Last week on RAW, the RAW Tag Team Champions Street Profits were defeated by The Viking Raiders in a non-title match. The victory will likely help the dominant former NXT Tag Team Champions push their case for a title match down the road.
Ricochet and Cedric Alexander were defeated by the new team of Shane Thorne and Brendan Vink, while WWE Champion Drew McIntyre overcame Murphy.
NXT saw Karrion Kross make an epic debut and score a quick victory to make a statement, while Finn Balor addressed his attacker. The Velveteen Dream failed to win the NXT Championship from Adam Cole thanks to some interferences, and it was interesting to watch Dexter Lumis come to his aide during the match.
Jeff Hardy made his return on SmackDown and immediately got in a rivalry with a major Superstar, while the heels teamed up to take down the babyfaces in a couple of tag team matches.
With so much action taking place last week, there are several things WWE must do this week to keep the interest of the fans alive.
#5 Apollo Crews returns to RAW to help Ricochet & Cedric Alexander, turns heel
Shane Thorne and Brendan Vink are RAW’s newest tag-team looking to make a big impact, and they did well to make an impact last week as they defeated Ricochet and Cedric Alexander after a hard-fought tag team match. Managed by the veteran MVP, Thorne and Vink have a long way to go and it’s good to see the Red brand pushing newer talent.
This week on RAW, the brand must book a rematch between the two teams to give Ricochet and Alexander a chance to redeem themselves and get back on track. We must see the babyfaces score a victory, after which Thorne and Vink along with MVP must beatdown the duo after the match.
Apollo Crews must then appear to even the odds and help the babyfaces get back at the heels, after which he should turn heel and attack Ricochet and Alexander to turn into a villain himself.
Crews had defeated MVP to qualify for the Money in the Bank match, but an injury during a match against Andrade forced him out of it. A heel turn would help the Superstar gain some more following and become more prominent on RAW, and MVP can be the right man to help him get better bookings and rise up on the RAW roster.
#4 RAW’s new heel team interrupt Edge and Randy Orton
Fans saw Edge and Randy Orton take on each other for well over half an hour at WrestleMania 36, but it seems like both men are not done with each other. This week on RAW, the two men are set to come face to face once again in the ring.
While we don’t know which direction this segment will head towards, there is a possibility that The Rated-R Superstar and The Viper will be interrupted during their face-off by RAW’s new young faction.
This Monday Night on RAW, WWE must allow Zelina Vega to head out with Angel Garza and Austin Theory to talk down both the veterans and remind them that their time at the top of the RAW brand is over.
Vega is excellent on the mic, and she should engage in a war of words with the veterans before commanding Garza and Theory to enter the ring to take down Edge and Orton.
This would allow both the veterans to beat down the new heels and deliver their respective finishers to the two men, standing tall at the end of the segment to give the fans a feel-good moment and possibly turning Orton babyface in the process.
It would also give the new heel team even more exposure as the young Garza and Theory try to make it big on RAW along with Vega and Andrade.
#3 Finn Balor squashes Cameron Grimes on NXT
Finn Balor was attacked in his locker room on NXT a few weeks ago and he came out last week to address his attacker. He made it clear that he was unsure who attacked him but made it very clear that whoever it was would have to pay dearly.
Later on in the night, Cameron Grimes took on Denzel Dejournette. Grimes was able to get one up on his opponent and squash him easily to win the match. After the match, Grimes took the mic and spoke about how it’s ‘Grimes Time’ and that the Superstar deserves much more than he gets.
He trash-talked about The Prince of NXT, something that did not go down well with The Prince. He walked out to stand face to face with Grimes and then took him off his feet with a couple of moves before Grimes rolled out of the ring and headed to the back.
This week, Balor will get his hands on Grimes and he will likely vent out his frustration on the newcomer. NXT must allow Balor to completely squash Grimes and make a huge statement to his attacker and the rest of the NXT roster.
Since Velveteen Dream may be out of the NXT Championship picture, such performances can help The Prince of NXT to once again aim for the top title of the brand.
