WWE is all set to make their last stop before Payback and the company is desperate to sign off on a positive note before they get into the shooting range of the Chicago crowd.The creative team failed to impress much last week as there werent many big moments to speak about. The teased stripping of Daniel Bryans title was delayed further to keep the fans on their toe while the other two major feuds ended in the usual toggling fashion.With a lot of pressure on the Pay-per-view buy rates after the launch of the Network, WWE will be looking to get the maximum foothold with their events before SummerSlam.And this week will be crucial for their first venture in that list so here is a look at what all things we could expect from this weeks Raw.
#5 Catfight over Fandango
The WWE Universe is witnessed an attitude era like feud being kicked off last week when Summer Rae returned to knock out Layla to get cozy with Fandango.
The battle between the two divas over the dancer is nowhere near over as it has only started. Summer is portrayed as a babyface here and we all know how good Layla is playing a heel in storylines.
Fandango will be the helpless guy stuck between the two and that is only the sad part about the feud.
WWE giving the divas division another feud apart from the title one and the baseless Total Divas one is a great idea. The fans will finally have something to invest when it comes to the division since AJ Lee might not be returning anytime soon.
#4 The Second-Coming of Bo
Bo Dallas returned to the main roster last week but many didn’t expect him to do so in SmackDown. It was a good win over Sin Cara nevertheless and the company will be eager to build him as an old-school babyface after his first stint went nowhere.
For that, his Raw debut will be very important and the type of opponent he gets will decide the success of Bo on the long run.
WWE don’t have to book him in squash matches like they are doing with Rusev since Bo is a household name who could put directly into a feud.
The lights of Big Show, Mark Henry or even Dolph Ziggler would benefit from the same so the former NXT champion might be out to save one of the unused midcarders.
#3 Completion of the Payback Match card
Only four matches have been put up by the company at the moment for Payback and there is clearly room for more in the three hour show.
Situation with the World Heavyweight title will be sorted out this week and if the company wants, we might see a match to determine the new champion at Payback. The Divas title and the Tag Team titles haven’t found a place in the card as well.
Other interesting midcard exchanges include the Adam Rose – Zeb Colter one and the teased match between Rusev and Big E. we could expect at least two or three matches to be added into the pay-per-view and WWE is not short of any choices as well.
#2 The Upper hand before the Pay-Per-View
The last show before a pay-per-view is always a stage for superstars to get the upper hand before the actual match. The company also gives subtle hints on who will walk out as the winner as well and we could see such drama this week as well.
Top feuds like the Bray Wyatt- John Cena and Shield- Evolution should be kept under the microscope since it would be interesting to see who gets the final word before the match.
Shield has been on top of Evolution after Extreme Rules and Hunter’s wolf pack will be looking to turn the tables. Bray on the other side made a big statement by nailing Cena on Raw while Cena has to do something to get the faith back.
The potential exchanges in the two feuds will be the potential show stealers of the night as the company is desperate to go big with Payback.
#1 Bryan vacating the title?
Though the company revealed that the future of the championship will be determined last week, they only gave Stephanie McMahon some limelight and pushed the decision further.
Stephanie gave Bryan the opportunity to surrender the title himself and even though many of the fans wouldn’t want that to happen it might be the only option he has.
Bryan’s injury was minor but the company wouldn’t want to get him back into the ring fast and affect his long term future.
At the same time, having Bryan drop the title will develop a lot of sympathy towards him which they could use once he returns. The other possibility is Vince McMahon coming to the aid of Bryan, it is a long shot but with WWE we never know what we are going to get until it happens.