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- [00:00]
A
Why choose a sleep number Smart bed.
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B
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A
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- [00:31]
B
If you're the purchasing manager at a manufacturing plant, you know having a trusted partner makes all the difference. That's why hands down you count on Grainger for auto reordering. With on time restocks, your team will have the cut resistant gloves they need at the start of their shift and you can end your day knowing they've got safety well in hand. Call 1-800-GRAINGER Click grainger.com or just stop by Grainger for the ones who get it done. What an episode of Monday Night Raw. The Bella twins are back. Dominic Mysterio is back. Stephanie Vacair successfully defending a title. Obafemi taking out two men at the same time. And Roman Reigns hates CM Punk. This is the Raw recap on WWE now at WWE and Fanatics original production. The first Monday Night Raw on the road to WrestleMania. The first Raw recap in the WWE now era. Welcome to WWE now as we recap Raw with myself, Sam Roberts with Megan Morant. And Megan, you know exactly where I want to start getting hot in here.
- [01:54]
A
Oh my gosh.
- [01:56]
B
Telling me. Wow, you're telling me. Fired up, Roman Reigns pops out of the, out of the black SUV wearing it. What was that? A Carhartt jacket he was wearing. Wearing where? Just, just, just, just oozing the chain.
- [02:11]
A
Was a good chain.
- [02:12]
B
Yeah, that, that. I think he was wearing that on McAfee show to that black like some. It's like black gold or something like that. I don't know. It was sparkling. Or maybe that was just Roman. Could be because he walks to the ring and boom, boom, boom. Even though you saw him coming, the fans in Philly go nuts. The exact opposite of the reaction that they had almost 11 years ago to the day. And Roman Reigns comes out and he acknowledges that that happened, but he does it in the way that only the most humble, generous tribal chief possibly could. And he talks about the choice that he's got to make now that Roman Reigns won the Royal Rumble. And by the way, I was worried that he wasn't going to be on Raw at all. Triple H was on the post show after Royal Rumble, and he was talking about how Roman could be dubbed the new Cerebral Assassin, the nickname that Triple H once had, that Roman is going to have to go home and think that Roman is calculated, that we don't know when Roman's going to be back.
- [03:12]
A
And I heard you on your podcast. He's got a lot of time to think on that flight.
- [03:15]
B
I said think on the plane.
- [03:16]
A
Think on the plane and show up at Raw.
- [03:19]
B
We need you head of the table.
- [03:20]
A
That's the thing with Roman Reigns and that's the thing with the tribal chief. You don't know when you're going to get him.
- [03:24]
B
Oh, I thought you were going to say he listens to the podcast.
- [03:26]
A
I hope he does.
- [03:27]
B
And he was sitting there going like, I will think on the plane. I think I got this.
- [03:31]
A
You know what? Sam has a good idea.
- [03:32]
C
Yeah.
- [03:33]
B
Once again, he shows up to Monday Night Raw. He talks about his. His. His choices. And Philly made the choice early. Poor Drew McIntyre. By the way, Roman versus Drew McIntyre would be phenomenal. It'd be killer. I wanted to see Roman versus CM Punk.
- [03:49]
A
I did, too.
- [03:50]
B
Philly wanted to see Roman versus CM Punk. You didn't know which direction Roman was going to go in because Cult of Personality starts playing. And there we have it. Roman Reigns and CM Punk in the ring across from each other.
- [04:05]
A
And this isn't CM Punk with his hokas on. Oh, no. He brought the Nikes out for this one. And he had an old school cool CM Punk T shirt on.
- [04:13]
B
It's gotta be the shoes. CM Punk stares right in the face of Roman Reigns. And when these guys are staring at each other, I mean, there is so much to. To. To kind of process. Are we looking at two guys? When CM Punk first returned to WWWE on his third night, his first was War Games when he surprised the world. His second was Monday Night Raw when he said he's not here to make friends, he's here to make money. But his third was smackdown, when he started calling out people by name. And immediately, the minute he said the tribal chief, Roman Reigns, it was like, whoa, this is. These are two icons of the professional wrestling world, but for two extremely separate reasons. Two literally of the best in the world and two people that got there through two completely different philosophies on how this whole thing is done.
- [05:08]
A
And.
- [05:08]
B
And now they're looking at each other. And by the way, as you heard tonight, it goes back way further than a couple of years ago when CM Punk first came out. It goes back to when CM Punk was in the WWE a decade before he returned, when. When he was responsible for bringing the shield in. When he had things to say about his treatment versus Roman Reigns, his treatment after he had left wwe. And we've heard that, man. We've heard that's been the one thing about CM Punk is that the ghosts of his past still haunt him. And there are a lot of people in the WWE that had their ears wide open while CM Punk was gone. And CM Punk is a different human being now. He's proven that to everybody. But the tribal chief forgets nothing. So you looked at me while CM Punk was talking.
- [06:01]
A
I did.
- [06:02]
B
And you said, he really is the best in the world.
- [06:04]
A
Yeah. I mean, CM Punk was you. You just laid it out there, how they go about things in totally different ways. And CM Punk pointed out how Roman reigns, after his 1,316 day title reign, he took a little break, took some.
- [06:21]
B
Time off, and he deserves it.
- [06:23]
A
And CM Punk said, that's how you handle it. But I have have been to 10 countries in the last three weeks and then goes on to shout out all of those countries. And CM Punk is the best in the world, but he's at Raw every single week. And he's just. He's up there and he's playing off the crowd in Philadelphia. And Philadelphia is responding to CM Punk. And I'm sitting in my chair and I'm responding to CM Punk as well. And. And I'm thinking, nobody's better than this guy. And you look at me and you say, just wait.
- [07:00]
B
Yeah. You said he really is the best. I said, I don't know if he's the best because look who he's in the ring with. And Punk is right. Punk has defended the world. He defended the world heavyweight title three times in the first month of this year. Like, Punk is about it. And, you know, I knew we were in for something magic the minute Punk walked in the ring and he started cutting a promo on Finn Balor to the camera, walked right past Roman Reigns. But I mean, we say this word, and this word has been missing since our tribal chief left us. But this was a word that we used to throw around in this world of WWE all the time. But for some reason, we haven't been saying this word while Roman Reigns is gone. And then the minute Roman Reigns comes back, the word pops into my mind when just out of focus, over the left shoulder of CM Punk, you see Roman Reigns looking back with that unmistakable face that you just made me. Cinema.
- [08:06]
A
Cinema.
- [08:07]
B
Cinema is back. Roman Looking back at CM Punk, who's talking about somebody else going, are you kidding me? Roman says, you interrupted me to talk about Finn Balor, CM Punk. That's when he goes in and he goes, I didn't interrupt you.
- [08:22]
A
This is my show.
- [08:23]
B
This is my show. And that's when he gets in to everything that you just discussed.
- [08:28]
A
And you know, to. To defend CM Punk. It's like when CM Punk came back, he almost immediately got injured. He was on TV in the Royal Rumble every single week.
- [08:39]
B
Well, yeah, yeah, well, he had a big problem with Drew McIntyre at the time. Huge big problem with Drew McIntyre at the time. Yeah, sure.
- [08:45]
A
Since CM Punk returned to wwe, when has he not been on our TV screen?
- [08:49]
B
That's great. And Roman covered it. You could talk about. I mean, I don't care if he could invent a show and be on that show every week. Roman covered it. He said, yeah, you've been here the whole time because you took a ten year vacation.
- [09:03]
A
Yep.
- [09:04]
B
It was like, oh, we're going there. Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. We're not living in this world of the last three years. Yeah, you know what I mean? We're living in the well.
- [09:12]
A
And that's the thing with Punk. When we talk about Punk, we go, well, he's a different man.
