Who should end Asuka's streak?

With Asuka's highly anticipated main roster debut coming tomorrow, there is one question on everyone's lips: who will break the streak? The success of her main roster career will hinge on it. For a long time, fans have complained about the misuse of top NXT talent on the main roster.

The Ascension and Bayley are two ominous examples. Shinsuke Nakamura, despite the push he's been given, hasn't shined as brightly as he could have (working with Jinder Mahal will do that). Bobby Roode hasn't gotten off to the best start. Now Finn Balor, too, seems to have taken his place among their ranks, courtesy of his tripping into Bray Wyatt's pit of terrible, which truly seems to be bottomless.

In short, the main roster's track record is alarming, and Asuka, more than any other NXT call-up, needs to be handled with care.

On the one hand, her undefeated streak instantly makes her an attraction. Every match will feel bigger because of it. Every move will matter more. On the other, that same streak makes her very vulnerable to WWE's propensity for bad booking driven by inorganic, short-term payoffs.

If it's thrown away on a whim, which is far from a remote possibility, she might never recover. The example of Goldberg and the way his streak was cast aside so frivolously looms large.

But...someone eventually does have to beat her. Who, how, and where this is done will matter a lot, both for Asuka's sake and for what should be the biggest rub in the history of women's wrestling.

But who should do it?

When looking at the current WWE women's roster, the options seem to be lacking. On the one hand, you have a swathe of people who just aren't credible, and the ones that are, like Charlotte, don't need the rub. Alexa Bliss would be the worst option of all, simultaneously being not credible and not needing the rub.

There are, however, three people that could beat Asuka in a spectacular match at the climax of an epic story. Anything less than that would be a failure.

As to which of these three would be the one to pick? It would depend primarily on how long WWE would want to keep Asuka undefeated.They all have their strengths and weaknesses.

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#1 Short Term: Ember Moon at WrestleMania 34 (~6 Months)

The try, try again story.

There's an argument to be made that the most deserving person to break the streak is Ember Moon. She's already had two showcase matches with Asuka, the second of which was spectacular, so no one would have to worry about match quality. These two will tear the house down at WrestleMania if given the chance. There would also be a great, personal story to tell in the build for this encounter.

The first time these two did battle, Asuka had to cheat to win, and then deliberately inflict an injury on Ember afterward to avoid fighting her. The second time, Asuka won again...but only by the skin of her teeth, and this time, Moon injured her. "The Empress of Tomorrow" may have kept her undefeated streak intact, but she needed to "exchange a bone" in order to do so.

All the same, Ember must surely be feeling doubts, as she twice gave everything she had and still couldn't "figure out the puzzle." Would she be able to do it under the even greater pressure that WrestleMania brings?

It's a perfect story to tell for a match at the "Showcase of the Immortals", and the bout would reflect it.

As for how Ember can be called up by then — a potential women's Royal Rumble would be the perfect place. She can win and then go on to challenge Asuka. Even if a Rumble doesn't happen, NXT call-ups have been known to come as WrestleMania season begins, so it wouldn't be too hard to call her up by then.

The biggest weakness here would be promos, as Asuka can't be expected to speak in English for too long a stretch, while Ember isn't a good enough talker to carry her. But that can be resolved with short promos, the always well-done video packages, and Corey Graves doing his thing at the announcer's table. In fact, this same thing applies to the other two choices, so carry it over to those scenarios.

#2 Medium Term: Bayley at SummerSlam 2018 (~10 Months)

The redemption story.

When talking about credibility earlier, surely it can't mean Bayley, right? She's currently near the bottom of the totem pole because of her horrendous main roster booking. Yet Bayley, like Ember Moon, has already put on two showcase matches with Asuka. Their history would make for a great program.

Asuka first became the monster that she is on Bayley's watch, ripping the NXT Women's Championship from her hands and then, to quote the Empress, "ended her dreams where they came true" in a heartbreaking match in Brooklyn.

In many respects, Bayley never recovered and her career has been downhill since Asuka pushed her off the cliff. Coming back to exorcise her demons and finally defeat Asuka would be the ultimate redemption story.

The chief problem here (aside from promos) is that Bayley would first have to recover her credibility. As it stands now, she's nowhere near Asuka's level, and her rebuilding would take a longer time than simply calling Ember Moon up.

