WWE Survivor Series 2011: Could Team Orton vs. Team Barrett Steal the Show?

Survivor Series is just two days away, and after months of speculation and buildup, we will finally be able to put on our “Team Bring It” shirts, sit down and actually watch what is being billed as the biggest Survivor Series pay-per-view ever. 

I tend to think that’s the WWE embellishing just a bit, but the six-match card does have the potential to be a pretty good show. Realistically speaking, though, there are only four matches I want to watch because of what I think will go down in the ring:

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CM Punk vs. Alberto Del Rio for the WWE Championship 

Dolph Ziggler vs. John Morrison for the United States Championship 

Team Barrett vs. Team Orton 

The Rock and John Cena vs. The Miz and R-Truth 

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I think that Punk vs. Del Rio has the potential to be the third-best WWE Championship match of the year (behind Cena/Punk at both Money in the Bank and SummerSlam), but the match will probably get some screwy finish that brings it well below that four-star level. 

I also would love to see Morrison and Ziggler get 15-plus minutes, but given that Ziggler’s pulling double duty, this match involves Morrison and it is for a forgettable title like the United States Championship, this match will probably be a quick one that sees Ziggler loses the strap in a fluke manner. 

Though it could be even better, Ziggler/Morrison probably won’t rival The Rock and Cena’s match against The Miz and R-Truth. There’s just so much hype for this match that the crowd will be going wild, and even if the match isn’t great, it will come across as such because of how raucous the Madison Square Garden crowd will be. 

There’s no doubt that the atmosphere will be electric when The Rock and Cena form one of the most star-studded tag teams ever, but as far as in-ring work goes, I’m not expecting that bout to steal the show. 

I think that’ll come from Team Orton vs. Team Barrett.

Why? Because I took a look back at history and re-watched the Oct. 3 edition of Monday Night Raw, and I realized that it featured one of the best bouts of the year. 

The main event of the show featured a 12-man tag match, with CM Punk, Sheamus, Kofi Kingston, Evan Bourne, John Cena and Mason Ryan teaming up to take on Christian, Cody Rhodes, David Otunga, Alberto del Rio, Jack Swagger and Dolph Ziggler. 

And it was really, really good. 

The WWE does these types of huge tag team matches all the time, but this one got roughly 27 minutes and featured a phenomenal ending sequence that saw a bunch of guys hit their finishers before Sheamus finished off Ziggler with a brogue kick. 

So, what’s the link between that match and Team Barrett vs. Team Orton at Survivor Series? Six competitors: Sheamus, Kingston and Ryan on Orton’s squad and Rhodes, Swagger and Ziggler on Barrett’s squad. 

Throw in one of the best overall wrestlers in the WWE, Randy Orton, as well as Sin Cara on Team Orton, then add Hunico and Wade Barrett to Team Barrett and there’s a good a chance that this five-on-five match at Survivor Series will be even better. 

Way back in June, Cena, Orton and Alex Riley defeated The Miz, Truth and Christian in six-man elimination tag team match that was also one of the best TV bouts of the year. 

The theme here? The WWE does a really good job at booking big tag team matches. 

That trend should continue at Survivor Series in a 10-man tag team match that features a number of the best in-ring workers in all of the WWE. 

The agents know how to put these types of matches together, and the wrestlers involved all know how to perform in them. 

As long as they all do their parts at Survivor Series, then Team Orton vs. Team Barrett will do the unthinkable and steal the show.