SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
January is arguably the most interesting time of the year for tracking booking priority amongst WWE wrestlers. Of course, the road to WrestleMania gets underway at the end of the month, but many performers on the roster won’t have the opportunity to experience much of a moment during the two-night event, perhaps performing deep on the undercard or during the pre-show if at all. Instead, the time to shine for just about every member of the main roster to some degree comes at the Royal Rumble. It’s over the course of this month that we begin to get an idea of who we can expect to get standout moments from during the two 30-person matches.
Of course, names that typically hover near the top of these standings, such as Cody Rhodes and C.M. Punk, are guaranteed to have their moments, and likely more. As others begin to creep into the standings, though, we start to see who the company is prioritizing to the point of having a memorable performance somewhere between numbers 1 and 30. Two examples this week come in the form of Ludwig Kaiser and Pete Dunne.
Just a few weeks ago, it wouldn’t have been a stretch to think either man might not even appear in the Rumble match. In all likelihood, the rub of Gunther would probably have been enough to provide Kaiser with a brief cameo, likely bickering with and eliminating or being eliminated by Giovanni Vinci to prolong their never-ending squabble. With Vinci’s injury opening the door for Kaiser to perform solo, though, the opportunity has rocketed him to the top of the mid-card. Transforming from a sniveling snob to a brutal and trusted soldier of the Ring General, Kaiser suddenly seems all but certain to have a memorable showdown with the revitalized New Day, if not several others as well.
Pete Dunne, on the other hand, seemed to have embarked on the kind of losing journey that ends with a Future Endeavor. In this new and vastly improved version of WWE, however, we saw Dunne shed his unfortunate Butch moniker and gimmick to much fanfare, from both Corey Graves and the live audience. It feels like a sure bet that Dunne will bend his share of fingers on his way through a noteworthy Rumble performance.
For this week, at the very least, both wrestlers have found themselves prioritized amongst some of the top names in the company. With a go-home show from each brand remaining, it’ll be fascinating to see if any other surprising names rise in the rankings and offer a glimmer of things to come at the second biggest show of the year.
As always, the information taken into account to accumulate these lists include metrics such as quarter-hour ratings, what performers are featured in the open, closing, and top of the hour segments, who is given time to cut in ring and backstage promos, names promoted in each shows preview, championships, and wins. I also factor in estimated monthly merchandise sales leaders, whose appearances begin with a higher floor than other members of the roster.
1. Randy Orton (4*)
When the Fatal Four-Way match was announced, it seemed Orton was running the risk of being lumped into a crowded main event picture and losing some of his shine. As evidenced by this past week’s episode of Smackdown, there’s no reason for concern. The Viper is arguably the hottest he has been in his entire career, in this instance, carrying both ends of the show and getting increasingly stronger reactions from the Atlanta fans along the way. By show’s end, with the crowd chanting his name as he stood over a fallen Roman Reigns, you got the impression we might really be in for a title change at the Royal Rumble.
Of course, ending Reigns’ historic title run in such a relatively unceremonious fashion still feels unlikely, but WWE couldn’t have envisioned a better case scenario heading into the show. In the likely event Reigns retains, and with Styles and Knight appearing to head into their own singles program, you have to wonder where this leaves Orton heading into WrestleMania. He’s currently the most over member of a Smackdown roster than includes Reigns, which seemed like an impossible feat just a couple months ago. Wherever he ends up on the card, his presence is certain to dominate the air on Friday nights for the next two months.
2. Bloodline (1)
As improbable as it seemed until this week for Roman Reigns to appear on Smackdown and still fall to second in the weekly Priority rankings, here we sit. Of course, his case was not helped by something of a bait-and-switch no show during the opening segment contract signing, but he did make a handful of appearances in the back prior to his show ending run-in. Speaking of those, after months of what felt like on-the-fly uncertainty, the Bloodline story seems to have found some direction once again.
He still doesn’t say much, but it’s worth noting that Solo Sikoa was given not only a speaking role backstage in a scene that reminded us of how he continues to intimidate the Tribal Chief, he was also handed a live mic. The baby steps proceed, with Sikoa now referring to himself as the heir to the Chief. Will the “Enforcer” moniker soon be dropped entirely? Jimmy’s evolution continued as well, as he’s now regularly breaded by his boss once again, including the ultimate insult of being lumped together as a forgettable counterpart of his brother Jey. A battle of the twins at Mania has seemed likely for a while, but it’s possible Jimmy finally sees the light shortly thereafter, leaving all the remaining tension in the faction to Roman and Solo.
