The Official UKFF RAW thread (part 2)...

[andrew "the ref" coyne]

Oba Femi is my pick for this. 

If the theme of SNME is "NXT vs WWE", then having that match thematically work. Plus it ends with Oba Femi defeating Cena AND becoming the IC champion which would be a decent shake up to the midcard on RAW.

Oba can then go into a fued vs Judgment Day, thus giving us matches with Dirty Dom and Balor. 

[air_raid]

On 11/2/2025 at 8:08 AM, air_raid said:

I think the biggest “problem” they have right now is who Dom loses to. Usually when you have a heel hold a belt so long you need a good babyface to beat them but Doms so good at being Dom that people love him. I think he’s going to end up cheated by another villain and/or betrayed by Balor.

Fair play, the way they went was the best possible use of the end of Dom’s reign.

It would now only be fitting if Cena lost it to Mick Foley.

[OzExile]

I'm still manifesting Wade Barrett being in the tournament. 

[DavidB6937]

I can think of loads of interesting ideas of who it could be. Obviously they won't go with someone interesting. So I'll say Kane.

[Supremo]

The absolute state of this Cena tournament, now they’ve announced the final First Round matches!

Rusev def. Damian Priest

Sheamus def. Shinsuke Nakamura

Jey Uso def. The Miz 

LA Knight def. Zack Ryder

GUNTHER vs. Je'Von Evans (Raw, Nov. 17)

Solo Sikoa vs. TBA (Raw, Nov. 17)

Bronson Reed vs. Carmelo Hayes (SmackDown, Nov. 21)

Penta vs. Finn Balor (SmackDown, Nov. 21)

Considering what a miraculous job they’ve done turning this Cena run around, with last week’s business with Dirty Dom feeling like an all-timer Raw moment, it’s bonkers how lifeless and predictable the tournament looks. Might as well have just called it the, “Gunther wins,” tournament.

Tonight’s, “TBA,” doing a lot of the heavy lifting. Hoping for something special. Maybe Jericho’s got out of his AEW contract early, Kevin Owens has injected Rey Mysterio’s stem cells into his neck or Roman Reigns has decided he fancies working double figures this year.

It’s a first round match in a tournament to be John Cena’s final opponent!

In Madison Square Garden!

In a shitty tournament that’s otherwise filled with a bunch of Gillbergs!

They must have something special up their sleeve? It won’t just be another shitarse, dining out on a two year old meme, will it?

[The Dart]

Who can it be who won't be a disappointment but is still a "surprise"?   Half of Reddit seems to have convinced themselves it'll be Edge or Jericho, so will complain when it is Joe Hendry.   But Joe Hendry will get a big reaction from the crowd and maybe with interference from someone, he'll win the match.   Or maybe it'll be Mr. Iguana.

[DavidB6937]

I'll take this man in this variation only. I don't want the Christmas Card edition.

[Supremo]

Looking to pop Madison Square Garden with a surprise, are you?

(Big fan of the UKFF becoming the go-to place for Survivor Series 1996 nostalgia)

*If they don’t have a big surprise planned for Solo’s opponent then Je'Von Evans should beat Gunther clean and then eventually win everything.

Edited November 17, 2025 by Supremo

[RedTwoster]

I could see it being Jacob Fatu, depending on how he’s doing - but I’d much prefer to see Dominik Mysterio worm his way in there. I’d be fine with Evan’s winning the whole thing, but for me a Cena/Dom rematch with Mysterio going over is the best option they have right now. Gunther winning is an uninteresting prospect to me.

[FLips]

Wade Barrett would be my personal pick, but the tournament is full of nobodies so do we really need another guy who clearly won't win?

Twoster's idea to have Dirty Dom go back in to reclaim his belt and "retire" Cena is probably the best shout I've seen. He's a way better prospect than Gunther or anyone else in the tournament. It's shocking how badly they've fumbled the entire Cena farewell run. 

[DavidB6937]

Do we know who Cena is wrestling tonight? Wonder if they'll give that to Joe Hendry considering he's signed now.

[Statto]

Is there really any reason to do a tournament at all other than to fill up TV time?

Surely the poetic way for Cena to go out is to do the reverse of how he came in - offering up an open opportunity for someone to make a name for themselves. (And it being Oba Femi, and him not having just turned up on NXT again last week).

Even if it's someone already pretty well established like Gunther who accepts, it still nicely mirrors the way he came in, and builds more intrigue on the night. Wrestling fans love surprises, so I don't imagine that not announcing who Cena's opponent will be ahead of time would hurt the ratings for SNME all that much - whereas perhaps knowing that it's someone as bit "meh" might. 

[Callum1993]

My money would be on someone currently in TNA. Probably Jeff Hardy or sadly Ziggler. Would be a cool moment if Owens has made a miraculous recovery for it mind. 

[RedTwoster]

I’m surprised at how dry they’ve managed to make this tournament. I like this suggestion:  

16 minutes ago, Statto said:

Surely the poetic way for Cena to go out is to do the reverse of how he came in - offering up an open opportunity for someone to make a name for themselves. (And it being Oba Femi, and him not having just turned up on NXT again last week).

Which you could absolutely incorporate into a tournament - have Cena announce the invitational, with the criteria being that you cannot have wrestled Cena in the past to be eligible. Or, alternatively, do person who has wrestled Cena vs person who hasn’t in every opening match, with one opponent being a mystery each time.

That way, you could have someone like J’Evon Evans and Joe Hendry in there, but you could pull out someone like Wade Barrett, Booker T, Jeff Hardy or even JBL if he’s able to. 

Maybe you could get Kurt Angle in there and not have him wrestle - perhaps eventual opponent Dom takes him out and takes his place. Maybe you keep Gunther’s return a secret and have him be a mystery opponent. Treat it like the Rumble and fill it with surprises, even if some are mediocre (eg. Ryder). As it is, it all feels a little dull. Surely they could have done better with this.

[DavidB6937]

1 minute ago, RedTwoster said:

Surely they could have done better with this.

There's a new PLE name right there.