2 best challengers for Finn Balor at Wrestlemania 35 if he dethrones Brock Lesnar at the Royal Rumble

The Universal Championship match which was heavily rumored to take place at the 2018 Royal Rumble will finally take place this year. After a long wait, Finn Balor is finally set to get a proper Universal title match opportunity on a grand stage. On the first glance, the encounter between Finn Balor and Brock Lesnar might look like a colossal mismatch but the credibility of Finn Balor makes it a believable one.

The popular perception is that Brock Lesnar will successfully defend the Universal Championship at the Royal Rumble against Finn Balor. It is widely speculated that Brock Lesnar will defend the Universal Championship against a former WWE Champion at Wrestlemania 35 in a rematch from the main event of WWE Battleground PPV in 2015.

The odds are clearly stacked against the first-ever Universal Champion Finn Balor at this point in time. Still, one cannot write him off completely as WWE's booking stance has altered ever since the start of this year.

They have been constantly pushing fan favorites and underutilized superstars like Becky Lynch, Seth Rollins, Andrade, Finn Balor, and Asuka in recent weeks.

Following this recent booking trend, there is a possibility that WWE might make a monumental booking decision by having Finn Balor defeat the Beast Incarnate at the Royal Rumble PPV. This would not only shake up the whole wrestling universe but also would inject factors like unpredictability and freshness into the current stale product.

Finn Balor as Universal Champion will certainly reinvigorate Raw's main event scene. Finn Balor has feuded with the likes of Seth Rollins, Drew McIntyre, and Bobby Lashley already on Raw, so they are not considered in this slideshow. In this article, two Smackdown Live superstars are considered who have the capability of producing an instant classic along with the Demon at the Showcase of the Immortals.

Here are two potential challengers for Finn Balor at Wrestlemania 35.

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#2 Andrade

Rising Smackdown Live superstar Andrade

Former NXT champion Andrade did not have the greatest of main roster debuts last year. He was a victim of poor booking and was used sparingly on Smackdown Live. His career resurgence started slowly during the closing stages of 2018 after the culmination of TLC PPV.

The amazing matches he put on with the likes of Daniel Bryan, AJ Styles, and Mustafa Ali showcased his true potential and led to the revival of his Smackdown Live career.

Andrade has been on a roll ever since the start of 2019 as he participated in two magnificent matches with the veteran Rey Mysterio, which garnered him critical acclaim. Currently, he is just behind AJ Styles in the Smackdown Live superstars favorites' list to win the Royal Rumble match this year.

The WWE Universe would surely be thrilled with an encounter between Andrade and Finn Balor at Wrestlemania 35. Finn Balor is a world-renowned wrestler and Andrade has already delivered several classics in a rather short WWE career so an encounter between them will be gladly accepted by the WWE Universe.

Given the right opportunity and platform, these two superstars are expected to put on a clinical match given both their in-ring expertise.

#1 AJ Styles

The WWE Universe would love to witness a rematch of this phenomenal encounter

AJ Styles previously met the Demon in an impromptu matchup at TLC in 2017. Styles was flown in as a replacement for Bray Wyatt a day before that PPV. It was a good match which ended with a clean win for Finn Balor, who performed in his demon persona.

It was the first meeting of the duo on the grand stage in WWE territory as well as elsewhere. The dream match had no proper build to it and was a one-night affair which had no real consequences going forward.

A proper feud between both the elite superstars has been a long time wish of the WWE Universe. If properly built it, has the potential to be one of the marquee matches on any Wrestlemania card.

Daniel Bryan and AJ Styles have already faced each other multiple times in the recent months and are set to face again at the upcoming Royal Rumble PPV. Assuming that AJ Styles loses his WWE Championship match, one of the best possible directions going forward for him would be to win the Royal Rumble match on the same night.

This would then give him a chance to jump ship to Monday Night Raw after a long hiatus. He can then challenge the Universal Champion Finn Balor at Wrestlemania 35. The WWE universe would be elated to witness the clash between the two former leaders of the Bullet Club at Wrestlemania.

It would be a fresh matchup for these superstars as both Finn Balor and AJ Styles have faced almost all the superstars on their respective brands multiple times. Given their supreme in-ring prowess, the match would be guaranteed to steal the whole show at Wrestlemania 35 if booked.