0 of 6
Credit: WWE.com
With just over two weeks to go until WWE Fastlane on March 21, management needs to light a fire under its own butt and start discussing a few games.
Friday’s SmackDown was not pre-ordered too much. In fact, WWE only announced two segments before the show.
Daniel Bryan faced Jey Uso in a steel cage. The Yes Man has been in a feud with Uso and Roman Reigns for a while and this week gave Bryan another chance to prove he’s one of the best of the blue brand.
We also saw Bianca Belair take on Shayna Baszler. These two will be opponents in a ladies title race at Fastlane, allowing Sasha Banks and Nia Jax to find themselves in the ring next week.
Let’s take a look at everything that happened on Friday’s SmackDown.
Be sure to refresh this page throughout the program for updated results.
1 of 6
SmackDown begins with Bryan giving an extensive promotion on his match against Uso and the possibility of defeating Reigns at Fastlane if he wins Friday’s Cage match. It was a long and passionate speech about why he wanted this title so much.
After a commercial interruption, Reigns and Paul Heyman were responding. The tribal chief said he was confused by Bryan’s words because he did not need the drive to be a winner. Uso tried to take a cheap shot at Bryan, but he was thrown out of the ring. Reigns did not try to help his cousin at all.
Grade: B +
Analysis
This segment does not have to continue after the commercial break. Bryan’s long promo was the best way to open the show. Making Reigns and Uso react quickly was unnecessary.
Bryan has always been great at giving this kind of promotion. He has a real passion for business and it always occurs when he speaks.
Reigns’ speech was good, but it was exactly the same thing we’ve heard him say for weeks. A separate response to another point during the show would have been better.
2 of 6
We were expecting to see a rematch from last week, but King Corbin came out and said he hates Sami Zayn and refuses to be his teammate again. He issued a challenge for a singles match and Montez Ford accepted it.
Ford used his speed to take control immediately, but one backbone from Corbin almost held him for a trio. After taking even more offense, Ford turned things around and hit a standing moon jump for a fall. Corbin nails The End of Days for victory thanks to a distraction from Zayn.
Zayn asked Corbin to help him in the same way, but after Angelo Dawkins beat Zayn into him, The King left him to take care of himself. We came back from a break to see how the second game was already going on.
The Great Liberator manages to take control and strangles him against the middle rope while teasing Ford. Zayn gets distracted when Ford is messing with his camera crew, and that allows Dawkins to win him over for the win. Zayn attacks his own crew after the match and appears to be overtaken by his own conspiracy theories.
Grade: C +
Analysis
Corbin and Zayn did not get along, was a nice continuity. Just because two guys are heels does not mean they have to be friends. It was quite nice to see Corbin hit the highway for once.
The king worked clean, but Zayn’s distraction helped him retain his heel. It was perfectly in line with his character to leave Zayn alone after a small miscommunication.
Dawkins scored the victory after losing his partner, but the whole series of events also leveled. Both games were short but performed properly. It just wasn’t enough to make up for the lack of logic in how everything was discussed.
3 of 6
After recently turning a heel, Chad Gable wanted to continue to build momentum in a singles match against one of the men he and Otis beat last week, Dominik Mysterio.
Gable showed his technical ability with a quick removal, but Dom was able to send him through the ropes to the floor. Gable took him off with a rotating grip and began to focus on his leg.
Dom hits a hurricane from the middle rope and sends Gable into the middle turn. The former Olympian fought a tornado DDT in a beautiful tiger suplex for two counts.
After the kick-off, Dom was able to use a beautiful combination to achieve the victory.
Grade: B
Analysis
It was fast, but it also ended up being one of the best technical performances we’ve seen of Dominik. It’s no surprise that it was against Gable.
The Alpha Academy leader is one of the best pure wrestlers WWE has to offer. He can elevate just about everyone because he is so smooth in his delivery and execution. It was a smart call to pair him with Dominik.
This is another example of 50-50 discussions, but this feud is just going on so they can afford to trade wins until WWE decides which team comes out on top.
4 of 6
The match started with a competitive exchange of counters, while Shayna Baszler and Bianca Belair struggled to take control. Belair had the power advantage, but Baszler’s experience gave her the lead.
The Queen of Spades went early to the EST’s arm to soften her and take away her power measurement. Baszler followed up a running knee for a double.
The number 1 contender for the women’s title started to return, but Baszler was able to send her through the ropes. Belair pushed Reginald to the ground and he stormed into Nia Jax. She tried to run him, but he moved and she hit Banks.
Meanwhile, Belair beat Baszler with her finishing in the ring for the win. Banks slapped Reginald after the game and told him to stay out of the case.
Grade: B-
Analysis
Baszler does so many little things to make her transgression seem painful. Whether she is manipulating joints or lying in her strikes, she is always convincing.
The screens on rings were unnecessary but did not deprive the action in the ring. Hopefully that was the end of Reginald’s involvement, because he added nothing to this feud.
Banks and Belair get along, but they do not act like best friends, so the chances are high that they will lose at Fastlane and turn one on the other.
5 of 6
Earlier in the program, Seth Rollins interviewed when Murphy approached him and offered to help handle Cesaro. Rollins told him to leave, but he finally came out to watch the game.
Cesaro grabs Murphy and takes him down in a waistline right after the clock. He caught Murphy in the middle of the jump and hit a breakaway for a double. Murphy was able to send him out of the ring and hit a big dive to take him down.
The Juggernaut hit a meteor from the top rope for another fall. Cesaro grabs him with a capital letter to give himself time to recover. The Swiss Superman swung Murphy to his legs for a few seconds before locking himself in a Sharpshooter for the win.
Grade: B-
Analysis
If they had been given twice as much time and not Rollins distracted us from commentary, it could have been the game of the week.
Cesaro and Murphy showed good chemistry and used their skills to make each other look good. The only thing that could have made it better would have been to get more time with them.
Rollins was not impressed with Murphy’s efforts and made no effort to help him, and this might have been a one-time interaction for the former allies.
6 of 6
Corey Graves gave a special introduction to this Cage game. Although it was unnecessary, he helped to make it feel like it was an important battle for both participants.
Uso quickly took control and punished Bryan against the cage wall when Reigns looked at him and encouraged him to continue. Bryan prevents Uso from escaping through the door, but he can do little else.
The Yes Man hit a missile and kicked Uso’s arm as if going for a field goal. He pushes Uce into the cage and keeps working on his arm. Uso stopped him from climbing out of the cage and hung him in the tree of woe.
We returned from a break to see both men at the top of the cage. Bryan pulls Uso back into the ring and hits a series of kicks while standing on the top rope. Uso fired back with a superkick and a big splash, but only got one fall.
Bryan and Uso beat life apart with strikes. Bryan hit a suplex from the top rope and applied the Yes Lock. Uso was forced to type while Reigns watched with a disappointment over his face.
Grade: B +
Analysis
Bryan and Uso beat each other senselessly and lead a fun Cage match to end an uneven episode of SmackDown.
Both men looked good and used the cage in clever ways. They did not constantly throw each other into it, so it had more impact if they used it to their advantage.
Bryan vs Reigns at Fastlane will be great, but the result is predictable. The program wrestled nicely this week, but did not do much to advance the ongoing storylines.