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WWE SmackDown has lost some momentum over the past few weeks even though some of the best matches of the company have been coming from the Blue brand. Superstars such as Bayley, Sasha Banks, AJ Styles, Drew Gulak, and Matt Riddle have been carrying the brand forward, but some mixed segments are pushing the product back.
Last week’s SmackDown ended with a bizarre “Toast” of Jeff Hardy by his Extreme Rules challenger, Sheamus. This week’s SmackDown started off with the same subject and saw a few interesting matches take place in the middle.
However, a Karaoke Showdown between the women of the brand made things a bit odd overall, and the show managed to end on a high with an incredible performance by Cesaro, Shinsuke Nakamura, and The New Day.
WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions Bayley and Sasha Banks once again tried to keep the flow going, as they continued to prove that they are indeed the top women in the industry.
In this article, we will look at the 5 things WWE got right on this week’s episode of SmackDown.
#5 Jeff Hardy continues to stay on top
Last week’s WWE SmackDown ended with a very bizarre segment where Sheamus hosted the "Toast" of Jeff Hardy. While Sheamus wasn’t present in the arena himself, he appeared via satellite as Hardy took out the waiter in the ring to send a message to The Celtic Warrior.
This week’s SmackDown began with a continuation of the storyline as The Miz and John Morrison hosted Jeff Hardy in the ring. The two heels taunted Hardy and played a video focusing on his real-life struggles and feud against Sheamus.
Miz and Morrison then proposed that Hardy take on Sheamus in a "Bar Fight" at Extreme Rules and Hardy accepted the challenge without thinking twice. He then challenged Miz and Morrison to a match on SmackDown, and Miz accepted the challenge to fight him.
The match was standard and saw the two men trade action before Hardy went through his routine moves and hit the Twist of Fate, which was countered by Miz. He was preparing for the Swanton Bomb when Sheamus appeared on the screen to distract him. However, Hardy still managed to pick up the victory by reversing The A-Lister’s roll-up pin.
What does the future hold for Jeff Hardy?
While the entire storyline isn’t going very smoothly, considering that Hardy is being portrayed as the underdog even though he is a future top Championship candidate, it is good to see him stack up victories thanks to this storyline.
However, it is not certain as to what the future holds for Hardy as there have been reports stating that he might be close to leaving the company.
The manner in which his encounter with Sheamus pans out at Extreme Rules will give us a clearer idea about his future with the company.
#4 Lacey Evans’ heel turn
Arguably the oddest segment on this week’s SmackDown saw a Karaoke Showdown between Lacey Evans, Dana Brooke, Tamina, and Naomi. Jey Uso was out in the middle to host the contest, as all four women sung songs related to the legends of WWE.
Naomi seemed like the finest performer and was given a big cheer by the limited crowd in attendance. However, this did not sit well with Evans who quickly turned and attacked The Glow, before a match between the two women was set.
However, the match couldn’t head anywhere as Tamina and Brooke also got involved in the contest leading to a brawl.
A backstage segment followed by a tag team match would have done better on WWE SmackDown
While the entire segment did not help any of the women in the ring, Evans’ turn was the best thing to have come out of this episode. This turn will likely help Evans rise back to prominence.
She could turn out to be the next challenger for the SmackDown Women’s Championship once Cross and Bliss are done with their rivalry. At the same time, a rivalry with Naomi could help the Superstar get back in the zone and become a regular on SmackDown again.
#3 Matt Riddle’s continued push
Matt Riddle wasn’t present on this week’s SmackDown but the Intercontinental Champion AJ Styles was. He was interviewed backstage as he spoke about his victory over Daniel Bryan’s coach Drew Gulak in last week’s Intercontinental Championship match.
At a time when Styles thought no one was worthy enough to challenge him, he was told that Matt Riddle would be challenging him for the Intercontinental Championship on next week’s SmackDown.
Matt Riddle has already become a big deal on WWE SmackDown
This did not sit well with the heel who was defeated by Riddle when he debuted on SmackDown last month. This was a good way to build a Championship match between Riddle and Styles at a time when fans are waiting to see The Original Bro get a massive push on the main roster.
Riddle hasn’t had a single’s Championship run in WWE yet and it seems like he will have at least one single’s title to his name by the end of the year.
While there’s a chance that Baron Corbin will interfere and ruin the match between Riddle and Styles next week, it will still help The Bro show what he’s got and set him up for future title matches.
#2 Bayley and Sasha Banks continue to dominate
Nikki Cross was full of energy this week on SmackDown as she and Alexa Bliss prepared to take on the WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions, Bayley and Sasha Banks. Cross jumped on Bayley’s back before the match could begin and Banks had to save her friend from a two-on-one attack.
The match officially started soon after and Cross looked to show Bayley what she was planning to do to the SmackDown Women’s Champion at Extreme Rules when the two women compete for the SmackDown Women’s title.
The two teams had a good battle, with Cross running riot through the course of the encounter. The Role Model stole a victory for her team when she snuck in with a pin with her foot on the ropes.
Does Nikki Cross have what it takes to become the next WWE SmackDown Women's Champion?
This was a good way to build Bayley and Banks further as heels against two of SmackDown’s biggest babyfaces. Bayley and Banks have been shining bright since the absence of Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair, and they’ve proven that they can do more than anyone else in the company when given the chance.
As for Cross and Bliss, it seems like they will be sticking together for longer and Cross may just end up picking a surprise victory at Extreme Rules to turn the tables for some time.
#1 Cesaro and Shinsuke Nakamura engage in a solid battle with The New Day
Cesaro and Shinsuke Nakamura had a huge opportunity set for this week’s show as they were up against The New Day for the SmackDown Tag Team Championships. The heel duo isolated Kofi Kingston early in the match and kept him down while keeping Big E out of the action for some time.
Cesaro showed phenomenal skills in this match and his extraordinary strength was the highlight of the encounter. Chaos ensued in the ring soon after and once the referee realized that he’d lost control of the situation, he called for the bell to end the contest without a result. The segment wasn’t done yet as the heels continued to beat down the babyfaces before some weapons were brought into the mix.
Will we have new WWE SmackDown Tag Team Champions soon?
Big E was set up on a table before Cesaro hit Kofi with a powerbomb through Big E and the table. This likely signaled towards a rematch between the two teams at Extreme Rules.
The entire segment was focused around building up The Artist and The Swiss Cyborg as real threats to the SmackDown Tag Team Champions, and we could well see them rule the SmackDown tag team division in the coming weeks.
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