Full Raw results, April 25, 2016: Styles takes down Reigns, but doesn't do it alone

The Phenomenal One clashes with The Celtic Warrior on Raw.

That’s strike one for The League of Nations, all of whom were scheduled for individual matches on Raw and one of whom — Sheamus — has now fallen short, with AJ Styles playing the role of The Celtic Warrior’s undoing. He had to take a hell of a beating to do it, but the No. 1 contender to the WWE World Heavyweight Champion proved worthy of both his status and his phenomenal reputation, ultimately knocking Sheamus loopy with a big sunset flip powerbomb. He then muscled out of the Cloverleaf and nailed a Phenomenal Forearm to get the win … much to the delight of Luke Gallows & Karl Anderson.

The Underdog from the Underground squares off against The Super Athlete.

Having lost three of his last four, Sami Zayn’s bout against Rusev was something of a must-win before his marquee bout against Kevin Owens at WWE Payback. With Lana back at his side, Rusev carried a numbers advantage that could have swung the match, but The Bulgarian Brute never even got to use it. After chipping away at Rusev’s defenses for a good 10 minutes, Zayn slid out of the Accolade and rolled Rusev up for the victory. (Yes, that means The League of Nations is 0-2 so far.) The win earned him an ovation and a few shoes chucked his way from Lana, but Zayn was too happy to care. That is, until Owens ambushed him from behind on his way up the ramp, leaving him in a heap as he had so many times before and may well do again.

The Prince of Dark Matter aims to halt the ascent of one of WWE's freshest rising stars.

Having put The Social Outcasts in his rearview mirror, Apollo Crews has now set his sights on the rest of the WWE roster. The first Superstar to cross him? Stardust, whose own attempt to climb the heavens at WrestleMania landed him just short of the Intercontinental Championship, and whose late father Dusty Rhodes played a key role in Crews’ development. (“The American Dream” even gave him the name “Apollo Crews.”)

Crews seems to have taken The Dream’s lessons to heart, while Stardust’s insanity is tripping him up. The space creature showed resilience against his father’s protégé by kicking out of Crews’ standing moonsault, but Crews sealed the deal with an enzuigiri/Spinning Sit-out Powerbomb combo.

"The Best in the World at What He Does" doesn't think The Lunatic Fringe is showing him the proper respect.

Bad news for fans of “The Ambrose Asylum”: A steaming-mad Dean Ambrose opted out of hosting another edition of the hottest new talk show in WWE after Chris Jericho cheap-shot last Monday on Raw. Good news for fans of rage-fueled brawls: Ambrose called Jericho out instead, and The Ayatollah of Rock ’n’ Rolla answered, if only to demand Ambrose apologize for failing to show him the proper deference before their match Sunday at WWE Payback. The Lunatic Fringe punched Jericho in the face instead, though their brief fight ended badly for him when Jericho tripped him up on the announce desk and managed to lock in the Walls of Jericho atop the table.

The Queen of Harts faces the bitter Emma as WWE Women's Champion Charlotte looks on.

Remember when Emma used to dance and walk around in a flurry of bubbles? Yeah, that’s not happening anymore. This new Emma — “Evil Emma,” colloquially — wears aviators and driving gloves and suffers absolutely zero fools, and she gave an incredibly impressive performance against Natalya on Raw.

Unfortunately, The Queen of Harts is on a roll that can’t be stopped. Despite the potentially distracting presence of WWE Women’s Champion Charlotte at ringside, the No. 1 contender shook off Emma’s offense and locked in the Sharpshooter for the win, staring the champion down while she did it.

As The Lone Wolf heads to the ring to take on Damien Sandow, The Showoff strikes.

Damien Sandow’s back on Raw! But baby, his return was much too fast, as his scheduled opponent, Baron Corbin, didn’t even make it to the ring before Dolph Ziggler bum-rushed The Lone Wolf from behind. Ziggler repaid the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal winner with the type of beatdown Corbin’s fast becoming known for bestowing on several opponents, Ziggler in particular. The Showoff’s attack on Corbin was so relentless he sent the imposing newcomer into retreat, meaning they’ll walk into their freshly made match at WWE Payback with the power balance reversed.

The Swiss Superman defends his most passionate fans and nearly takes The A-lister for a ride, six nights before their Intercontinental Championship Match at WWE Payback.

As The Miz’s Intercontinental Title defense against Cesaro has crept closer and closer, The King of Swing has continuously managed to one-up The Awesome One at every turn. So it’s hard to blame The Miz for making a last-ditch attempt to position himself as the “legendary” championship’s proper bearer by running down the Cesaro Section as nameless, faceless hangers-on who don’t know greatness when they see it.

Enter Cesaro himself, who ran down both Miz’s De Niro impression (“4/10”) and blasted a bum-rushing Miz himself with the Very European Uppercut before Maryse ran in and saved her man from further humiliation. And yes, Cesaro was wearing his suit the entire time. The stuff of legends indeed.