5 unexpected things that happened on Raw & SmackDown Live this week

With a constant dip in ratings, WWE had to do something to increase their viewership before losing out on some fans.

Vince and the team usually end up taking drastic measures to correct the viewership of their product as its the bread and butter of their company.

With the Money in the Bank pay-per-view on the horizon, the creatives tried to do just that by making some of the most surprising and unexpected segments and bookings on both Raw and SmackDown this week.

We saw many unexpected matches with a few even turning out to be dream ones. Apart from that, a couple of WrestleMania 35 rematches were also scheduled by Vince on Raw this week.

In this article, we will look at the 5 unexpected things that happened on the two main shows, and what impact it might have on the product going forward.

---

#5 Braun Strowman chased down Sami Zayn

Sami Zayn continued his ace work on the mic from a few weeks ago and appeared on Monday Night Raw to address the fans once again.

Just like he’s done in the past, he spoke about everything that has been going around in the WWE recently, including announcements from Mr. McMahon earlier in the night, the WrestleMania rematches, and criticized the WWE Universe for its criticisms.

While we were expecting Zayn to end another promo without facing any problems, he met with the biggest problem that exists in WWE instead.

Braun Strowman’s music hit, and The Monster Among Men stormed down the ramp as Zayn abandoned the ring and escaped through the same fans he spent minutes criticizing, only for a rushing Strowman to cut him off.

It was completely unexpected to watch the big man target Zayn once again, as the two have had a long-running rivalry in the past. If WWE goes ahead with a feud between the two men again, then a decisive winner would after the other superstar’s image in the company.

Strowman ended the segment last night by slamming Sami Zayn into a dumpster.

#4 New SmackDown Live Tag Team Champions

The Hardy Boyz relinquished their SmackDown Tag Team Championships after an injury to Jeff Hardy sustained at the hands of Lars Sullivan required surgery.

With the titles lying vacant, it was up to Shane McMahon to announce who would hold the titles, or set up a match between some teams. He took the former route and announced Daniel Bryan and Rowan would be the new champions, but The Usos interrupted to state they wouldn't stand for the heels not earning the titles.

While the move was very unexpected, Shane still went on to set up a match between The Usos and the team of Bryan and Rowan for the SmackDown Tag Team Championships.

Rowan picked up the win for his heel team, and thus we now have brand new SmackDown Tag Team Champions.

While the team of Bryan and Rowan is a good one, one wonders what has happened to SmackDown’s tag team division after the Superstar Shake-Up.

#3 Kofi Kingston vs. AJ Styles vs. Sami Zayn

A combination of a match between any two of these three performers could be termed a dream match. Instead, we got to watch all three in action together.

This Tuesday night, AJ Styles made an appearance on SmackDown. He was followed quickly by Sami Zayn, who called out The Phenomenal One for his toxic ego.

Since the face of SmackDown’s men’s roster is a fighting champion, Kofi came out to challenge Styles to a match, even putting his WWE Championship on the line. This was a brave decision made by the leader of The New Day.

Zayn wasn’t impressed and wanted to title shot for himself too. This led to an unexpected booking which no one could have predicted heading into this week’s episode.

After a great match, Kofi was able to defend his title even though Kevin Owens made a surprise appearance to cause a distraction.

#2 Roman Reigns vs. Drew McIntyre

Roman Reigns promised fans last week that he was returning to Raw this week to settle some “unfinished business”. While no one was sure what Reigns was referring to, it was perhaps the booking he got on Raw that made some sense.

Reigns was booked in a WrestleMania 35 rematch for the night against the man he’d beaten, Drew McIntyre.This was an unexpected booking as it did not seem like Reigns had any unfinished business on Raw, and instead, McIntyre got a chance to exact some revenge.

While the match was reaching its conclusion, it seemed like Reigns would pick up the win once again. He did so, but as a result of a disqualification, as Shane McMahon and Elias hit the ring and attacked the superstar in another unexpected move for the night.

The Miz hit the ring from the crowd, using a steel chair to chase off McMahon and Elias. He couldn’t really get his hands on McMahon, as The Prodigal Son jumped into a limousine and hightailed it out of the arena.

#1 The Wild-Card rule

As mentioned earlier, Roman Reigns made his way from SmackDown Live to Raw this week, but many superstars followed him to the red brand.

These superstars included Kofi Kingston, Daniel Bryan, and Lars Sullivan among others.

While the opening segment of the night gave the Chairman of the Board o display his authority once again, he made some interesting decisions for the night.

McMahon announced three things: a wild-card stipulation in which three stars from Raw and three from SmackDown could move freely between the brands, a WWE Championship match between Kingston and Bryan, and Reigns vs. McIntyre.

This unexpected move gives rise to a new opening for the creatives while actively burying the work done through the Superstar Shake-Up. It could also mean that the brand split is coming to an end soon, as the ratings of Raw have suffered heavily in the past few months and don’t seem to be getting any better.

Will the wild card rule help Raw regain some ground?