WWE Raw Results 8/21 - We Hear From Shinsuke Nakamura, Intercontinental Championship Match

Welcome to Wrestling Inc.'s results for "WWE Raw" on August 21, 2023, coming to you live from the Centre Vidéotron in Québec City, Québec, Canada!

For the first time since retaining against Drew McIntyre at WWE SummerSlam earlier this month, GUNTHER will be putting his Intercontinental Championship on the line as he collides with Alpha Academy's Chad Gable. Gable secured his place in the match after defeating Tommaso Ciampa, Ricochet, and Matt Riddle in a Fatal Four-Way Number One Contenders match on the August 7 edition of "Raw", and even managed to score a win over GUNTHER's Imperium teammate Giovanni Vinci last week.

Two weeks ago, Shinsuke Nakamura betrayed Seth "Freakin" Rollins after they joined forces alongside Cody Rhodes to defeat Judgment Day. Then, last week, Nakamura made it clear that he attacked the World Heavyweight Champion in an effort to receive a shot at his title. Rollins granted "The King Of Strong Style" his wish, but before he could leave, Nakamura quietly told Rollins something and hit him with a Kinshasa. Tonight, Nakamura will disclose what the sentiment he shared was.

Drew McIntyre and Matt Riddle will be joining forces once again as they square off with New Day's Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods. Although the former two men might be a newer team, they have already managed to prove themselves to be a cohesive unit while the latter pair made their return to WWE on "Raw" in Minneapolis, Minnesota and emerged victorious over Erik and Ivar.

The aforementioned Rollins and Rhodes, Women's World Champion Rhea Ripley, and Undisputed Tag Team Champions Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens are also among those scheduled to be in town tonight, per WWE's event page.

We are live! The show kicks off with a video recapping what's caused the recent tension within Judgment Day.

Michael Cole and Wade Barrett then greet audiences at home as Sami Zayn makes his way down to the ring.

After receiving a warm welcome in his home province from the WWE Universe, Zayn welcomes them to "Raw".

Before he can continue, Judgment Day's music hits, and Finn Balor, Damian Priest, Rhea Ripley, and Dominik Mysterio surround Zayn. Zayn asks the four of them if he really thought he'd come alone, and Kevin Owens' music hits. Owens marches down to the ring as he makes his return to "Raw" and wastes no time, beating down Mysterio on the outside. He levels Balor, then delivers a Stunner to Priest as a means of preventing him from attacking Zayn. Owens then grabs a mic and says it's been far too long since he's had a match on "Raw". He challenges any two members of Judgment Day to a match with himself and Zayn. 

New Day then makes their way down to the ring. Matt Riddle and Drew McIntyre follow. 

Woods and Riddle begin the action. The bell rings and the two lock up. Kingston tags in and delivers a splash to Riddle, then follows it up with a dropkick. McIntyre makes the tag and Kingston lands a dropkick. He plants him with a belly-to-belly suplex, then catches an interfering Woods with the same maneuver before dumping Riddle over the top rope and onto them on the outside.

Back from the break, Kingston delivers a Side Russian Leg Sweep to Riddle. Woods tags in and delivers a sliding lariat before Kingston lands a crossbody using the ropes. He locks in a shoulder and arm submission, but Riddle breaks the hold and looks for an enziguri. Kingston tags in and Woods delivers a sliding DDT. Kingston follows it up with a crossbody off the middle rope and ascends to the top. He looks to go flying, but Riddle catches him with a knee to his jaw.

Woods tags in and prevents Riddle from making the tag to McIntyre. Riddle gets Woods on the top rope and delivers a Fisherman's superplex. McIntyre is pulled off the apron by Erik of The Viking Raiders, opening the door for Kingston to tag in and deliver Trouble In Paradise to Riddle for the win.

Winners: New Day

After the match, The Raiders attack New Day but McIntyre headbutts Erik and levels Ivar with a Spinebuster before sending him crashing out of the ring.

