The biggest winners and losers of last night's SmackDown (October 9)

Last night's SmackDown was a disappointing showing compared to Raw (an unusual occurrence). It was even more disappointing when you consider that the show's 1000th edition will come next week. Following the Charlotte Flair vs. Becky Lynch match which ended in a draw as anyone could have expected, the rest of the show simply coasted along.

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The confusion of building to two separate events - Evolution and Crown Jewel five days later, probably had something to do with this.

And if I have to hear "the World Cup to determine the best in the world" one more time, I'd simply prefer to watch the entire show on mute. But I digress.

Who picked up momentum after last night's episode and who lost it?

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Loser: Samoa Joe

Hot off the heels of a devastating loss to AJ Styles in Australia, Samoa Joe took a loss to Jeff Hardy when trying to qualify for the World Cup (which somehow has four Americans in the tournament already).

Sure, Samoa Joe's injured leg was given as an excuse for the defeat, but this match further gives one the impression that Samoa Joe can never win when it actually matters. He carries such authenticity to him that it's hard to deny him, but this has to have taken a toll on his credibility now.

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Winner: The Miz

As should have been obvious after the way he lost in Australia, The Miz is sticking around the WWE title picture. He played a great antagonist between Styles and Bryan last night and could act as a fine spoiler for what many people consider to be a dream match.

He was emphatic that he gets the next shot and did everything in his power to get under the skin of both men who came to Miz TV. Sometimes, he was even successful in this.

Miz has not only kept himself relevant in the face of a lopsided defeat, but arguably has more buzz than his two competitors.

Loser: Aiden English

As we expected, the infidelity angle didn't pan out as Aiden English expected, but the point of him trying to blackmail Rusev into letting him team with the Bulgarian Brute again was an interesting point that could have led somewhere.

Now, this feud will probably stray along typical WWE formulaic lines, and once it's over, Aiden English will no doubt fall down into obscurity. Rusev probably won't gain anything from it in the long run, either.

Loser: Randy Orton

The Big Show main eventing in 2018.

Sure, Randy Orton won, but this was by far the least interesting he's been and the worst he's looked since making his heel turn in the summer. He qualifies for the World Cup tournament, but he seems out of place there, and the tournament doesn't have interesting people for him to feud with and sustain this momentum.

A win would arguably put him in title contention, but is that the likeliest outcome? Somehow, I think not.