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WWE Raw Results: January 9 Winners, Ratings, Reactions & Highlights | News, Scores, Highlights, Stats & Rumors

January 10, 2023

WWE Raw Results: January 9 Winners, Ratings, Reactions & Highlights

0 out of 5

Alexa Bliss.WWE

Welcome to WWE Raw coverage and recap by Bleacher Report on January 9th.

Following her brutal attack on a referee and Bianca Belair during the Raw Women’s Championship match last week, Alexa Bliss attempted to explain her actions.

Austin Theory was able to retain his United States title last week against Seth Rollins, so this week was all about his future.

With the Royal Rumble rapidly approaching on January 28, we’ve also seen more developments designed to build the pay-per-view.

Let’s take a look at what happened on Monday’s show.

Kevin Owens vs. Baron Corbin

1 out of 5

Kevin Owens came out on top of the show and started talking about how he will face Roman Reigns at the Royal Rumble, but was cut off by JBL almost immediately. This led to Baron Corbin coming out to face KO in a match.

The poker enthusiast took control early on, but Owens is rarely one to let his opponents hold the upper hand for long. He finally got Corbin to smack his shoulder into the ring post before the show was over.

While this match had good energy and lacked any major errors, it felt very paint-by-numbers. Nothing about it really stood out as memorable. It was filler, but at least it wasn’t bad filler.

KO managed to pick up the win, but his celebration was cut short when The Bloodline attacked him at ringside. The Usos and Solo Sikoa may have jumped on him, but Owens grabbed a chair and beat them to be the last man standing in the ring.

Winner: Kevin Owens

Class: VS

Notable Moments and Observations

Local sports references will always generate heat with wrestling crowds. It’s almost a cheat code.
The fact that Corbin is the only person to hold a decisive victory over Reigns in the past three years is insane.
The way Owens pulled away from the corner for Corbin to hit the ring post like it was no big deal was hilarious. It was like when Samoa Joe walks away to avoid someone flying towards him.

Bayley vs. Mia Yim

2 out of 5

Bayley was the first with Dakota Kai and Iyo Sky by her side to take on new The OC member Mia “Michin” Yim.

The role model ended up firing his Damage CTRL teammates so they could have the night off.

Bayley went right after Yim once the ref called the bell, but Michin was able to bounce back and put him down with a daredevil.

They fought during a commercial break, and we came back to see Yim back on defense. She began to make a comeback with a flurry of strikes.

This match started out pretty well, but ended up being a little clunky in the second half. Bayley took the win by using the ropes for leverage when she went for a pin.

Winner: Bayley

Class: VS

Notable Moments and Observations

Alexa Bliss did a promo from the top of the announcement table explaining how she’s the face of evil. A chilling video was released that led to an appearance by Uncle Howdy, but the show was cut short and we never got a follow-up.
Bayley must have known the hairstyle would look ridiculous after struggling for a little while.
We’ve gotten so used to seeing big spots that a simple suplex on the ground no longer elicits a reaction from the crowd.
Yim hit a move that brought Bayley off the apron, but it looked like they messed it up because there was no telling what she wanted.

Candice LeRae vs. Rhea Ripley

3 out of 5

Candice LeRae was giving a backstage interview about waiting for the Royal Rumble when she was confronted by Rhea Ripley. This led to the two meeting for a match in the show’s second hour.

The Poison Pixie managed to back Ripley into the corner unloading punches at her, but The Eradicator caught her coming off the middle rope and tackled her to the mat.

Ripley was in control until LeRae took her down with a German suplex, but it didn’t take long for Mami to regain her momentum.

It was a physical and entertaining fight that definitely surpassed what we saw in the first hour, despite being shorter than either of the first two contests. Sometimes simple is better.

Winner: Rhea Ripley

Class: B-

Notable Moments and Observations

Seth Rollins faked an injury when he came out to face Austin Theory, but he let us know he faked it almost immediately.
During LeRae’s interview, Nikki Cross could be seen in the background.
LeRae hit a nice German suplex from the middle turnbuckle.

Solo Sikoa vs. Dolph Ziggler

4 out of 5

The Usos were allowed to leave the arena after their attack on Owens, but Adam Pearce forced Sikoa to stay so he could face Dolph Ziggler.

The Showoff jumped on Sikoa as soon as the referee called the bell, but after surviving his onslaught, The Street Champ knocked him down with a shoulder tackle.

While Ziggler put up a good fight, it looked like Sikoa had his number for most of the match.

It was more competitive than most fights on this week’s show, but it still felt like both guys were holding each other back for some reason.

Ziggler landed most of his big moves, but Sikoa managed to get the win with a huge right hand out of nowhere.

Winner: Solo score

Class: B

Notable Moments and Observations

Ziggler and Mustafa Ali had a backstage chat and teased becoming a tag team. They would be an awesome couple.
Sikoa caught The Showoff on his DDT jump and threw himself over the top rope looked good. However, Ziggler nearly hit the announce table when he landed.
Sikoa knocking Ziggler out of a powerbomb position and then extending him with a huge punch was a great finish.

Tag Team Bustle

5 out of 5

After an episode of Miz TV with The Judgment Day, we saw Finn Bálor and Damian Priest take on Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows in the first Tag Team Turmoil main event fight.

Dom helped his team steal the win by tripping Anderson so Balor could roll him. The next duo to enter the match was Cedric Alexander and Shelton Benjamin. They put up a decent fight but were eventually knocked out.

Chad Gable and Otis were next to face a visibly tired Bálor and priest. As fun as their part of the match was, they also ended up being put down by The Judgment Day. The Irishman exited the ring and was examined by ring doctors.

Pearce came down and said if they didn’t want to give up then Dom had to take Bálor’s place. Priest agreed, so the match continued with The Street Profits.

Any gauntlet-style contest usually ends up being either too long or too short. It’s hard to find a balance, but they did a great job here of keeping Judgment Day from start to finish, even though one of the participants was changed towards the end.

With a little help from the ropes, Dom managed to score the pin on Ford to win the match and the next shot at the tag team titles.

Winners: Judgment day

Class: B-

Notable Moments and Observations

Some of this stuff with Dominik Mysterio is funny, but he’s not the reason it’s funny. Her birth still seems delayed.
Priest is usually a great striker, but he hit a string of leg kicks from Gallows that felt as stiff as a cooked noodle.
There was cover when Benjamin somehow left Bálor instead of letting him be kicked out. It was a little weird but not super noticeable unless you were paying close attention.
There was a “We want Otis” chant at one point. The bulldozer is finished.
Ford is truly a special talent. WWE better not wait too long to give him that singles boost we all know he deserves.