What Happened to Braun Strowman and Bobby Lashley?
Updated July 2 2019, 6:02 p.m. ET
What happened to Braun Strowman and Bobby Lashley on Monday Night RAW ? During the Falls Count Anywhere match the two men battered the ever-loving bejesus out of each other and delivered a performance that pro-wrestling fans are sure to remember for a very long time.
If you're unfamiliar with these two superstars, then the first thing you should know is that these are two very, very big men.
Braun is 6'8 and 340 pounds and Bobby is 6'3 and 260 pounds. So from the opening bell, the ring was shaking and creaking a heck of a whole lot. It didn't take long for the action to carry on outside of the squared circle and then things got absolutely buck nasty.
The WWE decided to ginger-foot around the potential matchup between these two behemoths and have them engage in some far less intense competitive bouts.
First, Bobby and Braun faced off in arm-wrestling contests, and then tested their strength in a tug-of-war. Then Vince and co. decided they'd stop teasing the huge matchup between the men and let them have at it — and have at it they did.
The match between the two of them went viral for all the right reasons, and it has nothing to do with the in-ring acrobatics and everything to do with what fans feel like has been missing from prime WWE: that "raw-ness" from the Attitude Era.
There was fireworks. There was audible swearing from both wrestlers. There was violence. Gritty violence. Unpredictable violence. The kind of fighting and action that the camera operators had to rush to try and capture. It was a breath of fresh air and fans are calling it the first match of the "Holy S*** Era".
While the 20-minute match might've stretched a bit too long, fans seem to be very excited about the fact that RAW hasn't felt this way in a while. It might have a lot to do with Heyman being named executive producer of WWE's Monday night programming, but there was a general feeling that the "vibe," as Uproxx puts it, was entirely different from previous RAW episodes.
Writer Nate Birch did a good job of encapsulating what that difference was:
“Ohhh right, mainstream wrestling *can* have energy, direction, and a sense of purpose. There’s reasons to watch *other* than, ‘well, maybe my favorites will find a way to do something with bad material.'"
Birch continued:
“Most interesting thing to me, is how obviously Heyman was trying to write something Vince would like. Lots of sassy clapbacks, wacky comedy, sexy shenanigans, big guys brawling, and a silly gimmick spot, etc. Heyman didn’t last long in his previous WWE [run in creative] because he tried to do his own thing in Vince’s world."
"A tag-teams and workrate Smoky Mountain thing on Smackdown, and later a recreation of ECW, and it didn’t work," he said. "Point is, seems like Heyman is looking for job security this time. He’s giving Vince what he likes (except, y’know, good) so this might actually go somewhere."
The WWE wrote on its website that both Bobby and Braun were taken to a local medical facility to treat their wounds as a result of their match that culminated in Lashley being thrown through the RAW Stage light board:
"[The two men] were taken to a local medical facility as a result of injuries sustained during RAW's opening Falls Count Anywhere Match, which concluded when both Superstars crashed through the stage’s LED board."
Although both men received medical treatment, it seems that Braun was the worse for wear. Bobby was released from "immediate care" per WWE, but Braun sustained a potential ruptured spleen and separated pelvis during the bout.
Were you a fan of the "new" direction RAW is headed in? Did it feel like the Attitude Era again? Or do you need to see more of the direction Heyman's taking the show before you can judge?