WWE Raw results, live blog (Jan. 16, 2023): The Judgment Day

WWE Monday Night Raw comes waltzing back into our lives tonight (Jan. 16, 2023) from the Heritage Bank Center in Cincinnati, Ohio, featuring all the latest build to the upcoming Royal Rumble pay-per-view (PPV) extravaganza scheduled for later this month in San Antonio.

Advertised for tonight: The Judgment Day became top contenders to the Raw tag team titles last week and WWE is advertising we’ll find out “what’s next” for them starting with this show. Elsewhere, Bobby Lashley is back and there are promises that he’ll follow up his big return here. All that and more!

Come right back here at 8 p.m. ET when the Raw live blog will kick off once the show starts on USA Network. It will be below this line here. Reminder: GIFs and pics allowed, but no links to illegal streams, please.

WWE RAW RESULTS AND LIVE BLOG FOR JAN. 16
Oh, you rebel chief, destroyer of the earth, rise from precipice through birth, but me? I’m just here to liveblog this here pro wrestling show for these folks.

The show opens with the intro video.

Commentary hypes up a six-way #1 contender’s match for the United States Championship for later tonight.

The Usos make their entrance, flanked by Solo Sikoa, and they get on the mic.

They announce that the Bloodline is now in your city and say they run SmackDown and Raw every single week. Before Solo puts a beating on Mustafa Ali tonight, they need to address Friday. Kevin Owens better have learned his lesson about not crossing the Tribal Chief, and they say they have something huge planned for Raw XXX.

Every generation of the Bloodline will be on the show to have an acknowledgement ceremony for Roman, and they’re gonna defend the Raw tag titles against the Judgment Day.

Enter the Judgment Day.

They say the only thing that needs acknowledging is that they run Monday Night Raw and they’re running straight for the Bloodline. Finn Balor thanks ex-con Dom for stepping up and filling in so they could become #1 contenders to the tag titles. Damian Priest says they’re gonna win the tag titles next week.

Mysterio gets in the Usos’ faces and says he can tell they’re scared, but they laugh it off and remind him of their record and all the teams they’ve beaten and remind they started this reign beating him and his dad, and at Raw XXX the Judgment Day will get welcomed to the Uso Penitentiary.

Somehow Rhea Ripley ends up stepping up to Solo Sikoa and he backs off before getting right back in her face! Dominik takes a shot and Sikoa drops him with a headbutt, leading to a brawl! Solo and Rhea face to face again, she beckons him in, he fires up… AND MUSTAFA ALI TAKES HIM OUT WITH A DIVE TO SEND US TO BREAK AHEAD OF THEIR MATCH!

Mustafa Ali vs. Solo Sikoa
Back from commercial, match is joined in progress and Sikoa is in control! Ode to Rikishi connects, he’s fired up, headbutts, Ali gets away, superkick sends Solo to the floor, off the ropes and the dive is cut off by a big right hand! Lariat connects, only two! ‘

Solo dumps Mustafa Ali to the apron and throws him into the post, leaving him for dead on the floor as referee counts. The Usos come into the ring to stand tall, Kevin Owens makes the save and they brawl, Mustafa back in, tornado DDT… NOPE! Sikoa cuts off the rally…

Solo Sikoa wins by pinfall with the Samoan Spike.

Post-match, Kevin Owens attacks Solo and clears the announce desk, but road agents and referees break it up before the table can get destroyed!

Bobby Lashley cuts a promo about how it doesn’t matter who you put in front of him, he’s winning tonight’s #1 contender’s match and ending Austin Theory’s United States Championship reign next week, and we go to break.

Back from commercial, we get another Cody Rhodes vignette covering his rehab and comeback training, and are informed that he’ll make his return at the Royal Rumble.

Byron Saxton is outside of Adam Pearce’s office to interview Elias.

He wants into the Royal Rumble, but Montel Vontavious Porter rolls up to tell him to not bother, because the winner is a done deal. Elias scoffs at MVP entering the Royal Rumble, and Porter tells him if he keeps talking like that he’s gonna get him a match with the winner of the 2023 Royal Rumble tonight.

Elias is game and Montel goes in to talk to Adam and get it done, and we go to break.

Hurt Business (Cedric Alexander & Shelton Benjamin) vs. Street Profits (Angelo Dawkins & Montez Ford)
Dawkins and Benjamin to start, Shelton blasts Ford off the apron, reverse roundhouse for Angelo, big German suplex… NOPE! Tags made, Montez lights Alexander up, back body drop to the apron, duck a lariat, Cedric wants the German to the floor but Ford hangs in there and blocks with a back elbow!

