WWE RAW PRIMER 1/8: The Miz returning and ready to make impact, Reigns IC Title defenses continue, Bliss responds to Asuka loss, Enzo healthy and back

RAW PREVIEW
JANUARY 8, 2018
CHICAGO, ILL. AT ALLSTATE ARENA
By Joey Galizia (@RamJam89), PWTorch contributor

ANNOUNCED BY WWE.COM

• The Miz returns and looks to make an immediate impact.
• Roman Reigns looks to continue his impressive streak of Intercontinental Title defenses.
• How will Alexa Bliss bounce back after her crushing defeat to Asuka?
• Enzo Amore faces Cedric Alexander for the Cruiserweight Championship.

“FIELD OF NIGHTMARES”

Seven days ago the Big Red Machine attempted to sway his most recent rival Braun Strowman into an alliance against Universal Champion Brock Lesnar ahead of their triple-threat in Philadelphia. Braun was having none of it, and told Kane that he will be fighting his own fights, and he’ll be coming for EVERYBODY. Meanwhile, Kane tried to gain an advantage over the Beast, but instead saw the conqueror sit-up from his strongest attack, and nearly got sent to Suplex City himself.

So as WWE invades Memphis tonight one can only wonder what route these three behemoths will take. Momentum is always a huge benefactor for a heavyweight title match, but can anyone topple Lesnar’s dominant run with the red belt? If rumors of the epic Mania 34 rematch with Reigns hold true, then this is just a pit stop in the road for Brock. However, expect Braun, who was noticeably absent from the pull-apart last week, to strive for position with a power play. COME GET THESE HANDS BOYS.

“EVEN HOLLYWOOD CAN’T STOP AN EMPIRE”

The Big Dawg continues to eat. Roman Reigns has had quite the quarrel with one Samoa Joe, but he finally defeated the submission machine in a vicious fight last week in Miami defending the Intercontinental title in the process. WWE is teasing that Roman may gear up and put the belt on the line once again, but against whom? A returning Miz would make a worthy opponent, especially as the A-lister climbs closer to Y2J’s legendary 9-time reign. That is of course, if he’s not going to be butting heads with the reformed Balor Club. (More on that later.) Whoever decides to step-up against the Roman Empire, his string of entertaining bouts is sure to continue.

“FEAR IS AN EMPRESS”

Raw Women’s Champion Alexa Bliss had been floating around for the past month without any fear of defending the gold. With Paige and Absolution running rampant on the division, and the historic first ever women’s Royal Rumble preparing to take place, it seemed that the red brand nearly forgot about the superstar who broke barriers with Sasha banks in Abu Dhabi. That was, until she ran into an Empress a couple weeks ago who announced that she would be entering the Rumble, and promised that she would take that her place atop the division. The segment ended with Alexa being laid out by a kick that would have destroyed a mountain.

Cut to last week in Miami where the two would square off in the ring. Bliss was visibly terrified prior to her matchup with the undefeated longest reigning NXT Champion of all-time, and reached out to Nia Jax to stand in her corner. Unfortunately, Nia was too busy dealing with her new bae Enzo Amore, and Alexa was left to fend for herself. That ended with Asuka tapping little miss Bliss out adding another W to her impressive streak. The one benefit this serves for the champ is that Asuka isn’t guaranteed to win the Rumble…or maybe she is? It doesn’t matter. NO ONE IS READY.

“WHO WATCHES THE WATCHMEN?”

-The Great War wages on between the Woken One and the Eater of Worlds. Not certain what it will lead to or if it will ever end but it’s a blast to watch and the promos are enticing and if this runs for a year I’ll be okay with that.

-Finn Balor may be in Limbo no more. In a six-man showdown in Miami, handsome Finn rekindled his relationship with the Good Brothers Gallows and Anderson. Together, they triumphed over the Miztourage (without their fearless leader) and the drifter Elias. Will this reunion last? Hopefully, because there is money on the table with the revival of the Two-Sweet sign.

-Speaking of revivals, the Revival is pushing for a title match at the Royal Rumble. Poor Dawson and Dash have both been on the shelf with injury, but are wasting no time in climbing back up the ladder since their return.

-While Roman is only teasing a defense, one strap that will definitely be on the line tonight in Memphis is the Cruiserweight championship. Enzo Amore was battling the flu the last few days, but his new love interest NIa Jax nursed him back to full SKYWALKER strength with some chicken soup! (CUTE!) His opponent, Cedric Alexander, is easily Amore’s toughest opponent to date since he upset Neville a few months ago. Cedric won this opportunity defeating Amore’s posse mate Drew Gulak. Gulak may be the king of power-point presentations, but he hasn’t been able to notch a big victory in the purple division yet.

-Paige had a scary injury at a house show recently, but as of now she is not suppose to miss any T.V. time. Hopefully she’s good to go on the 28^th because it’d be a shame if we were to lose her again.

-Jason Jordan continues to climb the superstar ladder. Not only is he tag-champions with the Architect, but now he’s winning bouts against formidable opponents in singles action as well. The Bar does still have one rematch left in them, but after that will the tag-team division see a different feud?

Raw is competing with the National Championship game this evening. Which will you be watching?

NOW CATCH UP LAST WEEK’S RAW: KELLER’S WWE RAW REPORT 1/1: Reigns defends against Samoa Joe, Asuka faces Bliss for first time one-on-one, Lesnar and Heyman address Rumble title defense