Raquel Rodriguez is making it clear that Lola Vice’s victory on WWE Raw does not, in her view, entitle Vice to a WWE Women’s Intercontinental Championship match.
The issue emerged after a triple-threat qualifying match for the women’s Money in the Bank ladder match on Raw. Rodriguez, the reigning WWE Women’s Intercontinental Champion, competed against Vice and Kelani Jordan. Vice ultimately won the bout, pinning Rodriguez to secure her place in the Money in the Bank ladder match.
That finish gave Vice a meaningful win over the champion, particularly because she was able to defeat Rodriguez directly rather than simply outlast Jordan. In WWE, a non-title pinfall over a champion is often presented as a powerful argument for a future title opportunity. Rodriguez, however, does not believe a single qualifying-match result should immediately elevate Vice into the number one contender position.
Speaking in a recent interview, Rodriguez dismissed the idea that Vice’s Raw win settled anything in the title picture. The champion framed herself as the central figure in the division and argued that Vice still has more to prove on the main roster.
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“Excuse me. The only target here is me. I’m the target because I’m the champion. If Lola thinks that just because she got a quick one on me to get her qualifier into Money in the Bank. ‘Oh, big deal.’ I’ve already been in the ladder match at Money in the Bank, so I don’t care, Lola. But if she thinks that just because she got a quick one on me, that makes her number one contender for the IC title, she’s got something else coming to her because that’s not how it works up here on the main roster, honey. If you want it to be that quick, you can go back to AAA, back to Mexico where you started, back to NXT, because on Raw, it’s Monday Night Raquel, not Vice City. So, get to the back of the line, Mamasita, you’re not next.”
A Raw Result With Two Different Stakes
The key point in Rodriguez’s response is that the Raw match had a specific purpose: qualification for Money in the Bank. Vice accomplished that objective. By pinning the Women’s Intercontinental Champion, she earned a place in one of WWE’s marquee ladder matches and left the champion with a defeat that Rodriguez cannot erase.
At the same time, Rodriguez is drawing a hard distinction between winning a Money in the Bank qualifier and being officially granted a championship bout. The champion’s position is that Vice earned entry into the ladder match, not a direct route to the Intercontinental title.
That argument allows Rodriguez to minimize the loss while also acknowledging the result. She did not deny that Vice pinned her. Instead, she characterized it as Vice getting “a quick one” on her in a match involving three competitors and another major prize. Rodriguez’s message is that the title scene cannot be decided by one opportunistic moment, even if that moment came against the champion herself.
Vice’s perspective is likely much simpler. A pinfall over the titleholder is a tangible accomplishment, and she achieved it in a high-profile match with Jordan also involved. Whether or not Rodriguez wants to recognize Vice as the next challenger, the qualifier handed Vice momentum at a crucial moment on the WWE calendar.
Rodriguez Leans Into Her Champion’s Authority
Rodriguez’s comments were not merely a procedural objection. They were also a statement of confidence from a champion who sees herself as the division’s standard-bearer. Her opening line — “The only target here is me” — puts the emphasis on the championship and on the pressure that comes with holding it.
There is an important contrast in that approach. Vice enters the Money in the Bank field after a victory that can change the direction of her career, while Rodriguez remains focused on protecting her status as champion. The ladder match creates its own route to future championship opportunities, but Rodriguez is not willing to let Vice claim an additional path to her title without more competition first.
Rodriguez also used the interview to establish a firm main-roster hierarchy. Her references to Vice’s background in AAA, Mexico, and NXT were intended as a challenge: Rodriguez is telling Vice that past experience and one quick Raw win are not enough to dictate the terms of the Intercontinental title picture.
“Monday Night Raquel, not Vice City” was the champion’s most pointed line. It reinforces the idea that Rodriguez regards Raw as her territory and believes Vice must adapt to Rodriguez’s level rather than expect the champion to react to every challenge on Vice’s timetable.
Why Vice’s Win Still Matters
Rodriguez can argue that Vice is not officially next, but that does not make the result insignificant. The Women’s Intercontinental Champion was pinned, and Vice now carries both a Money in the Bank qualification and a direct victory over Rodriguez into the next phase of the story.
For Vice, the situation presents two connected opportunities. First, she has earned her way into the women’s Money in the Bank ladder match. Winning that match would give her the ability to pursue a championship opportunity on her own terms. Second, her Raw victory gives her a ready-made response whenever Rodriguez argues that she has not done enough to deserve an Intercontinental Championship match.
The qualifier also creates a natural source of tension even without an immediate title match being announced. Rodriguez wants Vice at “the back of the line,” while Vice has already delivered the kind of result that makes it difficult to treat her as just another name in the division. The more Rodriguez dismisses the pinfall, the more value Vice can place on it.
Jordan’s involvement should not be overlooked, either. The match was not a singles encounter, and that provides Rodriguez with a basis for questioning how decisive Vice’s victory truly was. Yet Vice was the competitor who scored the fall and advanced. In practical terms, she left Raw with the result that mattered most.
Money in the Bank Adds Another Layer
The immediate prize for Vice is the women’s Money in the Bank ladder match, not the Intercontinental Championship. That distinction is central to Rodriguez’s argument, but it also makes the situation more intriguing. A successful Money in the Bank participant can reshape a title landscape quickly, and Rodriguez has stressed that she has already competed in the ladder match before.
By bringing up her own Money in the Bank experience, Rodriguez positioned herself as someone who understands the scale of the challenge awaiting Vice. She is effectively arguing that qualifying is only the beginning and that Vice should concentrate on the major opportunity already in front of her.
Vice, though, does not necessarily have to choose between focusing on Money in the Bank and keeping Rodriguez in her sights. The Raw result has linked the two women. Even if the championship is not immediately defended against Vice, the champion’s refusal to recognize her claim ensures that the issue remains unresolved.
Rodriguez’s comments also put extra pressure on her moving forward. A champion can insist that a challenger has not earned a match, but repeated success from that challenger makes that stance increasingly difficult to maintain. Vice has already taken the first notable step by pinning Rodriguez in the qualifier.
The Championship Picture Remains Unsettled
No Women’s Intercontinental Championship match between Rodriguez and Vice has been established by the comments. Rodriguez was unequivocal that she does not view Vice as the next challenger, and her remarks make clear that she expects Vice to continue earning her place on Raw.
Still, the champion’s denial is exactly what gives the rivalry its edge. Vice owns a fresh win over Rodriguez. Rodriguez owns the title and insists that the challenger has not earned the right to compete for it. Both women now have a clear case to make, and both have a major reason to keep the other in focus.
For Rodriguez, the goal is to preserve the authority of the WWE Women’s Intercontinental Championship and remind the locker room that one pinfall does not make a contender. For Vice, the goal is to prove that her victory was not a fluke or a convenient moment in a triple-threat match, but evidence that she can defeat the champion whenever the stakes are highest.
Vice’s Money in the Bank qualification is secured. Rodriguez’s championship reign continues. But after Vice pinned the champion and Rodriguez answered with a blunt order to get to the back of the line, the two women have established a conflict that is unlikely to disappear quietly.
Darryl Polo
Darryl Polo is a passionate wrestling fan covering WWE, AEW, TNA and beyond. He loves great rivalries, breakout stars and the moments that keep fans talking long after the bell. How we work.