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This week’s SmackDown continued the tradition and delivered quite a few matches just like RAW and NXT did earlier in the week. The action was red hot, and the SmackDown Tag Team Championships were on the line during the main event.
However, it was the announcement regarding the new rules of the Money in the Bank ladder match that was the biggest surprise, and we will now watch the Superstars who qualify for the match battle it out from the ground floor of the WWE Headquarters all the way to the roof to retrieve the briefcase.
Apart from that, Sasha Banks was set to take on Tamina after Bayley got her in a match with the Samoan, while Cesaro tried to bag a big opportunity by defeating Daniel Bryan.
In this article, we will look at the 5 things SmackDown got right on this week’s episode.
#5 Bayley’s next challenger
Bayley offered Tamina a chance to take her on for the SmackDown Women’s Championship only if she could defeat Sasha Banks. This week, the two women squared off inside the Blue squared circle for a match with a huge opportunity for Tamina on the line.
Tamina dominated early in the match and Banks failed to get much offense even when she had the chance. She was unable to get the bigger woman off her feet as Tamina seemed more confident than she usually is.
As the fight spilled over to the floor, The Boss took advantage and pushed Tamina into the steel steps. Bayley tried to help out by distracting the Samoan and trying to get a few unfair strikes but Lacey Evans appeared to wipe her out.
Back in the ring, Tamina was able to deliver a thunderous Superkick and pin Banks to pick up the victory. The Sassy Southern Belle entered the ring to raise the victor’s hand and possibly side with her.
This was a decent match that showed that Banks wasn’t up to the mark as she tried to defend her friend. Whether it was deliberate or not is yet to be seen, but the overall impact of the match will see cracks form between their friendship sooner than later.
#4 Daniel Bryan vs Cesaro
Two of SmackDown’s best wrestlers took it to the ring again as Daniel Bryan battled against Cesaro to determine who would get the chance to compete in the Money in the Ladder match early next month.
This year’s match will be different from before as the Superstars will need to climb the entire WWE Corporate Headquarters and reach the rooftop to make it close to the Money in the Bank briefcase.
Both men looked to start strong but they were interrupted by the mysterious hacker who promised to reveal more truths and secrets of the SmackDown locker room.
Bryan took the offense to Cesaro, but The Swiss Cyborg soon managed to outdo him with his strength. The match between the two men was solid, and Bryan applied the Yes Lock on Cesaro to make him tap out and progress to the MITB match.
Bryan moving on to the big match is the right decision at a time when Cesaro is stuck in mixed bookings. WWE needs to build The Swiss Cyborg further and make him a true force on SmackDown.
The two men performed well once again and the match was well-paced. Cesaro and Bryan could end up battling for the WWE Championship at WrestleMania one day and give us the match of the year without a doubt.
The appearance of the hacker between the match could signal towards a possible revelation that can break up some current teams or friends. Will he target The Artist Collection next, or will Bryan find out some hidden secrets about Drew Gulak?
#3 Bray Wyatt’s mind games begin
Universal Champion Braun Strowman was the guest of this week’s A Moment of Bliss hosted by our very own WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions, Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross.
Strowman was there to speak about his past with Bray Wyatt and how it affected him, and also spoke about how he has an eye on the future.
The three Superstars kept the discussion alive until The Monster Among Men spotted a suspicious package under one of the turnbuckles. He retrieved and open it to find a present from Bray Wyatt awaiting.
Strowman took out an old black sheep mask from the package, the same one he used to wear during his time with The Wyatt Family. Right then, Wyatt’s evil laugh echoed throughout the empty Performance Center.
With Wyatt set to take on Strowman for the Universal Championship, this was a good way to get the fans started on what to expect if Strowman ends up losing the title at Money in the Bank.
Most Superstars who’ve crossed The Fiend’s path have returned to their former self after losing against him, and Strowman could very well be wearing the black sheep mask after his loss to Wyatt at the event.
WWE once again continued to build a story uniquely involving Wyatt, and it will be interesting to see how they build it further in the coming weeks before getting the two Superstars physical.
#2 Sonya Deville tries to rise from Mandy Rose’s shadow
Sonya Deville looked to right the wrongs on SmackDown this week and called out Mandy Rose to hear her explanation. In case you don’t remember, a mysterious hacker on SmackDown had revealed to Rose and Otis that Deville was the one who sabotaged their Valentine’s Day date and put Dolph Ziggler in the picture.
God’s Greatest Creation came out and listened to her best friend's clarification as Deville told her that she finally saw the truth. Deville called Rose the most selfish woman she has ever met.
She further went on to say that Rose had ruined her life and that she would make it to the top after working with Rose for years and remaining in her shadows.
Ziggler then walked in to beg Rose to give him a second chance, but Deville laid out her former friend. This brought out Otis who took out Ziggler and hit the Caterpillar on him. Rose recovered in the meantime and sent Deville running.
This looks like a nice setup for some future mixed tag team matches. Mid-card stories, especially those without a title, often get lost on SmackDown, but this one has solidly been in the limelight for over five months now. Let’s see how things turn out in the coming weeks. Hopefully, Deville will get some push from this entire thing and reach the top to become a contender for the SmackDown Women’s title by the end of the year.
#1 The Big Ending
The show started strong with the segment involving Braun Strowman and the mysterious package from Bray Wyatt and ended with a Big Ending.
The Miz, Jey Uso, and Big E were set to take the SmackDown Tag Team titles for their respective teams and cut a promo before the match promising to make the title theirs at the end of the night.
The match between the three men was good and almost made it to the top with Daniel Bryan and Cesaro’s match. All three men got their spots and at no point were we sure whether it would be Jey who would take the titles for The Usos or Big E would take it for The New Day.
While The Miz took the upper hand late in the match with a Skull Crushing Finale on Jey followed by the Figure Four leglock after a failed pin attempt, Big E entered the picture to deliver the Big Ending to pick up the victory and the titles.
Even though many expected The Usos to become the next Champions, this was a pleasant surprise and nicely sets up a possible singles run for Big E later along with a return for Xavier Woods soon.
Jey not taking the pin allows The Usos to stay in contention for the titles while The Miz will have a lot of explaining to do when he meets up with John Morrison again.