Montel Vontavious Porter comes to ringside and we go to break.

Back from commercial, Ford breaks Alexander’s grip but he tags Benjamin in. Double whip, up and over, go under, tag to Dawkins! Angelo hard with lariats, clear the apron, leapfrog, corkscrew back elbow! Spinning Stinger Splash and a kick, Ford up top, spinebuster, frog splash… CEDRIC BREAKS IT UP!

Electric chair, again Alexander gets involved, belly-to-belly superplex from Shelton… DAWKINS BREAKS IT UP! Fountain of dives, everybody down and out, back inside, Hurt business lay Dawkins out with an assisted knee but he’s able to reverse…

Street Profits win by pinfall with a schoolboy pin from Angelo Dawkins on Cedric Alexander.

Judgment Day are interviewed backstage.

Finn Balor says he’s ready for a six-pack challenge, but before Damian Priest and Dominik Mysterio can talk about their tag title shot next week, Alpha Academy roll up to complain that Finn should have been medically disqualified and say they’re gonna get their win back.

Rhea Ripley threatens them, Dom chimes in, and Chad Gable tells him the next time he’s in prison he should sign up for one of Alpha Academy’s online courses to try and better himself. Damian tells them to take a walk or they won’t make it to the ring and Chad says Otis hasn’t gotten his steps in, so that’s a good idea.

And so we go to break.

Back from commercial, Becky Lynch makes her entrance through the crowd, mic in hand.

She hops the barricade and says she’d like to chat but she has some business to take care of first, and calls Bayley out.

Enter Damage CTRL.

Bayley says she thinks she beat Becky so bad that she forgot her name, because her name is Bayley, not Karen. They bicker, Lynch asks somebody to explain to her what “a Karen” is, and sums it up as “an entitled idiot with a crappy haircut.” They get in the ring and square up, Bayley mocks her for not having friends, Becky says she has a whole arena of friends and Bayley peaked in 2015.

The Role Model points out that was the year she ran NXT while the other Horsewomen ran off and stole her spot. Lynch says Bayley stayed in NXT to be a leader and a champion, or was she full of crap when she said all that? Becky says she was just another body and she wasn’t supposed to change the game and be the first woman to win the main event of WrestleMania, but she did because she works harder than anyone else and she’s gonna keep working until she can’t anymore.

She says Bayley whines and moans and blames anyone else but her situation is just her own fault. Bayley says the only reason Becky became The Man is she got punched in the face by another woman, to which Lynch says maybe she should punch her in the face to get her out of the rut she’s stuck in, or is she gonna hide behind Dakota Kai and IYO SKY.

Becky challenges her to a match next week inside of a steel cage, and Bayley accepts.

Dolph Ziggler is getting ready for his match later when Mustafa Ali rolls up to needle him about refusing to tag with him again.

Ziggler tells him nobody gets anything handed to them, and one professional to another, he doesn’t have time to pay attention to him today.

Ali responds with a forearm to the back of the neck and asks if he has his attention now before leaving!

And so we go to break.

Back from commercial, Elias is in the ring to face whoever Montel Vontavious Porter claims is winning the Royal Rumble.

MVP makes his entrance and gets on the mic.

He notes Elias seems confused and it seems they had a little communication breakdown, and things are about to get a lot worse for him as he faces this man… Omos!

Elias vs. Omos
Elias rushes in, right hands, Omos throws him across the ring but the Drifter stays on him! The Nigerian Giant runs him over with a boot! To the floor, Elias starts to regain control, MVP runs interference, Omos blocks a guitar shot and clocks the Drifter with a massive headbutt!

Back inside, Elias gets three knee strikes in a row and goes up top, but Omos cuts him off…

Omos wins by pinfall with the chokebomb.

Adam Pearce is interviewed backstage and promises us that Raw XXX is going to be unforgettable.

He talks up tonight’s main event #1 contender’s match but Akira Tozawa rolls up to demand entry in the Royal Rumble. Pearce tells him to earn it, and Tozawa asks for a match tonight to prove himself. Adam doesn’t promise anything but gives him a match tonight.

Judgment Day are walking backstage to send us to break.

Alpha Academy (Chad Gable & Otis Dozovic) vs. Judgment Day (Damian Priest & Dominik Mysterio)
Priest and Gable to start, mat grappling, Damian using his strength and Chad his speed. Duck an elbow, go-behind, Priest breaks the waistlock and throws Gable to the floor! Back inside, wristlock, Chad bridges out of it, drop toehold blocked! Alphas get an advange, working him over, whip reversed, Gable crashes to the floor and the tide turns that fast as we go to break!

