Monday Night Raw August 3, 2026

After a frantic two nights in Minnesota, WWE’s build towards the Autumn months, including Money in the Bank and Wargames, begins tonight.

As of this time the only two segments confirmed for tonight include Roman Reigns and Big Cass. After huge wins, you’d have to expect something big for both Oba and Chad Gable as well. With Oba relinquishing his title shot to get Brock instead, what’s the chances that Oba interrupts the Tribal Chief tonight? It would make for an excellent “Oh shit” moment and would set up Oba bigtime as the biggest threat for Roman and his reign to date.

Not related to Raw but earlier today it was announced that Brie Bella broke her scapula during her match on Saturday. Because I love chaos, I want Nikki and Paige to completely drop the turn from Saturday. Act like it never happened. Stay aligned

Segment: Roman Reigns

Roman Reigns.. The Big Dog.. The OTC is kicking us off tonight. Why is it that whoever has the front and center seat now must wear a green smiley shirt? Is that a requisite for that particular seat? Even if it’s not normal Green Shirt Guy, there’s always one.

Roman talks about how he owned the whole summer. Reminder that he hasn’t defended the belt since Jacob with their final match being May 1. So technically, Roman hasn’t done a thing all summer.

Looks like our next program for the Heavyweight title is Roman Reigns and LA Knight. Knight congratulates Roman for winning without the Bloodline but tells him he’s still a fraud and he wants a shot. The crowd is hot for Knight, even a bit more so than Roman. Roman tells Knight he’s done nothing to earn it (including beating his cousins). As he’s leaving the ring, Knight rips into Roman telling him that he can’t do it on his own (even though he just did, AND Knight congratulated him for it) and to grow a pair and let him know.

Overall the crowd was hot for the segment. It seems these two are on a crash course for Money in the Bank since Roman doesn’t do Monday matches unless it’s for the Netflix season premier. It seems weird that Knight would call Roman out for hiding behind his 38 family members immediately after talking about how Roman won on Sunday himself. It makes him look somewhere between an idiot and a hypocrite. But the crowd doesn’t care one bit.

After the segment: We’re confirmed for Oba, Gable, and Sol Ruca versus Roxanne Perez later tonight.

Match 1: Je’Von Evans versus Ethan Page

What started off as a very standard match for these two got hot at the end with Evans showing out as normal. But there’s no real stakes and they’ve been kinda fighting regularly for weeks now so it’s hard to get invested with no clear path for either of them regardless. I like both. Ego is a solid mid-card heel so I want to see him challenge Gable. Evans is younger but a great face. In a few years he can definitely be an IC champ and possibly somewhere down the line a main-eventer.

Highlights include Evans doing normal Flippy shit including almost yeeting himself over the barricade and jumping over both Ego AND the ref for his OG Cutter.

After the match, Big Cass showed up and laid out Je’Von. Cass is in incredible shape, looks like an absolute monster. I don’t know if he can cut a promo by now but if so he might end up near the top of the card and quick. It looks like Ego and Evans are done for now with Evans moving into a program with Cass. With how they just had Cass handle Evans, the next program isn’t looking great for Evans. But it’s fine, he’s young and can take a loss to move Cass up the card.

Winner: Je’Von Evans via pinfall after an OG Cutter.

Segment: We get Roman backstage lambasting the twins and Fatu. They had an advantage going into the match as a family and still couldn’t get the job done. He says Solo should be there bringing his coffee, reminds Jacob that Keys isn’t family, and all they have is each other. Jimmy says to say the word and they’ll take care of Knight. Roman tells them not to touch Knight, he’ll take care of LA himself.

Kind of weird. After yesterday, it seemed like Roman was leaning a bit more face. But tonight he’s back to himself. I was hoping yesterday with throwing the chair away, fist bumping Seth, that he was showing some humility and was going to go into a bit more of a redemption arc. But apparently not.

Segment: After a commercial we now have Jacob in the locker room looking sullen. Keys tells Jacob they’re brothers and he' forgets all of it, they’re family. Jacob has full blown Stockholm syndrome. Tells Keys they’re not family, his only family is the Bloodline, and he’ll dog walk his ass in a street fight tonight.

Segment: The women of the Judgement day come out to Liv’s music. Roxanne is in her gear so this should lead into her match versus Sol Ruca. Liv cuts a promo. She see’s no challengers. Nobody comes out so I guess she really doesn’t have a challenger. I really keep hoping I’m wrong and they do something with her. What I’m really hoping for is this beginning to wedge Roxanne away from the group, she’s excellent and they’re treating her like a third wheel of the group. I feel like this has to be by design. Raquel shows off her IC belt.. which is wrapped in Babred Wire? Ok. Sure. Whatever.

