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The final episode of WWE SmackDown before the Royal Rumble pay-per-view was as big as fans expected it to be. SmackDown has been leading WWE’s programming for the past several weeks, and the creative allowed Daniel Bryan to kick things off on this week’s show.
Several RAW Superstars were also seen on SmackDown both backstage and in the ring, and fans got to see Sonya Deville use her authoritative powers pretty well.
Dominik Mysterio competed in a match against Baron Corbin on SmackDown but failed to impress the WWE Universe once again. Rey Mysterio also almost got in the line of fire, but he managed to make his way out smartly. How far will the Mysterios’ rivalry against Corbin last?
Bayley and Bianca Belair competed in the only female match of the night after Belair defeated The Role Model in a contest last week on SmackDown. Kevin Owens and Roman Reigns, on the other hand, had a very heated exchange without trading any blows.
A few top underutilized Superstars were given a chance to shine during the show just before Royal Rumble. Keeping that in mind, let’s take a look at five things WWE SmackDown got right just before Royal Rumble 2021.
#5 Daniel Byran opened up WWE SmackDown before Royal Rumble with a promise
Roman Reigns has been on top of his game on WWE SmackDown and the creative have trusted him to kick off the show more often than anyone else. However, this week’s SmackDown was kicked off by The Planet’s Champion, Daniel Bryan.
Bryan appeared in his usual face character and spoke about wanting to change his life once again at WrestleMania. He spoke about Superstars like Otis and Chad Gable and put them over by thanking him for getting him in shape.
AJ Styles interrupted Bryan to surprise the WWE Universe. He appeared on SmackDown from RAW as part of the Brand-to-Brand Invitational. Bryan challenged Styles to a match which The Phenomenal One gladly accepted.
Styles pushed Bryan to the mat, and Omos got in the way when Bryan tried to get back at the former WWE Champion. The Planet’s Champion mocked Styles for standing behind the big man too often to end the segment.
Bryan is a phenomenal Superstar who got the chance to make an impact early on. The SmackDown Superstar stands a good chance of winning on Sunday and possibly challenging Roman Reigns for the WWE Universal Championship.
Setting up a match between Styles and Bryan early in the show was the right call as it allowed the viewers to stick around for a great contest.
#4 Bianca Belair picked up a big victory on WWE SmackDown
Last week’s obstacle course on WWE SmackDown saw Bianca Belair outperform Bayley in every way possible. This led to a match between The EST of WWE and The Role Model of SmackDown.
Before the match, Belair claimed that she would win the Women’s Royal Rumble on Sunday. The match started soon after, and Bayley tried to take control of the match early. The former SmackDown Women’s Champion taunted Belair with her braid, causing the newcomer to breakout and attack her.
Belair took advantage from there on and constantly beat down Bayley to stay on top. The Role Model tried to take advantage of Belair’s injured left arm, but could not overpower her.
The EST of WWE finally hit the KOD to pick up a big victory over the former SmackDown Women’s Champion.
The after match segment suggested that things weren’t over between Belair and Bayley, and they’d compete against each other once again soon.
The match was good and the result allows Belair to go into Royal Rumble with a lot of momentum. She is one of the favorites to win on Sunday, and the victory allows her to show that she’s ready for the big stage.
#3 Roman Reigns got under Kevin Owens’ skin on WWE SmackDown
WWE SmackDown Superstars Kevin Owens and Roman Reigns will face each other for the Universal Championship in a Last Man Standing match at Royal Rumble 2021. Both men have had a couple of matches in the recent past, but this match could turn out to be the biggest game-changer in their careers.
WWE showed a video package to remind fans of the history between Reigns and Owens. This led to an interview between The Head of the Table and The Prizefighter which was conducted by Michael Cole.
Owens made it clear that he would continue to get back up on Sunday no matter what happened until he won. Paul Heyman did not want Roman Reigns to waste his words on KO, but Reigns got tired of hearing Owens speak for too long.
The Head of the Table blamed Owen’s father for not raising him the right way and taunted his entire family. Owens kept losing his temper after each sentence uttered by The Tribal Chief. Finally, Reigns switched off his side of the screen to end the interview as KO continued to target Reigns with his words.
SmackDown did an excellent job with the final build without getting the two men physical. Sunday’s match will surely be a big one, and it will allow KO to once again show his great babyface character against the top heel in the company. SmackDown will greatly benefit from this match in the long run.
#2 The chaotic main-event on WWE SmackDown
The interbrand match saw RAW's AJ Styles compete against Daniel Bryan in the final contest of WWE SmackDown. Styles asked Omos to stay in the back for this match as he came out to prove Bryan wrong.
Cesaro joined the SmackDown commentary team and spoke about how he was better than both the men in the ring. Bryan and Styles had a good contest early on before Sami Zayn came out to protest and interrupt the match.
The Phenomenal One took control of the contest from there on and managed to trap Bryan in the Calf Crusher. Daniel Bryan managed to counter and then take down AJ Styles following which he trapped his opponent in the Yes Lock.
Big E soon arrived to attack Zayn outside the ring, and a huge brawl broke out with Shinsuke Nakamura also getting involved. Nakamura and Cesaro almost came to blows before a six-man tag team match took place on SmackDown.
Cesaro teamed up with Zayn and Styles to form a heel team against Nakamura, Bryan, and Big E. After the contest got going, The Miz and John Morrison arrived to attack Nakamura and Big E. Otis walked out to help the babyfaces even the odds.
This led to another disqualification and Miz and Morrison were added to the heel team while Otis joined the faces in a five-on-four handicap match. Sheamus was the next Superstar to come out to make it a five-on-five contest.
Sheamus finally hit Zayn with the Brogue Kick to pick up the victory for his team after a loaded match. The match was fun, to say the least, even though it was chaotic. SmackDown ended their side of things on a high and several top WWE Superstars got a chance to shine ahead of the Royal Rumble.
#1 Braun Strowman returned on WWE SmackDown just in time for Royal Rumble
After the main event match was over on WWE SmackDown, RAW’s Miz and John Morrison continued to assault the babyfaces after the bell. This allowed Braun Strowman to make a surprise return just before Royal Rumble.
Strowman had been off television since after Survivor Series, and he came out looking like a million dollars. The RAW Superstar cleared the ring and then hit a massive powerslam to Cesaro to end the show.
The Monster Among Men’s return was unexpected, and it was well orchestrated on SmackDown. Strowman hinted at his entrance in Sunday’s Royal Rumble, and his inclusion will definitely make the match more enjoyable to watch.
Strowman had a star-making moment at last year’s WrestleMania where he won the WWE Universal Championship, and he could get a major push at Royal Rumble ahead of this year’s WrestleMania event.
The massive final segment allowed both RAW and SmackDown Superstars to show-off their skills and fans can expect one of these eleven men to win the Rumble match.
