SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
A few updates to go over before we get down to the analysis:
•Last week, a mysterious vignette aired during Smackdown promoting the debut of a new luchador. While Chad Gable has been portraying a luchador on Raw for a current storyline, many have theorized this to be teasing the debut of Rey Fenix, fresh off a contentious release from AEW. If so, it seems WWE plans to debut Fenix on a different brand than his brother Penta, suggesting a singles run before the eventual tag team.
•Another vignette also aired, showing a pillar of smoke and the number “4”. While admittedly a reach, many believe this to be the return of Aleister Black (fka Malakai Black), also leaving AEW. The vignette’s brooding vibe fits Black’s old gimmick in NXT, and he’s been public about returning to WWE for years following Triple H’s ascension to the executive level.
•Ring announcer Lilian Garcia is officially leaving Smackdown full-time. A last-minute replacement for the departing Samantha Irvin, Garcia’s legendary return to WWE proved she’s still got it. She’ll be sticking around for Saturday Night’s Main Event and other big shows, but she’s no longer full-time.
•The WWE website recently removed the nicknames from certain wrestlers’ profile, including Seth Rollins and Dominik Mysterio.
•Not main roster, but NXT’s Giulia is reportedly dealing with an injury that will keep her out of action for the near future. This is supposedly part of the reason Giulia dropped the NXT Women’s Championship to Stephanie Vaquer at NXT Roadblock last week.
No big developments this week, but there’s a few patterns emerging in the WWE product I wanted to discuss. First off, we’ll cover this more below, but the WWE Tag Team titles switched hands last week, marking the fourth title change in 2025. Not only is this noteworthy in an era favoring lengthy reigns, but it’s also on the road to Wrestlemania. Normally, during this time, WWE likes to build up the current champs from January to April, so each title match at their biggest show feels like an event. These twists and turns late in the game are quite different for this regime.
This suggests two things: that the majority of the longer reigns from 2022-2023 were for the history books. A way to stamp the Triple H era’s beginning into existence, so fans could have an established base before stories began anew. Secondly, it suggests that Triple H is more willing to shake up his playing field, move around the established players. And I love that. Everyone wears out their welcome eventually, and evolution of the main players is a natural part of staying fresh.
Secondly, especially with Naomi’s turn, I’ve began to notice that WWE recently hasn’t capitalized on heel turns. Plenty of performers turning heel fade into the background faster than they should. Naomi already feels relegated to a secondary position in her own storyline, with Belair and Cargill the majority of the more interesting story beats. Yes, there’s outliers (Kevin Owens, for one), but it’s interesting to see the vast majority of heel turns dying down faster than usual (The New Day, Chad Gable, Santos Escobar, Charlotte Flair).
I’m not saying that Triple H is suddenly a bad booker, but it’s interesting to observe some of the holes in his style starting to develop now that he’s a few years into the job and the honeymoon period isn’t quite as strong.
But enough being negative: last week’s episode of Smackdown was a jam-packed one, and set the stage for a few crucial moments at WrestleMania 41. Let’s review:
THE U.S SECRET HER-VICE TAKES ON ZELINA VEGA
Latest Developments:
Last year, Chelsea Green defeated Michin to become the inaugural WWE Women’s US Champion. Over time, Green took on a comedic political edge to her gimmick, recruiting Niven as her government protection. Later, Green recruited Alba Fyre into their alliance as “Slaygent A” of the US Secret HERvice.
Last week, Zelina Vega confronted the group after crossing paths with Green over the past few weeks. Vega wanted her shot at the Women’s US Championship, but Green said she’d have to go through Niven first, and the two set a match for tonight.
Analysis:
It looks like we’re getting Green vs. Vega in the near future, which should be a great matchup on the mic. The women’s division lacks many wrestlers that can truly match Green on the mic, and Vega’s command over the live crowd is supremely underrated. The verbal battles alone should be enough to anchor the Smackdown women’s midcard for several weeks.
I’m also a fan of the stable serving as a gauntlet for potential contenders, which is a great consistent way to build up each new challenger as a plausible threat while allowing Green numerous opportunities to squirm away or employ heelish shenanigans to thwart them. It’s perfect booking for a heel that’s always hidden away behind her muscle. However, WWE runs the risk of making challengers feel too invincible if not presented properly, specifically the undersized Vega. Seeing Vega run through the entire stable may just make them look like cannon fodder, rather than building her up, if the in-ring work doesn’t play to Vega’s strengths properly.
