By David Dodgson @DodgeeWriter
One of the big mysteries heading into Wrestlemania this year has been the identity of Braun Strowman’s tag partner for his title match with The Bar. Since he single-handedly won the tag team battle royal on RAW a few weeks back, Seamus and Cesaro have been demanding to know who the Monster Among Men will team with.
Several names have been around the rumour mill from Elias to Curt Hawkins (and even Brains Strowman), but they seem too obvious to me. Here are five suggestions, not based on any insider knowledge or rumours but simply five good fits for the story (even if some of them are highly unlikely).
- James Ellsworth
I know he has been released and this is not going to happen, but it would have made perfect sense to have Strowman and Ellsworth’s stories come full circle in this way. Strowman’s current run famously began with a jobber squash over the hapless Ellsworth, who of course would later go on to become a regular feature on Smackdown. He and Strowman crossed paths again at 2016’s Survivor Series and the 2017 Royal Rumble, each time adding more comedy value to their interactions. The Monster Among Men’s interactions with The Bar have made it clear that he does not actually need any assistance to beat them, so a mismatch of a partner who Strowman could carry through a title reign would have been perfect.
- Team Little-Big
Braun Strowman and Alexa Bliss were one of the most popular pairings in the recent Mixed Match Challenge so why not build on that with a unique pairing that would fit WWE’s favourite label of ‘historic first’? Little Miss Bliss has barely been without a title since arriving on the main roster almost two years ago so, assuming she loses the RAW Women’s title to Nia Jax, she could be inserted here, let Strowman do the destruction, and then finish The Bar off with some Twisted Bliss off her partner’s shoulders. Traditional tag action then shifts to Smackdown and RAW has a ‘historic first’ WWE Intergender Tag Championship.
- Team Big-Big
I am cheating here a little by lumping a few names together but how about a giant pairing instead of a little and large one? Two near 7-footers with a combined weight of 700+ pounds sounds like a Vince McMahon wet dream. But who? There are rumours that Big Cass, The Big Show, and Samoa Joe are all either cleared to return or nearing clearance. Either of those three could forge a formidable partnership with Strowman. As a destructive duo, they could wreak havoc over the tag division and beyond before eventually turning on each other and setting up a huge hoss rivalry. In that case, Strowman & Samoa Joe could be money.
- The Undertaker
John Cena has been not so patiently waiting for weeks for The Undertaker to do something… anything… so why not do something unexpected? As John sits ringside as an over the top goofball fan, we get the joy of seeing the smirk wiped off his face as the bell tolls and The Undertaker (in whatever guise he chooses – it doesn’t matter) becomes Strowman’s partner. One last run with a title then to take the Deadman through to Survivor Series, which would be a fitting place for him to end it where it all began.
- Bray Wyatt
Time for this article to come full circle by returning to the idea of… er… coming full circle. Bray Wyatt has been off our screens since being on the wrong end of the Ultimate Deletion and is in desperate need or repackaging. What better way to bring him back with a boost than to introduce the world to a ‘Reincarnated’ Bray Wyatt at Wrestlemania. Partnering with Strowman would hark back to The Monster Among Men’s original appearance as the Black Sheep of the Wyatt Family, only this time roles would be reversed. Strowman would very much be the leader while Wyatt would simply follow. By the end of the evening, we could have all four former members of the Wyatts holding tag titles, and Strowman-Wyatt could go on to feud with the Hardys with a new element of unpredictability added to The Great War. Much more likely to happen than my other suggestions, I would not be surprised in the slightest to see the former brethren crowned RAW Tag Champs at Mania. Just so long as we don’t end up with Husky Harris…
