Which superstar will end AJ Styles’ lengthy WWE Championship reign?

AJ Styles won the WWE Championship in November 2017 and has held the gold for more than 330 days. In that time he has successfully defended his title against superstars like Jinder Mahal, Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn, Shinsuke Nakamura, Rusev, and Samoa Joe. Styles is such a stubborn champion that he even retains his title when he taps out.

Considering that Styles decisively put Samoa Joe away at Super Show-Down, I think it’s worth looking ahead to try to figure out which superstar will finally defeat Styles for the top mid-card prize in WWE.

Here are a few possible names that stand out from the pack.

Daniel Bryan

Bryan defeated the Miz in less than three minutes at Super Show-Down and earned a championship match against Styles at Crown Jewel on Nov. 2, from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Bryan’s case for becoming the WWE Champion is obvious - he is arguably the most popular WWE superstar of the last 5 years. Just go back to the road to WrestleMania in 2014 and watch the way audiences reacted to this man. Daniel Bryan is the most likable babyface in WWE, and he is absolutely a threat to take the title from Styles.

Randy Orton

AJ Styles is a babyface, so it’s logical to expect he’ll mostly be defending the WWE Championship against heels if he can get past Bryan at Crown Jewel. Styles has already vanquished Samoa Joe and Shinsuke Nakamura, which leaves Randy Orton as the top heel on SmackDown that Styles has yet to feud with. Orton has been one of Vince McMahon’s most prominently featured superstars for roughly 15 years now. He has main evented a ton of pay-per-views and held the WWE Championship as recently as 2017. Orton has made it known that he wants to erase all of our heroes, so what better target could there for the sadistic viper than the babyface WWE Champion?

The Miz

If Randy Orton stays away from Styles for now, that leaves The Miz as the next top heel in the SmackDown pecking order. Miz hasn’t been a serious contender for the WWE Championship since 2011, but his rivalry with Daniel Bryan could have a long-term vision which calls for the WWE Championship to be involved.

Other

Out of those three names, my money is on Randy Orton. But let’s face it, once Jinder Mahal quickly went from jobber to WWE Champion in 2017, anything is now possible. Perhaps WWE will go all-in on a push for Andrade “Cien” Almas, or maybe there’s more to the recent push of R-Truth than meets the eye. If I was fantasy booking this thing I would absolutely have Cesaro and Big E involved in the championship scene. None of these scenarios seem all that plausible, but that doesn’t mean we each can’t hold out a little hope that our favorite superstar will emerge from the pack to become the next WWE Champion.

Anyone but Goldberg, please.

Which superstar do you think will finally take the WWE Championship away from AJ Styles?