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Things have been heating up on both RAW and SmackDown since SummerSlam, and WWE has managed to construct some good storylines heading into the Clash of Champions pay-per-view.
The introduction of the King of the Ring tournament has certainly helped many mid-card Superstars get back into action and get a few important and interesting matches while remaining in the eyes of the WWE Universe.
Other than that, booking a Universal Championship match between the current RAW Tag Team Champions is another bold move which could result in either trust issues, or the entire partnership getting blown up.
To carry on the momentum of the storylines, WWE will try to do their best in putting forward some great segments and matches on both Raw and SmackDown this week before the major event on Sunday. In this article, we will look at the 4 things WWE must do on RAW and SmackDown Live this week.
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#1 Ali begins to give in to the dark side
With a semifinal spot on the line last week, Ali squared off against Elian in the King of the Ring Quarterfinals on SmackDown.
While fans were rooting for Ali for most of the bout, there was nothing that could stop the Heart of SmackDown Live from picking up the win and getting one step closer to becoming King Ali. While Ali tried to deliver the final 450 Splash, Elias managed to avoid it and connected with Drift Away to punch his ticket to the semifinals.
Now that Ali has been knocked out of the tournament, it seems like the push fans had been hoping for him for some time will take much longer, and the company could focus on repackaging the Superstar in the process.
After the match, Ali posted a cryptic tweet which could signal towards a slight or major change in character for him.
While we cannot speculate whether Ali will be turning heel, or joining the dark side with Aleister Black in the coming week, WWE should focus on this and give us a short segment or something which can give the fans some indication on what’s next for the Superstar.
#2 Cedric Alexander scores a huge upset
Cedric Alexander’s biggest win on the main roster, and arguably of his entire career, came several weeks back when he managed to defeat the Scottish Psychopath Drew McIntyre in one-on-one competition on RAW.
While that was the biggest feud he’d gotten into on the main roster, this is looking bright for the former Cruiserweight Champion as he will get a chance to battle one of the greatest wrestlers in the industry on Monday Night. Alexander was attacked by AJ Styles and the other two men in The OC last week which took a lot out of him before his quarterfinal match against Baron Corbin.
Alexander will get a chance to exact revenge from Styles as the two will come face to face in the ring in a non-title match. WWE should allow Alexander to go one-up against the United States Champion so that fans can get an epic battle between the two men for the United States Championship at Clash of Champions. The established heel with a crew against a new babyface should work wonders for the company going forward.
#3 Ricochet gets a huge babyface moment
Speaking of babyfaces, it seems like there is no bigger new babyface on RAW than The One and Only, Ricochet. Ricochet arrived on RAW from NXT and has shaken up the entire mid-card scene by gaining a lot of success and building a huge fanbase on the main roster.
Ricochet is currently the only babyface favorite to win the King of the Ring tournament who had the odds in his favor since the beginning. He will be faced by not one, but two of the biggest heels of RAW in the semi-finals this week, and this could be his ultimate moment to shine!
The former NXT North American Champion and United States Champion could prove why he’s one of the hottest prospects by overcoming the odds against him in the semifinals, and taking out both Samoa Joe and Baron Corbin in the triple threat match which will determine the finalist for RAW at Clash of Champions.
Ricochet has all it takes to score an underdog victory when the odds are stacked against him, and defeating Joe and Corbin in a match will give him his biggest babyface moment to date.
#4 Rowan rolls over Daniel Bryan
Last week on SmackDown, the entire WWE Universe was caught by surprise as Rowan stormed out to the middle and laid out Roman Reigns before turning on Daniel Bryan, who accused him of lying and attacking The Big Dog.
Even though the build-up to the final reveal was quite good, the final blow which has now led to a match at Clash of Champions between Rowan and Roman seems to be missing that extra kick.
We haven’t really seen Rowan impress as a solo competitor in the ring for some time, and WWE could work on this aspect by booking him in a match on Tuesday night against his former partner Daniel Bryan.
The two men will have a score to settle against each other, and WWE could use that angle to give them a match in which Rowan comes out looking extremely strong as Bryan has a knack of putting his opponents over in grand fashion.
The result will allow Rowan to go into Sunday’s match with much more momentum and will pose a real threat to Roman Reigns.
