7 Ups And 6 Downs From Last Night's WWE Raw (Jan 23)

6. More Mic Time For Rusev

Rusev raised a great question Monday night: Why do so many wrestlers put “Big” in front of their names? Big E, Big Cass, Big Show, Big John Studd, Big Boss Man…

But beside that point, Rusev had a great line, noting that it was obvious that both E and Cass are big, so they’re stating the obvious – much like calling the Bulgarian Brute “handsome.” It was a small, simple bit, but it was another glimpse into how well Rusev has developed on the mic. He has been sent out there to verbally spar with Shawn Michaels and held his own in recent weeks.

This is a simple request: Can we please treat Rusev as more than a midcard joke? He’s clearly capable of so much more, but we’re still having him hang out with Jinder Mahal and Titus O’Neil. Maybe “Handsome” Alexander Rusev could be a new direction…