- [09:16]
B
And he clearly is. Yes, we love him.
- [09:19]
A
But Roman goes, that doesn't mean you.
- [09:21]
B
Get a pass because Roman doesn't forget anything. Yeah, Roman, it's all stored up here. And we found that out like firsthand. And Punk brought up a lot of history too. Punk bringing up that. Look, there are parallels in this journey that Roman had a long title reign with Paul Heyman by his side. But guess what? So did CM Punk. And he did it way before Roman Reigns. And when Roman Reigns character needed that shift, Paul Heyman was revealed as the man by his side. It's exactly what CM Punk did when he was WWE Champion. I personally think that's where the similarities end. I think the bloodline is as unique a story told in the world of professional wrestling as there has ever been. But that said, the story of CM Punk is also as unique a story as has ever been told in professional wrestling.
- [10:12]
A
To me, it really cut deep when Roman Reigns said, when you came back a couple years ago at Survivor Series, you know who they came to, right?
- [10:19]
B
Because that's real. Because that's real.
- [10:21]
A
Yes. So real. Roman Reigns is the reason, according to Roman Reigns, that CM Punk had a company to come back to.
- [10:28]
B
Maybe, maybe. And you could make the argument, but like there's a lot of reality there. And. And. And it is. It is, man. Time has a way, dude. Time has a way. Because the reality is that when Roman Reigns came in with the shield, the shield was brought in as CM Punk's backup. The shield was brought in as an act to be attached to the CM Punk act. And CM Punk was hands on with the portrayal of the shield, and CM Punk can take credit for that. But all that said, if they really did come to Roman Reigns, and if you look at Unreal, there is stuff that happens on Unreal that like, these stories have nothing to do with Cody, but Cody's the man, so Triple H is gonna go talk to Cody. If this is really happening with Roman Reigns, then guess what? We've equaled that out, too.
- [11:19]
A
I imagine they would go to Roman Reigns and talk to Roman Reigns.
- [11:23]
B
So where are we gonna go next? And Drew was catching stray after stray after Stray. They spent a lot of time on Drew McIntyre. And I guarantee you wait till Friday. Wait till Friday to hear how Drew responds.
- [11:37]
A
Before we started recording, I was just going to look on Twitter to see if Druid.
- [11:41]
B
Oh, he's going to have Venom release.
- [11:42]
A
Some sort of statement.
- [11:43]
B
He's going to have Venom. It is going to be a Messy Road to WrestleMania. It's going to look like the streets in New York City just not clean whatsoever. Can't get around anywhere messy on this road to WrestleMania. But that's the way we like it, where it's just like you're hanging on going, wait a second, this is. This is getting uncomfortable because this is getting too real.
- [12:04]
A
Well, because it's what, February 2nd today?
- [12:06]
B
Yeah.
- [12:07]
A
WrestleMania's mid April.
- [12:10]
B
Yeah. I think Michael Cole said, 75 days from the time that we're recording this.
- [12:14]
A
Got a long way to go.
- [12:15]
B
That's a lot of mess to clean up. But Roman looks at CM Punk and say, the. And Roman was right when he said that Drew McIntyre is not the easy choice for anyone.
- [12:29]
A
And CM Punk should know that firsthand.
- [12:31]
B
He knows it, but he wants to get the shot. Look, that. That. I don't think that that animosity is ever going anywhere either.
- [12:37]
A
Never.
- [12:38]
B
But when Roman goes, you are the biggest star, but that's not why I'm picking you. You are on the biggest show, but that's not why I'm picking you. You are on Netflix, but that's not why I'm picking you. And he brings it all up. He brings up the podcast with which I was like, we're just saying it. We're just saying Stuff like that on tv. He brings it all up and he says, I'm picking you because I hate you. And I've always hated you. And you go, oh, my God. And I feel like this is Roman Reigns. You know, I said right after Royal Rumble, I gave that my. My first thought was, man, if we can get a real story that we can sink our teeth into out of Roman Reigns, that's the Roman that we want back. That's the Roman that we've been missing. And when he looks at CM Punk and by the way, like, Paul Heyman gets brought up, Drew McIntyre gets brought up, all these names get brought up, but it just zeros in to Punk. And I think that that's going to bring out the best in both people. I think that based on the promo tonight, you've already got so much story and hatred and venom and reason for a fight packed into this thing that Roman Reigns is going to WrestleMania. Not just to become the champion again and prove to everybody that what he said on the Pat McAfee show was right, but he's going to WrestleMania because he still hates CM Punk.
- [14:21]
A
I listened to that Pat McAfee show interview and, wow, it was very tense. And the entire time I was thinking, I wonder what other folks on the roster are going to think of when they hear what Roman Reigns is saying. Yeah, I mean, he threw everybody under the bus.
- [14:38]
B
Well, it's up to them. It's up to them.
- [14:40]
A
And hearing CM Punk respond to it tonight. This isn't espn.
- [14:45]
B
Roman's in battle mode. I know Roman is in I'm main eventing WrestleMania mode. And he didn't say title match at WrestleMania. He said main event. He's going to WrestleMania.
- [14:56]
A
Well, that's where Roman Reigns belongs.
- [14:57]
B
Where he lives. That's where he lives. He's going to WrestleMania to destroy CM Punk. And it was, I mean, unbelievable. I've got. I'm going to go back and watch it multiple times because there was so much in there. And the stakes just started raising and raising. And at first it was like, oh, they're being kind of, like, cute, right? Or they're like, oh, this is like. It feels familiar. It feels like wrestling. And then when Roman started talking about, like, him showing Punk respect but Punk making a face as Roman walked away, it was like, these are little things that have been in the back of Roman's head since they happened. These are little things that really bothered Roman Reigns. But he knew there would be a time and a place to do this properly, and it's all right. There. Just because he hasn't said anything doesn't mean it hasn't always been right there. And now it's the prestige. Aha. Voila. He. Here it all is right in front of you. And it's been there the whole time. And it looks to just, I mean, explode.
- [16:11]
A
Just like you did with that mike flag at Wrestlemania.
- [16:14]
B
That's the energy right now. Insane. I loved it. I absolutely loved it. But you know what else I love?
- [16:20]
A
What?
- [16:21]
B
These Raycons.
- [16:22]
A
Oh, I got a pair myself.
- [16:24]
B
I love these Raycons. Let me tell you, the super bowl, the Winter Olympics this month. There's no better time to get inspired, push harder and upgrade your workout routine. When you are training consistently, the right gear makes all the difference. Look at these Raycons. I mean, I've been using mine. Megan, I know you've been using your Raycon Everyday earbud classics when you're running.
- [16:46]
A
Yeah.
- [16:46]
B
And they've. I heard they completely change how you work out.
- [16:49]
A
Is that true? Totally. I mean, I can hear the cars coming. I can, you know, I can listen to my music, but still be alert and aware. They're helping me get my training in. I can listen to podcasts like this one while I run. I could listen to your podcast, do stuff around the house, all while not being interrupted.
- [17:10]
B
That's right. Plus you get great sonic quality and you get to pick out all the different colors. The ones that match your outfit, the one that. The ones that match your vibe. The new colors are awesome. I'm, I'm, I'm. I'm loving Cool Mint. Have you seen Cool Mint?
- [17:24]
A
I've seen Cool Mint.
- [17:25]
B
Yeah. I hadn't seen earbuds in that shade before, but they feel like an accessory that actually fits me. This guy. Mr. Cool Mint. Mr. Cool Mint is what they've been calling me. And by the way, right now is the perfect time to grab Raycon's everyday earbuds because they're 15% off. Raycon delivers the same premium audio quality as the big brands, but at half the price. Add in over 3 million happy customers and a 30 day happiness guarantee and there's zero reason to overpay. A couple of features that make them my everyday. How about the quick charge function?
