My WWE Raw, 18th February 2013 Recap

Behold the brand new WWE Championship belt. About damn time! Photo credit: WWE.com

John Cena started things off by talking about how WrestleMania XXVIIII was now taking shape, with him versus The Rock and Swagger versus Del Rio now official after the Elimination Chamber. CM Punk then joined Cena and reminded him that he has never beaten him and claimed that it was luck that he won the Royal Rumble and didn't deserve the spot at 'Mania. He also added that he couldn't win the big one against Rocky.

To settle things and shut Punk up, Cena then challenged him to a match to prove he was superior, with the winner going on to face The Rock for the title on the big stage. Punk agreed, but wanted to postpone it until next week when he was more prepared.

During an interview Sheamus and Ryback began arguing over their loss to The Shield the previous night until Chris Jericho then split them up and reminded them that it wasn't each other that they were really mad at. Y2J also suggested a six-man match that night pitting them three against Shield, which they were all for.

Mark Henry pinned Sin Cara in a brief and forgettable bout, with fair action but nothing special. As Henry continued the attack after the bell rung, The Great Khali made his way down, only for Henry to leave the ring and walk away. I'm praying they don't book a match between the two at 'Mania, please!

The Miz defeated Antonio Cesaro in a No Disqualification match. It was a fair effort from both men, but a little disappointing considering how rarely we get No DQ match ups on television, I would've thought they'd make more of the opportunity and we'd maybe get a bit more excitement.  

In a VT Zeb Colter spoke about how letting in too many people outside of the US into the country has drained it. Jack Swagger was also there, reminding us of their slogan "We, the people." As I've already said I'm intrigued with this storyline, it's something a bit edgier and sets up Swagger's feud with Del Rio perfectly. 

Backstage Daniel Bryan informed tag partner Kane that he didn't feel comfortable teaming with him soon after attacking him in the Elimination Chamber, and asked that he doen't accompany him to his singles match later. Randy Orton then also appeared and told Kane that since going to group therapy and hugging it out with people he wasn't so intimidating and compared him to Barney the Dinosaur.  

Alberto Del Rio bested Dolph Ziggler in a solid outing. Both men as standard for them looked good in the ring and put in more than worthy displays, with stellar wrestling throughout.

Afterwards Ziggler's associate Big E Langston clobbered Del Rio and applied a Big Ending. Dolph then decided to cash in his MITB contract, but Ricardo Rodriguez had other ideas and legged it with the briefcase, accidentally dropping it on the ramp as he did so. As the 'Show Off' then retrieved the contract Del Rio recovered and cracked him with an enzuigiri.

Wade Barrett announced that he will be starring in the new WWE produced film Dead Man Down, then presented the trailer. Afterwards Sheamus appeared on the big screen and mocked Barrett for barely having a role in the film at all. Wade was not amused that Sheamus had cut his time short.

Brodus Clay, Tensai and Naomi beat Epico, Primo and Rosa Mendes in a fun enough mixed-tag contest. This was wisely kept short, which certainly benefitted all involved and kept the pace and interest up, any longer and it would've dragged.

In a State of the Union Address, Zeb Colter thanked the founding fathers for creating the bill of rights, allowing him to voice his opinions freely. He then continued to bash the illegal immigrants in America that use the medical care, education and take their jobs. He also added that at WrestleMania Swagger will defeat Del Rio to capture the World Title and help reclaim America, claiming that the champion was only in the USA to reap the rewards. 

Jack Swagger bested Daniel Bryan in an enjoyable encounter. Both men gave fine efforts as they went move for move, counter for counter. As part of his new signature routine, Swagger worked on Bryan's leg until eventually latching on the Patriot Lock for the submission victory.

Vickie Guerrero, with Paul Heyman in the ring, announced Brad Maddox as her new assistant. As Heyman was about to leave Vince McMahon then appeared on the big screen and reminded him that last week he'd agreed to do anything to add the certain stipulations to The Rock versus CM Punk match at EC. McMahon went on to inform Heyman that he would be returning that favour next week when they "are gonna have a fight."

The Shield (Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns) beat Ryback, Sheamus and Chris Jericho in a largely entertaining six-man tag bout. While not as exciting as their previous six-man match the night before, it was still a lively encounter and yet another very good display from The Shield trio.

Damien Sandow spoke about how dear President's Day was to him, claiming that his ancestors had been aiding them for many years. As he then aggressively started his following bout with Kofi Kingston, R-Truth made his return and took him out. I can't say I'm that bothered by his return.

Randy Orton pinned Kane in a passable affair. Unfortunately while the wrestling was solid enough, I just failed to get interested here and found the match quite drab on the whole. Orton managed to get in an RKO for the one-two-three after Daniel Bryan once again distracted his tag partner and cost him the match.

The Rock came out to an entrance preceded by an impressive marching band performance as part of his celebration. He then went on to admit that eight years ago the spinning WWE Championship title belt may have worked, but he personally felt that a prestigious strap shouldn't look like a toy and then introduced the brand new WWE Championship belt. While it looks more professional, it also looks a bit plain for my liking, but that's just my opinion.

As the WWE Champion was about to then admit who he'd rather face at 'Mania, John Cena came out and stood cockily on the stage, but shortly after CM Punk then took him out with the old WWE Title strap and threw it away, stating that he was after the brand new one. 

Overall I felt it was a decent enough Raw, with the final segment, Shield six-man tag bout, Del Rio versus Ziggler, and anything involving Swagger being the highlights. Not the best offering from the red brand as of late but it still made nice strides towards WrestleMania, with the next couple of weeks most likely settling the card for the supershow in April.