Monday Night Raw Rebound for 5/18/20 opened with a replay of Becky Lynch’s announcement from last week. Charley Caruso was in the ring and talked about Randy Orton’s challenge to Edge the previous week. Randy Orton came to the ring and reiterated what he told Edge last week. Orton was not the better man at WrestleMania, but he is still the better wrestler. He said that the WWE stands for World Wrestling Entertainment, so his challenge to Edge for a straight-up wrestling match isn’t so fetched. Edge came down to ringside to answer the problem. He said wrestling was Randy’s backup plan, and he never had to work hard to be great. Randy Orton tried to cut him off, but Edge continued, saying that Orton does not care about the wrestling business. A frustrated Edge accepted Randy’s challenge for a match at Backlash.
http://https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DRT2zUIKlSk
Backstage, Murphy walked up to Seth Rollins and put his hand on the shoulder. Seth told Murphy he had a revelation he wanted to share with the world. After a commercial break, Seth Rollins and Murphy stood in the middle of the ring. Seth said that what he did to Rey Mysterio last week have been called heinous, but he preferred to look at it as penance for Rey Mysterio, not believing in the Monday night Messiah. He finished by telling Rey Mysterio, “You’re welcome.” Humberto Carrillo interrupted Seth and said that Rey Mysterio was a hero to millions and his idol. He followed it by calling Seth Rollins a coward. Murphy stood between Humberto Carrillo and Seth Rollins. Rollins offered Carrillo a match with his disciple.
RAW Rebound for 5/18/20
Humberto Carrillo vs Murphy
Back from commercial, Humberto Carrillo and Murphy were already going at it. Carrillo kept Murphy off-balance with his aerial acrobatics. It looked as if he might pull out the upset victory. Seth Rollins was still ringside and provided an interference that gave Murphy the opening he needed. Murphy’s Law secured the victory. After the match was over, Seth Rollins stood in the ring next to Murphy. He looked disgustingly at Humberto Carrillo, then nodded to Murphy, who attacked. He threw him outside of the ring and into the steel steps. Aleister back came down for the rescue and fought off Murphy while Seth retreated up the ramp. He checked on Humberto Carrillo while Seth and Murphy retreated up the ramp.
Winner: Murphy
Smackdown’s King Corbin complained to a referee backstage about the locker room conditions.
In a sit-down promo, Liv Morgan talked about her mom is her hero. She called her a hard worker and spoke about her fighting spirit. She failed against Charlotte in her match, but just like her mother, she’s not going to quit. Liv claimed she would be a women’s champion one day.
Charlotte Flair vs Ruby Riott
NXT Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair was out next, calling herself the hardest working woman on all three brands. She also predicted she’d defeat Smackdown Women’s Champion Bayley in their match on Friday. She then called out Ruby Riott, who came ready to fight. During the contest, Charlotte threw Ruby outside and tried to chop her. Riott ducked, and Charlotte cut the ring post. This gave Ruby an opening to exploit. She worked over Charlotte’s right wrist for a while. Charlotte would counter Ruby’s submission attempt to regain the advantage and lock in her Figure Eight for the victory.
Winner: Charlotte Flair
Kairi Sane introduced the new Raw Women’s Champion, Asuka. They celebrated in the ring as Kairi called Asuka a Grand Slam Champion. Nia Jax came to ringside to ruin the celebration. She said that since Asuka was ‘handed’ the Raw Women’s Champion, she’s merely an interim champion. Asuka responded with a flurry of kicks that forced Nia to retreat. Later, Nia sought revenge by attacking Kairi Sane backstage. Asuka made her pay by hitting her with another barrage of kicks that sent her tumbling over backstage crates.
http://https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LUVAjQ77W_I
Backstage, Charly Caruso tried to interview Bobby Lashley, but they were interrupted by MVP. He started by saying he and Lashley wouldn’t be going into business together. He also said Lashley would rather waste his time with clowns like R-Truth and Lana. The All-Mighty had an angry and intense look on his face. MVP mentioned that it’s been 13 years since Lashley fought for WWE’s top trophy. He continued to implore Bobby to unleash himself.
