Cook’s WWE Raw Review 4.6.26

Hey kids! Steve Cook here with you for the latest episode of WWE Raw on Netflix! We’re still on the Road to WrestleMania, and we’ll be hearing from the likes of Seth Rollins & CM Punk about their upcoming matches. Oba Femi & Brock Lesnar are both in the building tonight, we’ll see if Paul Levesque & the rest of the backstage suits can keep them apart this week. And yeah, we’ve got some wrestling matches too, I don’t think any of them are going 45 minutes but maybe we’re in for a surprise this week.

Don’t forget to subscribe to the 411Mania Wrestling Newsletter! Click here to do so, and then tomorrow (Tuesday) you’ll get some exclusive insight from your humble Chef on everything you need to know about the latest and greatest pro wrestling happenings! I guarantee it’ll be a good time, so make sure you check it out.

In Memoriam: I met Geoff Eubanks through the TWTF website back in the mid-2000s. He was a good friend of my Internet BFF Voodoo Penguin and was very thoughtful & interesting when it came to his opinions on professional wrestling & other matters. Larry Csonka also became a friend of Geoff’s and brought him on board to do the SmackDown portion of the Wrestling Rs column. Geoff went on to participate in a number of Fact or Fiction columns & wrote the Pieces of My Mind & Five-Star Conversation columns for 411 from 2008-10. We still kept in touch through social media years after his departure from 411, but unfortunately Facebook went from being a site where you could keep up with old friends to a site that forces opinions from people you don’t know or care about into your algorithm. Which would be fine except it bumps out posts you might actually care about from people you’ve actually heard of. It turns out that Geoff Eubanks passed away in 2024, and the only reason I know about it now is through clicking his profile after something he posted on my page years ago popped up in my Memories and I wondered how he was doing. Geoff was 53 when he passed, and I fondly remember talking to him on the phone while under the influence of various substances like Mountain Dew. His Vince McMahon impression was top-notch, and I imagine it would have been even better if he heard about all the stuff that’s come out about Vince after his passing. RESPECK, my friend.

Cook’s WWE Raw Review 4.6.26

Then. Now. Forever. Together!

Oba Femi is WALKING! Rhea Ripley & IYO SKY are WALKING! Penta, Dragon Lee & Je’Von Evans are WALKING! CM Punk is WALKING TOWARDS THE RING! Bobby Roode is sitting in Gorilla with a blank look on his face.

LIKE MUSSOLINI! CM Punk sits down criss-cross applesauce in the ring to address the people. I assume Mussolini did this at some point. Punk says that Houston is a wrestling town. There’s a lot of history here. He’s had a lot of great moments here, some things were supposed to happen that haunt him to this day. This is Paul Boesch territory, and he loves to hear about the old-timers. He can’t help but compare himself to the old-timers and wonder what they would do in times like these. What would Harley Race do? The important things happen when we’re awake. CM Punk is awake and hits his catchphrase. Roman Reigns is not here tonight. Two weeks ago, with help from his cousins, Roman put Punk through the announce table and strutted very slowly. Punk couldn’t wait to get to MSG, cousinless, and he got his receipt and put Roman through the announce table alone. Reigns hates him, he says good. He won’t trade his authenticity for approval. Being hated by losers is the price he pays for not being one of them, as he hands the title to Michael Cole. Punk showed up, and he’s an old man. Old, not weak. He needs to explain why he hates Roman Reigns. Punk mounts the announce table and removes his jacket. WrestleMania is the biggest show of the year, and his tools are self-made and sharpened by self-belief, hard work & spite. Roman’s tools are store-bought, hand-delivered and plastic. Punk understands why TKO sends Reigns to Jimmy Fallon, he’s manufactured and you never know what Punk will say. Punk can film a bunch of shows and always show up, but Reigns uses it as a crutch to not be there. Reigns shows up late, leaves early and puffs his chest like he’s the Rock. At least the Rock is a Hollywood superstar. Was. Just like how Roman was a champion but that story is long over. Punk’s bloated cousin isn’t on the board, his dad wasn’t a pro wrestler that got him a job because he sucked at football. Punk paid his dues and earned everything, Reigns got it from a weird old man that made him eat dog food. That weird old man expected Punk to take everything and smile, but Punk left because he had FU money. Roman can’t control him like he controls his family. When people ask Punk for a pipe bomb this is what they get. Roman got a lot of WM main events, they sucked, Punk can’t be black balled. He can blow up bridges because he knows how to swing. Punk’s not done, now he addresses Pat McAfee, the buggy-whipped armed hillbilly. Pat wrote a check his ass can’t cash. Pat should call that agent and tell him to lower the ticket prices. Pat’s got a receipt coming to him. Punk wants the ticket prices lowered because he wants all the families to come and see him kick Roman Reigns’ ass because he’s CM Punk and he approves this message. Punk poses in the crowd as a man of the people.

