The biggest winners and losers of last night's Raw (July 15)

If this was the beginning of a supposed new era with Paul Heyman steering Monday Night Raw, color me decidedly unimpressed. There were a few moments of brilliance, to be sure. We'll get into those soon, but for the most part, the show fell flat and was definitely not something most people would want to tune in three hours for.

SummerSlam got a few lackluster matches and a rematch that felt like the latest part in a loop that never ends.

Also, the "wild card" nonsense still continued. Many of us got our hopes up that it would end with Heyman and Bischoff's ascendancy. Apparently not.

Who got the most and least out of last night's show? Let's take a look.

---

Loser: Monday Night Raw

As lackluster as the Seth Rollins vs. Baron Corbin feud was, it was at least something different. Now we're back to the same old stuff, year in, year out. Brock Lesnar appears once every three months with the red belt, Paul Heyman cuts more or less the same promo, and we get a rivalry between the champion and a Shield member. And then we usually get the exact same match at the end of it all.

That's how it's more or less been for the past year and a half, and most of the past two.

Can WWE really look itself in the mirror and believe this sort of stuff is going to keep viewers around for the long haul? It's lost a staggering amount in the past two years, so the answer is obviously "no."

Nobody benefits from this. At this point, champion Brock Lesnar is a recurrent bout of cancer. Radical surgery is going to need to be performed on the patient. There is no way that this is compelling television.

Winner: Ricochet

Ricochet's feud with AJ Styles and the Club continued. That was really the only reason why this tag team match took place. So it looks like "the One and Only" is headed for a rematch at SummerSlam after having been robbed of the United States Championship at Extreme Rules. That's how it should be.

Ricochet has been the surprise success story from NXT this year, and at 30 compared to AJ Styles' 42, it's even more obvious that he should be the eventual winner of this feud. AJ Styles can certainly afford to take the loss at SummerSlam, whereas beating the former WWE Champion on a stage as big as that would go a long way to making Ricochet a made man.

Unfortunately, WWE has dropped the ball on this so many times that we almost have to imagine it won't happen, but this does set Ricochet on the road to that opportunity, which is what mattered last night.

Loser: Drew McIntyre

It's good that Cedric Alexander is getting a chance, finally, but having him win against Drew McIntyre in fluke fashion didn't do him many favors, since the next result is obvious - McIntyre will get his win back and 50/50 booking will prevail. He'll just have been a little worse off for it.

It really is a sign that for all his positive traits, McIntyre can never break through the glass ceiling that's been hanging above his head. He's come close, but he can just never do it. His fate seems to be as lackey.

---

Winner: Bray Wyatt

THIS is how you re-debut somebody.

For a long time, we wondered how Bray Wyatt was going to return to the ring. He finally did so on Raw and he looked fantastic.

"Wild card" nonsense though this may be, THIS Bray Wyatt looks great! Many fans wondered whether this was going to lead to a Bray Wyatt vs. Demon Balor match at SummerSlam. Sign me up if that's the case.

This is what we should have seen two years ago instead of that horrible feud between Bray Wyatt and Finn Balor that we got. If WWE wants to right the wrongs, all the better, though we must remain skeptical that they can keep this up.

Loser: Mike Kanellis

How's that new contract for you, Mike? Are you regretting that you gave five more years of your life to this company?

Being humiliated against a star as big as Becky Lynch is one thing. Being humiliated by a years-long nobody like Zack Ryder? That's something else entirely. One wonders why this segment needed to take place at all. Is this truly how WWE rewards someone for re-signing with them?

You can bet that The Revival were watching this very closely.

---

Winner: Natalya

Natalya getting a title shot at SummerSlam is odd and really goes to show how weak the division is right now. She's a good wrestler and the match will be good, but not very exciting, if that makes sense.

One wonders, with all the "wild card" nonsense in play, why not give Asuka or Kairi Sane a chance at the title instead?

Becky Lynch's Raw Women's Championship reign has suffered from lackluster competition. Natalya is certainly several steps above Lacey Evans, but it's not exactly a marquee matchup. So Becky Lynch lost here with Natalya's victory.

Winner: Seth Rollins

Only slightly so.

This match was a slog and it only served up the inevitable rematch anyway. Whereas this would have been very exciting a year ago, this year it just feels...there. Brock Lesnar as champion for the third time is even more tiresome than he was a year ago and Seth Rollins is far from as over as he was last year.

Overall, this just feels like a burden on Raw. Hopefully, WWE will prove me wrong. That segment above gives Seth Rollins a chance to develop his character a little as he moves into the battle with Brock Lesnar at SummerSlam.

Not that it will probably do him any good. Brock Lesnar seems set to hold the title hostage for the foreseeable future yet again, but we'll see how this thing plays out.

All in all, this show wasn't a good start on the road to SummerSlam, Bray Wyatt aside.