August 26th 2022. Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, Michigan. WWE SmackDown. Detroit got a dose of Damage Control. Dakota Kai, IYO SKY and Bayley came to the blue brand to do some scouting ahead of the finals of the WWE Women's Tag Team Titles Tournament on the August 29th episode of Monday Night RAW. Some felt for a time there was an illness festering in the Women's Division. It needed an inspiration to return it to its former glory. Something to make the complacent competitors hungry. There was such a remedy to cure all ills: Damage Control.

IYO and Dakota watched on as Raquel Rodriguez and Aliyah won the semifinal match while Bayley entertained on commentary. After the match, Dakota and IYO stared down their Monday Night RAW opponents. Dakota Kai foresaw and has foretold the world that IYO and her got the tag team titles in the bag. I agree. Just one important question: Do I chose an ice cold beer or glass of whiskey to celebrate their victory?

Dakota acknowledged her storied history with Raquel from NXT during a post show WWE Digital Exclusive interview. She pointed out that she knows Raquel inside out. Our Captain declared on Monday night it's going to be a war. On a worse note for Raquel, based on Aliyah's performance in the semifinal, Damage Control aren't sure how much good she'll be to her partner in the finals. Monday will be merely the start of an important week for Damage Control.

There's in fact much history between the four competitors. Dakota and Raquel were associates in NXT until Kai chose to end that partnership. Her efforts against Raquel were loses until she fought her inner demons and prevailed over her in the 2022 Women's Dusty Cup Tournament semifinals. They made amends and won the NXT Women's Tag Team Titles at Stand & Deliver only to lose them a few days later. They parted on good terms and may still respect each other, however Dakota's got a deadlier edge these days so that friendly past may be exactly that.

It was Raquel who ended IYO's lengthy NXT Women's Title reign at NXT Stand & Deliver 2021. They would become allies later in the year for WarGames. There may still be some respect between them, however like with Dakota and Raquel, I don't foresee them holding anything back when they meet in the finals. Gold is at stake and Damage Control seeks wins not pleasantries.

Aliyah lost to Dakota and Raquel in the 2021 Women's Dusty Cup Tournament. In 2017, she teamed up with Dakota a couple times at NXT Live Events before feuding with her in 2018. Dakota got a win against Aliyah in their NXT TV match and often at Live Events in both singles and tag matches. But Aliyah did prevail in an NXT TV tag match back in September 2018. In August 2021, she picked up another win over Kai during a singles match on Main Event. The last two times they shared the ring were losing efforts last fall as tag partners during dark matches.

That's just some of the storied past between the four. Now it's time to refocus on the present. Dakota Kai and IYO SKY clearly have the experience edge over Raquel and Aliyah. I could factor in all the past wins and loses but none of that actually matters. All that does is that Our Captain Dakota Kai said they'll walk into Clash at the Castle on September 3rd 2022 in Cardiff as the new WWE Women's Tag Team Champions. That's right! Now... beer or whiskey?