3. Cody Rhodes (2)
The ambassador for the company continued to handle his role with grace during a mic duel with arguably the top heel on the brand in Drew McIntyre. The highly-rated segment scored Rhodes plenty of Priority points, along with his featured advertising in the Raw preview announcing his show-opening appearance. For someone who left AEW while fighting the tide on an organic heel turn being prompted by live audiences who were becoming increasingly turned off by his babyface schtick, what Cody is accomplishing during his current run is incredible.
The days of an unrepentant crowd pleaser and company man serving as face of WWE seemed to die when John Cena headed for Hollywood, and even he battled more than his share of jaded fans, some of whom never accepted him. Yet here Rhodes stands, never wavering in his good guy convictions and consistently being pushed and leaning heavily into his role as the ultimate babyface, and the audience continues to eat it up. His popularity is so solid, even with the Rock looming over his shoulder as what should be a no-brainer to headline Mania against Reigns, Cody continues to make a more than credible case to keep his story on track.
4. Imperium (NR)
The rise of Kaiser as a vicious singles competitor has been one of the bigger surprises of the new year. He’s now been given back-to-back weeks of multi-segment exposure in matches that have been so compelling, they’ve even managed to change the way we see the members of the New Day, who had been relegated to stale comedy appearances for much of the past year, if not more.
Kaiser’s arrival as a player was confirmed during a top-of-the-hour in-ring segment where his typically overbearing and disappointed leader heartily commended and endorsed his recent actions, ultimately embracing him. As for Gunther, he simply comes across as a superstar. He’s recently been treated by the company similarly to how main event names like Cody and C.M. Punk are handled, dispensed in careful doses with the occasional (or in Punk’s case, several) week off. It serves to make him feel fresh when he shows up, which is certain to be more consistent as we now head towards WrestleMania.
5. Judgement Day (NR)
Where the R-Truth storyline takes us is anyones guess, but what’s obvious is that the development has breathed plenty of fresh air into an act that seemed to be spinning it’s wheels. There remains tension, as has been the case through the duration of the factions existence, only now it’s less about who the leader is and more about where they stand on Truth.
The drama is enough to provide Judgement Day with plenty of backstage segments each week. In the case of this episode, though, we were also given two lengthy tag team matches full of storyline implications all centered around Truth. We’re no doubt headed for a showcase moment in the Rumble match where plenty of things will unfold, paving the way for what’s to come in the weeks ahead. As the merchandise numbers indicate, the more of R-Truth and the Judgement Day, though, the better.
6. L.A. Knight (4*)
It’s rare that WWE will take it upon themselves to carry out their Priority rankings in front of a live audience, but that’s exactly how Smackdown was kicked off this week. Nick Aldis opened the contract signing by giving each entrant in the Royal Rumble title match a separate introduction and a chance to see exactly how popular they are. As mentioned above, Randy Orton blew away anyone else and the company seemed to know it would go that way, saving his entrance as the last of the three.
Unquestionably, that spot would have been reserved for L.A. Knight just a couple months ago, as no one was getting a bigger reaction that him for the half-year or so leading up to Survivor Series. Times have changed, however, and though he’s the second most popular member of the four-way match, it’s obvious his star has somewhat faded. He, along with his opponents, though, was given tons of air time on this weeks program, both opening and closing the show with a heavily promoted match in the mix.
7. A.J. Styles (4*)
The third most popular of Roman Reigns upcoming opponents, A.J. Styles at least sits as the most intriguing. His shift to all black street attire is reminiscent of the “Evil Hogan” phase that occurred the year prior to the formation of the NWO, and you have to wonder if the stage is being set at least somewhat similarly for Styles. He’s shouldered more than his share of assists this past year, carrying more prioritized opponents to main event level matches. Perhaps before things wind down for him, there’s another memorable heel run in the tank.
In the mix with any other assembly of wrestlers, and Styles would likely feel incredibly over. His inclusion in the title match has provided him with plenty of screen and mic time, though he continues to be overshadowed by his more popular opponents. A brief backstage interaction with the Club left open the possibility (if not likelihood) of a reformation. If the group sets out to help their leader in his ongoing feud with L.A. Knight, it’s unlikely they’ll be doing with the support of the crowd.
8. Seth Rollins (8)
The World Champion spent two hours and fifty-five minutes as a healthy booking priority, cruising his way through Rumble season and onto WrestleMania as the defending title holder. Then he tweaked his knee. The setback now appears to be a relatively minor one, but as everyone has pointed out this past week, recovery can be a tricky thing.
The 7/15 Raw saw him opening the show with a brief backstage appearance, then hyped throughout before rounding things out with a signature high-quality match against Jinder Mahal. It certainly appears as though that will be the last of his in-ring performances until or right around April in Philadelphia. Although he will continue on as champion of the brand, the limited exposure should provide an opening for other names having found their roles reduced as of late. Jey Uso is just the first to come to mind.