- [18:02]
A
So fast.
- [18:03]
B
You gotta love that because you never have a charger.
- [18:05]
A
Don't. Don't have time to charge.
- [18:06]
B
So the fact that, boom, we get them going. How about awareness mode when you're out? Maybe I'm walking the dog. Maybe I'm running some errands. I'm at the grocery store. You can hear what's happening around me while I'm enjoying listening to my own podcasts just so I can hear myself talking about how great Roman Reigns is. I've been using these pretty much every day since I got them. We're Whether I'm in the gym, out running errands, or just working from home, getting ready for the podcast, they're part of my daily routine. The everyday Earbuds Classic are here to help you. Go for the gold. Go to buyraycon.com wwe now to get 15% off. And thank you to Raycon for sponsoring. You know, we were talking about how Paul Heyman came up and how I think that when it comes to CM Punk and Roman Reigns, Paul Heyman has a lot to do foundationally with that story, but very little to do with the current day of the story. Maybe he lit that initial match by putting Roman Reigns and CM Punk together in that War Games shark cage a couple of years ago.
- [19:22]
A
The favor.
- [19:23]
B
But in reality, that's right. But in reality, those days are over. And Paul Heyman has, I mean, just a plethora of problems that he's got to deal with on his own.
- [19:33]
A
I mean, tonight the show started at 8:00 Eastern Time.
- [19:37]
B
8:00Pm Eastern Time.
- [19:38]
A
By 8:02, Paul Heyman's tie was already completely disheveled.
- [19:43]
B
Yeah. And so was the entire announced position on Monday Night Raw. Truly so without. I mean, you. I heard then, now, forever together. And then, boom, boom. Brom Breaker's already walking to the ring. No music, no nothing. Here comes Braun Breaker.
- [19:56]
A
I was off getting my dinner. I walked in a half a minute late and I said, what the heck is going on? Where's the music?
- [20:02]
B
Havoc had been unleashed already. Corey Graves and Michael Kohler just like, hey, whatever you got to do, you got to do. We're not. I'm not getting involved in this again.
- [20:09]
A
Smart.
- [20:10]
B
It really is smart. I would have done the exact same thing. I mean, the vision comes. So Braun Breaker, he flips over the table, he's throwing the monitors. I heard the crew in there going, those are expensive monitors. He's smashing them.
- [20:22]
A
They're not wrong.
- [20:23]
B
I know, I know. But I don't think Brom Breaker was price checking before he, before he went to town on that stuff. He was, I mean, he was just destroying everything, right? And the visions out there, they're trying to stop him. As you notice, disheveled. Paul Heyman is trying to stop him because Paul Heymon is in a state, especially after the Royal Rumble. Paul Heyman cuts a promo, who's. Paul Heyman is furious. You see, like, like Logan Paul and Austin Theory and Bronson Reed are all trying to calm down Braun Breaker. And you know, when Logan, Paul, Austin Theory and Bronson Reed are the voices of reason, you have passed the point of no return without question. I mean this. And you see, I mean, Braun Breaker was out of control. Paul Heyman gets on that microphone and starts talking about how furious he is, how they screwed up the Royal Rumble for them.
- [21:16]
A
All Adam Pierce's fault.
- [21:17]
B
All Adam Pierce's fault. I mean, he did bring up a good point that it's hard to believe that Adam Pierce has no idea who's under the mask. He flew all the way to Riyadh.
- [21:26]
A
He's got an customs.
- [21:28]
B
Well, I mean you got to, you got to know. What did he fly commercial and this dude just showed up? I don't know. Adam Pierce says he has no idea. But as, as he's talking, Adam Pearce comes out and he says the good news is that he's gonna let Bron Breaker keep his job even after Bron Breaker's quote. And by the way, big man, big, big man to say this quote, behind 15 security guards. And those are Philadelphia's finest. I've seen that city. Those are the most muscle bound men that you can find. And Adam Pierce got behind all of them. And then he said, I'm gonna let you keep your job even after your piss poor performance in the Royal rumble behind all 15 guys. And I go, you gotta be kidding. And Braun Breaker's furious. Adam Pierce is without a doubt instigating this. He is poking the bear. Except he's using one of those really long, almost cartoonish pokers that, that he can get through like 19 dudes.
- [22:39]
A
And to me, this isn't about poking the bear. That's Brown Breaker.
- [22:42]
B
This is all about Heyman making Heyman's life miserable.
- [22:46]
A
Of course. Yeah, but you, because, because listen, we saw Paul Heyman crashing out on the.
- [22:51]
B
Pre show big time.
- [22:53]
A
And we heard Adam Pierce say Fa Fo.
- [22:56]
B
Oh yeah, and he's still saying it.
- [22:57]
A
Fa Fo. What is the score tonight after Monday.
- [23:00]
B
Night Raw 2, nothing.
- [23:01]
A
I believe it's Adam Pierce 2, Paul Heyman absolutely nil.
- [23:05]
B
Zero, two nil in the battle of Fa Fo. I mean, I think there is a chart that I've seen on the Internet that as you continue to FA the fo relationship will rise with it.
- [23:20]
A
I've seen the same chart.
- [23:21]
B
Right, right, right.
- [23:22]
A
This exact chart. And you know, it's Kind of crazy, because as a. As a gambling woman, if you would have told me, hey, you know, you got to place a bet on fafo, right? Adam Pearce or Paul Heyman. I said year. A whole life savings. On Paul Heyman.
- [23:36]
B
On Paul Heyman. But right now, he is. He is behind by a lot. And Adam Pierce, even after the phone call he got, even after the Royal Rumble, looks so confident in his FAFO abilities. I don't know what's given him this level of confidence. I don't know if he's got some kind of backing that we don't know about. I don't know if he's got some kind of plan that we don't know about, because I also think that it is. You're 100% right. He wants to make Paul Heyman's life miserable for everything that Paul Heyman has ever done to him. But I also think it is personal against Bron Breaker. You do, Because Adam Pierce is a guy who's been around the block. Don't let the suit fool you. This is a guy who has a competitive beast inside of him. This is a champion. Bron Breaker put his hands on him. That doesn't go away. He's got a. He's. He's got an issue with Bron Breaker.
- [24:26]
A
I think he's got to let him know who's in charge.
- [24:27]
B
And that's why he stacked up 28 dudes in front of him and told Bron Breaker all just. Just started talking wild to Bron Breaker. But then, as Bron Breaker is over here trying to figure out how to get through these 37 guys behind him. LA Knight is taking out Vision members, and then Bron Breaker is getting really upset because now he's saying, over here, he's like, the emotions are taking over. He's over here. He just missed his. His Vision brethren getting beaten up. And then he turns back around, and of course, Adam Pierce has run back into his rat hole or wherever he stays, because he's nowhere to be found. And he looks at Paul Heyman and goes, what are we doing? What are we doing? Because up until, I don't know, two, three weeks ago, it felt like the Vision had a foolproof plan. When Austin Theory was on this podcast not all that long ago, he was talking to both of us like we were fools for even suggesting that the Vision would have any problem not being on a unified front, that we didn't see the Vision, that we didn't see this. But I'll tell you, going back to my tribal chief he goes on to ESPN and says, I don't even know why they call the Vision the Vision. Like that was an old Seth Rollins thing. This vision needs to change their whole name because they're. It's completely blurred. There is no. There's no there, there. And then you turn around and once again, Roman hits the nail on the head.
- [26:05]
A
Yeah. The tribal chief has a way of seeing things clearly.
- [26:08]
B
And then Bron breaker. Yeah, it's 100%. Bron breaker gets kicked out of the building.
