Jey Uso, Charlotte Flair's Rocky Kickoff to WrestleMania 41 Season and More Raw Takes

The February 3 edition of Raw on Netflix featured Royal Rumble 2025 fallout from the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland, Ohio.

Jey Uso and Charlotte Flair won the 2025 men's and women's Royal Rumble matches, guaranteeing them a main event world title match at WrestleMania 41.

Both appeared to confront the world champions of Raw, teasing possible matches with Gunther and Rhea Ripley.

Qualifiers for Elimination Chamber 2025 began with CM Punk vs. Sami Zayn and Liv Morgan vs. Iyo Sky.

Ripley accidentally helped Morgan win by disqualification while The Ultimate Underdog fell just short against The Best in the World.

Zayn's night went from bad to worse afterward as his former friend Kevin Owens made a lasting statement by planting him with a package piledriver.

It was a wild night that continued to build up the road to WrestleMania.

WWE has not pulled off a true shocker like Jey Uso' Royal Rumble victory in a long time.

The reason his win over John Cena, CM Punk, Roman Reigns, Seth "Freakin" Rollins and even Logan Paul was because Jey has yet to truly prove himself.

Few men are more popular than Main Event, but he has yet to have a signature moment in the ring or on the mic that took him to the next level.

His matches with his likely WrestleMania opponent, Gunther, have not inspired much excitement. He has worked with Drew McIntyre, Seth Rollins and Damian Priest without a true standout performance.

Two of the biggest matches of his career against Roman Reigns and Jimmy Uso were genuinely disastrous.

The one area where he has excelled is displaying his true personality. His infectious personality made his brief alliance with Cody Rhodes memorable.

Fans love engaging with his entrance and root for him to escape the shadow of his brother.

His recent mic work has allowed his natural personality to shine through, but it still has not sold his actual rivalry with The Ring General, especially on a WrestleMania level.

That is where he must prove himself in the next two months.

He is going to be competing with Rhodes, Punk, Rollins, Reigns, Cena, Rhea Ripley and more stars that may miss the main event for his match with a man he has battled multiple times.

To win that competition, he needs to show he can go from popular act to era-defining star at a time when WWE is as hot as it has ever been.

Charlotte Flair's second night back in WWE was a disaster, highlighted by The Queen trying to play face to a crowd that accepted nothing.

It is likely that Charlotte will never find a reliable role as a babyface in WWE again.

Her booking constantly elevates her over the rest of the division. Fans support underdogs far more often than pure superheroes.

John Cena and Roman Reigns both struggled to sell fans on them as the top face for years, and even they cannot match up to the level of dominance Charlotte has displayed in the women's division.

The Queen is the longest reigning and most decorated champion in WWE history. It is hard to recall any time Charlotte was on TV and not involved in the championship scene.

She will only succeed as a heel in 2025, especially up against her likely WrestleMania opponent Tiffany Stratton.

The Center of the Universe has won over the audience with her steady work, earning her title reign while working from behind Nia Jax.

She is going to be easier for fans to cheer than the perennial champion, much as the Cleveland faithful supported Rhea Ripley over Charlotte on Raw.

While Charlotte Flair prepares to contend with Tiffany Stratton on SmackDown, Rhea Ripley's only real challenger is a woman she has fought too often, Liv Morgan.

WrestleMania 41 cannot be the stage for the next Ripley vs. Morgan match when so many more interesting options are available.

Bayley has teased feuding with Ripley, but The Role Model seems more focused on her feud with Roxanne Perez in NXT. She is also struggling to remain a clear main event player in 2025.

Alexa Bliss just returned in an uncertain role on the roster, but she is a former champion for Ripley to contend with. It is hard to say if Bliss is ready for that spot this soon.

Iyo Sky would have been an exciting rival for Mami, but WWE has shown little interest in prioritizing her despite her immense talent.

The best option is Bianca Belair, who remains the freshest rival for Ripley that can give her a career-defining match at WrestleMania. It is all a matter of when The EST will drop the Women's Tag Team Championships.

No matter who steps up, WWE has done little to date to sell any option as must-see on television. It is time to get serious and find a story that can elevate the entire women's division.

Following the events of the men's Royal Rumble, WWE announced on air that Roman Reigns would be out indefinitely due to his injuries.

On the road to WrestleMania, this is a surprising move, assuming The Tribal Chief's injuries are only an angle to allow him his usual time off.

This is the time where Reigns is needed most. His appearances elevate WWE's product. Without him around, it will be up to many stars to make up for The Tribal Chief's absence.

For the first time since WrestleMania 36, Reigns will likely not main event The Show of Shows. However, he should still play a key role at 'Mania.

This year's Show of Shows is already struggling to live up to the impact of the last two 'Manias. No Reigns or at least a limited role for WWE's top star could make this a forgettable year.

Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn is a rivalry like will one day go down as one of the definitive stories of this era.

These two men have been intertwined since before either signed with WWE. Their first match together was in 2004.

KO made his WWE debut in 2015 by turning on Zayn on the night The Ultimate Underdog won the NXT Championship. Both made their main roster debuts against John Cena.

They have been friends and enemies across all brands. At every stage of their careers, The Prizefighter and The Ultimate Underdog have played key roles in each other's stories.

Despite all of that, this may be the start of the most important stretch of this rivalry. Zayn and KO stand in the biggest spotlight of their careers in this current regime.

Triple H's creative team clearly values these men highly, using them in major roles over the past two years. They will have the time and attention needed to tell their story.

It is hard to imagine any story on the road to WrestleMania rivaling this one given the talent and history.

The package piledriver on Raw was a bigger moment than anything WWE has delivered so far in 2025, followed fairly closely by KO's warning to Zayn two weeks ago.

This feud is special on a level everyone else will hope to match but are unlikely to exceed.