SmackDown on Fox Episode #78
SmackDown Episode # 1,127
Orlando, FL – The Thunderdome (Tropicana Field)
3/26/21
We open the show with a recap video of the Universal Championship match at Fastlane and then we go into the Thunderdome where Daniel Bryan makes his way down to the ring carrying a chair.
Bryan says that on Sunday everyone saw the truth which is that Roman Reigns tapped out and that is something that Reigns claimed would never happen and he even said last week that he would rather die than tap out to someone like Bryan, but he has good news which is that Reigns is still alive after tapping out to Daniel Bryan. Bryan then says that in a perfect world he should be standing there as Universal Champion, but instead, Edge decided to hit him with a steel chair which cost him the championship.
Bryan says that everyone is telling him he should just step aside and let Reigns vs Edge happen at WrestleMania, but he is tired of standing on the sidelines after he earned a title match, a championship win, and a spot in the main event of WrestleMania and now he is willing to earn it all over again. Bryan says he doesn’t want to be given the Championship or a spot at WrestleMania rather he wants a Universal Championship match against Reigns tonight so that he can earn the championship and his spot at WrestleMania and he wants that match tonight and he’s not leaving the ring until he gets that match. Bryan unfolds the chair and takes a seat as we go to a commercial break.
We come back to Bryan still in the ring as he continues to wait and eventually Adam Pearce comes out and he tells Bryan that he can’t give him that match tonight, when Bryan tries to protest the decision at Fastlane Pearce tells him the referee’s decision is final and Reigns’ next defense will be at WrestleMania against Edge. Bryan then suggests he face the winner of the Universal Championship immediately after just like Reigns did at Elimination Chamber, but Pearce says that would be unfair and this allows Bryan to call out the double standard which favors Reigns. Bryan then offers up another suggestion which is that Reigns vs Edge happens on the first night of WrestleMania and he faces the winner of that match on the second night.
Edge comes out to cut off Bryan and he is pissed off at the crap that Bryan is trying to pull. Edge says he has sat back and watched Bryan look like the knight in shining armor, but every match could be his last and then says the second night of WrestleMania is 10 years to the day of when he had to retire. Edge says that Bryan had two chances against Reigns and lost both of them while he won the Royal Rumble after outlasting 29 other men including Bryan, so Bryan doesn’t deserve another shot at Reigns at WrestleMania and then he calls Bryan an SOB and this leads to a brawl between the two men. Edge hits Bryan with a Spear and then follows that up with a chair shot before he slides out of the ring and stares intensely at Bryan as we go to our next commercial break.
It was pretty obvious how the direction of the Universal Championship match was going to go after the conclusion of Fastlane, but just because it is predictable doesn’t mean it’s bad as I really enjoyed this segment. I love how at this point so close to WrestleMania both Bryan and Edge are so desperate to make sure they are set up in the best position to be in the Universal Championship match that they are willing to say or do anything it takes to get there and it has really allowed both of them to show shades of gray when it comes to their character as both have logical reasons as to why they should be in the title match, but at the same time while it’s cool to see these sides of each man’s character it does make you wonder who do they want the fans to cheer at WrestleMania since none of the participants are a straight-up babyface. I also love how going into all of this Edge was sane and focussed on the championship but as the weeks have gone by his fear of losing his spot at Mania to Bryan has driven him completely crazy.
We come back from the commercial and get a recap of the opening segment and then we go to the locker room of Roman Reigns who tells Paul Heyman and Jey Uso to go get Adam Pearce and then tells Uso to use force if he needs to.
We go into the Thunderdome and it’s time for our first match of the night.
Match #1: Seth Rollins vs Shinsuke Nakamura
We get a lockup and both men trade side headlocks until Nakamura shoots Rollins into the ropes and catches him with a knee to the gut and then he sends Rollins into the corner where he delivers some forearm shots and good vibrations. Rollins rolls out to the apron to lure in Nakamura and he drops him throat-first across the top rope and then he goes up top but gets cut off by Nakamura who kicks him and then delivers the running knee to a horizontal Rollins laid across the top rope. Nakamura goes out to the floor and pulls Rollins halfway out so that he can deliver a running knee to the chest of Rollins and then he dives off the apron with a knee drop to the back of Rollins’ neck and this sends us to a commercial break.
