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This week’s WWE SmackDown had quite a few surprises in store for the fans. The Intercontinental title almost changed hands while we got ourselves new tag team champions. In addition to that, Roman Reigns’ next challenger was determined in a huge Gauntlet Match that also marked Adam Pearce's return to the ring.
In this article, we will take a quick look at the WWE Superstars who impressed us on SmackDown this week and those who did not. So, without further ado, let’s begin.
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#1 Impressed on WWE SmackDown: Roman Reigns
This shouldn’t be a surprise, but it isn’t Roman Reigns' in-ring performance on WWE SmackDown that earned him a spot in this list. Instead, it is his antics that made him the most impressive performer in WWE this week. From issuing an open threat to Adam Pearce to manipulating the situation that would decide his next challenger, The Tribal Chief truly acted like a dominant heel on the show.
In the opening segment of WWE SmackDown, Roman Reigns summoned Adam Pearce. The Universal Champion expressed his disappointment with the WWE official for sanctioning the match between Kevin Owens and Jey Uso last week. However, Reigns quickly pulled himself back from attacking Pearce as he had something else planned.
Later in the episode, Paul Heyman met up with Pearce and informed him that they had pulled the strings backstage, and now, the former NWA World Champion was also added to the Gauntlet Match. It was quite shocking to see the latter make his way to the ring on WWE SmackDown, especially after claiming that he has no intention of fighting inside the squared circle again.
At the end of the Gauntlet Match, Shinsuke Nakamura had defeated Daniel Bryan and prepared for Pearce. That was until Reigns’ music hit, and the Universal Champion walked out with Jey Uso and Paul Heyman. Both Reigns and Uso then viciously attacked Nakamura and laid him out.
Following that, Jey Uso attacked Pearce as well and then put him over Nakamura while Reigns demanded the match official to count to three. As a result, Pearce won the match on WWE SmackDown, and he will now challenge Reigns for the Universal Championship.
Even though he wasn’t booked strongly tonight, let’s not forget that he has an impressive past that speaks volumes about his talent. It will be interesting to see what the creative has in store for this feud over the coming weeks.
#1 Flopped on WWE SmackDown: Sami Zayn
Truth be told, it is borderline criminal to book Sami Zayn on WWE SmackDown in this fashion. It would be unfair to blame him entirely for his current run on the blue brand. Hence, this one is mostly the creative’s fault.
Zayn was one of the contenders in the Gauntlet Match tonight that would determine the next challenger for Roman Reigns.
He walked out to face Rey Mysterio, and while walking down the ramp, Zayn delivered a passionate speech about being unfairly treated in WWE. He led with his usual complaints about the ‘conspiracies’ against him before arguing how he deserves more respect. Unfortunately for him, the next couple of minutes on WWE SmackDown did not help his point.
As soon as Zayn got ready for the match, Mysterio hit him with a 619 before delivering a frog splash. This allowed the latter to pick an easy pinfall while a frustrated Zayn was forced to walk roll outside the ring.
The Great Liberator could have been given a few more minutes to show that he can still pose a threat to the titles on WWE SmackDown. Unfortunately, it now looks like his gimmick is slowly becoming the biggest threat to his in-ring potential.
#2 Impressed on WWE SmackDown: Apollo Crews
Last week on WWE SmackDown, it was confirmed that Apollo Crews would have a shot at Big E’s Intercontinental Championship. Tonight, both Superstars locked horns in an interesting match that played host to a lot of subtleties. Crews finally looked like his old self – the one from early 2020 when he was delivering great matches one after the other.
He looked determined to get his hands on the title at WWE SmackDown and almost dominated Big E throughout their match, or at least until the first pinfall. Crews went for the pinfall after getting the better of the champion, but both Superstars ended up taking the pin simultaneously. The match official believed that it was a draw and handed the title to Big E.
On the other hand, Crews believed that both of Big E’s shoulders were down while one of his shoulders was up. Thus, he was angry about the referee’s decision and ended up slapping Big E. The New Day member demanded the match to continue and ended up defeating Crews to retain his IC Title on WWE SmackDown.
Despite losing the match, Crews came out looking extremely strong tonight. He looked like he could challenge for the title again, and a plausible heel turn will make him look all the more dangerous on WWE SmackDown. It will be interesting to see what’s in store for him on the blue brand.
#2 Flopped on WWE SmackDown: King Corbin
To put it plainly, WWE SmackDown shouldn’t have included King Corbin in the Gauntlet Match tonight. There was no build-up to back him up, and it would have been better to give away his spot to someone else. While Corbin certainly deserves to be used more on WWE SmackDown, it doesn’t help that he is only brought in when the creative struggle to find someone else.
Tonight, he faced Shinsuke Nakamura in an underwhelming encounter. Corbin, who is often booked as a smart heel on WWE SmackDown, struggled to find his foot against Nakamura. Now, some may argue that the latter is an established Superstar who has is arguably one of the better performers in the promotion. However, it is important to remember that even he hasn’t been booked as strongly on the blue brand until this week.
Somehow, the creative seems to have forgotten that Corbin is the current ‘King of the Ring’. He goes missing from the action for weeks at a stretch and then is brought back when someone else needs to get over.
At the time when WWE SmackDown needs good heels in the midcard, they should use Corbin in a better way so that he can be involved in good storylines that will eventually help push other Superstars. He naturally draws heat from the fans – something that should be capitalised upon.
#3 Impressed on WWE SmackDown: Dolph Ziggler and Robert Roode
This week on WWE SmackDown, Dolph Ziggler and Robert Roode challenged the Street Profits for the brand's Tag Team championships. All the Superstars involved in this bout gave their best to deliver a highly entertaining match that ended with Ziggler and Roode finally getting their hands on the titles.
Since we have already seen both these teams lock horns before, the fans did not expect anything out of the world from their in-ring encounter tonight on WWE SmackDown. However, both Ziggler and Roode deserve credit for putting up an impressive performance that made them look better than they have in the past.
This match for the titles did more than enough to get the fans excited about the blue brand's tag team division – something that SmackDown desperately needed. The Street Profits also looked strong, and they were attacked after the match. Thus, we believe that this feud will continue until the creative can identify the next best challengers for Ziggler and Roode.
As for the newly crowned champions, they have put a lot of effort over the last few weeks and deserve a good title reign.
