Episode 1041 was LIVE from the Scotiabank Saddledome in Calgary, Alberta on yet another great night in the WWE. It was also a night dedicated to the Best There Ever Was, The Best There Ever Is and The Best There Ever Will Be, Bret Hart. On RAW, the WWE Universe got to watch two fantastic title matches, Curtis Axel in yet another big match and more tension built up towards the upcoming event, WWE Payback.
Kicking off the proceedings was John Cena, who had an announcement to make regarding his title match at WWE Payback vs. Ryback. The WWE Champion announced that the stipulation would be a Three Stages of Hell Match, with the first being a Lumberjack match, followed by a Tables Match and finally an Ambulance Match. This was happily accepted by Ryback, but then Curtis Axel and Paul Heyman interrupted. The final result of some precarious dialogue was that Curtis Axel would face John Cena later that night. Talk about making an impact, Curtis Axel landed another blockbuster match, this time against the WWE Champion.
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| Three Is The Number: John Cena lays down the challenge for the Three Stages of Hell match. (Image Courtesy: WWE.com) |
Last week, Big E Langston and Alberto Del Rio both secured wins over one another. Their match on RAW was booked with an intention of settling this, and it did so - in some ways. After AJ had assisted Big E to his win last week, her attempt to give Langston the upper hand this week was to be the downfall, as she exposed the steel turnbuckle, which Del Rio used to his advantage to take out Langston and roll him up to score the victory.
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| Alberto Del Rio leaves victorious after defeating Big E Langston. (Image Courtesy: WWE.com) |
Kofi Kingston had a chance to redeem possession of his United States Championship having lost it to Dean Ambrose last week, but he was unable to defeat Ambrose after an enthralling bout. Surprisingly to some, Ambrose defeated Kofi Kingston without the assist of his fellow Shield members, retaining his title and further attaining solidarity for the Hounds of Justice.
Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins joined Dean Ambrose as he celebrated his title defense. They would be defending their titles next against Team Hell No - a team of who they beat at Extreme Rules. Yet again, The Shield were to engage in a remarkable encounter with Team Hell No, another entertaining bout which saw Reigns and Rollins retain their titles. Daniel Bryan had one huge spell of insanity, where he went crazy and really took it to The Shield, but this was not enough, and a disagreement between Bryan and Kane left the duo distracted, and The Shield pounced on the opportunity to reign supreme - on yet another successful night.
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| The Hounds of Justice retain their Gold, continuing to make others believe. (Image Courtesy: WWE.com) |
Wade Barrett squared off with Fandango following the development of tensions between those two and of course The Miz. The WWE Universe voted via the WWE App to appoint The Miz as Special Guest referee. This was to be a factor from the very beginning of the match with things already getting heated between Miz and Barrett. This continued when Barrett threw Miz down after he was in the way, triggering the retaliation of The Miz who hits the Skull-Crushing Finale on Barrett, and Fandango scores the victory.
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| The Miz and Wade Barrett were in heated disputes throughout the match. (Image Courtesy: WWE.com) |
Chris Jericho's 'Highlight Reel' was host to Paul Heyman this week. The discussion regarding Paul Heyman guys quickly escalated to the discussion of the whereabouts of CM Punk - something of which it looked like Heyman wanted to avoid. Jericho said that CM Punk does not have the right to call himself the Best in the World, if he is taking six weeks off. And because the next WWE PPV is in CM Punk's home state of Illinois, Jericho decided to challenge CM Punk to a match... of which Heyman accepted, reluctantly. So it looks like CM Punk will make his return at Payback!
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| CM Punk and Chris Jericho will battle at Payback. (Image Courtesy: WWE.com) |
The tag team of Randy Orton and Sheamus saw off a huge victory in a slug-fest between Team Rhodes Scholars. The team of Sandow and Rhodes really put up a great effort of resistance, but it still was not enough to defy The Celtic Warrior and The Viper. With a near-relentless effort and even some mischievous antics, the Rhodes Scholars were unable to capitalize on a victory, and it was a Brogue Kick from Sheamus that won the match.
And then, the main event of the evening saw newcomer Curtis Axel continue his attempt to reach heights of success as he battled the WWE Champion, John Cena. Curtis Axel managed to remain toe-to-toe with Cena throughout the match, just exemplifying why he is such a talent and definitely giving a helping hand to Heyman's justification on choosing him. There were a few times when Axel came close to putting away Cena, especially when he thwarted Cena's attempt when he began to get momentum for his signature move. Axel was telegraphing Cena's moves and not giving him any room to take control, he was really taking it to the WWE Champion. But as Cena took some sustainable control, the sounds of sirens circulated the arena, and as Cena cautiously approached the ambulance thinking it was Ryback, he found nothing there. Suddenly, he was attacked from behind by Ryback, who got Cena on the stage with the attempt to spear him through the screen, but was unable to do so. Cena reversed and almost hit Ryback with an AA, but to no avail as Ryback fled.
What many lost focus on was that Curtis Axel remained in the ring. Curtis Axel had defeated John Cena via Count-Out, what an impact he is making.
Opinion
I think the announcements during the John Cena promo were interesting. The Three Stages of Hell stipulation is definitely an exciting stipulation for such a rivalry between Cena and Ryback. Also it is great to see Curtis Axel making such an impact with facing Triple H and John Cena in his first two matches. Del Rio and Langston was just a segment to do something with the time that Ziggler is medically cleared, but could lead to Big E's departure from AJ and Ziggler. Meanwhile The Shield really did pull off the best matches of the night - again, with great action to retain their titles. It seems just a matter of time before Fandango, Barrett and Miz are booked for a Triple Threat match at Payback. CM Punk vs. Chris Jericho will be great to watch at Payback, but I think it would have been more effective if CM Punk took a long time off and then made a shocking return - but of course its what is best for the company. The final segment was greatly executed in terms of dealing with the precarious situations of the people involved. What is better is that Curtis Axel finishes on top again, what a start to his career!
WWE Payback is quickly approaching, and as things take shape we see the emergence of a new star in Curtis Axel. The Shield continue to dominate and have proved they are destined for further success. Following this RAW there is more to come. What is next for Curtis Axel? Will Ryback be the new WWE Champion? Who will stand up to The Shield? All this and more will be answered in the coming weeks.
Image Courtesy:
WWE.com (No copyright infringement intended, WWE.com take all ownership of the images)
This week's RAW was the post Payback
show and It was one of the best episodes of Raw in recent memory. 
