WWE Superstar Power Rankings for 12/22/2014: Christmas Edition
The fallout from TLC 2014 looks to be preparing the WWE Universe for 2015 Royal Rumble, the next pay-per-view on the docket, and in the spirit of Christmas, the penultimate WWE Superstar Power Rankings article of the year has gifts for some WWE Superstars and lumps of coal for others.
Dolph Ziggler still holds the No. 1 spot, but there are a number of changes in this week's rankings. This past week, we celebrated SmackDown's 800th episode, had Y2J Chris Jericho as a special guest general manager and even saw Brock Lesnar for the first time in recent memory.
We're also seeing the setup to the feuds that will surely play out at the Royal Rumble. Can Ryback hold his own with Rusev? When will Luke Harper get his rematch for the Intercontinental Championship? We could get answers to these questions and more this week.
Also, an important note about Tribute to the Troops. For the purposes of these rankings, it was considered a regular show like Raw, SmackDown, Main Event, and Superstars. Yes, it was filmed earlier in the month, but it falls within the air dates considered for the rankings. The matches were also generally within storyline, so they count here.
We'll get into all this past week's action in the following slides. But before we move on, please read how these rankings work.
Holding a championship, being a No. 1 contender or holding a Money in the Bank briefcase counts for much of a wrestler's ranking, and these honors are therefore the most heavily weighted components in the rankings. If a wrestler is deemed to be level with another wrestler, holding a title will be a tiebreaker.
Wins and losses account for the bulk of the week-to-week movement—wins and losses are, after championships, the most important component of the rankings. The quality of a wrestler's opponents and whether they are ranked is considered in the week-to-week movement.
Getting the better of someone—like beating someone down—also counts, though not as much as wins or losses. Being over with the fans is considered but not heavily weighted in the ranking decisions. Pay-per-view performances take on added importance.
Only the top 10 wrestlers are ranked. Wrestlers on the "Watch List" were considered for top-10 status but were ultimately nixed. They are unranked, and their listing is in no particular order.
Generally speaking, these rankings do not break kayfabe, though any major non-storyline information (serious injury, WWE Wellness Policy violations, suspensions, legitimate hirings, firings, contract information, "sabbaticals," etc.) may be taken into consideration, especially if WWE confirms them publicly.
Domestic and international WWE live events are not included in these rankings unless WWE incorporates them into television storylines. Nothing that could be explicitly considered a spoiler is included unless WWE acknowledges it as well.
In short, all WWE shows, televised or digitally distributed, as well as anything from WWE.com, the WWE App, the WWE Network and any WWE or Superstar accounts on social media that don't break kayfabe may be taken into consideration for these rankings. This may include but is not limited to WWE Raw, WWE SmackDown, WWE Main Event, WWE Superstars, NXT, WWE pay-per-views and any storyline-driven content from the WWE Network.
Watch List
1 of 11Nikki Bella w/Brie
It was a bad week for Nikki Bella. The Divas champion teamed with her sister on Raw in a loss to Alicia Fox and Natalya. Then, at Tribute to the Troops, the Bellas teamed with Paige in a loss to Naomi, Emma and Natalya. Can Nikki regain some momentum this week?
Roman Reigns
Roman Reigns' only match this week was a win over Fandango on SmackDown. He looks poised to make a big impact, but he'll have to use brute force to interject himself into the title picture—or win the Royal Rumble. Either one would work.
The New Day
As far as the tag team division goes, the New day are on a roll. Kofi Kingston, Xavier Woods and Big E have taken turns competing in matches, and they've started winning them. This past week, they won two matches against quality teams—defeating Gold & Stardust on Raw and Tyson Kidd and Cesaro on SmackDown. Can they keep up the positivity and continue their winning ways?
No. 10: Seth Rollins
2 of 11Previous Rank: Watch List
Movement: Into Top 10
Seth Rollins really didn't have a great week, but he picked up a much-needed win over a high-ranked opponent on Raw. He faced John Cena in a cage match, and with heavy interference (all technically legal), including Brock Lesnar destroying Cena, he escaped for the win.
What's also worth keeping an eye on was his apparent rapport with Paul Heyman, which saw Rollins shake his hand. Is Rollins a "Heyman Guy?"
Moving on, Rollins had a rougher go of it on SmackDown and at Tribute to the Troops. He was set to face Ryback on SmackDown, but that match never happened (more on that later). Instead, he was defeated by Dolph Ziggler.
At Tribute to the Troops, he teamed with Kane, Big Show, and Luke Harper in a loss to Cena, Ziggler, Erick Rowan, and Ryback.
The win over Cena was big, but he needs consistency. Can he go on a winning streak?
No. 9: Big Show
3 of 11Previous Rank: 9
Movement: None
Big Show had a mixed week, picking up a win in tag action while teaming with Luke Harper against Erick Rowan and Dolph Ziggler. He KO'd Rowan and pinned him for the win.
Later, he tried to attack Roman Reigns, who hit Big Show with a Superman Punch. Big Show was not knocked out, but he did leave the ring area angrily.
