5 Superstars who have defined SmackDown

#1 AJ Styles

SmackDown was truly the house that AJ Styles built

They didn't call The Champ That Runs The Camp for nothing.

After finally making a long-awaited move to the WWE in 2016, some fans were worried just how the company would book AJ Styles.

But feuds with Roman Reigns and John Cena helped to dispel those fears, and he was soon on his way to SmackDown as part of the re-splitting of the roster that year.

In the two and a half years he was running Tuesday nights, he helped to rebuild a brand that had struggled over the previous years with the dissolution of the brand split.

He would defeat Dean Ambrose at the first Smackdown exclusive PPV Backlash to win his first WWE Championship. His second reign - which started in November the next year - would last for nearly an entire year.

Sandwiched between both of these, he was able to work top-quality matches with the likes of Tye Dillenger, Baron Corbin, Kevin Owens and even Shane McMahon! His match with the so-called Best in the World was one of the highlights of WrestleMania 33.

Despite criticisms that his latter reigns got stale in terms of bookings, there is no denying that The Phenomenal One was still able to deliver in bouts against Shinsuke Nakamura and Samoa Joe despite creative stifles.