The WWE roster is backstage, and John Laurinaitis talks to the locker room about being the new GM on both shows. He books Santino vs. Ziggler vs. Swagger for tonight, and is interrupted by Punk. He then books Punk vs. Henry for the WWE Championship.
Opening Segment:
The Rock comes out to a hot crowd in Miami to talk about his matchup last night. He says he wants to thank John Cena for giving the fans what they want. Rock talks about having goosebumps being back home in Miami. Rock says he has never faced someone who brought it all to him like Cena did. He talks about his vision, and his vision is that one day he will walk down the ramp once again as the WWE Champion. The crowd erupts and Rock exits.
What I Liked:
This is exactly what you needed to do to start off Raw. Rock is the story, the reason we bought Mania, and the segment to kick off Raw the next night is absolutely huge in getting all of the people interested in the entire show. Rock proclaiming he will be WWE Champion goes to show that he wants his one last run, which is what everybody wants to see. When will he come back full time then? My guess is a year from now after Mania, get his movies out of the way, and give us the best he has to offer. Great segment to get everyone buzzing.
What I Disliked:
At first I thought they should bring Cena out, but separating them to give them their own segments was smart.
Grade: A
Santino Marella def. Jack Swagger and Dolph Ziggler to retain the United States Championship:
What I Liked:
I was shocked Santino retained here, especially because he is so hot right now they usually tend to strip the guy with all the fandom like they did with Ryder. Swagger is so solid in the ring from a technical standpoint, and I love how good Ziggler is at taking bumps. Some say he over sells, but I don't think he does. He makes his opponent look stronger each time, and he can do that with his body type. There is not a better neckbreaker in the business than Ziggler.
What I Disliked:
The ending was interesting to me. You assumed that Ziggler and Swagger would go at it, but I just did not buy it. It felt like Swagger was the heel, attacking Ziggler first, but I would try to book it the other way around. Swagger needs to turn face because Ziggler is so good at his craft. Also, I like the cobra for comedic relief, but i wonder if there is something else he can add in his arsenal. We see Brodus Clay come out to save Santino from being attacked by Ziggler and Swagger. I like it for now, but wasn't Ziggler and Swagger just fighting and arguing with one another? I did not understand that logic.
Grade: B