Michael Cole & Corey Graves are our hosts. They talk about these crazy celebrities involving themselves in the Road to WrestleMania like IShowSpeed, who screwed over the Usos last week and we see some clips of that. Then we see LA Knight running in on Speed’s YouTube channel last week and kicking his ass.

Then we see Speed walking backstage, and he runs into Danhausen. He wants Danhausen to lift the curse! Danhausen shows off his jar of Jacob Fatu’s teeth and offers to lift the curse for a mention. Adam Pearce appears and Danhausen disappears. Pearce suggests that Speed go home and let the Usos & Vision handle their vision. Austin Theory & Logan Paul disagree, that stunt LA Knight pulled is unforgiveable! He’s going with them! They walk off, and Pearce says that’s a terrible idea. He ain’t wrong about that.

LA Knight vs. Austin Theory (w/Logan Paul & IShowSpeed): Hip toss by Theory. LA returns the favor, then a body slam. Another one by LA, Theory goes outside to commiserate with his YouTube friends. Back in the ring, Theory clubbers away and elbows LA in the corner. Vertical suplex by Theory gets a quick kickout. LA with a clothesline. Theory goes outside again. LA kicks Theory through the ropes and clotheslines him into the timekeeper’s area. We go to commercial!

We’re back in front of 11,000 in Houston and LA hits a neckbreaker. Big clothesline off the ropes, side California legsweep and a neckbreaker get two. Big shot from Theory, then a Blockbuster gets two. LA slips out of a move and clotheslines Theory over the top rope. Knight bounces Theory off the announce table while the fans say Yeah. Logan Paul with the distraction, Speed begs off, Theory tossed into the ring and Logan throws Speed into Knight! LA chases Speed up the entranceway, and the Uso music hits! Jimmy & Jey are on stage, Speed runs away, LA catches him, Logan with the distraction, Theory rolls Knight up for the win!

Winner: Austin Theory (6:39 shown via pinfall)
Match Rating: **1/2
Some decent action from some solid pros with some ridiculousness that sets something up for WrestleMania, I can’t hate on it too much.

Speed is in the ring telling LA & the Usos he did nothing, Jey’s not buying it. Jimmy makes the signal, they go for 1D but Logan yanks Speed out of the ring. LA Knight grabs the mic and demands Adam Pearce make an appearance. The Usos were champions, Speed cost them the titles. LA tried to get some revenge, Speed cost him that, so a 6-man tag at WrestleMania seems to make sense. Speed’s in it with the Usos & LA Knight, so what does Pearce have to say? Pearce tells Speed he should have gone home, but instead he’s going to WrestleMania. Knight says the only thing official is him & the Usos stomping them out at WrestleMania, Yeah!

Cole was angry at & disappointed with Pat McAfee this past Friday night, he throws it to some footage of that nonsense that I hope stays on SmackDown so I don’t have to write about it or watch it.

Finn Balor is WALKING! He’ll face JD McDonagh next, we also see Kofi Kingston & Grayson Waller arguing in the background about something.

CM Punk talks about the WrestleMania Moment he’ll never forget, when he was an actor during John Cena’s entrance for his match with Triple H at WrestleMania 22. It set the stage for where he wanted to be.

Finn Balor vs. JD McDonagh: Finn says he’s been waiting for this one for a long time just before Dirty Dom attacks him from behind! Finn fights back and JD gets sent into the ringpost. Finn & Dom in the ring, Dom gets elbowed, JD gets sent over the top, then Dom hits Finn with the AAA Mega Championship! JD hands Dom the chair and he wears Finn out while Houston chants a familiar Mexican chant. Dom’s music hits and I don’t think this match is actually happening.

We see an AJ Lee video package instead. Tony Acero certainly approves.

Michael Cole talks to AJ Lee and he can’t believe she’s sitting here. How’s she feeling? AJ says it’s a lot, and Becky Lynch comes in to tell Cole he’s the worst interviewer and announcer ever. Cole leaves and wishes AJ luck. Becky remembers AJ’s last WrestleMania, AJ gave her a hug with her fake niceness, she saw her replacement and what was coming for her so she quit. This won’t be like the Chamber, WrestleMania is her home. AJ is proud of Becky, she’s made history, but none of that happens without AJ. She shattered the glass ceilings. She knocked down the doors for Becky. The company kept calling for AJ and they never forgot her. Becky’s daughter’s favorite wrestler is AJ Lee, and AJ will see her at Mania. AJ walks off and Becky is mad.