- [26:13]
A
Yeah. In this, the. In the ring, when he looked at Paul Heyman and said, what are we doing? That wasn't the first time tonight that Bron Breakker was upset with Paul Heyman. Because later we see Adam Pierce and Paul Heyman backstage. Adam Pierce says that he's removed La Knight from the building and that Paul Heyman should do the same with Bron Breakker. And Bron Breakker was beyond upset with Paul Heyman.
- [26:37]
B
Yeah, I would be too.
- [26:38]
A
Beyond.
- [26:39]
B
Like, your job is to make sure that we have a plan here.
- [26:41]
A
And it's wild because you think back to when the Vision came together, and there was that one moment when they were backstage in the Visions locker room and Paul Heyman was guiding Bron Breaker and saying, please listen to me. And he was telling him about Brock Lesnar and how Brock Lesnar listened to him and waited for his opportunity. And what did that lead to? And he was going through all of the things that he's done. And so it was so interesting to me to see Bron Breaker not even a few months later, completely frustrated, flustered, furious.
- [27:16]
B
Guess what? With Paul Heyman, long term thinkers are the one that survive in this business. It's full of long term thinkers. Just because something's good right in front of you, it's all very fleeting. It's all very fleeting. And we're watching it all. Not only does he get thrown out of the building, but then his other Vision members are at ringside. It's Penta versus Bronson Reed. Penta doesn't have Dragon Lee there because Gunther, you know, decimated him. We'll talk about it. Rey Mysterio isn't there. I guess they said that he had injuries from the Royal Rumble, so it's just Penta. And guess what? Even with all the Vision out there, even everything, Penta gets the dub because La Knight again shows up. BFT to Bronson Reed while the referee is down onto a steel chair. King count out. Penta wins the match. The Vision is not on the same page. The Vision had The numbers completely on their side, not able to take advantage of it whatsoever. Another horrible night for all of those associated with Paul Heymon, as well as presumably the man himself. I mean, it pays right now to be at war with Division, which is not a spot that anybody was in not too long ago now, you know, was that referee in that Penta Brunson Reed match, was that Danilo?
- [28:40]
A
It was Danilo.
- [28:41]
B
Well, he's probably on the ground trying to find coupons or something. You're not wrong, because he's cheap.
- [28:47]
A
Very cheap.
- [28:48]
B
But he also works for Adam Pierce. And I guarantee you Paul Heyman is going to wonder why, when Bronson Reed hit the tsunami, was there no referee in the ring? We'll figure it all out. But, you know, we talk about Gunther, we talk about La Knight, we talk about AJ Styles. AJ Styles, who was retired by Gunther. We did not see him, although we saw Gunther come out to that music. We'll get into it in a minute. But I want to talk about A.J. styles and the fact that we have the ability to celebrate the phenomenal career of AJ Styles. We have the all new thank you collection available now at WWE Shop and Fanatics. New T shirts celebrating the career of AJ Styles that was brought to an unceremonious end by Gunther at the Royal Rumble. You can get your all new AJ Styles thank you collection today and honor a true wrestling legend on WWE Shop and Fanatics. You can also celebrate the return of La Knight.
- [29:51]
A
Yeah.
- [29:52]
B
Who we saw at the Royal Rumble. And then all over Monday Night Raw tonight with the new unchosen T shirt. Grab it right now. Don't wait. It's available at WWE Shop and Fanatics. La Knight's got another one. He had an amazing showing in the Rumble. An amazing Monday Night Raw. Now's a good time to rep that gear. But before we get into Gunther, before we get into what happened with the women on Monday Night Raw, we had somebody who was an All Star in the Royal Rumble as well as somebody who had a fabulous match with Grande Americano tonight. Joining us from Philadelphia, our first guest on Raw recap coming to us live from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, fresh off of Monday Night Raw and his match with Grande Americano, Javon Evans. And also fresh off. I mean, I feel like since you were announced as a member of the Monday Night Raw roster, I mean, it's, it's. It's out of the frying pan and into the fire. It has been nonstop with you, and I feel like you're also going nonstop. How are you feeling right now?
- [31:09]
C
Oh, right now, I'm soaring. I'm hurting, you know? I mean, yeah, man, you know, been a crazy couple days. But no, bro, man, I'm. I'm blessed, bro. You know what I mean? Like, it's. It's crazy. Just. I didn't think that I was gonna have these. These opportunities and this many eyes and this. This much. This much attention. I'm sorry. So soon. You feel me? So it's a blessing, bro. I'm honored, man. I'm just. I'm just having fun out here, you know, I'm trying to.
- [31:39]
B
Yeah, I saw. I saw on your way to the ring tonight, you were embracing the fans like always, but also, like, every day, they try to. I mean, you get overly familiar, they try to hug you, and then you're, like, grabbing your ribs, like, relax, relax. That's. That's tender. That's a tender area.
- [31:54]
C
Yeah, you know. You know, they don't. They don't know you feel me? But they just get excited, dog. Like, I remember being a kid and being in the nosebleeds and wishing I was on the. The floor seats. You feel me? So every time I get an opportunity to have fun with the fans, no matter how. How I'm feeling, you feel me?
- [32:14]
B
I.
- [32:14]
C
You know, I try to have fun with him, dog.
- [32:16]
B
I mean, what's it like for you when you get into the Royal Rumble before we get to tonight, when you're there and you're in Riyadh and it's the Royal Rumble, which. Anybody that grows up a wrestling fan, you know what I mean? There's. There's two shows. There's the Royal rumble and there's WrestleMania. Like, that's it. And not only are you in this thing, but you find yourself looking across from. From guys that you were, I mean, seemingly just with. In the performance center, Guys like Trick Williams and Oba Femi. And all of a sudden, all of you guys are on this massive, massive stage, all with the opportunity to show now the world what you started in nxt. How special was it to be in the ring in the Royal Rumble with those guys in particular?
- [33:04]
C
Oh, it was great. You know, putting our differences aside, it was. It was just. I don't know, I feel like it was like a. A magical moment. I don't know, bro. Like, I feel like just being there and, like, seeing how we all evolved, you feel me? And realizing, like, yo, just. Just a couple weeks back, we was killing it on xt, and now we have the opportunity to kill it here on Raw. Like, it's and smackdown and whatever ples come up next. You know what I mean? We're going crazy, so. But it was crazy just to have that moment with two of my bros.
- [33:47]
A
And I love that you're still repping nxt. You're wearing the. The penny out. We've seen that has NXT and 67 on it. Now, I have to ask. Sam told me earlier that that six seven's done. Is it? Is it done?
- [34:01]
C
I feel like it's just, you know, if, you know, you know, you feel me? Sometimes. Sometimes I'm feeling it. I'm like, hey, six seven, you know, sometimes I get a little mad and they're like, you know, hey, sometimes you got to back up off the 6 7.
- [34:15]
B
But that makes sense.
- [34:16]
C
I feel like it's always going to be a thing because I feel like later years down the road, I'm gonna be like 35, and I was gonna be like, the crowd's gonna go crazy. So I believe in it. Just give it. Give it some time. Give it a little process, you know what I mean?
- [34:30]
A
People will be calling you unk when you're doing that at 35.
- [34:33]
C
I know. I'm not even ready for that.
- [34:36]
B
No, no, I mean, so. So when you're in this Royal Rumble match, because the thing about you is that I feel like when you're on the offense, you're making moments, right? Whether it's. Whether it's. It's getting in there and. And. And doing these moves that honestly, nobody should be doing in a Royal Rumble. I felt like there was multiple times that I was like, oh, he's just trying to jump off ropes and he's out of this match. And somehow you saved yourself, like, jumping over Oba to attack Trick Williams. But at the same time, as I'm sure difficult as it is for you, man, there is something about watching Jacob fatu launch you 15ft into the air and then catch you with a Samoan drop. When you are on the ground and you're feeling every bit of that, is there any part of you that's like, yeah, but that was also a moment?
