The biggest winners and losers of last night's Raw (October 23)

This week's Raw was a monumental episode, signaling a seismic shift in WWE programming going forward. That isn't what the company wanted, but Roman Reigns' stunning announcement of his cancer diagnosis sent the company into complete chaos.

This announcement, more than anything else, got fans on Roman Reigns' side at last. Unfortunately, he now needed to relinquish the Universal Championship as he goes into a far tougher battle than any he has faced in the ring.

With the top title on Raw now unexpectedly vacant, things have become open-ended and a new sense of urgency has taken over the show.

In the wake of Roman Reigns' stunning departure, who got the most out of the tragic fallout? Who will be on the road to become the new Universal Champion?

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Loser: Bobby Lashley

Bobby Lashley losing to Finn Balor, no doubt to feud with him later, was a big mistake. Finn Balor has been so irrelevant for so long that it wasn't a wise move at all to have him prevail over Lashley, who is fresh off a reinvigorating heel turn.

With this loss, he feels more like an average superstar, which is just the wrong path to take with him at this particular moment in time.

With Roman Reigns now gone, Bobby Lashley matters that much more as a top heel on Monday nights. Him losing to Balor of all people was a mis-allocation of resources.

Sure, the win for Finn Balor only came as a result of a rollup pin, but it still feels like an afterthought, especially now. Bobby Lashley should have simply dismissed Finn Balor on his road to doing much more important things.

Especially since this wasn't meant to be the start of a rebuild for Finn Balor, it feels like even more of a waste.

Losers: Sasha Banks and Ruby Riott

When the six woman tag team match was announced for Evolution on Sunday, it was the final nail in the coffin for the pay per view as far as the main roster is concerned. This was a match we've seen on Raw over and over again.

It should be beyond dispute now that Evolution is simply a filler affair to try to take attention off the negatives of the Saudi Arabian contract.

This match didn't help anyone get more excited about the upcoming pay per view. It was again, a variation of something we've seen countless times. Riott's victory suggests her team will lose on Sunday.

The only way to save this is by introducing the speculated women's tag team titles, but no evidence of that is forthcoming. All in all, this was just a waste of talent between two performers who deserve better.

Winners: Everyone in this segment

Paul Heyman hyped up the match at Crown Jewel in an emergency situation with a level of finesse that few could match.

Braun Strowman seemingly turned babyface for a reason over the weekend, and unless the company is mad (which is, sadly, a high possibility), he will beat Lesnar and finally capture the Universal Championship on November 2nd.

Drew McIntyre interrupted the proceedings and attacked Braun Strowman afterward, which further helps to set up quite an interesting feud going forward. It was obviously only a matter of time before McIntyre would break into the main event scene. Roman Reigns' diagnosis understandably appears to have sped up that process.

Brock Lesnar winning the championship again would be a catastrophe, but there is reason for cautious optimism. Strowman and McIntyre are positioned to take the lead on Monday nights going forward in the wake of Reigns' departure.

Winners: The Shield

Speaking of Drew McIntyre, he is now a former Raw Tag Team Champion, because Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose picked up the Raw Tag Team Championship in the aftermath of Roman Reigns' stunning announcement.

However, this wasn't just a run of the mill title win. Dean Ambrose stunningly turned on Rollins in the midst of this emotional night and with the tag team titles newly won. What could possibly be his motive?

The two being at odds while also being tag team champions adds a tremendous touch to the feud right out of the gate as well. This was the kind of shot in the arm that Raw badly needed.

The rivalry between Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose has now, four years later, finally come full circle.

Drew McIntyre is also now freed. His main event push begins now. Expect the alliance with Dolph Ziggler to break apart imminently.