*OFFICIAL* Raw Discussion Thread: 20th May 2013

[Awesome]

Alberto Del Rio proved his mettle at Extreme Rules when he forced Jack Swagger to say “I Quit,” thereby earning the sole title of No. 1 contender for the World Heavyweight Championship. But now comes Del Rio’s greatest challenge: defeating the man who took the title from him in the first place, Dolph Ziggler. The Showoff’s been absent for a couple weeks now while he recuperates from a concussion, but look for the dynamic World Heavyweight Champion to make his return sooner rather than later as he prepares to face Del Rio.

If The Shield’s dominance was ever in question, Extreme Rules erased all doubt that the former NXT standouts are here for the long haul in WWE: Following Dean Ambrose’s conquest of U.S. Champion Kofi Kingston and Seth Rollins & Roman Reigns’ dethroning of Team Hell No as WWE Tag Team Champions, all three Shield members now wear championship gold around their waists. Having secured their spot in the current pantheon of WWE’s elite, how will they begin their three-pronged reign of terror on Monday night?

Last night’s brutal Last Man Standing Match between WWE Champion John Cena and Ryback ended in viciously indecisive fashion — neither man was able to answer the 10-count after crashing through the stage, causing Cena to retain his title by default. With Ryback having come closer than ever to seizing the WWE Title for himself, look for the “Human Wrecking Ball” to make another play for the title as WWE Payback approaches. As for Cena, he dodged the proverbial bullet Sunday, so look for Ryback to strike while The Champ is still in his weakened state.

Triple H may have won the battle against Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania, but it was Lesnar who ended their war at Extreme Rules. He defeated The King of Kings in a grueling Steel Cage Match with a punishing sledgehammer strike and F-5 that sealed The Game’s fate inside the confines of the steel. With Lesnar having reasserted his dominance via his hard-fought victory, what does the future hold for “The Beast Incarnate”? Only time will tell, but given that Paul Heyman has never let a victory for his camp slide by un-celebrated, there’s a strong possibility tomorrow will provide some answers.

Chris Jericho certainly wasn’t about to let Fandango’s lofty rhetoric slide after losing to the dancing Superstar at WrestleMania. Stewing over continued humiliation at Fandango’s hands, the first Undisputed Champion in WWE history paid the newcomer back in full at Extreme Rules, unleashing a heart-stopping Codebreaker that left the dancing fiend in ruins on the mat. With Fandango’s score against Jericho now at an even 1-1, does the two-stepper have another twist in mind for The Ayatollah of Rock ‘n’ Rolla?

[Awesome]

An interesting start to Raw with that ambulance, but with Ryback not showing any effects of Extreme Rules at all, it makes me think even more sure that it would have made more sense for them to have awarded him the title after the Last Man Standing match.

I'm not sure what I think of the new name "Curtis Axel", but Heyman's explanation of it obviously makes more sense than his previous name of Michael McGillicutty, and I liked the added touch of his music being based on Mr. Perfect's one.

I'm not so sure that it was necessary to see Triple H again so soon, but I guess the ending gave a boost to Curtis Axel and is hopefully their way of starting to write Triple H off from competing in matches.