WWE Raw Results: Biggest Winners, Losers and Moments from January 16

The Royal Rumble is only weeks away and the January 16 episode of Raw featured a showdown between Superstars who figure to play a key role in that event's proceedings.

Brock Lesnar returned to the flagship show, Braun Strowman continued to make his presence felt, Kevin Owens and Chris Jericho bragged about their championship reigns and Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins were...there.

Even Sami Zayn, the consummate underdog, made an appearance.

While those Superstars appear on our rundown of biggest winners and losers, the main event stars are hardly the only ones to make an impact (for better or worse) on Monday's broadcast.

There was a cruiserweight, two female competitors on opposite sides of the argument and a former tag champion whose inability to catch a break was once again at center stage.

Who were those performers and how did their booking and performances Monday night affect their journey to the Rumble?

Take a look with this recap of this week's Raw.

Winner: Royal Rumble Hype

Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins, Chris Jericho, Kevin Owens, Braun Strowman, Sami Zayn and Brock Lesnar kicked off Raw with a fantastic bit of hype for this year's Royal Rumble pay-per-view.

Not only did the Superstars put emphasis on the WWE Universal Championship match between Reigns and Owens, but the interactions between the other competitors also provided the first significant hype for the Rumble match itself.

The tease of Lesnar vs. Strowman was fantastic, as was the physicality between The Beast and Reigns, who always have a chemistry that makes for strong television.

The promos were strong and never felt forced, which is always a problem given the scripted nature of the WWE product. The result was an engaging and compelling segment that did its job and created anticipation for two of the most important matches on the January 29 pay-per-view.

Loser: Titus O'Neil

In what way has the feud with New Day helped Titus O'Neil at all?

The former Prime Time Player has been beaten and embarrassed for three straight weeks. He has been devalued, more so than he already was, and Monday's loss to Big E did nothing to make him look any better.

At what point does WWE Creative recognize the potential of O'Neil and give him something to do befitting his skill set?

Until Vince McMahon gets over whatever vendetta he has against O'Neil for last year's playful grab that earned the Florida Gator a suspension that cost him a WrestleMania payday, the big man's talents will be wasted in meaningless feuds and humiliating losses.

Winner: Nia Jax

By assaulting Sasha Banks prior to the show, Nia Jax looked like a force to be reckoned with as the Royal Rumble approaches.

Even thought the attack was brief in nature, Jax further injured her rival's knee and looked remorseless as she backed up the ramp, berated by officials.

Not only does she look like an opportunistic villain, assaulting her enemies at every turn, but she was the star of an original bit of booking. After all, so much effort is put into producing the exact same segments every week that a pre-show assault is fresh and exciting.

Jax remains on a roll in recent weeks, headed toward a high-profile showdown with Banks and, perhaps, a significant spot on the WrestleMania card if her momentum continues to build.

Loser: Emmalina

The beauty behind the teases of Eva Marie's impending in-ring debut is that it set up an inevitable moment in which the All Red Everything performer would enter the squared circle and get obliterated by a much more talented Superstar.

The fans would erupt and the story would be paid off.

No one really knows where the Emmalina nonsense is going right now.

She has not appeared on television and thus, fans have not had the opportunity to properly invest in her story. Instead, video packages continue to air hyping her impending return. They date back to September, though, with not even the slightest promise that she is ever going to re-debut.

At this point, fans have grown tired of waiting and are ready to move onto something or someone else worth their time.

It has doomed Emmalina to failure, though that should be of no great surprise given how the Australian competitor has been treated previously on the main roster.

Winner: Neville

Neville remains the most engaging act in the cruiserweight division, and his attack on Rich Swann on Monday night was further proof of it.

He attacked the champion prior to a scheduled match with Tony Nese, leaving him in a heap at his feet. When Swann did finally recover, Neville endured a beating but fought back, leveling his rival. He was not done, though.

No, Neville has no allegiance to heels or babyfaces.

He attacked Nese, who was trying to capitalize on his attack and make a name for himself.

The focused, dangerous, intense and aggressive Neville has reignited his career as the villain around whom the cruiserweight division can be built around. At this point, he has been built so strongly the idea of one of the stars on that roster being able to beat him is comical.

Too strong for the division's own good? Perhaps, but that is through no fault of his own.