4 Predictions for WWE SmackDown Live: June 13, 2017

AJ Styles Against the Ultimate Underdog

During the past two episodes, AJ Styles has been involved in back to back matches against Dolph Ziggler. He lost the first match in surprising fashion, but he was able to regain momentum last week. While a tiebreaker may be a logical step here, Shane McMahon could book a different match ahead of Money in the Bank.

Since being announced as an entrant into the male MiTB ladder match, Sami Zayn has done little of note. Besides one tag team victory alongside Shinsuke Nakamura, he’s mostly been used to propel Baron Corbin up the card. Even though there’s nothing wrong with this, it’s a shame that Zayn is being used as a stepping stone. He’s an extremely popular superstar, and quite frankly one of the Blue Brand’s greatest assets. Zayn deserves better, with a match against Styles being a step in the right direction.

Knowing that both of these men possess tremendous in-ring ability, a match pitting them against one another would surely impress. Given ample time, their contest could potentially go down as the match of the night. In a perfect world, Styles and Zayn would both gain a great deal from such an encounter. However, only one can achieve the victory, and wins are what matter most leading into MiTB.

As much as I don’t agree with 50/50 booking, Zayn should score the win if the two meet inside the squared circle. The Underdog from the Underground is someone that doesn’t need to win often, but he needs to receive a payoff at some point. Letting fans think that he might win the MiTB briefcase is a smart move business-wise. It’ll increase his credibility with fans, and in turn, help increase interest for the upcoming event.