WWE Raw: Potential Spoilers, Rumors, News and Preview for July 4

Patriotic fare is set for the Fourth of July edition of WWE Raw.

A "U.S.A. versus the world" tag team match and an American powerhouse's attempt to bring the United States Championship back home headline Monday's show. It's a show that will face a major struggle to pull in viewers who may be more interested in fireworks and family than action inside the squared circle.

Plus, the Battleground pay-per-view card on July 24 still needs some work.

We know who Dean Ambrose and Kevin Owens are facing, but the rest of the lineup is still up in the air. What lies ahead for women's champion Charlotte and the bullying bruisers known as The Club?

When WWE marches into the Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio, on Monday, we should get a few answers, even if the night proves to be less entertaining than usual. The Raw preview on WWE.com, backstage reports and official announcements provide a good look at what to expect when Raw kicks off at 8 p.m. ET on the USA Network. 

News, Potential Spoilers

The wrestlers who climb into the ring on Monday's Raw will have an additional opponent beyond who stands across from them in the ring—jet lag.

As Dave Meltzer (warning: NSFW language) noted for the Wrestling Observer: "The WWE crew flew home yesterday from Japan. They have the traveling day off and start back at Raw tomorrow." Ambrose, Baron Corbin and Charlotte were among those who were performing in Japan over the weekend.

"

Thank you #WWETokyo  pic.twitter.com/esROC6sZLe

— Charlotte (@MsCharlotteWWE) July 3, 2016"

Even with the day off, everyone promises to be somewhat sluggish.

Monday's Raw will welcome another former authority figure to continue the recent storyline of folks such as Teddy Long and John Laurinaitis angling to become SmackDown's next general manager. PWInsider's Mike Johnson reported that "the returning former general manager booked for this week's Raw is Vickie Guerrero."

Expect WWE to take advantage of Guerrero's history with Stephanie McMahon. When she departed WWE two years ago, she sent McMahon into a pool of gunk. 

And count on the upcoming Raw being one of the shows where WWE gives a halfhearted effort. The company knows that viewership will be poor because of the holiday.

Danny Tuccitto of International Rounding predicted a record low for Monday night:

Whether it reaches that mark or not, Raw isn't positioned to do well in terms of ratings. Historically, WWE has not delivered quality shows when put in such a spot.

Return Watch

Randy Orton and Neville fans who are hoping to celebrate Independence Day by seeing their favorite stars step back into the ring will have to be patient. It looks like both injured Superstars won't return Monday night. 

PWInsider (h/t Nick Paglino of WrestleZone) reported in mid-June that Neville would be back in about a month. A good bet for the high-flyer's return then would be in the next few weeks. 

Credit: WWE.com

As for The Viper, his surgically repaired shoulder isn't quite ready to hit RKOs.

Meltzer wrote in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter (h/t Forbes' Blake Oestriecher): "The update on Orton is that he's about a month or so away from training for a return. The original time line was that he was going to be in Orlando in mid-June, train a few weeks and be ready right about now."

The better bet is that Naomi of Team B.A.D. makes her way back Monday night.

As Patrick Hipes of Deadline noted, Naomi was one of several WWE stars who appeared in The Marine 5. Having wrapped up filming, The Miz and The Social Outcasts have been back in action recently. Fans are still waiting for Naomi to follow suit, though.

On Tap 

Ambrose and The Miz will lock horns once more. WWE.com announced that the world and intercontinental champions will face off again in a rematch of their bout on last week's SmackDown.

They delivered the last time around. Ambrose kicked out of The Miz's Skull-Crushing Finale and later hit Dirty Deeds to get the win in an entertaining, fast-paced matchup.

Monday's Raw also has a hoss fight on the docket. Titus O'Neil is set to get a crack at Rusev's United States Championship after scoring a non-title victory last Monday.

WWE announced the title bout on last week's SmackDown.

Give the pace of this rivalry, Monday might mark the end of it. WWE has booked Rusev as the dominant party throughout the story. It wouldn't be surprising to see him flatten O'Neil and move on to a new foe before Battleground.

And to celebrate the Fourth of July, WWE is pitting eight of its American wrestlers against eight foreign grapplers. James Wortman of WWE.com announced, "'Team U.S.A.' battles 'Team World' in a 16-Man Elimination Tag Team Match."

That will likely force former League of Nations allies Sheamus and Alberto Del Rio to team up despite their dislike for each other. 

Building Toward Battleground

Ambrose vs. The Miz is sure to feature Seth Rollins at some point.

WWE has to continue to hype the Triple Threat match for the WWE Championship at Battleground, even with Roman Reigns' suspension preventing him from being a part of that process. That leaves Rollins and Ambrose to clash before the PPV. That promises to happen while The Lunatic Fringe is doing battle with The Miz.

The only other official matchup for the PPV card right now is Owens vs. Sami Zayn, per WWE.com.

That bout should get plenty of attention on Monday's Raw. WWE has been selling Owens and Zayn's upcoming showdown as the end to their rivalry. That suggests a lot of hype and brawling are on the way. 

Sasha Banks and Charlotte look to be on a collision course of their own, but it's not clear what WWE has in mind for them at Battleground.

The general expectation is that the company will delay that marquee match until SummerSlam. In that case, WWE would likely have Banks and Charlotte meet in a tag team match as a warm-up for that bout. Monday's Raw should provide some hints about the situation. 

A similar scenario awaits John Cena and AJ Styles.

Battleground could feature the second match between these two marquee stars or a stopgap tag team match involving The Club in order to save Cena vs. Styles II for SummerSlam. Either way, count on the babyface having a tough battle before him.

The Raw preview read, "Despite facing insurmountable odds against AJ Styles, Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows, Cena will roll into Raw looking for a fight, clad proudly in red, white and blue."

Will Cena find some allies in this ongoing fight? Will the women's division welcome back Naomi? Will WWE make enough of an effort creatively to keep this show from being a train wreck? 

Those are among the biggest questions when WWE touches down in Ohio and competes with Fourth of July festivities.