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Both RAW and SmackDown Live were taped this week, so as to allow the talent to spend time with their loved ones during the New Year. A lot of interesting developments took place on RAW. You can read all about it here. SmackDown Live was perhaps just as eventful as RAW was, from top to bottom.
Many new storylines have commenced and most of them sound interesting. Add that to the return of John Cena and you have the setup for a very interesting show. It will be very interesting to see how all of this translates to TV next week.
That said, here are 5 items that are worth mentioning from the overall proceedings. Chime in with your thoughts in the comments section below.
Remember that SmackDown Live beat RAW in viewership after quite some time, last week.
#5 Samoa Joe battled Jeff Hardy for a Fatal 5-Way match spot
The Royal Rumble is fast approaching as 30 men gear up to get a chance to face a Champion of their choice at WrestleMania. Much like last year, the women of WWE will also receive a shot at a champion of their choosing. But whom would WWE Champion Daniel Bryan face at the Royal Rumble?
To determine this, it was announced that a Fatal 5-Way match would take place on next week's SmackDown Live. To qualify for the match, Jeff Hardy took on a man who'd been making his life miserable in recent times, Samoa Joe. Samoa Joe came out victorious after being taken to the limit by Hardy.
Joe qualified for the main event of the evening, with Styles, Ali, Orton and Mysterio. The winner would become Daniel Bryan's next Championship opponent.
#4 AJ Styles will take on Daniel Bryan again
It was absolute bedlam at the SmackDown Live tapings. Five of the very best in the business- AJ Styles, Mustafa Ali, Randy Orton, Rey Mysterio and Samoa Joe (who defeated Jeff Hardy to qualify) would compete for a shot at Daniel Bryan's Championship. The match was a very heated one, and AJ Styles came out victorious.
AJ Styles went on to win the match and will take on Daniel Bryan at the Royal Rumble. One knows that the match between the two will be nothing short of exemplary. I'm just wondering how Styles' storyline with McMahon will play into the overall proceedings.
I'm guessing the backstage segments of the show will focus on AJ Styles decking out Vince McMahon from this week. One needs to watch SmackDown Live to find out what exactly happened.
#3 Rusev and Nakamura are not done feuding over the US Title
We all saw Rusev collide with Shinsuke Nakamura on this week's show. The two men put on a thrilling match, that culminated with Rusev becoming US Champion. It brought Nakamura's unfortunate title run to a close. As talented as he is, this title run is one best forgotten.
During the SmackDown Live tapings, Rusev came out to celebrate his win. While he was in the ring, he was interrupted by Shinsuke Nakamura. Nakamura did not seem too pleased that the title had changed hands.
Nakamura would cut Rusev's celebrations short and attack him. It is clear that while contractual rematches may no longer exist, the two men are far from done with each other at this point in time.
I wouldn't mind them clashing again to elevate the US Title picture.
#2 John Cena's return was interrupted by Becky Lynch
John Cena has been 'the man' in WWE as far as one can remember. While he was in the ring, cutting his promo, he was interrupted by none other than Becky Lynch. Lynch assured him that she was taking Cena off posters, as the hottest act of WWE.
Becky Lynch also got incredibly personal with John Cena during the segment. She threatened to drop him and then said that Nikki Bella wouldn't be the only woman to do so, alluding to their breakup. While I have not seen it, what a great segment this sounds like!
Because you do not see male and female superstars in the same segment, this seemed like a big deal to the audience in attendance. And it would only get better because Cena and Becky would team up at the SmackDown Live tapings.
#1 John Cena teamed up with Becky Lynch and won!
While John Cena was gone from WWE, the Becky Lynch phenomenon was in full effect. Lynch won over the fans and transformed herself, first into a heel and then into a Tweener. Today, she's arguably the most over performer in the WWE Universe. It is rumoured that even Vince McMahon is a big fan of her character work.
The Becky Lynch-John Cena segment was interrupted by Andrade 'Cien' Almas and Zelina Vega. This led to a tag team match where Lynch teamed up with Cena. Cena seemed to have the match won at one point.
But then Becky Lynch tossed her own partner out of the ring and submitted Zelina Vega for the win. The outcome was shocking and made the crowd very happy.
'The Man' is here to stay and she's the most compelling character in WWE in quite some time!
