Dolph Ziggler vs. Seth Rollins; Latest Rumors and Preview for WWE Raw June 25

The Intercontinental Championship will again serve as WWE Raw's de facto top title as Dolph Ziggler collides with Seth Rollins in San Diego.

Brock Lesnar and the Universal Championship haven't been around for months. In his absence, the red brand has leaned on a red-hot Rollins and the thrillers he has composed as champ.

As of last Monday, though, Rollins no longer holds that crown. Ziggler answered his open challenge and defeated him in a surprise result to claim the IC title for himself.

Rollins now gets a shot to take back the championship in a rematch.

The show promises to also focus on the build toward the July 15 Extreme Rules pay-per-view. Raw needs to figure out a No. 1 contender for the Universal Championship. Sasha Banks and Bayley's rivalry is set to finally explode just in time for the event. 

What all is on tap in San Diego? News updates, the Raw preview on WWE.com and storyline projections help answer that before the latest Raw airs on Monday at 8 p.m. ET.

News, Rumors

Raw will be down a grating heel for several months. In an interview with WWE.com, Sami Zayn revealed that both of his rotator cuffs are injured and underwent surgery to repair them.

Zayn had been feuding with Bobby Lashley. He will now likely be out of action until next year's WrestleMania season.

As for Lashley, there's reason to believe he may be Lesnar's next challenger.

Lesnar's advocate Paul Heyman addressed the universal champion's potential foes in a Facebook post (warning: post contains NSFW content) on Saturday.

Heyman mentioned other Superstars, but he focused a ton on Lashley and took several shots at him. "By the way, remember, when Bobby won the NAIA Title that no one really cared about, Brock Lesnar was making national headlines winning the D1 Heavyweight Championship," Heyman wrote, for example.

This may be foreshadowing of a Lashley vs. Lesnar rivalry.

And there's some intriguing cross-promotional news to keep an eye on.

According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter (h/t Wrestling Inc), WWE and Japan's Pro Wrestling NOAH promotion have a working relationship. That could apparently lead to Raw Superstar Hideo Itami making an appearance for his old company.

Raw Streaks

Mojo Rawley is quietly on a roll all of a sudden.

The little-used star has put together a modest winning streak of late. After knocking off No Way Jose last week, Rawley has been victorious in his last three TV matches and 4-1 in his last five, per CageMatch.net. 

Raw hasn't done much with the former Hype Bros since his arrival from SmackDown. Perhaps that's set to change.

Chad Gable is headed in the opposite direction.

The former SmackDown tag team champion has seven consecutive defeats to his name, per CageMatch.net. The latest came on the post-Money in the Bank Raw when he fell to Jinder Mahal.

Gable hasn't won since April and is sitting at a .222 winning percentage. That's surely not what fans of the mat technician had in mind for his singles run.

Preview

In one of the few matches officially set for Extreme Rules so far, Nia Jax is set to challenge Alexa Bliss for the Raw Women's Championship.

Jax is sure to be seething leading up to that clash. The powerhouse left Money in the Bank sans title and riddled with bruises thanks to Bliss' cash-in. Payback is on its way as Jax and Bliss will surely cross paths in the coming weeks.

Credit: WWE.com

WWE.com's Raw preview hinted at violence between the women when it asked: "Will The Irresistible Force knock The Goddess off her pedestal before that showdown?"

The Banks vs. Bayley feud should get some spotlight on Monday, as well.

Their slow-burn story increased in temperature last week when the two former friends brawled backstage. Raw should follow up on that scuffle, and it's a safe bet Banks and Bayley will meet at Extreme Rules.

It's not as clear what the plan for the IC title is at the PPV, but things should be clearer after Monday's show.

Ziggler will face Rollins in an Intercontinental Championship match, looking to keep hold of the prize he snatched from The Kingslayer last week. As always, the imposing Drew McIntyre will be lurking near the action, giving Rollins one more thing to worry about. 

Rollins has been a revelation for Raw this year, so it will surprise no one if this bout is another banger on his 2018 resume. 

The Universal Championship picture, meanwhile, is taking shape ahead of the PPV. Last week, Raw general manager Kurt Angle announced that a multi-man match at Extreme Rules will decide the next top contender.

Lashley and Roman Reigns are already in. Angle asked fans who they thought should join those two powerhouses in the match:

Qualifying matches are likely to determine the rest of the field. We should see Superstars like Finn Balor and Kevin Owens fight for a shot to follow Reigns and Lashley's lead.

Lesnar won't be around once more, but at least the thrill of a championship chase is on.