10 WWE Match-Ups That Were Better In Another Promotion

4. Ricochet Vs. Matt Riddle

AJ Styles Shinsuke Nakamura NJPW
WWE.com

Ricochet has one of the flashiest offences in all of wrestling but cannot catch a break. He's dealing with a full-on burial at the hands of McMahon, with the boss losing faith in him.

Having him face down Matt Riddle, a former UFC fighter whose grounded attacks contrast perfectly with Richochet's high flying assault could have been just the spark to ignite a monster push. The fight even had the intrigue of being a cross-brand battle. All the intangibles coalesced in favor of this match in particular.

Instead WWE decided to barely have a match at all, letting the two of them fight for 3 minutes before Cesaro and Nakamura interfered.

Riddle and Ricochet fought before in EVOLVE, where they at least had enough time to allow them to tell a proper story, showing Riddle's struggle to keep Ricochet on the mat. Their NXT edition makes the EVOLVE bout look like a master class. Still, most fans can't help but anticipate a day where the two are both given enough time to do something spectacular. Until that day, these two matches are all fans have.

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Contributor

A former NCAA runner turned writer, and an ardent aficionado of all things academic, aesthetic and athletic.