WWE Power Rankings: Week of July 11th
- 10: Cesaro (NR)
Cesaro was the one knocking apparently. The Swiss Cyborg put on a solid match against No Way Jose on RAW and it was revealed on Tuesday night that Cesaro is going to face Aleister Black at Extreme Rules. I really like this matchup and it should be an opportunity to give both competitors a much-needed refresher and it will give Black a nice boost to start his main roster singles career.
- 9: Bobby Lashley (10)
The segment he was in wasn’t the best, but they made him look very powerful on Monday night. After last week’s explosive start, Lashley answer the call of Rey Mysterio’s open challenge. It wasn’t a great way to bring Rey Mysterio back, but it made Lashley look like a complete force heading into his match with Braun Strowman at Extreme Rules.
- 8: Roman Reigns (NR)
WWE
I think the main event of Raw was a complete whiff. I’m glad that they brought Cedric Alexander into the picture through an entertaining way, but it was a meaningless byproduct of the real thing. Hopefully we see Gary Garbutt featured more in the future, but this was an attempt to make build the Reign and McIntyre/McMahon feud. Reigns also had a match on SmackDown with Dolph Ziggler and it was a much better attempt to salvage the week.
- 7: Heavy Machinery (6)
WWE
I decided to go with Heavy Machinery here, but it was honestly all Otis this week. They have a huge match on Sunday and they have a good chance to become SmackDown Tag Team Champs. They will face The New Day and the team of Daniel Bryan and Rowan at Extreme Rules, but on Sunday Otis faced Daniel Bryan and Xavier Woods in a Triple Threat match. Otis won the match, but will they be that fortunate on Sunday? I guess we’ll find out.
- 6: Nikki Cross (NR)
She wasn’t in great spots this week, but they were meaningful. Cross has so much potential, but it seems like it is another classic example of WWE wasting opportunities. I can’t they aren’t giving her airtime, but she is using Alexa Bliss as a crutch and that isn’t a good sign for her future. If they can somehow salvage a feud between Bliss and Cross in the near future, it would definitely be ideal, but Cross needs to be the main player in her match on Sunday.
- 5: Shinsuke Nakamura (NR)
WWE
I almost forgot Nakamura was an active member of the roster. He hasn’t been featured in so long, but he came up with a big win on SmackDown against the Intercontinental Champion, Finn Bálor. I think this personally should’ve been a PPV match on Sunday, but we were treated to a good match on Tuesday night. I remember at WrestleMania 34 that there was a legitimate chance that he would be WWE Champion. He was a huge favorite against AJ Styles in that match, but lost and with that lost all momentum moving forward. Hopefully we see him featured more coming up.
- 4: Ricochet (5)
WWE
I think I may have ranked him a little high this week, but he played a big role on Monday. He faced both Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows in singles matches and defeated both. He has a big match against AJ Styles on Sunday and it will be interesting to see what happens in the match. I could see it going either way, but I don’t think it’s likely that Ricochet will lose the title after just a 20-day reign.
- 3: Seth Rollins and Becky Lynch (8)
WWE
We didn’t get the Seth and Becky vs. Andrade/Vega matchup in the main event of RAW, but we saw the match open the show. It was a really solid showing from both teams, but the elimination stipulation was stupid. The clear intent was to give momentum to Rollins and Lynch heading into Sunday. They will face Baron Corbin and Lacey Evans in a mixed tag match with Universal and RAW Women’s Championships on the line. I expect them to retain, but the match should be fun.
- 2: Baron Corbin and Lacey Evans (NR)
WWE
Some of you may disagree with this team being ranked higher than Lynch and Rollins, but they were standing tall at the end of the segment, so I give them the higher ground. I like this feud, but I don’t think a good portion of the WWE Universe agrees. These two are the perfect villains to butt heads with two top protagonists in the business. I think their extreme rules match should be fun to watch.
- 1: Kevin Owens (2)
The utilization of Kevin Owens this week is a great example of how to get over as a face. He didn’t appear on RAW, but on SmackDown he was a complete star. Although he was banned by Shane McMahon from entering the arena, he kicked off the show with a rant about the current WWE product and it was totally what the fans wanted to hear. He later appeared during the main event to give the stunner to Shane McMahon during the match between Roman Reigns and Dolph Ziggler. I hope they follow through with Owens, because he is a special competitor and should be the face of a changing product. If they follow continue with an edgier product, Owens must be leading the pack.
Yacs