RAW after Crown Jewel Preview: Top faction to recruit new female member, 8 contestants for WarGames potentially revealed? (November 7th, 2022)
Welcome to RAW after Crown Jewel 2022 Preview! It was certainly an interesting show, with the first half being filled with rather underwhelming matches and finishes. The second half produced a string of incredibly entertaining bouts.
Now that WWE's trips to Saudi Arabia for 2022 are over, the focus will shift towards the next big premium live event – Survivor Series: WarGames. For the first time in years, the interbrand rivalry will end and WWE is putting a fresh take on Survivor Series with the iconic WarGames stipulation.
We only have a slight idea of what lies ahead this month, and WWE has less than 20 days to build on the big event. Expect matches to be made quick and WarGames matches to be made official as soon as next week, if not this week.
Either way, this week's episode of RAW will plant the seeds for what will happen not only in the next 19 days but also in the rest of 2022:
#5. Will The OC finally find a solution to the Rhea Ripley problem?
It's clear, and has been for a while now, that Rhea Ripley is the difference-maker for The Judgment Day. In virtually every interaction they have had with The OC, they have stood tall, primarily thanks to the former RAW Women's Champion.
Ripley also made a difference at Crown Jewel, and it will be interesting to see who The OC recruits as a female star to combat Rhea Ripley. Will legend Beth Phoenix be ready in time for WarGames following a vicious attack on her at Extreme Rules a month ago? There aren't too many other dominant women that we can think of, apart from Raquel Rodriguez. So far, there has been no indication that Rodriguez will join The OC.
#4. What will be the fallout for RAW Women's Champion Bianca Belair and her allies heading into WarGames?
In a classic Last Woman Standing match, RAW Women's Champion Bianca Belair defeated Bayley definitively at Crown Jewel 2022. However, her allies Alexa Bliss and Asuka didn't have the same success. They lost their tag team titles to Damage CTRL just five days after winning it from them – thanks to Nikki Cross.
It will be interesting to see how things play out, as there are eight clear-cut competitors for the Women's WarGames match should it happen. On the one hand, there is RAW Women's Champion Bianca Belair, Asuka, Alexa Bliss, and Candice LeRae. On the other, there are three Damage CTRL members, Bayley, Iyo Sky, and Dakota Kai, along with their seemingly newly formed ally Nikki Cross.
But given that the WarGames match will have five competitors on each side, there hasn't been any indication of who could join either side next.
#3. What will happen this week in the Miz-Dexter Lumis-Johnny Gargano saga?
Last week on RAW, The Miz lost to Mustafa Ali thanks to Dexter Lumis making a small appearance to cause a distraction. Following that, Johnny Gargano revealed the truth in what we can only describe as an Emmy-worthy segment.
Gargano revealed that The Miz paid Dexter Lumis to return and stage attacks on him to get attention. However, a series of non-payments led to Lumis chasing The Miz for real. What will be the fallout of the story between The Miz and Lumis? And how will Gargano be involved?
#2. Will Mustafa Ali get one over Seth Rollins?
Mustafa Ali was successful last week against The Miz and continued to make a statement against Seth Rollins. While the two didn't have a US Title clash at Crown Jewel as expected, it likely means that we're going to see a clash between them on RAW very soon, or at Survivor Series at the very latest.
Will Ali continue to get a psychological upper hand over Rollins? Or will the US Champion outsmart him this week?
#1. Is a Bobby Lashley-Brock Lesnar trilogy set to happen right away?
Bobby Lashley vs Brock Lesnar 2 ended controversially. It started controversially as The All Mighty attacked Lesnar before the match. He dominated most of the bout but ended up getting pinned after Lesnar took him down while The Hurt Lock was applied.
From the look of things, Lashley's shoulders were up as well. Either way, the result is done and can't be changed. The two are 1-1 and a rematch is imminent, especially given the post-match assault that Lashley gave Lesnar to make a statement.
So what will The All Mighty have to say about what happened? Tune into RAW to find out!