- [35:28]
C
Of course. Yeah, of course. I feel like, you know, sometimes I'm just too bouncy for my own good, you know? You know, sometimes. Sometimes, you know, I try to get involved in other people's business and I end up finding there. But. But it was great, dog. You feel me? Like, just. Just being in that atmosphere, you know, having the opportunity to at least try something on Jacob, you feel me? I remember, like, hitting the ground and I was like, yo, this hurts. It's painful, but it's fire, though, you know? Right. It was great, bro.
- [36:10]
B
I would say the same thing, and I hope people understand that too. I'd say the same thing. All of us that have been watching nxt, we know there was a moment when Randy Orton came over to NXT and he had that match with you, and there was the one move that we were waiting for, and it just didn't hit quite perfectly. You found it, but it wasn't quite that one moment. And Randy was right there waiting for you in the Rumble, and you guys hit it perfectly, unfortunately, again, with you on the receiving end of it. But I'm sure that when you, when, when the butterflies stopped floating around your head and you figured out where you were, I mean, you know, you're on the RKO highlight reel now. Yeah.
- [36:51]
C
You know. Hey, I appreciate that. Oh, no, bro. Yeah, no, I, I actually, I was so messed up about that moment with me, me and Randy, our first match, you know, it was. It took me actually a couple days to re. Watch the match back. You feel me? Because I was just so embarrassed about it. But, bro, sometimes, like, we gotta, Sometimes we gotta show the fans that, like, this is real, bro. You know what I mean? Like, no matter what anybody says, no matter what we do or not what we say, bro, just like, dang, like, anything can happen. I can get hurt. I can mess up a move, bro, like, everything's not going to be perfect. You know what I mean? So. But at the end of the day, we did it. But you feel me? But I do, and I'm sorry.
- [37:37]
B
I, I also love that, like, not only do you have that philosophy about it, which is really healthy and really good, but you're like, there's a moment to do it again, and there's a lot more eyeballs on us this time. And if it doesn't pan out, you know, the way it didn't pan out in nxt, there's a lot more people that are going to notice this time. But we got to do it. We have. We have to do it. And the fact that you went back when the stakes were even higher and said, yeah, this time, I mean, I think it speaks to. I think it speaks to you as a performer. I think it speaks to you as a wrestler. I think it's. Yeah, I think it's a really good thing, for sure.
- [38:12]
C
I appreciate that. I appreciate that. Yeah. You know, you gotta, sometimes you gotta take chances and see what happens, and that's why I did. And Miss an accomplice.
- [38:24]
A
Javon, you were in the rumble for like 48 plus minutes. And you know, as someone who grew up a wrestling fan, you were talking earlier how you were up way in the stands. Was there a moment when you were in the Rumble just looking around like, oh, my gosh, not only am I here, but I'm still here 48 minutes later.
- [38:43]
C
Oh, yeah. Honestly, not gonna lie. When Brock Lesnar came in the ring, oh, I was, I was such, like. Because I, you know, everyone I was in the ring with, I honestly grew up watching. So, like, whole time I'm taking all these moves, like, dang, this hurts, bro. But I just took a German suplex and the F5 from Brock Lesnar, bro. Like, you feel me? But. But that moment, like me getting scooped up by Brock Lesnar, in my head, I was like, all right, Rocket strong, I can't get out of this one. But. But I'm about to take an F5 and it's about to be wonderful, you know, so, bro, you just gotta be grateful, man. I'm just grateful that I had the opportunity and grateful that I stung it, stayed in the ring for such a long time. You feel me? Just to be in the ring with Ghosts.
- [39:33]
B
Yeah, I gotta, I gotta. I mean, I gotta take note. I don't know, you might need to like, teach a master's class or put out one of those self help books, because I'm telling you right now, I don't know many pro wrestling fans that are bigger wrestling fans than me. But at the same time, if I was looking at Brock Lesnar about to German suplex me, I would run as far away as humanly possible.
- [39:59]
C
I can. I tried, but like I said, sometimes, man, I just try to involve myself in other people's business. And, you know, I tried walking up to him and once I was in that position of the, you know, of the suplex of the German, you can't get out of that.
- [40:14]
B
Yeah.
- [40:15]
C
So you just gotta accept your fate. You feel me?
- [40:17]
B
Well, listen, I mean, and you made up for tonight on raw. I mean, I can't imagine the scenario where you're sitting there, you're in this match with Grande Americano. There's two other Americanos on the outside of the ring. Then another Americano shows up and distracts the other Americanos.
- [40:34]
A
And.
- [40:34]
B
And you've got to keep track of all of these weirdo luchadors that have no history and figure out who's who and who's the opponent and who you should be concentrating on. And you Gotta win. You gotta dub in Philly. I mean, coming off of the trip to Riyadh, straight to Philly to Monday Night Raw, to Grande Americano, it's. It's gotta feel like is. Is the dust kind of settling on what this weekend has been for sure.
- [41:03]
C
For sure. I know when I go home, I'm gonna be on the couch, you know, playing the game, and I'm like, dang. Like, I really just did that. You feel me? Like, yeah, man. It's wonderful, bro. I'm. I'm blessed, bro. That's it. You feel me?
- [41:19]
B
Yeah. Well, Javon, man, I mean, we are. We are absolutely loving everything that you have going on right now. Congratulations. Yeah, I mean, the start of this year, you're a month in, dude. You are a month into 2026, and you're already, like. You already have the Instagram carousel for the year in review. Like, you're good, dude. It's all gravy after this. So. Congratulations. Do you have any. And I know that. That. That I think you've said before, you're. You're. And you have this luxury of being at such a young age that, like, you can take things as they come, and you shouldn't be in a rush for anything.
- [41:58]
A
Do you.
- [41:59]
B
Now that you've competed incredibly well in a Royal Rumble and you made the trip all the way out there and, like, you've made this name for yourself, do you have any inkling as something you might like to do? I don't even want to say it out loud. On what could be your first WrestleMania.
- [42:16]
C
Ooh, man. All right, sorry. I'm not going to lie. I'm Matt Young. What does inkling mean? I'm sorry. I was confused. I'm like. He said inkling.
- [42:34]
B
It's all good. Inkling. Like, do you have any inkling, any thought, any sort of like. Like, the most. Like, the smallest. The smallest thought. Not that you're saying this is going to happen, but just this sort of, like, I have a feeling, like, I got. I got this inkling. I think this is going to be good.
- [42:50]
C
Oh, man. You know, I think just being a part of WrestleMania would be insane. Yeah. But, you know, there's a lot of goals that I want to accomplish, and one of those goals is to. To beat Randy. Randy Orton's record. You feel me? Be. Be the youngest World Heavyweight Champion.
- [43:12]
B
There it is.
- [43:13]
A
I love that.
- [43:14]
C
I feel like that's. That's something that I'm grinding for. I think I have. He wanted at 24, I believe.
- [43:20]
B
Yeah.
- [43:21]
A
Okay.
- [43:21]
C
It was 24. I turned 22 in April, so I got. I got more than two years. So let's. Let's grind for that goal. Straight like that.
- [43:30]
B
Well, April, what do you mind me asking?
- [43:33]
C
Oh, yeah. April 29th.
- [43:34]
B
Oh, my God. So that's great that the birthday is late in April because that's going to give you an extra Wrestlemania. That's going to give you extra time to hit that goal.
- [43:42]
C
Exactly. Exactly.
- [43:44]
A
Three more wrestlemanias until just about, I think.
- [43:48]
B
So. My gosh.
- [43:50]
A
Oh, I hope we see that.
- [43:51]
B
And like, not only. I mean, think about this, man. Your.
