WWE Superstar Power Rankings for 1/19/2015: Pre-WWE Royal Rumble 2015 Edition

There's less than one week until WWE Royal Rumble 2015, and the WWE Superstar Power Rankings have seen some movement, including a new No. 1 Superstar.  And with one of WWE's premier pay-per-views only six days away, we're sure to see a good deal of action this week.

Aside from the rankings, there were other newsworthy events in WWE this week.  SmackDown moved back to Thursday night as its regular time for the first time since the September 1, 2005 episode.  After almost a decade on Fridays, something just feels right about SmackDown on Thursdays.  

We also saw that WWE Tough Enough, the reality-style program that has had several iterations in WWE, will return.  With few details thus far, it's still unclear how the show will work.  More details are surely coming.

And finally, Daniel Bryan made his long-awaited return to action on SmackDown.  We'll get into all this past week's action and intrigue in the following slides. But before we do, please read how these rankings work.  

Note: These rankings are not a popularity contest and are not designed to determine who has the best matches, the most ability, etc.  They are strictly storyline rankings.

These rankings consider all active WWE Superstars and Divas on the main roster and exclude talent that primarily or exclusively wrestles on NXT.  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 tied in the rankings with another wrestler, holding a title will be the primary tiebreaker used.  However, holding a championship, being a No. 1 contender or holding a Money in the Bank briefcase in no way guarantees a spot in the top 10.

Wins and losses account for the bulk of the week-to-week movement and, after championships, are 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 nearly as much as wins or losses. Being over with the fans (read: extremely popular) 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; however, any major non-storyline information (serious injury, WWE Wellness Policy violations, suspensions, legitimate hirings, firings, contract information, "sabbaticals," etc.) may be taken into consideration, but generally only if WWE confirms it 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

Big Show

Big Show turned in a mixed week.  On Raw, he attacked Roman Reigns and left him out cold in the ring.  But then on SmackDown, he teamed with Seth Rollins and Kane in a loss to Dean Ambrose, Roman Reigns and Daniel Bryan.  Big Show needs a win this week to climb back into the top 10.

Miz & Mizdow

Miz and Mizdow are the No. 1 Contenders for the WWE Tag Team Championships.  And they turned in a solid week, too.  On Raw, Miz defeated Jey Uso.  Then on SmackDown, Miz and Mizdow teamed with Alicia Fox in a win over The Usos and Naomi.  Can they regain the tag titles this Sunday?

No. 10: Daniel Bryan

Previous Rank: Unranked

Movement: Outta Nowhere!

Daniel Bryan is back.  And it appears he's picked up where he left off last May, which was the last time he wrestled.  

On Raw, he survived an attack by Kane and ended up sending the Big Red machine packing. Then on SmackDown, he faced and defeated Seth Rollins, Big Show and Kane while teaming with Roman Reigns and Dean Ambrose.  

He's in the Royal Rumble, unlike last year.  But can he win it and headline WrestleMania two years in a row?

No. 9: Bad News Barrett

Previous Rank: 9

Movement: None

Bad News Barrett won the Intercontinental Championship, then promptly lost unceremoniously to Sin Cara days later.  That earned Sin Cara a title shot, which came this past week on SmackDown.

Barrett didn't take Sin Cara lightly and scored a win in his first title defense.  With Dolph Ziggler gone from WWE, there's no clear challenger.  Will Sin Sara get another shot?  Or will he even defend the title at all, seeing as he's in the Royal Rumble?

No. 8: Dean Ambrose

Previous Rank: 7

Movement: Down 1

It was an up-and-down week for Dean Ambrose this past week.  On Raw, he was forced to undergo a psychological evaluation.  It was...interesting.  See the above video to find out how that went.  Later on Raw, he faced Rusev.  Rusev targeted Ambrose's leg, which was so badly injured that the referee called the match and declared Rusev the winner.

Ambrose would get a boost on SmackDown, though, when he teamed with Daniel Bryan and Roman Reigns in a win over Seth Rollins, Big Show and Kane.  Ambrose is in the Royal Rumble match this Sunday.  Can he win and go on to WrestleMania?

No. 7: Bray Wyatt

Credit: WWE.com

Previous Rank: 6

Movement: Down 1

It was a slow week for The Eater of Worlds.  He had no matches, but he did express to all of us that he would win the Royal Rumble.  He used many, many more words than that, but that seemed to be his general point.

