5 Biggest news stories from WWE SmackDown (May 29, 2020)

#1: Daniel Bryan defeated Sheamus to qualify for the final round of the Intercontinental Championship tournament

It will be @AJStylesOrg vs. @WWEDanielBryan in the #ICTitle tournament finals!#SmackDown pic.twitter.com/KMhenQdxcu

— WWE (@WWE) May 30, 2020

After Jeff Hardy and Elias were removed from WWE's Intercontinental Title tournament, a Battle Royal was organized to find a semi-final opponent for Daniel Bryan.

AJ Styles, unlike Daniel Bryan, didn't want to fight anybody on WWE SmackDown this week. As a result, he was allowed to get a free ticket into the final round of this tournament.

Sheamus won the Battle Royal and got a main event spot against Daniel Bryan. If it's not obvious by now, then Corbin and Sheamus had the most to gain from Elias and Hardy's downfall at the beginning of WWE SmackDown this week. Sheamus securing another opportunity for the IC title almost confirmed everyone's suspicions.

In the main event, Sheamus and Bryan had a good contest against each other. Hardy's re-appearance helped Bryan pick up a victory against The Celtic Warrior.

AJ Styles vs. Daniel Bryan was the expected match for the final round of WWE's Intercontinental Title tournament. WWE inserted a massive plot point (Hardy-Elias subplot) to reach the same goal, and even though that plot point can be considered engaging from a technical standpoint, it certainly raised a lot of moral issues on social media.

Wait a minute!#SmackDown @JEFFHARDYBRAND pic.twitter.com/iV7tzHf6Ri

— WWE (@WWE) May 30, 2020