WWE Raw 5 Takeaways: Survivor Series Card Taking Shape
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2. Survivor Series Card Lacking Intrigue in Key Matchups
The only pay-per-view pitting Raw superstars against SmackDown superstars takes place in less than four weeks. Survivor Series is a Big Four pay-per-view for the WWE and has been a fall tradition for many years.
But while a brand vs. brand theme looks good on paper, will it pan out at this year’s Survivor Series? Outside of the two traditional five-on-five matches Survivor Series will see with the men and women, many are skeptical of some of the event’s key matchups already after many being announced on last night’s Raw.
The brand vs. brand, champion vs. champion theme will be on heavy display and we will see several matches of that trend. Raw Women’s Champion Alexa Bliss will battle SmackDown Women’s Champion Natalya, Intercontinental Champion The Miz will battle United States Champion Baron Corbin, Raw Tag Team Champions Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose will battle SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Usos, and one other match that really evokes differing opinions out of the WWE universe.
It was confirmed last night that Universal Champion Brock Lesnar will square off with WWE Champion Jinder Mahal at Survivor Series. While having two world champions face off sounds good, this could be the worst possible idea for the individuals involved and the fans. Lesnar doesn’t wrestle one-on-one matches of any sort of length anymore and Mahal’s slow-paced, submission hold style is not fan friendly in 2017.
Putting those factors together could spell doom for this match and could even reach disaster level if not done the right way. Outside of that match, the rest of the Survivor Series card up to this point is hit or miss as well. The Miz vs. Baron Corbin is not a marquee match and the differing styles involved might not lead to the best chemistry.
It’s also hard to have great heel vs. heel matches and not only is Miz vs. Corbin a heel vs. heel match, so is Bliss vs. Natalya. These matches could end up surprising fans, but there is enough reasonable doubt up to this point to suggest that this card could be a letdown if not handled appropriately.