WWE Raw results, recap, grades: Event filled with championship bouts results in one title change

With the Royal Rumble more than a month away, WWE used Monday night's edition of Raw to deliver solid wrestling and continue building toward the Day One edition of Raw to kick off the new year. The show featured a trio of title matches, including one title change.

While intercontinental champion Gunther and undisputed WWE tag team champions The Judgment Day were able to retain their titles with wins over The Miz and The Creed Brothers, respectively, Katana Chance and Kayden Carter pulled off a big win over Chelsea Green and Piper Niven to become women's tag team champions.

CBS Sports was with you all night with recaps and highlights of all the action from Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines.

A night of championship matches results in one title change

Intercontinental Championship -- Gunther (c) def. The Miz via pinfall to retain the title. After a lengthy back-and-forth contest, Gunther finally got the win after hitting a powerbomb, ripcord lariat and a second powerbomb to extend his record-breaking run with the title. Gunther would confront his Imperium underlings later in the night, saying he was taking a few weeks off and he expected them to get things together and finally start getting the job done in his absence.

Women's Tag Team Championship -- Katana Chance & Kayden Carter def. Chelsea Green & Piper Niven (c) via pinfall to win the titles. Chance and Carter finished off Green with the Afterparty to become champions. After addressing other women's tag teams backstage, the new champions left, only for Natalya and Tegan Nox to point out to Shayna Baszler and Zoey Stark that new champions need new challengers. The teams will now meet at Day One Raw.

Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship -- The Judgment Day (Finn Balor & Damian Priest) def. The Creed Brothers via pinfall after Priest hit South of Heaven. The wild tag match saw a series of near falls, including two Brutus Balls almost resulting in new tag champs before Judgment Day found a way to win and hang onto the gold.

Raw didn't feature one "main story" over the course of the night but did feature plenty of solid wrestling. Gunther once again proved his talent by bringing Miz along on a great match. But it was the Creeds who stole the show once again, showcasing a sort of wildly off-beat style for WWE with a chaotic approach to their matches. While many acts have fizzled on the main roster after coming up from NXT, the Creeds feel special. The women's tag titles still largely feel like an afterthought with no champions ever really getting on track during a reign but we'll see if Chance and Carter gain some momentum with the belts. Overall, it's hard to be a wrestling fan and have a problem with shows featuring good wrestling. Grade: B+

What else happened on WWE Raw?

• R-Truth def. JD McDonagh via pinfall in a Miracle on 34th Street Fight. Truth and McDonagh fell together off the top rope and through a table, with Truth landing on top for the pin.
• Nia Jax refused to fight Becky Lynch for the second straight week. After the two exchanged words, Jax called for a referee to start a match but then backed out. Jax then said they'd have their match when she decides, before saying they could do it in her home town at the Day One edition of Raw. Lynch attacked Jax but Jax landed a punch after officials restrained Lynch.
• Cody Rhodes attacked Shinsuke Nakamura, brawling with him throughout backstage before the fight spilled into the arena and through the crowd. Nakamura was eventually able to escape.
• Ivar def. Akira Tozawa via pinfall with a front slam from the second rope. Maxxine Dupri managed to fight off Valhala at ringside but that was not enough to help Tozawa pull off the upset.
• Seth Rollins and Drew McIntyre came to blows. Rollins cut a promo addressing his confrontation with CM Punk last Monday before McIntyre came to the ring. The two traded words about McIntyre challenging for Rollins' world heavyweight championship in two weeks before Rollins told McIntyre he pities him because the only man Rollins has to blame for not being champion is himself. This led to a brawl in which Rollins initially had the upper hand before he was slammed onto the ring steps by McIntyre.
• Jey Uso def. Ludwig Kaiser via pinfall with an Uso Splash. Kofi Kingston had been acting as "Kofi Claus" all night and was out at ringside when Imperium attacked him. Uso made the save, leading to an impromptu match.