We come back and Rollins has gained control of the match as Nakamura elbows out of a hold Rollins had him in and then goes off the ropes, but Rollins follows him in and catches Nakamura with a sling blade for a 2 count. Rollins hits Nakamura with some crossface punches and then sends Nakamura into the corner only for Nakamura to comes out and connect with a single-leg dropkick to buy himself some time. Nakamura ducks a clothesline attempt from Rollins and then delivers a flurry of forearms and that is followed by some kicks, Nakamura hangs Rollins across the top rope and hits him with an ax kick to the back of the head and that is followed by a sliding knee to a seated Rollins. Rollins staggers over to the corner and when Nakamura charges in he attempts to get his boots up but Nakamura catches him and spins him around into position for the sliding German suplex which gets a 2 count.
Nakamura brings Rollins into the corner and sets up for another running knee but Rollins avoids this one and Nakamura crashes knee-first into the top turnbuckle and then Rollins nails him with a springboard knee strike which leaves Nakamura out on his feet and Rollins hit him with a falcon arrow for a 2 count. Rollins talks some trash to Nakamura and then looks to send him into the ropes but Nakamura counters and hits Rollins with a spinning wheel kick and then tries for the inverted exploder, but Rollins lands on his feet and charges in only to be caught with the landslide for a very close 2 count. Nakamura sets up for the Kinshasa only for Rollins to dodge it and come back with a big forearm that seems to have dazed Nakamura but when Rollins goes for another punch he is caught by Nakamura with a flying armbar which Rollins breaks by hitting Nakamura with a one-armed powerbomb. Rollins then runs off the ropes and hits Nakamura with the Curb Stomp to pick up the win.
Winner: Seth Rollins via Pinfall Match Rating: **1/2
After the match, Rollins continues his attack on Nakamura until Cesaro runs down to make the save as he takes Rollins down with a gutwrench suplex, and then he beats him down with punches before switching to uppercuts and then he catches Rollins with a pop-up uppercut. Cesaro takes Rollins down with a double leg and then goes for the big swing, but Rollins kicks away and escapes up the ramp. Cesaro checks on Nakamura and then talks some trash to Rollins as the segment comes to an end.
This was yet another good match between Rollins and Nakamura as these two always work really well together. We would later see in the night that the Rollins vs Cesaro match would be made official for WrestleMania which while expected was nice to see it become official as I look forward to seeing Cesaro in a major one-on-one match at WrestleMania as he will prove to everyone he is worthy of that spot and even more.
We go back to the locker room of the “Head of the Table” where Heyman and Uso have returned with Adam Pearce. Heyman goes to thank Pearce for not giving into the pressure Bryan was putting on him earlier in the night, but Reigns cuts him off and then gets in the face of Pearce. Reigns says that they don’t thank Pearce rather Pearce should thank them and then Reigns tells Pearce there will only be one title defense from him happening at WrestleMania. Pearce tells Reigns he understands what he is saying and while he is inclined to agree with him he has other considerations he has to make. Pearce thanks Reigns and tells him that everyone will have his decision by the end of the night.
Big E and the Street Profits make their way to the ring as they will be in action after the break.
We come back and go backstage to Seth Rollins furious at what happened with Cesaro earlier and says he is tired of the disrespect and embarrassment by a failure like Cesaro. Rollins says if Cesaro has the guts to step up and face him then he is challenging him to a match at WrestleMania where he will teach Cesaro about respect.
Out of nowhere, Cesaro attacks Rollins from behind and then gets him in the big swing and when he releases Rollins he skids across the floor. Cesaro then accepts the challenge made by Rollins.
We go back into the Thunderdome for our second match of the night.
Match #2: Big E & The Street Profits vs Apollo Crews & The Alpha Academy
We get a lockup and Dawkins grabs a headlock on Otis and is sent into the ropes where he tries for a shoulder block but Otis doesn’t budge so he leapfrogs over him and connects with a dropkick that stuns Otis and then Dawkins tags in Ford. The Street Profits duck a double clothesline from Otis and then hit him with a double dropkick, but he still won’t go down. Ford runs to the corner and Otis follows but Ford jumps up and over him and then backflips into the center of the ring for a very brief staredown with Otis and then we get a drop-down and leapfrog spot but when Ford jumps up for one of the leapfrogs he is caught in mid-air and is hit with a powerslam.
