4 Takeaways From Monday Night Raw - 3/11/19

For the first time in quite a while, we get a productive episode of Monday Night Raw. This show was good because of how many storylines have progressed. Now granted, there isn't much of a choice as Wrestlemania is only weeks away. This was a major step in the right direction nonetheless.

Let's dive on in and take a gander at what stories and feuds have taken the next step!

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I don't know what WWE is doing with the IC title, but they better have something in store for the championship. After winning the belt at Elimination Chamber, Finn Balor defended it against Lashley on Raw. After a distraction from Lio Rush, the challenger scored the victory and got his title back.

With the lack of the "automatic rematch clause", we are basically guaranteed not to see this match on the Grandest Stage of them all.

I'm guessing we'll see a match involving three or four men. It's still a little too early to make an official prediction, but that's what I'm thinking as of now.

The Olympic gold medalist came out and announced he will be having his final match at the April pay-per-view. We all knew this was coming at some point, but it's pretty crazy that we will soon no longer watch Angle wrestle.

He fought a match with Apollo, which he won with an Angle Slam. There are a number of names who could face Kurt at the Show of Shows, including Samoa Joe and (my personal pick) John Cena. We will see how WWE tries to build up this story until then.

Oh boy, this was a fun one! When Baron Corbin didn't appear for his scheduled match with Roman Reigns, Drew McIntyre appeared instead. He put Reigns down to the point where doctors were checking on him after.

Dean Ambrose then demanded to fight with McIntyre, which was a Falls Count Anywhere match. The Scottish Psychopath and the Lunatic Fringe went to war in this match. Ambrose is awesome at selling - and this was a great example of it.

McIntyre finished him off with a beautiful looking Claymore for the win. Creative did a fantastic job with building the heel back up to dominant status this week. He went from having no direction in a generic "bad guy trio" to an imposing monster who may have ended the WWE career of Dean Ambrose. This will surely get a rise out of Reigns moving forward.

Part timer vs part timer matches at Wrestlemania can be hit and miss. When they hit, it makes a memorable classic. When the opposite happens however, it crashes, burns and looks like a waste of a prime spot.

Fortunately, Batista vs Triple H appears to be an example of the former. The Animal is a returning movie star and everyone knows who The Game is. Their history with one another combined with the nostalgia factor makes this a must-watch for anyone who's been a WWE fan within the past 15 years.

Now, all of this is without even mentioning the stakes. It will be a No Holds Barred match, which when you consider the participants, there is likely to be plenty of blood involved. It will also be a career vs career match. Personally I'm hoping Batista wins, because I'm more a fan of him than Triple H. I want to see The Animal in the ring for more than just one match... despite knowing The Game will most likely win it.

Those were my takeaways from Monday Night Raw this week. Who do you want Kurt Angle to face? Do you agree that Drew McIntyre is being rebuilt properly? Let me know what you think in the comments! Thank you for reading and have a great day!