WWE Raw Results: Winners, Live Grades, Reaction and Highlights After SummerSlam

On the heels of an explosive SummerSlam premium live event that changed the landscape of the company, WWE Raw returned for a broadcast featuring new world heavyweight champion Gunther, CM Punk, Drew McIntyre and the latest in the Judgment Day saga.

Those stars and their ongoing rivalries headlined a show that also saw the in-ring debut of The Wyatt Sicks, the continuation of the feuds pitting The New Day against The Final Testament, and Damage CTRL against Sonya Deville, Shayna Baszler and Zoey Stark, and the rekindling of a rivalry as Sheamus squared off with Ludwig Kaiser.

What went down, what did it mean for the immediate and long-term future of Raw, and what surprises were in store for the WWE Universe?

Find out with this recap of the August 5 broadcast, live from the CFG Bank Arena in Baltimore.

Announced in advance of Monday's show:

• The dawn of the Gunther era in WWE
• The Wyatt Sicks vs. Chad Gable and The Creed Brothers
• The New Day vs. AOP
• Awesome Truth vs. A-Town Down Under
• Sheamus vs. Ludwig Kaiser
• Dakota Kai vs. Sonya Deville
• What's next for CM Punk and Drew McIntyre?

Gunther will defend his newly won World Heavyweight Championship against Randy Orton in Germany on August 31 at Bash in Berlin, as we found out in the opening segment of Monday's show.

The Viper interrupted The Ring General's celebratory promo to reveal himself as the No. 1 contender, citing the inconclusive and controversial end to their match in the finals of the King of the Ring tournament.

Gunther accepted and ended his promo by claiming nothing could catch him off-guard, to which The Viper replied by saying he wanted the champion to see his RKO coming.

Grade

A

Top Moments and Takeaways

• We wasted zero time here, with Triple H and the creative team revealing Gunther's first challenger in a segment that made sense. Orton laid out a valid argument, and the match was made official. Good, logical booking that did not require a load of overthinking. And it will lead to a banger of a match in Germany.
• "I am ready and prepared for everyone and everything," Gunther said, only to admit moments later that Orton's appearance did, in fact, catch him off-guard.
• Orton comparing his matchup with Gunther to Ric Flair vs. Ricky Steamboat is even a little too hyperbolic for WWE. 

Sheamus and Ludwig Kaiser rekindled their intense rivalry in Monday's opening contest and brawled with each other from the start.

The action settled down, with Kaiser in control before Sheamus mounted a comeback that included an interestingly placed Cloverleaf submission.

Pete Dunne attempted to interfere and add to Sheamus' recent frustrations, but The Celtic Warrior shook it off, rocked Kaiser with a jumping knee and delivered the Brogue Kick for the hard-fought victory.

Result

Sheamus defeated Kaiser

Grade

B+

Top Moments and Takeaways

• Sheamus and Kaiser have wicked in-ring chemistry. They could work with each other every week for a month and have a different match each time. Kaiser might be the most underrated wrestler on the entire WWE roster, and Sheamus is long overdue for one more sustained main event run.
• Kaiser caught The Celtic Warrior with a dropkick into the ring steps, recalling the spot that led to Giovanni Vinci's excommunication from Imperium.
• The eventual Sheamus-Dunne match will be a show-stealer wherever it appears. 

An infuriated Damian Priest marched to the ring and called out Finn Bálor in response to the shocking betrayal that cost The Archer of Infamy the World Heavyweight Championship at SummerSlam.

The Prince, understandably, wanted nothing to do with his former tag team partner, instead addressing him via video. He revealed that Priest will battle JD McDonagh later Monday night while he waits for the perfect moment to take out the former world champion.

From there, Bálor introduced the new Judgment Day, which included McDonagh, Dominik Mysterio, Liv Morgan, Carlito and himself.

Grade

A

Top Moments and Takeaways

• This could have been an overly long promo segment. Instead, it was kept short and to the point in a way that benefited Priest.
• The Archer of Infamy said he heard what people had to say to and about him and realized his family is a lot larger than The Judgment Day. 
• Mysterio and Morgan are going to be the perfect insufferable couple. 

