WWE Raw Division Power Rankings: The Miz Steals The Show

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Welcome to the RAW Division Power Rankings After WWE Payback.

These are the power rankings for each division on Monday Night RAW for this following week. Each division would be ranked based on storyline progression and win/loss record as of 2017. Also, each division would be divided by contenders and pretenders, to differentiate the challengers in their respective division. I’ll also highlight a specific superstar in each division and explain their ranking based on their actions. Win/Loss record is provided by CageMatch.Net.

Each superstar or tag team can move up or down the rankings based on victory, defeat or storyline progression. Let’s see how the rankings shape up this week.

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The RAW Cruiserweight Division

Highlights of the Division

At Payback, Neville walked away with his Cruiserweight title intact but ate a disqualification loss in the process. It seemed very odd for the King of the Cruiserweights to resort to that type of action to keep his gold but it was the only way to remain champion. Neville has already grown stale as of late and his days as the King might be over really soon.

Austin Aries had a hell of a showing at Payback against Neville for the championship but walked away empty-handed. He did score a huge win against TJ Perkins on RAW to maintain his path at another crack at the Cruiserweight Championship. A-Double is the division’s only hope of dethroning Neville and revitalizing the predictability of 205 Live.

TJ Perkins might have suffered a loss at the hands of the current No. 1 Contender for the Cruiserweight Championship but he did dish out a beat down after the match concluded. The former champion has had a whirlwind of a win/loss record since teaming up with Neville last month. Losing one match on RAW and winning the next match on 205 Live every week will not elevate TJ to a serious title contender—even if he is cozying up with the Cruiserweight Champion. 

Meanwhile, for the Rest of the Division   

Jack Gallagher, Rich Swann and Akira Tozawa scored a big win in their six-man tag team match on RAW and moved up one spot from their previous positions in the rankings. They’ll need to wrap up their respective feuds with Brian Kendrick and Noam Dar to reposition themselves for a future title opportunity—if it does come to fruition.   

Mustafa Ali and Drew Gulak are embroiled in a very entertaining feud that is expanding their characters and elevating their story-telling abilities. Having their rivalry center around the use of high-flying maneuvers should force both men to engage in matches revolving around technical wrestling which Drew Gulak is superb in. Gulak might be the beneficiary of moving up the rankings if he secures a few wins along the way. 

These are the rankings for the division this week.

WWE Cruiserweight Champion: Neville (13 Wins – 5 Losses)

Contenders

• No. 1 Contender: Austin Aries (9 Wins – 2 Loss)
• Contender No. 2: Jack Gallagher (16 Wins – 8 Losses)
• Contender No. 3: Rich Swann (10 Wins – 4 Losses) (Moved Up 1 Spot)
• Contender No. 4: Akira Tozawa (12 Wins – 4 Losses) (Moved Up 1 Spot)
• Contender No. 5: The Brian Kendrick (9 Wins – 8 Losses) (Moved Down 2 Spots)
• Contender No. 6: TJ Perkins (10 Wins – 13 Losses)
• Contender No. 7: Gran Metalik (6 Wins – 2 Losses)

Pretenders

• Pretender No. 1: Mustafa Ali (9 Wins – 12 Losses)
• Pretender No. 2: Cedric Alexander (5 Wins – 6 Losses)
• Pretender No. 3: Ariya Daivari (6 Wins – 9 Losses)
• Pretender No. 4: Drew Gulak (6 Wins – 9 Losses)
• Pretender No. 5: Tony Nese (8 Wins – 17 Losses)
• Pretender No. 6: Noam Dar (5 Wins – 17 Losses)
• Pretender No. 7: Lince Dorado (2 Wins – 10 Losses)