Penta beats Laredo Kid to reach semi-finals of World Heavyweight No. 1 Contender's Tournament on WWE Raw in Norfolk

On August 10, 2026, on the August 10 edition of WWE Raw in Norfolk, Virginia, former WWE Intercontinental Champion Penta defeated AAA’s Laredo Kid in a first-round match of the World Heavyweight Championship No. 1 Contender's Tournament to advance to the semi-finals; the tournament will determine the challenger to Roman Reigns for the World Heavyweight title at the September 14 edition of WWE Raw in Mexico City.

The tournament opened on Monday with the stated goal of producing a challenger for Roman Reigns on Raw, September 14, which is scheduled to air live from Arena CDMX in Mexico City. WWE will return to Mexico with its weekly shows for the first time in 15 years, with SmackDown emanating live from Arena CDMX on September 11, 2026 and Monday Night Raw following at the same venue on September 14. Those broadcasts are set to take place during TripleMania 34 weekend; TripleMania is scheduled for Arena CDMX on September 13, while Night 1 will be held at the Luxor Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas on September 11.

The opening match on August 10 featured Penta — identified in the card as a former Intercontinental Champion — against AAA’s Laredo Kid. Penta defeated the AAA star to secure a place in the tournament semi-finals, advancing from the first round on the Norfolk edition of Raw.

The tournament schedule for the remaining first-round matches has been set across WWE programming: the second first-round match is booked for the August 15 edition of AAA, and the two remaining first-round matches will take place on the August 17 edition of Raw in Buffalo, New York.

Updated brackets for the World Heavyweight Championship No. 1 Contender's Tournament, adjusted after the Penta–Laredo Kid result, list the planned title match as: Raw, September 14: Roman Reigns (c) vs Winner of the tournament – World Heavyweight title match. The tournament will conclude on the September 14 edition of WWE Raw in Mexico, where the winner will challenge Reigns for the championship.

The next scheduled match in the tournament is the August 15 first-round bout on AAA, followed by the two remaining first-round matches on the August 17 edition of Raw in Buffalo, New York; the bracket advances toward the final slot to face Roman Reigns on the September 14 Raw at Arena CDMX in Mexico City.