Ryan Dilbert's 10-Count: WWE Raw Hitting the Right Notes with Samoa Joe Early On

1. The Destroyer Thriving on Big Stage

Samoa Joe's first three weeks on WWE Raw is certified proof that the company hasn't forgotten how to showcase a predator.

The former NXT champion has compelled as he has devoured the red brand's babyfaces. Joe has ambushed Seth Rollins, pounded Roman Reigns and choked out Sami Zayn, and it's all been beautiful to watch.

Strong booking and stellar performances have made Joe a main-roster star right off the bat. If WWE can keep this up, Raw is going to benefit in a big way.

Many wondered why WWE hadn't called up Joe from NXT sooner. The Samoan Submission Machine didn't lack in experience after years of working for Ring of Honor and TNA. At NXT, he was stellar as a bloodthirsty heel—a cornerstone for the brand.

He only needed a stage with a brighter spotlight.

That came on Jan. 30, when Triple H sicced Joe on Rollins. WWE made sure the first image we had of Joe on Raw was of him with closed fists and gritted teeth, smothering his prey.

When news emerged that Rollins injured his MCL during that collision, WWE made sure to play up Joe's role in it. The company painted him as a dangerous man. It showed him being remorseless for his actions. 

In Joe's first official in-ring action on Raw, he battered Reigns before the bell. And once the match began, the sight of The Destroyer slugging a woozy Reigns repeated over and over.

Joe sat down with Michael Cole the following week and laid out his intentions. He swore allegiance to no man. He simply wanted to inflict pain and wreak havoc.

He did just that the same night when he clobbered Zayn. The underdog dared to speak ill of Joe, and the powerhouse responded with frenzied violence. 

WWE laid a robust foundation for Joe with these moments.

The audience saw him overwhelm a former world champion. It watched him cut a fan favorite down at the knees. Joe leaped into a high-profile spot from the beginning, complete with strong characterization and clear motivations.

Brian Campbell of ESPN.com summed it up perfectly:

After only three weeks, Joe looks like a formidable force. He has a rival in Zayn to clash with for the foreseeable future. He's been allowed to show his best side—a snarling, merciless monster ready to leave ruin in his wake.

Joe is now brimming with momentum in the heart of WrestleMania season, poised to be a marquee player for Raw.

2. This Is How You Get to 16 in 15 Years

John Cena is one big win away from surpassing Ric Flair's record mark of 16 world title reigns. 

His longevity, star power and in-ring acumen have all been key to that feat. But so has a high rate of title turnover.

Of the 16 times Cena has held either the WWE Championship or World Heavyweight Championship, over half of the reigns ended before the 50-day mark.

Championship	Days Held	Superstar Who Dethroned Him
WWE Championship	Less than 1	Batista
WWE Championship	14	Bray Wyatt
WWE Championship	14	Alberto Del Rio
WWE Championship	20	CM Punk
World Heavyweight Championship	21	Edge
WWE Championship	21	Randy Orton
WWE Championship	49	Sheamus
WWE Championship	49	Brock Lesnar
World Heavyweight Championship	49	Randy Orton

Bray Wyatt beating him at Elimination Chamber on Sunday gave Cena another short time with the crown on his head. Title reign No. 17 is likely just around the corner. At the rate he's been going, No. 20 won't be far behind.

3. Throwback Video of the Week: Teddy Long

The man who never met a tag team match he didn't like is going into the Hall of Fame. WWE announced on its official website that Teddy Long will be inducted in the 2017 class.

The former SmackDown general manager has done just about everything in his career.

Long has been on the ring crew. He's been a referee and an authority figure. It was as a manager that he became a star, though. Long was Undertaker's manager before he was Undertaker:

Congratulations to Long, a true jack-of-all-trades. 

4. A 2nd Home for UK Stars

Tyler Bate will battle Trent Seven for the United Kingdom Championship on Wednesday's NXT. Neither man is part of NXT; rather, they are British bruisers who appeared in WWE's UK Championship Tournament in January.

There is not yet a UK-based WWE show, so the developmental brand has played host to some of the talents from that tourney.

That's going to be big for NXT if it continues. The brand has needed a jolt of energy since last year's draft plucked a good number of wrestlers away. Bate vs. Seven is the kind of match that will make NXT more must-see.

And the kind of fans that salivated over the UK tournament are the same ones who are the heart of the NXT fanbase. They don't need household names and dramatic storylines. They just want engaging, artful wrestling matches.

Bate, Seven, Pete Dunne and the other UK stars can provide that in spades.

5. Another Reason He's a Perfect 10

When fans in Philadelphia stood outside the Tower Theater for the Feb. 9 NXT house show, frigid air whipped at their faces. Relief from the cold soon came in a surprising form.

NXT star Tye Dillinger walked up and down the line and poured hot chocolate for fans. Jawn Wick posted a video of The Perfect 10's welcome gesture:

Bleacher Report's Erik Beaston was in attendance, and as he noted on Twitter, Dillinger told fans, "You guys mean a lot to us."