Otis tags in Gable who takes Ford down with a dragon screw and then drops a knee onto the leg of Ford which causes him to roll out to the apron where he catches Gable with a shoulder to the gut and then when he goes to slingshot over Gable he is caught with a bridging northern lights suplex for a 2 count. Gable tags in Crews who beats down Ford and then sends him into the ropes where he catches him with a back elbow for a 2 count. Crews has words with Big E to entice him into getting into the ring but the referee holds back Big E. Crews attempts a delayed vertical suplex but Ford escapes out the back and connects with a one-legged enziguri to Crews. We get a hot tag on both sides as Big E and Gable are tagged in and Big E catches Gable with the belly-to-belly trifecta followed by the big splash. Big E looks to hit Gable with the Big Ending, but when he goes to grab him Gable grabs a hold of the arm and then hits Big E with a cross chop to the throat. Gable charges in, but is caught with the uranage out of the corner, Big E goes for the cover but it is immediately broken by Crews.
Dawkins hits Crews with a big right hand that sends him out of the ring but then Dawkins is hit with a German suplex and discus clothesline combo from Alpha Academy. Ford goes for a kick but is caught and flipped backward but then he catches Otis with a dropkick that sends him falling to the outside. Gable tries to back suplex Ford to the floor but he lands on the apron and Gable runs to the ropes (where Crews makes a blind tag) and Ford flips back into the ring while Gable slides out of the ring and then Ford takes out Alpha Academy with a tope con hilo to the outside. In the ring, Crews ducks a clothesline from Big E and then hits him with the Olympic Slam to pick up the win.
Winners: Apollo Crews & Alpha Academy via Pinfall Match Rating: **¼
This was a fun little TV match to further the build of the Big E vs Apollo Crews match at WrestleMania while also adding in a bit of hype for two of the teams that could be competing for the tag titles at WrestleMania.
We go to a video recap of everything that happened between Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens last week and then we see both of them walking toward the Thunderdome as the KO Show is up next and Sami Zayn will be his special guest.
We come out of the break and go to the back where Pearce runs into Edge who asks him if he is going to give into Bryan’s pressure and Pearce tells him that he answers to the WWE and not to Reigns, Edge, or Bryan and he has to take everything into account before making a decision. Edge tells him he better make the right decision or else.
We go to the ring as it’s time for the KO Show. KO says that over the past few weeks he has tried to get it through to Zayn that although he doesn’t believe in all of these conspiracy theories that Zayn believes in he has his back, but yet Zayn decided to kick his head off his shoulders last week and now he has a question for Zayn and he calls Zayn out to the ring. Zayn makes KO wait as he quickly grows impatient but Zayn finally makes his presence known and says that he knows what KO wants to ask and yes he is sorry for last week and then he starts to make an excuse for what he did as he says that the whole conspiracy thing has really messed with his head.
When KO tries to tell Zayn that wasn’t what he was looking for Zayn interrupts him and says he knows what KO really wants to ask is whether or not he can still be apart of the documentary and the answer is yes. Zayn then says he is going to drop a bombshell piece of news right now on the KO show which is that next week he will be having a red carpet premiere for the trailer of his documentary which will expose the conspiracy that WWE has against him. KO once again raises his mic to speak but gets cut off before he can say a word as Zayn has more big news which is that Youtube star Logan Paul is into the documentary and will be there live next week at the red carpet premiere.
KO finally gets to speak and he tells Zayn that he doesn’t care about the documentary, Logan Paul, or whether Zayn is sorry for last week or not. Zayn cuts KO off again and starts mocking him and then says that KO owes him an apology because he thinks Zayn is crazy just like everyone else, this really strikes a nerve as KO starts yelling at Zayn and backs him into the corner. KO says the only reason he has allowed Zayn to carry on for so long is that he needs an answer and that Zayn is going to give him that answer right now and the question is yes or no to a match between the two of them at WrestleMania. Zayn tries to talk his way out of the situation but KO keeps telling him to answer yes or no before finally screaming at him once again and this gets Zayn to accept the match.
KO reminds Zayn about how he said the only real reason he is allowing Zayn to stand in that ring is that he needed an answer and now since he has that answer he is going to beat Zayn senseless and he does just that. KO beats Zayn down and then stomps a mudhole into him in the corner, Zayn rolls out of the ring for safety but KO follows him out and takes Zayn down with a clothesline. Zayn runs back into the ring and KO follows him and catches Zayn with a Stunner to end the segment.
