WWE Raw results: Finn Balor wins US title, Edge goes to the dark side

The latest episode of WWE Raw came our way from the Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio. And it was an episode that was… just there.

To be perfectly honest, there was a lot that didn’t work on this episode. And that’s not what one would expect from WWE given it’s WrestleMania season.

But first, let’s get on to what did work. And we’re starting off with Finn Balor becoming the United States championship.

This was one of those rare cases where a win from out of nowhere works. Balor is an established upper-midcard act, as is Priest. So there was no clear favourite going into the match.

The two put on a predictably solid, hard-hitting affair that ended with Balor holding up the strap.

Same, dude. Same.@FinnBalor#WWERaw pic.twitter.com/9MBSP6iIQz

— WWE (@WWE) March 1, 2022

The real point of intrigue came when Priest, livid at his loss, slammed the fans in a post-match promo and turned heel with a beatdown on Balor.

Priest has been a babyface for quite a while now so him turning would make for interesting stories. That being said, it came out of nowhere and they pretty much dropped the whole ‘dark side’ angle to him.

Still, Priest as a heel works and in Balor he has a good foil. This has the potential to be a decent midcard belt rivalry.

The Rated-R superstar is back

So Edge vs AJ Styles is official for WrestleMania. You know what else is official? The return of the Rated-R superstar.

Edge accepted Styles’ offer but goaded him by saying he needed the version who wasn’t hiding behind Omos. He said this using very different and colourful language though.

Styles was clearly incensed so he attacked Edge but the veteran turned things around with a low blow and finished things up with a con-chair-to.

NOT LIKE THIS.@EdgeRatedR blasted @AJStylesOrg with a Conchairto just moments after the Phenomenal One accepted a match at #WrestleMania! pic.twitter.com/qXI7ihZZF0

— WWE (@WWE) March 1, 2022

It must be noted that Edge appeared a man possessed when beating down on Styles, which made the segment even better. How AJ responds next week – or later – will also be fun to watch.

Also worth noting: there was some speculation that Edge’s opponent could be a returning Cody Rhodes, which obviously won’t be the case now.

Also read: Vince McMahon set for in-ring comeback at WrestleMania 38 – report

But Edge vs Styles is in many ways a dream match – and one that will deliver both in segments and in the ring.

WWE Raw – best of the rest

• Kevin Owens and Seth Rollins opened WWE Raw with an episode of the KO Show. They were then joined by Alpha Academy and the resulting promos were actually good! And it set the gauntlet for the match to come, which was won by Rollins and Owens. Also of note? KO hit a stunner on Gable, but only after flipping him the double bird. Now where could this be leading…
• Omos beat T-Bar in a match that… happened.
• Bianca Belair, Rhea Ripley and Liv Morgan beat Becky Lynch, Nikki ASH and Doudrop in a six-woman tag team match. The most notable part of this match was Belair absolutely leathering Lynch with her braid, leaving welts on The Man’s abs. Ouch! This led to the champ walking out, and Belair pinning Nikki for the win.
• Tommaso Ciampa beat Robert Roode in a quick match? Cool. Ciampa got new entrance music? Meh.
• Dana Brooke and Reggie beat Akira Tozawa and Tamina in a tag match, then proceeded to make out. Cool. Tamina and Tozawa are also teasing a romance angle. Cool.
• The Hurt Business (Cedric Alexander and Shelton Benjamin) beat The Mysterios due to The Miz’s interference.
• The Street Profits beat RK-Bro in a tag match.

Grade: C-