Updated Match Card Predictions for WWE Survivor Series 2018 After Final Raw

WWE's two major brands will wage war on one another at Survivor Series this weekend, as Raw and SmackDown battle for supremacy.

The go-home taping of the blue brand is still to air at the time of writing, but Monday's edition of Raw offered an intriguing glimpse into how things could play out on Sunday.

There is no shortage of tensions being teased among all three Raw teams that will aim to stake a claim for the brand to be classed of WWE's best. Some of those will come back to cost Baron Corbin and Stephanie McMahon, while others are merely starting points for feuds which will properly take off in the new year.

However, with Becky Lynch and SmackDown's women invading Raw in the closing segment of Monday's show, it allows a clearer view of what may happen this weekend.

Here's a look at the latest predictions for all matches scheduled to be on the main show.

In a bout almost certainly set to open the show, Buddy Murphy defends the WWE Cruiserweight Championship for the first time against Mustafa Ali.

It will be a solid affair, given Murphy's recent exploits on 205 Live, but it is going to get lost in the shuffle somewhat on Sunday night.

Still, if this is the bout WWE opts for to open Survivor Series, it will be a decent enough opener.

As for the winner? Murphy's journey to the top of the division was a long time coming, and taking the title away from him now makes little sense.

There's plenty left to run in Murphy's story. He shouldn't lose here.

Winner: Buddy Murphy

Not for the first time this year in WWE, the presence of another man away from the two supposed to be doing battle is too much to ignore this Sunday.

Seth Rollins vs. Shinsuke Nakamura is a dream match—the kind of bout passionate wrestling fans suspected they may never see in a WWE ring.

However, their first meeting at Survivor Series is going to be overshadowed by Dean Ambrose without question.

Ambrose's story is a compelling one, built around a story arc of how he was constantly belittled, undervalued and underappreciated during The Shield's latest run.

He is now taking those frustrations out on Rollins, and as The Architect looks to make a statement about his company-wide credentials on Sunday night, you can guarantee the presence of Ambrose at some stage is going to cost him.

Winner: Shinsuke Nakamura

There's so much happening on Raw lately that AOP haven't really had a chance to fully express themselves.

After all, their crowning as Raw tag champions last week came via the Seth Rollins vs. Dean Ambrose feud, and for those who have followed Akam and Rezar since their NXT days, it will have been easy to feel underwhelmed by their win against The Architect to capture the titles.

However, with hopefully plenty of time to impress this weekend in their inter-brand match against SmackDown tag champions The Bar, they can start to make a significant impact.

The Bar's standing on the blue brand is such that they aren't in desperate need of victory on Sunday. However, the same can't be said for AOP, who need their reign as Raw tag champions to start with a bang.

It could well be the surprise of the night in terms of the match that gets people talking, and it should end with a win for the team from Raw.

Winners: AOP

For the second consecutive Survivor Series, Brock Lesnar and AJ Styles will square off in the battle for brand supremacy.

The brands' big champions put on a stellar show last year, before Lesnar eventually emerged victorious after Styles more than played his part in a great match—one of The Beast Incarnate's best in recent years.

There's no reason to suggest the two can't do something similar again this weekend, but what about the outcome? 

Defeats for Lesnar are incredibly rare in WWE, and while one here wouldn't mean him dropping the Universal Championship, it's still difficult to map out an ending in which Styles is victorious.

Unfortunately for The Phenomenal One, what is more likely is that his next challenger for the WWE Championship will play a part in the finish, eventually costing him.

Winner: Brock Lesnar

We've seen tension among the ranks of both men's teams for the traditional Survivor Series bout this weekend.

However, could what happened on the go-home edition of Raw this past Monday drop the biggest hint yet as to how the bout could play out?

WWE made a wise move in keeping Elias away from the team in favor of Bobby Lashley. With Braun Strowman clearly going over as Raw's biggest face, a share of the spotlight would have been no good for Elias, who is making great strides as a babyface.

However, with Dolph Ziggler, Lashley and Drew McIntyre all keen to assert themselves in the pecking order, it could be that personal agendas get in the way for Team Raw.

That's not to say the same won't happen for the SmackDown team, including the odd couple of Daniel Bryan and The Miz as co-captains.

They do look much more capable of holding it together than the red brand right now, though.

Winners: Team SmackDown (Daniel Bryan sole survivor)

Raw's five-strong team for the Survivor Series match involving the women has an intriguing look to it this year.

There is no Bayley or Sasha Banks, two of the biggest names on the women's roster. Instead, newly aligned duo Tamina and Nia Jax head up the team, along with Ruby Riott, Mickie James and just one babyface, Natalya.

On the opposite side, there's a stronger-looking team, including Asuka and Charlotte Flair. While Raw has only one babyface, SmackDown has just one heel, Liv Morgan.

What can fans except from the match, though? Both teams look capable of keeping it together, but it's not difficult to imagine Bayley and Banks having a say here.

After being taken out on Monday night, they are sure to want revenge. And with what could happen later in the night in the meeting of WWE's two women's champions, expect Flair to be given a helping hand here by her two Four Horsewomen colleagues. 

Winners: Team SmackDown (Asuka and Charlotte Flair survivors)

WWE will have missed a major step if Becky Lynch (and Ronda Rousey) doesn't close Survivor Series this year.

Simply put, there is no wrestler anywhere on the roster who deserves a main event spot right now more than The Irish Lass Kicker. On Monday night, she led the invasion of Raw by the SmackDown women's roster and left standing tall at the end, albeit bloodied and bruised.

Her popularity is at an all-time high, and while there is sure to be a response from Rousey on Tuesday's go-home edition of SmackDown, it would rank as one of the biggest mistakes in recent times if Lynch does not win on Sunday.

There are bound to be shocks and twists included in the finish to protect Rousey, and that's fine. There are plenty of options too: Nia Jax could get involved to position herself as the next challenger for the Raw women's champion, or there could be interference from the blue brand, too.

And that feels like the best fit. With WWE clearly building towards a Four Horsewomen of WWE vs. Four Horsewomen of MMA showdown at some point in the future, what better way to start it here than with Charlotte Flair helping Lynch score the win.

If Bayley and Sasha Banks do the same for Flair earlier in the night, it would begin to sow the seeds for the four of them to reunite and wage war on the rest of WWE.

What a thought that is.

Winner: Becky Lynch