Ranking All 7 WWE SmackDown PPVs Since the Brand Split
By Adam O'Brien
WWE.com
2. Elimination Chamber
With the excitement of the Royal Rumble only just subsiding, and hype for WrestleMania quickly starting to build, the final pay-per-view before the “Showcase of the Immortals” rarely stands out when the year is said and done. This past February’s Elimination Chamber event, however, is a glaring exception.
With yet again only two weeks to build to a pay-per-view after a huge inter-promotional event, SmackDown pulled out all the stops in building a card that would blow all expectations out of the water for a great show.
The undercard was solid, highlighted by American Alpha proving their worth as champions by running through all competition at their disposal in a gauntlet match that really showcased how great they can be given the right booking.
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Moving further into the card, Naomi would reach unforeseen heights when she defeated Alexa Bliss to win the SmackDown Women’s Championship, which albeit a short-lived reign, filled the women’s division with hope at the time for Naomi to waltz into her hometown of Orlando as the champion at WrestleMania.
2017 Royal Rumble winner Randy Orton had an absolutely spectacular match-up against his former Wyatt Family cohort Luke Harper, which “The Viper” came out on top of despite a brilliant performance on Harper’s behalf.
But nothing on this card could top the main event, which will easily go down as one of the best-booked Elimination Chamber matches of all time.
Bray Wyatt would outlast Baron Corbin, Dean Ambrose, The Miz, WWE Champion John Cena and AJ Styles to win the title and for the first time in his career, proudly stand triumphant over the rest of the locker room. It was an incredible bout that planted the seeds for three WrestleMania matches in April, with the cherry on top of course being the crowning moment of the Bray Wyatt character.
It shook things up in a huge way, giving fans what they wanted and rewarding a hard-working man with a well-earned reign ahead of the biggest event of the year.