2 things that went wrong on the March 24 WWE SmackDown

As WWE gets closer to WrestleMania 39 in Los Angeles, it made a stop in Las Vegas for the March 24 episode of SmackDown. The company used the two-hour broadcast to put the finishing touches on the ‘Mania lineup while building anticipation for the already-announced matches.

We’ve already analyzed the good stuff that happened on this show, so let’s now discuss the negatives.

What went wrong on the March 24 episode of SmackDown?

Rey Mysterio loses to LA Knight

Are we sure Vince McMahon doesn’t have at least some hand in WWE booking? It would certainly explain how this match between LA Knight and Rey Mysterio played out. Scripting a wrestler to lose in front of their family to put HEEEAAAT on a heel is the go-to set from the McMahon playbook; the only thing missing was this match taking place in Mysterio’s hometown.

As alluded to, Mysterio got tripped by his son, Dominik, midway through a 619 attempt and this distraction allowed Knight to roll Mysterio up to score the tainted win. You know, because when you book a match between a wrestler who has a big match at WrestleMania and one who doesn’t, you obviously give the win to the one who doesn’t.

This didn’t help anyone. Knight is a talented guy and should get a stronger push, but a flukey win won’t give anyone faith that one is coming. Meanwhile, Mysterio looks like a goof for losing after getting so easily distracted.

Was it that hard to give Mysterio a win going into ‘Mania? Dominik could’ve gotten the same heat for yelling at his mother and sister after the match and his now-official match with his dad would have had more gravitas. Facing a legend on a winning streak is more tantalizing that facing a dork who gets flustered with minimal effort.

Contract signing for the Intercontinental Championship match at WrestleMania

To hype up the Intercontinental Championship match between Drew McIntyre, GUNTHER, and Sheamus, WWE had champion and challengers scribble their names on some paper. Unfortunately, the contract signing also highlighted how aggravating this storyline has become.

Instead of focusing on Sheamus’ pursuit of GUNTHER and the IC Title, the bickering between him and McIntyre is the main takeaway from these segments. The constant back-and-forth makes these two alleged babyfaces sound more like petty children than it does top contenders for a belt. Sheamus comes across as especially childish for claiming McIntyre screwed him out of a title shot despite getting the very title shot he wanted.

There’s likely a method to decentralizing GUNTHER from this feud: WWE probably booked this Triple Threat so he could drop the IC Title without taking a pin and making this about McIntyre and Sheamus’ conflict allows him to transition to something else once that happens. However, making him the third wheel in this feud (even though he’s the champion) waters down his lengthy reign and makes the title feel less prestigious.