Raw Deal - Raw recap for April 9, 2018

Commissioner Stephanie McMahon shows up to start tonight's show. It is noticed that Stephanie is nursing her left arm, which is in some sort of brace. When she gets in the ring, the crowd chants "You tapped out!" Stephanie shows irritation with the crowd for showing her no sympathy, which causes the chants to get louder. Stephanie says the crowd may be chanting that, but they have to admit they were surprised at her performance and that she deserves the accolades as she knew what she was doing. She says that if she challenged Rousey in her world, she would bring out the best in her, and she deserves the pat on the back for that. Stephanie then brings out Rousey, who shows up. Stephanie tells Ronda that she made her tap out and that the better woman won. She goes on to say that everything Ronda does is with heart and passion, and that she is a role model for young girls everywhere. She also says she was beaten by the best in the world, and she has no shame in that. Stephanie says that with Ronda's talent and her spotlight, there is no place they cannot go and that she can apply her muscle towards anything that she does. This causes the crowd to chant "Bullshit!" Stephanie tells Ronda she is smarter than all the fans, for she is a businesswoman, and that she taught her a valuable lesson. This leads to a "Shut the fuck up!" chant. She then tells the fans to give it up for "her friend," "Rowdy" Ronda Rousey. Ronda and Stephanie hug, then Ronda puts her in another arm bar, ripping the arm brace off in the process.. Two referees and two EMTs have to run into the ring to check on Stephanie. The crowd sings Na Na Hey Hey (The Goodbye Song) as Stephanie is helped to the back. Jojo asks the crowd for some respect for Stephanie, which leads to a storm of boos.

Next Monday on Raw and SmackDown Live: The Superstar Shake-Up!

Before the next match, Alexa says there is no bigger bully in the WWE than "Rowdy" Ronda Rousey, unless people are talking about Nia Jax. She says it is time for people to hear the truth, as Nia loves to throw her weight around. She then says this is a lot of weight, which is twice the weight of Mickie and three times the weight of her. After an "Asshole!" chant, Alexa says Nia beat Mickie up for no reason and that she lost because she is a compassionate woman. She also claims to have competed under emotional distress last night, and says Nia enjoyed every second of it for she is cold as ice and everybody knows it, and that is why she has no tag team partner. Nia tells Alexa to shut up, and admits she enjoyed every second of doing it, and that she is now the new Raw Women's Champion. She also says he has a partner, and that partner is Ember Moon.

Nia Jax and Ember Moon beat Alexa Bliss and Mickie James in Ember Moon's main roster debut.

Backstage, General Manager Kurt Angle is on the phone, and has nothing but praise for Ember Moon. Suddenly, he is met by Braun Strowman. He has brought Nicholas with him, and Angle admits that Strowman's tag team partner is a surprise. Strowman then says that they are relinquishing the Raw tag team titles due to "scheduling conflicts," as Nicholas is still in the 4th grade. Braun says that when Nicholas is grown up, they will come back for the titles, and Nicholas says that when he comes back, somebody is going to "get these hands."

Coming up next: No Way Jose!

No Way Jose quickly beats John Skyler.

Backstage, General Manager Kurt Angle is met by Sheamus and Cesaro, who have heard that the Raw tag team titles have been relinquished. They expect the titles to be handed back to them, but Angle tells them they will have their rematch at Greatest Royal Rumble in three weeks against three other teams. The three teams chosen will have proven themselves in what he calls the "Tag Team Eliminator".

The Revival (Scott Dawson and Dash Wilder) beat Gallows & Anderson (Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson) to advance in the Tag Team Eliminator.

We see a public service announcement for Make-A-Wish starring John Cena.

The Andre The Giant documentary airs tomorrow night on HBO.