#2 Imperium get a taste of the NXT Tag Team Champions
The Indus Sher made an impression as they took down one-half of the NXT Tag Team Champions Matt Riddle after his match against Roderick Strong several weeks ago. However, Imperium made an even bigger impact a couple of weeks ago as they interrupted The Newly-Bros Show and beat down Riddle and Timothy Thatcher.
Soon after they attacked the NXT Tag Team Champions, the NXT UK heel team laid down the challenge for the Champions which they accepted last week. This week, NXT must allow the reigning Champions to not only defeat Marcel Barthel and Fabian Aichner but make them pay for their actions in the middle of the ring.
Riddle should knock out Aichner before Thatcher makes Barthel tap out to retain the NXT Tag Team Championships so that they can extend their reigns until Pete Dunne can join them to make a dominant faction.
After the match, The Indus Sher should arrive once again to beat down both the men and send another clearcut message, setting up another huge challenge for the Champions. The NXT tag team division is arguably the strongest in all of WWE, and such segments will only prove that the possibilities are endless.
#1 Sheamus Brogue Kicks Jeff Hardy on SmackDown
Last week on SmackDown, Jeff Hardy made a return to the ring and had a chat with Renee Young. He told the WWE Universe that he was back to prove a point that the era of The Enigma was not over and that he had it in him to have one final run.
However, Hardy’s moment was ruined by Sheamus who lived up to his promise and came out to talk down to the former WWE Champion. After a heated exchange, Sheamus walked down the ramp to beatdown Hardy but was unable to get the better of the high-flyer.
Hardy took on Cesaro in a match at Money in the Bank, and both men had a great match and Hardy managed to secure the comeback victory.
This week, we must see Hardy compete in a match with one of SmackDown’s undercard heels. Hardy should take the fight to the heels and win the match comfortably to show the WWE Universe that he still has what it takes to become a top Champion on the Blue brand.
After the match, Sheamus must arrive to attack The Enigma and deliver a big Brogue Kick to close out the segment. Since Hardy delivered the Twist of Fate and Swanton Bomb to The Celtic Warrior last week, this would allow the company to build a full-fledged rivalry between the two veterans for Friday Nights.
A rivalry between these two men will help improve the ratings of the show and give both men a chance to rise to the top of the brand where they truly belong.
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title: “5 Things That Must Happen On Raw Nxt And Smackdown This Week” ShowToc: true date: “2023-01-03” author: “Jack Cloutier”
RAW and SmackDown will have major matches to look forward to on Sunday as their two major men’s titles will also be defended during the MITB pay-per-view.
Apart from that, NXT has announced some huge matches for this week that will see the NXT Championship and NXT Women’s Championship on the line. Also, Johnny Gargano will look to make another statement against a babyface while Karrion Kross will make his much-anticipated debut.
Finn Balor will be in the house too as he will look to address what happened to him in the locker room a couple of weeks ago before his match against Velveteen Dream.
Last week, SmackDown managed to find the final participants from the brand for the men’s and women’s Money in the Bank ladder matches and also gave Sheamus and Sonya Deville a significant push during the show. This week Jeff Hardy will make his long awaited return to the Blue brand after a lengthy layoff.
In this article, we will look at the 5 things that must happen on the three main brands of WWE this week to keep the fans at home entertained.
#5 Jinder Mahal wins the Last Chance Gauntlet Match
Last week’s RAW saw the former WWE Champion Jinder Mahal return to the Red brand after almost ten months away due to injury. The Modern-Day Maharaja wasted little time in making an impact and defeated Akira Tozawa with ease.
The match showed a much more intense side of Mahal as he needed to get more serious and focused following his return. Mahal was stuck in a comic act before his injury as he was seen chasing the 24/7 Championship in a storyline with R-Truth.
WWE must allow Mahal to have a better run on RAW this time around as the brand can do well with some top-level heels. In this week’s episode, a Last Chance Gauntlet Match will be held to determine who will replace Apollo Crews in the Money in the Bank ladder match.
The company must allow Mahal to win this match and progress to the pay-per-view where he can be seen as a real threat to win the briefcase. This will allow him to instantly get on top of the roster and get more prominent as a performer which could lead him to get in contention for the WWE Championship currently held by his former friend, Drew McIntyre.
