WWE Superstar Rankings Ahead of July 11 Raw

The past few weeks have been spent hyping the brand extension, but WWE put the draft on the back burner to focus on building up July 24's Battleground pay-per-view over the past week.

A few new contests have been added to the card, with a couple more storylines just waiting to solidify matches for the show.

Brock Lesnar made his triumphant return to UFC with a win over Mark Hunt on Saturday, giving him a big boost as he heads toward a showdown with Randy Orton at SummerSlam.

We have just over a week until the brands split when SmackDown goes live on July 19, so this week may be the last chance we have to see certain people interact for a long time.

Let's see where everyone ended up on this week's WWE Superstar Power Rankings.

Honorable Mention: Brock Lesnar

Brock Lesnar may not have appeared on WWE television during the past week, but his big win over Mark Hunt at UFC 200 makes him worthy of an honorable mention.

Lesnar was a slight underdog going into the fight. It had been over four years since he last stepped foot in the Octagon, and he was up against a guy known for his one-shot knockouts.

They went the distance, but Lesnar dominated most of the fight by sticking to his strategy of keeping the fight close to the ground and beating his opponent's face every chance he got.

Winning this fight gives Lesnar a little extra momentum heading into SummerSlam and his match with a returning Randy Orton.

10. Chris Jericho and Kevin Owens

Chris Jericho and Kevin Owens are sharing a spot this week because they're both on the list for one specific segment from Thursday's SmackDown.

They had a brief confrontation backstage in which Jericho accused Owens of stealing his scarf and demanded he pay to have it cleaned.

It sounds like a simple enough premise, its execution made it one of the highlights of the show. The way the two men played off each other made it funnier than anyone would have expected.

The strange relationship between Jericho and Owens has developed slowly but has made them WWE's resident odd couple, and it will be interesting to see how long it takes before they have a full-blown feud.

9. Sami Zayn

WWE has yet to use Sami Zayn to his fullest potential, but he continues to be one of the most entertaining performers every single week.

He is one of those rare wrestlers who can lose more often than he wins and still maintain a certain level of popularity with the crowd.

Zayn's seemingly never-ending feud with Owens never loses its appeal thanks to their real history and how good both men are at playing their respective roles.

After the draft, it wouldn't be surprising to see Zayn thrust into one of the midcard title feuds so he can kick-start his run on the main roster.

8. The New Day

Xavier Woods, Kofi Kingston and Big E have carried the tag team division on their backs for a long time, and it's great to see them finally branching out from their usual shtick.

Instead of being their usual happy-go-lucky selves in their rivalry with The Wyatt Family, Woods is bringing a new layer to his character by being the voice of reason.

His hesitation to face such a dangerous group on their home turf is giving him an opportunity to use acting skills he hasn't been able to show before.

Woods is usually relegated to being the comic relief outside the ring during New Day's matches, so seeing him as the most significant player in this storyline is a nice change of pace.

7. The Wyatt Family

Bray Wyatt and the rest of his crazy clan of weirdos have never been booked the way they deserve, but their newest storyline shows there is still time to make their characters work.

They have created some intrigue by returning to their old ways and delivering promos from their compound in the woods.

It's unfortunate that Luke Harper is injured and cannot take part in The Wyatt Family's bid to win the tag titles from The New Day, but he should still have a place in the group upon his return, being the best wrestler of the bunch.

6. Zack Ryder

Zack Ryder had a big week. Raw saw him as one of the last two surviving members of Team USA in the big 16-man main event, and he kept his momentum going with a win over Sheamus on SmackDown.

Ryder challenged Rusev to a United States Championship match immediately following his victory over The Celtic Warrior.

It's too early to tell if WWE is temporarily building him up as an easy obstacle for Rusev or if this is the start of a real push, but either way it's great to see Ryder's hand raised.

If a singles run isn't in the cards, perhaps Mojo Rawley can be called up during the draft, bringing The Hype Bros to the main roster.

5. John Cena

Whether you love him or hate him—and judging from comments, most of you hate him—you have to admit that John Cena is still the measuring stick in WWE.

It almost sounds like his reactions are a little more positive lately, which may indicate people are tired of booing Cena just because it's the cool thing to do.

His current storyline with The Club is turning Cena from the guy who is somehow always the underdog into the confident veteran who is still capable of keeping up with the new generation.

WWE's decision to put Cena with Enzo Amore and Colin Cassady was a smart one, because more people will want to cheer for the funniest tag team on the roster than boo a character they find stale.

4. Enzo and Cass

The most entertaining new act on the roster got a big rub this week by aligning themselves with Cena for a six-man tag match at Battleground against The Club.

Enzo and Cass have taken WWE by storm with their unorthodox style and entertaining brand of humor. The tag title scene is already at full capacity, so inserting them into this feud will keep them relevant for the time being.

The only thing they need to worry about is Enzo Amore's health. After recently returning from a concussion as a result of a botched throw out of the ring, Amore took a nasty bump out of the ring on SmackDown, giving some the impression that he is taking too many risks.

As long as he can keep himself out of trouble, Enzo and Big Cass will have bright futures in WWE, even if they are split up down the line and forced to fend for themselves.

3. The Club

The Club has quickly become a force to be reckoned with in WWE, and it's thanks to the hard work AJ Styles, Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows have done establishing the group in Japan.

Seeing how good they are as a team has likely made some fans check out their work from New Japan Pro Wrestling on YouTube.

Putting them in a feud with Cena makes it look like the stable will be in a good position for their next rivalry, even if Cena comes out ahead in their current storyline.

It's just too bad we didn't see more wrestling from these three men during the week, as their matches are always fun to watch.

2. Dean Ambrose

Dean Ambrose picked up a win over The Miz on Raw, but his best work was done on SmackDown while doing his favorite thing in the world: annoying Seth Rollins.

He went above and beyond the duties of a normal ring announcer during Rollins' match with Zayn by making random announcements throughout the contest.

Ambrose is one of the funniest Superstars on the roster and yet somehow manages to be intimidating at the same time. It's hard to balance humor and seriousness, but he does it well.

He might not be the lunatic some want him to be, but as long as he is entertaining, it doesn't really matter if he lives up to the ridiculous Lunatic Fringe nickname.

1. Seth Rollins

Seth Rollins moved up to the top spot this week after a win over Dolph Ziggler on Raw and another over Sami Zayn on SmackDown.

Rollins is showing no signs of ring rust since returning from an injury which kept him on the shelf for the better part of a year, and WWE is testing his limits by using him as much as possible.

Being good in the ring will get you far, but Rollins is more than just a good hand. He is also great on the mic and has veteran instincts from his years working the indy circuit.

Being told to make fun of your friend's real suspension can't be easy on the former WWE champion, but he looks and sounds convincing in his promos bashing Roman Reigns.

The only downside to being as good as Rollins is right now is the pressure it puts on him. He has to keep performing at a high level or risk being replaced by someone hungrier for success.