Cain Velasquez is reportedly joining WWE for the long haul, so who should he face after he finishes his feud with Brock Lesnar.
On the debut episode of Friday Night SmackDown on Fox, Cain Velasquez made his debut in WWE to essentially challenge Brock Lesnar. Now, with a fight between the two former UFC Heavyweight Champions official, we’re hearing more about the future of Velasquez in WWE.
According to ESPN’s Mark Raimondi, “sources told ESPN that he (Velasquez) has signed a lucrative, multiyear contract with WWE and has also notified the UFC of his retirement. He has been removed from the UFC’s United States Anti-Doping Agency drug-testing pool and the UFC heavyweight rankings.”
In other words, Velasquez isn’t just in WWE just for a cup of tea with a side of big Saudi Arabian payday. He should be featured in the company for some time to come, meaning he’s going to need more opponents than just former UFC rivals.
With that being said, those opponents are also going to need to be people that can help him turn around what has been a fairly rocky introduction to WWE fans thus far.
Based on how the aforementioned SmackDown main event went down, it’s easy to put some of the blame on Kofi Kingston’s shockingly swift defeat on the shoulders of Velasquez. His arrival likely played some level of a role in the framing of that match at the very least.
Add that to the fact that his first official match is going to be at yet another controversial Saudi Arabia show, and it’s fairly clear that there’s going to need to be some work done if WWE wants their fanbase to embrace Velasquez.
Nevertheless, entering into a rivalry with any one of these superstars after fighting Brock Lesnar could be an easy way for WWE to make sure their next step with Cain Velasquez is the right one.
3. Daniel Bryan
In my opinion, the ideal challenger for Cain Velasquez in the immediate future, such as at Survivor Series or Royal Rumble, would be Daniel Bryan.
Bryan can easily lay claim to the title of the best technical wrestler in WWE. His mat wizardry is unparalleled, and he has the ability to work almost any style. That could include the kind of MMA-lite style that one would have to assume Velasquez is going to primarily trade blows with for the time being.
Bryan would be able to make that style look as vicious and entertaining to the everyday fan as possible by virtue of his selling and overall wrestling prowess.
He could also use that prowess to help cover for any flaws in Velasquez’s game that may manifest themselves.
Although we’ve seen that Cain Velasquez has some wrestling chops due to his now brief time in AAA in Mexico, he’s undoubtedly going to be more green than a potential main event act should be. A match with someone as talented as Daniel Bryan would go a long way towards hiding that.
Perhaps most importantly though, we all know that Daniel Bryan has the skills on the mic to sell a feud with Cain Velasquez. WWE wouldn’t have to worry as much about fan interest if they had someone like Bryan making the case each week for why fans need to tune in.
Overall, that makes Bryan one of the ideal opponents for showcasing Cain Velasquez in WWE. He’s got the perfect mix of style, substance, and skill to make the still fresh from UFC star look impressive.
2. Bobby Lashley
Speaking of superstars proficient in MMA styles, look no further than Bobby Lashley. At one point, Lashley had an MMA career of his own, and has seemingly been interested to show that side of his training off against another former MMA star for quite some time.
That makes him an easy choice to be a potential future opponent for Cain Velasquez.
WWE could use a rivalry between the two to show off a different style of in-ring action than fans are used to seeing. A shoot-style match between Lashley and Velasquez where we saw a mix of ground-and-pound fighting and WWE action would undoubtedly be interesting to watch unfold.
The only reason WWE honestly shouldn’t lead with this rivalry for Velasquez is the fact that we have no framework for what to expect from that kind of match. WWE basically has no recent track record of putting out a match with that style, making it somewhat of a question mark as far as elements like quality and pacing are concerned.
Simply put, it might be a risky match for showcasing Cain Velasquez to the WWE fanbase. Nevertheless, it’s a match that practically needs to happen simply because of all the potential it has.
A match like that could really create a new style of fighting that WWE could tap into if it was successful. Even if you’re not a fan of promotions like UFC or Bellator now, perhaps the unique twist on those kinds of matches that only WWE could provide would prove to be entertaining.
That, in turn, could be the impetus WWE needs to broaden their stylistic horizons a bit and appeal to different fans. That’s never going to be a bad thing if you ask me.
At the very least though, it would be a unique flashpoint in WWE history that only somewhat like Cain Velasquez could deliver.
1. Matt Riddle
Providing the best mixture of Daniel Bryan’s in-ring abilities and Bobby Lashley’s MMA background, Matt Riddle really would be the ideal opponent for Cain Velasquez.
No matter what style of match they worked, Riddle would be able to put on a barnburner. He’s a former UFC pro himself, yet also is an elite professional wrestler as well. You can’t get a better opponent for Velasquez than that.
The only thing standing in the way is Riddle’s current situation. WWE almost assuredly won’t put Cain Velasquez against an NXT superstar, meaning this matchup will likely have to wait till Riddle gets called-up to Raw or SmackDown.
Once that happens though, look out. Matt Riddle has made it clear that he wants a piece of Brock Lesnar, just like Bobby Lashley has, meaning it’s fairly likely he wouldn’t mind taking on one of the few men who beat Lesnar in the octagon either.
The match practically sells itself with all of that in mind. It would be the perfect way to show all the skills Velasquez has accumulated, while also providing Riddle a big stage to show off his own abilities.
It’s truly rare that you get a match that seems this tailor-made to happen in the future, so keep an eye out for when WWE looks like they’re getting ready to call up the “King of Bros.” It might just be to set up this very match.