Bully Ray Thinks This WWE Raw Storyline Could Have Gone Differently Before SNME

In the opening moments of "WWE Raw," Nia Jax was seen attacking WWE Women's World Champion Rhea Ripley backstage. In response, Ripley initiated a brawl later in the show, in which she emerged triumphant. According to WWE Hall of Famer Bully Ray, this is "classic 50/50 booking" by WWE. At the same time, he believes the company could have also benefited from going a different route there.

"I have no problem at all with Nia Jax leaving Rhea Ripley laying," Ray said on "Busted Open Radio." "I'm all about heat. I'm all about leaving them with 'Holy s***, Nia is the real deal.' See, once Rhea comes back and shows her spirit and shows her heart and willingness to fight, that says it all for me. As a fan. I'm like, 'Damn it, that's my girl Rhea.' She's not going to stay down. She's going to come back and fight. And then if she gets her ass handed to her by Nia, I'm like, 'Nia is the real deal.'

"I'm not looking down at my babyface, because my babyface didn't have to come out in the first place, but she did," Ray continued. "She tried to fight back. She got jumped early, so she's going to try to fight back later."

As Ray additionally pointed out, Jax came into their brawl with an advantage, as she was in better condition than Ripley, who had been beaten down earlier in the day. Furthermore, Jax exhibits more strength than Ripley in general. As such, Ray believes WWE might have fared even better with Jax standing tall over Ripley to the sound of boos. Nevertheless, Ripley and Jax now both look ahead to WWE Saturday Night's Main Event, where the former will defend the WWE Women's World Championship.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "Busted Open Radio" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.