I get that WWE wants to be current and have some of the most popular and current celebrities featured on their show and so far this year they have done a good job with that as everything they have done with Bad Bunny has been really great, however, there are some celebrities who no matter how popular they may be shouldn’t be touched with a 10-foot pole and Logan Paul is one of those celebrities as there have been several controversies surrounding him and the videos he has put on his Youtube channel. I feel like there had to be a ton of other Youtube personalities they could bring in who are just as popular but don’t come with the bad reputation that Logan Paul has. Given how Woke Zayn usually is I’m surprised that he of all people would involve himself in any kind of story involving Logan.
I thought the rest of the segment was really well done and I look forward to their match at WrestleMania and hopefully, KO will get to jump off the pirate ship like he wanted to do last year before Covid ruined everything.
We go to the back where Daniel Bryan runs into Adam Pearce and he lets Pearce know that he understands what he is going through as he was SmackDown GM at one time and was forced to make decisions just as big as the one Pearce has to make, but he knows that deep down Pearce knows what the right decision is and all he has to do is make that right decision and that sends us to a commercial break.
We come back and get a recap video of the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship match at Fastlane and how things broke down between Sasha and Bianca after the match.
We go to the gorilla position where Kayla Braxon is with Bianca Belair and she asks Bianca about the slap she received from Sasha at Fastlane and her lack of reaction to it. Bianca says she could’ve retaliated and beat down Sasha but if she did that then Sasha wouldn’t make it to WrestleMania. Bianca says that her mama has always told her that sometimes you have to be the bigger person and focus on your business and at Fastlane, she did just that as she was the bigger person on that night so that she could be the better person at WrestleMania. Bianca runs down the nicknames that Sasha has for herself but Bianca says she is just a little bit better and she’s going to make history and show Sasha what it feels like when this “rookie” ends her SmackDown Women’s Championship reign. Bianca says she has some unfinished business with Natalya and everyone should get their kids out of the room because they don’t need to see what she’s about to do.
We then go to our next match of the night
Match #3: Bianca Belair vs Natalya w/ Tamina
Bianca hits Natalya with a running dropkick right as the bell rings which sends Natalya into the corner and Bianca drives her shoulder into the gut of Natalya and then looked to send her into the opposite corner but Natalya reverses sends Bianca into the corner, but when Natalya charges in Bianca jumps up and over and then backflips into the center of the ring and then she takes Natalya down with a shoulder block. Natalya rolls out of the ring and then tries to get Bianca to chase her but Bianca is too smart as she slides back in the ring before Natalya has a chance to and then beats her down in the corner until she is forced to back up. Natalya ducks and hits Bianca with a slingshot slam to the mat and then goes for the basement dropkick, but Bianca is able to get out of the way.
Bianca goes for a couple of pinning combinations but Natalya keeps kicking out. Bianca nails Natalya with a kick to the gut and then slams her next to the corner and then goes up top, but gets distracted as Sasha Banks makes her entrance into the Thunderdome. Bianca has climbed down and is standing on the apron and the distraction allows for Tamina to climb up on the apron and hit Bianca with a superkick which knocks Bianca to the floor and sends us to a commercial break.
We come back to see that Natalya has Bianca locked in the Mexican surfboard but she eventually releases the hold and kicks Bianca face-first into the mat. We then see that Sasha Banks has joined commentary for the rest of this match. Natalya picks up Bianca but takes too much time talking trash and this gives Bianca the opportunity to make a comeback as she rocks Natalya with several forearms and then she goes to send Natalya into the ropes, but Natalya reverses and ducks her head which allows Bianca to grab her and lift her up for a powerbomb only for Natalya to take Bianca down with a hurricanrana for a 2 count. Natalya drives Bianca into the corner and beats her down with punches and then she attempts a tornado DDT, but Bianca blocks it and hits Natalya with a suplex and now both women are down.
Both women get to their feet and Bianca hits Natalya with a couple of shoulder blocks and a running dropkick which sends Natalya reeling into the corner. Bianca charges in but Natalya gets out of the way only to receive a back elbow from Bianca moments later. Bianca goes up to the middle rope and jumps over Natalya and then catches her with a spinebuster for a 2 count. Bianca goes for the handspring moonsault which Natalya tries to avoid but Bianca ends up hitting her on the back which gets another 2 count. Bianca picks up Natalya but gets taken down with a double leg and then Natalya tries to lock in the Sharpshooter, but Bianca counters it into an inside cradle for a 2 count. Both women get to their feet and Natalya levels Bianca with the discus clothesline but Bianca is still able to stay in the match as she kicks out at 2. Natalya tries for a rear waistlock but Bianca reverses and lifts Natalya up with a double underhook which she looks to turn into a Glam Slam, but Natalya tries to reverse that into a victory roll only for Bianca to drop down into a pin of her own on Natalya which gets a 2 count.