Bayley (w/Lyra Valkyria) vs. Lash Legend (w/Nia Jax): Lash tosses Bayley out of the ring, throws her back in, Bayley evades her & throws some forearms, Bayley with some knees on the apron, jumps off the middle rope into a forearm, then Lash kicks her out of the ring. Lyra checks on Bayley as we go to commercial.

Lash dominated during the break, but now Bayley’s stomping away. Lash catches Bayley, rams her into the turnbuckle and hits a backbreaker for two. Lash uppercuts Bayley for two. Lash misses a splash. She misses a kick, Bayley doesn’t, dropkicks her in the corner and hits a running knee. Elbowdrop gets two. Nia trips Bayley off the ropes. Lash misses in the corner and hits the ringpost. Lyra gets killed by Nia on the outside, and Charlotte Flair & Alexa Bliss appear to cause some problems on the floor. Bayley dives onto the crowd. She goes back after Lash, Lash with a right. Lash goes for the superplex, Lyra holds her ankle and Bayley lands on top. Lyra holds on and Bayley gets the three count!

Winner: Bayley (5:21 shown via pinfall)
Match Rating: **1/4
I know this has nothing to do with me, but I like the fact that I was complaining about Lash not getting enough reps last week and they stuck her in there with Bayley this week. This was a good learning experience for Lash to get to work with a veteran in a singles match on a big stage in Houston. It’s only going to make Lash better, and I like that.

We go back to last week when Seth Rollins & Gunther got married for WrestleMania. We’ll hear from Seth Rollins next!

DeMeco Ryans is in the house! Bun B is Cole’s guy, and there’s Mark Henry! Cole & Graves throw us to an advertisement for the upcoming Hulk Hogan documentary on Netflix.

BURN IT DOWN! Seth Rollins enters the arena. Dressed in all black. Rollins has been waiting for 6 months to walk down the ramp and for the people to sing that damn song. The fans sing that damn song. He says with his full chest that he is back, and at WrestleMania he goes one on one with Gunther. He’s still putting the pieces together, they don’t have a long history, there’s no personal issue. The only logical conclusion he can come up with is that Gunther has some sort of business relationship with Paul Heyman. Rollins has two missions in his head. One is to take back the World Championship, the second is to kill the Vision. He’s not worried about Logan Paul & Austin Theory, they’ve got an issue with the Usos that won’t end well for them, Bron & Bronson are on the shelf, he put Brock on a silver platter for Oba Femi. Oba is the future, no doubt about it. Gunther has made it personal. Gunther attacks from behind, Rollins shakes him off, there’s some back & forth and there’s some officials. Gunther hits a cheap shot on Rollins. Gunther heads up the aisleway and Rollins is held back by officials.

Gunther walks backstage and there’s Paul Heyman. Paul doesn’t know why he did what he did at MSG. Paul says he owes him a very big thank you. Gunther says it’s very personal to Rollins, and to him as well. Gunther shakes Paul’s hand and says he owes him so much more than a very big thank you. These things don’t usually end well for Paul Heyman is all I’m saying.

Cole & Graves talk about the upcoming contract signing between Oba Femi & Brock Lesnar, then we see clips from last week when Roxanne Perez came back to help Liv Morgan against Stephanie Vaquer.

Stephanie Vaquer talks about Liv’s hair color and her lack of cleverness. Liv a brainless bitch that says nothing. Liv tries to solve her daddy issues with a man with his own. Stephanie fights for the young girls out there. Liv said it was on sight, and it’s the same for her, and Roxanne as well. Stephanie welcomes Liv to her inferno.

Penta, Dragon Lee & Je’Von Evans vs. Los Americanos (Rayo, Bravo, El Grande 2): I honestly didn’t know there were qualifying matches for this ladder match but Cole is listing them off. Was this a Main Event thing? Dragon & Bravo start. Rayo comes in quickly and starts strutting before Je’Von kicks him down. Kofi looking on backstage, he’s got a thing for Je’Von and we can’t blame him. Grande tags in, kicks Je’Von down. Americanos strut, Je’Von hits a crossbody. Penta & Dragon superkick Rayo, Je’Von with a dive! Dragon with a dive! Penta with a dive! Cero Miedo! We go to commercial!

Rayo runs into a kick from Penta, then a sling blade. Back breaker for Bravo, Penta hits a double DDT. Dragon goes for a Styles Clash on Rayo, Bravo intervenes. Grande with a headbutt to Dragon! Bravo with a splash off the top, Penta breaks up the count. Evans with a red dot, Penta kicks Rayo into the corner, Lee with a stomp. Lee with a Styles Clash on Bravo, Grande breaks the count. Lee ranas Grande to the floor. Penta destroys Rayo on the apron OG Cutter to Bravo! That gets the three count!

Winner: Penta, Dragon Lee & Je’Von Evans (4:44 shown via pinfall)
Match Rating: **1/2
One of those matches that would have been ten times better on an AAA episode or a PLE where it could have got some room to breathe. Would love to see more of all these guys.

