'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
To call the two Survivor Series men's teams stacked would be an understatement. Never has two teams in Survivor Series held such star-power. 2016 had two great teams, but the only part-timer in the match was Shane McMahon.
Let's give props to WWE where it's due. They turned Survivor Series around and made it possibly the most anticipated PPV of the entire year.
The addition of Triple H over Jason Jordan on the RAW team made the PPV a must-watch. Kurt Angle's job as general manager is on the line and the two brands have had serious animosity after invading one another. As things stand, it's advantage RAW, but how is the match going to end.
Here are ways in which the Survivor Series men's traditional elimination match can end!
#7 Jason Jordan turns heel and costs team RAW
Jason Jordan was selected by his father Kurt Angle as the initial fifth member of the RAW Survivor Series team. Many questioned Jordan's position in the match as he was the only competitor who stood out as inexperienced and a weak link.
Unsurprisingly, his spot was taken away from him after a kayfabe injury by Bray Wyatt. Despite begging and pleading his father to let him compete at Survivor Series, it was none other than Triple H who returned and took his spot. He added salt to the wound when he hit the prodigy with a pedigree.
It's no secret that Jason Jordan has been rejected by the fans since the Kurt Angle illegitimate son storyline. The reactions for him have only gotten worse and worse, and the crowd chanting "Thank you Wyatt" for injuring him may have definitely been the icing on the cake.
After having his spot taken away from him, it makes sense that the gold-blooded prodigy snaps and takes revenge on the people who cost him his dream of performing with his father and representing his brand.
Team RAW could be on the verge of victory when Jason Jordan comes in and attacks both Triple H and his father Kurt Angle. A heel run with Jordan where he plays on the nepotism story could do wonders with his characters and could also make him the most hated heel in WWE.
#6 Randy Orton is the sole survivor for Team SmackDown
In the long history of the Survivor Series PPV, there have been several great performers. However, there is no better performer on the PPV's history as Randy Orton. He was the sole survivor of his team on his Survivor Series debut and would end up becoming sole survivor of his team for the next two years as well. Orton was also a survivor along with another partner in 2008 and 2016.
Apart from just getting pushed as the best performer, Survivor Series tends to bring a fire out of Orton that makes him the best competitor in a match by far. If SmackDown Live is to bag a victory this time around, don't be surprised if it's none other than The Viper himself who stands tall at the very end for the blue brand.
#5 Kurt Angle saves the day for team RAW
Kurt Angle has faced humiliation at the hands of Shane and Stephanie McMahon for weeks now. He got a sense of revenge when RAW took siege of SmackDown Live on the go-home show to Survivor Series, but that's not enough.
Angle needs to lead his team to victory and this might mean taking matters into his own hands. Don't be surprised if it comes down to Kurt Angle and commissioner Shane McMahon. Kurt has to do whatever it takes to keep his job as RAW General Manager, otherwise, it means getting fired by commissioner Stephanie McMahon.
With his job and RAW's pride at stake, Kurt Angle has a very high chance of becoming the sole survivor for the red brand, thus keeping his job as RAW GM intact...for now.
#4 Shinsuke Nakamura becomes sole survivor for Team SmackDown
Since he's come to SmackDown Live, WWE has not exactly done any favours to Shinsuke Nakamura. To be fair, he has only been pinned twice, both times by WWE Champion Jinder Mahal. However, they've struggled to keep his momentum alive, but what better way to get it back than by becoming the sole survivor on his Survivor Series debut?
It's no secret that the sole survivors of these traditional matches are usually people set for a major push by WWE. With AJ Styles now the WWE Champion, a Nakamura vs Styles WWE title match at WrestleMania 34 seems more and more like a possibility.
SmackDown Live has lacked major star power for a long time, and they've got a potential major star in Shinsuke Nakamura. What better way to begin a big push than by being the saviour of SmackDown Live?
#3 Triple H takes out Kurt Angle and costs Team RAW
This seems a bit unlikely only because it doesn't add up that Triple H would cost his wife's team the match. However, you could spin it and say that it was a conspiracy to get Angle fired.
Triple H and Kurt Angle could very well be the last two remaining members of RAW and out of nowhere The Game would pedigree Angle, effectively getting him pinned while he walks away and gets counted out.
Yes, it would be a screwy finish but it would begin to plant the seeds for an eventual WrestleMania 34 match. In addition, Triple H hitting a pedigree on his son definitely adds fuel to the fire.
#2 Finn Balor & Samoa Joe are the survivors of Team RAW
Finn Balor and Samoa Joe have a history in NXT. Those who followed NXT in 2015 knows that the duo were tag team partners for the inaugural Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic tournament, which they would end up going on to win.
Following this, Samoa Joe asked for an NXT Championship shot, and Finn Balor did accept, but general manager William Regal made him work his way to a shot. This is where Joe's heel turn began, and he has been a heel since.
Joe and Balor seemingly renewed their rivalry a couple of weeks ago on RAW and the following week was forced to team up with each other to take on Gallows & Anderson.
The duo obviously won, but what was noticeable was that their chemistry was on point, even after two years. Balor is the one who takes his time, has his fancy entrance, plays to the crowd and all of that, while Joe, on the other hand, is the ass-kicking, all business, no-nonsense personality and the differences in their character make them get along well while also making them a force to be reckoned with.
WWE could play to this angle at Survivor Series and have the duo show incredible teamwork in helping the red brand win. Following this, they could then begin a tag team and go on to have either a small or short run where they become champions.
The duo could be babyfaces and one option would be to play out themselves as a tag team until WrestleMania season, when one turns on the other. However, a better and more long-term option would be to have them be a tag team for an extra year and slow-burn a long-term feud until WrestleMania 35 in 2019.
This would make for an incredible story and in 2018, they could brighten up and dominate RAW's tag team division like no other.
#1 Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn cost Shane McMahon the match
Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn are two Superstars who clearly view themselves beyond brand wars or any such thing. They've been rivals with Shane McMahon for a while now and on the latest episode of SmackDown Live, they fled when they were under siege instead of uniting with their fellow SmackDown Live members.
Given the duo's disdain towards Shane and how they're angry about not being in the Survivor Series card, it makes it hard to believe that they won't be making an appearance in some form or the other.
So doesn't t make sense that the duo would take out Shane McMahon and cost the entire brand the match and get greater heat for being the ones responsible for disgracing the brand they're in? It can add a whole new element to SmackDown Live and it can help make Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn into big-time players for the company.
Send us news tips at [email protected]
