RAW 1250: May 8, 2017

## Episode recap

### **Kurt Angle named Intercontinental Champion Dean Ambrose the acting General Manager of Raw**

Oh, it’s true: Raw General Manager Kurt Angle was apparently so impressed with Dean Ambrose’s matchmaking suggestions last week that he named the Intercontinental Champion as his acting replacement during the opening minutes of Raw’s international stopover in London.

Ambrose had to contend with opposition almost immediately when his No. 1 contender, The Miz, arrived and revealed that Raw Commissioner Stephanie McMahon had named him Co-Acting General Manager in order to mitigate Ambrose's unpredictability, but The Lunatic Fringe quickly proved his management skills were still beyond reproach. When a returning Kalisto confronted a sling-bound Braun Strowman, The Monster Among Men claimed he could defeat The King of Flight with one good arm if he so desired, so Ambrose gave Strowman the opportunity to prove it in a match later that night. On top of that, The Lunatic Fringe even managed to get one up on his trash-talking No. 1 contender by declaring Miz would face Finn Bálor in the night's first match.

### **Finn Balor vs. The Miz**

Last week, The Miz made a dent in history (albeit with some help) when he handed Finn Bálor his first pinfall defeat in WWE during an epic Triple Threat Match to determine the No. 1 Contender to the Intercontinental Championship. He did not repeat the accomplishment in their one-on-one clash.

Miz almost finagled a disqualification win for himself when he threw Bálor into the referee, after which The A-Lister used his Co-Acting General Manager powers to disqualify his opponent. But Dean Ambrose quickly overruled the decision, had the match restarted and banned Maryse from ringside. With Miz’s security blanket gone, Bálor made quick work of him, pouncing with a Sling Blade and sealing the deal with a Coup de Grâce.

### **Alexa Bliss vs. Mickie James**

The only woman Alexa Bliss didn’t trash talk during her “coronation” last week was Nia Jax. This week, the WWE Universe found out why.

The powerful Jax accompanied Little Miss Bliss to the ring for her non-title match against her former ally Mickie James, claiming she would be Bliss’ “best friend” provided the champion granted her a title match as soon as she had put Bayley in the rearview. The Huggable One herself wasn’t far from the action either, serving as Mickie’s muscle in a confrontation that quickly tilted James’ way. (The audience’s chants of Toni Basil’s “Mickey” didn’t hurt as a motivator).

In fact, Mickie gained such an advantage that Nia attempted to (literally) trip her up on the top turnbuckle, and while Bayley was quick to neutralize the interference, Alexa doomed Mickie with a forearm to the face. When The Huggable One chased Bliss up the ramp following the match, Jax lingered behind, pulverizing James in a harrowing bit of post-match devastation.

### **Sasha Banks. Alicia Fox**

If not for a ferocious fistfight between Sasha Banks and Alicia Fox last week, Bayley might have been able to hand Alexa Bliss a non-title loss in an Eight-Woman Tag Team bout. Alas, Bliss prevailed in that match, and The Boss and Miss Fox’s grudge match on Raw picked up right where last week’s fight left off, with both Superstars throwing hands at each other before things settled down into a rhythm.

To her credit, Fox dictated the pace of the match, holding the three-time Raw Women’s Champion at bay for minutes on end, at least until Banks pounced off the top turnbuckle with a pair of knees to the face and hooked the leg for a win. Though, as an eagle-eyed Corey Graves pointed, depending on the vantage point, Alicia may have gotten a shoulder up outside the ref’s field of vision. Round Three, perhaps?

### **Bray Wyatt vs. Dean Ambrose**

Earlier in the night, Dean Ambrose used his matchmaking abilities to feed The Miz to Finn Bálor. Well, The A-Lister didn’t just end the evening with one leg up on Ambrose, he ended it with two: Not only did Raw General Manager Kurt Angle move Miz’s Intercontinental Championship Match to next week from its originally assumed time at WWE Extreme Rules, but The A-Lister used some matchmaking savvy of his own to pit Ambrose against Bray Wyatt in Raw’s main event.

Awesome if you’re Miz, not so much if you’re Ambrose: The Reaper of Souls was all over his longtime foe, and when the Intercontinental Champion gained some momentum, Miz got involved, sauntering down from commentary to mug with the Intercontinental Title itself and, eventually, hit Ambrose in the back with it out of the official's sight.

Wyatt hit Sister Abigail to defeat Ambrose moments later, but Miz got the last word, raking Ambrose’s face in a post-match beatdown before promising to reclaim the title and once again usher in an era of awesomeness.

## Results

1. Finn Bálor def. The Miz (w/ Maryse)
2. Raw Women's Champion Alexa Bliss (w/ Nia Jax) def. Mickie James (w/ Bayley)
3. Sasha Banks def. Alicia Fox