Monday Night RAW convincingly won the WWE Draft this year, trading floundering stars for former champions and blockbuster attractions. The red brand secured some of the more controversial draft picks as well, bringing an end to the New Day faction by splitting Kofi and Xavier from their longtime friend and partner, Big E, to allow him to embark on his singles run. Whichever way you look at it, Monday nights are about to get a lot more exciting.
In this piece, we’re going to run down 5 things that need to happen following the 2020 Draft, whether that’s certain stars receiving a major push or feuds that need to flourish now that former rivals are sharing the same brand. For today, we’re going to focus on Monday Night RAW, then moving onto SmackDown Live later on in the week.
Make sure you leave your own dream matches and fantasy feuds for the new RAW roster down in the comments below.
1. The Limitless Bros
Since being called-up from NXT, both Matt Riddle and Keith Lee have been met with relative success. ‘The Original Bro’ has just come off of a feud with King Corbin, victorious in his first main roster PPV appearance, whereas Lee has battled ‘The Viper’ Randy Orton to rave reviews. A bright future seems to be on the cards for both former champions, and now they’re both permanent members of the RAW roster, perhaps that future could start in the Tag division.
In the past, Matt Riddle and Keith Lee have battled as both partners and opponents, last appearing as ‘The Limitless Bros’ against the Undisputed Era last year. They bring an exciting dynamic to the squared circle, with Lee the ultimate powerhouse acting as the hot tag for the technically gifted mat-wrestler. When Kofi & Woods eventually pass their 6th Tag titles onto another heel team, I’m sure the fans would be chomping at the bit to see the reformed Limitless Bros dethrone whichever tandem is on top.
Either that, or let’s see a classic hoss-off between the two.
2. The Rise of Elias
It’s hard to deny that Elias sits on the throne for heels in WWE. Despite his most recent run as an attempted babyface, Elias has managed to rile up crowds from across the world by simply being given a spotlight. Sometimes, he wouldn’t even have to pluck on the strings of his guitar, he’d just sit there and soak in the heat. That’s the mark of a true villain.
Elias’ comeback was perfect in that he completely undone the work WWE had put in to making him a shining hero. He battered Jeff Hardy with his guitar and left with the typical scowl on his face. I’m buzzing to see how he’s going to antagonise the WWE Universe on Monday Nights, hopefully receiving similar receptions to those during his peak in 2018 when live crowds eventually return to arenas.
WWE know there’s potential in Elias as a main-eventer, it’s time to pull the trigger on that suspected push and ride that heat all the way to the top of the RAW roster.
3. John Morrison vs. The Miz
Since the return of ‘The Friday Night Delight’, not much has really happened in the career of John Morrison. It seems a lot of hype was wasted on him when he and The Miz were thrown back into the mix of the Tag division, despite winning the championships from The New Day and going on to compete in a show-stealing ladder match at WrestleMania. It wasn’t long before they dropped the titles back to Kofi & Big E, and soon after found themselves quarrelling with Heavy Machinery in a hideously scripted affair.
Now that Miz & Morrison have both been drafted to Monday nights, it’s about time for the A-list duo to pick up their storied rivalry from 2010/11. The seeds seemed to have been planted by The Miz during this week’s RAW, when he fed his partner to WWE’s latest disaster story, Lars Sullivan. Perhaps this will lead to JoMo wanting to strike out on his own and make the most of whatever’s left of his return hype.
As much as I’ve enjoyed the chemistry of the Dirt Sheet duo, it’s time for them to embrace the single life again.
4. Retribution
With Mustafa Ali now spearheading the faction, Retribution need to hurry up and get to the point. Since ‘officially’ signing contracts, they’ve run through the tropes of an invasion angle but haven’t really elaborated on what they’re getting retribution for. It’s time for Ali to act as their mouthpiece and deliver some scathing promos about what the WWE are evil and so on. There’s only so much investment fans can give to this generic band of protesters before they’re completely lost on us, so better pull the trigger on them sooner rather than later.
Retribution have managed to pull back the shoddy start so far with an entertaining Twitter game, but it’s time to get serious and start actually doing damage to the main roster. As per previous incarnations of the invading force, they need to be more present and assault all corners of the production, much like how they did when they first arrived. At the moment, they’re appearing like just another part of the brand, despite having their own unique aesthetic.
The feud with the Hurt Business is starting to bubble, but they need to go for the key players if they ever want to be seen as something important. Get them attacking the likes of Braun Strowman, Randy Orton and Drew McIntyre, then we’ll care.
5. Enter the Funhouse
Bray Wyatt was the first pick for RAW in the second half of the 2020 Draft, showing that WWE still holds a lot of stuck in the ghoulish ‘Fiend’ and his Firefly Funhouse. With the growing partnership of him and Alexa Bliss starting to turn heads, there’s plenty of places for ‘The Fiend’ to go as he enters his second year in WWE. The former two-time Universal Champion could certainly elevate himself into the main event scene once more, challenging McIntyre for the WWE Championship and regaining his stranglehold over the roster.
The same tried and tested method of stalking random WWE superstars would be enough to justify a new feud for Wyatt’s monster, all of his work so far has been enjoyable so it’ll be great to see some fresh faces be manipulated and tainted by ‘The Fiend’ and his sidekick. It’s a shame we won’t see the long-anticipated clash between him and Roman Reigns anytime soon, but perhaps Wyatt can reclaim some of the glory lost after ‘The Tribal Chief’ spoiled his victory over Braun Strowman.
RAW may never forgive themselves for letting him in.
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