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With the build for Clash of Champions coming to a definite end on Monday night from the RAW side of affairs, WWE did all they could to make the night more memorable for the Superstars and the fans.
Not only did Stone Cold return to hype the WWE Universal Championship match, but we also saw the Four Horsewoman tear it down in the ring in tag team action.
This provided fans with ample reasons to tune in to Sunday’s pay-per-view with high expectations, and hopefully, a few changes in champions which can result in new storylines.
In this article, we will look at the 4 things that WWE got just right on this week’s episode, and how it can have an impact on the coming weeks.
#1 Giving The Viking Raiders some real competition
The Viking Raiders were one of the most destructive and unbeatable teams in NXT and were a natural choice to move to the main roster in recent months. The duo of Erik and Ivar arrived onto the main roster with many expectations from the fans, but the creative team didn’t do enough justice to them.
In the past few months, we’ve seen the duo mainly compete against local talent where they roll them over in a matter of minutes after dominating them throughout the bout. This was getting old and taking the credibility away from the team, but now WWE finally seems to have some real competition for them.
Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson themselves were struggling on the main roster for quite some time, and since they’ve been paired up with AJ Styles again to form The O.C., they’ve become a real threat on the main roster.
With WWE teasing a major feud between these two teams, fans can now expect something good for both teams in the coming weeks which can result in some great matches and championship opportunities.
#2 Allowed Corbin to go over in the King of the Ring tournament
Ricochet, Baron Corbin and Samoa Joe battled in a Triple Threat match to determine RAW's spot in the King of the Ring tournament final. With fans backing their favorite Superstars in the match, the match could have gone in any direction as all three men were evenly poised to win the match.
Ricochet was being termed as one of the favorites because of his babyface character and recent push which could have seen him become a big star if he could have overcome two huge heels together. Samoa Joe, on the other hand, was the other favorite as he has been unstoppable once again in recent weeks, and fans were not ready to see his push get stopped once again.
However, it was Baron Corbin, the man who the fans love to hate, who managed to score the victory after using his heelish tactics really well. This allowed him to get one step closer to the crown which he can ultimately wear on Sunday if he defeats SmackDown’s finalist.
Since Corbin has played such a great heel in recent months, he seems like the best man to wear the crown and piss off the WWE Universe just like Shane McMahon did with his Best in the World title, and give us some great storylines if he wins the tournament.
#3 Set up Sunday’s Women’s Championship matches near-perfectly
With WWE returning to the Madison Square Garden, the company tried to do something major for both the men’s and women's rosters. Stone Cold Steve Austin returned to the mega arena to a huge prop from the WWE Universe and perfectly justified his presence during the night.
For the women’s side, WWE booked arguably the biggest main roster tag team match in recent history. Becky Lynch & Charlotte Flair took on Bayley & Sasha Banks in a huge tag team match before Clash of Champions where all four women will be engaged in the biggest singles championship matches.
The match was better than we could have imagined, and the challenger for the SmackDown Women’s Championship managed to pin the champion to take the victory, and give the fans a taste of what to expect on Sunday.
This was the perfect way to book the match, even though many fans would argue that it wasn’t the right time to take the momentum away from Sasha and Bayley, as it shakes things up and makes Sunday’s matches more interesting.
#4 Gave Cedric Alexander his big moment
Cedric Alexander’s move to the main roster was watered down when he didn’t get the opportunities right off the bat like Mustafa Ali got when he made the moved from 205 Live.
Cedric was mainly used on Main Event or in the 24/7 Championship drama, but it seems like the creative team has finally realized the potential the young cruiserweight has. When he was given an opportunity to fight alongside Roman Reigns, he didn’t disappoint and even went on to score his biggest victory in WWE yet by defeating Drew McIntyre clean.
He has now been put into a rivalry with AJ Styles, and while their singles match this week ended in a disqualification win for Alexander, he managed to pin The Phenomenal One later in the night. This result may have punched Alexander’s ticket to Clash of Champions where he can challenge one of the biggest names in the industry for a United States Championship match.
Last night was arguably Alexander’s biggest nights in WWE, and it could get even bigger on Sunday night if he gets a chance to challenge for AJ Styles’ title.
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