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The 411 Wrestling Top 5: Top 5 Potential AJ Lee Opponents

May 4, 2015 | Posted by Larry Csonka

The 411 Wrestling Top 5: Hello everyone and welcome to 411 Wrestling’s Top 5 List. We take a topic each week and all the writers here on 411 wrestling will have the ability to participate and give us their Top 5 on said topic. So, onto this week’s topic…

Week 306 – Top 5 Potential AJ Lee Opponents

For the sake of argument, lets say that AJ Lee will wrestle again outside of the WWE. What five opponents would you book her against/want to see her face off with?

Eric Palmer
5. vs. Athena – This one is pretty obvious to me. Assuming AJ Lee were to work outside of WWE, I would love to see her go to SHIMMER, and a match against Athena would be awesome to watch. Athena has proven to be one of the better female workers on the indies, so I think this would be a great match.

4. vs. Candice LeRae – Candice is another worker who I absolutely love, and think she could work well with AJ. I think they could work a very nice fast paced match, and in the end, Candice would make AJ look like a million bucks.

3. vs. Cheerleader Melissa – Cheerleader Melissa has been a mainstay in SHIMMER since day one, and has been putting on awesome matches ever since. After putting on great matches with the likes of Amazing Kong, Sara Del Rey, MsChif and others, I think it would be awesome to see her take on the former WWE Divas Champion. Melissa vs. AJ I think would be a fantastic main event for SHIMMER if they could make it happen, and I think the match would exceed all expectations.

2. vs. Mia Yim – Mia Yim is my favorite female worker outside of WWE, so it’s no surprise that I think she could work a great match with AJ. Mia has a style that we haven’t really seen AJ work against too often, and I think it’d be an interesting experiment to see how the two work together. Not only do I think the match would be solid, I think it has potential to top any match AJ had while in WWE.

1. vs. Nicole Matthews – Simply put, a title match against SHIMMER champion Nicole Matthews would be fantastic to see. I think it would do wonder for SHIMMER’s iPPV buys. Admittedly, I haven’t seen a ton of Matthews, but I’ve enjoyed what I have seen and do believe these two could have a great match. Not only that, from a strictly booking perspective, this has to be the biggest match she could have outside of WWE.

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Kevin Pantoja
5. vs. Candice LaRae – Honestly, I haven’t seen as much of Candice LaRae as I’d like, but from what I have seen, she is pretty great. She seems to work a fast paced style, which could work well against AJ Lee. One thing I’ve seen from Candice that I really like is her ability to bump and sell. She’d be able to make sure that, despite being small, AJ’s offense would look damn good.

4. vs. Ivelisse – I know that Ivelisse did work in the WWE for a while as Sofia Cortez but as far as I know, she never crossed paths with AJ Lee. I’ve always felt that the WWE let something valuable go when she was released and she’s proving it in Lucha Underground. She has worked with men while in LU, but regardless of who she works, she can flat out go. I’d love to see her have a match against AJ Lee as I believe it would deliver.

3. vs. Cheerleader Melissa – Judging by next two selections, you’d think I want to see AJ Lee hurt. Cheerleader Melissa has had some absolute wars in SHIMMER and around the world. She hits hard and works a vastly different style than anything AJ Lee has ever faced. That being said, I am very intrigued by the thought of this match. AJ would get thrown around and beat up, but it would be entertaining as she’d sell it well.

2. vs. Awesome Kong Awesome Kong is fantastic when working the plucky underdog and AJ Lee could fit that role better than almost anyone. Kong has had great matches with Shentelle Taylor, Gail Kim and others, so why not AJ? AJ is probably the smallest of that bunch and while some of her offense would not faze Kong, the David vs. Goliath story is always a good one. Especially when it is between two people who fit those roles as perfectly as Kong and AJ do.

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1. vs. Nicole Matthews – Since I first saw her back on SHIMMER Volume 14 (I think, I can’t guarantee that’s the right number), something about Nicole Matthews stuck out. She rapidly improved over her appearances to the point where I pegged her as a future SHIMMER Champion. That exact thing happened recently and she is the current reigning champion. Considering how I view SHIMMER as THE place for women’s wrestling in North America, there is no bigger or better match for AJ Lee to have if she works outside of the WWE. Nicole Matthews pretty much doesn’t have bad matches and I have next to no doubt that this would be damn great.

Alex Crowder
5. vs. Nicole Matthews – I have to preface all my choices by admitting that my knowledge on indy wrestling is not superb; therefore, I only know so much. I have not seen anything really from Nicole Matthews. I did to decide to watch something to get a feel for her, and I must say she is great. I can only imagine these two would put on a good match.

4. vs. Gail Kim – Gail Kim to me is still one of the best if not the best female wrestlers in the world. For that reason alone it would make an interesting match. I cannot be sure that they will have good chemistry and if they did have a match in WWE it would have been nothing. I would love to see how AJ fares against one of the best in the world in a setting where she can cut loose. This would be an intriguing matchup and that alone makes it worthwhile.

