WWE Royal Rumble 2017: 3 Inter-Promotional Battles We Would Love to See
By Adam O'Brien
WWE.com
Which of Monday Night Raw’s finest would you like to see square off against the best of SmackDown Live in the Royal Rumble match?
Ever since the draft in July, the WWE has been split down the middle with both Raw and SmackDown Live receiving exclusive rosters, management, pay-per-views and championships. On top of that, the two brands are now competing with one another over ratings, merchandise and general reception from the WWE Universe.
As a result, the entire WWE locker room has been split in half, placing a number of potential matches between today’s top stars out of reach for the time being.
That said, as we edge closer to Sunday’s Royal Rumble event live from the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas, we approach one of few events on the WWE calendar where the Superstars of Raw and SmackDown will be able to lock up.
There will be a handful of these inter-promotional shows taking place throughout the year, most likely limited to the “Big Four” pay-per-views of the Rumble, Survivor Series, SummerSlam and WrestleMania – but not all of them promise the Raw vs. SmackDown action that the brand extension has made such a rarity.
On this occasion, however, not only will the biggest names of Raw and SmackDown be against one another, it will be a 30-man free-for-all with a championship opportunity in the main event of WrestleMania hanging in the balance.
That’s going to make for some intriguing encounters that we otherwise wouldn’t be able to witness. But which of these inter-promotional battles are we most excited about getting the chance to see? They may not all happen, but these three encounters would certainly be enough to satisfy anyone’s cravings for brand warfare.