Whether it’s a battle for brand supremacy or a war to settle a score, Superstars come together every Survivor Series to form surprising teams. After 30 years, we’ve seen some unforgettable squads, but who would Superstars have on their side if they could recruit any four competitors from WWE history? We asked nine Superstars to reveal who they want on their dream team.
Braun Strowman doesn’t have any friends in the ring, so for his dream team, The Monster Among Men first enlisted — and surprisingly praised — his two greatest rivals. “I hate to say this, but I know Roman Reigns would give everything in his being to do what it takes to win, just like me,” Strowman said. “Big Show and I have had unbelievable bouts against each other,” he continued, “so I could only imagine what we could do together.” For the final two spots, Strowman added two masters of mind-games: The Undertaker and Braun’s onetime mentor, Bray Wyatt, because if anyone could bring this team together to create destruction, it’s The Eater of Worlds. Word of advice? Run!
Normally, Jinder Mahal can count on backup from The Singh Brothers to get him out of a jam, but for his dream team, he opted for a size advantage with three of WWE’s most mythic giants in his corner: Yokozuna, Giant Gonzales and Kamala. This trio alone could dominate and intimidate anyone who dares to cross this squad’s path, but the final spot went to one of The Modern-Day Maharaja’s idols. Mahal views himself as the greatest WWE Champion ever, so he chose to add the second-greatest: The Iron Sheik.
Nia Jax did not need a second to pick her first partners: Andre the Giant and The Rock. “It would be pretty cool to look up and see those two wanting to come in to help me,” she said. Jax also added two Women’s Champions, including Bull Nakano, who reigned as WWE Women’s Champion in 1994. “She’s a legit bada**, and I like to mirror myself after her.” And although current Raw Women’s Champion Alexa Bliss is much smaller than the other members of Team Nia, Jax knows she would step up because “she likes to be bossy; she likes to be in charge.”
Finn Bálor has made a name for himself all over the world, forming alliances from Los Angeles to Tokyo. Naturally, Bálor recruited Superstars from his international past to form a Too Sweet squad. After battling AJ Styles at WWE TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs, Bálor decided he wanted Styles to be an ally rather than adversary. He added Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows — the “most underrated big man in the game.” For the fifth member, Bálor added Triple H. “He’s someone I’ve learned a lot from in NXT,” Bálor said, “And he’s someone who I would love to stand alongside in a battle.”
For Shelton Benjamin’s dream team, he started with his most iconic teammates. Benjamin tagged with Brock Lesnar in Ohio Valley Wrestling as the Minnesota Wrecking Crew. “Having him on my team gives us an immediate advantage,” Benjamin said. He won the WWE Tag Team Championship twice alongside his best friend Charlie Haas, making his former partner in The World’s Greatest Tag Team an easy pick. For the third and fourth members, Benjamin selected AJ Styles and arguably the greatest Traditional Survivor Series Elimination Match competitor ever: Randy Orton. “We have a history since we started together, so Randy has a special place in my heart,” Benjamin said.
Chad Gable’s approach was to combine old-school tag teams with his new-school style. He started with two-time WWE Tag Team Champions Rick and Scott Steiner, because they helped shape his move set. “I modeled myself after them, and they were way ahead of their time,” Gable said. To keep the tag team theme going, he added legendary Mid-South duo The Fantastics, Bobby Fulton and Tommy Rogers, who he considers vastly underrated. “If you got that amount of talent on one team, it would be one of the most memorable of all time.”
Matt Hardy nicknamed his team “The Workhorses” because — although they might not be the biggest Superstars — they accomplished so much in their respective eras. He started with three professional inspirations who shaped his in-ring style: “Macho Man” Randy Savage, Shawn Michaels and Bret “Hit Man” Hart. Despite the history between Michaels and Hart, Hardy thinks they can set aside their differences for a night. Of course, for the last member, he had to include his brother, Jeff Hardy. “I know him inside out,” Matt said. “He knows what I’m thinking; I know what he’s thinking. So we obviously work great together as a team.”
Baron Corbin sought to make the roughest, toughest team in Survivor Series history, enlisting four Legends no one would dare mess with: Bam Bam Bigelow, Big Boss Man, Razor Ramon and The Undertaker. And Corbin already has an imposing entrance planned. “All five of us could ride bikes to the ring,” Corbin said. “It just would be one group of bada** dudes that are going to wreck shop. I envision that as a team, when we climb in the ring, our opponents just climb out and go home.”
Think of Jason Jordan’s team as a “New Age” Team Angle. The squad unites four of his childhood idols. Jordan’s all-time favorite The Ultimate Warrior would bring the intensity, Mr. Perfect would bring his natural skill, and Scott Steiner — with Rick Steiner coaching on the outside for moral support — would bring the swagger. And Jordan’s father, Kurt Angle, would solidify the win for Team Jordan. “You can’t go wrong with that,” Jordan said. “You saw what happened at WWE TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs when you add him to your team. That’s a victory for us.”