WWE Raw: Rating every traded superstar’s chance of winning a title after Shakeup

Andrade

It feels wrong calling him just “Andrade” instead of “Andrade ‘Cien’ Almas”, but that’s Vince McMahon for you.

Anyway, Andrade has been in the United States Championship picture before, but he couldn’t manage to win the title in multi-man matches; Samoa Joe was the one who claimed the championship as his own.

With Intercontinental Champion Finn Balor now on SmackDown Live, Joe is fully expected to join the Red Brand soon, meaning Andrade’s first mid-card title in WWE would be the United States Championship.

But I think WWE may have something bigger planned for Andrade. Firstly, his business associate Zelina Vega is so ambitious and cutthroat that a mid-card title may not be enough to satisfy her drive to reach the top of WWE. She and Andrade may have their sights set on the Money in the Bank briefcase, as Andrade seems like the perfect candidate to win via cash-in. We haven’t seen a man actually hold and cash-in the MITB briefcase in years, since Dean Ambrose used his title opportunity immediately in 2016, Baron Corbin laughably failed in 2017, and Braun Strowman pre-emptively cashed in and lost.

El Idolo has so much potential, and while he could be a fixture in WWE Raw’s upper mid-card after making a statement by pinning Balor in his first appearance on Monday night, it might be even better for WWE to build he and Zelina up into dangerous main event players.

Rating: 8/10, I’d be surprised if Andrade didn’t win his first title in WWE sooner rather than later.

Cedric Alexander

One of the most talented wrestlers in all of WWE, Cedric Alexander became the “Soul” of 205 Live by leaving it all on the line every single week. Alexander was one of the most popular stars on 205, getting himself over during the Enzo Amore era before becoming the first Cruiserweight Champion in Drake Maverick’s tenure as general manager.

The “Age of Alexander” was excellent, too, and Cedric’s matches against his successor as the brand’s champion, Buddy Murphy, were an absolute treat.

Since the Cruiserweight Classic, Alexander has always been a fan favorite, and the WWE Universe will likely be 100-percent behind him on Monday nights. He’s a great bet to win the United States Championship, but he may have to step his promos up a notch on a crowded main roster product where self-differentiation is the name of the game.

Rating: 5/10, Alexander should win a title, but probably won’t until 2020.