- [43:55]
A
Your.
- [43:55]
B
Your.
- [43:56]
C
Your.
- [43:56]
B
Your goals are increasing. Your, Your. Your catalog of everything you've done in the WWE is increasing. And your vocabulary after the word inkling is increasing. Javon, thank you so much, man. You are. You're the man and we appreciate it.
- [44:14]
C
I appreciate y' all for having me.
- [44:16]
B
Big thanks to the man himself, Javon Evans. Really, really cool. What a time to be Javon Evans. He was part of. Of more than one memorable moment from the Royal Rumble. And I'll tell you, the Royal Rumble was unbelievable in general. We were talking about it. And I'll tell you, as unbelievable as the Royal Rumble was always Tops now is there to commemorate these unbelievable events. We were talking about it. We were wondering what we were going to get from Tops Now. Well, Tops now is going to be celebrating the winners of the men's and women's Royal Rumble. And lucky collectors who buy the live Morgan and Roman Reigns base cards have the chance to receive autograph relic cards featuring pieces from the actual mat of Royal Rumble 2026. You will have the chance randomly inserted to get cards signed by Liv Morgan or Roman Reigns with an actual piece of the mat from the event in the card. Awesome. Awesome collectibles. Only at Tops now you can also get the AJ Styles card and lucky collectors who. Who by the base card will have a chance at receiving autographs and a special short print celebrating his final WWE match. And don't miss the Royce Keys debut card and Brie Bella return card. I would say that's a Roy. I would consider that the Royce Keys rookie. Although a lot of people don't consider Tops now rookies. Still you get the card from the night that Royce Keys showed up in the WWE for the first time. Grab these cards on tops.com and sign up for notifications so you never miss a big moment. While we're on the topic of Tops real quick, I also want to tell you that there may be six more weeks of winter.
- [46:13]
A
Ugh.
- [46:15]
B
Because of that fool of a groundhog who I've never trusted anyway. But WWE Slam by Tops is bringing the heat with all new digital trading card collections. Yes, the canvas comes alive in color splash where bold pigments, explosive designs and larger than life WWE moments collide. This all next box delivers a vibrant mix of high energy cards drenched in color and available now to chase. And from heart pounding moments to unforgettable finishes, all heart celebrates Superstars who lead with passion when it matters most. The day. This daily set spotlights your favorite Superstars who grit whose grit, loyalty and emotion define WWE history. Get your digital fingers on these collections and more, including Tops now. Royal Rumble cards premiering later this week. WWE Slam by Tops offers fans around the world the chance to collect and trade their favorite WWE Superstars. Rip digital packs every day, complete collector based missions and seasons and combine cards to craft them into rarer digital collectibles. Download free now in the app store and Google Play. And I'm going to tell you who is not playing. Not once, not for a second, not at all, not ever. Huh? Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom boom. Obafemi coming at the War Raiders. And the War Raiders are like not only a tag team.
- [48:01]
A
So there's two of them, Two of the biggest people on the roster.
- [48:04]
B
Two of the biggest people on the roster. Two of the strongest people on the roster. And also deceivingly quick and like athletic. Super athletic. And here comes Obafemi just coming down. It's not even his match by the way.
- [48:19]
A
They weren't tag team like not long ago they were tag team champions.
- [48:23]
B
Yeah, the War Raiders. Yeah, absolutely. Oba Femi shows up, not signed to Monday night Raw, free agent, not booked. This wasn't a match. He just shows up and decimates the War Raiders and you're just like. And the way to the way that he did it wasn't even like, man, it'd be one thing if it was a bunch of like tackles and shoulder blocks and clotheslines. Obafemi was lifting these 300 pound men in the air like they were nothing. I've never seen anything like that before. The War Raiders for years have been one of my favorite tag teams to watch and one of those tag teams that you look at and go, I would never want to be on the other side of the ring. And Oba Femi dominated both of them.
- [49:06]
A
Yeah, it's because exactly what we were talking about. You see the size of them and you go, wow, they're imposing. But then you watch the War Raiders move and you go, how is this even possible?
- [49:15]
B
That's right.
- [49:16]
A
And that's why they are such a dominant tag team, and that's why they've been Tag Team champions. But for Oba to come in, never having a match on Monday Night Raw before, just off of an outstanding performance in the Royal Rumble, to just completely throw those guys out of the ring.
- [49:34]
B
Yeah. I watched the War Raiders move tonight, and I thought it was impossible because it was involuntary.
- [49:39]
A
Yeah.
- [49:40]
B
Because they were being thrown up in the air like it was Jacob Fatu and Javon Evans all over again. It was absolutely insane. I cannot wait to see where Obafemi lands. I think Obafemi is just going to be a force of nature in wwe.
- [49:54]
A
I know Adam Pierce has a lot on his plate, but, you know, after that performance by Obafemi, you gotta. You gotta give that man whatever he wants.
- [50:00]
B
I'll tell you on your show, I'll tell you what I would want if I were Obafemi. A different general manager.
- [50:04]
C
The way.
- [50:05]
B
The way Adam Pierce treats people, the way Adam Pierce treats Braun Breaker, the way he treats Paul Heyman, the way he leads with emotion, the way he has to. You know, a lot of times he says, finish the evening with a cocktail. I would say that if I was like, okay, I'll come to Monday Night Raw, I'll sign your deal, but I want a different general manager for sure. Because you're a lunatic. That's what I would say. If I was Oba Femi. I would never say that.
- [50:27]
A
As me, you're the number one Adam Pierce hater. Number one Number one Adam Pierce hater.
- [50:33]
B
You think Adam Pearce is doing a good job?
- [50:35]
A
I mean, I think you're a little tough on him.
- [50:37]
B
I think it's the general manager.
- [50:39]
A
It is a tough job when you're dealing with people like Paul Heyman and the Vision.
- [50:44]
B
It's supposed to be a tough job. That's the job. Has there ever been a general. You think Jack Tunney had it easy? You think Gorilla Monsoon had it easy? The Hot Rod when he was interim commissioner, you think he had it easy? Nick Bockwinkle was commissioner of WCW. He didn't have it easy. All right, you're like J.J. dillon.
- [51:03]
A
You're really.
- [51:04]
B
He didn't have it easy.
- [51:05]
A
You're throwing a lot of.
- [51:06]
B
You think Vicki Guerrero had it easy and she got the job done. You think Teddy Long had it easy. And how many tag team matches and one on one are these with the Undertaker did we have?
- [51:17]
A
Are these all general managers you think that are doing A better job or did a better job than Adam Pierce.
- [51:22]
B
They didn't lead with emotion, and they didn't let their grudges play out. And they certainly didn't line up 38 dudes in front of him and start insulting talent. But that's neither here nor there. We already discussed that. Gunther was an absolute savage. Tonight on Monday Night Raw, when AJ.
- [51:44]
A
Styles music hit, I was so. I was so excited.
- [51:48]
B
I didn't think.
- [51:48]
A
I mean, emotional, but excited.
- [51:50]
B
And he wasn't advertised for Raw. So when the music hit, I looked at you and I went, oh, like, he's here. We're gonna get to hear one last.
- [51:58]
A
That's what I thought.
- [51:59]
B
Like a goodbye.
- [52:00]
A
A goodbye.
- [52:01]
B
Maybe the gloves get left in the ring.
- [52:02]
A
Because he took the gloves off. It looked like he was gonna leave him in the ring. He put them back on like, oh, he's.
- [52:06]
B
He's gonna do it in Philly.
- [52:08]
A
Yeah. This is. This is gonna be our. Our happy moment.
- [52:10]
B
And then I saw it before, I think, but we saw it on television before the audience saw it. I was like, AJ does not wear a black trench.
- [52:21]
A
And AJ is not that tall.
