WWE Plays Safe with Becky Lynch Win, Gunther for King of the Ring, More Raw Takes

With the draft right around the corner, WWE Raw delivered its final show with the current roster on Monday night.

In the Schottenstein Center in Columbus, Ohio, a new women's world champion was crowned as Becky Lynch last eliminated Liv Morgan in a Battle Royal. Was this the right move, though?

Gunther and Xavier Woods declared for the upcoming King of the Ring tournament before Imperium turned on one another. With or without help, The Ring General is the perfect choice for the next tournament winner.

Sheamus confronted friend and rival Drew McIntyre, making clear that a change is needed for The Scottish Warrior. WWE may be falling back into a familiar pattern with these two men.

The Judgment Day has not handled the loss of Rhea Ripley well. After Jey Uso laid into Damian Priest on the mic, The Punishment took his frustration out on Andrade, possibly setting up El Idolo to challenge Priest in the future.

The following are four major takeaways from this week's Raw.

There may not be a better wrestler in the WWE women's division than Becky Lynch. She continues to deliver in the spotlight and raises the bar for everyone around her.

The Man was the biggest star and best performer in the Battle Royal. It makes sense for her to win her eighth women's championship, following Rhea Ripley's untimely injury.

However, WWE had an opportunity to take a chance on any number of women in WWE. Liv Morgan had the hype and the built-in story as champion. She would have had a second chance to define herself as a top name.

Nia Jax had earned a spotlight through steady work since her return. While she might not have been the most exciting option, she would have fit the role well of new dominant champion for a while.

Even more interesting, WWE could have jump-started the careers of Shayna Baszler, Zoey Stark, Piper Niven, Chelsea Green or Candice LeRae.

It would not have even needed to be a long reign, but a Battle Royal is a perfect spot to get risky. Anyone can win in those moments, and the show right before the draft ending with a shocker would have been the talk of WWE for the rest of the week.

This will lead to a great series of matches to come, though, and the company can still make the title picture interesting by pairing Lynch with fresh rivals.

Much like her NXT Women's Championship reign, this is a chance for The Man to test the entire roster. She has a budding feud with Piper Niven coming out of Monday. She could even give Maxxine Dupri a chance to prove herself soon.

It is just a shame that WWE avoided a prime opportunity to deliver a result that will fade into the background quickly during its draft season.

The King of the Ring tournament holds an important legacy in WWE. Winning it sent Randy Savage up the ranks, made "Stone Cold" Steve Austin and established the dominance of Brock Lesnar.

While recent years have devalued the concept, a new era in WWE could restore the tournament's prestige, especially with Gunther winning.

The Ring General remains one of the scariest men in WWE, but he needs a rebound victory after Sami Zayn ended his record-setting Intercontinental Championship reign.

Gunther can carry the King of the Ring moniker right into a challenge for either world championship, perhaps even putting an end to Cody Rhodes' dream run.

The Austrian should not change his gimmick as "king," though. His victory alone is enough.

Drew McIntyre was just about the hottest star on Raw ahead of WrestleMania 40, leaning into a heel role that allowed him to speak the truth to all those that had wronged him.

However, after losing in embarrassing fashion at The Show of Shows, the Scot might just be poised to cool off.

One option that would certainly send McIntyre back down the card would be another feud with Sheamus.

While The Celtic Warrior and McIntyre have always had great chemistry, the dynamic has not changed enough to explore at this stage.

As tag team partners, they may be able to help each other. Sheamus could evolve with McIntyre and adopt his loudmouth heel style and help The Scottish Warrior reclaim the World Heavyweight Championship.

Even that is risky, though, as neither man should be in the tag team division at this stage of their careers.

It's best to let this interaction be a one-off match that gives McIntyre a clean victory and pushes him back into title consideration.

Andrade's return to WWE wasn't flashy, but he has quickly found his spot on the card as a great wrestler and a solid pre-taped promo.

This should set him up perfectly as the next challenger for Damian Priest, assuming The Punishment survives Backlash France on May 4 with the World Heavyweight Championship.

In fact, Andrade and his tag team partner this week, Ricochet, are the ideal next opponents for Priest. They are great wrestlers who will push the champion to deliver quality matches and solidify his reign.

Andrade may eventually be the right man to hold a world title in WWE, but the time is not right to go that far just yet.

This can serve as a tease and keep Priest's title matches fresh for months to come.