My guess/hope is that there'll be some team-up battles:
Battle 1:
Sanji, Nami vs. Jyabura (i.e. Tao Pai Pai), Califa
Why:
Nami vs. Califa (Female vs. Female)
Sanji vs. Jyabura (Both Martial Arts (No Weapons) Specialists [Guessing About Jyabura From His Look]???????)
Sanji vs. Califa (Interesting results…)
Battle 2:
Usopp, Zoro, Chopper vs. Kaku, Kumadori (i.e. Kabuki), Fukuro (i.e. Zipper Mouth)
Why:
Usopp vs. Kaku (Battle of the Long Noses; Going Merry Payback)
Usopp vs. Fukuro (Liar vs. Unable To Lie; Also, Fukuro's Big Mouth Is A Perfect Weak Point/Target For Usopp's New Super Sling Shot)
Zoro vs. Kaku (Hinted at on Water 7; Unsettled Fight)
Zoro vs. Kumadori (Sword Duel [Guessing About Kumadori From His Suicide Attempts]?????????)
Battle 3:
Robin, Franky, Luffy vs. Spandam, Blueno, Lucci
Why:
- Franky vs. Spandam (old rivalry)
- Franky vs. Blueno (Popeye vs. Bluto)
- Luffy vs. Lucci (a given)
- Luffy vs. Spandam (Leader vs. Leader)
- Robin vs. Spandam (symbolism for Robin overcoming her mental hurdles)
- Robin vs. Lucci (same as Spandam)
==> this will eventually play out to Luffy mano-a-mano against Lucci, offer resolution on the Luffy/Robin crew dessertion, and allow Luffy & Franky to bond (possibly Lucci betrays Spandam in this sequence? Tom revelation and/or meeting too [will see Franky again and will see Robin whom he was on the "lookout" for many years ago]?)
IMHO, team battles would be really neat and would:
a) speed-up the overall story so that it isn't drawn out too long (8 1-on-1 fights could get a bit tedious…)
b) make the type of fighting different from other arcs
c) work with-in the current storyline since time is supposed to be a huge factor (they need to beat/get past all enemies before Robin & Franky are taken through the gates of justice)
d) allow multiple, not just one, hinted-at matches to occur (i.e. same character in conflict with 1 or more enemies)
e) emphasize the whole "team"/"nakama" aspect of the current arc