Sorry, been caught up in the Super SFIV hype lately.

Before I get into those match-ups, I haven't seen any evidence that supports Ryo being weaker than Terry. He might not be as famous, but becoming the new Mr. Karate by Garou's time means he's serious business. KOF tends to undermine the FF and AOF characters for the flame-wielders anyway.

Zaki (Rival School) vs Whip [Both use whips]

I'm going to assume Zaki's equal to Akira since their fight at the beginning of Project Justice was merely a sparring match, and it didn't show one badly losing to the other. And after watching some playthrough vids, I'm actually starting to doubt that Akira really beat Batsu at all. The scenario where he loses to her and comes back as "Burning Batsu" only happens in the Taiyo storyline, whereas the opposite outcome is corroborated by the Seijyun and Justice storylines when the girls run into the teachers.

It's probably not confirmed one way or the other, but this leads me to guess that Akira and Zaki are on Sakura's level, which in turn gives Whip the edge over Zaki. Whip also has more in her arsenal than a whip, like a stilleto, blades hidden in her boots and a desert eagle. On top of that, she's adequately trained in Heidern's assassination art.

To be honest, it's for that reason this match-up doesn't feel like a potent one to me regardless of what level they're on. A long-ranged weapon like a chain or a whip as the only similarity doesn't strike me as interesting. One's more dependant on it than the other, in conjunction with other attacks. And I can't begin to imagine why a mercenary and a female gang leader would have an encounter.

So much for Akira vs. Rock BTW. I really enjoyed that one while it lasted.

Garuda vs Jazu [Both powerful and somewhat similar concept]

Don't know about this one. I've never played the EX games, but I'd rather ignore the cast in that series since they're not the property of Capcom.

Kurow vs Adelheid [Both sub-bosses, similar outfit, physique and maybe matchable levels]

Too much contrast here, even if they are sub-bosses. I wouldn't count physique as a factor, unless you were comparing the biggest/fattest fighters from both sides. Much less clothes.

Rufus vs Raiden [Both cocky and powerful]

Raiden takes it. He's a cheating bastard, plus he's a lot more serious and intelligent than Rufus. He's also ruthless enough to be a bodyguard for Geese.

Fei Long vs Kim Kapwhan [Both great martial artists]

I've always been suggesting this one. They're national heroes in addition to being great martial artists, with different motives and philosophies.