Another week of WWE action in the books, so that means another edition of the WWE Power Rankings on The Sport Chief. Overall, RAW improved a good bit this week. It had some great moments and a good bit of takeaways heading into the Royal Rumble. Despite being nearly unwatchable the past few weeks for casual fans, the show did a great job of telling stories and building heat going into the Royal Rumble. At the end of the first segment, Vince McMahon told Braun Strowman that he would not be in the Universal title match against Brock Lesnar at the Rumble. So, what was going to come up next? The WWE universe wanted to know what was going to take place. Was Lesnar going to compete? The close of the show answered all the questions we needed to know and we will discuss it more later in the article. The boss stripping the Monster Among Men of his title shot is likely due to him not being cleared for action yet, at least I hope that’s the reason. Regardless of what the reason is, I’m not expecting Braun Strowman to be near the Top 10 for a long while, unless something drastic happens. I mean he flipped over the boss man’s limo, so I don’t think he is going to be on his good side in the near future. Also on the program, the highly anticipated WWE Women’s Tag Team Championships were unveiled on “A Moment of Bliss”. I think the design looks great and women’s division deserves something like this to propel their status moving forward. The segment in which they were presented could’ve been a lot better, but the fact that this unveiling was a surprise overshadowed the crappy segment. The new champions will be crowned at Elimination Chamber next month in the confines of the chain linked enclosure including 3 teams from each brand. I’m anxious to see who will be the new champions and how they will handle the competition between the two brands. We also saw a title change hands on RAW which is always exciting and this will also be discussed later in the article as well.

SmackDown Live was solid, as usual. Last week, the show was awesome and I knew that this week had to be something special if it was going to top it. I have to say that it wasn’t better than last week, however, it was a very watchable program. The Man opened up the program, we saw more heat in the WWE title picture, and we got to see a Match of the Year candidate on a television show. All in all, it was a solid week. None of the performers involved in the Naomi and Mandy Rose feud are in the Top 10, but it is not being well received in the WWE Universe. I personally think the storyline works. It gives two performers airtime on SmackDown and despite the risqué nature of the storyline in the current PG setting, I personally think it is getting the job done. It will keep Naomi and Mandy Rose relevant on a program that is being overshadowed by Becky Lynch, Asuka, and Charlotte Flair. The ending of the show left more to be desired, but it didn’t ruin entire program. Now that the summary is out of the way, it is time to get down to business. Here is the Top 10 for this week’s edition of the Power Rankings.

- 10: AJ Styles (10)

No, you aren’t reading last week’s article. The Phenomenal One is back at number 10 in this week’s power rankings. Yet again, Styles was not in action this week, but his presence was felt for sure. After last week’s debacle, Styles had an answer for Daniel Bryan’s promo last week. Styles set up an event in the arena’s concourse area with fans gathered around supporting The Face that Runs the Place. Much to his surprise Daniel Bryan was in the crowd and attacked Styles and chaos ensued. The two had to be separated and this builds even more heat moving into the PPV in two weeks. The encounter between the two wasn’t as heated as last week, but it did the job and Styles gets to stay in the Top 10, for now.

- 9: Drew McIntyre (NR)

The Scottish Psychopath was not listed in last week’s rankings, but he made a powerful impact this week and because of that, it has landed him in the Top 10. McIntyre’s promo in the middle of the card with John Cena, Baron Corbin, Finn Bálor, and Mr. McMahon was strong and he was the last man standing in the aftermath of the segment, which was a strong look. He was featured in a Fatal 4-Way match in the show’s main event, which also involved those that participated in the promo. The winner of the match earned an opportunity at Brock Lesnar’s Universal Championship at the Royal Rumble. McIntyre did not win the match, but he did not get pinned. He was very solid in this match and he will certainly get more chances at a major title in the future. I was down to him and John Cena for the 9 spot this week, but you guys will find out the reason why later in the article.

- 8: Ronda Rousey (5)

The Baddest Woman on the Planet was in action on RAW this week, but dropped 3 spots in this week’s power ranking. She teamed up with Sasha Banks to take on the team of Tamina and Nia Jax. The two won the match with Sasha Banks making Tamina tap to her Bank Statement finishing move. The two had a conversation with Charley Caruso after the match and this was the main reason why Ronda dropped 3 spots in this week’s rankings. She looked like a child in this segment and did not come across as threatening whatsoever. I debated even putting her in the Top 10, but after careful consideration, I came to the conclusion that she did deserve to be here despite my disliking of her segment. Sasha carried the match for the most part and walked away with the most momentum. I understand that Ronda is supposed to be the likeable threat, and for the most part, her portrayal of that is successful, but I need to see her with a scarier persona moving forward. She is a fighting machine, she needs to be presented as such, she doesn’t need to be apologizing to her future opponent. I hope we see a new Ronda Rousey starting next week.

- 7: Daniel Bryan (2)

In all honesty, Daniel Bryan should not be this low in the power ranking, but I think the two superstars above him had a better week than him. His feud with AJ Styles is still a good one with a great deal of heat, so I feel bad for dropping him 5 spots this week. Bryan was disguised in street clothes during the AJ Styles rebuttal segment and he attacked the Phenomenal One in the crowd. He had a very small part in this week’s episode of SmackDown, but it did make an impact. With one step closer to the next PPV, look for an interesting segment next week involving these two.