There were also a few flaws in how we got here. The seeds for this potential matchup were sown a month or more ago, then put on ice so Green (despite being a champion) could be used to put over Tiffany Stratton while Vega was largely iced. It speaks to the disrespect these belts have been getting in recent months. I understand they’re still secondary championships, but there’s plenty of low-card women that could have been used to fill that role.
Criticisms aside, this is a fresh & intriguing matchup for Green, and should amp up the midcard for the immediate future.
Grade: B+
L.A. KNIGHT & JIMMY USO & BRAUN STROWMAN vs. THE NEW BLOODLINE
Latest Developments:
Last year, L.A. Knight lost the US title to Shinsuke Nakamura, vowing to one day reclaim his belt, but failing due to The Bloodline getting involved.
Following his loss to Roman Reigns at Raw On Netflix, Solo Sikoa went AWOL leaving Jacob Fatu to represent The Bloodline. Upon returning, a humbled Sikoa found Fatu growing more ambitious in his absence and progressively losing respect for him.
Meanwhile, Braun Strowman had been on the long list of babyfaces that had developed beef with The Bloodline’s constant heel presence on Smackdown. Following this, Strowman had several matches against The Bloodline which ended in a huge brawl.
Two weeks ago, Nick Aldis announced a 6-man single-elimination tournament to find the US Title’s next contender. LA Knight secured the win against Fatu, and later defeated Nakamura to become a two-time US Champion.
Last week, Knight was confronted by Jimmy Uso, whose own solo road to Wrestlemania had been derailed thanks to multiple singles losses. Uso called his shot, but the Bloodline interrupted him, with Fatu wanting a shot as well. Strowman arrived to aid the babyfaces, and a trios match was set which the babyfaces won.
Analysis:
This booking finally felt like the convergence of several directionless storylines on Smackdown: LA Knight’s road to Wrestlemania, Jimmy Uso’s solo career, and Braun Strowman’s beef with The Bloodline. While these players had all been intertwined over the past few months, the booking never quite clicked and everyone felt like their road to ‘Mania was unclear. This week, everyone was put on the same stage and played off each other perfectly. Uso, in particular, got to shine solo as he let himself be vulnerable about his recent losses. It’s perfect booking that acknowledges the past, without devaluing the character.
The Sikoa & Fatu promo continued to advance their dynamic, with Sikoa looking slightly more hesitant and talking up Fatu more prominently. Strowman, as always, was the classic force of nature that added a fresh dynamic to a set of stories that had already interacted numerous times in WWE.
The ensuing tag match was nothing special, but a whole lot of fun. Like the good ol’ days of the Teddy Long era, there was something so fun seeing three disparate babyfaces have each other’s back. Knight proves his ability to have in-ring chemistry with damn near everybody.
In the immediate future, it looks like we’re on the road to a multi-man match at Wrestlemania 41. While I’m not a particular fan of multi-man matches at Wrestlemania (the biggest event of the year’s championship matches should mostly be singles matches, it upps the prestige), I can’t argue with the much more consolidated and intertwined builds this year. The multi-man matches don’t feel like an afterthought, there’s a genuine attempt for every character dynamic to make sense.
Okay, Strowman doesn’t really need to be there, but in fairness his character works best as “smash now, get gold, process later”.
Grade: B+
CHARLOTTE FLAIR vs. TIFFANY STRATTON
Latest Developments:
Following her return from injury, Charlotte Flair won the women’s Royal Rumble and called out WWE Women’s Champion Tiffany Stratton. After some back-and-forth, the two were confirmed for a title match at Wrestlemania.
While Flair sparingly appeared on programming, Stratton continued warding off enemies like Nia Jax, Candice LeRae, Chelsea Green and Piper Niven. Last week, following a match against Niven, Stratton was attacked by Flair before officials broke it up. Flair got on the mic, calling the entire division soft.
Last week, Flair defeated B-Fab in a dominant performance. After refusing to release B-Fab after the bell, Flair got attacked by Stratton which began another huge brawl. The two continued brawling later in the episode, interrupting MizTV.
