Although the next WWE pay per view is Hell in a Cell, everyone knows that right after the next topic is going to be Survivor Series, and the excitement over the fantasy match ups being considered as RAW and Smackdown Live go head to head as per the annual tradition.
In the first year of the brand split in 2016, those brand vs brand matches were a bit awkward: basically it was three traditional 10 man/woman Survivor Series matches with the men, women and tag teams going head to head. The men’s match ending with Smackdown’s victory was a good booking, considering they factored in Dean Ambrose attacking AJ Styles which led to another WWE title match between them a month later, but the 10 team match between RAW and Smackdown was a bit cumbersome for my taste, although it did lead to Sheamus and Cesaro winning and establishing them for the string of tag team title reigns they would later enjoy as The Bar.
Last year was the first time we saw more matches between RAW and Smackdown superstars, with champions from both brands facing off against each other. This year, that trend is most likely to continue in November.
So with that in mind, here are my booking predictions for Survivor Series 2018. These picks are contingent that the mentioned champions will remain champions until the pay per view, but I’ll add in some additional predictions since these matches are subject to change, especially if championships changed hands.
UPDATE: This story has been updated to reflect the events of the September 3 episode of RAW.
WWE Champion AJ Styles vs. Universal Champion Roman Reigns
This match may not sound like much on paper, but it is definitely better than last year’s mediocre contest Styles had with then Universal Champion Brock Lesnar. By the way, if Styles makes it to Survivor Series as WWE champion, his reign would have crossed the one year mark.
Why do I say that Reigns and Styles would have a better match? They actually faced each other at Payback and Extreme Rules 2016, and in both times Reigns managed to hold his own against the Phenomenal One, even getting in a decent move set along the way, and many would agree Styles is the much better wrestler.
Now, this is all contingent on Styles retaining his championship in a rematch against Samoa Joe at Hell in a Cell. Should Styles fall to Joe, we will see a rematch from Backlash earlier this year. If that happens, they might need to reinforce the ring and prepare for some rather non-PG graphic content.
RAW Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey vs. Smackdown Women’s Champion Charlotte
But I don’t think Roman vs. AJ Styles / Samoa Joe could hold a candle to this anticipated showdown: the former UFC (now RAW Women’s) champion Ronda Rousey facing off against one of the greatest female athletes in the company today, Charlotte Flair.
It was very obvious that the former UFC champion was being billed to become a major female athlete in the WWE. The way Ronda won the title at Summerslam when she just squashed Alexa Bliss, who by the way won both the Smackdown and RAW women’s titles along with Charlotte, proves just what the company was planning.
You may think that putting the red and white belt on Ronda is too early, and that an imminent match with Asuka at Wrestlemania next year is a much better attraction. But unfortunately, as good as Asuka is, the attention now has shifted back to Charlotte, so this Survivor Series showdown was imminent, whether it happens in November or next April.
Intercontinental Champion Seth Rollins vs. US Champion Shinsuke Nakamura
This is one of those fantasy WWE vs. NJPW matches that people have talked about happening. Even though Nakamura has been with WWE for a few years now, he is still one of the most recognized faces of Japanese wrestling. Seth Rollins is clearly one of the top stars in WWE right now, having come from the indy circuit and rising through NXT to the main roster.
Nakamura entered NXT long after Rollins finished his time there, so these two have never had a chance to face each other on a one-on-one basis. If this match were to happen at Survivor Series, Rollins vs. Nakamura might well steal the show.
RAW Tag Team Champions Drew McIntyre and Dolph Ziggler vs. Smackdown Tag Team Champions The New Day
As of this writing, Dolph and Drew are the RAW tag team champions, after they ambushed the Revival on the most recent RAW and took their place in the tag team title match against the B Team.
Not much to say at this point how Dolph and Drew would fair against The New Day. I don’t believe I’ve ever seen either team face each other in previous tag team matches or even singles matches.
Of course, the New Day could end up losing their tag team titles to the Bar or some other team on Smackdown before Survivor Series. I wouldn’t mind seeing the Revival verses the Bar, as that would be an absolute grudge match.
As for who will be on the traditional men and women’s Survivor Series 10 person elimination match, I have some thoughts on the team, but mostly this is just a simple list of who I think would be on each team:
Team RAW Women
Alexa Bliss, Nia Jax / Natalya, Sasha, Bayley and Ember Moon.
With Rousey busy representing the red brand as the RAW womens’ champion, these picks were a no brainer. Bliss will always have a top spot on the RAW roster, whether she’s champion or not. I’m predicting Nia will be back in time for Survivor Series, but if not then substitute Nattie in her place. Ember Moon is the fresh newcomer on RAW, and Sasha and Bayley have been mainstays on the brand for some time now.
Team Smackdown Women
Asuka, Peyton Royce and Billie Kay, Naomi and Carmella.
As a former Smackdown women’s champion, Carmella might end up being the team’s captain. Peyton and Billie are the blue team’s equivalent of Moon as the new faces, and Naomi is always the reliable athletic one on the team. As the sole survivor from last year’s women’s 10 person elimination match, albeit on the RAW side, Asuka would undoubtedly be included, although I don’t see her getting pushed from this match going forward like she did last year leading up to Wrestlemania, when she lost her undefeated streak to Charlotte.
Team RAW Men
Braun Strowman, Dean Ambrose, Finn Balor, Bobby Lashley, and Elias
There is a need to keep Ambrose doing something as he is the only Shield member not in a singles match representing the brand. Strowman, Lashley and Balor are mainstays on RAW at this point, so it would make even less sense that they would not be on Team Red. And despite playing a heelish character, Elias is more over on RAW than you would initially see; I find he has taken the tradition of insulting every city he goes into and made it better.
Team Smackdown Men
Daniel Bryan, The Miz, Jeff Hardy, Andrade Cien Almas, and Randy Orton
I’m not sure if under Paige Smackdown will did what they did in the 2017 Survivor Series and have each participant earn a spot on the team, but the dynamics of having the A Lister and the former WWE champion on the same team, as well as Hardy and Orton, could be a recipe for disaster and cause Team Smackdown the victory again twice in a row. However, a silver lining is that I see Andrade would huge potential to be the sole survivor.
Wild Card Move: NXT Invasion
Some 8 years ago, the first batch of NXT “rookies” (back when NXT was a cheap version of a reality show) “invaded” WWE that quickly fizzled out, there are rumours of working in an angle where the black and yellow brand is involved in Survivor Series this year, after Takeover: War Games.
Whether it’s run-ins during the men and women’s 10 person elimination match, or somehow including NXT’s respective champions into the existing champion vs. champion matches to make them three way dances, it would be highly intriguing to see how the NXT universe crosses over into the main roster.
An average professional doing the 9-5 grind who really loves wrestling across all platforms. Here's hoping wrestlers finally get some basic workers rights in 2021.
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