Now that's how you play a babyface.

6. The Beast Is All Ours Now

Brock Lesnar is done with the UFC part of his career. Marc Raimondi of MMAFighting.com reported that Lesnar "has notified the UFC of his retirement from MMA."

This comes after a drug suspension following his win over Mark Hunt at UFC 200.

Rey Del Rio/Getty Images

There will be no more ventures into the Octagon for the freak athlete. That's bad news for UFC's pay-per-view numbers, but it's the best of news for WWE.

Lesnar won't be trying to balance two worlds at once. He won't step away from the squared circle to train for shoot fighting. He can now focus on the medium he was born for—pro wrestling.

7. Rusev Sliding

Rusev's dominant stretch is a distant memory at this point. Gone are the days when the powerhouse tore through the roster en route to the United States Championship.

WWE has decided that Rusev isn't a high priority, sliding him down the company ladder. That's evident by his record of late.

As seen on CageMatch.net, The Bulgarian Brute is 6-10-1 since Sept. 19. He has yet to win two matches in a row in 2017.

Rusev hasn't won a PPV match by pinfall or submission since last July.

But beyond the numbers, there is a clear lack of urgency about what to do with Rusev at either Fastlane or WrestleMania. Other Superstars are tangling with rivals and starring in developing stories. Rusev is a guy who fills out the roster at this point.

8. A Chavo Collection

The wrestling world lost another family member over the weekend. Chavo Guerrero Sr. passed away after a bout with liver cancer, as his son Chavo Jr. announced on Instagram.

Guerrero, known to WWE fans as Chavo Classic, had a lengthy career that begin in the 1970s and stretched on into the 2010s. He competed everywhere from Japan to Mexico to Texas to the Pacific Northwest. Younger fans may only remember him as Chavo Jr.'s dad and for his brief tenure in the WWE cruiserweight division in 2004.

For those unfamiliar with his work outside of WWE, be sure to check out these clips of the grappler in action: 

• Chavo Guerrero vs. Kengo Kimura: NJPW Bloody Fight Series (1980)
• Chavo and Hector Guerrero vs. The Grappler and Rip Oliver: NWA Battle of the Belts (1985)
• Chavo and Hector Guerrero vs. Ted DiBiase and Steve Williams: Mid-South Wrestling (Mexican Death Match; 1985)
• Chavo and Hector Guerrero vs. The Sheepherders: NWA Jim Crockett Sr. Memorial Cup (1986)  
• Los Guerreros vs. Los Brazos: Empresa Mexicana De La Lucha Libre (1991)

It may be hard to find quality footage of, but his work against Roddy Piper in the '70s is arguably his best. 

It's nice to have all these memories of him as an in-ring warrior to look back on, but it's never easy to lose a member of the wrestling world. Thoughts and prayers go out to the Guerrero family.

9. Blue Brand Leaning on Its Women

Nothing spoke more to how much SmackDown has embraced the women's revolution than the fact that it boasted three women's matches on the Elimination Chamber card.

None of them were throw-in bouts, either. They were clashes with strong narrative foundations. They showcased some of the brand's best talents and bolstered the PPV overall.

Alexa Bliss is now on the hunt to reclaim the SmackDown Women's Championship from Naomi after losing on Sunday. Nikki Bella and Natalya's bad blood can no longer be contained in a ring, so their feud will be settled in a Falls Count Anywhere match next Tuesday.

Mickie James continued her quest to remind everyone about her place in history, even if it means beating the snot out of Becky Lynch.

This is worlds apart from the days when WWE would feature one threadbare woman-centered story at a time. None of these wrestlers are fighting to be on the cover of Playboy. None of their matches are of the bra-and-panties variety.

SmackDown has made sure to carve out space on center stage for Bliss and her peers, too. As Kate Foray of the Raw Breakdown Project pointed out, the blue brand offered its women a significant cut of its airtime:

Since last summer's brand split, WWE has billed SmackDown as the land of opportunity.

That's been true with the women's division. Bliss has been one of the most successful NXT call-ups from the draft. Naomi rose to championship status after years of being underutilized.

And a number of SmackDown's women have been key figures in the brand's resurgence.

10. Kevin Owens on Goldberg

Regardless of what happens when Kevin Owens defends the Universal Championship against Goldberg at Fastlane on March 5, KO has already won the Twitter war between the rivals.

Goldberg has tried to talk smack to Owens on social media, but the champ keeps steamrolling him. During Owens and Chris Jericho's Festival of Friendship segment on Monday's Raw, Goldberg chimed in. Owens shot back hard:

"

Considering you almost knocked yourself out headbutting a door, you should probably reconsider calling other people morons. https://t.co/sI9ig1P5oN

— Kevin Owens (@FightOwensFight) February 14, 2017"

KO's in-ring offense is high-impact, but his online arsenal is simply devastating. 

Goldberg will be better off waiting until they meet in the ring to engage Owens. Unless he enjoys getting verbally flattened, that is.