Some familiar music hits. Rey Mysterio is here! Rey congratulates Penta, Dragon & Je’Von. He puts over Penta’s journey to the IC Championship and how this ladder match could be one of the greatest in history. He missed last year’s WM due to injury, he talked to Adam Pearce backstage and they agreed the ladder match was missing one person…Rey Mysterio! Penta says “Let’s make history!” Rey will be a part of the ladder match at WrestleMania!

Cole & Graves put over the idea of Rey at WrestleMania, then we get more of the Rhodes/McAfee issue that I sure wasn’t asking for but maybe somebody did.

Rhea & IYO work out backstage, we’ll see them in a little bit!

We see clips from earlier tonight when IShowSpeed interfered in a match and ended up in a 6-man tag at WrestleMania. Cole & Graves talk about that, then throw us to a video package of the recent events between Brock Lesnar & Oba Femi.

Asuka is mad at IYO for taking things away from her and forcing their family apart. Asuka came to WWE to pave the way for IYO & Kairi Sane. She never expected to be thanked, she did everything out of love. Now she realizes she loved too much, they took advantage of her kindness. Now she must take everything away from IYO and teach her a final lesson.

IYO SKY & Rhea Ripley vs. B-Fab & Michin (w/Jade Cargill): Oh, we couldn’t keep RIYO apart for too long! All seems right in the universe at least for a little while. Rhea clotheslines B-Fab, mares her over, brings Michin into the ring, tosses her out. B-Fab attacks, gets some shots in on Rhea. B-Fab with a chinlock. Corey says that Jade smells fantastic. Rhea tags IYO. IYO rolls Michin into a stomp. Kicks Michin, missile dropkicks both henchwomen. Tope suicida into B-Fab & Michin! We go to commercial.

B-Fab clotheslines IYO and keeps her from a tag. Rhea gets drawn into the ring and that goofy Jessika Carr holds her back so IYO can get stomped down, then Rhea gets taken out on the outside. IYO finds a moment and rolls B-Fab up for three!

Winners: IYO SKY & Rhea Ripley (4:22 shown via pinfall)
Match Rating: **
Not the best in-ring action but it served the purpose for what they were trying to accomplish.

Jade & her henchwomen attack IYO, Rhea fights back but ends up getting held in the corner by B-Fab & Michin so Jade can talk smack and take the kendo stick to IYO. Jade wears IYO out with the stick and hits Jaded on her. Rhea checks on IYO while Jade & her minions walk off. I’m not calling them baddies out of respect to Leila Grey.

Finn Balor says he’s the one that taught Dom & JD how to play dirty, and playtime is over. He’s going to show Dom the side he thought was dead & buried. That side is back, and it’s coming for Dom.

JD tells Dom they need to worry about his deadbeat dad more than Finn. They go and talk to Adam Pearce. Raquel peaces out while Liv talks to Roxanne. Liv wants to talk to Roxanne about Finn, who brought her into the Judgment Day. Before they can talk about it, Stephanie attacks from behind and lays Liv out!

Oba Femi is WALKING! Paul “Triple H” Levesque comes out to the ring along with Adam Pearce. Paul digs the kid dressed up like Stephanie Vaquer at ringside.

We return & Pearce is running through his usual spiel before Paul Heyman interrupts with his usual spiel. Heyman puts himself over as the greatest ever while the folks chant for Oba. Paul insists the ruler can’t measure up to the real main event of WrestleMania, the beast, Brock Lesnar. Polish Joe makes his way to the ring. We see some executive producer credits at 10:26. Pearce introduces Oba, who struts his way to the ring. Welp, Brock attacks Oba between the ropes, Oba drives him into the ringpost! They go through the table and there’s all sorts of security folks out there. It’s not working real well. Brock throws a chair, Oba throws a chair, it’s all hell breaking loose as our live event comes to an end. So long for now!

If you’d like to chime in with your own thoughts on today’s show, feel free to join your fellow 411 Maniacs down in the comment section! As the legendary Larry Csonka always said: Have fun and don’t be a dick. When I’m not here you can catch me on the social media from time to time.

7.3

The final score: review Good

The 411

I'll be honest, I'm bumping the rating up a little bit because I didn't have to deal with Pat McAfee stinking up this show. I'm not sure if I'd rate the Punk promo as a pipebomb but he was speaking a lot of truth. I will say that not all of the celebrity involvement in the WrestleMania build sucks, as even though I've never seen an IShowSpeed YouTube video I enjoy his involvement with the Vision and his eventual downfall, even though not of his own doing, will entertain me. He's doing a good job. Rey coming back for the ladder match is fun, and we got a tease for the Demon coming out for Dom, so that should be fun.