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Big E from WWE SmackDown won the Money in the Bank briefcase on Sunday night and was ready to address the WWE Universe.
Things did not go smoothly for the former SmackDown Tag Team Champion as he was interrupted by Apollo Crews, Bobby Roode, and Dolph Ziggler followed by Cesaro and Shinsuke Nakamura as a brawl broke out.
Toni Storm made her much-awaited SmackDown debut and picked up a victory over Zelina Vega. Angelo Dawkins defeated Chad Gable after a good match while Jimmy Uso picked up a victory over Dominik Mysterio. It seems the Mysterios will remain in the SmackDown Tag Team Championship picture for some time.
But the main focus on SmackDown was the challenge laid down by John Cena and the reply of the Universal Champion, Roman Reigns.
Take a look at the five things WWE got right on SmackDown this week.
#5 John Cena kicked off WWE SmackDown
John Cena came out to a huge reaction from fans as he entered the ring and reiterated his challenge to Roman Reigns for the Universal Championship. The Champ wanted the WWE Universe to decide whose side they were on and what they believed in. He called out The Tribal Chief repeatedly, but to no avail.
Instead, Paul Heyman came out, and said Cena wasn’t worthy of being listened to by the Universal Champion. He also claimed Cena could get his answer later on in the night.
This segment of SmackDown allowed Cena to open the show but not get what he wanted. Heyman has always been great on the mic, and the two men have always had great chemistry.
Heyman's mocking of Cena's entrance theme at the end of the segment was arguably one of the biggest spots of the week.
WWE has always looked to build towards the main event or final segment of the night with the opening segment. This one gave fans something big to look forward to.
#4 Finn Balor competed in his first match back on WWE SmackDown
Finn Balor made his return to WWE SmackDown last week. He confronted Sami Zayn in the ring and took him down with a few signature moves.
This week on SmackDown, Balor got a match against Zayn. The heel tried to keep the upper hand with some dirty tricks and trash-talking before The Prince fought back.
He stomped on Zayn and delivered a dive at ringside to take control of the match. Zayn managed to take down Balor once again and tried to slow him down with a headlock.
The former NXT Champion fought back and delivered a great suplex followed by a double stomp to the chest. He delivered his signature sling blade followed by the Coup de Grace to pick up the victory.
The match wasn’t as great as many of the other matches these two men have competed in. However, it was good to see Balor perform on SmackDown once again and pick up a victory.
Zayn and Balor have the potential to put on an A-grade match when given the chance. They will likely do that if they get an extended rivalry on the Blue brand.
#3 Bianca Belair again defeated Carmella to retain her WWE SmackDown Women’s Championship
Bianca Belair retained her WWE SmackDown Women’s Championship on last week’s show when fans returned to the arena. She once again took on Carmella on this week’s show with the title on the line.
Belair dominated Carmella early and targeted her back. She took 'Mella off the apron and sent her back first into the corner. The Most Beautiful Woman in All of WWE mounted a comeback and looked to get the better of the SmackDown Women’s Champion.
She stayed on the attack for some time before Belair turned the tides once again. She took Carmella down with a shoulder tackle and weakened her before hitting Kiss of Death for the victory.
Belair celebrated in front of a huge audience to end the segment. This was another good victory for her. With Bayley and Sasha Banks out of the picture, SmackDown is finding it tough to give The EST some good competition.
However, the arrival of Toni Storm will also help the brand build some big storylines.
#2 Edge vented his frustration on Seth Rollins on WWE SmackDown
Edge made his way out on WWE SmackDown to a big pop. The WWE Hall of Famer addressed what went down on Sunday night in his match against Roman Reigns.
He reminded that WWE Universe that he was in The Brood and The Ministry of Darkness, and that he would go to any extent to get what he wanted. Seth Rollins then came out and got in Edge’s face.
The Messiah said that he wasn’t ready to let Edge or John Cena jump the line and take his opportunity. He said he wouldn’t hesitate at all at the opportunity to put Edge down and out forever.
Edge backed up on his words, attacking Rollins to make a statement. The Architect escaped in time to avoid a Spear from The Rated-R Superstar.
WWE did well to build this segment on SmackDown. The rivalry between the two men will likely lead to the brand’s second-biggest match at SummerSlam.
This is a dream match, and it will be interesting to see whose favor the outcome will go in at the Biggest Party of the Summer.
#1 Finn Balor entered the Universal Championship picture on WWE SmackDown
Roman Reigns came out for the final segment of WWE SmackDown and addressed the challenge John Cena made.
Reigns mocked the 16-time World Champion and said that Hollywood fooled him. He claimed that this was the same Cena we’ve been watching for the last 15 years. He went on to deny Cena a Universal Championship match, following which Finn Balor made his way out to the middle.
Balor got in the SmackDown ring with Reigns and issued a challenge of his own for the Universal Championship. The WWE Universe erupted into chants of “Roman’s scared” before The Tribal Chief accepted Balor’s challenge.
The Prince is back on SmackDown and has immediately made his way to the Universal Championship picture. While things could get ugly for Balor in the weeks to come, it's good to see that WWE is ready to experiment with its bookings on the Blue brand.
Most fans were convinced that a match between Reigns and Cena could take place at WWE SummerSlam, but Balor’s arrival has changed things. Will the company stretch the tension between Reigns and Cena beyond SummerSlam?
