5 Superstars who could beat Drew McIntyre and Braun Strowman in a "shoot fight"

Penning this down, or in my case, as I punch the keys on my keyboard, I've now begun to realize that more than a fair share of fans may be a tad confused as to what I intend to convey through this article.

So, I'd like to be crystal clear as we start off!

Witnessing a hilarious argument between a few of my friends regarding which current WWE Superstar could beat Brock Lesnar in a "real fight", got me thinking about two other top Superstars on the WWE's RAW brand today -- namely Drew McIntyre and Braun Strowman -- and which performers from the current WWE roster could defeat them in a "real fight"!

A real fight or a "shoot fight" as we refer to it in the world of professional wrestling, doesn't really have any specific rule-set. In fact, it's nothing more than a glorified street fight, which could be way more brutal than a fight/match that takes place in a professional combat sport setting such as in pro-boxing or MMA.

(*Warning: The content noted in this article strictly refers to a hypothetical, unarmed, one-on-one combat situation between the Superstars mentioned -- and does not intend to glorify unsanctioned shoot fights) Having competed in the combat sports realm for several years now, I believe that there are indeed a few unwritten rules, which form a code of honour even in a street/shoot fight situation -- a few important rules being that eye-gouging, groin shots, and weapons aren't allowed.

Now that we've established the rules of our hypothetical discussion, I have to note that the following analysis has been put forth after extensive observation of the Superstars' strength and conditioning levels, combat history, age, size, etc...

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#5 Bobby Lashley could use his amateur wrestling and MMA experience to take this fight to the ground and win

Bobby Lashley is one of the greatest athletes to ever perform in the WWE

Bobby Lashley is perhaps one of the most underrated professional wrestlers of all time. Besides, in MMA, with wins over Jason Guida, Bob Sapp (Sapp was still somewhat dangerous back then), and Wes Sims, "The All Mighty" holds an MMA record of 15 wins and 2 losses.

Lashley notably lost a Unanimous Decision to James Thompson at SFL 3 on May 6th, 2012 in New Delhi, India, but brutally avenged his loss by destroying Thompson via TKO (Technical Knockout) at Bellator 145 on November 6th, 2015!

Against Braun Strowman: Lashley was an excellent amateur wrestler in his younger days, and vastly improved his striking as he began competing in MMA. Per the evidence, all signs point towards Lashley using his long jab to keep Strowman at long range, and pick him apart on the feet with straight punches and a few standing elbows.

Against Drew McIntyre: Against Strowman, Lashley would probably avoid grappling, because The Monster Among Men is quite powerful in static exchanges -- which is obvious because of Strowman's history of being a successful pro power-lifter.

However, against Drew McIntyre, Lashley would have a much easier time in in the grappling exchanges. But on the feet, McIntyre could prove to be a pest to deal with, because of his long arms.

We don't have the exact measurements of McIntyre's arms' reach, however, Lashley is smart, and he'll avoid striking with the longer guy. Instead, Lashley will distract him with a few jabs and feints, before shooting for a takedown, and beating up McIntyre with ground-and-pound (ground strikes)...

#4 Baron Corbin is a 3-time Golden Gloves Boxing Champion, and in a pure boxing match, he could beat anyone in WWE, including Bobby Lashley and Brock Lesnar

Baron Corbin (right) is

dangerous

man, who possesses excellent boxing skills

Baron Corbin is an insanely-gifted athlete, as proven by his resume -- The Lone Wolf has played as an offensive lineman in the NFL, besides also competing in legitimate grappling competitions...He also earned the honor of being called the Golden Gloves Boxing Champion, not once, not twice, but three times!

Against Braun Strowman: Baron Corbin, just like Bobby Lashley, would probably avoid grappling with the 385-pound Strowman.

However, it'd be safe to say that Corbin would tire out Strowman with repeated punches to the solar plexus, the liver and the spleen -- (the solar plexus being in the center of your torso, the liver is on the right side of your torso, and the spleen is on the left side of your torso)...Corbin would easily knock Strowman out in about 6-9 minutes, with a disciplined body attack.

Against Drew McIntyre: Corbin would absolutely dominate Drew McIntyre in a shoot fight, because even in his younger days as a relatively inexperienced amateur boxer, Corbin always had speed on his side!

While McIntyre may have the speed advantage over someone like Bobby Lashley, "The Scottish Psychopath" isn't as fast as Corbin...Corbin would go head-hunting, and dent McIntyre's jaw, nose, and orbitals with alternating left and right hooks, before knocking him out for good...

#3 Brock Lesnar, like Lashley, could use his amateur wrestling and MMA experience to win

Brock Lesnar (left) shocked everyone by absolutely destroying MMA legends Frank Mir and Randy Couture during his time in the UFC

Brock Lesnar is a former UFC Heavyweight Champion, and holds a record of 5 wins, 3 losses, and 1 No-Contest as a pro MMA fighter.

Needless to say, Lesnar is as dangerous as they come -- a former NCAA Division I wrestler, and ex-UFC Heavyweight Champion who savagely bloodied and knocked out people such as MMA legends Frank Mir and Randy Couture, besides being the first man to defeat the then-undefeated UFC monster Shane Carwin!

Against Braun Strowman: Unlike Bobby Lashley and Baron Corbin, Brock Lesnar would directly go to the grappling department against Braun Strowman.

Lesnar would hit his world famous power double-leg takedown, get the fight to the ground, and well, bloody Strowman's face up just like he did to Frank Mir.

Against Drew McIntyre: Brock Lesnar would quite literally throw around Drew McIntyre like a ragdoll.

