For the final time, WWE Raw hit the USA Network airwaves on Monday night with a show that was dedicated to promoting its debut on Netflix on January 6.

CM Punk and Seth Rollins came face-to-face one last time before their showdown next week, new world tag team champions The War Raiders partnered with Damian Priest to battle The Judgment Day, and we witnessed the semifinals of the Women's Intercontinental Championship Tournament.

How did each segment grade out and what did they mean for next week's blockbuster Raw on Netflix?

Find out with this recap of the December 30 show.

Match Card

Announced in advance of the show:

• CM Punk and Seth Rollins face-to-face
• Damian Priest and The War Raiders vs. The Judgment Day (Finn Bálor, JD McDonagh and Dominik Mysterio)
• Women's Intercontinental Championship Tournament: Lyra Valkyria vs. Iyo Sky
• Women's Intercontinental Championship Tournament: Dakota Kai vs. Zoey Stark
• Otis vs. Chad Gable

The New Day, Jey Uso, Drew McIntyre...and Chaos Reigns

The New Day interrupted Joe Tessitore and Wade Barrett's introduction of Jey Uso, taking to the ring to address the fans at the Toyota Center in Houston.

Boos drowned them out, though, opening the door for the former intercontinental champion to join them in the squared circle.

Uso dismissed them with a simple "New Day sucks" and called out Drew McIntyre. Instead, Solo Sikoa appeared on the video screen and vowed to defeat Roman Reigns and retain the ula fala in the Tribal Combat match on next week's Netflix debut.

The distraction allowed McIntyre to attack and, after a brief back and forth, he lay out Uso to close the segment.

A hot start to the show that threaded three different stories into it, thus maximizing minutes and keeping all involved on the broadcast. This was an easy "A" grade.

Grade

A

Top Moments and Takeaways

• The heat was nuclear for The New Day. At one point, Woods nearly got through a sentence without being jeered and looked to the crowd, reminding them to reignite their boos. It was a great example of crowd manipulation by a veteran performer.
• McIntyre's heel turn was necessitated by the arrival of Jey Uso to Raw in 2023. That feud was sidelined when the Scot kicked off his program with CM Punk. It's great to see Triple H and the creative team going back to it here.

Otis vs. Chad Gable

The long-running rivalry between American Made's Chad Gable and his former Alpha Academy underling, Otis, culminated Monday night in a match months in the making.

Gable targeted the lower limbs of his opponent, looking to take out his base and negate some of his power. It worked for much of the match, but Otis fired up and mounted a late comeback.

Maxxine Dupri and Akira Tozawa attempted to cancel out Ivy Nile and The Creed Brothers' interference, but Nile influenced the outcome by providing a distraction that allowed Gable to regain control and ultimately tap out Otis with the ankle lock.

A strong contest with a red-hot crowd, this did exactly what it was meant to, and the finish leaves the door open for another matchup.

Result

Gable defeated Otis

Grade

B+

Top Moments and Takeaways

• "This is the best that Otis has ever looked," Barrett said on commentary. That might be a bit of hyperbole, but it was a strong performance from the big man.
• The outcome sucked the life out of the crowd, as the fans in Houston wanted to see Otis earn the win here. Even in defeat, Alpha Academy remains a crowd-pleasing act.

Ripley vs. Morgan Hype; No Truth vs. Dunne; Dakota Kai vs. Zoey Stark

Following a great video package hyping Rhea Ripley vs. Liv Morgan on next week's show, Finn Bálor mockingly told Raquel Rodriguez to wish the latter the best of luck as tensions continue to run high within The Judgment Day.

Back in the arena, R-Truth entered for his scheduled bout with Pete Dunne but caught a beatdown from The Bruiserweight and the match was apparently thrown out.

Returning to the ring, Damage CTRL's Dakota Kai battled Pure Fusion Collective's Zoey Stark in the first semifinal of the Women's Intercontinental Championship Tournament.

Stark controlled throughout the first commercial break of the night before Kai mounted a comeback as she sought a trip to the finals and revenge for PFC's attack on Kairi Sane two weeks ago.

Kai overcame the focused attack of her opponent and delivered a GTK to advance to the finals.

Result

Kai defeated Stark

Grade

B

Top Moments and Takeaways

• "Let's light this butch up," Truth said as he came through the curtain and before suffering the wrath of Dunne. It was funny enough, but can we move on from this feud and give the heel something more meaningful to do?
• Stark and Kai won the crowd over in the second half of their match. Great stuff from two skilled wrestlers who commanded the audience's attention.

Damian Priest and The War Raiders vs. The Judgment Day

Before the night's next match, Tessitore threw to a video package highlighting some of the most unforgettable moments and Superstars in Raw history ahead of next week's move to Netflix.

Back in the arena, Finn Bálor, JD McDonagh and Dominik Mysterio squared off with new world tag team champions The War Raiders and Damian Priest.

The babyfaces started hot, but the heels seized control entering the commercial break. They controlled the action until a hot tag to Priest sparked the comeback.

