5 questions from WWE Battleground we most need answering

What did we just see?
What did we just see?

WWE Battleground 2017 was a strange affair. The biggest concern going into this was whether or not the show was going to be just another episode of Smackdown Live, and to their credit, WWE creative managed to avoid this.

The problem was that the show stood out from the rest of the Smackdown Live episodes for how unnecessarily weird it was.

It seems the WWE needs to remember that surprises are only welcome if they are good surprises. Throwing curveballs at us that we don't want is not going to make a good wrestling show.

In order to get to grips with what we saw last night, here are 5 questions we can ask about Battleground 2017:


#1 How long can the Usos and New Day hold up the tag-team division for?

A lot on their shoulders
A lot on their shoulders

Where would we have been without the opener? A lot of credit must go to The Usos and New Day for their performance in the tag-team championship match. The bout was better than it needed to be and was the perfect complement to what has been a very engaging and entertaining feud.

This was an example of how a great match can be made even more special if the rivalry is given time and attention. From the very first promo the two teams hit on each other, we knew we were about to see something better than the norm - especially when it comes to WWE tag team wrestling.

One thought permeating through this match, however, was that WWE creative was obviously quite keen to keep this feud going and had to find a way to do so.

Having the New Day crowned the new champs means we will probably be getting a rematch at Summerslam - if it even makes the main card - and right now, I don't think many people will object.

The two teams are currently holding up the Smackdown Live tag-team division, especially with the recent break up of American Alpha and the animosity building between The Hype Bros.

The only other believable challengers for the belts at the moment are Breezeango, but other than that, all the responsibility must fall on New Day and The Usos.

It can't last forever, of course, which is why Smackdown needs to start putting steps in place to rejuvenate its crumbling division.

#2 Will Naomi vs. Natalya make the main roster at Summerslam?

Why her?
Why her?

The women's elimination fatal five-way match felt like it was over before it began. They were given a decent amount of time, but the action was so fast paced, and all the eliminations came within a few minutes of each other, that most of the important action was far too condensed.

The only real one-on-one action we got was between Charlotte and Natalya at the end, which raises the questions as to why they couldn't have just put these two against each other in singles action in the first place.

A disappointing aspect of this match was that the whole Lana and Tamina narrative wasn't really explained. True, the two worked together throughout the majority of the match, but to no avail.

One assumes this is going to be a common feature of their partnership going forward, which is a bit of a shame considering the potential Tamina, and to a lesser extent Lana, has.

It's safe to say Natalya was a bit of a surprise victor here. They probably needed to go with a heel considering Naomi is the champion, but all things being equal, surely fans would have preferred to see Naomi take on Charlotte or Becky Lynch. Even Lana/Tamina would have been able to tell a decent story.

Natalya felt like she was there to make up the numbers, so her victory was unexpected, and not in a particularly good way. Naomi vs. Flair feels a lot more like a Summerslam title match than Naomi vs. Natalya - somebody who hasn't really been relevant for quite a while.

Maybe the WWE felt like a Charlotte victory would have been too predictable, but then again, just because something is predictable doesn't mean it's not the best option.

#3 Why should we care about WWE's Shinsuke Nakamura?

Fighting a losing battle.
Fighting a losing battle.

If you aren't a fan of NJPW or NXT, you would be completely forgiven for wondering what the big fuss about Shinsuke Nakamura is. Ever since his elevation to the main roster, his treatment has been very strange indeed.

He was initially brought up with quite a lot of fanfare. His very first appearance on Smackdown did feel like the big deal it should have been, but then he was thrown at Dolph Ziggler, somebody without the talent to support him during talking segments.

Their match, which really should have been a Nakamura squash match, was far too even, making The King of Strong Style look like any other WWE superstar on the roster.

Now he finds himself in a feud with Baron Corbin, and the same thing seems to be happening. His match last night was a very tame affair.

He wasn't given the space to display his impressive arsenal at all and he looked very weak at the end of it. The WWE are trying to build up Corbin for a WWE Championship reign, but does he have to do it against such a popular superstar?

Right now, you wouldn't believe that Shinsuke could go toe to toe with AJ Styles. Why would anybody be excited for a match up between the two at Wrestlemania or Summerslam? It's like Vince McMahon has some kind of vendetta against superstars that make a name for themselves without his help, and he is exacting it against Shinsuke.

It's a real shame considering the excitement we all had when he made his NXT debut, but unless anything changes, his main roster tenure is going to be the biggest flop in WWE history.

#4 Did AJ Styles know he was being counted?

Not the ending we wanted.
Not the ending we wanted.

The weirdest moment of the night - including the return of the Great Khali - had to be the finish to AJ Styles vs. Kevin Owens in the United States Championship match. The whole thing felt so strange and sucked the life out of what was a pretty decent match up.

When you do a referee bump, it normally leads to some kind of outside interference or one of the competitors getting a pinfall/submission without the ref being there to call the decision.

Instead, this ref bump last night had no discernable purpose whatsoever. He even regained his sensibilities in time to count the pinfall.

And speaking of the pinfall, why did AJ not even attempt to struggle out of it? He initially had the upper hand, holding Owens in a submission hold. All he had to do was let go of his hold in order to escape the three-count. Instead, he just laid there waiting for his defeat.

Owens being crowned the new champion after the house show title change a few weeks ago was weird enough, but the way this match ended just made everyone involved look incompetent, especially AJ Styles.

Presumably, this means the two will face off again at Summerslam, and I think most of us are hoping they can step it up a little bit. There has been nothing wrong so far with the action to this feud, but we know they can both do better.

#5 Can this please be the last ever Punjabi Prison match?

Hopefully the last one.
Hopefully the last one.

Wrestling fans either have very short memories or else they just like to see car-crash television for the fun of it. The match most people were looking forward to last night seemed to be the main event, which I suppose is how it should ultimately be when it comes to wrestling shows.

Unfortunately, last night's main event took place inside a Punjabi Prison. The stipulation to the match is far too convoluted to be entertaining.

The fact that there are four doors around the inner structure means that nobody was really expecting anything to happen until the final door was raised. Why would somebody escape from the structure at the first time of asking? We were basically just waiting around until the action spilt outside.

The match did improve when both men escaped, but again, why is it such a big deal to escape the inner structure when we all know both men will be on the outside sooner or later? The whole affair felt so formulaic that we were all reminded why we haven't seen this stipulation for a number of years.

The return of Khali was a nice moment to end the show with, and it means Jinder got to retain the title. Whether or not Randy will get another shot at Summerslam remains to be seen, but surely they need to involve at least one other person in the match considering Summerslam will be their fourth meeting.

With all said and done, I don't think many people have a problem with Jinder holding the belt anymore. He has survived enough of Randy Orton to at least look like a decent heel champion. Orton's involvement in the feud is now a little unnecessary, so perhaps Corbin or Cena can find a way to be involved before next month.

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