The Miz's birthday celebration for Maryse ended in destruction courtesy of their Royal Rumble opponents, Edge & Beth Phoenix. Plus, WWE Champion Brock Lesnar and Bobby Lashley officially weighed in ahead of their Collision with Consequences, RK-Bro got one-up on Alpha Academy and more!
Raw results: Jan. 24, 2022
WWE Champion Brock Lesnar outweighed Bobby Lashley heading into Royal Rumble
The final confrontation between WWE Champion Brock Lesnar and “The All Mighty” before their Collision with Consequences at Royal Rumble took place on Raw in the form of a weigh-in, and the atmosphere was electric.
After Lashley weighed in at an impressive 273 pounds lauded by MVP, Paul Heyman took the microphone to explain why his client is the only man too beastly for The All Mighty, as Lesnar subsequently weighed in at a massive 286 pounds. Both men sent their final messages loud and clear as The Beast Incarnate vowed to beat Lashley into irrelevancy, while The All Mighty doubled down on his “spoiler” that he will regain the WWE Championship.
Bianca Belair def. WWE Women’s Tag Team Champion Queen Zelina
Two women looking for a big win heading into the Royal Rumble Match this Saturday are Bianca Belair and WWE Women’s Tag Team Champion Queen Zelina. The EST of WWE emerged victorious when Belair sealed the deal by countering Zelina’s Code Red and dropping her with the K.O.D. for the win.
Kevin Owens def. United States Champion Damian Priest by disqualification
In his opportunity to win the United States Championship, Kevin Owens wanted to regain the gold, and that’s no lie. The two brawlers traded blows in an all-out slugfest, and the end came when Damian Priest unleashed his “Damian” side and actually put his hands on the referee in the process of pummeling Owens in the corner, causing the disqualification. The champion was admonished by WWE Official Sonya Deville after the match for his behavior.
Rhea Ripley, Liv Morgan & 24/7 Champion Dana Brooke def. WWE Women’s Tag Team Champion Carmella, Tamina & Nikki A.S.H.
In another battle for Royal Rumble momentum, Rhea Ripley joined forces with Liv Morgan and 24/7 Champion Dana Brooke to take on a squad consisting of WWE Women’s Tag Team Champion Carmella, Tamina and Nikki A.S.H. The hard-fought battle saw Ripley make Carmella submit to score the victory for her team, but her newfound nemesis A.S.H. quickly swooped in to hit The Nightmare with a clubbing blow from behind to cut her celebration short and once again get one over on her former friend and partner.
Randy Orton def. Raw Tag Team Champion Chad Gable
The first stage of Alpha Academy’s Academic Challenge against RK-Bro came in the form of a spelling bee. When a shocking miscommunication led one-half of the Raw Tag Team Champions, Chad Gable, to spell the wrong word, Randy Orton swooped in for the final spell to give RK-Bro the upset victory.
But The Viper would much rather fight than spell “dumbbell,” so he challenged Gable to a much more suitable one-on-one match in the ring. Orton overcame Gable after hitting him with an RKO, and Riddle put the exclamation point on all the action by attacking Otis with his scooter and declaring that next week’s challenge between the two teams would come in the form of a physical education classic: a scooter race.
AJ Styles vs. Austin Theory
One week removed from defeating Finn Bálor, Austin Theory set out to once again impress Mr. McMahon. Theory looked to bring him another selfie, but he would have to go through former WWE Champion AJ Styles to do so. In an instant classic of a match, both men pulled new moves out of their respective arsenals, but Styles nabbed the victory courtesy of a Phenomenal Forearm.
Rey & Dominik Mysterio def. The Street Profits
Following some Royal Rumble Match mind games, The Street Profits and The Mysterios aimed to settle their differences in tag team action. Emerging from the fast-paced battle victorious were Rey & Dominik after Rey surprised Montez Ford with a victory roll.
Right after the bout, Rey reverted back to last week’s tricks and countered his son’s elimination attempt to teach him another Royal Rumble lesson. Ford and Dawkins weren’t too far behind, as they were quick to toss The Master of the 619 over and out. Dawkins subsequently threw his own partner out of the ring, only for Dolph Ziggler and Robert Roode to suddenly emerge and toss out Dawkins. The Dirty Dawgs’ celebration didn’t last long, as the Profits and Mysterios all returned to the ring to throw Ziggler and Roode over the top to send one final Royal Rumble-sized message.
Edge & Beth Phoenix spoiled Maryse’s birthday celebration
All was going smoothly as The Miz and Maryse, surrounded by a slew of hired security guards, entered the ring for an A-list birthday celebration. The Miz showered his wife with extravagant gifts such as a painting and a new purse, then deceived the WWE Universe by pulling out another gift: the brick that Maryse used to nail Beth Phoenix last week.
As The A-Lister led the charge in serenading his wife with a rousing rendition of “Happy Birthday,” Edge & The Glamazon finally emerged to put an end to it all. The Rated-R Superstar and his seething wife took out the hired protection one by one, prompting Miz & Maryse to scurry away from the ring before Edge sent one last message before Royal Rumble in the form of a devastating powerbomb on one unfortunate security guard through the birthday cake-filled table.
