A major milestone will occur on Sunday as the WWE will hold the 30th Survivor Series show from Toronto, Canada. This highlighted show is billed as “Fantasy Warfare” with Goldberg and Brock Lesnar locking up for the second time in their careers. Unfortunately, the rest of the show has been left behind when it comes to promotion, which leaves this show as one that many are thinking, “Why should I watch this?”
While the show on paper seems odd, maybe even downright stupid, it is my job to give you predictions and by God that is what I will do. We will go through the entire card and give you who will win and why. Let’s start with the more interesting match of the evening.
The Brian Kendrick (champion) vs. Kalisto for the Cruiserweight Championship (if Kalisto wins, title and entire Cruiserweight division moves to Smackdown Live)
From the time it was announced that the WWE would bring back the Cruiserweight Division, it’s been said by many, including myself, that the division should be on Smackdown Live. The feel of the show with its focus on in-ring action fits perfectly for the division. Since returning, the division has had trouble getting revved up on Monday Night Raw and that was expected. Now we have a match where if Kalisto wins, the entire division goes where it belongs.
Kendrick has been lackluster as champion and I believe him winning the title was a case of Vince McMahon getting cold feet with an unknown entity in T.J. Perkins so the belt was switched. Having Kalisto win gives the division an injection of life and a home on Tuesday nights where the men in the Cruiserweight division could thrive and not getting buried during the third hour of a terrible show on Monday nights. It also makes sense since the new Cruiserweight show 205 Live happens right after Smackdown Live starting this month.
Your winner and new champion, Kalisto
Team Raw (Charlotte Flair, Bayley, Nia Jax, Alicia Fox, and Sasha Banks) vs. Team SmackDown (Nikki Bella, Becky Lynch, Alexa Bliss, Carmella, and Naomi) in a 5-on-5 elimination match
Similar to the Cruiserweight division, I believed that the entire women’s division should have been on one show, but I give Smackdown Live this – they have done a great job of building new stars in its women’s division. Raw features Charlotte Flair and Sasha Banks, but it has squandered Bayley since her debut and there’s not other names worth being mentioning.
This match features the 10 best women in the company right now and on paper, it seems like Team Raw has the edge. Smackdown Live, however has Alexa Bliss, who is my Rookie of the Year, Smackdown women’s champion Becky Lynch and Nikki Bella, who I still do not care for. I would not be at all be surprised if the women from Smackdown came out victorious.
Your winners, Team Smackdown
Team Raw (The New Day, Sheamus and Cesaro, Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson, Enzo Amore and Big Cass, and The Shining Stars) vs. Team SmackDown (Heath Slater and Rhyno, The Hype Bros, American Alpha, The Usos, and Breezango) in a 10-on-10 tag team elimination match
I think looking at the teams involved in this match pretty much tells you all you need to know about the tag team picture in the WWE. Of the 10 teams in this match, maybe half of them are good, while the others are just enhancement teams. On paper, Team Raw has the better of the tag teams while tag teams are the only weak point of Smackdown Live.
Team Raw should win this match if anything because The New Day cannot lose anymore matches or take anymore pinfalls with them so close to breaking the Tag Team Title record. It does help that Team Smackdown is awful here.
Your winners, Team Raw
Team Raw (Kevin Owens, Chris Jericho, Roman Reigns, Braun Strowman, and Seth Rollins) vs. Team SmackDown (AJ Styles, Dean Ambrose, Bray Wyatt, Randy Orton, and Shane McMahon) in a 5-on-5 elimination match
I’ve had a hard time getting excited for this match. What makes this match so important? Does either brand get anything for winning? Why the hell is Shane McMahon in this match? Why are the shows even touching so close since the brand split?
Essentially this match is a showcase for each brand’s champion, AJ Styles (WWE Champion) and Kevin Owens (Universal Champion). Other than that, this match has no real significance other than for the winning team to brag on their show. The best we could hope for is that major storylines come from the match for each show, but that is about it. Raw will win because Smackdown is still considered the red-headed stepchild of the company.
Your winners, Team Raw
The Miz (champion) vs. Sami Zayn for the Intercontinental Championship (if Zayn wins, title moves to Raw)
This is another match that makes no sense to me. Raw already has the United States Championship so if Sami Zayn wins, Raw gets the Intercontinental title too? So the tradeoff in the minds of those in charge at the WWE is that “Raw is giving up the Cruiserweight title, so let’s give them Intercontinental title?” I don't get it.
I’m also still trying to figure out why Dolph Ziggler lost to The Miz on Tuesday for the title. The title change makes me feel like they will go with Zayn and take the title over to Raw. The Intercontinental Title would just get lost in the shuffle on Raw and for as much work has gone into rebuilding the Intercontinental Championship to some prominence, moving it to Monday nights would undo all of that work. I’m gonna hope for the best and root for The Miz, which is something I thought I would never ever say.
Your winner and still champion, The Miz
Brock Lesnar vs. Goldberg
I made my feelings about this match very clear in my article Brock Lesnar vs. Goldberg 2016 Will Suck And You Know It. At the end of the day, these two over the hill men are taking an opportunity away from those men and women who travel up and down the road every week, all year to entertain fans. Do I blame them? No. I blame the brass of the WWE always running to get band-aids for every major show instead of just letting their everyday guys work and letting the fans get familiar with them.
This match will not be good and I am expecting to getting chips and beer during it. I want them to make me eat my words and put on a hard-hitting match, but with Goldberg already complaining about an injury from Monday night, I highly doubt we will see that. The real winners of this match: Bill Goldberg and Brock Lesnar for extorting unknown sums of money from the WWE for this crapfest.
Your winner, Brock Lesnar
