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Every week, WWE.com in association with the Academy of Wrestling Arts & Sciences (AWAS) produces a rank list which ranks the WWE superstars on the basis of their performance throughout the week.
And this week, the company kept their young year successful after pulling off another good week. The Old School Raw showcased some legends returning with some nail biting action.
A certain fairy tale unfolded as Jake “The Snake” Roberts made an appearance with his Damien. Roman Reigns added some more diamonds to his resume while CM Punk became the victim. There were also big movements in the direction of Brock Lesnar and The Wyatt family storyline. To sum up, the week had many talking points worth mentioning. So here is a look at how the week affected the rankings of the WWE superstars.
25- Rikishi (Previous Rank- Nil)
Rikishi
Rikishi was one of the legends who made their return in the Old School Raw. And while other just came in and showed their face, Rikishi had the luxury of getting some in ring action to show everyone that he still got some tricks up his sleeve.
Beating 3MB with the 2 Cool teammates send Rikishi into the power rankings though it might be a short stay.
24- Curtis Axel (Previous Rank- 23)
Curtis Axel
The former Intercontinental champion took a defeat at the hands of Big E Langston on Raw and suffered a tag loss in Smack Down.
The week full of losses drops Axel further down and puts his place in the rankings in jeopardy.
23- Xavier Wood (Previous Rank- 24)
Xavier Woods
The roller coaster ride continues for Woods in WWE as he had a good week this time. a win over Fandango propels Woods into the 23rd spot which is small improvement on his last week’s performance.
22- Fandango (Previous Rank- 21)
Fandango
After last week’s great encounter with Big E Langston, Fandango this time was put back a much lower scene as he was involved with R-Truth and Xavier Woods at Main Event.
The angle then set up a match at Smack Down which Fandango lost and the loss drops him one place to 21st.
21- The Great Khali (Previous Rank- Nil)
The Great Khali
Khali seemed surprisingly relevant out of nowhere when he was accompanied by Ranjin Singh. A good manager to deliver the lines would be a good thing for Khali for the future.
As for now, a controversial win over an unlucky Damien Sandow gets Khali his spot back in the Power Rankings.20- The Prime Time Players (Previous Rank- 20)
Prime time players
The Prime Time Players didn’t have the fortune to be in action at the Old School Raw and did the disappearing act again at Smack Down.
Thus the lack of in ring action keeps them rooted to previous week’s rank.
19- R-Truth (Previous Rank- 19)
R-Truth
R-Truth suffered a tag defeat to the Real Americans at Main Event due to the interference of Fandango but the rapping superstar settled the score at Smack Down.
A balanced week thus keeps R-Truth in the same rank.
18- Alberto Del Rio (Previous Rank – Nil)
Alberto Del Rio
Del Rio returned to in ring action with a bang this time as he defeated Sin Cara who was carrying a lot of momentum. Del Rio then cut a promo against the returning Batista which has put the Mexican back in the limelight.
The impact he made with the return gets Del Rio into the top twenty of the power rankings.
17- The Real Americans (Previous Rank- 16)
The Real Americans
The Real Americans got a win over Xavier Woods and R-Truth at Main Event but suffered defeats in both Raw and Smack Down.
The loss in the top shows takes them down one spot to 17th.
16- Los Matadors (Previous Ranking- 17)
Los Matadors
Seen as entertainers than Tag title contenders, the Los Matadors once again showed that Smack Down is their favorite place to be after picking up another win in the show.
There is no real direction for the team right now but they seem to go up the rankings with this sort of wins that they get.15- Rey Mysterio (Previous Rank- 18)
Rey Mysterio
Mysterio first got a tag win over the Wyatt Family at Raw then followed up with another Tag win at Smack Down. The injury scares seems to be kept aside for now as the high flyer makes a good climb to 15th in the Rankings.
14- Damien Sandow (Previous Rank- 13)
Damien Sandow
Sandow got himself humiliated at the Old School Raw when he was beaten up by The Great Khali and Sgt. Slaughter. The controversial loss drags Sandow down to 13th place.
