Raw ended with a crash this week, quite literally. The entire ring collapsed under the weight of the main event between The Big Show and Braun Strowman. The combined weight of the people who are in the ring tomorrow, vying for Randy Orton’s championship, may be far greater than that of the two monsters. What craziness will ensue when they lock horns?
We do not have all the answers, but at best can give you a glimpse of the madness that is in store for you when SmackDown comes to the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville, Kentucky, this week.
Follow: WWE SmackDown Results April 18th 2017, live updates
#5 Strange contenders in a stranger main event
While we were watching Raw and witnessing the strange aftermath of Braun Strowman’s wrath, we were witness to an even stranger announcement for SmackDown. Six men will be vying for Randy Orton’s WWE Championship on SmackDown. These include Sami Zayn, Luke Harper, Erick Rowan, Jinder Mahal, Dolph Ziggler and Mojo Rawley. No, we’re not making this up.
Of the lot, the only viable contenders for a championship match against Randy Orton are Sami Zayn and Luke Harper. Well, Dolph Ziggler too, if this was maybe 2011. If you genuinely believed that creative has no plans for Finn Balor, look how confused they are with regard to their WWE Champion.
First a House of Horrors Match, something that reportedly WWE is confused about. Then this embarrassment of a Number 1 contender’s match. Although to be honest, we wouldn’t mind either Zayn or Harper getting elevated to main event status as a direct consequence of this opportunity. Let's hope it is not Mojo Rawley, all said!
#4 A dream feud begins
With due apologies to Okada, Omega and Naito, there is probably no better wrestler in the ring, across the world, than AJ Styles right now. At the same time, there's no better combination of talking smack (no pun intended) and laying the smackdown in the ring than ‘The Face of America’ Kevin Owens. The two men collide in a clash that is guaranteed to make many internet wrestling community members weep tears of sheer joy.
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Last week, the premise of this feud was set in stone in an exciting three-way Number 1 Contenders Match, between AJ Styles, Sami Zayn, and Baron Corbin. The AJ-KO feud officially begins this week, and we can only imagine the treat that’s in store for fans of the two talented men. It should be as picture-perfect as the collaboration between a gifted guitarist and a talented drummer, to create the perfect piece of music for the world at large.
#3 Will Lana become even more ravishing?
One of the things that piqued out interest last week was the fact that Lana and Rusev were not mentioned together, during the Superstar Shake-Up. Sure, they're on the same brand, but their names were mentioned separately. We’ve heard that Lana has been training to get in the ring for some time now.
Does this mean that she finally gets her push as an in-ring competitor then? Will she make her SmackDown Live debut this week, long before Rusev? Will she drop her accent and Russian gimmick, in this brand new avatar? So many questions and only a few remaining hours until they are all answered!
#2 It’s a New Day, yes it is!
While it may have seemed like an on-screen angle, Kofi Kingston did legitimately undergo ankle surgery. This still leaves 2/3rds of the New Day as the brand new tag team to debut in the brand, and challenge The Usos for their prize.
Yes, we’ve seen these men collide before, but the Usos were babyfaces while The New Day were the heels. This time the dynamics have been reversed for good and the outcome should be rocking indeed!
If any division in WWE needed fresh life to be injected into it, to revive it and make it relevant again, it is the SmackDown tag team division. The New Day can fit the role, and take the brand to brand new heights! Let’s feel the power, in just a few hours.
#1 The hottest debut in sports entertainment
Shinsuke Nakamura was an international superstar, even before he stepped foot in WWE. The King of Strong Style then proceeded to make NXT his own brand and entertain us with a variety of really good matches, and more swag than the rest of the locker room combined.
He’s received an ovation in the main roster that any debutant can only hope for, and has been making waves with some hard hitting dark matches against Dolph Ziggler. Will Nakamura make his televised debut this week then? Let’s find out as SmackDown Live hits our screens.
All said and done, we’re far more excited about this show than about Raw, even though the latter did deliver. SmackDown has been more consistent and we know it will raise the bar, come Tuesday Night.
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