Natalya takes Bianca down with a double leg once again and this time Bianca kicks her away and then both women fly through the air and slam each other to the mat face-first. Bianca rolls out to the floor in front of Sasha who gets up and starts talking trash to Bianca but when Bianca gets back to her feet she slaps the hell out of Sasha as payback for what Sasha did at Fastlane. Bianca goes back in the ring and blocks a clothesline attempt and then she hits Natalya with a big forearm before finishing her off with the K.O.D. for the win.
Winner: Bianca Belair via Pinfall Match Rating: **1/2
After the match, Sasha attacks Bianca from behind as she hits her with a backstabber. Sasha talks more trash to Bianca and poses in the ring as Bianca rolls out to the floor.
This was a really good match between Bianca and Natalya and definitely one of the best Natalya matches in quite a while which is saying something seeing as it pains me to ever give Natalya credit for anything. As great as the match was in the ring, the commentary by Sasha was fantastic as well. I was glad to see that while Bianca did end up getting hit with a superkick from Tamina she didn’t allow Sasha’s presence to distract her and cause her to lose and that slap she gave Sasha toward the end of the match was great, as was the sell job by Sasha. I thought this match did a good job of building up the match at WrestleMania and it’s nice to see the whole respect part of the story is over with and now these two can beat the crap out of each other both physically and verbally over the next two weeks before they steal the show at WrestleMania when they hopefully main event the first night.
We go back to the locker room of Roman Reigns where Edge walks in and this causes Uso to jump to his feet but Reigns tells him to back down. Reigns tells Edge that it takes balls to bust into his locker room and he almost respects it, but if Edge isn’t quick to get to his point he will let the pit bull off his leash. Edge tells Reigns that Bryan is trying to steal their spotlight and if Reigns really has the stroke that he claims to have then now would be the time to use it and if the match is made into a triple threat then he wouldn’t need to beat Reigns in order to win the title as he could just as easily beat Bryan. Edge walks out of the locker room as Reigns is left to ponder what Edge said and that sends us to a commercial break.
We come back and the announcers hype up WrestleMania.
We then go to the ring where Ziggler and Roode are waiting patiently and then Rey Mysterio comes to the ring along with Dominik for our final match of the night and as Rey makes his entrance we get an inset promo where he talks about how great it would be to win the tag titles with Dominik.
Match #4: Dolph Ziggler w/ Robert Roode vs Rey Mysterio w/ Dominik Mysterio
We get a lockup and Ziggler pushes Mysterio into the corner and then gets in a cheap kick as the referee is making him back up and then he hits Mysterio with a splash in the corner, but when he goes for a second one Mysterio moves out of the way and Ziggler crashes head-first into the top turnbuckle. Mysterio hits Ziggler with a flying headscissors and then goes to send Ziggler into the ropes, but Ziggler reverses, and Mysterio slides between his legs and Ziggler tries to grab control of the leg but Mysterio catches him with an enziguri which causes Ziggler to land across the middle rope. Mysterio looks to go for the 619, but Ziggler catches him with a back elbow.
Ziggler looks to hit Mysterio with a powerbomb but Mysterio counters it into a hurricanrana to the outside. Mysterio looks to dive off the apron with a hurricanrana onto Ziggler but Ziggler blocks it and then hits Mysterio with a crazy powerbomb over the barricade to the floor. Dominik goes over to check on his dad but gets hits with a superkick to the back of the head by Ziggler and that sends us to a commercial break.
We come back from the commercial break where Ziggler has Mysterio grounded and when Mysterio tries to fight back Ziggler slams him to the mat on the back of his head. Ziggler places Mysterio in the corner and works him over and when Mysterio falls down to the mat he chokes him across the bottom rope. Ziggler sets Mysterio up on the top rope and tries for a superplex, but Mysterio fights him off and sends Ziggler back down to the mat and then he takes Ziggler down with a seated senton off the top. Mysterio sends Ziggler into the ropes and ducks his head and then we get a roll through which ends with Rey hitting Ziggler with a roundhouse kick to the head for a 2 count.
