Who gained the most momentum from SmackDown (December 05, 2018)?

Last night's episode of SmackDown was a solid showing, making most of the key players heading into Clash of Champions and, presumably, the Road to WrestleMania, look good, with a few booking errors.

There were, however, a few notable losers.

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#1 Gained momentum: Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens

The pests were as annoying as ever.

After humiliating Shane McMahon in a very entertaining promo, explaining that he couldn't be punished for attacking Randy Orton on the entrance ramp, as it was out of the ringside area, the SmackDown commissioner put Sami Zayn in a match with Randy Orton. He also put the two of them in a tag team match at Clash of Champions against the Viper and a partner of his choosing.

Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn would go on to get a beating later in the show, with the added stipulation that they would be fired if losing at Night of Champions, but it all shows that the feud with the commish doesn't look to be settling anytime soon, and should indeed last all the way through WrestleMania.

#1 Lost momentum: The New Day

The New Day suffered a surprising loss.

In another bit of puzzling tag team booking, The New Day took a loss to the lowly Rusev and Aiden English, making them look far worse for wear ahead of their high profile title match at Clash of Champions.

Perhaps a swerve is coming, but it didn't seem likely that the New Day would walk out as champions, and now it seems even less likely.

#2 Gained momentum: Rusev and Aiden English

A push for the brute?

Rusev was incredibly over with the crowd last night, and his pre-match promo alongside a singing Aiden English was immensely entertaining.

And in a surprising turn of events, Aiden English and Rusev defeated The New Day ahead of their big title match at Clash of Champions. As a result of the victory, Rusev and Aiden English were added to the match.

Could this be the start of a push of sorts? I welcome such a possibility.

#3 Gained momentum: The Bludgeon Brothers

An academic squash of some local jobbers showed off more of what the Bludgeon Brothers could do, and the SmackDown tag team division should be worried.

They'll no doubt cast their eyes on greater things as WrestleMania draws closer.

#4 Gained momentum: Dolph Ziggler

Dolph Ziggler laid both Baron Corbin and Bobby Roode out during their match on Tuesday, sending a message ahead of their triple threat match at Clash of Champions

It seems likely that this was done only to build Ziggler up before he takes the pin next Sunday, but he still came out of this week's show with momentum.

#2 Lost momentum: The Riott Squad

There was no Riott last night.

Last week, it was apparent that of the three, only Ruby Riott herself is a good talker. Liv Morgan needs a lot of work and Sarah Logan's hick gimmick is turned up too high to be any good.

The trio kind of floated around, getting into a meaningless fight with Tamina and seeming out of place in having no babyfaces to clash with. Aside from destroying everyone, it seems a slapstick group without much of a reason to exist.

While Absolution remains focused on RAW, the Riott Squad meandered this week, and the lack of a victim meant that the stable couldn't paper over its weaknesses.

#5 Gained momentum: Charlotte Flair

Standing tall.

Tamina put forth a valiant effort, but in the end, she tapped to the Figure Eight as soon as it was applied. Escaping a beatdown by the Riott Squad and the former Welcoming Committee, the champ came out strong this week.

Clash of Champions will feature six heels against her, and Carmella still looms with her money in the bank contract, but for now, Charlotte stands head and shoulders above any other individual in the division.

For her sake, she should hope that the Riott Squad and the regulars fight each other on December 17th, rather than her.

#6 Gained momentum: Randy Orton and Shinsuke Nakamura

The Viper teams with the Kind of Strong Style next Sunday.

Randy Orton defeated Sami Zayn in an embarrassing way through the good old roll-up. Zayn would then attack him alongside Kevin Owens.

Shinsuke Nakamura would run down to assist, and he and Orton took the fight to the heels, flattening them. It seemed that Orton had chosen his tag team partner for Clash of Champions.

After a poor showing at Survivor Series, this kind of high-profile spot is welcome for Nakamura. It's a good way for him to heat up for what could be a very big WrestleMania season.

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