While Raw was primarily focused on building towards its PPV Hell in a Cell this Sunday, this week’s edition of Smackdown Live was based on laying the groundworks for Survivor Series, which is still far away on November 20th. High stakes were present in most matchups, as the women, tag teams and men fought for their place at the PPV.
Nikki Bella and Natalya clashed to see who would be Captain of the blue brand’s women’s team at Survivor Series. The Hype Bros faced The Ascension for an opportunity to represent Team Blue in the tag team scene. Dean Ambrose attempted to regain his status as number one contender for the WWE World Championship.
These matches and more were the basis of this week’s episode of Smackdown Live. Was it able to outdo Raw’s go-home show for Hell in a Cell? Let’s find out, as I Analyse and Grade each segment from the October 25th edition of Smackdown Live.
Bray Wyatt vs Kane (No Disqualification Match):
Grade: 7/10
This match was a little short, but it was a decent opener for the show, with the No DQ stipulation enticing fans more than a regular one-on-one matchup. Kane and Wyatt’s hard-hitting, smash mouth brawls are always fun to see, but unfortunately, the one-on-one brawling was cut off by Harper before it could get started.
Also read: Best and Worst of Smackdown Live - 25 October 2016
Orton’s arrival into the bout was expected, but the surprise RKO on Kane was extremely unexpected. Stating later in a backstage interview that “If you can’t beat them, join them”, Orton’s character is as intriguing as it has been in a while. The aftermath of this segment will be something to look out for next week.
Wyatt picking up another win keeps his momentum flowing as well, with future Orton-Wyatt segments finally gaining some significant intrigue. Overall, a solid match and win for Wyatt, as well as a shock attack from Orton that leaves fans interested for next week’s show.
Becky Lynch Returns to Smackdown Live:
Grade: 8/10
This rivalry hasn’t missed a beat, even with Lynch’s injury. Lynch remains the defiant, underdog babyface despite her absence, yet to prove her worth against her challenger. Bliss is the arrogant, aggressive challenger, who diminishes Lynch’s accomplishments, claiming she is a coward.
Bliss’ heel work on the mic continues to get better every week, and she is arguably the best women’s heel in WWE alongside Charlotte. A vicious attack targeting Lynch’s back was all that was needed to gain Bliss some significant heat, and she was the star of this segment with her strong heel antics.
Although this was meant to be Becky’s big return, Alexa Bliss was the one who gained noteworthy momentum.
The Hype Bros vs The Ascension:
Grade: 6.5/10
Rather than boring fans with a pointless match between these two teams with nothing on the line, this bout was given high stakes, with the winners gaining the opportunity to represent Smackdown Live at Survivor Series. Due to this stipulation, this bout was given life, as fans suddenly cared about who came out on top.
Although it was obvious that The Ascension wouldn’t win, it was splendid to see Ryder and Rawley earn a solid victory.
If given a decent-enough push, The Hype Bros could be a strong team in the division moving forward. The match was nothing special and was relatively short, but the high stakes win for Ryder and Rawley gave this some significance moving forward, which is something you can’t say for some tag team matches on Raw.
Nikki Bella vs Natalya:
Grade: 7.5/10
This was a much better bout than expected, and the two women were given a substantial amount of time to work with.
The stipulation that the winner would be Captain for the Smackdown Women’s team at Survivor Series did increase the significance of the bout, but wouldn’t it have been more fitting for the Smackdown Women’s Champion or the number one contender to be given a chance to captain the team?
Nonetheless, Nikki Bella earned a solid victory using a modified version of the STF, which was a nice nod to her boyfriend John Cena after his prominence in her promo last week.
Natalya is one of the most underutilised women on the roster, and hopefully, WWE notice that sooner rather than later and give her a significant program to work with, as she can wrestle some stellar matches. Carmella’s attack made sense after last week’s heated exchange on the mic, and it continues the bad blood between Bella and Carmella.
Overall, a splendid women’s match that also led to the Bella-Carmella rivalry continuing for the time being.
Smackdown Tag Team Championship Match: Rhyno and Heath Slater vs The Spirit Squad:
Grade: 7/10
Instead of furthering the hottest feud on Smackdown Live between the Miz and Dolph Ziggler with a lone segment, they were shoved into the background as the tag teams took centre stage. Combining these two rivalries together has done little for either one, and future segments involving the Intercontinental Title should only feature Miz and Ziggler.
The match between Slater and Rhyno and the Spirit Squad was decent enough for what it was but didn’t stand out as anything special compared to other matches on the show. Rhyno and Heath Slater thankfully picked up the clean victory, and can hopefully move on to a bigger feud with a more high-profile team.
Overall, a decent match, but a poor combination of rivalries into one segment rather than letting each one shine (especially Miz vs Ziggler).
Dean Ambrose vs AJ Styles (If Ambrose wins, he is Number 1 Contender):
Grade: 9/10
This was a fast-paced, high-octane bout that had the crowd hot throughout. The near falls, crazy spots (AJ’s Moonsault Inverted DDT), and involvement of James Ellsworth all kept the fans enticed throughout the matchup, and the developed chemistry between Ambrose and Styles is obvious.
Ellsworth seemed to be too much of a focus at the beginning, but the focus quickly shifted onto the two competitors, as they had one of the best matches in recent weeks on either Raw or Smackdown.
Also read: WWE News: What happened after Smackdown went off air?
Ellsworth costing Ambrose the win could be the beginning of a slow-burn to a heel turn for Dean, who was visibly angry at Ellsworth after causing a disqualification. Rather than souring the wonderful match, the Ellsworth finish seemed to play into the story perfectly, as Ambrose’s allowance for Ellsworth to be in his corner backfired.
Overall, a very strong main event that highlighted the stellar chemistry between Styles and Ambrose, as well as slowly continuing the storyline involving all three men and the WWE World Championship.
Overall Grade for this week’s Smackdown Live: 8/10
For latest WWE News, live coverage and rumours visit our Sportskeeda WWE section. Also if you are attending a WWE Live event or have a news tip for us drop us an email at fightclub (at) sportskeeda (dot) com.
