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The Jan. 16 edition of WWE SmackDown was one of the strangest episodes the brand has seen in a long time with the focus almost solely on one angle.
Last night’s WWE SmackDown was almost solely in-ring based, which was a nice change of pace. But the matches, as a whole, weren’t particularly outstanding and made the show drag on at times.
Well over half of the show was dedicated to the United States Championship picture and the picture became clearer as the night went along. With that being said, let’s take a look at five key takeaways from the Jan. 16 edition of WWE SmackDown.
5. Lack of SmackDown’s Top Angle a Nice Change Of Pace
For the past several months, one storyline has consistently dominated SmackDown’s TV time week in and week out. The saga between Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn, Shane McMahon, and Daniel Bryan seemingly has opened up and closed out every SmackDown for weeks.
And while the feud does have intrigue and promise moving forward, it sometimes gets to be too much seeing the same thing happen every single week. Tuesday nights almost always open up with Shane O’Mac or Bryan in some form or fashion, but last night was a nice change of pace in that regard.
Instead of opening up with the blue brand’s authority figures or the two superstars they’re in a feud with, last night’s show began with a match instead of a 10-15 minute promo.
And the match didn’t feature anybody involved in the previously mentioned feud. As the night went on, the feud didn’t get much attention either.
It’s always good to see Owens, Zayn, and the WWE Champion AJ Styles, but it was nice to not have to see the same ole same ole with them and the authority figures. Last night’s show instead focused on other angles with one particularly getting the most attention. The big feud isn’t going anywhere, but the WWE universe needed a break from seeing it dominate TV time.
The blue brand’s top angle isn’t going away anytime soon, but getting a break from it last night was a breath of fresh air.
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4. The Riott Squad Gets Much Needed Win
The trio of Ruby Riott, Liv Morgan, and Sarah Logan has been on SmackDown for the better part of two months. But in that time, the trio known as The Riott Squad hasn’t necessarily hit on all cylinders and been booked correctly.
Debuting immediately after Absolution did on Monday nights, The Riott Squad had a lot to live up to in terms of making a splash on its respective brand. But often times, the trio has been a bit on the boring side and hasn’t been booked properly to gain any serious momentum. Last night, however, was a step in the right direction for The Riott Squad.
In a six-woman tag team match against Charlotte Flair, Naomi, and Becky Lynch, Morgan pinned Naomi and got the win for her team after several weeks of The Riott Squad being on the short end against these three women. With the Royal Rumble match approaching, it’s important that this trio is viewed at in a positive light.
Wins and losses don’t always mean a lot in the WWE, but they do when a group or superstar desperately needs momentum. And while The Riott Squad maybe didn’t desperately need a win, the trio definitely needed momentum to regain some of its luster. Now it’s up to the WWE to keep the ball rolling for the trio.
The Riott Squad got back in the win column in impressive fashion and looks to carry that momentum over into the Royal Rumble match.
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3. Jinder Mahal vs. Xavier Woods Fails To Deliver
With the WWE Championship now a thing of the past, Jinder Mahal’s mindset has moved on to another championship. And last night saw Mahal battle The New Day’s Xavier Woods in a semifinal match to determine the new United States Champion.
Fans were delighted when Mahal joined the ranks of the U.S. Championship picture and many believe that is where he needed to be before going on a near six-month WWE Championship reign. And facing off with a member of The New Day gave The Modern Day Maharaja a different challenge last night.
Mahal and Woods battled it out to determine who would go on to the final round of the U.S. Championship tournament, but the match never quite got going. The typical slow-paced, ground-based action that Mahal’s matches give didn’t allow Woods to truly get going and the two just didn’t seem to have the best in-ring chemistry.
It got going to a minuscule level towards the end, but ultimately Mahal got the win and advanced to the final round. The match wasn’t necessarily bad, but it was less than stellar and never truly got going. And as a heavily-criticized superstar, this didn’t do anything to help the perception of Mahal moving forward.
The Modern Day Maharaja didn’t put on the best performance of his career against Woods last night, but he would have another shot sooner rather than later.
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2. Bobby Roode’s Win Over Mojo Rawley Sets Up Last-Minute, Spontaneous Championship Match
When the bracket was released to see which superstars would vie for a chance to win the United States Championship, it seemed likely two superstars were on a collision course for the finals. And last night only helped to confirm that suspicion by most of the WWE universe.
Following Jinder Mahal’s win over Xavier Woods earlier in the night to advance to the final round, it seemed likely who his opponent would be between Bobby Roode and Mojo Rawley. While Mojo has been slowly gaining momentum as a singles competitor, having a heel vs. heel match for the U.S. Championship didn’t seem likely.
Roode’s battle with Mojo went better than Mahal’s battle with Woods earlier in the night, but it still wasn’t an outstanding match in its own right. Mojo, however, did display some great heel tendencies in the match which should only help out his character in the future. But at the end of the day, Roode picked up the win that most everybody saw coming to advance to the final round.
But where the match was originally scheduled for next week between Mahal and Roode would drastically be changed. Mahal cut a small promo on Roode, but in the midst of this, The Glorious One said they should have the match tonight rather than next week. And GM Daniel Bryan obliged by making Mahal vs. Roode for the U.S. Championship in last night’s main event.
It came a bit out of nowhere, but a marquee championship match was set to take place in last night’s main event.
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1. Bobby Roode Finally Gets Main Roster Breakthrough
The Glorious Bobby Roode has been in the pro wrestling business for many years and has carved out a great legacy. One major accomplishment, however, alluded Roode throughout his career and that accomplishment was WWE success.
After reaching NXT, Roode would have tremendous success before making a move up to the main roster in 2017 on the SmackDown brand. And since that time, he hasn’t necessarily had a great run. A lack of direction has haunted Roode for the past several months, but since he joined the United States Championship picture, his direction has become clearer.
The pieces were in place last night following a Jinder Mahal win over Xavier Woods and a Roode win over Mojo Rawley for the two most likely candidates to battle for the U.S. Championship. It turned out to be a week ahead of schedule, but Mahal vs. Roode main evented last night’s show with the U.S. Championship on the line.
Both superstars improved on their earlier matches and wound up having a pretty good battle. What really helped the match was the unknown factor of who would win because both superstars made sense to win the gold. However, after a Glorious DDT, Roode pinned Mahal to win the U.S. Championship and his first main roster championship.
Next: WWE Raw 5 Takeaways From Jan. 15 Show
It took a while, but The Glorious One appears to have finally gotten his WWE main roster breakthrough as the new U.S. Champion.