Analysis:
This wasn’t bad, but it just felt pretty uninspired, I won’t lie. When your most engaging promo work is via Twitter DMs for a world title match, you might be in trouble. They’ve settled into a dynamic of Flair believing she’s better than Stratton due to her experience, which isn’t a bad narrative in theory. But that concept’s being watered down in favor of Flair believing she’s now better than the rest of the roster, and she doesn’t really have that “veteran legend” status to make it work.
Flair’s booking needs to be more heavily focused on Stratton, perhaps centering on doing Stratton’s moves to win a match or calling her out more specifically. Right now, there’s an emotional disconnect on Flair’s part. And it’s clear WWE wants us to see this as an intense blood feud, which is currently is far from. Stratton has repeatedly spoken about being inspired by Flair, but that’s rarely come up during the build so far, which feels like a huge missed opportunity. There’s so many ways to make this feel more raw or intense, and WWE is almost purposefully downplaying those.
That’s what made the pull-apart brawl segment feel way too hokey this week. WWE has already overused that trope in the past few months, but especially for this feud it’s way too overboard. I don’t really believe these women hate each other enough for this to feel realistic. And in a promotion that’s so storyline-heavy, that’s a big turnoff. For me, WWE needs to really distill this build down to its two main participants, if they want to evoke any semblance of fire.
Grade: C-
CODY RHODES vs. JOHN CENA
Latest Developments:
Since turning heel and feuding with Cody Rhodes at Wrestlemania XL, The Rock seemingly reconciled with Rhodes the following week, teased a future championship match, and departed WWE programming.
In January, The Rock returned and faced off with Rhodes in-ring, wanting Rhodes to be his corporate champion. Last week, Rhodes was gifted numerous items by The Rock, including a custom car and a private dressing room. After getting advice from various wrestlers like Seth Rollins and CM Punk, Rhodes made his decision at Elimination Chamber, telling The Rock to go f**k himself.
Meanwhile, John Cena stated his intentions to retire at the end of 2025. After losing the Royal Rumble, a more serious Cena stated his intent to win the Elimination Chamber at all costs. After doing so, Cena turned heel (!!!) and joined The Rock, alongside rapper Travis Scott. The two left Rhodes bloodied and beaten before leaving the ring.
Later, Rhodes addressed the audience, giving Cena his flowers for his long career but condemning him as a man no longer righteous. Last week, Rhodes was set to go on MizTV to discuss the Cena situation. When The Miz chose to interrupt Rhodes, Rhodes attacked him and said he wanted to speak to Cena and Cena only.
Analysis:
Not much of a segment here, intended to build to a Rhodes-Cena confrontation in the near future. The only interesting new element of last week’s segment is Rhodes beginning to show a more ruthless side. In all of his previous MizTV appearances, Rhodes respected Miz enough to play his game for at least a little bit. Attacking him at the first sign of disrespect is a marked difference, hinting at a Rhodes burning with hatred and ready for confrontation.
I do wish we could’ve gotten a little more out of Rhodes, as segments like MizTV are a great way to build escalation and the ensuing brawl would have gotten a bigger reaction if Rhodes began calm initially. But that’s a huge nitpick.
When Rhodes finally faces off with Cena, we could be in for an all-timer promo segment, folks.
Grade: B+
DREW MCINTYRE vs. DAMIAN PRIEST
Latest Developments:
Drew McIntyre recently developed a rivalry against Damian Priest following Priest eliminating him from both the Royal Rumble and the Elimination Chamber, and pointing out the logical flaws in his quests for revenge over the last year.
Over the past few weeks, McIntyre and Priest continued attacking each other at every opportunity, and eventually began to interfere in each other’s matches.
Last week, McIntyre cut a lengthy promo indicating that Priest had benefitted from his personal feuds, stealing the world championship from him and being the cause of his recent losses. Later that night, Priest had an impromptu match with Shinsuke Nakamura, which ended in DQ when McIntyre interfered and a brawl broke out.
Analysis:
I spoke about this feud’s potential in detail last week, so I won’t waste your time restating my thoughts here. Essentially, it’s not bad, but both men feel like they could be doing something more interesting.
Last week was the first time where WWE really allowed McIntyre to cut loose on Priest, reminding us just how intertwined the two have been over the past year. Frankly, I never put together just how much Priest had benefitted from McIntyre’s hatred for CM Punk, yet at the same time McIntyre’s sheer pettiness is extremely effective keeping me on Priest’s side. The ensuing match and brawl was the first time this feud really felt like it had some heat. The international crowd really helped matters, coming alive for Priest as the Spanish-speaking hero.
