Choosing a path was an important theme for the January 13 edition of Monday Night Raw. As the Road to WrestleMania approached, many performers were feeling the weight of expectations.

No one was affected more by the need to prove himself than Buddy Murphy. The Best Kept Secret challenged Aleister Black, and when he failed, he needed to find a new way to stand out.

In a shocking turn, he chose to ally himself with Seth Rollins. The Messiah of Monday Night gladly accepted his newest follower as he and The Authors of Pain toppled Kevin Owens, Samoa Joe and Big Show.

Drew McIntyre continued to take his own path, sticking himself right in the middle of the personal rivalry between Randy Orton and AJ Styles. He defeated them both in a triple threat to build momentum with a new attitude.

Despite warnings to do anything else but challenge Asuka, Becky Lynch showed why she is the Raw women's champion. She cut a personal promo about how much it meant to her to challenge The Empress of Tomorrow, adding more heat to WWE's best but least hyped feud.

Even Mojo Rawley got a moment as he captured the 24/7 champion and promised he was not going to be the same type of champion as R-Truth.

This was an important night of WWE Raw, and no one let it go to waste.

Buddy Murphy Takes an Interesting Risk by Joining Seth Rollins' Cult

Despite giving Aleister Black the best in his arsenal, Buddy Murphy fell short, taking a Black Mass to the face once again. The Best Kept Secret was so distraught that he sat down at ringside and refused to leave.

The Fist Fight pitting Seth Rollins and The Authors of Pain against Kevin Owens, Samoa Joe and Big Show started off one-sided. No one had an answer to The World's Largest Athlete. However, The Messiah of Monday Night convinced Murphy to help them. His low blow to Show turned the tide and gave the heels the win.

This was an important moment for The Best Kept Secret. He put on his third straight incredible match with The Harbinger of Fury but lost again. The rivalry was over. He needed to do something to right himself.

How much bigger does it get than standing tall in the main event after losing just 20 minutes prior? Murphy joining Rollins may be a waste of his individual potential, but it leaves an impression far more than Show's arrival in the story last week.

The Messiah has a stable now. It will be interesting to see how he uses it. Alliances in WWE are growing especially on Raw. Paul Heyman's influence has been felt in many ways and perhaps none more than this.

Choosing sides could determine the future of certain stars. We might soon get a chance to see what The Best Kept Secret can do against KO and The Samoan Submission Machine.

Drew McIntyre's Slow Face Turn Could Be His Big Break

Drew McIntyre interrupted Randy Orton and AJ Styles as they discussed who would win the Royal Rumble. He wanted a challenge and booked himself into an impromptu triple threat with the other two. The Scottish Psychopath caught The Viper with a Claymore off an RKO on The Phenomenal One and pinned Styles.

Every time it feels like McIntyre is building momentum, he never quite seems to go anywhere. That said, this feels like a potential huge moment for one of Raw's clear favorites to win the Rumble.

He has been recently showing off a new attitude that hints at a babyface role in time. He may still go after good guys, but he does so with glee and audience participation. It's hard not to get behind him when he's letting the crowd decide how much damage he inflicts.

The Beast Incarnate needs a fresh challenger. McIntyre is perfectly suited to give him a challenge at a level he has rarely faced. The two could have a great sprint at WrestleMania 35, and few other men have been protected enough to challenge the WWE champion at this point.

It's never good to expect anything with WWE, but the stars are beginning to align. At this point, no one feels better suited for the moment on Raw.

Mojo Rawley Promises a New Kind of 24/7 Champion

After R-Truth got himself F5ed into the mat by Brock Lesnar, Mojo Rawley pinned Truth to steal the 24/7 Championship from him. He promised that he wasn't running from anyone anymore.

Throughout his run in WWE, Rawley has barely made an impact, but there have been flashes of promise. He's a good mic worker and noticeably charismatic. He is just not good enough in the ring to match up to his peers.

The 24/7 Championship does not require in-ring ability, but making it works does mean plenty of charisma is necessary. Rawley can make this work by taking a new approach to a familiar formula.

After months of wrestlers running around in circles, the new champion wants to fight challengers head on. He might even compete for the title in the center of the ring regularly.

Truth proved once again how great he is working off Paul Heyman and Lesnar this week, but he needs people to keep his story fresh. He can't keep running in circles. Rawley is an interesting twist in Truth's long-running championship legacy.

Becky Lynch Is Putting Sso Much More into Her Rivalry with Asuka Than WWE

Becky Lynch and Asuka signed the contract for their match, and The Empress of Tomorrow spit green mist in The Man's face. Blinded, the champion cut a promo on her next challenger, promising she would go down fighting Asuka no matter what the result.

No one in WWE right now can deliver more emotion on the spot than The Man. Lynch brings it in every situation, and this was no different. The unadvertised contract signing on a night filled with advertised spots was rushed through to get to the end result.

However, Lynch was able to add an exclamation mark with an emphatic statement on what it means to her to be a fighter not just a champion. She has put so much into selling this as the match that matters while WWE barely seems concerned.

Asuka has been great as well. Her promos in Japanese may work better knowing what she is saying, but there's still so much raw emotion. It's easy to understand the message as she berates The Man.

This will be a spectacular match because the women are committed to make it so. They may just manage outshine their stellar clash at WWE Royal Rumble 2019.