Lesnar isn't the best striker in the world, but don't forget that he stood toe-to-toe with one of the greatest MMA strikers of all time, Mark Hunt, and out-jabbed "Hunto". Lesnar could hit McIntyre with a few jabs and his straight right hand -- just like the one he used to knock out Randy Couture!

Besides, Lesnar will probably throw around McIntyre, just like The Beast threw around Heath Herring at UFC 87 (August 9th, 2008), and then submit McIntyre with an "Arm-Triangle" like he did to Shane Carwin or perhaps a "Kimura"...

#2 Shinsuke Nakamura can submit any current WWE Superstar, except Brock Lesnar and Bobby Lashley

Shinsuke Nakamura possesses excellent submission skills, which have helped him a lot, especially during his MMA days

Shinsuke Nakamura holds a professional MMA record of 3 wins, 1 loss, and 1 No-Contest. Nakamura's only loss came when he was submitted by Daniel Gracie (a member of the famous BJJ family -- "The Gracie Family").

However, I'd like to point out the No-Contest in his record, which came in a match where Nakamura faced one of the most dangerous kickboxers in the world, the Belarusian Super Heavyweight Alexey Ignashov, who is famous for his deadly knee strikes and has KO wins over legends such as Badr Hari and Semmy Schilt.

Nakamura fought Ignashov twice (December 31st, 2003 and May 22nd, 2004), and Ignashov hurt "Naka" with a knee in their first match -- as the referee controversially stopped the fight, but it was later turned to a No-Contest.

However, in the rematch, Nakamura dominated his Belarusian opponent, and submitted the big man with one of the most beautiful "Forearm Chokes" I've ever seen in my life!

Against Braun Strowman: In MMA, Shinsuke Nakamura was known for taking fights to the ground almost immediately, and if Braun Strowman makes the mistake of grappling with "The Artist", he'll soon be asleep on the ground, after Nakamura wraps his hands around The Monster's neck -- restricting the blood-flow in Strowman's jugular veins, and choking him out.

Against Drew McIntyre: Alright, according to what I saw in Nakamura's fights, he tends to struggle when his opponents have quick footwork. In simple words, if the opponent moves around quickly on the feet, Nakamura has a hard time catching them with a takedown.

However, Drew McIntyre is the bigger man here, and hence, he will probably tire out sooner than the smaller Nakamura!

I must add once again, that Nakamura is an extremely skilled and intelligent grappler, and once he gets a hold of McInytre, he'll either use a "Guillotine Choke" like he did against Jan Nortje, or use the "Americana" like he did against Shane Eitner -- submitting McIntyre after a tense battle of about 5-10 minutes on the feet...

#1 Dolph Ziggler could be the unlikeliest person to beat Braun Strowman and Drew McIntyre

Dolph Ziggler (left) comes from an excellent amateur wrestling background

They say that "size matters". However, the fight game is such a beautifully chaotic world, that no matter how big or strong you may be, skills often turn out to be the deciding factor as to who'll walk away from the fight as the victor.

To paraphrase former UFC Welterweight and Middleweight Champion, MMA legend Georges St-Pierre -- "Skill beats size, technique beats strength all the time".

Ziggler holds the record for most pins (82) at St. Edward High School in Lakewood, Ohio, and is widely regarded as one of the best amateur wrestlers (apart from Kurt Angle, Bobby Lashley, Chad Gable and Brock Lesnar) to make the transition to professional wrestling.

Against Braun Strowman: Out of the 5 Superstars on our list -- Bobby Lashley, Baron Corbin, Brock Lesnar, Shinsuke Nakamura, and Dolph Ziggler -- I ought to note that Ziggler will have the toughest time in a "shoot fight" against Braun Strowman or Drew McIntyre.

Ziggler is the shortest Superstar in this discussion, and although he's advertised as 6'0" by the WWE, he's rumored to be no taller than 5'10" or 5'11"...Considering that, he'll have to be very careful not to run into a knee from Strowman, while attempting a takedown on The Monster Among Men.

Nevertheless, Ziggler's stamina is legendary, and he'll probably tire Strowman out about 10-15 minutes into their fight. Following which, he'd execute his excellent single-leg takedown, and submit Strowman with a "Bulldog Choke" or a simple "Neck Crank" -- the latter of which was notably used quite recently by Khabib Nurmagomedov against Conor McGregor in their UFC 229 fight for the UFC Lightweight Championship.

Against Drew McIntyre: As the old saying goes -- "Styles make fights" -- And to be honest, in a fistfight, it's anything goes. There's always a chance that Braun Strowman or Drew McIntyre could catch Lashley, Corbin, Lesnar, Nakamura or Ziggler in a flash KO or submission.

However, per each Superstar's respective history in the athletic and combat sports dominions, we've arrived at the conclusion that Lashley, Corbin, Lesnar, Nakamura and Ziggler are indeed the best candidates from the current WWE roster who could beat Strowman and McIntyre in a real fight.

Nevertheless, I'd like to come back to McIntyre vs. Ziggler now...Honestly speaking, Ziggler will have a relatively easier time tiring out Strowman, but against McIntyre, Ziggler will have to be very careful about the Scotsman's stamina.

Ziggler's best bet would be to use a few "Snap-downs", pushing McIntyre's neck downward in the direction of the ground, fake a Snap-down, and then shoot in for a single-leg takedown, before he secures top position, and starts punching McIntyre from full mount!

Which other current WWE Superstars do you feel could beat Drew McIntyre and Braun Strowman in a "shoot fight"? Please give us your thoughts in the comments section below!