Match: Sol Ruca versus Roxanne Perez

WWE is so determined to not give us wrestling on their shows that the match starts during a commercial break. I’ve said for many years, WWE isn’t a wrestling show. It’s a show about a wrestling show. I still feel this way to this day. It’s rare that a match ends during a commercial. Equally rare a match starts during a commercial. I’m waiting for when they start and end a match during a commercial. It would save them from needing to waste time on that wacky wrestling stuff.

Sol is so cool. She’s got a unique look and a great move set. Liv causes the DQ and the Judgement Day take out Sol.

Winner: Sol Ruca via DQ after Liv attacks her

During the Judgement Day beatdown… The man has come around! WHAT A POP! Becky comes out to the ring and it looks like Liv has a challenger after all. For my money, Becky is the GOAT of all women. Liv retreats to the back while Becky tells her she’s not only not the best champion in her own faction, but not the best champion that Dominic has slept with..

AND Stephanie Vaquer is back! Holy shit. And the fans agree with that sentiment.

And now we get a Stephanie and Becky stare down in the middle of the ring over who gets to go after Liv. Things went from dire to looking intense for the Women’s title in the matter of a single segment. Becky immediately gives legitimacy to the belt just by challenging for it.

Segment: We get a video package for Brock to Godsmack’s "Stand Alone”. This definitely feels like a confirmation that last night was a career for the man. The video package ends with Heyman watching the video backstage smiling. Oba approaches and tells Heyman to thank Lesnar for him. Heyman extends his and and congratulates him.

With Heyman splitting off of The Vision, what does this mean for Heyman? He can elevate someone easily. But who do you stick with him now? I can see him going back with Bron as a face. Bron needs help on the mic still and their split was amicable enough. Heyman just told the Vision that they don’t need him with Maxxine in the picture for them. If Bron turns on Theory and Logan soon, they can put Heyman with him and let them cook to build Bron to the top of the card.

Segment: Oba Femi

Oba coming out in what I can only assume is a traditional Nigerian garb. Dude looks like a king. Oba says that the Beast can now finally rest. There is no correct path, everyone forges their own destiny, and if any of the old guard has a problem with him carrying the torch for the new generation, they will answer to Oba. It’s clear that this guy will be the champion by the time Mania ends. Now we just have to understand who of the old guard will step up against Oba. While Oba walks up the ramp Bron and Theory come out and we get a Bron and Oba stare down. I really hope these two aren’t on a path yet. It’s way too early for that. They need to keep these two away from one another until Bron is established back at the top of the card, and only after Oba has already won his first championship.

Match: Bron Breakker versus Joe Hendry

I say it regularly but it feels like they’ve lost faith in Bron. Joe Hendry is pretty much as low on the card as can be on the face side. This match shouldn’t be happening unless Bron wins in about 40 seconds. I kinda figure that has to be what happens here after that face-off.

I hit the stopwatch for this one. 37 seconds for Breakker to even turn around and attack Hendry with a clothesline. 1 minute 38 seconds for Bron to win after hitting just a spear, nothing else. So pretty much exactly what I was hoping to see.

Winner: Bron Breakker via pinfall after delivering 2 moves, a running clothesline and a spear.

Bron immediately leaves the ring and power walks to the back. Now in a total jobber-fest, Theory attacks Henry in the ring and Tozawa makes the save by taking out Theory. The show needs an undercard, but Theory is being presented as being more mid-card as part of the Vision and getting taken out by Tozawa.

Segment: We get Big Cass in the back. Giving him a promo with Jackie Redmond is a great idea to show off how enormous he is. Cass cuts a surprisingly good promo. Nothing special, but it felt sincere which is what you can ask for. Basically just says he’s been gone for 8 years. He was at rock bottom (which is actually true outside of kayfabe, shout out to Enzo for helping Cass in his time of need. He truly is a real one) and now he’s back. Evans was nothing personal, just in his way at the wrong time. But now he’s going to stack bodies. Again, not spectacular but it felt sincere enough.

Segment: Chad Gable

Gable comes out to the ring in his ring gear. He’s not announced for a match, so I suspect he’s going to cut a promo and get challenged to a match. He says last night was the single best moment of his career. Damn, winning the tag belts with Jason Jordan got no love. He thanks the crowd for always sticking with him, even when he was Shorty G. That gets no reaction. I guess the crowd wasn’t sure if they should cheer him or boo the gimmick so they did neither. Penta now on his way out, also in his ring gear. Something tells me they’re going to run this back right now like their names are Jey Uso. Penta in all black, including a leather jacket. I’d say a hint towards Penta Oscuro, but Penta is too over as a face for that to happen. I think.

