How would you have formed the match ups in the PWC?

[sutellakiara]

Steven probably got picked since he's "recent" (ORAS and XYZ anime) plus that he's arguably the most popular male Champion and if nothing else is generally held in good regard by most people .
I cannot think of any single time I saw someone who dislikes Steven out of the top of my head right now.
Lance's Kanto so muh pottery and all but he's not particularly popular plus he's not been onscreen for decades so he doesn't even have recency buff. Sad as it may sound, there's a reason why he and Diantha were the ones made to job to Leon. Only Alder would rank beneath those two.

 

[DayQuil95]

Lance's Kanto so muh pottery and all but he's not particularly popular plus he's not been onscreen for decades so he doesn't even have recency buff. Sad as it may sound, there's a reason why he and Diantha were the ones made to job to Leon. Only Alder would rank beneath those two.

And Lance is seen as more of  the Elite Four than a Champion, even in HGSS people don't care about him and see Red as the real threat.

 

[Ignition]

Unpopular opinion but I’m glad Ash faced Steven over Alain and Lance. As for the question, assuming we’re keeping the same 8 characters, the only thing I’d maybe change is Iris facing Lance and Cynthia facing Diantha but otherwise I’m content despite the meh cast.