Roman Reigns Returns as Penta Gets Intercontinental Title Shot on Raw
Roman Reigns returned to Raw on March 2, and the show put a spotlight on the seven-week build to WrestleMania 42 while confirming that Dominik Mysterio will defend his Intercontinental Championship against penta at 8 ET. The booking places a high-profile secondary title match in the early stretch of WrestleMania season and keeps Reigns firmly on the collision course with World Heavyweight Champion CM Punk.
Penta vs Dominik Mysterio
General Manager Adam Pearce has declared that Dominik Mysterio will defend the Intercontinental Championship against Penta. The announcement closes a promotional loop from the recent premium live event and moves the Intercontinental title into the spotlight on Raw as storylines widen during the initial weeks leading to WrestleMania 42.
penta challenges Dominik
On-screen confirmation of penta as the challenger sets up an immediate test for Dominik, who has been presented as an active defending champion. The segment framing the match emphasized the mandate from management and left the outcome open going into the televised encounter scheduled for the show that aired at 8 ET.
Roman Reigns returned to Raw
Roman Reigns made his first Raw appearance since publicly selecting CM Punk as his WrestleMania opponent. His return was presented as a major moment for the program and a focal point of promotional efforts during the opening week of the seven-week build to WrestleMania 42, which is scheduled for April 18 and April 19.
CM Punk main-event buildup
World Heavyweight Champion CM Punk, fresh off a successful title defense against Finn Bálor at the Elimination Chamber event, was also scheduled to be part of Raw. Punk’s status as champion and Reigns’ return were portrayed as the central narrative driving the promotion toward its WrestleMania main event pairing.
Other key Raw developments
Several supporting storylines were advanced on the show. AJ Lee, who beat Becky Lynch to win the women’s Intercontinental title at Elimination Chamber, returned to Raw as champion and promised to defend the belt on upcoming broadcasts. Dragon Lee answered lingering tensions with GUNTHER by attacking him during an entrance, leading to a heated singles encounter that ended with GUNTHER prevailing after removing Dragon Lee’s mask and forcing a tap out. The masked assailant who had interfered in a recent match was revealed to be Seth Rollins, and management indicated they would discuss the matter on the program. In addition, the Women’s Royal Rumble winner made a live decision to challenge the Women’s World Champion at WrestleMania, signaling another major match on the horizon.
Analysis: The March 2 episode concentrated marquee talent and title activity into the first week of the WrestleMania build, pairing a high-profile Reigns appearance and the Punk storyline with significant undercard stakes. With seven weeks until WrestleMania 42, the promotion placed both the World Heavyweight title feud and a featured Intercontinental title defense into the television calendar, creating immediate narrative threads to follow. The immediate indicator to watch is how the Penta–Dominik match is booked on Raw and whether interference or outside involvement affects the Intercontinental title scene as the card for WrestleMania takes shape.
