For the first time ever, NXT will be directly involved in Survivor Series in the battle for which brand is supreme over all. There are matchups we wouldn’t otherwise get on normal television, and there are even big surprises rumored. Here is what I think will take place this Sunday.
The Viking Raiders (RAW) vs. The Undisputed Era (NXT) vs. The New Day (SmackDown)
After seeing The Undisputed Era’s match against The Revival, it made me miss Scott and Dash in this match all the more. The story of three of the best tag teams in NXT history facing against each other wrote itself. I suppose The New Day is about as good a consolation as it can get, however.
I am expecting this to be a very fun and competitive match regardless. In terms of who will win, I’m suspecting The Undisputed Era will find a way to use their craftiness to their advantage. The winner of the match won’t tell me much, but what I know is that when all three teams are motivated, this is shaping up to be a match of the night candidate.
Winner: The Undisputed Era
AJ Styles (RAW) vs. Roderick Strong (NXT) vs. Shinsuke Nakamura (SmackDown)
Speaking of match of the night candidates, this should definitely rank up there. While these three haven’t directly interacted with each other, there is no reason why this match shouldn’t deliver like I know it can.
AJ Styles really hasn’t done anything much with the United States Championship, and Shinsuke has done even less with the Intercontinental Championship. Roderick Strong is the one in this trio that has been having quality outings week after week. Hopefully, we will see AJ and Shinsuke give a vintage performance in the process.
There’s no clear indicator of who is going to win this match, but everyone that I have seen try to predict this match has chosen AJ or Roderick. So I will go against the mold and say Shinsuke steals a victory with help from Sami.
Winner: Shinsuke Nakamura
Becky Lynch (RAW) vs. Shayna Baszler (NXT) vs. Bayley (SmackDown)
A heel Bayley, Shayna Baszler and Becky Lynch should be every wrestling fan’s wet dream. Don’t be surprised if this is made to be your main event. Out of all of the inter-brand matches, this is the one that has probably had the most spotlight put on it.
The best part of this feud was the face to face interview that Shayna had with Becky. That promo alone made me want to see those to go at it in singles competition. Don’t forget about Bayley, though. She has kind of been a side-show in a way, but she has been way better as a heel than as a face.
There are so many combustible elements and it’s hard to pick one winner. Because I gave one victory to NXT and one to Smackdown in my predictions so far, I’ll give my first one to RAW. I’ll say The Man comes out on top.
Winner: Becky Lynch
Charlotte, Asuka, Natalya, Kairi Sane and Asuka (RAW) vs. Sasha Banks, Carmella, Lacey Evans, Dana Brooke and Nikki Cross (SmackDown) vs. NXT – Triple Threat Survivor Series Elimination Match
Can we all agree that Sarah Logan being in this match is about the most random thing ever? When was the last time she competed on RAW? I feel like she was fighting Dana Brooke for all of this year.
That random fact aside, I’m thinking that NXT will take this match, and do it dominating fashion. The mystery behind the fact that the women’s team for NXT may tell me that the surprise will lead them to victory. My prediction is that it will be Team Ripley from WarGames and one of the heels teaming up with each other.
Nothing much else to say other than that.
Winner: Team NXT
Seth Rollins, Kevin Owens, Ricochet, Drew McIntyre and Randy Orton (RAW) vs. Roman Reigns, King Corbin, Braun Strowman, Shorty G and Mustafa Ali vs. Team NXT – Triple Threat Survivor Series Elimination Matches
I’m also thinking Team NXT will take this match as well. I think it will be because both RAW and SmackDown have highly combustible elements on their team. On RAW’s side, I believe Kevin Owens has only competed once since being officially drafted. Randy Orton has teased tensions with Ricochet. Drew McIntyre is kind of just there. Seth Rollins hasn’t made himself a lot of friends during his reign as Universal Champion.
On SmackDown’s side, Roman Reigns and Corbin have been going at each other in recent weeks. Corbin was the one who defeated Shorty G (please don’t make that a thing) in the King of the Ring tournament. Mustafa (welcome back) Ali and Strowman were just the other noticeable names on the roster that was unoccupied.
Once again, Team NXT is a mystery, and apparently, there are some surprises in store. From a star perspective, RAW has the advantage, but until we know what they’re dealing with, I’m thinking NXT has this thing in the bag again.
Winner: Team NXT
“The Fiend” Bray Wyatt (C) vs. Daniel Bryan – Universal Championship
This feud is incredibly random. Not only have they not updated the graphics for the Universal Championship, but the reason that we were given for them to fight is that Daniel Bryan “knows what he did”.
Regardless of such, I’m looking forward to see Bryan fight Wyatt instead of Rollins. He’s a far superior in-ring performer and has a better way of getting the crowd engaged. Plus, there are no extra gimmicks in this match. It’s just straight up wrestling, which Bryan excels at.
I just wish that Bryan was built up as more of a threat, because Bryan’s forte is just that. Wrestling. Is he going to defeat The Fiend with a Small Package? After Rollins hit what had to be at least 50 Curb Stomps between Hell in a Cell and Crown Jewel, Bryan would have to go Super Sayian to win the championship.
The Fiend will retain, but the match should be intriguing at least.
Winner: The Fiend
Brock Lesnar (C) vs. Rey Mysterio – WWE Championship (No Holds Barred)
The biggest X-factor in this match is going to be the No Holds Barred stipulation. This tells me that either Cain Velasquez and Dominick will influence the outcome in Mysterio’s favor, or Brock Lesnar will absolutely destroy Mysterio to within an inch of his life.
Realistically speaking, in a normal world, Brock Lesnar would win with little difficulty. However, the factors of Lesnar attacking Mysterio’s family will be at play here for sure. I don’t think we ever got a reason as to why Brock attacked Mysterio to begin with. The last thing I remembered was that Mysterio earned a Universal Championship match, and then Brock just assaulted him.
There have been some theories that state that Dominick will actually come out and turn on Mysterio and cost him the title. I’m thinking that the idea behind that is Dominick lost respect for Mysterio because he failed to defend him and Brock attacked him on multiple occasions.
Right now, the favorite is Brock if you ask the betting line. I’d feel much more comfortable picking Brock if it wasn’t for the stipulation, because that works heavily in Mysterio’s favor. If this was a straight up match, Lesnar would probably do Mysterio like he did Kingston. I don’t think a “thanks for your loyalty and years of service” legacy run for Mysterio is out of the question. They did it for Kingston, after all.
I actually think that’s what will happen. I think it’s too early to a Dominick heel turn since he isn’t a consistent on-screen character, and I do believe Lesnar will get his comeuppance at Survivor Series.
Winner: Rey Mysterio
What do you think will take place at Survivor Series?
