King and Queen of the Ring Delivers, Bron Breakker Build Too Slow, More WWE Raw Takes

The May 6 edition of WWE Raw was must-see television, setting the stage for multiple major matches to come.

The King and Queen of the Ring tournaments are already delivering unforgettable performances from those involved.

Gunther and Sheamus went to war for the third time, once more ending with The Ring General on top. Ilja Dragunov delivered in his first match as an official member of Raw, winning over Ricochet.

Filling in for an injured Drew McIntyre, Jey Uso pulled out a big win over Finn Bálor.

Natalya continued her hot streak of great matches this week but lost again, this time to Iyo Sky.

Lyra Valkyria won big in her Raw debut by taking down Dakota Kai, while Zoey Stark made quick and decisive work of Ivy Nile.

These matches were the backbone of an exciting Raw that showed why WWE should do more tournaments in the future.

King and Queen of the Ring Already Showing Why WWE Needs More Tournaments

Few things in sports are more exciting than tournaments. While WWE may not be a traditional sport, it can still benefit from following the same single-elimination philosophy that gets people intrigued about March Madness and the NFL playoffs.

Fans tune in week after week to see who will emerge from each round on the road to a major victory that can mean even more than a championship.

When done right, King of the Ring has declared the future of the business, elevating names from Randy Savage to Brock Lesnar into the main event picture.

These events elevate the product and the talent involved, especially as WWE leans back into the importance of the in-ring product.

Already, Ilja Dragunov and Lyra Valkyria have been better established by defeating known names in Ricochet and Dakota Kai, respectively. Gunther has backed up his promise to win it all with another all-star performance.

Iyo Sky put the WWE Women's Championship behind her and looked unstoppable again in her first match since WrestleMania 40.

All of this happened because six matches on this show all had stakes that will build through the rest of the month toward King and Queen of the Ring on May 25.

In the future, WWE should consider using tournaments to crown No. 1 contenders as well as new champions (rather than Battle Royals). It's a winning formula.

Iyo Sky Must Win Queen of the Ring

Iyo Sky may have had her time on top as WWE women's champion, but she still hasn't been fully established as a main event act.

Of all the women on the Raw side of the Queen of the Ring bracket, she is the most interesting and has already delivered a quality match in the first round against Natalya.

Sky has proved time and again that she can deliver great in-ring work with time, so she is perfect for a tournament like this.

Her major competition on Raw is Lyra Valkyria, but it is too fast to give The Valkyrie that much spotlight. She will get enough rub from a semifinals run before transitioning fully to working with Becky Lynch.

The SmackDown side does offer the interesting option of Tiffany Stratton winning Queen of the Ring, but Sky has earned the accolade this time around. The Center of the Universe will have more opportunities.

With a definitive Queen of the Ring win, Sky would solidify herself atop the Raw women's division and continue to build a feud with The Man that has already been teased.

WWE Moving Too Slow with Bron Breakker

Bron Breakker debuted in NXT in September 2021, quickly making an impact. By January, he was NXT champion. After losing it and winning it back in 2022, he began the longest title reign of all time in the gold brand at over 361 days.

Despite putting it all together as a performer during that title reign, dropping the gold just in time for the 2023 WWE draft, he instead stayed in NXT for another year.

Most of that time was wasted, but he did develop serious chemistry with Baron Corbin, forming a dominant tag team.

It would have made sense to bring up Breakker and Corbin together. Instead, the 26-year-old powerhouse signed with SmackDown alone in February 2024 and was then drafted to Raw in April, just in time for Corbin to head to the blue brand.

Over the last three months, Breakker has done nothing on the main roster, and this is coming off a nearly wasted year in NXT.

Meanwhile, Carmelo Hayes and Ilja Dragunov are getting the superstar treatment early, including roles in the King of the Ring tournament.

If Breakker is supposed to be the future of WWE, he needs to get the main roster push to back it up before the next generation of wrestlers start making him look like a forgotten veteran.

Gunther vs. Ilja Dragunov III Shouldn't Be King of the Ring Match

Two men clearly made an impact on the first night of the King of the Ring tournament: Gunther and Ilja Dragunov.

For those who know the history of these two men, that is perfectly appropriate. Their careers have been interlinked since before either arrived in WWE.

Outside of the never-ending story of Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn, no two men have more parallel journeys on the current WWE roster.

Their two matches for the NXT UK Championship are legendary, and they will likely have more unforgettable battles on Raw in good time.

The time is not right yet to deliver the third chapter, though. They should not clash in the King of the Ring tournament semifinals before casual fans fully get to know The Mad Dragon.

Moreover, Gunther vs. Dragunov in the semifinals would likely outshine any finals pairing for The Ring General that SmackDown can deliver.

The best option is for Jey Uso to pick up the win next week and get his second chance to take down Gunther without any Bloodline interference. It would be a great match while saving something special for the future.