The 7 Most Important Things That Happened On Raw This Week 5/9/2016

Stephanie and Shane McMahon once again teamed up to run Raw this week and they delivered an exciting show. WWE remains committed to the “new era” and the show continues to feel fresh. Let’s take a look at all of the biggest moments from this week’s show.

#7 – Big Cass And Chris Jericho Kicked Off The Show

For years we’ve been watching The Authority kick off Raw with 45 minutes promos and for the past few weeks we’ve been watching the McMahon family kick off Raw with their banter. This week Chris Jericho and Big Cass kicked off Raw and it was a nice change of pace. WWE keeps telling us we’re witnessing the dawn of a new era and it’s moves like this that truly sell the idea.

So much of WWE’s storytelling revolves around the authority figure who’s in charge of the show. The authority figure storylines often dominate Raw to the point where it’s overwhelming, so it was nice to see Raw put the spotlight on the characters who actually compete in the ring right at the beginning of the show.

Jericho was great on the mic, as always. He burned the crowd to the ground with his insults and Big Cass also held his own. With Enzo away Big Cass has really been holding his own these past two weeks. WWE is making the right moves by putting him to the test and keeping him on TV. Luckily for both sides, Cass stepped up to the plate and delivering under pressure.

#6 – Baron Corbin Delivered His Best Main Roster Match So Far

Dolph Ziggler and Baron Corbin have been feuding for weeks now and they faced off once again Monday Night Raw. Corbin has been solid on the main roster so far but he definitely stepped up his game this week on Raw.

Baron Corbin and Dolph Ziggler wrestled a fierce match that truly felt personal. Within the span of a few short weeks these two guys have done a great job at convincing fans everywhere that there’s truly animosity between them and Corbin looked more angry than usual on Monday. With his anger came confidence and his confidence was something that the crowd responded to.

Not only did Corbin put on his best showing yet, but he also got a solid reaction of straight heat from the crowd. It wasn’t that “Hey, we’re going to boo you because we respect you and think you’re cool,” heat either. It was that “Hey, we’re going to boo you because you’re a total dick for beating up Dolph Ziggler,” kind of heat which is exactly the type of heat Baron Corbin needs right now.

#5 – Paige Pinned The WWE Women’s Champion

It’s been far, far, far too long since we’ve seen Paige on Monday Night Raw so her presence this week was a beautiful breath of fresh air. Paige is one of the brightest stars in the WWE Women’s division and she proved this week that she’s every bit as good as the current WWE Women’s Champion. Paige and Charlotte worked great together and it was a match that left us all wanting more.

Paige returned to TV with a vengeance and showed some serious fire. Ric Flair interfered at one point and just when it looked like all hope was lost Shane McMahon came out to ringside with some referees and had him removed. Paige capitalized on the distraction and kicked Charlotte in the back then rolled her up.

Natalya is going one on one with Charlotte at Extreme Rules, but hopefully Paige’s victory on Raw means she’s put herself in line for a title shot in the future. Either way, Paige is back and she’s better than ever.

#4 – Sami Zayn Earned A Shot At The IC Title

WWE has been teasing a fatal 4 way IC Title match for Extreme Rules over the past few weeks and they made it official on Raw. The McMahons announced a triple threat match between The Miz, Kevin Owens and Cesaro for Extreme Rules, Sami told them he wants in. Sami Zayn battled The Miz with the stipulation being that if he won he would be entered into the IC title match and it would become a fatal 4 way. Sami Zayn took The Miz down with a Helluva Kick and now he’ll be getting a shot at the Intercontinental Championship on May 22nd.

#3 – Dana Brooke Debuted

It was rumored earlier in the day that Dana Brooke would make her debut, and she did. Brooke will be a welcome addition to the roster, especially if it means we’re going to be seeing her team up with Emma to take on Becky Lynch, because that means Becky is going to need backup. The logical choice for Becky’s partner would seem to be Sasha Banks.

Will WWE put Sasha Banks back on TV? I don’t know. Should they put Sasha Banks back on TV? Yes. WTF, where is Sasha Banks? I want to see her, you want to see her, we all want to see her. Put Sasha Banks on TV, every week, please.

#2 – Styles And Reigns Delivered Once Again

I just don’t know what else I can say about this feud that I haven’t been saying for the past few weeks. This feud kicks ass. AJ Styles and Roman Reigns are bringing out the best in each and it’s created a very intriguing WWE Championship feud. This rivalry has been building for weeks and somehow, once again they managed to raise the stakes on this week’s show.

#1 – WWE Promoted An Exciting Main Event That Didn’t Happen

Earlier in the night Chris Jericho and Big Cass kicked off the show with an awesome promo. Jericho and Cass had great chemistry together and WWE booked them against each other in the main event. The match was exciting on so many levels because it was fresh and it would have been the first main event on Raw for Big Cass. Fans everywhere seemed to be looking forward to it, then it didn’t happen.

As Jericho was making his way to the ring he was attacked by Dean Ambrose and Ambrose beat him up and stole his jacket. Ambrose then proceeded to toy with Jericho and at one point Cass attacked him on the outside of the ring.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m as excited as the next guy about Dean Ambrose getting the upper hand on Jericho, but why couldn’t he have returned after the match? The exchange between Ambrose and Jericho was fun, but it was unfortunately tainted by the fact that we didn’t get the Jericho vs Big Cass match that we were promised earlier in the show. It was disappointing, and it wasn’t cool so hopefully we actually get to see that match in the future.

What did you guys think about this week’s show? Sound off in the comments below.