Dom and JD McD interrupt, both in their gear. Guess that’s our next match. JD McD tells Gable last night wasn’t even his best match. It was against El Grande Americano when Gable lost his mask. I don’t know if that’s supposed to be a controversial opinion. Even in kayfabe. After it happened they kept talking about it like an all timer on Raw. Like it’s probably the match of the year. It’s one of the best matches I’ve ever seen, period. Just feels weird for a heel to say “Well last nights match wasn’t THAT good when you fought this one earlier this year.” So anyway the challenge is thrown down, Penta and Chad accept, and a ref is on his way to the ring as we move to commercial.

Match: Penta and Chad Gable versus JD McDonagh and Dom Mysterio

And again, the match starts during commercial. The match is fine. I got a text during it which was actually important so I missed basically the full stretch between breaks. But what I can comment on is why is Netflix promoting so much shit? What the hell is a Stroke Twins even? And this 72 Hours thing with Kevin Hart just looks awful. I mean I suppose they agreed to promote Kevin Hart on Raw since he’s Bret’s nephew. Raw comes back from commercial with the audio and video out of sync, I guess due to using the drone cam. As soon as they swap to an actual ring-side cameraman the audio is fine. McDonagh is so awesome in the ring he’s always going 100 MPH. A quick reminder of the tag match he was in versus the Viking Raiders where he basically killed himself 3 separate times in one match. I hope one day he gets a chance.

I don’t really understand what they’re doing with Dom. I’m fine with him taking the loss here since he ate a belt shot followed by a finisher. So I don’t mean that as my problem. My problem is his go-to move is always the ring hammer in the boot, and it’s always figured out by whoever he’s facing. They just keep doing the same move with him. What made Eddie organically over with the fans was that he’d regularly find new ways to cheat. But for Dom it’s the same thing all the time. It feels like he’s on ice at the moment. I’m hopeful for regular WWE booking of “cool someone down so they don’t look like a threat” and him winning Money in the Bank.

Winner: Gable and Penta via a Chaos Theory pinfall on Dom

Segment: Bron approaches Heyman in the back looking for Oba. Heyman tells him he has no idea where he is. Heyman doesn’t seem happy about being in the middle of this. Interesting to see which way Heyman goes here. Oba doesn’t need him at all so I’m still hoping he goes back with Bron. Although I don’t know if it makes sense to have Oba beat a Heyman guy twice in a row.

Match: Jacob Fatu versus Royce Keys - Street Fight

Keys doesn’t get an entrance. The ring bells basically immediately as we get back from the commercial. We only have about 10 minutes left in the show, but after this weekend it doesn’t seem too unusual for a match length. It takes not even 2 minutes for them to move outside of the ring as they brawl. Royce goes to grab a table and Fatu cuts him off and slides the table back under the ring. Good heel work by Fatu. Royce delivers a power slam through the barricade and we move to “This coverage is brought to you by DiGiorno.” It feels even weirder that instead of Picture in Picture, we now get “Action with a sponsor”. Twice. It feels like “We’re in a commercial, but not really”. Also, the graphics for this Raw have been “Code Raw”. I suppose this is some new branding? Keys and Fatu both filling the ring with chairs. It’s starting to feel like Funk and Cactus Jack in that ring. The crowd is chanting for “One more chair” but Keys doesn’t throw one in from the outside. That’s easy face work. Give the fans what they want, toss one more chair in. We can see that there is more under the ring. Instead Fatu lifts one in the air while in the ring and gets a big pop. Fatu is bleeding from the webbing between his fingers. That’s gotta hurt like a son of a bitch.

I’ll say it. I hate tables. Like, they’re fun to watch someone go through. But, Chekov’s Gun. If it’s set up, it has to be used. So any false finishes with the table still up, you know it’s a nothing pin.

Speaking of, Fatu gives Keys a pop-up Samoan Drop through the table. Now this match can end. And it does.

Winner: Jacob Fatu via ref stoppage from the Tongan death-grip.

Jacob keeps it locked in, and even after letting go he locks it back in. Keys is bleeding from the mouth. Remember when referee’s could revert their decision? That would be fun here, give Jacob the loss after he beat the hell out of Keys. Basically let Fatu beat himself.

Oh, snap. Roman’s music hits. He gives Jacob a nod of approval from the entryway as him and Jacob acknowledge each other. We end the show with Rey Mysterio meeting Roman in Gorilla, letting him know he’s the GM of AAA. It looks like Rey is going to try and get Roman for their supercard in September. I have no idea who he’d face in Triple A though. The top face, EGA, is in a program. Guess time will tell.

I was very happy with this Raw. Felt like one of the best ones in a while. I’ve been kind of down on the show for a few months now, but this one definitely felt like a step in the right direction. Let me know your thoughts below on this Raw, and who from AAA you’d like to see Roman match up against.