We then head backstage to Finn Balor and JD McDonagh chatting with Jackie Redmond. Rhea Ripley and Dominik Mysterio walk in, and Ripley dismisses McDonagh, telling Balor they need to discuss which two of them are facing Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens later tonight.

Back from the break, we head to videos from Shayna Baszler and GUNTHER, the latter of which has a message for Chad Gable.

Back at ringside, Chad Gable heads down. GUNTHER follows. 

The bell rings and the two lock up. They go back and forth with submission holds before GUNTHER dumps Gable out of the ring, but Gable slides back in. GUNTHER immediately catches him with a chop.

Back from the break, GUNTHER delivers a stomp to Gable's head off the apron. He then plants him onto the barricade near the timekeeper's area spine first before the pair both get back inside the ring.

GUNTHER plants Gable using the double underhook grip, then whips him into the top turnbuckle face first and stomps on his neck. Gable fires back with a series of kicks, then uses the ropes as leverage to inflict some damage on GUNTHER's arm. He looks to go flying, but GUNTHER catches him with a chop mid-air and follows with a clothesline. Gable lands a dropkick, but GUNTHER fires back with a lariat. He locks in a Sleeper, but Gable makes it up to his feet. He lands a few flying forearms, then follows it up with a back suplex.

GUNTHER lands a knee on Gable's midsection, but Gable fires back with a Dragon Screw and cinches in an Ankle Lock. GUNTHER fights his way out of the hold, but Gable rains down right hands on him and delivers a German suplex. He goes for a pin, but GUNTHER kicks out. Gable looks for a moonsault, but GUNTHER sends him crashing off the apron and into the barricade on the outside. He executes a chop and a big boot, then lands a second chop and looks for a third. Gable sends GUNTHER's hand crashing into the ring post as the referee begins the ten count. He delivers a German suplex to GUNTHER into the timekeeper's area, and slides into the ring beating the ten count.

Winner (but not new): Chad Gable

We then head backstage to Judgment Day. Finn Balor and Damian Priest both plead their case as to why they should be Dominik Mysterio's partner, and Rhea Ripley says she thought they solved their issues. She says she's not in the match, as she will be facing Candice LeRae later and tells them to figure it out before walking out alongside Dominik.

Back from the break, we head backstage and see GUNTHER chewing out Ludwig Kaiser and Giovanni Vinci. Kaiser says GUNTHER is right and asks him what he's going to do.

We then head backstage to Byron Saxton and Cody Rhodes. Saxton asks him about being attacked by Judgment Day following his match with Finn Balor before moving the interview out to ringside.

Rhodes asks Québec City what they want to talk about (in French), then formally welcomes Michael Cole and Wade Barrett to "Raw". He then addresses Judgment Day and says while they may have the numbers game, they don't have that advantage down the road from where Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens grew up. He says he'll be watching the tag team match between the two parties closely tonight as Judgment Day rises and falls.

We then head over to a video of Shinsuke Nakamura, who says that everyone wants to know what he said to Seth "Freakin" Rollins last week. He says Rollins is a man who has it all, but he knows his weaknesses and told him last week that he knows about his back. He says Rollins' back has been broken for many years, and his pain has created a void that cannot be filled. He says he is in pain when he hugs his wife or picks up his daughter, and tells Rollins he can break him. He says him and Rollins are not that different, and the two of them live by a code not lived by most. He says Rollins' body has crumbled under pressure and under his own vanity, then asks Rollins if he's satisfied with what he's done with his life. He then tells Rollins to watch his back.

Back at ringside, Rhea Ripley and Dominik Mysterio head down. Candice LeRae and Indi Hartwell follow.