So why does the feud overall still feel underwhelming? Personally, I think it has to do with McIntyre’s pointed exclusion from the Reigns-Rollins-Punk three-way feud. While Priest is unquestionably a main eventer, he still feels a half-step down from those three. And keeping McIntyre away from the triple-threat when he’s arguably done his best heel work with all three, in favor of a Priest program feels like a step down. Additionally, Priest’s former programs against Finn Balor and Gunther never really had the emphatic end beat with Priest on top and the crowd going nuts. For a casual audience, Priest feels more underwhelming as a babyface right now due to a string of “meh” feuds compared to McIntyre being on the heel run of a lifetime.
Grade: B-
ROMAN REIGNS WILL RETURN…. NEXT WEEK
Latest Developments:
Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins reunited their long hatred for each other at Wrestlemania 40, where Reigns’ hatred of Rollins cost him the WWE Championship. In the aftermath, Rollins and CM Punk engaged in a lengthy feud while Reigns dealt with The New Bloodline.
Last year, at Survivor Series: Wargames, Punk joined Reigns’ team as a favor to mutual friend Paul Heyman. In return, Punk said Heyman owed him a mysterious favor. Throughout the match, Punk and Reigns were combative but seemed to find some measure of respect.
At the Royal Rumble, Punk eliminated Reigns and Rollins. Rollins went berserk and attacked both Punk and Reigns. In the following weeks, Rollins and Punk’s feud intensified, culminating in a cage match. Reigns interfered, laying both men out.
Last week, Paul Heyman addressed the live crowd on Smackdown, confirming that Reigns would return to Smackdown next week in Italy. On social media, Punk confirmed he would also be there to confront Reigns.
Analysis:
I haven’t covered most of this feud since it’s largely occurred on Raw. Go check out my Raw counterpart Kurt Cadet’s column for more on that (shoutout to Kurt, his analysis is amazing).
This week’s promo didn’t have much going on, but the intensity of this feud looks to start ramping up next week. Heyman being the one to address the crowd tonight also signifies that the Wiseman is likely to get involved in the feud, being torn between Punk and Reigns. WWE has allowed Punk to mention Heyman’s favor multiple times, so that thread isn’t being forgotten. Another plot point that will likely come into play soon, but WWE needs to make sure they don’t overly build up the favor if they don’t have a big payoff planned.
Also, Heyman’s got some big cojones mentioning Mussolini in Western Europe. I know it’s only in relation to CM Punk, but still.
Grade: B
RANDY ORTON vs. KEVIN OWENS
Latest Developments:
After witnessing Cody Rhodes team with longtime enemy Roman Reigns, Kevin Owens turned heel and called out Rhodes for being a hypocrite. During a lengthy feud with Rhodes, mutual friend Randy Orton found himself the victim of a brutal beatdown from Owens, writing him off television.
Over the next few months, Owens’ violent crusade continued against Sami Zayn. Following a brutal unsanctioned match at Elimination Chamber, Orton made his return and violently beat down Owens as revenge.
Last week, Orton faced Carmelo Hayes in a tune-up match. A much more violent Orton was ready to destroy Hayes until Owens made the save, escaping before Orton could give chase.
Analysis:
Again, for the second week in a row there wasn’t a lot to go on here. The past few months have given us all we really need from Owens, so it’s refreshing for WWE to pull back slightly on his character and focus on re-establishing Orton as a threat. This week’s match reintroduced the punt kick as one of Orton’s most devastating moves, further establishing that Owens woke up the viper after spending the first year of his return as a more genial babyface.
Thanks to Carmelo Hayes’ phenomenal selling, Orton came across as an absolute monster in the ring, amplified by the international crowd going bananas. International crowds are known for being hot, but they love Orton in particular. Owens escaping rather than confronting Orton further is a marked change from his behavior against Zayn, which signifies that WWE is beginning to shift the dynamic to Owens now being the hunted. This is smart, as it furthers the idea that Owens’ eventual beatdown will be entirely his own fault for picking a fight against Orton.
And with the amount of heat Owens has built, the eventual blowoff match of Owens getting destroyed will be nothing short of cathartic.
