Raw Deal - Raw recap for March 24, 2025

John Cena heads to the ring to start tonight's show. He says the crowd is ready to do their worst as they have understood what is going on and that the spotlight is on them, and that he can rip any of the fans to shreds. Cena says no one in safe, especially after he put a clueless kid on blast, but when WWE posted it, everyone loved it. This leads to a "Fuck you, Cena!" chant, then asks who is worse, him - the one guy who always tells the truth - or the fans, whose best idea is to use profanity as they love to watch and rewatch and meme a young kid getting destroyed. He says he does not need to single anyone here out as they are all horrible people, and tonight, they get to fnd out how he will make them pay for the abuse they have put him through. He says that for 25 years, he has listened to the fans' lies and noise, but he did not waste that time being mean and instead, he paid attention. This leads to a "Shut the fuck up!" chant from the crowd. Cena says the fans make this so easy and that they were chanting profanity at the top of their lungs, he was paying attention to the fans, studying, quizzing, testing, prodding and even rewarding them for playing around with their curse-ridden nursery rhymes, and in doing so, they have told him every single thing about themselves. He says the fans know nothing about him and that he knows more about the fans than they do, and proclaims that they all have sad lives and that this is all they have. To him, the fans have been nothing more than an experiment and "rats in a cage," and asks the fans to pick any moment from his career so he can reveral what he learned about them. He says that when he bled, the fans thought he was tough; when he spoke, they were inspired; when he was edgy, they were excited; when he was vanilla, they were bored; when he was loyal, they were loved; when he was selfish, they were disrespected; when he would speak in rhythmic tones, they chanted "What?" Cena says the fans will always tell everything about themselves because they desperately want to matter, and the most important thing they told him was in April 2005, when he gave the fans the "spinner belt," and just like now, they ate him alive and told him how stupid he was for turning the WWE Championship into a toy; he states it is not a toy, but a symbol of the center of WWE, and it disrespected tradition as well as the fans' legacy. He says this was the biggest mistake the fans ever made, as they told him what meant the most to them in their lives, and for that, he will ruin wrestling for every fan, for every wrestler, and for everyone. He says that at WrestleMania, he will make history by winning a 17th championship, and he will finally force everyone to forget "The Nature Boy" Ric Flair's name and say the name "John Cena." He also says that he will win the championship - the center of every Superstar in the business and every fan in the building - and retire with it, and take it home with him and leave the fans to create their own "toy belt." Cena proclaims that he will become the last real champion in WWE, and says that revenge is best served cold, and that he will pay the fans back by ripping their collective heart out and forcing them to watch as he walks away with the fans' memories, traditions and dreams with nothing they can do to stop him. "The American Nightmare" Cody Rhodes shows up and gets the "Daddy Cool"-style chant, then reminds Cena that he has to take the Undisputed WWE Championship away from him first. Cody says he made a mistake bringing up "the new John" and that Cena is clearly angry and willing, and is the most dangerous he has ever been. He says that Cena made the biggest mistake was in not hitting him with the WWE Championship at Elimination Chamber, but in saying what he just said while in the building. Cody says that they do not have to unpack their history, and that he has fought hard and violently just to hold the WWE Championship one time just to validate one name, and yet Cena satates that the timeline of all of professional wrestling hangs in the balance because of his vanity. He lays the WWE Championship between them, then gives Cena the opportunity to take the title from him. Both men have a stand-off in the middle of hte ring, then Cena walks away and heads to the back. When Cody screams at him, Cena teases heading back to the ring, but leaves again. Cody says he cannot have this on his consciousness, and that he needs Cena to see him and the fans and understand that his psychotic need to take the WWE Championship does not outweigh their right to keep it. He says the champion in standing in the center of the ring, not in the entryway, and to see Cena walking away empty-handed now is how Cena will walk away from WrestleMania and WWE.

The Usos ("Main Event" Jey Uso and Jimmy Uso) beat A-Town Down Under (Grayson Waller and Austin Theory) in their first tag team match in a year and a half, when they beat Roman Reigns and Solo Sikoa at WrestleMania 39. After the match, Gunther shoves Jimmy Uso out of the ring, then brawls with Jey. Jey goes for a Spear, but Jey trips, and Gunther jumps onto Jey and rains down elbows on him until Jimmy chases him away with a metal folding chair.

Backstage, Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez entertain the idea of Raquel as a double champion when "Dirty" Dominik and Carlito show up. Dominik says things did not go well with Finn Balor again, and Liv Morgan says Finn Balor blames everyone for all his problems. Liv says that things will get better soon, then Carlito entertains the idea of challenging for the WWE Intercontinental Championship before Liv counters Finn not wanting Penta in The Judgment Day (Finn, Dominik, Carlito, Liv, Raquel) by saying Finn did not want Liv in the group only for things to turn out well.

We see a vignette for "El Grande Americano," who hails from "the Gulf of America" and was raised to be the ultimate luchador and reach the top of the industry, and for decades, was the face of lucha libre until he was black-balled by his jealous enemies and he disappeared without a trace. Now, the legend has returned to bring honor and glory to lucha libre. (The vignette is also noticably AI-generated.) Backstage, General Manager Adam Pearce, Rey Mysterio and Dragon Lee have seen the vignette, and "El Grande Americano" is the newest member of the Raw roster. Chad Gable shows up coughing with a tissue in his hand to insist that he is not El Grande Americano, even though they both have some physical similarities. He produces a legitimate doctor's note to Adam Pearce and says he cannot compete tonight, and proposes that Dragon Lee face El Grande Americano. Dragon Lee says he will take the match, then he and Rey leave as Rey tells Gable "You're a real jackass."

