Who Will WWE’s GOAT Pick for NXT’s Men’s Iron Survivor Challenge?

NXT’s general manager, Ava, announced on the November 25th episode that WWE’s GOAT John Cena will be picking the five men and women who will be competing in the Iron Survivor Challenge at NXT Deadline. Assessing the five women and men who will be in this match is difficult, as we don’t know what Cena’s thought process will be when it comes to choosing the competitors for this match. Anything could happen, yet it’s time to determine who will be chosen for this year’s Men’s Iron Survivor Challenge. There are plenty of deserving candidates, yet it comes down to one man’s decision. Who will be chosen for the Iron Survivor Challenge at Deadline?

Myles Borne

2025 has been a huge year for Myles Borne. Even without a championship, Borne has been a breakout star for the NXT brand in 2025. Since breaking away from the No Quarters Catch Crew and beefing with Lexis King and Trick Williams, Borne has established himself as a future star. Many have called him a young version of Randy Orton, and by the looks of it, that could be coming into fruition. He seems like the most likely candidate to have his name called for the Men’s Iron Survivor Challenge, as his problems with Williams have caught a ton of attention. Perhaps even the GOAT saw what happened and made his decision right there and then.

Tavion Heights

Tavion Heights has been another guy from the No Quarters Catch Crew who was able to break away from the stable after defeating his mentor, Charlie Dempsey. Heights was interviewed this past Tuesday on NXT, hoping for his chance for Cena to call his name. He was interrupted by being attacked by Josh Briggs, yet Heights has done enough this year to have the opportunity to compete in this match. It's just a question of whether Heights and Briggs will fight during an episode of NXT in the next few weeks or if they’ll both be competing in the Men’s Iron Survivor Challenge.

Josh Briggs

Speaking of Briggs, he’s had a very interesting 2025. He started off the year as a face, teaming with Yoshiki Inamura before eventually betraying his tag team partner. The breakup of this tag team led to a triple-threat NXT Championship match that also involved champion Oba Femi. Even though Femi retained his title, Briggs has developed into one of the top heels of NXT as we head into 2026. Adding Briggs into the match will add some interesting dynamics as he’s beefed with Borne, Heights, and the next potential candidate for the Men’s Iron Survivor Challenge, Je’von Evans.

Je’von Evans

While Borne, Heights, and Briggs have had a great 2025, none of those guys has had a better 2025 than Je’von Evans. The young OG has challenged for the NXT Championship on numerous occasions. Last week at Gold Rush, he even challenged Darkstate for the NXT Tag Team Championship with TNA’s own Leon Slater. It seems like it’s only a matter of time before Evans will be a champion in NXT. His in-ring work and mic work have grown significantly over the past two years. It’s time Evans overcomes the odds and challenges NXT Champion Ricky Saints for the belt at New Year’s Evil.

Japer Troy

The winner of LFG season one just became WWE’s Speed Champion, defeating El Grande Americano for the championship. Jasper Troy has been a force since arriving in NXT, yet he should be receiving more screen time. Being named to the Men’s Iron Survivor Challenge would be huge for Troy, who can showcase more of his in-ring talents than the usual three minutes a speed match would provide. Picking the LFG season one winner will show that LFG is a show that should be taken seriously, taking the newest and brightest stars, the WWE’s future will have to offer.