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This week’s episode of WWE SmackDown had its fair share of bizarre moments. While the show allowed some of its deserving Superstars to shine, it also caused big blunders involving other top names. Between the end of few feuds and the continuations of some, the Blue brand seemed torn between its essential storylines.
In this article, we will take a look at Superstars who impressed us on WWE SmackDown this week and those who didn’t. So, without further ado, let’s begin.
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#1 Impressed on WWE SmackDown: Cesaro
This week on WWE SmackDown, Cesaro locked horns with Daniel Bryan in a brutal singles match. Last month, both these Superstars had delivered a memorable in-ring encounter, and this week, they managed to follow it up with an intense battle. The creative also used this match to confirm Cesaro’s face turn on the Blue brand.
The match between Cesaro and Bryan was very well-balanced as both Superstars relied on their respective strengths. They first started out with engaging in an extremely technical to-and-fro that led to fantastic counters. Following that, their match gradually started to pick pace as it progressed on WWE SmackDown.
Soon, Bryan used a few back-to-back blows to gain complete control of the match. Cesaro took a lot of punishment before he managed to overcome the challenge posed by his opponent. We saw some of the exciting maneuvers unfold before this match on WWE SmackDown witnessed an unfortunate spot.
During the match, Bryan accidentally clipped Cesaro that caused his head to bleed from the side. However, he refused to let that stop him from delivering his best inside the ring. Eventually, Cesaro forced Bryan to tap out and pick a huge win on WWE SmackDown. Following the match, he offered to bump his fist, and Bryan obliged.
We also saw Shinsuke Nakamura watching this match backstage as he was concerned about Cesaro. It appears that the latter is finally going to get a push on WWE SmackDown and it is something that he has deserved for a very long time. We hope to see the creative make use of this momentum and allow Cesrao to eventually challenge for the gold.
#1 Flopped on WWE SmackDown: Roman Reigns
Before anything else is said about this entry on our list, let us establish that the WWE SmackDown creative made a huge mistake on the show tonight. This is the first time Roman Reigns looked less than interesting on the Blue brand ever since he turned heel and it’s the writing that should be blamed for this one.
He opened the show and demanded Edge to convey his decision during the main event of WWE SmackDown. It started well as fans were already anticipating a plausible Spear vs. Spear match at WrestleMania. In the closing moments of the show, we saw Edge and Roman Reigns come face to face, and we were hoping that at least one WrestleMania title bout will be confirmed on the show.
Edge started by calling out Roman Reigns’ backup that led to The Tribal Chief sending off Jey Uso and Paul Heyman. Soon after that, Kevin Owens came from behind and delivered a stunner that left Roman Reigns inside the ring. Now, we thought that rivalry has ended with their brutal match at Royal Rumble, but that did not appear to be the case on WWE SmackDown this week. Also, why would Roman Reigns ask Jey Uso to leave when he is literally his biggest back-up on the show. Since when did he start paying heed to people (Edge) questioning his methods?
Kevin Owens has already challenged Roman Reigns for the Universal Championship three times. Reigns has retained that title three times, and now the fans would like to see something different on WWE SmackDown. It is true that Reigns is yet to pick a clean victory over Owens, but we have seen them involved in an extended feud. It would be better for the creative to revisit this rivalry in the coming months instead of dragging it until the fans lose their interest.
#2 Impressed on WWE SmackDown: Big E
On WWE SmackDown this week, Big E successfully retained his Intercontinental Championship in a triple threat match against Apollo Crews and Sami Zayn. This match was entertaining throughout its duration. But most importantly, it did well in establishing Big E as a credible champion on the Blue brand.
Big E did well in dealing with both Zayn and Crews at the same time on WWE SmackDown. He tackled Zayn’s sneaky attempts to pin the champion while successfully finding a way to deal with Crews’ strength and pace. Overall, the match was engaging and made Big E look like a huge threat on the roster without making either of his opponents look weak inside the ring.
This title defense might allow Big E to move on and look for other opponents on WWE SmackDown. He deserves to be involved with a lot more good opponents before he eventually drops the Intercontinental Championship. It will be interesting to see who will be the next Superstar that can challenge Big E for his title.
#2 Flopped on WWE SmackDown: Ruby Riott
Ruby Riott locked horns with Bayley on WWE SmackDown this week. Their singles match was underwhelming, and it ended with Riott taking a loss against her opponent. While the result of this match was understandable, the rest of this encounter was very off-putting for several reasons. It portrayed Ruby Riott in extremely weak light.
Bayley looked like a dominant force, but she is not the one who needs to enter the title picture in the immediate future. However, that is not the case with Riott. The creative are actively trying to establish her and Liv Morgan as a big threat to the Women’s Tag Team Championships but that idea looks far from convincing if Riott takes such losses on WWE SmackDown.
Even if Bayley had to win this match on WWE SmackDown, at least the match could have been a little longer. In addition to that, it could have allowed Ruby Riott to dominate the battle for at least some time. She looked far from a good challenge, and somehow, Billie Kay came across as the most entertaining part of this match.
#3 Impressed on WWE SmackDown: Dominik Mysterio
King Corbin has been feuding with the Mysterio family on WWE SmackDown for a few weeks now. Corbin was particularly agitated this time because Dominik Mysterio eliminated him from the Royal Rumble match on Sunday. This led to a singles match being booked between King Corbin and Dominik Mysterio with the latter coming out on top.
In his bid to gain an early advantage, King Corbin attacked Rey and Dominik Mysterio as they made their way to the ring. He then brawled with Dominik Mysterio and dragged him inside the squared circle to kickstart their match on WWE SmackDown. The two Superstars then took turns to dominate their battle until Rey Mysterio walked back to the ringside.
In the match's closing moments, we saw Rey Mysterio grab onto Corbin’s legs from underneath the ring. This led to Dominik Mysterio delivering a few vicious blows before he eventually picked his victory. Given how Corbin excels at cheating his way to a victory against his opponents, it was interesting to see him taste his own medicine on WWE SmackDown this week.
Ex WWE writer blasts Liv Morgan HERE
