Gunther became the No. 1 contender after defeating Royce Keys at WWE Raw. Cody Rhodes attacked during the show, adding drama to an otherwise forgettable episode.
Key points
Gunther became the No. 1 contender
Cody Rhodes attacked during the show
Brie Bella and Paige defeated Giulia and Kiana James
Damian Priest won against Tama Tonga
Jade Cargill caused a disqualification
Colonial Life ArenaGuntherCody RhodesRoyce Keys
WWE Raw on May 15, 2026, took place at Colonial Life Arena in Columbia, S.C., and featured a No. 1 contender match between Gunther and Royce Keys.
The first Friday show following Backlash saw some fallout from the PLE in what was largely a very forgettable episode. We saw the men’s United States champ and the women’s tag champs in action, but no titles were on the line. Brie Bella and Paige defeated Giulia and Kiana James in what should have been a title match, even if unwarranted to help add some importance to the in-ring action.
Damian Priest picked up a win over Tama Tonga, Jade Cargill caused a disqualification in a tag match between Michin and B-Fab against Alexa Bliss and Charlotte Flair, and Danhausen appears to be working on creating another clone – a much larger one. It felt like another filler Friday. Nothing was bad, nothing great, but some things stood out among the rest.
Here’s the top takeaways from this week’s show:
Trick Williams’ homecoming
Kicking off the show was the men’s United States champion, Trick Williams. Accompanied by Lil Yachty and Cocky the Gamecock, Williams celebrated his return to South Carolina, shouting out his alma mater and reminiscing about his days growing up in the state.
The crowd ate it all up, but then The Miz and Kit Wilson showed up to bring out the boos. Shout out to those two though for their subtle shoutout to The New Day with their gear color scheme. The Miz and Wilson made their way to the ring, talking trash and reciting poetry respectively. Lil Yachty responded to Wilson with a couple of bars, but when Willams’ mom was mentioned by The Miz, all bets were off.
A singles match between Williams and The Miz followed. Williams got the job done as Lil Yachty proved to be an effective hype man by preventing the use of a kendo stick. A Trick Shot knee was good enough for the pin here.
The opening segment was a bit of a rollercoaster. It started out strong, but the back-and-forth with The Miz and Wilson was just OK. We’ll see if Williams finds another mascot to stroll down to the ring with him next week, but hopefully, a real program for him and the US title gets going.
Carmelo Hayes, Ricky Saints shine
After putting on the best matches weekly, Carmelo Hayes had some time off, but came back to pick up where he left off. Ricky Saints has also been trying to establish himself as one a real player on the SmackDown roster, and in this match, they both shined.
There were no stakes in this singles match – just two guys who wanted to make a statement, and they succeeded. It was the best match of the night, and that was because of the little things. There were a couple of reversals that felt like they weren’t planned – and maybe the execution was actually just off a bit, but either way, it still fit the flow of the match.
Hayes ended up with the win here, but this one showed both guys can go, and deserve to be in programs chasing titles. For me, this was the bright spot of the show as you could feel both wanted to show out.
Cody Rhodes made his way out to the ring for a contract signing for Gunther, only the ring was empty. Rhodes changed that by tossing rolling chairs inside and pulling out his own table to complete the setup. The crowd gave him a nice little pop for his handiwork. Anyway, he called out Gunther, who arrived at the entrance.
Gunther said he was going to do things on his terms since he’s one of the biggest stars in the company, and changing brands is a big deal. Since he didn’t want to sign the contracts, Royce Keys appeared, and said he’d gladly sign to take on Rhodes at Clash In Italy. They both entered the ring and jostled over the pen, which prompted Nick Aldis to show up and create a No. 1 contender match between Gunther and Keys.
It was a match that was slower paced, yet hard-hitting. It felt like it dragged on in the middle stages, but that ended up making the finish feel earned as they beat the hell out of each other inside and out of the ring. Keys’ size made Gunther look like a normal human, which is a rarity, and made for a nice dynamic here.
Solo Sikoa arrived to encourage Keys to break out of a sleeper hold, but when Sikoa slid a chair into the ring, Keys didn’t use it on Gunther – he threw it at Sikoa. However, this distraction allowed Gunther to recover and hit a powerbomb for the pin.
This was a nice way to get Keys in a main event match against a star like Gunther, even if the outcome didn’t change anything for Clash In Italy. This was the kind of move though that I wish would happen more often. Keys nearly earned himself a title shot by just showing up and making an opportunity, but it ultimately didn’t work out for him. Gunther secured his spot, and the post-match attack from Rhodes was a heel-ish move, but it’s been established for a while now that he’s not above this sort of thing even as a babyface. All-in-all, this was a solid end to an otherwise forgettable show.
