WWE Superstar Power Rankings Ahead of October 10 Raw

Kevin Owens may be the lead dog on WWE Raw, but was that enough to earn him the top spot in this week's Superstar power rankings?

The universal champion had stiff competition, primarily from a SmackDown brand coming off a huge No Mercy pay-per-view that saw the end of some incredibly emotional rivalries and the intensification of others.

AJ Styles successfully retained his WWE World Championship, and Dolph Ziggler put an end to The Miz's lengthy run as intercontinental champion, but could either man catapult ahead of Seth Rollins or Chris Jericho, two of Raw's premier Superstars searching for the opportunity to dethrone Owens?

Where did Sasha Banks rank after a historic victory over Charlotte in the main event of the Oct. 3 edition of Raw?

How about franchise star John Cena, who was the recipient of a chair shot that ended his chances at a 16th world title reign?

With two pay-per-view events in close proximity, the WWE Universe is benefiting from outstanding performances from top Superstars. Which one did enough to be the head of the class this week?

Take a look for yourself.

Honorable Mention: Bray Wyatt

Sunday night at No Mercy, Bray Wyatt won a high-profile pay-per-view match for the first time in what feels like an eternity, beating Randy Orton after longtime follower Luke Harper returned and provided a distraction for The Reaper of Souls.

While the win was anything but clean and decisive, it still allowed the enigmatic cult-like figure to score a much-needed win and, in the process, build some momentum for himself.

Long one of wrestling's most captivating performers, Wyatt desperately needs credibility to go along with his penchant for gabbing. Sunday night, he got it while reintroducing the WWE Universe to his most trusted confidant.

It should be interesting and fun to see how Orton responds and where the feud goes from here. 

10. Roman Reigns

The United States champion, Roman Reigns, continues to roll, leaving Rusev lying on the Raw entrance ramp just moments after revealing that the two of them will conclude their heated rivalry inside Hell in a Cell on Oct. 30.

The Big Dog has demonstrated some wicked chemistry with Rusev, but they are still missing that one match that defines their rivalry. Expect that to come when The Devil's Playground encapsulates them and the door is locked, leaving the rivals to their own painful devices.

For all of the talk that Reigns is somehow being de-pushed or punished for his violation of the wellness policy earlier in the year, he still kicks off episodes of Raw or ends them in the main event, a sign of a babyface Vince McMahon still intends to build his show around.

Talk of Reigns' demise has been premature.

9. Sasha Banks

The Boss continued to make history this past week, battling Charlotte in the main event of Raw and becoming a two-time women's champion by knocking off the second-generation star.

Banks is a marketable performer who has been one of the most celebrated wrestlers on the planet for the last year. Her first run with the title was a three-week disappointment that ended at SummerSlam amid concerns of a serious back injury.

Now healed and ready to conquer women's wrestling in WWE, her feud with Charlotte remains unfinished, as evidenced by the announcement that they will do battle on Oct. 30 at Hell in a Cell. The only question now is whether that match is a straight singles match or if it takes place inside the show's namesake.

Either way, expect this reign to last much longer than the last and for Banks to finally realize her potential as the lead star in WWE's women's division.

8. John Cena

The franchise star of WWE may not have emerged from No Mercy with the world championship, but the finish of the Triple Threat match between him, Dean Ambrose and AJ Styles suggests that John Cena will remain a fixture in the title picture.

Repeatedly showing off his Superman-like strength, Cena was dominant at times in Sunday's pay-per-view main event. Yet it was him who was blasted with a steel chair by Styles, the heel champion unable to overcome the challenge of his opponent cleanly.

Though he is anything but the full-time worker he once was, Cena remains the most recognizable face in professional wrestling and the biggest star on the SmackDown roster.

He may not have celebrated his 16th championship victory this time, but do not be surprised if it comes sooner rather than later.

7. The Miz

For every bit of criticism The Miz has endured over the course of his career, he has consistently improved his game to the point that, Sunday night at No Mercy, he delivered his finest performance to date in a match with all the drama and emotion of a classic.

With his Intercontinental Championship up for grabs and the opportunity to retire rival Dolph Ziggler, Miz resorted to every underhanded tactic he could possibly conjure to try to retain. He distracted the referee so that wife Maryse could spray Ziggler in the eyes with perfume. He sent the No. 1 contender into an exposed turnbuckle and benefited from the arrival of Spirit Squad members Kenny and Mikey.

On that night, though, nothing he did worked. Ziggler won the title in a brilliant wrestling match, ending The Hollywood A-Lister's lengthy reign.

How Miz responds is worth watching, given how wildly entertaining he has become as one of SmackDown's cornerstones.

6. Seth Rollins

Seth Rollins continued his gradual turn from overbearing heel to anti-Authority babyface this past Monday, showing the fire fans expect to see out of a frustrated hero as he interacted with Raw commissioner Stephanie McMahon.