Grade: A
NAOMI’S BETRAYAL
Latest Developments:
Following her return from injury at the Elimination Chamber, Jade Cargill viciously attacked her former ally Naomi, leaving mutual friend Bianca Belair stunned.
The following week, Belair begged Naomi to say that she had not been the one to take Cargill out of action, and it had instead been Judgement Day. Naomi admitted to the crime, claiming she did it for herself and Belair to be champions together. Cargill arrived, laying out Naomi. Cargill and Belair shared a nod as the segment ended.
Last week, Cargill engaged in a sitdown interview, explaining what she remembered after the attack and condemning Naomi. Judgement Day (Liv Morgan & Raquel Rodriguez) interrupted to whine about being blamed for the attack, leading Cargill to issue a challenge against Morgan for tonight.
Analysis:
After a few weeks of genuinely engaging character-building, this storyline took a few massive steps backward this week. With the focus squarely on Jade Cargill for the first time, it became clear that Belair’s role in the feud’s blowoff will be minimal and the central conflict will be Cargill vs. Naomi. Unfortunately, Cargill’s stilted acting and sloppy in-ring work makes her a thoroughly un-engaging babyface. The sitdown interview this week felt stilted, robotic and lacking passion. To be fair, the writers hampering Cargill with fuzzy storytelling beats regarding the attack doesn’t help, but it’s clear that her promo ability isn’t up to the level this story requires.
The Judgement Day-inclusion also feels uneven, with Cargill having little reason to be mad at them. In fact, shouldn’t she sympathize with them? After all, Naomi tried blaming them for her crime. If anything, they should have a shared hatred rather than becoming adversarial immediately. In a promotion that prides itself on storytelling & continuity, this feels like a ham-fisted attempt to give Cargill some babyface shine. Morgan has proven herself to be one of the greatest sellers in the division, and will surely make Cargill’s offense look like a million dollars. But beyond that, this feels like a weird dynamic going into tonight.
This storyline feels like it’s fading, and after all the buildup to Cargill’s return, the reception to the eventual blowoff match (likely at Wrestlemania) could set the tone for the next few years of Cargill’s WWE career.
Grade: C-
TAG TEAM ANARCHY (AND A TITLE MATCH)
Latest Developments:
Four months ago, The Motor City Machine Guns defeated DIY to win the WWE Tag Team Championships. The Street Profits were next in line for a title shot, but DIY intervened. Later, The Profits were attacked backstage, taking them out of action. DIY turned heel, stole their title shot and recaptured the belts.
When The Profits returned, they were informed by Pretty Deadly that Los Garzas had been their attackers, causing the two teams to brawl. But it was revealed that Pretty Deadly had framed Los Garzas, with DIY promising them a title shot in return. Eventually, The Profits and Los Garzas exposed the truth, while Pretty Deadly turned on DIY after weeks of constant evasiveness over their title shot. At the Royal Rumble, MCMG vs. DIY was yet again interrupted by The Profits, wanting to be the ones taking DIY down personally.
To stop the constant brawls, Aldis greenlit The Profits’ title match against DIY for last week. After an incredibly fierce battle, The Street Profits recaptured the tag titles. Per Nick Aldis, Pretty Deadly is next in line for their title shot.
Analysis:
We got new tag champs! Only six weeks out from Wrestlemania 41, very interesting. First off, this win legitimized The Profits as a top contender in the tag division. Following a few years of iffy booking, the crowd was molten-hot for these guys, and letting the moment of the Profits raising the belts sit was a great visual. Just non-stop cheering.
DIY’s storyline strength has been their blend of tag team technical wrestling and heel interference. Between causing Gargano to kick Ciampa, The Profits proved they could compete with DIY on their home turf. It was babyface booking done perfectly, putting The Profits over as a top team with more in-ring acumen than “fighting spirit”.
With Pretty Deadly next in line and DIY seeking a rematch, we’re definitely ramping up to a multi-man match at Wrestlemania 41. The Profits succeeded in their personal quest to dethrone DIY, but they caused a lot of collateral damage to get their shot, and quite a few teams want their pound of flesh. This is the best version of a multi-man feud. With everyone fighting for their shot at the top, even the babyfaces wind up stepping on people’s toes en route to the belts.
Nick Aldis’ solution to the tag division’s insanity may have instead caused new rivalries to spring up in their place, and I love that. The tangled web of alliances is enough to fuel the division for at least the next year.
Grade: A++
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