The Jan. 2 edition of WWE SmackDown was an improvement from the Jan. 1 edition of Raw as the blue brand continued its developing key storylines and angles.
The first WWE SmackDown of 2018 was a pretty stellar show on several fronts. It saw solid storyline building, some nice in-ring work, and the awaited return of one of the brand’s top female superstars.
SmackDown’s buildup towards the Royal Rumble is becoming clearer as several key angles are taking shape heading into the WWE’s January classic. With that being said, let’s take a look at five key takeaways from the first WWE SmackDown of 2018.
5. The Bludgeon Brothers Need to Start Facing Different Competition
Harper and Rowan have taken their Wyatt Family roots and created a destructive tag team on SmackDown that lays waste to everybody. However, the term everybody has been very precise as of late.
The Bludgeon Brothers have been impressive since day one and have immediately fit in on Tuesday nights. They have a dominating presence that the rest of the tag team division on SmackDown doesn’t have. But the WWE needs to start giving Harper and Rowan new competition.
The past two SmackDown’s have seen The Bludgeon Brothers squash Breezango with The Ascension getting in the mix as well. Maybe The Ascension can be valid competition for The Bludgeon Brothers, but the light-hearted, humorous Breezango just doesn’t stand a chance against these huge monsters.
With how dominant Harper and Rowan have looked against competition that isn’t up to their level, it’s probably a good time for the WWE to start pushing them into the main tag team scene on SmackDown. Having The Bludgeon Brothers in the mix with The New Day, The Usos, Shelton Benjamin and Chad Gable, etc will give the team different and more legitimate challenges that will help them get to another level.
The future is bright for The Bludgeon Brothers, but that future needs to involve different competition moving forward that doesn’t include solely squash matches against teams that don’t match up.
Photo by WWE’s Twitter
4. Rusev Should Have Been in the United States Championship Tournament
No gimmick in the WWE has taken off faster than the Rusev Day gimmick has taken off over the past couple months. The duo of Rusev and Aiden English has been arguably the most over duo in the WWE lately and consistently gets huge pops from every live crowd the duo performs in front of.
Rusev Day signs, shirts, and chants are present each and every week and sometimes even on shows Rusev and English aren’t on. And lately, the duo has been building momentum in the ring as well and has been a prime factor in the SmackDown Tag Team Championship picture. But last night saw another championship opportunity for Rusev Day.
In a first-round matchup against Xavier Woods of The New Day, English went one-on-one with Woods with the winner advancing to face Jinder Mahal in the semifinal round of the United States Championship tournament. Woods ended up getting the win in a pretty solid match, however, Rusev got the short end of the situation.
It would have been better to see Rusev in the U.S. Championship tournament as well as English. He is the most over he has been since joining the WWE and has been a proven U.S. Champion in the past. Maybe Rusev and English will go back to the tag team title picture, but it seemed a bit odd that Rusev wasn’t included in the tournament last night.
Rusev Day has moved into 2018 and despite The Bulgarian Brute not getting a chance at the U.S. Championship tournament, he alongside The Shakespeare of Song should remain a big factor on Tuesday nights.
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3. Unorthodox Finish Keeps Door Open For Future SmackDown Tag Team Championship Rematch For Shelton Benjamin and Chad Gable
Jimmy and Jey Uso can be credited for helping turn around the fortunes of the SmackDown tag team division over the past few months. The Usos’ work has been outstanding and has raised the bar in the division.
One team that has reaped the benefits from Tuesday nights’ tag team transformation has been the team of Shelton Benjamin and Chad Gable. While this team hasn’t necessarily connected with the WWE universe like most of the teams on SmackDown, it has been very impressive in the ring. And the team got a tag team title match against The Usos last night in what turned out to be a wild encounter.
It appeared as if Benjamin and Gable had won the SmackDown Tag Team Championship, but after confusion about who were the legal men in the match, the match was restarted by the officials. And The Usos took full advantage and retained their tag team titles. But the bigger picture surrounding this finish is what might mean the most moving forward.
If Benjamin and Gable would have lost straight up and clean last night, they probably would not have had another shot at the tag team gold anytime soon. But with the unorthodox finish that took place, their case for a rematch greatly increases and it’s safe to assume they will get another shot at the tag team titles sometime in the future.
It was an unexpected finish, but it was just what the doctor ordered for Benjamin and Gable in their quest to gain tag team gold.
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2. Becky Lynch’s Return Comes at the Perfect Time
The addition of The Riott Squad has led to a mutiny on Tuesday nights over the past couple months. No matter who’s against who, every woman on SmackDown wants to put The Riott Squad in its place.
The trio of Ruby Riott, Liv Morgan, and Sarah Logan has laid waste to some key SmackDown superstars over the past few weeks. But while they have been trying to establish dominance, The Welcoming Committee hasn’t taken too kindly to their actions. This led to a match last night between The Riott Squad and The Welcoming Committee.
After a pretty good match, The Riott Squad got the win. And after the match, Riott cut a heelish promo which was interrupted by Charlotte Flair. She said the trio will pay for its actions and then Naomi and the returning Becky Lynch came out and attacked The Riott Squad. Lynch had been off TV for several weeks since The Riott Squad laid her out backstage on an episode of SmackDown.
Lynch’s return comes at the perfect time as the first-ever all-women’s Royal Rumble match is set for Jan. 28. The Irish Lass Kicker appears to have a great shot at winning the match and could be considered an odds-on favorite. And since the Royal Rumble signifies the start of the road to WrestleMania, Lynch will be greatly appreciated in the buildup to the granddaddy of them all.
She kicks lass and Lynch’s return should greatly benefit SmackDown as the brand approaches the Royal Rumble pay-per-view and beyond.
Photo by WWE’s Twitter
1. Handicap Match at the Royal Rumble Creates Great Intrigue for WWE Championship Picture
The WWE Championship picture had been in a stale state of affairs for much of 2017. But as the calendar has turned to 2018, it has been drastically shaken up with new challenges for The Phenomenal AJ Styles.
Styles has moved past the Jinder Mahal roadblock, only to run into the Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn roadblock. And not to mention, the storylines surrounding SmackDown’s commissioner Shane McMahon and GM Daniel Bryan are prevalent as well. With Owens defeating Styles on the final SmackDown of 2017, it seemed likely he would have a WWE Championship shot sooner rather than later.
However, last night saw the addition of another challenger for Styles’ championship and after more confusion, Zayn was able to pick up a win over The Phenomenal One. This led to Bryan making a huge match that will see Styles defending his championship against both Owens and Zayn in a handicap match at the Royal Rumble.
Bryan’s tease of an alliance with Owens and Zayn has reached another level and his tension with Shane O’Mac will only intensify moving forward. But the bigger picture of this situation is unlike the Universal Championship match at the Royal Rumble, the WWE Championship match has great intrigue. There are many pieces of this equation and the chaotic feel should result in some great TV.
Next: WWE Raw 5 Takeaways From Jan. 1 Show
The deck has been stacked against The Phenomenal One and the odds are now against the WWE Champion at the Royal Rumble.