WWE Raw Winners and Losers: A huge WrestleMania tease for Asuka, Nia Jax

Who were the biggest winners and losers on WWE Raw this week?

Although this week’s episode of WWE Raw seemed to drag and didn’t have much going on, there were still a few performers who managed to stand out. Some did so in hugely positive ways, while others seem to be in trouble due to the promotion’s continually disappointing booking.

Let’s take a look at this week’s biggest winners and losers, including Nia Jax and Asuka, who got quite the rub on commentary from Byron Saxton.

Winner: Mustafa Ali

Mustafa Ali literally won his match against Ricochet, which was huge for the leader of RETRIBUTION. For weeks, the entire faction had been made to look like a joke, with Ali cowering in fear before bigger wrestlers, notably Hurt Business CEO Bobby Lashley. And that’s rather antithetical to Ali’s entire character, even if he is now a heel.

Finally, a member of RETRIBUTION won a match, but more than that, Ali had an incredible showing alongside Ricochet. That match in the third-hour of Raw stole the show from the six-man tag match main event, which most people don’t even remember since Ali and Ricochet were so good.

They tore the house down. I mean, did you see Ali’s backstabber off the ropes? Ali has every right to brag about it!

Stealing the show with great matches is nothing new for Ali, who did this on a regular basis on 205 Live in front of dead crowds on Tuesday night after SmackDown had ended. He can pick up any show, and he and Ricochet were the clear highlights of the Nov. 9 episode of WWE Raw.

Winners: Cedric Alexander and Shelton Benjamin

Next week on WWE Raw, Cedric Alexander and Shelton Benjamin will get a chance to win the Raw Tag Team Titles off of the New Day.

We had a feeling this match would be coming soon, and there’s a good chance Benjamin and Alexander win the tag titles. A title victory has been a long time coming for both of them, and they are producing their finest work in several months as members of the Hurt Business.

The most successful faction in WWE in terms of their quality on a weekly basis, the Hurt Business are ready to turn that into being the most successful faction in terms of silverware. They already have the United States Champion in Bobby Lashley, and now it’s time to add the Raw Tag Team Championships.

I’d love to see the New Day vs. the Street Profits at Survivor Series, but I have a strong feeling we’re going to see the Hurt Business vs. the Street Profits on Nov. 22 instead.

Loser: Tucker

Oh, Tucker. Why oh why did WWE break you and Otis up? We really could have gotten to this point where The Miz has the Money in the Bank briefcase without having the Heavy Machinery teammates break up with each other. I can’t see that we didn’t see it coming – what with Otis getting a new theme song and all – but it still hurts nonetheless.

And I don’t just mean emotionally. I mean that Tucker and Otis have both been hurt by this unnecessary break-up, but Tucker has taken the worst of it.

He won his first title in WWE last night, becoming a two-time 24/7 Champion on a single roll-up. But nobody cares about the 24/7 Title now. Honestly, Tucker being in that scene is a huge downgrade for him.

I will forever be sad that Tucker’s first championship victory in WWE was a meaningless 24/7 Title “reign” and not a wonderful run with the tag team championships alongside Otis.

Winner: Asuka, Nia Jax

Nia Jax and Asuka had another match on WWE Raw this week, which was fought to a disqualification. That may seem disappointing, but Nia ended up being a big winner this week for what happened during the match on commentary.

Byron Saxton said that a match between Asuka and Nia would be worthy of a WrestleMania main event. And reportedly per Fightful Select, Saxton was instructed to say that on commentary.

Now I’m not sure that means Jax vs. Asuka will be the WrestleMania main event or is even a planned match at ‘Mania. But for Saxton to say that and be told to say that, it’s huge for both Asuka and Nia.

Nia had a huge moment at WrestleMania 34 when she won the Raw Women’s Championship, but fans haven’t seen her as a WrestleMania main event-caliber competitor. So this was big praise for her. And for Asuka, she has been one of WWE’s best wrestlers for years, including in 2020. Yet she hasn’t had a truly big WrestleMania moment, as she lost her undefeated streak at that same ‘Mania to Charlotte Flair.

Asuka should be spoken about more as a possible WrestleMania main event competitor, even if the match doesn’t end up being next year or against Nia.

Winner: Drew McIntyre

The Hurt Business aren’t the only wrestlers getting a title shot next week on Raw, as Drew McIntyre got a second-chance opportunity at the WWE Championship he’s been watching over after losing the title to Randy Orton inside Hell in a Cell.

I actually think McIntyre stands a chance at winning the title, even if it seems like Orton is headed for a future match with Edge, potentially even at WrestleMania 37. We could get McIntyre vs. Roman Reigns at Survivor Series instead of Orton vs. Reigns, which doesn’t seem like nearly as big of a deal. Though on the other hand, WWE may want more than a brief build to a match as big as McIntyre vs. Reigns. (Unless this match is a tease of a future feud and is used to gauge how much interest there would be in that rivalry.)

Either way, McIntyre was a big winner this week. Not only for getting another shot at the world title, but also because he had a great backstage segment with Sheamus. Clapping to the New Day’s song? Cracking jokes with Sheamus? McIntyre and Sheamus could be an awesome tag team in a few months, too, adding more life to the Raw Tag Team Division.