9. Rhea Ripley (NR)
The unofficial leader of the Judgement Day continues to juggle double duty seamlessly, transitioning from a conniving heel to an adored anti-hero and back again several times over the course of every Monday night. The result finds her typically ranking in priority more than once.
Her top-of-the-hour face-off with Becky Lynch provided a handful of memorable lines, but remarkably, no physicality. The mutual show of respect gave us an idea of what the booking team could be sizing up as one of the marquee matches at WrestleMania, and for their part, the live audience appeared to be all about it.
10. Tyler Bate and Pete Dunne (NR)
The losing streak was not only headed somewhere, but to the place most fans hoped. As Tyler Bate stood on the stage motioning towards the entrance, Pete Dunne’s name appeared and the celebration began. Seconds later, the wrestler was back with his familiar attire and mannerisms. Amidst the hoopla, Dunne received not only a hero’s welcome, but performed in a well-paced two-segment match, where he scored the victory. He was also a hot topic of conversation amongst the members of Pretty Deadly afterwards backstage.
It remains to be seen if the tag team will stick around for the long-term and if the pair will continue to receive such prioritization. Triple H, however, is a longtime supporter of Dunne in particular. If he truly decides to get behind him, an eventual mid-card title run is not outside of the realm of possibility.
Honorable Mentions:
Drew McIntyre
Drew is clearly a high priority these days, yet his measured usage rarely allows him to thrive in these show-to-show rankings. Stepping back a bit to look over the past month, though, that McIntyre keeps his stock high with memorable verbal spars with top names like C.M. Punk and Cody Rhodes, as well as a main event World Title match against Seth Rollins. The best part about this flurry of activity is that nothing is wasted. Drew is pinned by Rollins and, rather than being defined down a notch, he uses it to fuel his promos. He’s bested by Punk, allowing him the last word in their argument, yet things refrain from becoming physical, which leaves him as a credible threat for their inevitable showdown at the Royal Rumble.
McIntyre is backed by a long resume that provides him with plenty of talking points when mixing it up with some of the companies biggest names. His promo style is becoming formulaic, but in an extremely palatable way. He opens by giving his target their due, acknowledging their success and the grit it took to get them there, before pivoting to explain why he’s still more deserving, and has thusly continued to be screwed. There’s no “tweener” vibe to be dissected, in my opinion. Instead, this style serves to make Drew McIntyre the most justified, yet still reprehensible heel the company has had in ages.
Women’s Title Picture on Raw
The booking behind Lynch’s clean loss to Nia Jax last month is beginning to look brilliant. WWE recognizes that, at least when handled thoughtfully, Becky is teflon. A clean loss at this stage is all elevation for the wrestler she puts over, with no diminishing return. This was evidenced as she interrupted Rhea Ripley to let her know she was coming. Rhea reacted as though Becky hadn’t recently lost. The crowd carried on similarly. In the end, it seems the only thing that really changed is that Nia Jax got invited to the main event party.
Speaking of Jax, she continues to be kept strong and fresh with meaningful vignettes, but without being shoved down the viewers throats. When she finally resurfaces to insert herself in the middle of Ripley and Lynch, she’ll be speaking the truth (at least according to the Win-Loss column) when she claims to be better than Becky, and any outrage displayed will be thoroughly justified. The top of the women’s division is a prime example of the depth WWE has provided themselves through not only numerous top tier returns, but with consistent quality writing that gives them the ability to rotate names at the top of the card, keeping everyone fresh and everything is interesting as it’s been in a long time.
Raw Top 10 1/15/24
1. Cody Rhodes (1, 7, 7)
2. Imperium (NR)
3. Judgement Day (6, 2, 1)
4. Seth Rollins (3, 6, 5)
5. Rhea Ripley (NR, 3, NR)
6. Jinder Mahal (9, 1, NR)
7. Xavier Woods (NR)
8. Drew McIntyre (8, 8, 6)
9. DIY (NR)
10. Becky Lynch (NR)
Smackdown Top 10 1/18/24
1. Randy Orton (2*, 2*, 1)
2. Bloodline (1, 1, 1)
3. L.A. Knight (2*, 2*, 6)
4. A.J. Styles (2*, 2*, 10)
5. Tyler Bate and Pete Dunne (NR, 10, NR)
6. Logan Paul (9, 6, NR)
7. Kevin Owens (10, 3, 7)
8. Damage CTRL (3, 5, NR)
9. Kayden Carter and Katana Chance (NR)
10. Final Testament (8, 8, NR)
(Thanks so much for reading. Feel free to leave a comment or drop a line via email at jeffp.rush@gmail.com or on Twitter/X @jeffsjeffsyall.)
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