Bayley can start her redemption arc by re-igniting her feud against Alexa Bliss (after she drops her title), who in many ways was responsible for sending her into the abyss. It can start with a month of merciless taunts leading into the next PPV.

However, there can be no doubt about the match. Bayley needs to crush "Little Miss Bliss" and make a statement that she's not to be trifled with. Yet, while this demon has been exorcised, the ultimate one awaits.

The next few months would need to repeat a familiar pattern: Bayley keeps winning matches, only to have heard heart broken again and again when it comes to #1 contender opportunities. The word begins to go around that Bayley "just can't win the big one."

Meanwhile, Asuka shoots down everyone that prevails over Bayley in those big matches without fail until finally, the latter would win a title opportunity of her own, preferably over one of her fellow Four Horsewomen so the match is competitive and emotional.

This would only be the start though...the real battle has yet to begin. Asuka's already destroyed Bayley twice, as well as all of her friends that she's had trouble defeating. What makes Bayley think she can do what they couldn't?

You know where it ends. In a classic match to rival her previous Brooklyn glory, the ultimate underdog finally overthrows the undefeated empress, ending in a celebration that might just move many to tears. Asuka loses none of her mystique and Bayley redeems not only her story but also her career.

#3 Long Term: Kairi Sane at WrestleMania 35 (~18 Months)

The "collision between forces of nature" story.

If it were up to me, this is the story I would tell. It has the greatest risk given WWE's booking history but by far the greatest reward.

They're both from Japan, but aside from their homeland, Kairi Sane and Asuka are polar opposites. She has her lighter moments (especially on Twitter) but when she comes to work, Asuka is a fighting machine programmed to annihilate everything in her path.

She's done a remarkable job of it, too. To the extent that she's funny, it's at the expense of her next victim, who she's brazenly confident she'll eradicate with ease.

Kairi, meanwhile, is...adorable. Her cuteness takes nothing away from her ring skills, where she fights with a finesse and spirit that would make any warrior proud. This seemingly contradictory combination of ability, grit, and an extremely bubbly, cutesy persona makes Kairi incredibly charismatic. I challenge anyone to find a way to not cheer for her.

It's the clash between these totally opposite forces that could make for a truly legendary, even mythical, program.

Because this would take longer than the other two programs, it would be best to hold off on Asuka winning the title until WrestleMania 34, lest people tire of her reign in today's hyper-exposed environment.

After Asuka's coronation, she should then embark on a Lesnar-like title run. She probably won't be a part time champion to the extent he is, but we should get the feeling that her matches are special attractions. She shouldn't be wrestling every week, particularly not in singles matches.

Instead, Asuka, cocky tweener that she is, spends most of her time belittling opponents on TV and then promptly destroys them on pay-per-view, though her matches should get increasingly competitive over time.

Meanwhile, Kairi Sane makes her name known in NXT and gets called up in late 2018 or early 2019, perhaps by winning a women's Royal Rumble. However her call-up happens, Asuka should begin bullying Sane. She's now in the Empress' court and the throne's occupant makes her know it.

Asuka's bullying gets worse and worse the closer WrestleMania approaches, with the lovable Kairi perfectly positioned to make Asuka look that much meaner. Even in the age of "smarks," the natural personalities of each competitor would make for the perfect good guy vs. bad guy story.

Secretly though, we should get hints that Asuka is insecure. Kairi is not only great in the ring, but she's also younger, and her popularity clearly troubles "the Empress", who's trying to hold on to power at all costs. She must bring Kairi down, shake her morale, make her feel totally worthless, and humiliate her in front of the world as often as possible.

Otherwise, the unthinkable might happen. Asuka isn't going to let anyone with such incredible potential come into her own. "The Empress" is to be feared.

On the big stage at WrestleMania, all things first appear to be in order, as Asuka dominates most of the match. However, Kairi never goes down, to Asuka's astonishment. Eventually, Kairi, wearing her heart and soul on her sleeve, battles back. Asuka makes a mistake that Kairi capitalizes on and hits a series of moves ending in her spectacular diving elbow drop for the pin.

It would be the perfect exclamation point to end Asuka's reign and make a new star to the delight of everyone watching around the world. The bully and tyrant has at last been toppled and "the Pirate Princess" crowned the new Empress of the WWE. Long may she reign.

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