3. vs. Awesome Kong – I must second the Awesome Kong suggestion. Awesome Kong makes for a dominating force and AJ makes for the perfect underdog. The size difference adds some spectacle to the match. AJ may not be the best in the ring but she can go. Awesome Kong is more than just a spectacle. Awesome Kong has had plenty of awesome matches. I think these two would put on fantastic match.

2. vs. Cheerleader Melissa – I have actually seen a lot more of my final two choices compared to Nicole Matthews. Cheerleader Melissa can put on a great match with about anyone and can make anything work. She got saddled with an awful gimmick in TNA, but made it work. Her regular work though is even better! I mean Cheerleader Melissa has consistently been one of the best wrestlers in the world male or female. AJ may not have a great match with a lot of people, but I am sure that Cheerleader Melissa would bring the best out of her.

1. vs. Mia Yim – This is a personal favorite but Mia Yim is fantastic too. Mia is athletic, exciting, and fun to watch in the ring. She has good matches with a unique style like mentioned earlier. Mia Yim will also get down and dirty as her matches with Allysin Kay show. Mia Yim is a tough wrestler and does not back down even when a machete is pulled on her Tank Abbott style. Mia Yim can brawl with the best of them, so it brings a different dynamic from AJ’s usual opponents. Who would not love to see AJ receive a Mia Yim kick? They both pull off innovative techniques too. It would be Mia’s ruthlessness and power versus AJ’s wiles.

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Ryan Byers
5. vs. Molly Holly – Here’s the thing about this list. Everybody who’s submitted a Top 5 before me has primarily gone with independent wrestlers, all of whom are talented. However, putting on a WWE women’s match, even among the best performers in the company, and putting on the caliber of match that you see from the likes of a Cheerleader Melissa or an Amazing Kong require completely different skill sets. AJ has proven that she’s a good wrestler in the WWE women’s genre, but she’s never established that she has the chops necessary to go on the modern independent scene. Yes, she was an indy wrestler before she signed her first developmental deal, but it was on a relatively low level and for a relatively brief time. So, the purpose of my list is not to name a bunch of indy talent that we have no clue about Ms. Lee’s ability to put on good matches with but rather to book some dream matches with people who are familiar with the type of wrestling that AJ is most adept at. ANYWAY, first on the list is Molly Holly, who was the internet darling of the WWE women’s division long before AJ got her start. The two have similar clean, athletic styles and could put on a nice “babyface” match.

4. vs. Jazz – Based on some of the bumps that she endured throughout her career, it was apparent that AJ Lee didn’t mind taking a beating, despite a small frame that you wouldn’t think is designed to be slammed around. If you’re going to have any American female wrestler slam you around, it might as well be Jazz. Jazz was a bit undersized herself, but she had a mean streak a mile long and the ability to leave just about anybody laying. Even though she was almost always the toughest woman in her matches, she was almost never the biggest – but she would have a size advantage over AJ Lee. Seeing what Jazz would do with that advantage in addition to all of her normal attributes would make for an interesting dynamic.

3. vs. Beth Phoenix – One of the classic archetypes of professional wrestling match is the smaller babyface going up against an oversized monster of a heel in a clash reminiscent of David vs. Goliath. In American women’s wrestling, it’s difficult to do that sort of match because most of the competitors are similar in size unless you find an overly muscled freak shows who aren’t mobile enough to produce a good match. However, one dream pairing in which you COULD have a classic big man/little man pairing involving two women would be Beth Phoenix vs. AJ Lee. Phoenix was a great professional wrestler, and her size was such that she towered over “average” size women, let alone the miniscule AJ. Lee fighting from underneath against the Glamazon would be a sight to behold.

2. vs. Trish Stratus – This would be a generational clash like no other. Trish Stratus was, without a doubt, the most popular female wrestler of the 2000s. Though the decade is only half over, I think it’s fair to say that, up to this point, AJ Lee has been the most popular female wrestler of the 2010s. Thus, it’s only natural to see them want to lock horns. Plus, if you think about it, they are very similar performers. Neither has a background in which she has shown aptitude to put on five star classics, but both of them are very good “for women” in the WWE context and took that ability, combined with their larger than life personalities, and parlayed it into great careers during which, at their peaks, they were probably more popular than half of the men on the company’s roster.

1. vs. Lita – Every time that WWE wanted to establish that AJ Lee was a “real” wrestling fan and a “real” wrestler as opposed to the models with no interest in the sport who they periodically put into the ring, they trotted out the shots of young AJ crying during a meeting with her hero, Lita. Even though Lita is technically retired from pro wrestling competition, the fact of the matter is that the two women are close enough in age that an in-ring encounter truly is a possibility if both parties are willing. Of all the people on this list, I think that Lita would honestly have a style that matches AJ’s the least, but the historical connection between the two as it relates to AJ’s fandom and inspiration to become a wrestler would create for a most interesting dynamic, and sometimes the dynamic trumps the workrate in terms of making a dream match. Just ask the Rock and Hulk Hogan.