The bell rings and the two lock up. Ripley fires off right hands in the corner on LeRae, but LeRae sends her crashing into the ting post shoulder first and ascends to the top. Dominik hops up on the apron, but Hartwell levels him. She looks to go flying, but Ripley catches her and delivers a knee to her midsection. She sets up for Riptide, but LeRae counters into a DDT. She gets in a few right hands, but Ripley cinches in a modified Prism Trap for the win.

Winner: Rhea Ripley

After the match, Raquel Rodriguez appears on a crutch. She tosses it at Ripley and delivers a boot to her face. The pair get in the ring, and Rodrigoez fires off right hands on Ripley. She follows it up with a clothesline and a Fallaway Slam before Ripley rolls out of the ring. Rodriguez then grabs a mic and informs Ripley that she talked to Pearce and received a shot at her Women's World Championship at WWE Payback.

The Miz then heads down to the ring.

Miz grabs a mic and says Maryse would never come to Québec City because she's from Montreal. He says everyone is blaming him for LA Knight's loss to Austin Theory this past Friday on "WWE SmackDown", then says sometimes things just happen. He says Knight will not be well remembered in 20 years, and says since Knight is not on his level, he chose someone younger and more dominant to face as a means to prove his point. 

Miz reveals his opponent to be...Akira Tozawa!

Miz asks Tozawa if this is the biggest match of his career and he says yeah. Miz says he would appreciate it if Tozawa wouldn't say the word "yeah", and Tozawa repeatedly says it. Miz then delivers a boot to his face.

The bell rings, but before anything else happens, LA Knight's music hits and he appears. Tozawa takes advantage and dropkicks Miz from behind, sending him crashing to the outside. Miz gets back in the ring, but Tozawa sends him crashing back out and delivers a tope suicida to him.

Back from the break, Miz delivers a double ax handle off the middle rope as we see that Knight has taken a seat at the commentary desk to watch on. Miz delivers the It Kicks, but Tozawa fires back with a few kicks to his head and follows it up with a hurricanrana. He then delivers a Shining Wizard before the action spills to the outside.

Miz looks to send Tozawa crashing on top of Knight, but Tozawa prevents him from doing so and delivers a hurricanrana. He gets Miz back in the ring, then ascends to the top and looks for a senton. Miz gets his knees up and looks to plant him with the Skull Crushing Finale, but Tozawa rolls him up for the win.

Winner: Akira Tozawa

After the match, Knight plants Miz with BFT.

We then head backstage to Drew McIntyre and Matt Riddle. McIntyre tells Riddle their partnership won't work out, but Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods walk in to reassure the two of them that they make a good team. Riddle tells McIntyre not to give up on them, and asks him to tag one more time. McIntyre doesn't give Riddle an answer, opting to walk away instead.

Back at ringside, Becky Lynch heads down.

Back from the break, we head backstage to Damian Priest, Rhea Ripley, and Dominik Mysterio. Ripley asks Priest if he worked things out with Balor, and Priest says they didn't. Ripley says she gave them a chance to work things out, but it's time to handle things her way now and storms off.

Lynch says "The Man" has come around to Québec City, then says she finally has her chance to get her hands on Trish Stratus in a Steel Cage match at WWE Payback. She poses a question: what do you want your legacy to be? She says she doesn't want hers to be about wins or losses, but rather survival. She says she always comes back not because she is unbeatable, but rather unstoppable and she is unstoppable because she never stops fighting.

Stratus' music hits, and she appears alongside Zoey Stark. She pretends to express her gratitude for being back in Canada, but lets the jig up and says it means absolutely nothing to her. She rags on Québec City, then says she has some good news and some bad news. She says the good news is when she beats Lynch, she will prove she is the best but the bad news is that she'll be trapped in a steel cage with her. She says while she's scared, she's been thrown into the fire throughout her career. She calls herself the best in the business, then says she's sick and tired of proving herself. She says Lynch will see a side of her she never has before at Payback, then tells her she won't survive. Lynch then informs Stark that the two of them will be facing off in a Falls Count Anywhere match next week.

