WWE's Best Monday of 2026, Penta's Star-Making Moment, Reigns Moves on Quickly, More Raw Fallout

The September 14 edition of Raw on Netflix aired from Arena CDMX in Mexico City, Mexico, delivering big title action and Money in the Bank qualifiers.

Roman Reigns overcame the best efforts of Penta to retain the World Heavyweight Championship. Chad Gable also retain his Intercontinental Championship against a game Dragon Lee.

Lola Vice debuted with a women's MITB qualifying win over Raquel Rodriguez and Kelani Jordan. Je'Von Evans defeated Big Cass and Austin Theory to earn a spot in the men's MITB ladder mach.

Check out all the fallout from a memorable night in Mexico City

Penta Aces Biggest Test Against Roman Reigns

The main event of Raw was always going to end one way: a Roman Reigns retention.

However, it served as a major test for Penta, who had a chance to deliver a classic that fans would not soon forget.

He did just that. This was one of the best matches of the year, driven by the athleticism and hard-hitting style of the challenger.

This match was a major win for Penta in terms of selling him as the kind of talent that can work with anyone in WWE and deliver a spectacle.

Not everyone gets chances like this, and fewer still get the chance to sell themselves to WWE as a must-book talent.

Penta did just that and should now be even more frequently highlighted on Raw going forward.

As Raw went off the air, WWE did not hesitate to announce the next match for Roman Reigns, confirming he would defend the World Heavyweight Championship against LA Knight at Money in the Bank.

The Million Dollar Megastar even laid out The OTC afterward to declare his intention to finally become a world champion.

This rushed post-show segment could have waited until next week, allowing fans to purely focus on Penta and his great performance.

By moving on so quickly, it diminishes the threat Penta posed. It was also unnecessary as Adam Pearce had already confirmed multiple times that Knight was the next man up for Reigns in past weeks.

Reigns vs. Knight already has a solid build behind it and should intensify into October unless The OTC does not appear for several weeks in the build-up.

Next week's biggest angle should be focused on truly solidifying The Million Dollar Megastar as a major threat to Reigns, trying to sell his chance of genuinely dethroning the champion.

Especially with the frequent surprise world title changes in recent months with every title but Reigns', this is a story WWE can sell with the right build.

Stephanie Vaquer's World Championship Victory was a Perfect Surprise

Over the weekend, Stephanie Vaquer became the new Women's world champion by defeating Liv Morgan at a live event in Santiago, Chile.

Even though La Primera is Chilean born and raised, it was still a genuine shock that she would win this big at a live event.

It was the first time that a women's world title had ever changed hands at a house show and the only time any WWE title had changed hands in South America.

While WWE could have given Vaquer the win on Raw, this historic moment solidified La Primera as a game-changing talent in WWE.

She earned this win through her hard work getting herself over in a short time with WWE and can carry the company forward as a fighting champion.

It was a surprise that Liv lost the world title at this stage of her career, but she remains a main event player going forward.

WWE also has an easy money match on the horizon when Becky Lynch and Vaquer step in the ring together for the first time.

Time to Start Pushing El Grande Americano on Raw

One of the biggest concerns with modern booking of AAA by WWE has been the complete separation of stories from one brand to another.

Dominik Mysterio and El Grande Americano got over big in Mexico, but they were both treated as midcard heels on Raw while main eventing AAA shows.

This separation of stories felt less concrete on Raw in Mexico City because WWE dealt with the immediate fallout of Americano taking the AAA Mega Championship from Dirty Dom.

The opening of the show sold Americano as AAA's top babyface, and this should continue when WWE return to the United States.

The awkward finish to the opening match to get heat back on The Judgment Day would seem to indicate that Americano will appear more on Raw soon.

However, nothing is certain, and this finish could have been a way to simply push the heels WWE cares more about.

Lola Vice and Kelani Jordan Immediately Show They Belong

In an exciting triple threat, Raquel Rodriguez, Lola Vice and Kelani Jordan battled for a spot in the Money in the Bank ladder match.

While Lola winning in her WWE debut was not completely surprising, it was a good indication that the company will push her strong, especially after pinning the Women's Intercontinental champion.

Even in a contest that could have used more time, The Standout also found her opportunities to show off.

As the current NXT women's champion, Lani is likely to remain in NXT for the short term, but she should be on a fast track to Raw when she loses the gold.

If WWE wants to heavily push The Standout, she could compete on Raw as champion, even defending the gold while she completes her NXT run.

This Raw women's roster needs both of these women to become immediate factors and massively improve the variety of competition.

Special attraction shows are often WWE's best, and this Raw in Mexico City was no different.

A hot invested crowd watched wall-to-wall action that sold how good this Raw roster can be.

Penta and Dragon Lee stood out for what they can do in the ring that no one else can match.

Both Money in the Bank qualifiers showed the value of strong matches with stakes on TV that show off underused talent like Je'Von Evans as well as new blood like Lola Vice and Kelani Jordan.

This was a show that highlighted exactly what WWE needs to do to make Raw must-watch TV every week.

While WWE may be known for long-winded promos and massive cinematic moments, the heart of a wrestling show is the wrestling.

Fans pay tickets to see the matches and enjoy the spectacle. Promos are valuable but can bog down a show quickly, especially in a modern WWE loaded with advertisements.

If WWE wants fans consistently invested, a blend of big matches and story development must be the focus rather than sacrificing in-ring time to ads and overlong talking spots.