Back from commercial, Gable has Mysterio in the armbar in the ropes! Dom runs away and tags Priest in, he bowls Chad over, working him in the corner, Broken Arrow connects… NOPE! Tag to Mysterio, fighting back and forth, tags made and Otis cleans house! Damian boxes his ears, he fires back a headbutt that gets a superkick that gets a World’s Strongest Slam for two!

Dozer up top, Priest cuts him off… SOUTH OF HEAVEN OFF THE TOP! Gable gets Chaos Theory on Damian! Dominik comes in, legal… NO GOOD! Ankle lock from Chad! Rhea Ripley distracting referee Eddie Orengo, South of Heaven…

Judgment Day win by pinfall with a weak lateral press from Dominik Mysterio on Chad Gable.

The obligatory video package celebrating Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. follows and we go to break.

IYO SKY vs. “Michin” Mia Yim
Collar and elbow, Yim sends her crashing to the mat, SKY returns with a kick, whip reversed, criss-cross, dropkick! To the apron, Matrix Evasion, Mia with a back elbow, IYO snaps her neck across the top rope! Fakeout springboard, up top, missile dropkick connects!

Charging in, double knees, only two! Back and forth in the corner, armbar takedown, SKY with an arm-trap crossface in the middle of the ring! Double axehandle when Mia breaks free, underhooks, Yim counters with a back body drop but IYO lands on her feet and hits a Shotei!

Bulldog headlock, blocked, back suplex attempt denied, block the Frankensteiner, Mia Yim with a jumping neckbreaker! Laying forearms in, big boot, round kicks, a flapjack and Yim is fired up! Dropkick follows it, whip blocked, duck a roundhouse, wheelbarrow German suplex connects!

Eat Defeat reversed into a jackknife pin, Candice LeRae and Dakota Kai fighting, SKY goes to intervene and gets caught…

Mia Yim wins by pinfall with Eat Defeat.

Post-match, Dakota Kai attacks Yim and LeRae runs in to fight her off and send her packing with a Codebreaker!

Commentary talk about Alexa Bliss while Nikki Cross stares on from the crowd behind them.

We get a recap of Alexa’s feud with Bianca Belair.

Bianca Belair is walking backstage to send us to break.

Back from commercial we get a hype reel for the Royal Rumble.

Bianca Belair makes her entrance and gets on the mic.

She says if it were up to her she’d never miss a Monday Night Raw, but this job isn’t possible without risks like the risk of getting her jaw busted right there on the steel steps.

But even if she ends up with a scar on her face, she’d still face Alexa again and again and again and again, because with every risk comes the reward of remaining your Raw women’s champion.

Enter Alexa Bliss.

She says she’ll gladly come out here and repeat herself for Bianca or anyone else who needs to hear it— she fears her because she doesn’t know what to expect from her. No one does, and the Royal Rumble is in two weeks—

Belair cuts her off and asks if she really wants to beat 29 other women and wait for a title match at WrestleMania when she could just have a title match AT the Royal Rumble.

Alexa says she’ll see her at the Royal Rumble, Bianca says she can see her tonight, too, and they brawl in the aisle and at ringside! Belair unloads on her in the crowd! Windmill punches against the inner barricade! Bliss DDTs her on the floor as Uncle Howdy appears under a doorway to send us to break!

Akira Tozawa vs. Bronson Reed
I’m busy preparing myself a snack so my lovely wife Josie steps in to cover this match—

Bell and the two combatants circle each other for a moment, Bronson grapples Tozawa tothe ground and holds him against the ropes, ref breaks it up and Reed smacks Tozawa around the ring for a minute, traps him in the corner and smooshes with his feets. Knocks T down and taunts him.

Upside down slams him OW THAT STINGS. Gives Tozawa the cuddle of doom to get him to submit, Tozawa’s not having it, tries to rally but Reed gives him a smackerooni between the shoulders. Now Tozawa finds it and knocks Reed out the ring, gets some energy from the crowd!

I take back over, Bronson throws Akira into the barricade, diving shoulder block off the apron! Back inside, up top…

Bronson Reed wins by pinfall with a 747 Splash.

Backstage, Seth Rollins is interviewed.

He has a new plan, and that’s tonight he’s gonna win the six-pack challenge, win his United States Championship back next week, and then win the Royal Rumble and go to the main event of WrestleMania and kick Roman Reigns’ ass as only he can. And in the immortal words of Freddie Mercury*, he wants it all and he wants it now.