- [52:23]
B
God bless him. He's not. And he's not laughing like that either. I go, that's an Austrian. That's not a guy from Georgia.
- [52:30]
A
I mean, Gunter loves antagonizing people. And he did exactly that with that maniacal laugh.
- [52:35]
B
He was so happy with how upset you were with him, by the way. Did you see. I mean, on the Royal Rumble recap. Wwe now. He was so. Because you were visibly upset. Yeah, I was not the most professional that you've ever been. I'll just say that. But he was visit. You were visibly upset. And he loved that. He really had a great time with it. He said, like, yeah, what's her problem?
- [52:55]
A
Yeah, he told me to get a.
- [52:58]
B
Like, yeah, well, yeah, he did.
- [53:00]
A
This isn't Disneyland, Megan.
- [53:01]
B
That's what he said.
- [53:02]
A
What he said.
- [53:03]
B
He really did talk down to you.
- [53:04]
A
He did, yeah. And he liked every second of it. I didn't like any of it.
- [53:08]
B
You don't like it when people are condescending to you, do you? You didn't like that?
- [53:13]
A
No, I hated that. That was terrible. Now all of a sudden, you're doing a Gunter maniacal laugh.
- [53:18]
B
Because it makes.
- [53:18]
A
I mean, this guy has retired John Cena, right? Made him tap. Made John Cena quit.
- [53:25]
B
Like, what? Like what?
- [53:26]
A
Like a little B.
- [53:27]
B
That's what he said.
- [53:28]
A
That's what he said.
- [53:29]
B
Yeah.
- [53:30]
A
Goldberg.
- [53:31]
C
Who?
- [53:31]
A
Bill Goldberg.
- [53:33]
B
Gotcha.
- [53:33]
A
And then AJ Styles. I mean, you of all people, Sam Roberts were like, oh, 2026, AJ Styles last run. You were excited to see aj Styles at WrestleMania. You were excited to see a AJ Styles at SummerSlam. You were excited for the year. And like you said, get him in.
- [53:50]
B
The war games one time.
- [53:52]
A
Yeah, you sit here now and you're like, you were unprofessional because you were upset that AJ's career ended.
- [53:58]
B
Yeah, well, you were.
- [54:00]
A
How is that unprofessional?
- [54:02]
B
You should, you. I mean, you're like Adam Pierce. You led with emotion. But. But regardless, he got all of us, did Gunther. And I mean, only Gunther can really, like, because he could do so much damage, he can pull off with that level of antagonism when he comes out. And you could hear it, it was almost like back in the day when the Miz wore a bald cap and a just bring it T shirt. And the audience really thought the Rock was coming out and it was the Miz and it was like, oh, we hate you. But this was even worse because they were like, we don't know if we're ever going to see AJ Styles again in WWE ring. And Gunther comes out, he just loves it. And then the music kicks in.
- [54:46]
C
And.
- [54:47]
B
It says, career killer on the Tron. And Gunther comes out loving every bit of it.
- [54:51]
A
I hated every second of it.
- [54:53]
B
Wow. I thought for a second that was you in a Dragon Lee mask. But then I saw you were in the ring. It was actually Dragon Lee who came out to the ring. Dragon Lee, of course, very recently, former tag team champion with AJ Styles. And Dragon Lee really did. I mean, he came right out there and Gunther said, like, what do you want? He kicked him right in the head.
- [55:11]
C
Did it.
- [55:12]
B
Dragon Lee. He kicked him right in the head. And I said, good for you, Dragon Lee. Go out there and kick that dude in the head, if that's what you need to do. And he got him out and he got him to the outside and everything. But it was just like so much vigor and you can't. Again, emotion, emotion, emotion, emotion, emotion. And Gunther just, ah, locks on that sleeper hold. And I mean, you know, security tries to pull Gunther off and everything. But the reality is it wasn't Dragon Lee segment. Dragon Lee came out, Dragon Lee started this. Gunther's gonna finish it. They get him into the ring. I mean, it was insane. Gunther had Dragon Lee dangling off the apron over the ropes while security. And his body just went limp, just.
- [56:02]
A
Put him to sleep.
- [56:03]
B
His body just goes. And then he just drops him. And you just see this dragon lead through the flames, just go right down to the mat, just like a sack. And you're just like, Gunther, Gunther, you, you, you vicious, savage animal, you. Is there no humanity left? No, and I think there actually is. Humanity is evil. The humanity is the joy that he, for some reason, gets out of seeing people like he truly believes. He's told us that he's doing pro wrestling a service by taking moments away from older people who should be retired.
- [56:45]
A
So should Dragon Lee be retired?
- [56:47]
B
Dragon Lee got himself involved. I think Dragon Lee might be retired. I don't know for sure, but I think he might be.
- [56:54]
A
I just. I hate having this conversation because I went back and watched the Royal Rumble and I saw the Randy elimination. And I've been thinking about it since I saw it, and I don't want Gunter in the ring with anybody because.
- [57:09]
B
He'S going to retire him.
- [57:10]
A
Yeah, well, just.
- [57:12]
B
Yep. Yeah. That's why I don't want him.
- [57:15]
A
Get him out.
- [57:16]
B
He's going to beat him. It's inevitable.
- [57:18]
A
It is.
- [57:19]
B
Thanos is here, and that's everybody's career. He's already. He's already knocked out three. He really is depopulating wwe. It's crazy Three.
- [57:31]
A
And he's been back since the Cena tournament.
- [57:34]
B
Yeah, I mean, the Goldberg match was less than a year ago. Yeah, the Goldberg match was less than a year ago. Boom. Listen, it wasn't all. It wasn't all chagrin. There was a lot of happiness on Monday Night Raw as well. A lot of happiness. We saw the return of Dominic Mysterio and I mean, I thought.
- [57:55]
A
I'm surprised you didn't lead with that.
- [57:56]
B
I thought this guy looked great. I mean, if Roman Reigns and CM Punk hadn't done what they did, I probably would have. Dominic. I thought Dominic Mysterio looked great when he left.
- [58:05]
A
Like, the glasses, bro.
- [58:06]
B
I liked everything. I liked everything about. I mean, look at this guy. The mustache looks absolutely. It's sicker and thicker than ever. That's what I would say. I think Dominic, he's fanatics. WWE shop. There needs to be a shirt with Dominik Mysterio. And he's got his mustache and it says sicker and thicker. Dominik Mysterio. Because he came out, he had the glasses on. That mullet is the longest, most conditioned flowing mullet. And you talk to him about this mullet and he almost says, like in a braggadocious way, you go. And I've asked him, how often do you shampoo that thing? He says, every day. I say, you're not supposed to shampoo and condition every day. It's bad for your hair. He goes, I do it every day. I go, dom, you bad boy.
- [58:52]
A
Dominic doesn't play by the rules. He was also wearing some car hearts.
- [58:56]
B
Oh, yeah, he was.
- [58:57]
A
Some overalls.
- [58:58]
B
The overalls. The tank top. The throat tattoo. I think he added to the throat tattoo. It looks amazing.
- [59:03]
A
He added to a lot of tattoos.
- [59:05]
B
Oh, well. Yeah. He's been at home for a little while, so still got his two championships. I mean, imagine just having your arms full of. Of two championships and Liv Morgan. That's how you roll.
- [59:17]
A
How does life get better?
- [59:18]
B
It doesn't. It. It simply doesn't. He's Dominic Mysterio. He just shows up again and everybody's like, oh, yeah, I forgot the greatest human that's ever lived. I mean, this guy's incredible. I've never seen anything like it.
- [59:31]
A
And everyone around him continues to elevate as well. I mean, Liv Morgan is already the greatest Royal Rumble winner of all.
