WWESmackDown returned to American soil in Buffalo, NY, for a show that begins the road to Survivor Series.The Original Bloodline is back together once again, asSami Zayn came to Smackdown to confront Roman Reignsand Jimmy Uso, with Jey Uso by his side. After being turned down at first, Roman eventually fought side-by-side with Sami against The Bloodline, as the teams seem all but certain to take part in this year’s War Games.
Kevin Owens put Randy Orton out of action for the foreseeable future, hittingthe banned piledriveron him despite his history of neck-related injuries. Bayley stole a victory from Candice LeRae, Motor City Machine Guns continued their hot streak by beating A-Town Down Under, Bianca Belair and Jade Cargill defeated Nia Jax and Tiffany Stratton in more tag team action andWWE revealed it will be introducing a US Women’s Championshipin the coming weeks.
6Women’s United States Championship
WWE’s Stacked Women’s Division Gets A New Title
For the better part of the last decade, WWE’s Women’s division has gone from strength to strength. After decades of being an afterthought, the present and future look incredibly bright.A women’s mid-card title is necessary and long overdue, not only because of the talent on WWE’s current main roster.
NXT continues to grow in reputation and stature and there is a wealth of talent coming up from there in the coming year or two. WWE’s women’s division is about to have a whole host of bona fide legends on the card, alongside immense and groundbreaking younger workers from around the world. There will be a million opinions on who should be the first Women’s US Champion, buteveryone will agree that the Championship is good news.
5War Games
Five On Five Makes Survivor Series Main Event More Interesting
All signs have been pointing towardsthe culmination of The Bloodline’s Uncivil War at Survivor Series in War Games. Sami delivered his best promo in months, hitting all the right emotional beats about what was great about his run with Roman and The Usos. After Roman initially turned down his advances, the night would end with Sami saving Roman with a Helluva Kick to Solo Sikoa. The Original Bloodline ended SmackDown with their ones in the sky and the world was a happy place once more.
Roman Reigns had earlier asked Sikoa for a one-on-one match to settle who is the one true Tribal Chief, but, in his rebuttal, Solo issued the challenge to Roman Reigns for a 5-on-5 match at War Games. After Solo originally bluffed that Sami Zayn was The Bloodline’s fifth man, only for the original Bloodline to reunite, we are all square at 4-on-4. Whether this means both teams recruit an extra member or this year’s War Games just stays with both teams having four members, this is not a match you want to miss.
4Jacob Fatu
Mic Time For The Future Main Eventer
WWE knows to have something special with Jacob Fatu since the very first time he appeared on WWE TV back in June. Paul Heyman trembled when mentioning his name, while commentators made him feel like the offspring of Jason Vorhees and Thanos. Fatu has been kept strong for nearly six months and, on SmackDown,the Samoan Werewolf cut an intense promo on behalf of Solo Sikoa, ahead of his Undisputed Tribal Chief Ceremony.
Snarling and full of murderous intensity, Jacob Fatu’s promo was likesomething out of prime-time ECW. Piercing through the screen with menacing intent, Fatu is one of the few men in WWE who could call out Roman Reigns and not cower in fear. The lines are beginning to be drawn for Survivor Series' War Games. Fatu is going to be a problem for everybody inside those cages.
3Tommaso Ciampa
The Blackheart Adds Some Spice To DIY
DIY is a reliable class act that delivers great matches with superhuman regularity. That’s the pleasantries out of the way becauseCiampa and Gargano have been lacking that extra something in recent months. Even in their very short tag team title run, these are two men who have had some of the best feuds and matches across all brands of WWE in the past 10 years. They are NXT and indie wrestling royalty. So why has everything been so “meh”?
This was a big night for DIY asTommaso Ciampa turned to the dark side. Smashing both members of Pretty Deadly like Patrick Bateman after being refused a table at Dorsia, Ciampa is hellbent on taking out the Motor City Machine Guns. Johnny Gargano is struggling with his partner’s intensity, especially when Tommaso lost it at The Street Profits for scoring a title shot on next week’s Smackdown. This one’s just getting started but instantly makes DIY and the whole SmackDown tag team division more interesting.
2Randy Orton
Kevin Owens Puts The Viper Out Of Action
After leaving Crown Jewel on a stretcher, it was something of a surprise to see Randy Orton emerge backstage and storm towards the ring. After wasting no time, Orton called out KO and Owens stood at the top of the ramp with dead eyes and a blank expression. In a roster stacked with threatening men,Kevin Owens is currently WWE’s most dangerous superstar,and, man, did he prove it.
Appearing in a shirt with Kevin Is Right written on it in bold letters,Owens dropped Orton with a career-threatening piledriver. Randy was put out for over a year with back injuries that led to spinal surgery, something that was in KO’s mind when deciding how he was going to inflict the most damage possible on Randy Orton. The prolonged silence on the broadcast as Randy screamed in agony all the way to the back on a stretcher was chilling. Kevin Owens’s reign of terror continues.
1A-Town Down Under
Former Tag Team Champs Are In Dire Straits
A 90-day tag team championship reign is nothing to be sniffed at. That is longer than The Bloodline and DIY but, since losing the belts,things have been on a downward spiral for A-Town Down Under.This was another high-profile defeat to the newly crowned Tag Team Champions Motor City Machine Guns and the clearest indication yet that this is a slump that may not be able to be stopped.
Austin Theory has always struggled for momentum, both while Vince McMahon was booking him and in the hands of the new regime. Aussie Grayson Waller has all of the ingredients to be one of the best heels in pro wrestling. They’ve been good foil for one another up to this point buta split has been teased since they lost their championships. When it finally arrives, a trial-by-fire moment awaits both men. The sooner that happens, the better, at this point.
