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The final SmackDown before the Money in the Bank pay-per-view looked to build upon the matches that will take place at the event on Sunday. Both the top titles of the brand along with its tag team titles will be on the line at the PPV, while six of its competitors will be part of the two Money in the Bank Ladder Matches.
Jeff Hardy made a return to the Blue brand this week and he seems to have already secured his first major rivalry back on SmackDown. Bray Wyatt made an offer to Braun Strowman that was nearly irresistible, and it took a lot out of The Monster Among Men to walk away from him former leader.
An eight-man tag team match followed by a six-man tag team match set the mood for the night, as SmackDown tried to put in as many Superstars on television who will compete on Sunday as they could.
The creatives also set up a big match between the teams of Lacey Evans and Tamina, and Sasha Banks and Bayley. With so much action set for one night, the creatives sure knew what they were building towards on this week’s show.
In this article, we will look at the five things SmackDown got right on the episode before Money in the Bank.
#5 Jeff Hardy’s return
Jeff Hardy was back on SmackDown this week and he made it clear to Renee Young that he wasn’t done yet in WWE. He was ready for one last run, a run that could take him to the top of the Blue brand before he retires.
Sheamus lived up to his promise and appeared to ruin Hardy’s return, claiming that he was there to put out SmackDown’s weakest fire, and he believed that Hardy was the weakest. After the two men exchanged a few insults, Sheamus headed down the ramp to beat down Hardy.
However, Hardy was ready to take the Celtic Warrior off his feet and deliver a few daredevil moves before hitting Sheamus with a Twist of Fate followed by a Swanton Bomb.
This was a great way to show that Hardy is fit and ready for some action again, even though Sheamus was back to his feet in no time and seemed less hurt than Hardy himself.
The simple mic work by the two men made it clear to the fans why Sheamus wants to go after Hardy and has given enough backstory to build a rivalry between the two veterans.
A rivalry between these two men may seem odd right now, but it could end up being one man’s ticket to the top of the roster and a great way for newer Superstars to get the right rub.
#4 Tamina’s rise
Tamina may be one of the biggest and strongest female wrestlers in WWE today, but she has never come across as the most threatening force in the ring. This week’s SmackDown saw her team up with Lacey Evans to take on the heel team of Sasha Banks and SmackDown Women’s Champion Bayley.
Bayley and Banks seemed to have some disagreement right at the beginning of the match, allowing Tamina to knock both women down to gain control. The heels tried to get away but bumped into Evans before Tamina pulled Bayley back into the match.
Even though The Hugger and The Boss gained control in the middle phase of the match, Tamina and Evans were able to make a comeback. The Legit Boss was able to save The Role Model from a Samoan drop attempt by Tamina, but Evans took Banks out with the Women’s Right. This allowed Tamina to hit a Superkick followed by a Samoan Drop for the victory.
This was a decent television match that did enough to put the competitors for Sunday over. What made this match special was the spotlight Tamina got after living in the shadows of other Superstars for several years. She seems to be a much-improved performer, even though she has a long way to go.
Even though it doesn’t seem like she will be winning the SmackDown Women’s title on Sunday, she can do just enough to increase her value on the Blue brand and stay on top.
#3 Mandy Rose vs Sonya Deville
Mandy Rose and Sonya Deville were set to compete on SmackDown this week, and they were offered some help by Otis and Dolph Ziggler respectively backstage.
Both women walked out looking for some revenge, and Rose went after Deville right from the opening bell. God’s Greatest Creation did not seem like the underdog babyface in this fight as she did not let the heelish Deville gain the upper hand and dominate for most of the match.
After some trash talking from Deville, the action spilled over to the floor where Rose threw Deville around, sending her face-first into the announce table followed by the steel steps.
It was interesting to see Rose maintain the control of the match and even come close to finishing Deville before she managed to slip out of her finisher and roll her up for a pin after a failed bicycle knee attempt.
While the match could have been much better, it’s likely the first of many to come. Deville should have been set up stronger in this one, and we hope the creatives will rectify that mistake. Overall, this was a good first match between the two, and Deville needed to win this bout so that she can continue building the story.
#2 The Miz’s Skull Crushing Finale
An eight-man tag team match looked to light up SmackDown as The New Day and Lucha House Party joined forces to take on The Miz and John Morrison and The Forgotten Sons. The four teams are set to take on one another in a Fatal 4-Way Match at Money in the Bank for New Day’s SmackDown Tag Team Championships.
Kofi Kingston was isolated by the heels as Miz, Morrison, and The Forgotten Sons worked well together to keep the babyfaces out of the game. However, a hot tag to Gran Metalik allowed the babyfaces to spark a comeback as he was able to wipe out the heels with Lince Dorado.
While the babyfaces took control for a while, Wesley Blake and Steve Cutler were not ready to give up and kept the heels in the match. They wiped out Big E outside the ring with an elevated double stomp and then powerbombed Kingston onto him.
Dorado was left in the middle on his own and even though he dodged a Starship Pain from Morrison, he missed a tag-in from Miz leading to a Skull Crushing Finale.
It’s heartbreaking to see how Lucha House Party is usually put in matches to take the pin even though they make things much more interesting. However, The Miz scoring the victory likely means that he won’t be scoring the pin on Sunday, and we could see more cracks form between him and The Shaman of Sexy.
#1 Braun Strowman refuses Bray Wyatt’s offer to come home
A couple of nights before Money in the Bank, Braun Strowman and Bray Wyatt were set to share the ring for one final segment on SmackDown before their Universal Championship match.
Strowman made it to the ring first and then invited The Eater of Worlds to join him. Wyatt accepted The Monster Among Men’s invitation and came with an offer for Strowman that was extremely difficult for him to refuse.
He offered Storwman to come back home and join him. He told Strowman that he would help him and take the weight off his waist by taking the Universal Championship away from him. Even our friends at the Firefly Fun House believed that Strowman should come back home.
However, Strowman was stubborn and refused, claiming that he was already home on SmackDown as the Universal Champion. He refused to take the Black Sheep mask from Wyatt and walked out strong to close the segment.
This was yet another good segment from Wyatt that helped build his match against a man who isn’t too used to pulling off great promos. The match between these two men will likely be good, and we could expect The Fiend to appear after their match to take Strowman to a place he never thought he’d see.