On Tribute to the Troops, Big Show teamed with Luke Harper, Kane and Seth Rollins in an eight-man tag match against John Cena, Dolph Ziggler, Ryback and Erick Rowan. His team lost.
It appears he'll be feuding with Roman Reigns for now, as he's surely upset about being humiliated on Raw. Will he be able to overcome Reigns, who shows no signs of rust after being on the shelf for several months?
No. 8: Brock Lesnar
4 of 11Previous Rank: Watch List
Movement: Into Top 10
He's back. Finally. WWE World Heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar made his return to WWE TV on Raw this past week after not appearing since Night of Champions.
And he started dishing out beatings like only Lesnar can. He beat down Chris Jericho after he forced Heyman into a match with him, then he beat down John Cena inside the steel cage during the main event, giving Seth Rollins the win.
We know that Cena will face him again for the title. The question now is whether he's back for the duration of the build to the Royal Rumble or if he'll disappear again until the pay-per-view.
No. 7: The Miz & Damien Mizdow
5 of 11Previous Rank: 5
Movement: Down 2
The Miz and his stunt double, Damien Mizdow, are still Tag Team champions after TLC, but this past week was not kind to them.
On Raw, the Miz lost to Jimmy Uso, and then on SmackDown, they teamed with Luke Harper against the Usos and Erick Rowan in another loss.
Clearly, their feud with the Usos is set to continue. But Miz has slowly been driving a wedge between Jimmy Uso and his wife Naomi. Is Miz sincere in his desire to help Naomi, or is it all a plot to destroy the Usos? Time surely will tell.
No. 6: Dean Ambrose
6 of 11Previous Rank: 7
Movement: Up 1
Dean Ambrose had one match this week, a Boot Camp match (pretty much a No Disqualification match with event-themed items scattered about) against Bray Wyatt at Tribute to the Troops. No electronics exploded in his face this time, and he defeated Wyatt.
Since the dissolution of the Shield, Ambrose is still without a win at pay-per-views. With his victory over Wyatt this past week, is he finished with the feud, or will it continue?
No. 5: The Usos
7 of 11Previous Rank: 6
Movement: Up 1
The Usos keep racking up wins and climbing in the rankings as a result. This past week, Jimmy Uso defeated the Miz on Raw, and then on SmackDown, the Usos teamed with Erick Rowan in a win over the Miz, Mizdow and Luke Harper.
To cap the week off, they defeated Gold & Stardust at Tribute to the Troops. They may not be Tag Team champions, but they're acting like they expect another crack at the belts. But will Jimmy Usos' personal issues get in the way of the team's success?
No. 4: Rusev
8 of 11Previous Rank: 4
Movement: None
Rusev had no matches this week, which has unfortunately become a trend. He tried intimidating Chris Jericho on Raw but was ultimately run off by Ryback, who is likely the next challenger for Rusev's United States Championship.
He finished his week by attacking Ryback before Ryback's match with Seth Rollins on SmackDown. Rusev has faced strong competition from the likes of Big Show and Mark Henry before. Can he defend his title successfully against Ryback, too?
No. 3: John Cena
9 of 11Previous Rank: 2
Movement: Down 1
John Cena had a mixed week. On Raw, he faced Seth Rollins inside a steel cage, and after heavy interference, he lost. During the match, he was attacked by WWE World Heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar.
It's unclear if Lesnar's interference was simply an enemy of my enemy-type situation or if there's more to the possible relationship between Heyman and Rollins then we know.
Cena got back on track with a win in an eight-man tag team match at Tribute to the Troops, teaming with Dolph Ziggler, Ryback and Erick Rowan in a win over Big Show, Seth Rollins, Kane and Luke Harper.
Can Cena fend off both Lesnar and Rollins, regardless of whether they're actively working together?
No. 2: Ryback
10 of 11Previous Rank: 3
Movement: Up 1
Ryback only had one match this past week, as well as a couple of encounters with Rusev.
On Raw, he likely saved Chris Jericho from a beatdown at the hands of Rusev. On SmackDown, he was set to face Seth Rollins until he was attacked by Rusev. His match never happened.
At Tribute to the Troops, though, he got a win in an eight-man tag team match, in which he teamed with John Cena, Dolph Ziggler and Erick Rowan against Seth Rollins, Luke Harper, Big Show and Kane.
It seems he'll now move into a feud with Rusev. Can Ryback do what no one else has been able to do so far? Can he actually beat Rusev?
No. 1: Dolph Ziggler
11 of 11Previous Rank: 1
Movement: None
Intercontinental champion Dolph Ziggler remains atop the WWE Superstar Power Rankings this week after picking up a loss and two wins.
On Raw, he teamed with Erick Rowan against Big Show and Luke Harper. Rowan was KO'd by Big Show and pinned.
On SmackDown, he replaced Ryback in a match against Seth Rollins. Despite interference from J&J Security, he defeated Rollins, which was not what Mr. Money in the Bank expected, especially after he was ready to give himself the night off.
Finally, at Tribute to the Troops, he teamed with Cena, Ryback and Erick Rowan against Big Show, Luke Harper, Seth Rollins and Kane. His team won. But what's next for Ziggler? When will he face Harper in an IC title rematch?
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