(Actually I Want It All is a Brian May composition, Seth. Credit where it’s due and all.)

And we’re going to break.

Back from commercial, we get some hype for Raw XXX.

Baron Corbin vs. Bobby Lashley vs. Dolph Ziggler vs. Finn Balor vs. Seth Rollins vs. the Miz (WWE United States Championship #1 Contender’s Match)
Austin Theory is on commentary for this one.

The match begins, chaos reigns, and we go immediately to break.

Back from commercial, everyone’s paired off, Rollins and Balor trading punches in the ring, Corbin and Lashley on one side of the floor, Ziggler and the Miz on the other and JBL shoves Bob! Baron takes advantage and shoves Lashley into the steel steps! Miz back body drops Ziggler into the timekeeper’s area!

Seth with a fireman’s carry gutbuster on Balor, up top, Corbin comes in and cuts him off! Jockeying for position in the turnbuckles, Finn joins in, Bob joins the fray… TOWER OF DOOM! A spot of “everybody do something cool,” Fameasser sets up the Skull-Crushing Finale but Lashley won’t stay down!

Awesome Clothesline on Ziggler, a boot for Corbin, folding press for two! Big boot drops Dolph, Balor tries to steal one with a schoolboy and fails! Chest kicks from the Miz, buzzsaw finale, fired up, Dolph ducks one, kick gets caught, the A-Lister gets the figure four leglock!

Ziggler rolls him over and reverses the pressure, Seth comes in…

Seth Rollins eliminates the Miz by pinfall with Blackout.

And so we go to break.

Back from commercial, Balor whips Corbin at Rollins, Baron slips to the floor, and Lashley blasts him into the barricade! Fireman’s carry, Corbin slips out and Finn helps him throw Bobby into the ringpost! Back inside, Rollins with a lariat, kicks, another lariat, to the floor, diving knee takes Finn out!

Back inside, back and forth, upkick from Seth, Baron comes in and scoops him, Dolph with the save and an impromptu alliance as they strike away at the big man! Squaring up, Ziggler and Rollins decide to keep the alliance rolling and do charging strikes at the heels in the corner!

Dolph with a schoolboy on Seth, favor returned, duck a superkick, suicide dive wipes Baron and Bobby out on the floor! Balor sidesteps Ziggler into the turnbuckles, off the ropes, tope con giro into the crush! Dolph recovers, up top, plancha into the other four men and everyone is down and out!

Back inside, superkicks, Zig Zag, but Seth cuts Dolph off…

Seth Rollins eliminates Dolph Ziggler by pinfall with a Pedigree.

With four men left, we go to break.

Back from commercial, Corbin whips Balor into Lashley in the corner and then into Rollins in the opposite corner! Finn reverses another try but Baron is a step ahead and hits Deep Six! Mounted punches, right hands to Seth, but Rollins returns the favor and backs him into the ropes!

Back body drop to the apron, forearm smash, Corbin drops him to the floor with a right hand! Bobby from behind, trading punches on a proverbial postage stamp, whip reversed, corner lariat, off the ropes, shoulder thrusts in the corner and a swinging neckbreaker!

Clothesline sends Corbin to the floor, shoulder block for Balor, Seth in, Bob drops both of ‘em! Front kick to Rollins, Yokosuka Cutter connects… SO CLOSE! Lashley with a delayed vertical suplex on Finn, stalking around, he wants the Hurt Lock but Omos and MVP walk the aisle and he gets distracted!

Baron slides in, big lariat to Lashley! Corner avalanche on Balor but he comes right back with Sling Blade! Seth with a Cactus Clothesline, Finn has Bob in his sights and hits the shotgun dropkick! Balor up top, he hits Coup de Grace but Seth is right there…

Seth Rollins eliminates Finn Balor by pinfall with Blackout.

Down to three, Rollins lying in wait, Corbin pulls him to the floor! Over the steps, he catches Baron with a superkick! Back up on the apron, Omos pulls him down and throws him over the announce desk! Baron back inside…

Bobby Lashley eliminates Baron Corbin by pinfall with a spear.

Lashley jawing with Porter, Theory blasts him with the title and Omos puts him up on the announce desk! Austin fighting, Seth hits Blackout on the giant and then a crossbody on Theory! Lariat over the barricade, back inside, waiting, superkick for MVP! Off the ropes… LASHLEY WITH THE SPEAR! IT’S OVER!

Bobby Lashley wins, last eliminating Seth Rollins by pinfall with a spear to become #1 contender to the WWE United States Championship.

Commentary hypes up next week’s anniversary show.

That’s the show, folks.

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