#4 The RAW Tag Team Championship match gets interrupted
Two of RAW’s top babyface tag teams will engage in a battle for the RAW Tag Team Championships this week, as The Street Profits will defend their titles against The Viking Raiders.
While fans are used to seeing face vs heel matches with Championships on the line, face vs. face matches usually doesn’t get the same sort of crowd reaction.
With that in mind, the company must look to do something different this week to protect both the babyface teams and introduce a new team with eyes on the titles.
During the RAW Tag Team Championships match, we must see Zelina Vega lead Austin Theory and Angel Garza out to attack both the teams and end the match in a no-contest.
While Theory and Garza have had a shot at the titles at WrestleMania, the two are now more well-known and are working better as a team.
With that in mind, the company can then book a Triple Threat Tag Team Match for the titles at the Money in the Bank pay-per-view. This will increase the stakes and give either the Street Profits or The Viking Raiders a chance to win the titles by pinning Theory or Garza and protecting the other team.
#3 Johnny Gargano makes quick work of Dominik Dijakovic
One of the biggest matches scheduled for this week’s NXT will be between the newly turned heel Johnny Gargano and the mammoth babyface, Dominik Dijakovic.
While Dijakovic has the looks of a great heel, he has fit really well as a babyface character on NXT and had some good matches against Damian Priest, Adam Cole, and NXT North American Champion Keith Lee.
However, this will be one of the biggest matches of his career as Gargano is arguably the best wrestler in NXT today. Gargano will try to show his new heel side in his first clash since defeating Tommaso Ciampa with the help of his wife, Candice LeRae.
While Dijakovic is still climbing the ladder on NXT and fails to perform in every big match he’s a part of, he will try his best to overcome the mighty Gargano in this clash.
However, WWE must allow Gargano to make quick work of the massive Superstar to make a statement to the rest of the roster. Johnny Wrestling seems to be done chasing titles, and it’s all about making an impact for him now. He should continue to do so this week, and a quick victory thanks to some heelish tactics over a giant will help him come across as NXT’s biggest villain.
#2 Candice LeRae costs Io Shirai
Last week on NXT, the NXT Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair competed in her first match on the brand since winning the title at WrestleMania 36 from Rhea Ripley.
Flair handpicked Mia Yim to be her first opponent back on the Black & Gold brand, and even though The HBIC gave a tough fight to the Champion, we saw Flair make her tap out to the Figure-Eight leg lock.
After their match was over, Io Shirai arrived to challenge Flair to a title match for NXT next week. While Shirai will be looking to bag her first title in WWE by defeating Flair, NXT must pull off a swerve this week.
The brand must allow the new heel Candice LeRae to interfere in the match and cost Shirai the title. This will allow Flair to extend her reign while protecting Shirai in defeat. A rivalry between Shirai and LeRae will be best for business at this point as they are the two top female wrestlers on the brand at the moment.
It will also allow Shirai a chance to turn babyface in the process and possibly go after the title once again after a few months, winning it with the backing of the NXT Universe.
#1 Sheamus takes down Jeff Hardy
Sheamus defeated another enhancement talent on SmackDown last week and then watched a video package reliving Jeff Hardy’s career played on the big screen.
After the video package was over, Sheamus told Michael Cole that he would be there when Hardy makes his return to the Blue brand next week, and it looks The Celtic Warrior has something on his mind.
This week on the show, Hardy will make his much-anticipated return to the Blue brand and will likely take on an undercard Superstar to show what he’s still got to the WWE Universe.
However, after his match, WWE must allow Sheamus to appear and beat down the returning Superstar, sending a clear message to the veteran.
Both men are back on SmackDown and will be looking to make some impact at a time when the newer stars are trying to shine. Sheamus needs to get some real competition, while Hardy has always been a fan-favorite who can help any Superstar get over.
WWE has a great chance at building two major Superstars at the same time, and this could be the perfect way to give them a boost and take them to the upper card while allowing the newer stars to build around them.
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