The week begins, and WWE presents Monday Night Raw live from the MVP Arena in Albany, New York. A building I’ve discussed, no kidding, four times prior. As AEW has visited it twice this year, and this is WWE Raw’s third visit here in just two weeks over the year. In 2006,
WWE taped ECW and SmackDown here. ECW in particular being the second episode of it’s relaunch under WWE for the then Sci-Fi Network. It featured The Sandman defeating…… “Macho Libre”. A parody of Randy Savage and Nacho Libre which was just hitting theaters. Ironically, the wrestler portraying the character was Tony DeVito.
A late ECW alumni and member of the stable Da Baldies. The show’s main event saw ECW & WWE Champion Rob Van Dam and Kurt Angle defeating Randy Orton and Edge. Months prior to them formally becoming Rated RKO.
The real ones know all about #DIY & 2 out of 3 Falls matches..
You’re not going to want to miss this one! #WWERaw pic.twitter.com/HxBfz5pBl9
— Johnny Gargano (@JohnnyGargano) December 4, 2023
With that in mind, let’s preview what’s to come tonight on Monday Night Raw.
He Deserves It, Apparently
Who ya got when @WWERollins defends the WWE World Heavyweight Championship against Jey Uso tomorrow night on #WWERaw?
📍 ALBANY
🎟️ TICKETS ON SALE NOW: https://t.co/6xaOyonP24 pic.twitter.com/mQLWvfbVY2— WWE (@WWE) December 3, 2023
Last week, Drew McIntyre approached Seth Rollins, trying to set the record straight as to his involvement with The Judgment Day at Survivor Series: WarGames.
Admitting that he has fallen short recently. But was now serious and wanting another shot against Seth Rollins for his World Heavyweight Championship. But Seth revealed he had other plans. Wanting to put the title on the line against a more “deserving” challenger. That being Jey Uso.
Drew was not pleased, probably because he had just defeated Jey Uso, clean as a whistle the week prior. Just to be cut short by Seth’s seeming shortsightedness. Now, Drew is more livid than before. But Jey Uso gets his second crack at a World title this year. Can he prove he is “Main Event Jey” and win? Will Seth retain?
Will Drew let such a notable snub slide? Probably not. Especially now that the other guy who seemed to have a beef with Jey Uso in Randy Orton has signed with SmackDown.
Drew’s Not Done
After his slight with Seth Rollins, Sami Zayn tried to calm Drew down and make him see reason. But Drew McIntyre is a born warrior. Always has been. While Sami Zayn may be one for calming down and trying to avoid conflict, Drew still thrives from it.
As such, Drew challenged him to a match. Sami has noted that he’s never been a World Champion in WWE. But Drew has twice. Perhaps Sami Zayn can pull off the upset and try to climb back up and hopefully challenge again in the future.
An NXT Black And Gold Throwback
As previously mentioned, Imperium and DIY used to shine in NXT’s “black and gold” days despite never really feuding much there against each other. As they do so now, tonight, we get something that used to be a staple of those days as Tommaso Ciampa and Johnny Gargano take on Ludwig Kaiser and Giovanni Vinci in a 2 out of 3 falls Tag Team Match.
Who comes out of this match strong? Can Ludwig or Vinci impress Gunther with this endeavor? Or can the two former NXT Champions set them back again?
The Creed’s Judgment
The Creed Brothers are on a fast track on WWE Raw. As last week, they secured a future opportunity at the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championships. Currently held by Finn Balor and Damian Priest. But for this week, The Creed’s take on the other half of The Judgment Day’s male members. JD McDonagh and ‘Dirty’ Dominik Mysterio.
All that, plus Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler, former Tag Team Champions together face off. As well as Natalya and Tegan Nox vs Katana Chance and Kayden Carter, we may hear from the likes of CM Punk and Cody Rhodes, who was attacked and misted by Shinsuke Nakamura last week. And possibly more to come on tonight’s edition of WWE Monday Night Raw.
More From LWOS Pro Wrestling
Stay tuned to the Last Word on Pro Wrestling for more on this and other stories from around the world of wrestling, as they develop. You can always count on LWOPW to be on top of the major news in the wrestling world, as well as to provide you with analysis, previews, videos, interviews, and editorials on the wrestling world. You can check out an almost unlimited array of WWE content on the WWE Network and Peacock.
