In the legendary southern wrestling city of Greensboro, one of RAW’s hottest angles turned up the heat just a few degrees higher, while a Beast came snarling back to shock and surprise the WWE Universe
By Monika Thapa | May 19, 2026
This week’s WWE Raw from Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, North Carolina was an enjoyable one, not because it was perfect, but because it felt focused. There was drama, there was action, and there were big surprise moments for the fans. Major stars were presented with purpose instead of simply appearing for the sake of filling television time.
The show kicked off with a segment between Roman Reigns and The Usos beating the living heck out of Jacob Fatu. For the last two weeks, the Samoan Werewolf dominated The Tribal Chief on Raw and made him look weak with his Tongan Death Grip. Fatu was finally made to pay for his actions this week when Reigns and his cousins mauled him inside the squared circle.
Reigns broke Fatu’s body, but couldn’t shatter his spirit. Despite the brutal attack, Fatu managed to speak two words, “Tribal Combat,” thereby challenging Reigns for another match, this time a deadlier one with no rules, which Reigns accepted. Fatu looked really bada** when he challenged Reigns for the match, even when his body was completely battered from the assault.
Next came Finn Bálor vs. JD McDonagh, where Bálor defeated McDonagh in a chaotic Street Fight after Dominik Mysterio accidentally cost McDonagh the match. It was an entertaining match. Although Dominik interfered in the match, Bálor somehow neutralized him. It’s interesting how WWE has shifted from the Finn vs. Dom storyline to Finn vs. JD. The second angle is more fascinating, I believe, because it plays on the grounds of betrayal between real friends. Finn and JD were very close, while Finn and Dom always had some tension between them. So, JD betraying Finn has more emotion attached to it.
Then, a segment happened where Becky Lynch mocked Sol Ruca backstage and later accepted her challenge for a match at Saturday Night’s Main Event. I love Becky as a heel character because she plays it so well. She knows how to draw heat, and she blends comedy with her heel persona very well. Ruca is also amazing, a very athletic and gifted star, making this a good match-up between the two. Becky, being a veteran, is the perfect person to uplift a newcomer like Ruca. WWE did a good thing by making the upcoming Becky vs. Ruca bout non-title. This gives Ruca a chance to earn the title match. Ruca has a lot of potential, and Becky can help catapult her in the right direction.
After that, it was a Trios Tornado Tag Team Match where El Grande Americano and Los Americanos defeated The Creed Brothers’ trio with a loaded mask headbutt. I feel the El Grande Americano vs. Original El Grande Americano storyline was far more entertaining when just the two were brawling against each other. The involvement of other stars has stolen the focus from the two, in my opinion.
Then came the highlight of the night: the return of The Beast Incarnate. Brock Lesnar made a shocking return, decimating Oba Femi to set up a rematch for Clash in Italy. Everyone was under the impression that Brock had retired at Mania, but he’s back. Their rematch is surely going to be even bigger than their last encounter.
Brie Bella and Paige retained their Women’s Tag Team Championship against Roxanne Perez and Raquel Rodriguez, followed by a post-match brawl. Lyra Valkyria and Bayley were also involved. Nia Jax and Lash Legend are still in the picture as well. I think the women’s tag team title picture has gotten really crowded and confusing again. Everyone wants a shot at the titles. It feels like there is no solid creative direction, and people are just getting thrown in randomly to drag the storyline forward.
The main event of the show saw Seth Rollins defeat Austin Theory despite interference from Logan Paul, leading to a massive post-match brawl where Bron Breakker laid out Rollins and The Street Profits. While this angle is good, I believe it’s taking away the spotlight from Bron Breakker and Seth Rollins.
I would like to see Bron vs. Seth, while Street Profits vs. Vision should be kept separate because Bron and Seth have a very powerful storyline based on revenge. Bron using Vision for help is making him look weak, and Bron is anything but weak. Plus, the Seth Rollins and Street Profits drama feels unnecessary. I don’t see what WWE is building towards by creating tension between Seth and The Street Profits. The Street Profits and Vision should be supplementary to the storyline, not steal the spotlight from it.
