WWE SmackDown Live Results: Highlights, Analysis, and Grades for March 7
By Grant Mannis
An Authoritative Beginning
At the top of the hour, we arrive to the familiar set and sounds of SmackDown Live.
After a video recap of Randy Orton turning on Bray Wyatt last week, Daniel Bryan and Shane McMahon make their entrance to the ring. Still contemplating the rightful number one contender, Bryan stood behind Orton while Shane supported Styles. Both men bring up valid points, and eventually they talk about the main event tonight. By the end of the show, either Orton or Styles will have a title match waiting for them at WrestleMania.
When we return from our first commercial break, Bryan and Shane are shown again walking around backstage. They are approached by Styles, who announces his intentions to compete for the WWE Championship. With Orton being his only obstacle to achieve that goal, the Phenomenal One states he’s taking out the Viper. Placing the blame on Bryan and Shane, he goes on to say that he isn’t afraid of Orton or them for that matter.
The beginning of the show gave us two strong segments that benefitted all three men involved. We got to see how Bryan and Shane handle disagreements and that they don’t always meet eye to eye. For Styles, he received ample time hype up both his own resolve and his high stakes match.