The match between Lyra Valkyria and Shayna Baszler, which could and should have been a banger, ended abruptly in a disqualification as Sonya Deville and Zoey Stark jumped the former NXT women's champion just as it seemed she was about to turn momentum in her favor.

The heels beat Valkyria down until Damage CTRL made the save and stood tall to close out the segment, building heat for a match between Deville and Dakota Kai later in the night.

Result

Valkyria defeated Baszler via disqualification

Grade

C-

Top Moments and Takeaways

• Outside of keeping Valkyria on TV and in the eye of the WWE Universe, this served no purpose. We already knew Kai vs. Deville was scheduled for later in the show, so this was little more than a setup segment that had no reason to exist.
• We're still waiting for that explanation behind Damage CTRL's babyface turn.

CM Punk hit the ring to a thunderous ovation, fresh off his controversial loss to Drew McIntyre at SummerSlam.

Just as Punk said he wanted to fight, Seth Rollins interrupted and the two nearly came to blows.

Drew McIntyre interrupted, cutting a braggadocios promo from among the fans where he attempted to win the attention of his rivals before taunting Punk with the bracelet adorned with the names of his wife and his dog.

Punk took off after The Scottish Warrior, but Bronson Reed paid off his threat to Raw general manager Adam Pearce to make a name for himself by attacking Rollins inside the ring.

He delivered six consecutive Tsunamis to Rollins, repeatedly driving the air out of the former world champion.

Grade

A+

Top Moments and Takeaways

• "They told me nine months and I did it in five," Punk said about his recovery from injury and return to the squared circle.
• "Where would CM Punk be if he stayed down the last time he lost a championship?" The Best in the World said.
• "After 10 long years, it is finally time for me to put you in the dirt," Rollins told Punk.
• This is how you make a star. Reed's star shined brighter than it ever has, and in a rivalry with Rollins, he has an opportunity to build on the momentum this segment provided him. Of course, he actually has to win one of these big matches to be taken seriously.

The neverending rivalry between The New Day and The Final Testament continued as Kofi Kingston returned to action, teaming with Xavier Woods to face AOP's Akam and Rezar.

Late in the match, the action broke down with the hot tag to Woods. Just as it appeared Scarlett was going to interfere on behalf of the heels, Odyssey Jones made his return, wiping out Karrion Kross at ringside.

The distraction allowed Woods to pick up the win for his team.

After the match, Jones helped the babyfaces clear the ring and they stood tall to close out the segment.

Result

The New Day defeated AOP

Grade

B

Top Moments and Takeaways

• Woods and Kingston made their way to the ring in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles-inspired gear, in conjunction with their series action figures debuting in stores. It is the best crossover in a long time. 
• Kingston delivered a scary trust-fall plancha that nearly ended in disaster for him.
• The New Day without Big E is not The New Day. Good for Jones for getting TV time and showing out in his return, but here's hoping he is not an official member of the great trio.
• Backstage, Jones revealed that he helped The New Day because Kingston told him they needed it, but Woods did not appear overly thrilled. 

Two days after embarrassing A-Town Down Under at SummerSlam, The Awesome Truth fell to the former WWE tag team champions on Raw.

Austin Theory and Grayson Waller earned the victory, leaving The Miz frustrated and the former world tag team champions looking for answers.

Backstage, Bron Breakker cut a promo warning the WWE locker room of his intentions as intercontinental champion.

Result

Theory and Waller defeated The Miz and R-Truth

Grade

C+

Top Moments and Takeaways

• The Miz was frustrated following this loss, and there was the slightest tease of him potentially turning on Truth. Not a great time to be a tag team or faction in WWE right now, as Triple H and WWE Creative set in motion the stories for the rest of the year.
• The match was otherwise unnecessary and the dissension that once existed between Waller and Theory was nowhere to be found here.