Chelsea Green and Piper Niven then head down to the ring. Kayden Carter and Katana Chance follow. 

Green and Chance begin the action. The bell rings and Chance delivers a kick to Green. Carter tags in and delivers a right hand to Carter, but Carter fires back with one of her own. Niven tags in and Carter delivers a thrust kick. Chance tags back in and goes flying off Carter's shoulders before Niven levels her with a crossbody for the win.

Winners: Chelsea Green and Piper Niven

Back from the break, we head to Seth "Freakin" Rollins opening up about his back pain and addressing Shinsuke Nakamura. He dares him to meet him in the ring face-to-face next week.

Back at ringside, Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn head down to the ring. Damian Priest follows, and Rhea Ripley drags Finn Balor out to ringside, telling him and Priest to team up and make it work. 

The two teams waste no time brawling with one another. Owens dumps Priest out of the ring, then sends him crashing into the barricade face first. Zayn pulls Priest off Owens and gets Priest inside the ring.

The bell rings and Zayn clotheslines Priest back out of the ring. Balor tries attacking him, but Zayn sends him into the announce desk face first. Priest blindsides him, then tosses him in the ring and delivers a right hand. Balor tags in and Zayn catches him with a suplex. Owens tags in and rains down right hands on Balor, then follows it up with several stomps and a clothesline each to Balor and Priest on the outside. He gets Balor back in and delivers a Swanton Bomb off the top rope. He looks for a Stunner, but Balor delivers a Sling Blade. Priest looks to slide his Money In The Bank briefcase into the ring for Balor to use, Zayn levels him on the outside before he can. JD McDonagh then appears at ringside and looks to toss the briefcase to Balor, but Owens intercepts it and hits Balor with it causing the disqualification.

Winners: Judgment Day (as the result of a disqualification)

Priest yells at McDonagh for touching his briefcase, then joins Balor and Dominik in beating down Owens and Zayn. Cody Rhodes' music hits and runs down with his belt in hand, forcing Judgment Day to retreat on the ramp. Rhodes then challenges Judgment Day to a six-man tag team match between them and himself, Owens, and Zayn.

Back from the break, the bell has rung and Rhodes is wearing down Dominik. Zayn tags in and delivers a right hand to Dominik's head, then follows it up with a back body drop. Balor tags in and Zayn levels him, then tags in Owens. Owens lands a chop and a Side Russian Leg Sweep before executing a senton.

Dominik tags in and fires off several right hands, then sends him crashing to the outside and looks to go flying off the apron. Owens catches him with a right hand mid-air. Balor tags in and trips Owens on the apron. Priest pulls him off and sends him crashing into the barricade before Ripley delivers a bodyslam to him. Priest tags in and continues wearing down Owens.

Back from the break, Balor fires off stomps on Owens. The action then spills to the outside, and Owens plants Balor on top of the announce desk spine first. Priest tags in and delivers an ax handle to Owens, then tags Balor back in. Balor delivers an elbow, but Owens delivers a superkick.

Zayn tags in and delivers a clothesline, then lands a back elbow and an elbow drop off the middle rope. He delivers a chop and a Tornado DDT, then ascends to the top. Ripley pulls him down, opening the door for Priest to deliver South of Heaven. He goes for a pin, but Owens breaks the fall. Priest levels him and tags out to Dominik. Dominik looks for a Frog Splash, but Zayn gets his knees up and tags in Rhodes. Rhodes delivers a Disaster Kick and a double Cody Cutter to Dominik and Priest. He sets up for Cross-Rhodes on Dominik, but Balor interferes and Rhodes hits him with it instead. He then delivers one to Dominik and tags in Zayn. Zayn tags in Owens, then executes a Helluva Kick. Owens then delivers a Stunner to Balor for the win.

Winners: Cody Rhodes, Sami Zayn, and Kevin Owens

After the match, Zayn grabs a mic and tells Judgment Day better luck next time.