5 Things WWE Subtly told us on RAW: Unexpected star receives big babyface push, Canceled World Title feud teased for SummerSlam?
Welcome to this week's edition of things WWE subtly told us on RAW! It was the second-last RAW before Money in the Bank 2021 as well as the penultimate episode of the red brand in the ThunderDome.
It was an interesting episode featuring a lot of developments. John Morrison defeated Ricochet by countout, T-BAR and Mace lost to The Lucha House Party, Jaxson Ryker continued to get a big push and more.
The main build, of course, was for both the men and women's Money in the Bank ladder matches. While the women's side only saw an eight-woman tag team match, the male participants found themselves competing on the show.
Next week on RAW, there are quite a few matches including the first defense for a Champion.
Here's what went down in this week's episode of RAW.
#5 Riddle presented as one of RAW's most important babyfaces
Riddle has had an important role in RAW for a while now, but he feels even bigger as of late. While The Original Bro upset Drew McIntyre to qualify for the Money in the Bank ladder match, Randy Orton couldn't make it.
Randy Orton had a "Last Chance" qualifying match on RAW last week against Drew McIntyre and AJ Styles, but he didn't appear. Riddle took his place but fell short to McIntyre - who got some measure of revenge from the previous week.
This week on RAW, Riddle was at the forefront once again in the opening segment. Despite The Miz TV segment featuring the likes of McIntyre, Ricochet, John Morrison, and AJ Styles, Riddle felt like the most important superstar in the ring.
Ricochet faced (and lost to) John Morrison while Drew McIntyre was involved with an old ally. Riddle, on the other hand, was booked against AJ Styles in a singles match.
He faced and defeated AJ Styles in another top performance. This time, however, The Viking Raiders were partially responsible. The RAW Tag Team title contenders were hiding before they took out Omos. The distraction allowed Riddle to get a pin.
For a superstar with a bit of a "goofy" character, Riddle seems to be getting quite a big babyface push on RAW. While The Viking Raiders are set to challenge AJ Styles & Omos for the RAW Tag Team titles in two weeks, we expect RK-Bro to enter title contention by SummerSlam.
But it seems like WWE is setting Riddle up for something big. Perhaps due to the lack of top-tier babyfaces on RAW, The Original Bro is benefiting by getting the spotlight. The fact that he gets more screentime than his partner Randy Orton says a lot.