Paul Heyman Does Dean Ambrose Name-Drop In Explosive Opening Segment On 3/23 WWE Raw

Paul Heyman turned heads in a big way on WWE Raw this week, delivering what many are already calling a rare “shoot-style” promo, complete with a shocking name-drop that caught the crowd completely off guard.

‘WWE Then. Now. Forever. Together.’ opened the broadcast as usual, followed by a recap of the chaos from last week, where Oba Femi left Brock Lesnar laid out after a wild scene involving multiple attackers and outside interference.

Inside the arena, Brock Lesnar made his way to the ring alongside Paul Heyman to kick off the show, but it didn’t take long for things to take an unexpected turn.

Heyman began in typical fashion, introducing himself as the advocate for the “only being” to hold NCAA, UFC, and WWE Heavyweight Championships while headlining WrestleMania — Brock Lesnar. However, the Boston crowd wasn’t playing along, loudly chanting for Oba Femi as Lesnar stood seething in the ring.

That’s when Heyman’s tone shifted.

He warned the crowd they were “p*ssing off” Lesnar before addressing last week’s events, framing it as a situation where Lesnar was overwhelmed by sheer numbers and distractions rather than legitimately beaten. But as Heyman continued, his promo started to blur the lines between storyline and reality.

Then came the moment that stunned everyone.

While listing off past names who failed to dethrone Lesnar, Heyman casually dropped the name “Dean Ambrose”, a former WWE Champion now known as Jon Moxley in AEW. The unexpected reference to a current rival promotion star immediately drew audible gasps from the TD Garden crowd.

You could feel the energy shift instantly.

Heyman paused just long enough to let it sink in, fully aware of the reaction he had triggered before continuing his promo as if nothing happened.

He went on to dismiss Oba Femi as just the latest in a long line of overhyped challengers, insisting that Femi’s biggest WrestleMania moment would simply be stepping foot in the ring with Lesnar.

Not defeating him.

Moments later, the arena went dark. Oba Femi’s music hit and the rising powerhouse made his way to the ring as the crowd erupted into “O-ba!” chants. The tension boiled over immediately, with Femi and Lesnar colliding in a heated brawl.

Lesnar attempted to hoist Femi up for an F5, but struggled to get him up. Femi slipped free, fired back, and ultimately sent Lesnar crashing to the floor with a thunderous clothesline.

Femi stood tall as the segment came to a close, but it was Heyman’s jaw-dropping “Ambrose” name-drop that left everyone talking.

Brock Lesnar vs. Oba Femi is scheduled to take place at WrestleMania 42, which goes down on April 18 and April 19 from Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, NV.

For those interested, you can check out our complete WWE Raw Results 3/23/26 here at WrestlingHeadlines.com.

FAF5 😤 pic.twitter.com/VdKNiNDBsE

— WWE (@WWE) March 24, 2026

OBA FEMI JUST DROPPED BROCK LESNAR AGAIN!!! 😱 pic.twitter.com/kCFezroRMr

— WWE (@WWE) March 24, 2026