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WWE SmackDown did not have too many matches this week. But a couple of big segments helped the creative team deliver another solid episode on the Road to WrestleMania 37.
Intercontinental Champion Big E returned to issue another open challenge on SmackDown after Apollo Crews did not show up at his command. Murphy got a chance to compete against Cesaro in a rematch after losing to him during last week’s episode.
An eight-man tag team match helped SmackDown showcase its tag team division's strength and possibly build towards the next match for the SmackDown Tag Team Championships. Reginald’s antics cost Bianca Belair and Sasha Banks a tag team match against Tamina and Natalya. The result surprised several members of the WWE Universe.
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It looks like the creative team is working hard to create a divide between Belair and Banks before WrestleMania. Both Superstars have been portraying babyface characters, and the race is on to make their rivalry more interesting.
Many storylines developed properly during this week’s SmackDown. Let’s take a look at the five things WWE got right during the episode.
#5 Edge and Daniel Bryan had a great interaction to kick off WWE SmackDown
Once again, WWE SmackDown kicked off with the Universal Championship storyline. Edge arrived to talk about Roman Reigns and Daniel Bryan early on in the show. The Rated-R Superstar accused Reigns of distracting himself with a rivalry against Daniel Bryan.
Edge then called out Bryan for claiming that he deserved to main event WrestleMania more than the WWE Hall of Famer. The Ultimate Opportunist told The Yes Man that he shouldn't have questioned his love for wrestling.
This led to Bryan's appearance, who to respect Edge and saw what wrestling meant to him. However, Bryan said he would do anything to get one last shot at main-eventing WrestleMania.
When Edge saw what main-eventing WrestleMania meant to Bryan, the Hall of Famer said he expected better from The Yes Man before walking off in disgust.
Smackdown's creative team has been doing a great job with the Universal Championship storyline. On the one hand, Roman Reigns has been the top heel in the company. Meanwhile, Bryan and Edge are doing extremely well to get a chance to face The Tribal Chief and take the title away from him.
The entire scenario has helped WWE give some veterans a chance to shine on the Road to WrestleMania.
#4 A good eight-man tag team match took place on WWE SmackDown
The Street Profits and The Mysterios teamed up this week to compete against The Alpha Academy and the WWE SmackDown Tag Team Champions. It was good to see Dolph Ziggler and Robert Roode return to the ring after they competed on SmackDown a month ago.
The heels attacked the babyfaces while they were making their way to the ring, and the match started soon after. The heels kept control of the contest, as Ziggler and Roode kept Dominik Mysterio down for some time.
A hot tag from Dominik to Rey Mysterio sparked a babyface comeback and allowed the momentum to shift. After some action, Dominik and Rey hit a double 619 to The Glorious One.
Roode made the tag to Otis, but Montez Ford was able to take Roode down soon after with a great splash to pick up the victory. As a whole, the match was good and showcased four SmackDown tag teams in the same contest.
However, a match between The Street Profits and the SmackDown Tag Team Champions should take place before WrestleMania 37. Meanwhile, SmackDown's creative team could give The Mysterios an opportunity for the tag team titles at The Show of Shows.
#3 Seth Rollins took out his frustration on Cesaro during WWE SmackDown
Seth Rollins hasn’t had the best of times since his return to WWE SmackDown. Rollins was asked about being taken on a ride on the Cesaro Swing a couple of weeks ago, and he lost his cool.
Cesaro competed against Murphy once again this week after making him tap out last week. The Swiss Superman showed off his strength in the ring, and Rollins arrived to watch the match from the stage.
After punishing The Juggernaut, Cesaro decided to take him on the Cesaro Swing. The Messiah entered the ring to attack The Swiss Superman and cause a disqualification.
Rollins lost his composure and delivered two curb stomps to Cesaro. The Messiah then trapped The Swiss Cyborg's head between a steel chair and set up to deliver another curb stomp before officials arrived to pull him away.
Backstage, Rollins was confronted by Shinsuke Nakamura who glared at him to end a great segment. Rollins and Cesaro could end up having an epic rivalry that may take Cesaro to the top of SmackDown.
The aforementioned attack will likely keep Cesaro out for a few weeks and allow Rollins to work with Cesaro’s former partner, Nakamura. Rollins can unload his frustrations on The Artist before Cesaro returns to take the fight to Rollins on the Road to WrestleMania.
#2 Big E defeated Sami Zayn on WWE SmackDown
Big E returned during WWE SmackDown and cut a passionate promo on Apollo Crews. The Intercontinental Champion was attacked by Crews a few weeks ago and had been away from the ring ever since.
He wanted to give Crews one final shot at the Intercontinental Championship, something that he thought Crews deserved. When Crews did not respond in any capacity, Big E then issued an open challenge for the title on SmackDown, which was answered by King Corbin.
However, Corbin took his time coming down to the ring, and Sami Zayn swooped in to answer the challenge instead. During the match, Zayn went after Big E’s ribs and tried to weaken the big man early on.
Big E recovered to plant The Master Strategist and did not let him escape from the ring. A Sunset Flip from Zayn almost awarded him with the victory, but Big E kicked out of the pinfall attempt. Zayn slapped the Champion repeatedly after he lost his cool. This set off Big E who delivered the Big Ending to Zayn for the victory.
After the match, Crews arrived on SmackDown to attack the Intercontinental Champion once again. He took out the Champion with the steel steps.
Big E and Crews will wrestle for the Intercontinental title at Fastlane. The creative team should end their rivalry at the upcoming pay-per-view and not take it as far as WrestleMania, which is just a couple of weeks away.
#1 WWE SmackDown's Universal Championship scenario got even better on the Road to WrestleMania
After Jey Uso's loss to Daniel Bryan on last week's show, the former tried to meet The Tribal Chief on WWE SmackDown this week. However, he was denied access to Roman Reigns' locker room by Paul Heyman.
Later, Edge confronted Uso and told him that he was wasting his time by working as Reigns’ henchman. Uso wasn’t too happy with The Rated-R Superstar’s comments and told him that his family ran the show.
The final segment of SmackDown was reserved for the contract signing between Bryan and Reigns for Fastlane. The Tribal Chief told Bryan that he’d changed his mind and did not want to offer The Yes Man a shot at the title.
However, Bryan called him a coward and pushed Reigns into signing the contract. The Tribal Chief made it clear that he was going to brutalize The Yes Man for good. Uso then threw away the table and claimed that the match needed a special guest referee.
Edge came out just in time to challenge Uso to a match for next week's SmackDown. The match will determine the special guest enforcer for Reigns vs. Bryan at Fastlane. Soon, a brawl ensued and Edge pushed Bryan out of the way. This led to Bryan delivering a running knee to the 2021 Royal Rumble winner at the end of SmackDown.
Another great segment between these four men made things even more interesting for Fastlane and WrestleMania. Bryan has proven to be a bigger babyface than Edge at this point. Fans can expect Edge to win on SmackDown next week and become the special guest enforcer for the Universal title match at Fastlane.
The entire angle could possibly lead to a triple threat match between Reigns, Bryan, and Edge at WrestleMania 37.