Still feeling the effects of a brutal match with Gunther at SummerSlam, a vengeful Damian Priest squared off with former Judgment Day teammate JD McDonagh.

An intense match highlighted both competitors but spotlighted Priest late as he answered his opponent's open-hand strikes with a barrage of kicks.

Carlito, Dominik Mysterio and Liv Morgan made their presences felt before Finn Bálor attacked, drawing a disqualification win for The Archer of Infamy.

Rhea Ripley made the save, chasing off Mysterio and Morgan before joining Priest in laying out McDonagh to close out the segment.

Result

Priest defeated McDonagh via disqualification

Grade

B+

Top Moments and Takeaways

• Priest unloaded a kick that sent McDonagh to the floor, and commentator Michael Cole did not miss an opportunity to remind us that The Archer of Infamy is a "karate expert." 
• The physicality in the strikes was off the charts in this one, with Priest and McDonagh throwing absolute hammers at each other.
• McDonagh launched himself through the ropes with a tope suicida that nearly ended with him going head-first into the commentary table.
• The pop for Ripley and Priest laying out McDonagh was reflective of a pairing that is going to do big business for WWE.

Sonya Deville was originally slated to battle Dakota Kai, but the Damage CTRL star suffered a knee injury following a sneak attack backstage by the heel and her associates, Shayna Baszler and Zoey Stark.

No Kai, no problem. Iyo Sky stepped in for her teammate and battled Deville instead.

A back-and-forth match saw The Genius of the Sky weather the storm that was Deville's offensive onslaught and deliver an Over the Moonsault for the win.

Result

Sky defeated Deville

Grade

C+

Top Moments and Takeaways

• Sky wiped out Deville and Baszler on one side of the floor while Kairi Sane took out Stark on the other.
• Sky's pinfall victory dealt The Pride Fighter her first major loss since returning to the squared circle. It also ensured the rivalry with the heels would continue for the foreseeable future.
• The latest Wyatt Sicks video focusing on Joe Gacy aired ahead of the night's main event.

The Wyatt Sicks made their in-ring debut Monday night in Baltimore, the site of The Wyatt Family's first appearance 11 years earlier.

It was a successful one for the enigmatic faction as Joe Gacy, Dexter Lumis and Erick Rowan defeated Chad Gable and The Creed Brothers in six-man tag team action.

It was not easy as the newly dubbed American Made dominated the majority of the action by isolating Gacy and working him over, utilizing quick tags to their advantage.

Eventually, Gacy made the tag to Rowan, and any chance the heels had of triumphing ended.

Rowan obliterated the competition and joined Lumis and Gacy in earning the win, with Uncle Howdy (Bo Dallas) and Abby the Witch (Nikki Cross) watching from ringside.

Result

The Wyatt Sicks defeated American Made

Grade

B

Top Moments and Takeaways

• Gable officially labeled his team with The Creed Brothers as "American Made."
• The Wyatt Sicks entered as "Shattered" by Code Orange played, the theme song created for Bray Wyatt during his last WWE run.
• Rowan received a red-hot tag from Gacy and exploded into the ring, stopping to pay homage to the late Brodie Lee/Luke Harper along the way.
• The match was perfectly acceptable wrestling, but as a tribute to Bray Wyatt and The Wyatt Family, this was handled exceptionally well. If the faction can continue to bring the work between the ropes and revert to the gimmickry of its characters before and after the bell, it will succeed.

There was a ton of pressure on WWE Creative to deliver a noteworthy show on the heels of a buzzworthy event like SummerSlam, and Triple H and his team did just that Monday night.

We saw star-making angles involving Bronson Reed and Odyssey Jones, the saga of The Judgment Day was spread across multiple segments to great effect, Punk and McIntyre proved they have unfinished business, and Randy Orton stepped up as Gunther's first challenger.

There were other segments—some that hit and others that didn't—but in terms of introducing new faces, escalating existing stories and paying off The Wyatt Sicks' in-ring debut, this all succeeded and made Raw feel like a show of importance rather than a three-hour slog.