WWE Raw: Three Men Advance in the First Round of the King of the Ring Tournament

The King of the Ring tournament qualifiers kicked off on WWE Raw.

By Haley Miller

WWE Raw kicked off this year's King and Queen of the Ring tournament qualifiers. A series of qualifying matches took place, including three King of the Ring match ups -- Finn Balor vs. Jey Uso, Ilja Dragunov vs. Ricochet and Gunther vs. Sheamus. The fourth match, Kofi Kingston vs. Rey Mysterio, will take place at a live event this weekend. The King of the Ring tournament was established in the mid-80s and has seen a number of WWE's biggest stars claim the title of King of the Ring, including Ted DiBiase, Bret Hart, Owen Hart, Edge, "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, Booker T, Sheamus, William Regal, Baron Corbin and Xavier Woods, among many others. The tournaments are returning for the first time since the 2021 editions.

Gunther Defeats Sheamus

The final match of the night and the main event of WWE Raw was Gunther against Sheamus. The two men have a decorated rivalry within WWE and all of that was on display in this match. Both men gave it their all with brutal blows and chops to the chest, some of which can even be seen on Sheamus who was littered with handprints.

In the end, Gunther proved to be the more dominant man in the match, defeating Sheamus and moving onto the quarterfinals for WWE Raw. Gunther will next face the winner of Kofi Kingston vs. Rey Mysterio which will take place at a WWE Live Event this weekend.

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Ilja Dragunov Defeats Ricochet

The second match of the night saw two men with competing styles go head to head for the first time. While on paper it would appear that Ricochet and Dragunov wouldn't work, you'd be sorely mistaken. While Ricochet gave it his best, it was no match for the former NXT Champion who hit him with a German Suplex that landed him right on his face, several of his patented H-Bomb's, chops, dropkicks, and more. Dragunov made a statement on his official main roster debut as a talent on the red brand and he will now face Jey Uso in the next round of matches.

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Jey Uso Defeats Finn Balor

The King of the Ring qualifiers on Raw kicked off with Balor vs. Uso. McIntyre was supposed to wrestle Balor but was pulled from the tournament due to not being "medically cleared." McIntyre has been open about his fractured elbow that he says he got during WrestleMania 40. The match started with some even back and forth by Balor quickly overcame "The Main Event" throwing him around the ring. After several rounds of spears, Uso advanced in the tournament. Toward the end of the match, McIntyre is seen staring down Uso and he looks irate. Balor was the runner-up back in 2021 but was defeated by Woods in the finals.

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