Tonight (December 30th), the show will be broadcast live from the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas. This is the fifth episode of Raw during the nine-week build to Royal Rumble 2025 on February 1st.
It’s the end of an era in WWE.
Tonight is the final episode of WWE Raw on USA Network before the show moves from cable to Netflix and continues to air in 2025 and beyond.
Raw is set to perform with a bang, with tonight’s big corner being advertised as CM Punk and Seth Rollins closing out 2024 “under one roof.” This is the final angle before their (main event?) match in next week’s Netflix debut. So it’s almost certain that something explosive will happen.
Two Men, One Roof doesn’t sound like the kind of PG content I’d expect from WWE, but all rules will be thrown out the window tonight when Raw bids farewell to USA Network.
Can general manager Adam Pearce keep things under control when CM and Seth are under the same roof at the same time? Watch the final episode of USA Raw to find out.
the rest of the cards
Both Dakota Kai vs. Zoe Stark and IYO SKY vs. Lyra Valkyria matches in the semifinal round of the Women’s Intercontinental Championship Tournament are scheduled to take place tonight. If Dakota and IYO advance, they could be headed to the All-Damage CTRL finals next week. Stark is actually the only heel left, so perhaps her teammates at Pure Fusion Collective will do whatever they can to help her move forward. Lyra Valkyria hasn’t competed in a one-on-one match on Raw since late September, so we’re still trying to get a sense of how hard (or not) WWE will push her going forward. This is where I am.
Chad Gable vs. Ortiz is also booked for this card. Gable wants his old Alpha Academy group to disappear completely. He defeated Akira Tozawa last week, but will likely need Creed’s help to defeat his former number one student.
Life has been tough this month for Pete Dunne. R-Truth kept calling him the wrong name and even defeated him in a match on Raw earlier this month. Dunne is looking for revenge and plans to break Truth’s jaw in tonight’s rematch.
Damian Priest and World Tag Team Champions Eric and Ivar will take on Judgment Day’s Carlito, JD McDonagh, and Finn Balor in a six-man tag team match tonight. Carlito and JD should listen to Finn if they want to win, as it will be difficult to defeat the babyfaces without taking shortcuts along the way.
Other points of note
– Rhea Ripley and Women’s World Champion Liv Morgan will battle for the belt next week on the Netflix debut of Raw. Will Rhea send a final message to the champion tonight by injuring that asshole Dominik Mysterio?
– Sami Uso couldn’t get the job done in his match against Drew McIntyre last week. Will it be Jey Uso’s turn to try his luck tonight? Will Solo Sikore’s Bloodline reappear on Raw and continue to target the OG Bloodline before next week’s tribal battle between Sikore and Roman Reigns?
– John Cena returns to Raw next week for his Netflix debut. Will WWE also hint at a possible return for Becky Lynch?
– Is it time for the New Day to use violence against Rey Mysterio after he refused to leave the WWE locker room?
– The feud between The Final Testament and Wyatt Sixx isn’t over yet. Will their next big match be announced during tonight’s broadcast? What kind of gimmicks and regulations are there?
– WWE Intercontinental Champion Bron Breaker and World Heavyweight Champion Gunther need new challengers for the new year. How about fighting each other?
– Which SmackDown and NXT stars will be moving to Raw in time for their Netflix debut next week?
– When will people start declaring for (or vying for a spot in) the Royal Rumble match?
– Where on earth is Omos? The last time I saw him, he was busy shopping at the Nintendo Store in Tokyo ahead of this week’s Tag Team Championship match in Tokyo. He’s probably spent hundreds of hours over the past six months catching up on The Legend of Zelda series.
What do you look for on Raw?
