5 Early opponents for Karrion Kross on the WWE main roster
By the end of 2021, Karrion Kross will have made his main roster debut for WWE. Kross was a huge free agent signing for WWE last year. He had his first match at last year's In Your House, defeating Tommaso Ciampa.
It didn't take long before Kross was hoisting the NXT Championship. He won the title from Keith Lee last August but was forced to vacate it due to an injury suffered during the match.
Kross would return from a separated shoulder injury in December 2020 by attacking Damian Priest. Now that he was healthy, it was only a matter of time before he would target whoever was holding the NXT Championship. It happened to be Finn Balor and Kross dethroned Balor at TakeOver: Stand & Deliver.
The current Champ would defeat Balor once again before overcoming four other stars at In Your House. Shortly after In Your House, some reports suggested that Kross would be promoted later this summer. With the WWE Draft set to take place after SummerSlam, it is believed he could be a selection.
Those reports were confirmed even further as both Kross and Bronson Reed were present backstage at RAW and SmackDown last week. WWE officials want to get a glimpse of both men before potential call-ups.
Now that his main-roster arrival is on the horizon, which WWE stars would make sense as the first opponent for Kross? Facing the Fiend is obviously a feud that needs to happen, but it should not be his first main-roster encounter.
It all depends on whether he debuts in the mid-card or main event. If it's the usual route, then it could be one of many stars. If he targets a bigger name in WWE, then the appearance would instantly be more effective. Here are five WWE Superstars who could oppose Karrion Kross in the early stages of his main-roster tenure.
#5 Vanquishing a WWE veteran like Jeff Hardy would be a good first step
Jeff Hardy is still a beloved fan favorite to much of the WWE Universe. His willingness to sacrifice his body is respected by a portion of the fanbase. The one thing working against Hardy, however, is that he is towards the end of his career.
The years of damage in the ring are taking a toll on his body. He can still go in the ring but his best use in today's WWE is as a stepping stone for other performers. Even though it was more than a decade ago, commentators always reference that Hardy is a former WWE Champion.
That's perfectly fine, but those title wins were during his heydey. With a new crop of stars eager to make their mark in WWE, Hardy's main role should be putting over others.
He did that briefly with Cedric Alexander but Hardy got his win back on a recent episode of RAW. Whether it's on RAW or SmackDown, Hardy would be a good feud for a debuting heel from NXT.
If WWE officials want to ease Kross into things on the main roster, a definitive win over Hardy would be a good start. It could be similar to how Kross first targeted Tommaso Ciampa in NXT.
If and when Kross dispatches Hardy, the commentators can play up the fact that the new Superstar dominated a former multi-time Champion in WWE. Hardy wouldn't lose much by losing to a star like Kross due to his history in the company.
Hardy is in a strange spot in WWE - he's still respected by others but isn't a main event performer like he was 10 years ago. Kross could show Hardy Doomsday or perhaps Kross would force Hardy to change his persona.