Bray Wyatt may be a dark horse in the match.  All eyes are on Roman Reigns and Daniel Bryan, so Bray Wyatt could surprise the WWE Universe with a career-defining win.  But will he be able to overlook past issues with people like Dean Ambrose, who is surely out for revenge?

No. 6: Brock Lesnar W/ Paul Heyman

Previous Rank: 5

Movement: Down 1

Brock Lesnar didn't have a great Raw.  Sure, Paul Heyman promised that Lesnar would leave the Royal Rumble as WWE World Heavyweight champion.  Sure, he promised that Lesnar would destroy his opponents.

But when things got violent at the contract signing (when do they ever not?), it was Lesnar getting AAed through a table and Curb Stomped into the canvas.  Lesnar could be in trouble come Sunday.

Seth Rollins and John Cena are top-tier competitors, and Lesnar doesn't even have to lose to one of them to lose his title.  Can Lesnar be the dominant champion Heyman insists he is?  After all, Lesnar has not had a match since Night of Champions, and he hasn't won a match since Summer Slam.

No. 5: Seth Rollins

Previous Rank: 8

Movement: Up 3

The week started out looking up for Seth Rollins but ended on a sour note.  On Raw, he faced John Cena in a Lumberjack Match and, with an assist from Big Show (who, as a Lumberjack, knocked out Cena and threw him into the ring), defeated the then-No. 1 wrestler in the rankings.

He also Curb Stomped both John Cena and Brock Lesnar.  In short, it was arguably one of Seth Rollins' best nights ever.

But that was not to last.  On SmackDown, Heyman seemed to offer him his services.  While it's likely Heyman is simply hedging his bets, Rollins seems temped by the offer.  Rollins later teamed with Big Show and Kane in a loss to Daniel Bryan, Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns.  

Rollins effectively has two chances to win the title on Sunday.  If he doesn't win the title match outright, he can assault the winner and cash in his Money in the Bank contract.  The odds are in his favor.  But can he take the next step in his career and become a world champion?

No. 4: The Usos

Previous Rank: 3

Movement: Down 1

The Usos took a step back this week, failing to win any matches.  On Raw, Jey Uso lost to The Miz in singles action.  Then on SmackDown, they teamed with Naomi against Miz & Mizdow and Alicia Fox.  They lost.

Since regaining the WWE Tag Team Championships, they've had mixed success.  And now, they'll defend their titles this Sunday against Miz & Mizdow.  Can they hold on to the titles?

No. 3: Rusev

Previous Rank: 4

Movement: Up 1

Rusev didn't sit idle this past week like he did the week prior.  On Raw, he faced Dean Ambrose.  After targeting Ambrose's leg and injuring it badly, the referee declared Rusev the winner and stopped the match.  

The next night on Main Event, he defeated Justin Gabriel in short order.  Now he heads into the Royal Rumble match not having to worry about facing Ryback, and he may well be one of the favorites to win the whole thing.  

No. 2: John Cena

Previous Rank: 1

Movement: Down 1

It was a bad week for John Cena.  He only appeared on Raw and was forced to compete in a Lumberjack Match against Seth Rollins.  The stipulation on that match was that if Cena won, he'd win back the jobs of Ryback, Dolph Ziggler and Erick Rowan.  

With the Lumberjacks all generally being Authority-aligned, Cena had to be perfect in order to pick up the win.  But he got caught outside and was knocked out by Big Show.  Rollins quickly scored the pinfall victory, thus ensuring Cena would not bring back his allies.

Later in the show, he AAed Brock Lesnar through a table, only to be Curb Stomped by Rollins.  Cena is in a tough match with top competitors.  Can Cena win his 16th world title this Sunday?  

No. 1: Roman Reigns

Previous Rank: 2

Movement: Up 1

Since he returned from injury, no one has been hotter than Roman Reigns.  And this past week, he picked up two more big wins.  On Raw, he defeated Luke Harper.  He was knocked out by Big Show after that match, though.

On SmackDown, he teamed with Dean Ambrose and Daniel Bryan in a win over Kane, Big Show and Seth Rollins.  Now, of all the competitors in the Royal Rumble, he's probably the Superstar most picked by fans to win.  He broke Kane's elimination record last year and was the final elimination.  Can he win the whole thing this time around?