What’s the story?
Right ahead of tonight's SmackDown Live, the New Jersey crowd was treated to a dark match where saw Zack Ryder and Breezango defeat Mojo Rawley and The Colons.
In case you didn’t know…
Mojo Rawley and Zack Ryder had been a tag team up until recently called The Hype Bros. They had previously been number one contenders but never got their shot due to Zack Ryder being sidelined due to injury. Upon his return, The Hype Bros could never gather momentum and find their form they had before, which resulted in Zack Ryder saying something needed to change.
That change came in the form of Mojo turning on his partner and defeating him on the pre-show of Clash of Champions on Sunday.
The heart of the matter
This match was pretty big for a few reasons. Zack Ryder got the W on Mojo, even if it did come via a tag match, so we can probably assume this rivalry isn't over - which is probably good for both guys. It's TV time they could both do with, and the heel turn seems to have rejuvinated Mojo Rawley. Zack Ryder is a solid fan favourite, so the losses don't hurt him. Especially since his Intercontinental title win at WrestleMania last year was so monumental that it still lives in our memory - ironically even more so than Mojo's Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal win this year.
The match also marked the return of The Colons. Primo had been sidelined with a pretty serious knee injury until recently. While they've had many gimmicks that just don't seem to have worked out, they are both incredible workers, so it's nice to see them back - although it's not certain where they will fit into SmackDown Live's stacked tag team division.
What’s next?
Well, given that this was a dark match, hopefully we see it on TV next week, or at least see all of these guys given TV time next week as they had none this week.
We don't tend to see much of Breezango in the ring these days, although the Fashion Files has proven to be one of the most over comedy segments in WWE history. The Colons are always technically sound in-ring, but the likely path for them seems to be losing to The Bludgeon Brothers next, as they seem to be the plan for a slow build to the titles.
Mojo and Zack will most likely continue their rivalry in the coming weeks to build to the finale at the Royal Rumble.
Author’s take
If nothing else, it's great to know these guys are getting used, even if just in a dark match. The pre-show slot isn't a bad one either as the crowd is always hot in anticipation of the show starting.
These are six guys who seem to fall short on match time, although Breezango have grabbed the brass ring in backstage segments this year. Hopefully the Colons find their feet and get a gimmick that works for them, although maybe "The Colons" could be just that as their in-ring ability speaks volumes.
We can only hope that the WWE Universe remains invested in Zack v Mojo because it has great potential and could lead to a big pay-off for one or both of them.
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