WWE RAW - 5 surprises that could happen: Popular star to get a big title push, 'The Fiend' to return and attack top Champion? (January 25th, 2021)

It's no secret that RAW has been suffering from inconsistent ratings and even more inconsistent programming. That doesn't mean that the build to Royal Rumble wasn't exciting at all. With the go-home episode of RAW to the Royal Rumble taking place tonight, here are five surprises WWE could have in store for us:

#5. Does a breakout performance await Riddle on RAW?

For a while now, Riddle has crossed paths with The Hurt Business on RAW. It started with MVP ordering attacks on him, and Riddle even defeated United States Champion Bobby Lashley on RAW - thanks to a bit of luck and trickery.

When Riddle finally got his title shot one week later on RAW, it was the United States Champion Bobby Lashley who played dirty - attacking the former NXT Tag Team Champion beforehand and finishing him quickly to retain his title.

It was clear that their rivalry wasn't done on RAW, and even after losing to Lashley, Riddle challenged MVP to a match. The veteran and Hurt Business leader took up the challenge but was getting beat down - until Lashley saved him by causing a disqualification.

On RAW tonight, Riddle will have to face three members of The Hurt Business in a Gauntlet match to set up a title shot against Bobby Lashley. Getting through Cedric Alexander, Shelton Benjamin, and MVP is no easy task, but WWE usually uses gauntlet matches to have a standout performance.

What would be surprising is if WWE has the Gauntlet match on RAW run for close to an hour - with Riddle eventually running through all three men. Shinsuke Nakamura recently had a standout Gauntlet match performance, and it would be a surprise if WWE had a long showing for Riddle. What realistically could happen, however, is Riddle crumbling by the third opponent thanks to interference from Lashley.