13- Brie Bella (Previous Rank- 11)
Brie Bella
A tag loss in the Old school Raw drops Brie two places to 11th in the rankings. In the process she also lost the tag of being the highest ranked diva in the rankings, which she hung onto for a long time.
12- The Big Show (Previous Rank- 15)
Big Show
After being pushed down often, the World’s Largest Athlete finally got some credible lime light when he stepped up to challenge Brock Lesnar.
Big Show will have his hands full at Royal Rumble but at the same time it will be quality pay-per-view time that he clearly needs. The step up gets Big Show a three place rise and gets him into the 12th spot.
11- Ryback (Previous Rank- 9)
Ryback
Ryback was relegated to the announcing table on the Old School Raw and suffered a loss at Smack Down. A bad week in general, Ryback drops down to 11th spot and thus out of the top ten.10- AJ Lee (Previous Rank-12)
AJ Lee
AJ had an emotional match with Kaitlyn at Main Event and is headed to conquer the longest title reign in WWE history. The future is more than bright for AJ as she becomes the highest ranked Diva in the power rankings.
She caps of a good week with the top ten spot in the rankings.
9- The Usos (Previous Rank-10)
The Usos
A rare win in the old school Raw over the Wyatt Family and another encounter with the creepy guys in Smack Down puts the Usos up there when it comes to relevant performers of the week.
They climb one spot to 9th and looks to consolidate in the top ten.
8- Big E Langston (Previous Rank- 4)
Big E Langston
The intercontinental Champion started off the week with great momentum after defeating Curtis Axel at Raw but failed to carry it further as he got hit by the unified champion.
A loss to the Viper drops Langston four spots to 8th in the rankings.
7- Rhodes Brothers (Previous Rank- 7)
Rhodes Brothers
The tag team champions seems to be dropping their habit of picking up loses in the television shows as they picked up another victory on Raw this week, this time at the expense of the Real Americans.
The win keeps them safe in the 7th spot and knocking on the doors of the top five.
6- Daniel Bryan (Previous Rank- 6)
Daniel Bryan
A Wyatt controlled Bryan certainly looks more intense and menacing than he was before. Some good tag team action with his new partners gives Bryan a solid week and he remains in the 6th spot. Expect him to make big moves however as he is scheduled to challenge for the tag titles along with Bray Wyatt.5- The Wyatt Family (Previous Rank- 5)
The Wyatt Family
Despite falling short when it comes to the stats, The Wyatt family clearly is the hottest commodity at the promotion now. The mix of unorthodox style and creepy in ring psychology keeps them relevant and in the top five despite taking defeats.
4- CM Punk (Previous Rank- 2)
CM Punk
Punk’s loss to Roman Reigns might’ve been overshadowed by the return of Jake Roberts but this didn’t stop him from picking up another loss at Smack Down.
A week of losses to the hounds of justice drops Punk down into 4th in the rankings.
3- John Cena (Previous Rank-3)
John Cena
Cena had a verbal battle with Randy Orton at Old School Raw with the nature boy Ric Flair on his side. The buildup to the Royal Rumble was aided by Flair and developed better heat which in turn made Cena look like a stand out performer.
2- The Shield (Previous Rank-8)
The Shield
Biggest movers of the week, The Hounds of Justice had a great week this time around as Roman Reigns defeated CM Punk on Raw while the trio got a Smack Down wins as well.
Involvement with legends like Roddy Piper and Jake Roberts only aided the faction and Shield makes a huge leap into the second position in the rankings.
1- Randy Orton (Previous Rank- 1)
Randy Orton
After a heated confrontation with John Cena, Orton went to Smack Down to kill the momentum of Big E Langston.
The Champion carries a lot of momentum after beating the red hot Langston and looks set to face Cena at Rumble. Orton hangs on to his first rank for another week as no one was good enough to dethrone him this around also.