Ziggler reverses a whip into the corner but eats a boot when he charges in and then Mysterio tries for the wheelbarrow bulldog, but Ziggler blocks it and slams Mysterio face-first into the mat and then he hits Mysterio with the Fameasser for a 2 count. Ziggler goes for a superkick on Mysterio but he rolls under it and then dropkicks Ziggler in the knee which sets him up for the 619, but as Mysterio runs to the ropes Robert Roode slides into the ring and Dominik comes in as well to cut him off but Roode easily sends him back out to the floor and as Roode turns around he is hit with a dropkick from Mysterio that sends him out of the ring.
Mysterio looks to dive out onto Roode but as he jumps up Ziggler catches him with the Zig Zag, but Mysterio is still able to kick out. Ziggler goes for a gutwrench powerbomb but Mysterio reverses and sends Ziggler into the ropes with a hurricanrana and then he finally hits Ziggler with the 619. Mysterio hits Ziggler with a springboard splash and that is finally enough to finish off Ziggler.
Winner: Rey Mysterio via Pinfall Match Rating: **¾
This was a good TV match but other than the crazy powerbomb over the barricade there was nothing really notable about this match other than it further hyped up the potential SmackDown Tag Team Championship match at WrestleMania.
As Rey and Dominik make their way to the back we get the entrance of Adam Pearce followed by the entrance of Roman Reigns who is accompanied by Heyman and Uso. We then go to the final commercial break of the night.
We come back and get the entrances of Edge and Daniel Bryan and now it’s time for Adam Pearce to make his ruling on the Universal Championship match at WrestleMania.
Pearce says that the arguments of Reigns and Edge make sense as to why the match should be left as it is, but Bryan also has a valid argument when he talks about there being a double standard and he’s also right when he says that he deserves another opportunity at the Universal Championship. Pearce says that Reigns is right when he says he will only be defending his title once at WrestleMania and that is because his final decision is that at WrestleMania the Universal Championship will be defended in a triple threat match. Reigns and Edge do not look happy while Bryan is smiling and laughing at this decision.
Bryan and Edge start brawling and Bryan hits Edge with a dropkick in the corner but then gets hit with a Superman Punch from Reigns and then Reigns starts firing away with mounted punches on Bryan. Jey Uso grabs a chair and slides it in for Reigns to use but before Reigns can use it he gets hit with a Spear by Edge, and then Edge hits a Spear on Jey Uso who tries to come to the aid of his cousin. Edge has completely lost it as he repeatedly smashes Reigns and Bryan in the back with a chair and then places both men’s heads on a chair as he is looking to hit them with a con-chair-to. Edge goes out to grab a third chair but when she slides back in the ring Uso comes in so he smashes him with a chair as well and this gives Reigns time to roll out of the ring.
Bryan tries to crawl out of the ring, but Edge catches him and drags him by the legs back into the middle of the ring, and drops an elbow to the back of Bryan. Edge places Bryan’s head on the chair once again but this time the referees and agents come in to stop Edge and he ends up hitting Pat Buck and Jamie Noble with the chair and this gives Bryan time to roll out of the ring. Edge sets up a chair in the middle of the ring and sits in it as he has a crazed look on his face as he stares directly into the camera and that’s how the show comes to an end.
The announcement made by Pearce was pretty much predictable as it was either going to be a triple threat match or Bryan and Edge were going to face each other on night one and the winner would face Reigns on night two. It seems that this decision has completely sent Edge off the deep, so it will be fun to see what kind of chaos he can cause for Reigns and Bryan over the next two weeks leading into WrestleMania.
Overall I thought this was a pretty good episode of SmackDown that did a good job of continuing the build to WrestleMania.
The 5 Count
Cons
- WWE associating themselves with Logan Paul
- All three of the Universal Championship participants being booked in shades of grey and not having a clear babyface for the fans to cheer for at WrestleMania.
- No sign of Bayley for the third week in a row and no direction for her going into WrestleMania.
- No sign of the Riott Squad for the third week in a row.despite Nia & Shayna needing challengers for WrestleMania.
- The amazing feud between Crews and Big E being stifled a bit this week as they were stuck in the 6-man tag and didn’t get to shine on their own with a promo.
Pros
- The story being told in the build to the Universal Championship match at WrestleMania.
- Bianca Belair vs Natalya match exceeding my expectations
- The chemistry between KO and Sami Zayn during the KO show.
- Sasha Banks being fantastic on commentary
- The overall job that SmackDown did in building to WrestleMania as they put a lot of missing pieces together when it comes to the WrestleMania card.
That’s all for me this week, I’ll be back next week when we will only be 8 days away from WrestleMania.
