WWE SmackDown reshaped its side of the Survivor Series card thanks to a championship match that had fans in Manchester, England, rocking.
The apex of Jinder Mahal’s WWE title reign came in its final moments. The Maharaja did his best work as champ just before AJ Styles plucked the gold from him.
Tuesday’s show also saw the SmackDown Tag Team Championships go up for grabs, Becky Lynch take on James Ellsworth and Rusev get shafted again.
The blue brand didn’t fill out its men’s Survivor Series squad. It didn’t settle what The New Day is going to do at the pay-per-view. But it did rearrange the event’s headline bout thanks to Styles’ taking down Mahal.
From a truncated title match to Styles’ ending the era of The Maharaja, an uneven show offered plenty to nitpick and praise. Let’s dive into the highs and lows of the latest SmackDown.
Shane McMahon Opens the Show
Shane McMahon promised to get payback for Kane‘s attack on Daniel Bryan. He welcomed The New Day, whom he praised for charging into Raw on Monday.
Kofi Kingston, Big E and Xavier Woods celebrated their invasion of the rival brand.
Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn stepped out to ridicule them. Zayn blamed the commissioner for the two of them not making the Survivor Series team. The New Day fired back with insults.
To settle things, McMahon booked a match between Zayn and Kingston.
Memorable Moments and Quotes
- “We’re going to be known as the show.”—McMahon.
- “We made them look pretty silly.”—Kingston on the Raw roster.
- “You’re not cool and you should probably never, ever dance again.”—Zayn to McMahon.
Grade
B-
Analysis
While there was solid entertainment value here, there wasn’t a ton of storyline advancement.
Five of these guys aren’t yet booked for Survivor Series.The scene did plant the seeds of Owens and Zayn storming into the event to take down McMahon, though.
One would think The New Day would be more vocal about wanting to be on the PPV card. The former champs obviously care about this brand-war thing, yet didn’t request an opportunity to represent Team SmackDown with less than two weeks until the event.
Sami Zayn vs. Kofi Kingston
Early on, Kingston and Zayn traded the advantage in a match heavy with mat wrestling.
Zayn suckered the high-flyer in and was able to take control. He was able to ground Kingston, slowing the bout down.
A crossbody allowed Kingston to score the win, but he didn’t have time to celebrate. Owens attacked him after the bell. The New Day ran him off, however.
Result
Kingston wins via pinfall.
Memorable Moments and Quotes
- Kingston hits a nasty dropkick to Zayn’s face.
- Kingston springs off the ropes to flip onto his opponent.
Grade
B-
Analysis
Zayn and Kingston showed some good chemistry, even though there were a few moments where things seemed slightly off. Kingston threw in a fun new springboard move that would be great to see become a regular part of his arsenal.
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