5 Ways to make WWE Raw great again

WWE’s hardcore fans are nothing if not loyal. They’ll weather weeks, sometimes months, and even years if mostly bad programming out of a combination of memories of when WWE was at its best and the hopes that it might reach those heights again.

Though WWE has greater reach, a more expansive roster, and more diverse programming than it has ever had before, WWE Raw has not been its best self since WrestleMania season. Some of that has been beyond WWE’s control, like Roman Reigns and Sami Zayn having to step out of action. Other parts, however, have been more manageable like direction of the tag team division that saw part time teams dominate and a substantial run with The B-Team carrying the titles.

What would it take to return WWE Raw to the heights of entertainment value and ratings it once enjoyed? This article suggests five steps on the right direction.

#5 Exile Baron Corbin and Brock Lesnar

Baron Corbin has floundered as an authority figure.

Two of the most dominant figures on WWE Raw for most of 2018 have been Baron Corbin as Constable and interim general manager, and Brock Lesnar as the brand’s top champion. It’s tough to sell fans on buying into a show when the figures in each of these central roles are so unpopular.

Corbin isn’t with out his talents, but he simply isn’t among the upper echelon of talkers availed to WWE and doesn’t have the presence or notoriety of a legend to compensate. Meanwhile, Lesnar has the tools to be over, but fans are clearly tired of having a part time champion who doesn’t work most episodes of WWE Raw or PPV, and has been inconsistent in his performance when he does show up.

The simplest fixes? Out with both of these guys Lesnar would be welcome back for a WrestleMania program and Corbin is fine as a mid-card act or potentially in a tag team. Getting them out of these high profile roles will be huge for WWE Raw.

#4 Dean Ambrose domination

Dean Ambrose’s first world title reign in WWE didn’t exactly light the world on fire. Some of that limited success is Ambrose’s responsibility as a performer. Some of it, however owes to his cast of opponents, the creative he was given, and being cast as a face.

Ambrose exceeded early expectations in his face role, but his madman character and the violent style he worked pre-WWE both feel like a more natural fit for a heel role. Now that he is cast as such and has the buzz behind him of working heel for the first time in over five years, (and the first time on the main roster as a solo act) Ambrose is poised to thrive.

Now is the time to give the lunatic fringe the ball on the mic, in the ring, and with the Universal Championship. He’s uniquely equipped to player a Joker-like agent of chaos and be a super compelling focal point of Raw.

#3 Let Seth Rollins play the iron man

Rollins is one of the most exciting in ring performers WWE has, and should be allowed to do his thing.

In one of the most unique episodes of WWE Raw this year, a gauntlet match for the number one contendership saw Seth Rollins work a record fifty five minutes in the ring. The match confirmed what many fans had already suspected: Rollins is not only in the short list of the best in ring performers WWE has, but he has the phenomenally high endurance to put on long matches without losing a step.

In the ring, Rollins is WWE Raw’s most entertaining asset today. The show could do a lot worse than to showcase in more supersizes matches, or to work more than one match on a show to raise the overall quality of in ring work. Featuring Rollins like this not only serves the interests of the hardcore fan base that by and large loves to watch the guy, but can also help to lure in more casual viewers because of The exciting fast paced style the King Slayer tends to work.

#2 Call up The Undisputed Era

The Undisputed Era could freshen the singles and tag ranks on Raw.

The Undisputed Era is one of the best acts in NXT, combining their infectious heel swagger, game on the mic, and pure in ring talent to thrive month after month. There’s a reason that members of the faction have been featured on every TakeOver special for the last year, and it’s that this group always delivers.

The Undisputed Era could thrive if pushed properly on Raw as a brand new set of talents for the main roster audience, more than capable of delivering great matches with a variety of opponents. Moreover, besides having terrific singles talents, different permutations of Kyle O’Reillu, Bobby Fish, and Roderick Strong have dominated the tag title scene in NXT and could take huge strides toward doing the same on WWE Raw. In particular, they have already proven their chemistry opposite the Authors of Pain and could succeed in telling the more traditional story of smaller underdogs against monster heels, or recreate their NXT magic as heels vile enough to push the AOP toward a de facto face role.

#1 Feature Sasha Banks, and as a heel

Sasha Banks should be the top heel in Raw women's division.

Sasha Banks thrived as the Women’s Champion in NXT, playing a mean-spirited, arrogant heel character. On WWE Raw, she has maintained a good bit of her swagger, but has only played a face across the last two and a half years.

Though Banks’s size and popularity with hardcore fans do lend themselves to her playing a face, she has grown stale and gotten lost in the shuffle in that capacity. To not feature such a special talent, and especially not in the role she’s most naturally suited to feels like a huge waste of resources.

Whether Banks is cast as a fresh challenger to Ronda Rousey straight off or built up by WWE finally going for her long hinted at program with Bayley first, her heel turn could do wonders for her and the whole Raw women’s division. Unlike Nia Jax, who has no great matches and a checkered record when it comes to hurting other talents, Banks could be instrumental in making Raw great again.

Edited by Pratyay Ghosh