'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Coming Monday night is going to be of historical proportions as Raw will complete a quarter of a century in sports entertainment. For some fans, it was a pivotal part of their adolescence, and for some, it still is.
Here are our predictions of what shall unfold on one of the biggest celebrations on Monday night.
#10 Roman Reigns loses the IC title, Joe interferes
Roman Reigns has been on one hell of a run with the Intercontinental Championship. But his cruise will stop at the island known as the Miztourage. Miz lost the title at the first place as he was going to be busy with the shoot of Marine 6.
It has been a couple of weeks since his return, and two weeks build up is made ahead of his rematch against the current champion. This sets the stage for the title to change hands. Notably, Reigns title reign must come to an end ahead of WrestleMania 34 to clarify his role for the mega event.
We expect Samoa Joe to interfere in the match and cost Reigns the title. This shall result in their match at the Elimination Chamber PPV.
#9 APA and DX take on the Revival
As seen last week on Raw, both members of Revival were quite vocal about their disliking towards the old school. With the veterans returning for the Anniversary celebrations, it would be a perfect opportunity for the old school students to teach a lesson to the new kids in town.
WWE Universe would love to see APA raise brawl once again, and who could follow better to ice the cake other than the most cult wrestling factions in the history of this business, the DX.
As far as Revival is concerned, they have ensured themselves a lot of heat with their words last week.
#8 The Highlight Reel Returns
Let's face it, a lot of talk shows have come and gone on Raw. But none has left its mark at par with the Highlight Reel. When the "Ayatollah of Rock and Rolla" takes the microphone in his hand, the world listens.
There are a number of Superstars who would be willing to feature on this show. But with the current landscape of WWE, we would love to see Daniel Bryan and Shane McMahon to be the recipients for Jericho's hard-hitting questions.
However, Elias could be annoyed as his show might get canceled for the Highlight Reel.
#7 Strowman confronts the Undertaker, Kane retaliates
Speaking of raising Hell these days, Braun Strowman has made his name synonymous with it. With his actions over the last two weeks, he not only jeopardized the main event at the Royal Rumble but also got himself (almost) fired last week.
The Undertaker is all set to appear on Raw after ten months of absence, and he will be the perfect target for Braun Strowman to continue his rampage.
Kane shall take an exception to this, and he could team up with his brother as the "Brothers of Destruction" choke slams Strowman straight to hell.
#6 Ziggler returns and confronts Shawn Michaels
Shawn Michaels is all set to make his return for 25th Anniversary of Raw, but so might be the man who was portrayed as his shadow for quite a long time.
Notably, Dolph Ziggler relinquished the US title a couple of weeks back, which resulted in an entire SmackDown Live roster to vie to become the new US Champion. It should be an interesting story to develop further ahead of WrestleMania 34.
Ziggler could interrupt what Michaels has to say, and tells Michaels to his face that he is done with trying to be like Michaels and would leave his mark on the WWE as himself.
He could further announce to compete in the Royal Rumble match.
#5 Six man tag match
How can the "Phenomenal One" be left out of the equation when he is present at the Barclays Center? Since he will be a "guest" on Raw, his role for the night is more likely to be linked with the Raw's current storylines.
Given what transpired last week between Seth Rollins and Finn Balor, we expect fans to be treated to a huge six man tag team match. It would be the team of Finn Balor, Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson take on the team of Seth Rollins, Jason Jordan, and AJ Styles.
Not to mention, the Bar would have their eyes set on this one ahead of their match at the Royal Rumble for Raw Tag Team Championships.
#4 The Authority, Stone Cold, and Kurt Angle
The history book on Monday night Raw has a lot of its chapters written on the "Rattlesnake". Stone Cold always loves to take a jab at the authority, which could be ranging from Vince McMahon to the Authority himself.
Speaking of the Authority, Triple H has left potential sparks with both Kurt Angle and Braun Strowman at the Survivor Series Man Elimination match. The go-home show for the Royal Rumble would be a perfect place to tease with the potential rivalries which could manifest to the dream matches at this year's WrestleMania.
We certainly have a whole barrel of gasoline on Raw, let's see who sets it on fire.
#3 Jeff Hardy returns as Brother Nero, Stratus-faction Guaranteed
Jeff Hardy is confirmed to be present on the night of celebration. Hence, we expect the Hardy Boyz to reunite for one night.
Interestingly, Matt Hardy is currently playing the Woken character. Hence, it doesn't make much sense for him to drop his character at this point. However, it suggests that we might see the dawn of Brother Nero on the Monday nights.
Trish Stratus has also confirmed to be part of the historic night. Remember the call Kurt Angle was making to an anonymous female Superstar for her participation in the first ever female Royal Rumble match?
The anonymous participant could very well be Trish Stratus.
#2 Show ends in a Brawl, with RKOs Outta Nowhere
The night would definitely end with the ring filled with Superstars from both the brands and throwing punches at each other to gain momentum ahead of the Royal Rumble.
John Cena, the sixteen times World Champion, who would also have been vocal about how he is going to win the Royal Rumble match in the earlier part of the show, would be one of the major highlights of this brawl.
However, the man whom we expect to be the marquee for the whole business is the "Viper", Randy Orton.
We expect a lot of RKOs "coming outta nowhere" to set the curtains for this historic episode of Raw. We can very well expect him to turn heel again.
#1 The Bold Prediction: CM Punk Returns
If this happens, fans would cheer so loud that the roof of the Barclays Center would definitely blow off. Interestingly, CM Punk also made his way in the Top-25 Raw moments ever, not to mention he earned the whopping second spot.
Notably, it was Royal Rumble 2014 when we saw CM Punk for the last time in the WWE. It would be ironic to have him return after four years on the eve of Royal Rumble.
Punk departure from WWE was quite a bitter ordeal, but Vince McMahon loves to say "Never say never".
Bonus:
There would be a quite a few Superstars who were the face of the WWE at some point in their careers. It would be a learning experience for the current face of the WWE, Roman Reigns. He certainly needs to polish his skills to be the legitimate face of the WWE.
