WWE SmackDown 5 Takeaways: Opportunity Creates Tension For Kami

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2. Rusev Gets Deserved Opportunity At The United States Championship

The United States Championship has been through quite a bit over the past few weeks.  The title went from Baron Corbin to Dolph Ziggler and after Ziggler walked out and relinquished the belt, Bobby Roode won it in a tournament.

The Glorious One is the U.S. Champion, but a new challenger was introduced last night.  In a Fatal 4-Way match to determine the new number one contender for the U.S. Championship, Rusev, Jinder Mahal, Kofi Kingston, and Zack Ryder battled it out.  The match ended up being very solid with the winner of the match still being in question.

But towards the end, Rusev got things going and made Kingston tap out to earn the win and a shot at Roode’s title next week.  Mahal seemed like a real possibility to win last night, but it was a pleasant sight to see Rusev get the win instead given how over and popular he has been over the past few months.

The Rusev Day gimmick between him and Aiden English has been as over as anything in the WWE.  The duo has been nothing short of exceptional and entertaining since it began and it’s the perfect move to give Rusev a shot at the U.S. Championship.  After all, he has proven to be a valid U.S. Championship threat in the past.

Rusev Day just might have U.S. gold in its future and that could take Rusev’s gimmick to an even bigger level.