend his United States Championship yet again.
The WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship also continued as Alexa Bliss and Asuka took on Nikki A.S.H. and Doudrop in a first round match that saw the winners secure the chance to take on IYO SKY and Dakota Kai next week.
Here’s what happened on this week’s episode of RAW.
Asuka and Alexa Bliss vs. Nikki A.S.H. and Doudrop
(Image: WWE)
The Women’s Tag Team Tournament continued in the first match of the night.
The first round match saw Nikki and Doudrop teaming up to face the newly-formed team of Asuka and Alexa Bliss for a chance to face IYO SKY and Dakota Kai in the semifinals next week.
Right after the bell, Nikki took down Asuka, but Asuka and Bliss had the advantage until the commercial break.
After the break, Nikki had the upper hand on Bliss and got her in a head lock before she escaped and tagged Doudrop in.
Asuka and Bliss started to build momentum and were able to maintain their control.
Doudrop hit a Michinoku Driver and went in for a pin but Asuka kicked out and delivered a cross body.
Bliss tagged in and hit a DTT before tagging in Asuka who tapped Doudrop out with a grounded octopus hold.
Winners: Alexa Bliss and Asuka
The Miz and Ciampa vs. Mustafa Ali and Cedric Alexander
(Image: WWE)
Next up, Ali and Alexander took on The Miz and Ciampa,
Ciampa and Alexander started, exchanging submissions before Ciampa delivered a shoulder block and Alexander delivered a drop kick before Ali tagged in.
After the break Ciampa has the upper hand on Alexander.
Ciampa hit Ali with a running knee, kicking him out mid-air while he tried to hit a 450 splash and delivered the Fairytale Ending for victory.
Winners: The Miz and Ciampa
Drew McIntyre vs. Kevin Owens
(Image: WWE)
Drew McIntyre and Kevin Owens agreed to a match after Owens called him delusional for thinking he’s been carrying WWE.
The men went back and forth in a thrilling match which saw Owens beating down McIntyre after the break.
He then who then looked to take the advantage after hitting Owens with a Future Shock DDT.
But McIntyre was then attacked by The Usos which put an end to the match and caused McIntyre to win by disqualification.
Winner: Drew McIntyre by disqualification
Veer vs. Beaux Keller
Keller started out the match light on his feet as he successfully stayed out of Veer’s grasp.
He hit a dropkick but his rival was quick to recovery and eventually got the better of him.
Keller was dominated by Veer who won by submission after putting him in the Cervical Clutch.
Winner: Veer
Bobby Lashley vs. AJ Styles
(Image: WWE)
Next up was the highly anticipated title match that saw Bobby Lashley take on AJ Styles for the first time ever in a match for the United States Championship.
The match got off to a competitive start, while Lashley had the advantage in the power department, Styles avoided his grasp using speed and agility.
After the commercial The All Mighty had the upper hand as he threw Styles in and out of the ring.
The Miz and Ciampa headed down to watch the match ringside and Miz looked to attack Styles but Dexter Lumis came out of nowhere and was tackled by security near the ring before the show cut to a sudden commercial.
Returning from the second break, The Phenomenal started to pick up some momentum. The pair both hit some signature moves but it was Lashley who came out on top after delivering a spear for the win and successfully retaining the US Championship.
Winner: Bobby Lashley
Dakota Kai vs. Dana Brooke
Dakota Kai and Dana Brooke had a brief confrontation earlier in the night before meeting for a singles match.
The exchange only lasted a few minutes as Kai started the match with a Pele kick followed by a running face wash and then hit Brooke with Kawada kicks.
The match became competitive when Brooke began to mount some offense but it wasn’t enough and Dakota secured victory by pinfall with the corner boot.
Winner: Dakota Kai
Theory vs. Dolph Ziggler
(Image: WWE)
The final match of the show saw Austin Theory take on Dolph Ziggler.
The pair had gotten into a fight backstage earlier and as soon as the bell rung they both fired right hands on each other.
Ziggler went on the defense before jumping a DDT but Theory kicked out before the show went to break.
After the commercial the match was hard-fought on both sides but Theory came out victorious, hitting the A-Town Down for the win.
Winner: Theory