On a rare occasion, there was no live episode of WWE Raw on December 26 due to limited production workers amid the Holiday season. Moving on, WWE is planning to deliver a stacked first episode of the red brand in 2023 on January 2nd. As of this writing, WWE has announced the following matches for this show:
– Austin Theory (c) vs. Seth Rollins for the United States Championship
– Bianca Belair (c) vs. Alexa Bliss for WWE Raw Women’s Championship
Big return set for upcoming Raw episode
If the reports are to be believed then a big return could be happening on the upcoming show. According to Xero News, there’s some discussion going on about Cody Rhodes returning on this episode instead of the Royal Rumble 2023 premium live event. The report has added that this return will possibly be costing Rollins the US Title match against Theory,
“Some within the company feel that Cody Rhodes should return to cost Seth Rollins his United States Title match with Austin Theory, it may be the better idea rather than a Royal Rumble return if The Rock winning it from #30 is indeed the plan.”
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Cody Rhodes had all the momentums by his side on WWE Raw before a nasty torn pec injury put him on the shelf. Before going out, The American Nightmare delivered a career-defining performance against Seth Rollins at Hell in a Cell with that injury which appeared to be the rarest occasion on WWE TV.
Cody Rhodes going after WWE world title after comeback
During the “The Absolute Best of 2022” episode of WWE Raw on December 26, the former Intercontinental Champion made an appearance and talked about his triumphant return to WWE at WrestleMania 38. Rhodes also discussed his New Year’s resolution by commenting that he intends to pick up where he left off after the much-anticipated comeback from the injury. The hint was to go after WWE’s top world titles.
Rhodes yet to be over with feud against Seth Rollins
But before moving on to the main event world title picture, Rhodes may have to wrap up his feud on WWE Raw against Seth Rollins. WWE still has plans to host a fourth singles match between Rollins and Rhodes that could be waiting at Royal Rumble.
This match was also reportedly set to happen at WrestleMania 39 over the US Championship. But with Rollins losing the US Title to Theory, the rematch could be happening for the WWE Championship instead. Cody could also be needed as Roman Reigns’ opponent if The Rock isn’t available for the grandest event of the year.