Bálor evaded The Archer of Infamy, wanting nothing to do with his sworn enemy and leaving the rest of his teammates to endure his wrath.

Mysterio attempted a 619 but ran right into South of Heaven for the loss.

After the match, Bálor clipped the leg out from under Priest and a heel beatdown ensued before Ivar and Erik made the save.

This was a fun and energetic match, the likes of which WWE excels at. The formula is tried and true and typically results in quality in-ring action. That was the case here as the babyfaces rolled to victory, but the heels got a measure of revenge with their cheap attack on The Archer of Infamy.

The feud, it appears, continues.

Result

Priest and The War Raiders def. The Judgment Day

Grade

B

Top Moments and Takeaways

• New entrance music for The Judgment Day. It makes one wonder why they didn't introduce that this past summer, upon the exit of Priest and Ripley, to hammer home a new era for the group.
• "Raw is WAR!" Barrett exclaimed as the new world tag team champions, War Raiders, entered the arena. Nice.
• Backstage, Raw general manager Adam Pearce gave Jey Uso what he wants: A match with McIntyre on next week's Netflix debut.

Sheamus Interrupts Ludwig Kaiser

Before the break, the latest teaser for a new Superstar aired and if it wasn't obvious before that it's signaling the debut of Penta El Zero Miedo (or Pentagon Jr.), it is now.

Ludwig Kaiser demanded the WWE Universe's gratitude before calling out Bron Breakker. Instead of the intercontinental champion, Sheamus rushed the ring.

A brawl ensued before The Celtic Warrior left his rival lying to close out the brief segment.

Backstage, LWO's Rey Mysterio propped up a dejected Otis following his loss to Chad Gable, only to be interrupted by The New Day. A verbal exchange occurred and a match was made for next week's show.

Grade

C

Top Moments and Takeaways

• Sheamus vs. Kaiser has been one of the more underrated storylines in WWE from an in-ring perspective. And with both chasing the IC title, it makes sense that they would continue to intersect, leading to brawls like this one.
• With that said, it feels like both guys have been stuck in a never-ending series of matches simply because there is nothing else on the horizon for them. Eventually, they have to wrestle their last match against each other.

Lyra Valkyria vs. Iyo Sky

Lyra Valkyria had Iyo Sky's number over the summer, defeating her to advance to the finals of the Queen of the Ring tournament.

Monday, they battled in the semifinals of the tournament to crown the first women's intercontinental champion.

The result was an extraordinary contest between two skilled in-ring competitors that was easily the best of the night.

The counters and reversals were those of combatants familiar with each other's movement, as were the gutsy near-falls that left fans biting on every two-count.

Sky scaled the ropes for the Over the Moonsault, but Valkyria rolled out of the way.

The Genius of the Sky landed on her feet but tweaked the same knee her opponent had worked over earlier. A series of counters concluded with Valkyria stacking up her opponent and scoring the pinfall victory, robbing Damage CTRL of an exclusive final.

This was wrestling excellence from two of the best in the women's division. The question now is whether Kai realizes her dream to capture singles gold or Valkyria rights the wrong from earlier this year and wins the IC title.

Result

Valkyria defeated Sky

Grade

A+

Top Moments and Takeaways

• The cutaways to Kai watching from the suite while Valkyria and Sky trading grapples was the worst. 
• Both of these competitors work at a different level than most of the division. Just pure excellence from them every time they square off.

CM Punk and Seth Rollins Face-to-Face

CM Punk and Seth Rollins met in the center of the ring ahead of their hotly anticipated match on next week's Netflix broadcast.

As expected, they hurled some heavy-hitting insults and one-liners at each other, holding nothing back and proving no topic was off limits as there were references to Vince McMahon, All Elite Wrestling and the real-life tension that exists between them.

The crowd ate it up, and the intensity in the faces of both men reflected the blurred lines between reality and fiction.

Their match next week is going to be an all-timer and, as long as it isn't marred by interference or nonsensical booking, it should be a fitting first chapter to what is hopefully a story full of them.

Grade

A+

Top Moments and Takeaways

• "The most industry cliche, planted, bootlicker statement of all time," Punk said in response to Rollins claiming he "took his ball and went home."
• "Next week, I get to make a boatload of cash making you the victim you've always wanted to be, little brother," Punk said. 
• "You took a big chunk of change to go to the competition. How'd that work out for you?" Rollins asked in the inevitable AEW reference.
• "I loved the place I work, I just hated the guy in charge but he loved you," Punk said, referencing former WWE chairman Vince McMahon.
• "For seven years, mostly during your television time, they chanted my name," Punk said.

Overall Grade

Strong wrestling, great character and story development, and a buzz-worthy conclusion to the show helped give this an easy thumbs-up.

WWE Raw without USA Network just doesn't seem right, but if there was an episode to go out on, it was this one.

Go out of your way to check out Valkyria vs. Sky and Otis vs. Gable, stay for Kai vs. Stark, and definitely catch the gem that was the Punk-Rollins insult-off.

An easy recommendation for this concluding cable TV edition of Raw.

Grade: A+