Monday's WWE Raw was booked very last minute, according to Dave Meltzer of The Wrestling Observer. Vince McMahon arrived to the arena in the early afternoon and that’s when the show began to change. The script was still being changed as Raw went on the air.
The show was originally planned to heavily focus on Seth Rollins, but WWE doctors didn't clear him for the show and thus changes were made.
Ronda Rousey vs. Alexa Bliss was originally booked, with Rousey set to go over in a squash, but this was changed to have her and Ruby Riott close the show in a longer match.
As for the NXT call-ups, that was a call from Vince McMahon in reaction to recent ratings. McMahon reported requested NXT's top four names (Ciampa, Gargano, Black and Ricochet) to have them work both Raw and SmackDown. Meltzer also notes the plan is to have these names work all three brands.
Triple H reportedly made the call to not have Ricochet debut against Finn Balor as both are babyface and having Ricochet lose to a newly crowned Intercontinental wouldn't look good for a debut.
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