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Wyatt Beougher
5. vs. Sexy Star – I’ll admit – I’m not as completely enamored with Sexy Star’s in-ring work in Lucha Underground as I have been with her character work, but this is still a match program that I’d love to see, as Sexy is playing such a true technico that Lucha Underground’s ability to actually book and pay off a longer storyline would mean that the “crazy” AJ could return and play off of Sexy perfectly.

4. vs. Leva Bates – Bates, or “(Ol’) Blue Pants” if you’ve only seen her in NXT, has a very similar wrestling personality to what AJ’s had been prior to the evolution of the “Black Widow” persona. For lack of a more concise way to describe it, they are/were both wrestling “geek girls”. They’re also both relatively diminutive, so I think it would be a nice, even match that would allow both women to show off their repertoires. And while I feel bad for even saying this, because I think it would take away from what would undoubtedly be an awesome match, whatever promotion was lucky enough to put this match on could probably expect a sellout in record time if they advertised it around Halloween as a cosplay match.

3. vs. Ivelisse – Unlike Sexy Star, Ivelisse is playing rudo in Lucha Underground, and she works a more physical, MMA-influenced style. I think it would be fun to see how AJ could use her speed to frustrate

2. vs. Sasha Banks – This is probably cheating, since Banks is in NXT, but who’s to say that AJ couldn’t return to NXT for guest appearances once this lawsuit is settled? Besides, if Rhyno and THE Brian Kendrick can appear in NXT, why not AJ? Banks is, for my money, the best women’s wrestler on the WWE roster, and one of the ten best wrestlers regardless of gender, and I’d love to see what kind of chemistry she would have with AJ, considering she’s pulled a few good matches out of Alexa Bliss, who is of a similar stature but is also significantly greener. If there’s a list of dream opponents or dream matches for women, Sasha is pretty much guaranteed to be on mine, and this is no one is no exception, loopholes be damned. (If I can’t use Sasha, then my choice is Kaitlyn/Celeste Bonin/Braun, since that feud was never really given the attention that it deserved.)

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1. vs. Awesome Kong – Is there a better “David vs. Goliath” encounter possible in North American wrestling? Kong is the dominant monster who kills women dead and AJ is so light that the ropes don’t even move when she bounces off of them. While I doubt it would be as well-worked as the Lesnar vs. Bryan dream match that so many of us are salivating over, the story that these two women could tell would be equally engrossing, and neither AJ nor Kong are slouches in the ring.

Paul Leazar
5. vs. Mia Yim – I think this would be a really exciting and fast paced match. Mia Yim has more than proved that she is capable of working a fast paced match, or a really hard-hitting bout, and both of those play to AJ’s strengths if she were to get in the ring with Mia. I would expect some really neat fast paced maneuvers, and some great AJ selling, especially for Mia’s package piledriver.

4. vs. Nicole Matthews – One of the best female wrestlers in the world right now, and somebody who I think could have a classic match against AJ. Nicole is one of the best heels in wrestling right now, and AJ Lee works so well as a sympathetic face that I feel like this match would draw in with more than just what they would doing in the ring against each other, but the psychology of the match as well.

3. vs. Santana Garrett – The woman carries around enough gold around to make a Nigerian prince jealous. Not only has Santana been on a roll since leaving TNA, but the girl has really shown how far she has come in the last couple of years. Another hard hitter who can really excel in any kind of match, it’s another match that I feel would be right there with her recent bout with Mia Yim at SHINE 26.

2. vs. LuFisto – As much gold as Santana is carrying around, LuFisto brings as much if not more hardware to the table currently. Not only is LuFisto one of the best wrestlers I’ve ever seen, regardless of gender, but LuFisto beating the holy hell out of AJ, and watching AJ sell it would be a treat that would bring women’s wrestling fans in droves.

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1. vs. Awesome Kong – Take everything I just said about an AJ match with LuFisto, and multiply it by 9000 for a match against Awesome Kong. Another dynamite wrestler with enough star power to make a match with AJ Lee a headliner for any independent show in America, these two could put on the same caliber of match that Kong and Gail Kim or Kong & MsChif have had in the past. Couple it with the fact that AJ could literally take a move and fly out of the ring at any moment, and you got yourselves a must-see match for any wrestling fan whether they watch indy wrestling or not.

YOUR TURN KNOW IT ALLS

List your Top Five for this week’s topic in the comment section using the following format:

5. CHOICE: Explanation
4. CHOICE: Explanation
3. CHOICE: Explanation
2. CHOICE: Explanation
1. CHOICE: Explanation