Free agent John Cena is supposed to be an impartial wrestler as far as the brand warfare is concerned, so there is logic to him being named the special guest referee for the WWE Survivor Series 2017 match between Jinder Mahal and Brock Lesnar.
WWE Survivor Series 2017 will be an extension of last year’s brand vs. brand warfare, with an added twist involving more champion vs. champion matches. One of these matches will be contested between Raw‘s Universal Champion Brock Lesnar and SmackDown Live‘s WWE Champion Jinder Mahal.
While there is hope from some sections of the fan base that AJ Styles will end Jinder Mahal’s reign as champion on Tuesday when the two square off for the title, a Styles win seems unlikely. It may be ill-advised for the WWE to have Mahal, who is unpopular among the majority of the WWE Universe, to retain the title on a pre-taped show that will inevitably be leaked, the match is rumored to be a “Street Fight”. Knowing Mahal always gets help from the Singh Brothers, it is hard to fathom Styles beating the numbers game in a gimmick match that will likely lend itself to a wonky finish.
An additional factor that makes a win for Styles unlikely is a recent report that John Cena will indeed be the special guest referee for Lesnar vs. Mahal. The Wrestling Observer News reports that Cena has been chosen as the special guest referee, and this comes after an initial report from WON’s Dave Meltzer indicated that Cena was in the mix for the gig. The WWE also considered The Rock and Stone Cold Steve Austin, but it would have been more difficult for the company to bring on either one of those two.
Paul Heyman already “buried” Mahal during a Raw promo, essentially proclaiming that Jinder is an unworthy challenger to Lesnar who skates by his opponents by getting his henchmen to bail him out. The fact that the WWE doesn’t believe Mahal can main event a “Big Four” pay per view as WWE Champion without a legend of the business being a special guest referee speaks volumes towards their lack of confidence in Mahal.
Next: Who Is The Greatest Superstar To Never Be World Champion?
Plans can always change, and Styles could pull off the shock victory on Tuesday. But at this point in time, fans should prepare for a match between Mahal and Lesnar, hoping for the best but expecting yet another mediocre match from these performers. Neither Mahal nor Lesnar have dazzled the crowd in singles matches this year for very different reasons.