Actor Richard Gadd is seen in the crowd.

Lyra Valkyria retains the WWE Women's Intercontinental Championship against Raquel Rodriguez after making Liv Morgan pay for putting Raquel's foot on the bottom rope during a pinfall attempt and reversing the Tejana Bomb with a Victory Roll. After the match, Liv attacks Lyra from behind, and Raquel joins in. Bayley soon runs into the ring to make the save, and she and Lyra soon clean house.

It is announced that The Natural Disasters (Earthquake and Typhoon) will be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame Class of 2025.

Backstage, Jimmy Uso meets with "Main Event" Jey Uso and says that Jey has been in his own head since last week and that if he keeps slipping like he has since last week, he will not win at WrestleMania. Jey says he does not know if he can beat Gunther, but Jimmy says it is "not this Uce" and that he needs "The Right Hand Man" and the man who won the Royal Rumble. Jimmy then sees Gunther and challenges him to a match next week. Gunther accepts as long as he does not trip and fall like his brother, and Jimmy responds by slapping Jimmy in the face. Gunther smiles after Jimmy leaves.

General Manager Adam Pearce is in the ring with the contract for the Women's World Championship match between Bianca Belair and Iyo Sky at WrestleMania, which also contains Rhea Ripley's signature. He assures that Rhea Ripley is not in the match, and Ripley's signature means nothing as she already has a rematch while Bianca has earned the right to be called #1 contender. He says that Rhea will not earn her title shot on her own time before Iyo Sky shows up and says she does not care about contracts, and that it does not matter who she faces, as she will take on both of them because she is Women's World Champion. As Adam Pearce asks Iyo Sky to hear him out, Bianca shows up and says Pearce is right in confirming she earned her championship opportunity at WrestleMania, and she is not about to let Rhea Ripley headbutther way into the match, saying that if she did not earn it, she does not deserve it. Rhea Ripley shows up and says she does not give a damn about WrestleMania and that she does not care who she has to go through to get her title back; all she wants is her rematch. Bianca tells Ripley to wait three more weeks to get her rematch, and Ripley shoves Iyo Sky to the side. Pearce has to hold Iyo Sky back as he angrily announces that Ripley will get her rematch next week, with the winner facing Bianca at WrestleMania, and then leaves. The three women then brawl, and Bianca comes out on top.

Backstage, "Dirty" Dominik Mysterio meets with Penta, saying he knows he is good and could be better, and offers him a spot in The Judgment Day (Finn Balor, Dominik, Carlito, Liv Morgan, Raquel Rodriguez).

We see a vignette for The War Raiders (Ivar and Erik).

Backstage, The New Day (Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods) meet with General Manager Adam Pearce demanding a tag team title match at WrestleMania, and do not get it, being told to come back when they are ready to prove they are the greatest tag team in the world. The New Day leave, then Bianca shows up wanting to know who her WrestleMania opponent is, and finds out that she will be the special guest referee for Rhea Ripley vs. Iyo Sky for the Women's World Championship.

El Grande Americano beats Dragon Lee by submission with an ankle lock after ripping Dragon Lee's mask off and pulling him off the top rope. Dragon Lee is forced to submit to hide his true, unmasked identity.

CM Punk heads to the ring. Punk says that while he is happy to be in Glasgow, Scotland, he is not in a good mood. While he has a match at WrestleMania, it is not initially what he wanted. He addresses what has been going on since Royal Rumble with Seth "Freakin'" Rollins and Roman Reigns, and says that the two men who are keeping him away from what he wants have to go. He says Rollins takes him as a threat to his own career, and that Roman is taking things personally now that Paul Heyman is not just his wise man anymore. He says things that are personal to them is business to him, and announces a contract signing for their WrestleMania match before stating that he wants to read the fine print and see if it either gets him what he wants or is "another rug pull from the powers that be." He tells Roman and Rollins to fuel up the jets since they could not grace the fans with their presence in Glasgow, and that he will see them in London, England. He also warns them that neither of them have beaten him without the others' help because they cannot, and that he brought them into the business and cannot wait to be the man who takes them both out of it.

We see an Instagram video from Logan Paul, who says that he is praying for "The Phenomenal" AJ Styles' downfall and that he wants to see Styles next week.

Backstage, Cathy Kelley interviews Bron Breakker. Breakker says that The Judgment Day (Finn Balor, Dominik, Carlito, Liv Morgan, Raquel Rodriguez) is Penta's business and that he will beat Penta in the center of the ring and retain the WWE Intercontinental Championship "because the dogs are barkin' in Glasgow [, Scotland]."

Bron Breakker retains the WWE Intercontinental Championship against Penta by disqualification. During the match, "Dirty" Dominik Mysterio and Carlito show up to stand in Penta's corner. Near the end of the match, Dominik distracts the referee so that Carlito can get involved, but Carlito eats a Spear. Dominik then hits Bron Breakker with a chop block, which ends the match. After the match, Breakker and Dominik brawl until Finn Balor shows up and hits Breakker with a metal folding chair before handing it to Dominik so that he can finish the job and join in on the beatdown. All the while, Penta has no idea what happened. All of a sudden, Dominik hands Penta the chair and tells him to hit Breakker, but he throws it at Dominik and superkicks it into Dominik's head instead. Finn Balor then assaults Penta before hitting Breakker with a metal folding chair and nailing Penta with the Coup de Grace.

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