WWE Raw results, recap, grades: Retribution leader revealed, Murphy breaks away from Seth Rollins

A shocking reveal highlighted Monday's action as Retribution's unexpected leader took center stage

After a long, bumpy ride, we've finally learned who's leading the charge with Retribution. As surprising as the fact that the invading group has received a much-needed evolution in their presentation during Monday's edition of WWE Raw, the man chosen for the spot making complete sense is even more surprising.

While Retribution's existence has come with much speculation over who would be the man behind the masked faction -- with theories ranging from a member of the McMahons to hopes of a returning CM Punk -- almost no one saw Mustafa Ali as the man pulling Retribution's strings. That, however, was the shocking reveal that stands as the biggest takeaway from the ThunderDome inside Orlando's Amway Center on Monday.

Mustafa Ali revealed as Retribution leader

Ali stood alongside Apollo Crews and Ricochet through the night, including joining his friends in refusing MVP's offer to join The Hurt Business. After The Hurt Business picked up a win over Crews and Ricochet earlier in the night, Ali confronted the group backstage, saying he wanted Bobby Lashley and Shelton Benjamin in MVP's corner for their match later in the night and made it clear he would be in the ring alone.

Mustafa Ali vs. MVP ended in a no contest after Retribution attacked: During the match, the lights flickered and Retribution members stormed ringside. MVP asked Ali to help The Hurt Business fight them off, which Ali initially agreed to, standing back-to-back with MVP, Benjamin and Lashley. Seconds later, Ali rolled out of the ring before telling Mace and T-Bar to attack. Retribution attacked The Hurt Business, taking them out before posing in the ring with Ali, who was revealed to be the group's leader.

Most of the Retribution story has been missed opportunities and bad decisions, but Ali's reveal as the group's leader was a big step in the right direction. He has the past as SmackDown's mysterious hacker -- a gimmick that went nowhere before the reveal was even complete -- and has spent months talking about not being utilized and featuring his work on Main Event. For guys who haven't gotten a fair shake in the company despite being a talent in the ring and on the mic, Ali is a great fit for Retribution and gives them a passionate mouthpiece to help them with their undeniably awful promos over the past month. Grade: B+

Murphy and Seth Rollins brawl

Murphy & Seth Rollins def. Humberto Carrillo & Dominik Mysterio via pinfall after Murphy hit Carrillo with a jumping knee. Before the match, Murphy and Mysterio argued when Murphy told Rollins to apologize for his recent actions toward Aalyah Mysterio. The fighting continued during the match with Rollins trying to not allow a tag-in from Murphy. After Murphy won for his team, he stormed off, yelling about Rollins claiming to not need him. After the match, Rollins confronted Murphy backstage and said he had until 10 p.m. ET to apologize to him, a demand in which Aalyah later said she hoped Murphy would not cave.

At the end of the second hour, Murphy and Rollins were again in the room together, with Rollins demanding Murphy apologize or be broken. Murphy finally had enough, double-legging Rollins and attacking with punches before taking Rollins outside and brawling on the announce table. The battle continued with the pair going back and forth around the ring until Murphy grabbed a kendo stick and began to hit Rollins and demand he apologize to Aalyah. Rollins eventually did, saying he didn't mean to bring her into this before begging Murphy to stop and saying he had done enough. After Murphy stopped, Rollins leaped from the canvas and dug his thumbs into Murphy's eyes before returning fire with kendo stick shots of his own. As Rollins grabbed a steel chair, Aalyah ran to the ring and begged Rollins to stop before the rest of the Mysterios ran to the ring and Rollins walked away before Rey and Dominik made Aalyah leave.

The long tease is over. Murphy and Rollins are no more as the disciple has tired of his messiah's abusive behavior. While it's still unclear where they're actually going with the Murphy/Aalyah relationship, it's still a bit uncomfortable given the difference in age between the two. But the viciousness of Murphy's attack to force Rollins' apology and Rollins' dastardly return attack was well-executed, and matches between Rollins and Murphy should be very good. Grade: B

What else happened on WWE Raw?

• Randy Orton, Robert Roode & Dolph Ziggler def. Drew McIntyre & The Street Profits via pinfall when Orton hit McIntyre with a RKO. Orton opened the show laying down a challenge to McIntyre for a Hell in a Cell match at the upcoming pay-per-view, leading to a backstage brawl between the two. The match was later made official for the Hell in a Cell card. In the main event, Orton hit McIntyre with a RKO for the win right after the WWE champion had laid out Roode with a Claymore.

• Mandy Rose, Dana Brooke & Asuka def. Lana, Natalya & Zelina Vega via pinfall when Rose pinned Lana after a pump knee. The new weekly tradition of Lana getting pinned continued, and for the third time in the last month, she was then put through a table by Nia Jax after Jax and Shayna Baszler executed a post-match attack.

• 24/7 Championship -- Drew Gulak def. R-Truth (c) via pinfall to win the title. Gulak posed as a masked janitor backstage before pinning Truth after Truth slipped on a bucket of water.

• Kevin Owens called out Bray Wyatt. Wyatt was supposed to be a guest on "The KO Show," but instead appeared on the Tron from the Firefly Fun House. Wyatt said Owens didn't know what he'd gotten into with The Fiend, but would find out on SmackDown. As Owens tried to storm from the ring to find Wyatt, he was attacked by Aleister Black.

• Keith Lee vs. Braun Strowman ended in a double count-out. Strowman demanded a match because there was no Raw Underground. Adam Pearce said it would have to be unsanctioned if they found an opponent. Lee volunteered and the two briefly battled before being counted out. They then continued to brawl until Lee drove Strowman off the entrance ramp with both crashing through tables.

• 24/7 Championship -- R-Truth def. Drew Gulak (c) via pinfall to win the title. Truth ambushed Gulak backstage and pinned him inside a dumpster that also contained Akira Tozawa.

• Bobby Lashley & Shelton Benjamin def. Ricochet & Apollo Crews via submission when Lashley put Crews in the Hurt Lock. 

• Women's Tag Team Championship -- Nia Jax & Shayna Baszler (c) def. The Riott Squad via submission to retain the titles when Baszler choked out Ruby Riott. Baszler brutalized Riott's arm early in the match, making the match mostly two-on-one with the champs against Liv Morgan for a stretch. In the end, Baszler choked out Riott, refusing to break the hold as Morgan tried to pull her off after the bell.