- [59:40]
B
Time. Yeah, that's what happens. That's what happens. When you truly have that Dominic energy, it really does elevate everybody that's around you. And he was just there to celebrate Liv Morgan. To celebrate Liv Morgan's win. Raquel. Dominick. Liv had a. Had a. Had a moment. I don't think Raquel is as forgiving as Liv Morgan thinks that she is. No, stay in the back is never that good. One time Shawn Michaels told Psycho Sid, next time you'll stay in the back. And that was the night that Psycho Sid turned on Shawn Michaels. People don't like stay in the back.
- [60:21]
A
I remember that Liv did act supportive of the stay in the back command. I mean, yeah, but she did say less.
- [60:29]
B
She didn't say.
- [60:30]
A
Well, initially when she was told. Said say less. Very, very proud of Raquel. Obviously, she didn't obey.
- [60:38]
B
No, she didn't stay in the back end. As a matter of fact, she didn't stay in the back. There was hesitation from Raquel and it ended up with. With Stephanie Vicar, at least for the moment, being able to take advantage. I can't blame the whole finish of the Stephanie Vicar Raquel Rodriguez match on live.
- [60:57]
A
No, not the.
- [60:58]
B
Because it went on. And then they went counter for, counter for, counter for. And then Stephanie Vacair. By the way, after two devil's kisses, one on a chair, one on the steel steps after a. A. Some kind of hurricane Rana that was turned into a power bomb that was turned back into a Hurricane Rana Stephanie Raquel goes through the table Stephanie goes up, hits that corks screw splash, which is amazing. Unbelievable. 1, 2, 3. Stephanie Vicaire wins that Philly street fight. But then Liv Morgan takes out Stephanie at the end of the match and holds up the Women's World Championship herself. Now live. Morgan also said she was going to take a trip to smackdown this week to check out the competition there. Jade Cargill. I probably want to. If I'm. If I'm assessing competition, I might want to do it from a distance. But regardless, you know, she. She will be on smackdown checking out Jade Cargill. And I have to wonder, number one, I wonder which champion she's going to go for. But number two, the whole premise of this was I know you're not selfish and you have a title match and I have a title match. Now we both have title matches. Except now Raquel has lost her title match.
- [62:18]
A
Yeah. Which is why Liv is probably, I assume, probably going to say, well, I. I held up the. The title because you didn't win the title, and we still need the title to come back to the judgment day.
- [62:30]
B
But the whole point was that they would both get titles. I know Raquel's not going to be happy about the way this went.
- [62:34]
A
No chance.
- [62:35]
B
No.
- [62:37]
A
I don't think Raquel should have let live off that easy for eliminating her.
- [62:43]
B
Really? You didn't say that to Liv. You didn't have that same energy with Liv when Liv was here? You didn't say that.
- [62:48]
A
Well, she just. She just won the Royal Rumble.
- [62:50]
B
You weren't trying to yuck her. Yum.
- [62:51]
A
She was the. She was the bridesmaid so many times and finally was the bride. I didn't want to do that to her in her moment, to her face. But you know, when you really sit down and look at the way that she eliminated Raquel Rodriguez.
- [63:07]
B
She eliminated her.
- [63:08]
A
I mean, this wasn't like Charlotte Flair, Alexa Bliss, accidental elimination.
- [63:13]
B
No, it's on purpose.
- [63:14]
A
This was. I'm eliminating you.
- [63:16]
B
It was the final four in the Royal Rumble. I mean, what are you going to do if it's the. If you're at the final four in the Royal Rumble and you want to win the thing, you got to eliminate the other three.
- [63:26]
A
I get it. I mean, not show friends.
- [63:31]
B
Let's show business.
- [63:32]
A
That's right.
- [63:33]
B
That's all it is. But I'll tell you, hopefully they can all keep it together because there's. I mean, this. They got to make it to the summer. You know why?
- [63:42]
A
Because it's fanatics fest.
- [63:43]
B
That's exactly right. This summer it is fanatics Fest. This is huge news for WWE and sports fans. The world's number one sports fan festival, Fanatics Fest, is making its return to New York City. Fanatics is bringing you closer to the league's team's superstars and athletes that you love. Across four action packed days in July, you can meet your favorite WWE Superstars. In fact, Cody Rhodes, Rhea Ripley, EO Sky, Liv Morgan, Jay USO Charlotte Florida Flair, Becky Lynch, Randy Orton, Stephanie Vacair, Tiffany Stratton and Bianca Belair will all be in attendance. As well as big names across sports like WWWE superfan, Cam Sco. You'll also be able to get your hands on exclusive merch and catch live WWE podcasts. That's exciting. Tickets are now on sale@fanatics fest.com. i can't wait for it. Hopefully the Bellas will be there. I was very excited to see the Bellas back back as a team.
- [64:36]
A
You find that Brimo T shirt?
- [64:37]
B
I'm looking for it. I don't know if it'll fit me anymore, to tell you the truth.
- [64:40]
A
Why? You just.
- [64:41]
B
I've. Well, I filled out. I filled out.
- [64:43]
A
You been hitting the gym?
- [64:44]
B
I have, I have. I've filled. I put my. I put my Raycons on. I hit the weights. I filled out a little bit since the last time I wore my Bremo T shirt. So I might need a new one. But we'll see. We'll see.
- [64:54]
A
That has nothing to do with the.
- [64:55]
B
There it is.
- [64:56]
A
The McDonald's. There you are.
- [64:57]
B
Yeah, no, I. No, the McDonald's is. That's. I've checked the macros on that. It's high protein.
- [65:01]
A
You're good.
- [65:02]
B
Just nugs. Just nugs and nugs and nugs. It's high protein. Yeah, no, no, no, no, no. I think I've filled out a little bit since then. Which is good. Which is good. I needed it. Still a little too slender there. I look like Slender Man. Look how long and skinny those arms are.
- [65:14]
A
Hey, Nikki said you got a glow.
- [65:15]
B
Up, so that's what I'm saying. You can say whatever you want. I'm gonna take Nikki Bella's word for it. I think that's smart.
- [65:21]
A
That's smart.
- [65:22]
B
I appreciate that. Next week we got a big Monday night Raw, okay? We are getting Maxine Du Pre versus Natty who.
- [65:32]
A
Speaking of looking yolk, she looked jacked backstage.
- [65:36]
B
She did look jacked backstage. But Natty is not. Is not one to mess with.
- [65:40]
A
Not right now.
- [65:41]
B
No, I can't wait. Especially you talk about having a great performance in the Royal Rumble Low key. The low key legend did amazing in the Royal Rumble fabulous elimination of Becky lynch, which was really well done and and and spent a good amount of time in there. We've also got the Tag Team Championship on the line. Alpha Academy versus the Usos. This is the opportunity that Alpha Academy needs. Maxine Dupree got a similar opportunity when she won the Intercontinental Championship by beating Becky lynch badly. And now you've got to Zawa and Otis who have the opportunity to elevate. I doubt that they'll be able to beat the Usos as soundly as Maxine. Now you're just spreading beat Becky lynch over and over badly.
- [66:27]
A
But information scam Roberts.
- [66:30]
B
Well, I'm trying to spread joy. It could be a huge night. I'm just saying. For Alpha Academy against the greatest tag team of all time, the USO's. And of course the elimination chamber matches. The qualifiers start on Monday Night Raw next week.
- [66:44]
A
It's really happening. We're on the road.
- [66:45]
B
It's crazy. We start finding out who's going to be in this elimination chamber match next week on Monday Night Raw. I cannot wait. And the best part about all of it is that WWE now will be here next week to break it all down. And to recap Monday Night Raw. Subscribe to the WWE now audio feed across all podcast platforms. Make sure you're leaving comments and hitting like on YouTube and we'll see you again for more WWE now sat.