Not only did he mention Triple H's monumentally bad decision in stabbing him in the back, but he also got a dig in at The Billion Dollar Princess in the process, telling her she was The Game's biggest mistake.

From there, he vowed to burn Raw to the ground and take both Kevin Owens and Chris Jericho with him if he did not get the WWE Universal Championship match he sought.

It was a banner night for Rollins, the first in which he appeared to be an honest-to-goodness babyface since The Shield's only flirtation with heroism.

It will be important for Rollins to continue to build momentum in that role, perhaps by making good on his promise to interrupt Raw and take his frustrations out on Owens, Jericho and anyone else unfortunate enough to stand in his way.

5. Dean Ambrose

The Lunatic Fringe not only wrestled an outstanding match against AJ Styles and John Cena at No Mercy, but he also continued his transition from generic babyface to the edgy and unpredictable tweener that he excelled as earlier in his babyface run.

Though he lost Sunday, he was not involved in the pin. Furthermore, his biting commentary on Cena's character and ever-changing role in WWE has laid the foundation for a program between the two. While that may not happen in the immediate future, it presents the opportunity for Ambrose to exercise his voice and continue to pick apart the character of wrestling's greatest hero.

The biggest question now is whether he remains in the title picture or splits off to do battle elsewhere on the card, perhaps against a Baron Corbin in need of some serious competition if he is to rise up the ranks of the blue brand.

4. Chris Jericho

At age 45, Chris Jericho has found new life as the somewhat delusional veteran who holds on to his spot in WWE by aligning himself with new "best friend" and current universal champion Kevin Owens.

Monday night, he suggested that he wants gold back around his waist and even planted the seed that he may be eyeing up Owens' title. From there, he engaged The New Day in a hilarious promo that ended with him scribbling Kofi Kingston's, Xavier Woods' and Big E's names onto The List of Jericho.

Owens' reluctance to roll in the ring and break up the pin that lost Jericho the match will likely come into play as Y2J begins to realize that the relationship the two have is beneficial only to one of them.

If that proves to be the case, expect Jericho to get one last main event run, perhaps beginning as soon as Hell in a Cell with a spot in that night's championship main event, making the advertised bout a Triple Threat match.

3. Dolph Ziggler

Faced with winning the Intercontinental Championship or retiring, Dolph Ziggler rolled into No Mercy Sunday night and delivered one of those rare defining performances, the likes of which rank among the best of his career.

Determined not to let a vermin like Miz retire him, Ziggler broke out every trick imaginable to win the coveted secondary title.

He borrowed from rival-turned-friend Zack Ryder, planting Miz with the Rough Ryder. On what would have been the 49th birthday of Hall of Famer Eddie Guerrero, he borrowed a spot from Latino Heat's WrestleMania XX victory over Kurt Angle, and he blasted Miz with enough of Shawn Michaels' superkicks to put the loudmouthed villain away for the three-count.

The pure emotion that Ziggler showed throughout the storyline helped elevate its importance, as well as the significance of the IC title. Now it is up to him to carry that momentum over into Tuesday's SmackDown and continue making that championship as important as the brand's world title.

2. Kevin Owens

The WWE universal champion had a rough Monday night on the latest edition of Raw, enduring a loss to The New Day following interference from Seth Rollins and, even worse, suffering an insult at the hands of Xavier Woods.

Yet as the Oct. 10 episode of Raw approaches, it feels as if Owens is poised for a huge week. Not only is Rollins gunning for him and the title, but it also appears as though Chris Jericho is not content to sit back and allow The Prizefighter to carry on as champion uncontested any longer.

The centerpiece of the championship picture, Owens figures to be front and center as Raw continues the build to its Oct. 30 Hell in a Cell pay-per-view. Whether he must overcome challenges from all sides or focus solely on Rollins is the main question.

And what of Triple H, Stephanie McMahon and The Authority's desire to keep him champion?

When will the audience find out the reasoning behind that?

One must assume it is coming sooner rather than later.

1. AJ Styles

The best wrestler in the world lands at the No. 1 spot in these rankings, fresh off a successful WWE World Championship defense against Dean Ambrose and John Cena at No Mercy.

AJ Styles' run in 2016 has been nothing short of—pardon the pun—phenomenal.

Sunday night, he added another four-plus-star performance to his resume and firmly established himself as the face of SmackDown. Did he do it fairly? No, but a Triple Threat match carries a No Disqualification stipulation with it, thus making his chair shot to Cena perfectly legal.

After so much was made of his technical prowess, the fact that he resorted to such an underhanded tactic was a perfectly creative way to wrap up the outstanding match.

Now Styles stands atop the blue brand without an obvious challenger.

Who will step up and try to dethrone him next?

Only time will tell. For now, fans should sit back and enjoy the Styles era because it has produced some extraordinarily special work.