Since the WWE brand split, champion vs. champion matches have been a draw of Survivor Series. This year, injuries and last minute storyline twists unexpectedly changed some of these Raw vs. SmackDown clashes, but they’re still an anticipated part of the show.
This made me wonder, in the few moments when I wasn’t thinking about Becky Lynch, about the other possible champion vs. champion matches out there in the wide world of wrestling right now. If Survivor Series was somehow promotion vs. promotion rather than brand vs. brand, which champions would I most want to see face off? This article looks at the equivalent belt-holders to our current WWE champions in various other wrestling promotions, and fantasy books the best possible matchups in November 2018.
WWE United States Champion Shinsuke Nakamura vs. IWGP United States Champion Cody
The contract for this match would come with a stipulation: If Nakamura loses, he goes back to New Japan. If Cody loses, he returns to WWE. Small print on the bottom of the contract would specify that these two wrestlers cannot be in the same promotion at the same time. So whatever the result of this match, it results in balance being returned to the wrestling world and the American Nightmare gets his last name back.
WWE Intercontinental Champion Seth Rollins vs. NEVER Openweight Champion Hirooki Goto
Okay, obviously if we’re doing another WWE vs. NJPW, we could just do IC vs. IC and give Rollins Y2Juggalo Chris Jericho. (Also obviously, the true analog/natural enemy for NEVER is the X Division.) But Rollins vs. Goto would be a clash of two really good wrestlers that are high-level babyfaces in their companies, but they’ve never quite been the top babyface Guy. “Fierce Warrior” and “Kingslayer” are kind of in the same realm of cool and evocative, but not all that revealing about the wrestler’s character nicknames. I feel like pitting these two against each other would cause them to beat their remaining hang-ups to their careers off each other and return to regular competition in their home promotions stronger.
SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Bar vs. Impact World Tag Team Champions LAX
Not much explaining to do for this one! The Bar are awesome. I feel like LAX gets slept on a little bit because they’re in Impact, but they’re also awesome. Also, LAX was half of one of the most fun indie matches I’ve watched live (against the Lucha Brothers at Bar Wrestling), so they have an extra special place in my heart where I want more people to appreciate them. I feel like having a great match with Cesaro and Sheamus would be a good way for that to happen for Santana and Ortiz.
Raw Tag Team Champions AOP vs. AAA World Mixed Tag Team Champions Big Mami and Niño Hamburguesa
Yes, it would make the most sense for AAA‘s Mami and Hamburguesa to murk the winners of the second Mixed Match Challenge, but we don’t have one of those yet, so they’re getting AOP. If you’re unfamiliar with this tag team, Big Mami is a big mami and Niño Hamburguesa is the little hamburger boy. Sometimes he kisses female wrestlers without their consent, but I think it’s probably not that creepy because I think he’s supposed to be literally a child, but I’m never one hundred percent sure. Either way, that probably wouldn’t happen against AOP unless he got very confused about Drake Maverick. If we got to see Mami perform her crossbody on Akam and Rezar at the same time I would be happy with this match.
WWE Cruiserweight Champion Buddy Murphy vs. CMLL Lightweight Champion Dragon Lee
Buddy Murphy is the almost-not-a-cruiserweight champion of 205 Live. Dragon Lee is the absurdly shredded CMLL Lightweight Champion with a reign now over 900 days long. Both are really good wrestlers and I would like to see them wrestle each other, even if it was on the preshow, and for awareness of Lee to be raised.
However, there is an obstacle to this match: Dragon Lee started competing on the reality show Exatlón México in the Dominican Republic on August 13, 2018, and has yet to be eliminated. He might be even better at obstacle courses, etc, than he is at pro wrestling, and it is wreaking havoc upon the wrestling world. Could a fantasy Survivor Series payday lure him off the island? It would be worth a shot!
Barring that, it’s weird to me that someone who talks as much as RPW British Cruiserweight Champion David Starr hasn’t wrestled at a WWE thing yet, so he should probably give it a try.
Raw Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey vs. AAA Reina de Reinas Champion Faby Apache
Ronda Rousey is a proven MMA/judo badass, but, as a certain Irish redhead pointed out, hasn’t been tested much in the pro wrestling world yet. Faby Apache, whose twentieth anniversary of her wrestling debut is coming up in December, is a proven lucha libre badass and one of the best and most accomplished female wrestlers in the world. This match would go extremely hard and probably make everyone happy.
SmackDown Women’s Champion Becky Lynch vs. World of Stardom Champion Kagetsu
One is the Man of WWE, the other is the Prime Minister of Stardom. Becky Lynch and Kagetsu are both stone cold DGAF, popular wrestlers, and a feud between them would set the world on fire. An Odei Tai ambush would fit right in with WWE’s normal Survivor Series builds too. A side effect of this match would be many women just giving up on dating guys forever, but after watching this match, I think the affected men would probably get it.
WWE Champion Daniel Bryan vs. IWGP Heavyweight Champion Kenny Omega
Daniel Bryan vs. Kenny Omega in 2018 would be the ultimate internet-breaking match. They faced off on the independent circuit back in the day, but I don’t think that would make anyone want to see a showdown of two ex-indie stars in their Big Promotion Tent Pole forms any less. Would it be worth the stress of seeing Bryan get V-Triggered at least three times? For the promoters, probably!
WWE Universal Champion Brock Lesnar vs. CMLL World Heavyweight Champion Último Guerrero
Imagine this: this fantasy inter-promotional Survivor Series is announced. Lesnar vs. Guerrero is announced. Paul Heyman cuts a promo on behalf of his client that includes him furiously yelling, “RAISE THE ROOF.” We can all die happy.
Who are your dream title vs. title opponents for our current WWE champions? Let us know in the comments!
