It’s hard not to notice the excitement in the air around the WWE Universe as Royal Rumble season is upon us. There are just a few weeks remaining until the big show in San Antonio and, here at Sportskeeda, we could not be more excited about that fact. After all, WWE does keep telling us to Remember the Rumble and at this stage, it's hard to forget it.
Either way, the build towards the event has varied in quality between Raw and SmackDown Live in recent weeks. As the blue brand focuses on smaller feuds in addition to the big World Title one, Raw appear to be relying heavily on the likes of Lesnar and Goldberg.
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Whichever you prefer, it seems like the general consensus among fans favours the techniques of SmackDown.
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However, there have been sparks of greatness shown in recent weeks by Raw, which proves that the flagship show can still surprise us every so often. But as the days get nearer and nearer to the event at the Alamodome, something big needs to happen in order to get those last few sign-ups to the WWE Network before things get underway.
So with that said, let's have a look at five things Raw simply must do on the go-home show in order to get people excited about the Rumble.
#5 Massive brawl
Come on now, it wouldn't be the hype before the Rumble if we didn't see this. Year in and year out you can often bet that the final segment on either the go-home show for Raw or SmackDown will be a massive brawl between Rumble competitors. That's just the way it is, and there's absolutely nothing wrong with that.
In fact, it often winds up being one of the highlights of the show. One of the main reasons for this is there is no logical reason behind why everyone is coming out, other than to cause absolute mayhem for the pleasure of the fans. At the end of the day, there aren't many things more fun than that.
Of course, there's absolutely no sense in it, considering these Superstars are risking a potential injury by putting their bodies on the line less than a week before the big match. Then again, when has logic ever mattered all that much in WWE? After all, it's only a place in the main event of WrestleMania at stake.
From a brawl containing dozens to one that only needs two.
#4 Lesnar haunted by Goldberg
At Survivor Series 2016 Brock Lesnar was defeated by Goldberg in less than two minutes, and to be honest the wrestling world is still trying to come to terms with it. The utter shock of the moment itself was something we hadn't seen since the death of The Undertaker's WrestleMania streak, and it's not a coincidence that the two events intertwine.
We haven't seen the Beast Incarnate appear on TV since that moment in Toronto, and while he is appearing this upcoming week, it's the go-home show that could really make the biggest impact. Have Goldberg come out to confront Lesnar before Brock kind of cowers away and appears to be a shell of the man he was back at SummerSlam.
It'll make his inevitable path of destruction all the more satisfying, because we as fans know he has to change up his style in some shape or form in order to make the story work. Whether that actually comes to fruition is another matter entirely, but for now focus on having the former WCW Champion strike fear into the heart of Paul Heyman's client.
Onto a man who knows a thing or two about the advocate.
#3 Mick Foley snaps
It's no secret that Mick Foley has been made to look a fool since being appointed as Raw's General Manager. Good old Stephanie McMahon loves to destroy the credibility of Superstars throughout the roster, and she continues to do it on a weekly basis to Mrs Foley's Baby Boy.
But enough is enough. As we approach the Rumble and the subsequent road to WrestleMania, now is the time for the hardcore legend to really stand up for himself and prove to the world why he is still considered to be such an icon. No more of this standing around being screamed at by the boss' daughter, because at the end of the day that's all she really is.
We need to see that fire in Mick's belly that we got a taste of during his segments with Sami Zayn a few weeks ago. That is the kind of tenacity we need to see from the General Manager, although perhaps not quite to that extent on such a regular basis. Still, it would be miles better than what we've had as of late.
It's time to move onto a man who has had his fair share of issues with Stephanie.
#2 Rollins gets personal
Seth Rollins' desire for a match with Triple H sort of came out of nowhere. Despite his reasoning being completely justified, it's taken the Architect way too long to actually call the King of Kings out on television and it feels as if the WWE creative team spontaneously remembered that they needed to start building towards the match pretty quickly.
So now, it's time to ramp things up a notch. They may have missed a great opportunity for a segment with HBK on Raw, but they can't afford to do that again heading into one of the biggest PPVs of the year. Seth needs to do something like smash the windows of HHH's house or beat a former DX member into submission in order to get the Cerebral Assassin's attention.
Yes, these kind of angles don't really happen anymore, but the product is starting to feel alot edgier. It's not exactly going all the way back to the attitude era days, but there are certainly more and more things that WWE is getting away with. Rollins needs to feel like the bad ass face we all know he can be, and this would be a great way to start that run.
Now from a babyface onto one of the biggest monster heels in recent years.
#1 Braun crushes the world
Braun Strowman's rise to the top of WWE has so far been gradual, but pretty brilliant. The monster of a man has been tearing through the Raw roster and shows no signs of slowing down heading into the annual battle royal extravaganza. With that being said, we need to continue seeing that dominance just days before the match itself.
During the melee of the likely big brawl to end the show, Strowman should literally take out nearly every person in the ring similar to how Big Show did upon returning to SmackDown over a decade ago. It may seem like a babyface move, but as long as you don't have him hit too many complex or impressive spots then this should work out just fine.
Whatever happens, the January 23rd edition of Raw will likely be one to remember, but just in case WWE should strongly consider taking these booking steps as we approach one of the biggest Royal Rumbles in the history of the company.
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