RAW: Withdraw The Respect From My Account

Ronda has been thinking. Going over and over in her mind on if there was any reason she should apologize to Sasha Banks. And she finally came to the conclusion on last night’s RAW that she doesn’t owe her a damn thing. It turned out the heated promo where she worked this all out aloud was just a vent session. The anger would really show itself just moments later in the ring.

Sound the sirens. Barricade the doors. Get the manager. As Bayley and Sasha Banks got into the ring for their match against Ronda and Natalya, the bubbling frustration erupted like a volcano. All that praise and talk about how the honor is all hers and Banks just spit on it. Of course, her getting spicy on the mic just made things worse. Natalya even had to hold back an absolutely fuming Ronda from starting the fight early.

Banks made good on her previous airing of grievances as soon as the match started and elbowed Ronda off the apron immediately. Oh, the mind games have really begun now. You have to admit it was clever. Smart in the long run though? We’ll find out later. Bayley and Banks isolated Natalya to chip away at her life bar and to raise Ronda’s anger meter.

If this was a cartoon, Ronda would be drawn as an anthropomorphized tea kettle. She was screaming to get into the ring and did so as soon as she got a clear shot. Although, she still wasn’t able to get her hands on that purple hair. The confrontation between Ronda and Sasha got teased and teased, until the fans were like brewing pots about to whistle themselves under the pressure of the suspense. They had to give us a peek of the two together before the Royal Rumble. Oh, and they did.

The collision was fierce: Brawling, throwing super stiff shots, taking turns in each other’s submissions. Ronda made it out of the Banks Statement. Sasha rolled into the safety of the ropes to break the armbar. Who won’t be able to make it out at the Royal Rumble? Ronda started to really pour it on until Banks made a crafty escape, leaving her partner on the other end of a flurry of punches. What was that about respect, Sasha?

Once Natalya got back in the ring, she kept things in control and slapped on a submission of her own. Despite the betrayal by her teammate, Bayley kept The Boss and Hug Connection alive by dishing out a cheap shot on Ronda. With her friend not able to interfere, Banks pulled off an aptly named Backstabber and transitioned into the Banks Statement on Natalya to cause her to tap. Banks kept it on a little longer than needed to send a message before Ronda rushed back in to console her.

It all ended just as it had began: Ronda and Banks clawing at each other and most likely reciting parts of the English language not allowed on WWE television. Sasha’s account is overdrawn on chances and respect has been totally withdrawn. The Royal Rumble is only five days away.