- 6: Asuka(NR)

Asuka was not ranked last week, but she fully deserved to be in this week’s Top 10. The Empress of Tomorrow was very strong this week in her feud with Becky Lynch. The two squared off each with a member of the IIconics. Asuka faced Billie Kay and it was a total squash. The SmackDown Women’s Champion looked like the powerful force that she was in NXT and up until her match with Charlotte Flair at WrestleMania 34. People do not like Asuka speaking on the mic, but I really enjoy what she is doing. Her English is not great, but it doesn’t have to be. She has such great charisma that it makes up for it. She is doing her best for sure and the moment when she starts yelling in Japanese is awesome and I think it makes her sound meaner (maybe Ronda needs to learn Japanese). We’ll see how next week turns out, but I am super excited about her match with Becky Lynch at the Rumble.

- 5: Bobby Lashley (NR)

The Almighty Bobby Lashley is the new Intercontinental Champion and he earned his way into this week’s Top 5. He won the title in a match with Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose and looked very strong in the match. I’m glad that Lashley is getting some recognition and this certainly is the right time to take the title away from Ambrose. I personally felt Ambrose’s title reign was one of the weakest in recent memory. I want to see Lashley engaged in some solid stories moving forward and I want to see them build onto his character more in the future. One feud that I can see coming up is Lashley squaring off with Kevin Owens. Owens is very close to coming back and a squabble with Lashley would put him right back into a relevant situation. I just don’t want Lio Rush talking during matches any more.

- 4: Sasha Banks (3)

Sasha Banks is another person that did not deserve to lose any spots in the power ranking, but it is just another case of superstars having a slightly better week. Despite Ronda Rousey looking weak in her spots this week, Sasha Banks was the complete opposite. She proved again this week why she deserves to always be considered for a title run. Like I said earlier, Banks carried the match and the segment that followed. I’m not expecting The Boss to become the new RAW Women’s Champion at the Rumble, but I think the match will be solid. Keep an eye out for this feud next week on RAW.

- 3: Andrade (4)

Andrade might’ve lost 2/3 of his name this week, but he gained one spot in the power ranking. His match this week with Rey Mysterio was Match of the Year caliber and we got to witness it on an episode of SmackDown in the middle of the card. Rey Mysterio is one of the greatest to ever step inside the squared circle and his experience helped guide a younger Andrade is this one, not that he needed any help. Their styles mesh perfectly and I think the two had a longer leash in what they could do in their match and it worked beautifully. Andrade looks like he is getting a bigger push moving forward and he has earned every bit of it. He won the match and this is the second week in a row that he has pinned Mr. 619. Hopefully he will accumulate a bigger winning streak and maybe a title opportunity in the near future.

- 2: Becky Lynch (1)

I hate to say it, but The Man is not number one this week. Becky Lynch would have a big issue with my power ranking this week, but that is not to say she didn’t have a good week, she had an excellent week. She opened the show and was very strong in her promo work. She also drank a nasty look smoothie compiled of milk, eggs (shells included), pancakes, and tuna. She then worked a match with Peyton Royce. The match wasn’t a squash like Asuka’s match, but she obviously won the match. I would like to make mention that Peyton Royce put on a great match with The Man, even if Lynch wasn’t wearing ring gear. The Man’s rivalry with Asuka is great and I hope we can see more of these two in action after her feud with Ronda is settled, but that’s not to say I want a speedy conclusion between Rousey, Flair, and Lynch.

- 1: Finn Bálor (NR)

Monday’s episode of RAW was the Finn Bálor show and it is about time. There probably isn’t a competitor in the WWE that was in need of a title push more than this guy. He wasn’t in last week’s power ranking and this week he claims the top spot. In the promo segment with all the competitors that competed in the Fatal 4-Way prior to the match, it just felt like Bálor was going to earn the spot. If you go back and watch RAW, notice that Mr. McMahon only speaks to one superstar directly, guess who it was? Trust me, it’s not a trick question. He squared off with Jinder Mahal to gain entry into the Fatal 4-Way and honestly this wasn’t necessary at all, but I get what they were doing. They wanted him to have more momentum going into the main event and it worked. Bálor pinned John Cena to become the number one contender for the Universal Championship at the Royal Rumble. The moment following the match was well done with Cena and Bálor. Cena congratulated him and told him that he earned is respect, this will only add to his momentum going into the PPV. I wasn’t super excited to see another match between Lesnar and Strowman prior to this week’s RAW, but now I’m fully invested in this match. The WWE creative could not have handled this any better than they did with Bálor. Also, expect to see Demon Bálor at the Rumble. People questioning his sudden rise to the championship match need to be reminded of the great match Lesnar had with Daniel Bryan at Survivor Series. I expect to see something very similar at the next PPV.

Dropped Out of the Top 10: Carmella, Seth Rollins, Charlotte Flair, Dean Ambrose

Yacs

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WWE Power Rankings - Week of January 16th-22nd