Seth Rollins shows up. The crowd chants "You deserve it," then Rollins says there has been a lot of ups and downs in the last few years and that tonight was the loudest "Burn it down!" he had ever heard, which leads to a "Burn it down!" chant from the crowd. Rollins says he is finally back, and he admits "Grand Slam Rollins" has a nice ring to it. This leads to a "Grand Slam Rollins" chant. Rollins announces he has caught up with Roman Reigns and Dean Ambrose, and that The Shield are all Grand Slam Champions, and that winning the last leg at WrestleMania made it all the more special for him. As Rollins thanks the fans for making this week special, Finn Balor shows up. He gets in the ring and congratulates Rollins, saying he deserves it. Finn then says Rollins was the better man last night, but last night was also a Triple Threat Match. He says there was a winner, a loser, and him wanting more. Finn then says he wants to be the first person to step up and challenge Rollins for the WWE Intercontinental Championship. Finn extends his hand, and Rollins shakes it. Suddenly, The Miztourage (The Miz, Bo Dallas, Curtis Axel) shows up. Miz tells Rollins does not deserve the WWE Intercontinental Championship, which leads to an "Asshole!" chant. Miz then says he deserves it, as he made the title the most relevant in all of WWE. He talks about how he walked down to the ring himself and deviate from his usual strategy, as he knew that he would never hear the end of it when he beat Rollins. The Miz then says he is a changed man after becoming a father, and he says that everything he does affects his daughter, and that his daughter and wife cried when he lost the Intercontinental title. Miz then admits that he cried, and Rollins admits that he is proud of Miz for admitting that, because that is what everyone does when they watch him try to wrestle. He then says Miz cannot lace his boots. Miz tells Finn to go to the back of the line, as he wants a rematch. Seth then says he was waiting for Miz to bring it up, and says if he wants to invoke the rematch clause, they can do it tonight. Miz asks the crowd if they want him to invoke his rematch clause, then he says no. He then says he is in a custom suit, and that he will invoke the rematch clause at Backlash. Miz tells Finn and Seth that when they negotiate, they negotiate from a position of strength. He then challenges Finn and Rollins to a tag team match with The Miztourage. Finn and Rollins then get ready for a fight. All of a sudden, Jeff Hardy shows up for the first time in months and joins Finn and Rollins. The Miztourage take their suit jackets off, then leave.

Bayley shows up to stand in Sasha Banks' corner for the next match.

Mandy Rose beats Sasha Banks. During the match, Mandy Rose provokes Bayley, who goes for a clothesline only for Mandy to duck and cause Bayley to strike Sasha instead. Sasha shows anger towards Bayley as she gets back into the ring only to be hit with a running knee by Mandy Rose, who gets the win. After the match, Paige announces that it was hard for her to sit on the sidelines at WrestleMania, and says that the wrestling ring is her blood, heart and soul. Unfortunately, due to neck injuries, she can no longer compete as an in-ring competitor. She says that this is one of the hardest thing she will ever have to say in her career. The fans then chant "Thank you, Paige!" Paige thanks every female Superstar in the back, and that she is proud to be part of the Women's division as they have built the division into something they never thought it would be. She also thanks her family, as she would not be here without them. Paige goes on to thank SmackDown Live Commissioner Daniel Bryan for giving her hope with his in-ring return. She also thanks Edge, whom she spoke with backstage, for proving there is life after the ring. She then says it is time to find something else, and thanks WWE for letting her entertain everyone for the past four years. Paige goes on to say New Orleans, Louisiana is where she debuted on the main roster and also where she wants to retire. She thanks the fans again, then the fans chant "This is your house!" Paige says that the ring will always be her house. She then lays the microphone and a Paige T-shirt in the middle of the ring, then leaves.

Elias is in the ring. Elias says that after last night, it is an undeniable fact that WWE stands for "Walk With Elias." He is impressed with the fan reaction, and says that in one year, he has become the biggest musical act on the face of the planet. He says that many people paid to see an Elias performance, and the fans respond with a "Seven Nation Army"-style Elias chant. Elias says he will perform tonight, albeit under the same selfish, ungrateful crowd as last night. The crowd responds by chanting "We are selfish!" Elias says he is glad that the crowd can admit that before telling everyone to be silent. He then plays guitar and makes fun of New Orleans, Louisiana, and everyone cheers as he threatens to punch the crowd in the face. All of a sudden, Bobby Lashley - fresh out of Impact Wrestling - makes his first WWE appearance in over a decade. Lashley gets in the ring, then stares Elias down as the crowd chants "Welcome back!" Elias tries to fight Lashley, but Lashley makes quick work of him with a bold, delayed one-armed vertical suplex.

