WWE SmackDown: 5 Takeaways From Sept. 26 Show

credit: wwe.com

1. Jinder Mahal’s Days as WWE Champion Are Numbered

One of the most surprising moves in WWE history took place at Backlash earlier this year when Jinder Mahal defeated Randy Orton for the WWE Championship. Mahal had been nothing more than an afterthought in the WWE, but was suddenly thrust into prominence at the blink of an eye. His title reign has been hit or miss over the past few months, but as of late, just miss.

His current feud with Shinsuke Nakamura has produced some of the most cringe-worthy promos in recent memory and even some borderline racist moments. Over the past few weeks, including briefly on last night’s Smackdown, Mahal and his lackeys, the Singh Brothers, have poked fun at the facial expressions of Nakamura in failed attempts at humor. Nakamura has been as hot as any superstar in the WWE since debuting to the main roster in April.

He has defeated the likes of John Cena and Randy Orton since becoming a member of SmackDown and if that doesn’t show the kind of momentum he is getting, nothing will. Mahal is set to defend his championship against Nakamura at Hell in a Cell for the second straight pay-per-view after using every trick in the book to defeat Nakamura at SummerSlam.

Mahal’s entire title reign has felt like an experiment and as of late, the experiment has been failing. It seems inevitable that Nakamura will take the WWE Championship from Mahal. Nakamura has rarely lost a match since joining SmackDown and it seems unlikely he will lose to Mahal for the second straight pay-per-view.

Next: 5 Takeaways From Post-No Mercy Raw

A changing of the guard on SmackDown could be coming at Hell in a Cell.