RAW before Crown Jewel Preview: 36-year-old star to earn title shot despite losing; Returning star to secure a controversial win over current champion? (October 31st, 2022)

Welcome to the RAW before Crown Jewel 2022 Preview! Last week marked perhaps the weakest episode of WWE programming since the Triple H era began, but that doesn't mean that there aren't plans to bounce back.

Multiple matches and segments have been announced, including some blockbuster names such as Brock Lesnar. The Judgment Day's feud with The O.C. will intensify, while Johnny Gargano could potentially reveal a huge secret about The Miz and Dexter Lumis' connection.

Apart from that, it's going to be a stacked episode, so here's what you have to look forward to!

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#5. What will be the fallout of Mustafa Ali and Seth Rollins' feud?

Ali stood tall despite losing last week

Last week on RAW, Mr. Money in the Bank Austin Theory defeated Mustafa Ali with some assistance from Seth Rollins. Towards the end, as Rollins walked out, Ali still got the better of him.

The nascent feud has been interesting to watch and we can only see this heading towards Crown Jewel 2022. So despite losing last week, the 36-year-old Ali could have a big shot at the gold. But will he be able to derail Rollins' momentum this quickly?

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#4. Bianca Belair to take on the returning Nikki Cross

Last week on RAW, Bayley defeated Bianca Belair once again in a non-title match. However, the RAW Women's Champion was close to victory until a mystery figure took out Damage CTRL and then the champion herself, while the referee was also taken out.

By the time the next referee arrived, it was revealed that Nikki Cross had already taken Belair out, resulting in The Role Model just needing to cover The EST for the pin and win.

Nikki A.S.H. is gone, and the unhinged, Sanity-esque Nikki Cross is back and better than ever. Nikki Cross will take on Belair in a non-title match this week. Don't be surprised to see her pick up a controversial victory.

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#3. Roman Reigns returns to RAW

What will The Tribal Chief have to say this week?

Roman Reigns won't be on SmackDown for the go-home show before Crown Jewel 2022. However, he will appear on RAW, presumably to address Logan Paul and his upcoming Universal title defense.

It will be interesting to see if he comes without The Usos and if Logan Paul eventually confronts him.

It would be a bit odd to go into the match without there being a final standoff between the two. However, there is still a lot of anticipation for this upcoming match at Crown Jewel.

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#2. Matt Riddle takes on Otis in a Trick or Street Fight

Who will stand tall in the Halloween special?

It's Halloween season, which means that there was always going to be a Trick or Street Fight. While NXT has Halloween Havoc, the WWE main roster has this. Either way, since Riddle hasn't been doing much since Extreme Rules 2022, it makes sense that he would be involved with Otis in what we expect to be a fun match.

Will the King of Bros get one over the muscle of Alpha Academy, or will Chad Gable's presence prove to be the difference-maker in the match?

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#1. Brock Lesnar returns to RAW ahead of his big rematch against Bobby Lashley

Brock Lesnar is back and a few weeks ago, we saw him get into a brawl with The All Mighty Bobby Lashley, who ultimately got the better of him and sent him through a table.

Lesnar is unlikely to ask, "Bobby who?" this time around, as he is well aware of the threat that Lashley poses to him. Lashley vs. Lesnar may not technically headline Crown Jewel 2022, but it seems to be the fans' main event in the eyes of many.

We can expect another explosive confrontation between the two this week unless there is a contract that explicitly prevents any physical contact between the two.

Either way, an entire locker room doesn't seem like it's enough to separate the two. What will happen when The Beast Incarnate returns to RAW before Crown Jewel? Will it be his final appearance on the Red brand in 2022?