General Manager Kurt Angle is on the phone backstage when he is met by Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn, who are wearing business suits. As they explain what is going on to Angle, Angle knows they are her for a job and knows what they got fired for, but Sami says they want to be team players. Angle says that the tag team division is full and that "TNA is hiring." After both of them say that they don't have to be hired as a tag team, Angle says he only has one spot and that they must wrestle for it. Kevin and Sami reluctantly agree to the match.

Heath Slater and Rhyno are in the ring. Heath Slater says it is a shame he and Rhyno are not in the Tag Team Eliminator, as they were the first-ever SmackDown tag team champions. Heath says he's got kids and that he needs this job, and he challenges any tag team in the back to challenge them. That challenge is answered by The Authors of Pain (Akam and Rezar).

The Authors of Pain (Akam and Rezar) beat Heath Slater and Rhyno. After the match, Akam and Rezar keep Paul Ellering at bay and walk up the ramp alone.

It is announced that Brock Lesnar has re-signed with WWE and will be defending the WWE Universal Championship against Roman Reigns at Greatest Royal Rumble on April 27th.

Roman Reigns shows up. Roman says he got his ass kicked last night, but he is here tonight. He then says that Brock Lesnar is not here, and he admits that he has no idea what happened last night as everything felt off. He says that everyone looked at him funny, and that WWE Chairman Vince McMahon could not even smarten him up. He then mentions Lesnar going to UFC and re-signing with WWE, and found out about his match with Lesnar at Greatest Royal Rumble on the Internet. After Roman Reigns says the story will end with him becoming WWE Universal Champion, Samoa Joe suddenly shows up for the first time in months. Samoa Joe says it is time to break out the tinfoil hats as Roman Reigns thinks there is a conspiracy against him. He then says that Brock Lesnar not just beat Roman; he exposed him. He mentions Roman claiming for over a year that he was the only one who could beat Brock Lesnar, and says that when he did not, he became a failure. As the crowd chants "Failure," Samoa Joe calls Roman a liar for lying to his fans, his family and himself, because he gets jacked up every time he gets in the ring with Lesnar and Lesnar gets richer. He then says that every time the story is told, it ends the same way with Lesnar conquering Roman and Roman making excuses as to why it happened. He then says the vicious cycle will end, because when Lesnar beats him at Greatest Royal Rumble, he will be waiting to put him to sleep at Backlash.

Before the next match, Matt Hardy talks to the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal trophy, saying it is time to begin an expedition of gold. Bray Wyatt is seen with him, and they both laugh. Bray Wyatt then says they are here. Matt Hardy and Bray Wyatt then appear behind Titus Worldwide.

Matt Hardy and Bray Wyatt beat Titus Worldwide (Titus O'Neil and Apollo) to advance in the Tag Team Eliminator and face The Revival (Scott Dawson and Dash Wilder) next week.

Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn ends in a double count-out when neither man gets up at the count of ten. As a result, neither man wins a Raw contract.

Backstage, Jeff Hardy is met "Woken" Matt Hardy. They catch up on recent events, and Jeff is introduced to Bray Wyatt, who calls Jeff "Brother Nero." Bray Wyatt says he feels wonderful after Jeff shows happiness in Sister Abigail being rendered obsolete. Finn Balor and Seth Rollins ask what this was about, and Jeff just shrugs his shoulders before heading towards the ring.

Seth Rollins, Finn Balor and Jeff Hardy beat The Miztourage (The Miz, Bo Dallas, Curtis Axel). After the match, Bo Dallas gets the Twist of Fate, the Coup De Grace and a Curb Stomp. Axel gets in the ring, but he does not fare any better.

Here are the top 10 moments for tonight's show!