RAW Rebound for 5/18/20
R-Truth vs Bobby Lashley
R-Truth stood alone in the ring before his match with Bobby Lashley. He said that his childhood hero, John Cena, would never give up. Truth claimed he would employ that strategy in his battle against Bobby Lashley. As their struggle began, Truth put his hands up to stop Lashley from attacking him. He then ducked out of the ring and pulled out those bucked teeth from last week. Lashley charged him and put an end to the antics. A Full Nelson secured the victory for Bobby Lashley while MVP applauded from the top of the ramp. Lana was shown backstage pitching a tantrum and throwing things after her husband’s win.
Winner: Bobby Lashley
RAW Rebound for 5/18/20
WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship Match
Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross vs The IIconics
Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross defended their Women’s Tag Team Championships against The IIconics, who defeated the champs last week. Bliss hit Billie Kay with Twisted Bliss, but Peyton Royce broke up the count. Royce wasn’t the legal competitor but attacked Alexa relentlessly in the corner. The referee was forced to disqualify The IIconics and award the victory to Nikki Cross and Alexa Bliss. Later in the night, as The IIconics talked in the back, Peyton slapped Billie, and then they hugged it out.
Winners: Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross
http://https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B9xHZ7C2coo
Natalya vs Shayna Baszler
Nattie took on Shayna Baszler in a submission match. Nattie looked to secure the victory with The Sharpshooter, but Baszler crawled through the bottom rope to break the hold. The Queen of Spades locked in the Kirifuda Clutch for the win. As a dejected Nattie sat alone in the ring, the ringside crew tried to set up the ring for the Kevin Owens Show. Nattie destroyed the entire set out of frustration.
Winner: Shayna Baszler
Zelina Vega and her faction were backstage arguing before their appearance on The Kevin Owens Show. United States Champion, Andrade, along with Angel Garza and Austin Theory, tried to show a united front on the KO Show, but there were kinks in the armor. Kevin then told them they weren’t his only guests that week. Apollo Crews returned after three weeks and got himself a piece of Andrade. Theory and Garza joined the brawl before it turned into an impromptu tag team match.
RAW Rebound for 5/18/20
Andrade/Angel Garza vs Kevin Owens/Apollo Crews
Andrade and Garza took on Kevin Owens and Apollo Crews, with Zelina Vega and Austin Theory ringside. In a critical sequence of the match, Theory tried to interfere, and it backfired, allowing Crews to hit a Spinout Powerbomb for the win. After the battle was over, Andrade and Angel Garza decimated Austin Theory, under the direct instruction of Zelina Vega. Apollo Crews Challenged Andrade to a title match next week on Raw.
Murphy, with Seth Rollins at ringside, took on Aleister Black in another chapter to their storied history.
Winners: Apollo Crews and Kevin Owens
This chapter was abbreviated, however. A crestfallen Austin Theory recovered from his beating but was still ringside during the match between Black and Murphy. Seth Rollins walked over to him and offered him a spot in his stable. Theory accepted, then ran in to attack Aleister Black, causing a disqualification. After the beatdown, Seth hugged Austin while Murphy looked perplexed.
The Viking Raiders defeated The Street Profits in an ax-throwing contest in their “anything you can do…” series.
http://https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M8uIRSrViIM
MVP and Bobby Lashley interrupted the start of the main event to address WWE Champion Drew McIntyre. MVP declared that Lashley was coming for Drew’s championship. King Corbin had a great showing. He almost pulled out the upset with a Deep Six on the champion. McIntyre told King Corbin last week that he had a special king-sized Claymore with his name on it. He wasn’t lying, as he laid out the Smackdown superstar for the 1-2-3. McIntyre turned his attention to Bobby Lashley and MVP, who were still on the ramp. He taunted The All-Mighty as the show closed. This ends the RAW Rebound edition for 5/18/20.
