SMACKDOWN PRIMER: What to expect tonight based on what happened last week with Cena, Corbin, Wyatt Family, Alpha, La Luchadora, Ziggler, Bliss

SMACKDOWN PREVIEW
JANUARY 10, 2017
BATON ROUGE, LA. AT RAISING CANE’S RIVER CENTER
By Joey Galizia (@RamJam89), PWTorch Specialist

“THESE ARE THE END OF DAYS”

John Cena has a newfound fire underneath his already well-established legacy. In back-to-back weeks he’s cut some of the best promos since his once in lifetime (LIES) feud against The Rock. The purpose of a promo is to sell a match, and MAN he sold it before we even knew who his opponent would be. What makes it even better? It’s AJ Styles yet again, and while this match MOST DEFINITELY should be headlining Wrestlemania, I’m not unhappy that we get to see it in a few short weeks. However, we are in the new era, and there is a hungry Lone Wolf out looking for fresh meat. Tonight, Baron Corbin will step into the ring with the leader of the Cenation in an effort to prove that not only does he belong, but that he should be champion. Buckle in, because with the way Corbin has been delivering as of late, this has the potential to open a lot of doors for his future.

“IT WAS ONLY A MATTER OF TIME”

I sincerely tip my hat to Dean Ambrose. For a while I accused him of just coasting along, and showing up each week on auto-pilot. I will happily eat those words, because he’s reminded me of how exciting he can be to watch when he fully commits. While I was a little bummed to see Miz’s incredible IC title run come to an end, I am a little tickled that it was the Lunatic Fringe who got to go over. Besides, watching an angry Miz exclaim that everyone in the WWE has conspired against him to make sure he fails is damn good television. While there is probably a rematch on the horizon it won’t be tonight, but that doesn’t mean we won’t get some plot points to get us there.

“A ROOM FILLED WITH SMOKE”

“Run.” That has been the key catchphrase of the Wyatt family since their inception into the WWE. When they added one of the craziest of all time Randy Orton, that phrase only became more declarative. You do not want to mess with these guys. With that said, where are the Wyatts at mentally? It seems that the relationship between Orton and Harper continues to grow more unstable, but who would Bray side with if he had to choose? Harper has always been loyal, but Orton did sacrifice himself on more than one occasion, and brought the eater of worlds his first taste of gold. Maybe everything will come together again, because they do have their rematch against American Alpha, and SD has shown us that no title is safe at anytime. Alpha rise to the top didn’t come easy, so how hard will they fight to remain there? No matter what happens tonight….WE WIN.

“WE ALL WHERE MASKS”

If there is a conspiracy going on, it must be happening to Becky Lynch. After she failed to retrieve her title against Bliss in Chicago thanks to La Luchadora, last week she encountered the masked vigilante again who joined Alexa in a beatdown of the Irish one. Can Lynch outsmart the mystery woman who cost her the title? If I were  Becky (man that’d be awesome) I would hijack the show and refuse to let it go on until La Lucha revealed her identity, and while smart money still says that it’s Mickie James, the rest of the SD women’s division have proven that they cannot be trusted either.

“AND SPEAKING OF”

Nikki Bella will finally get her hands on Natalya after the latter finally admitted her reasoning for attacking the former. Charlotte, Sasha, and Bayley may be the most well-liked of the WWE female superstars, but nothing like a great build to a feud to get me excited for this one. Over under on how many times Natalya calls Nikki a bitch in this match? (I SAY 15 BECAUSE TENSION.)

Ziggler has finally lost it. After months of opportunity slipping through his fingers, and a defeat last week to Baron Corbin, Dolph has decided that he’s mad as hell and not going to take it anymore. (Kudos Network) During a post match beatdown by Corbin, Kalisto came out to save the show-off, but ate a super-kick for his troubles. Later on, Apollo Crews called out Ziggy for such a heelish act, but ate a VICIOUS head-butt for his troubles. Apollo may have a nice smile, but he’s not going to take that from anybody. Be careful though Crews, because Dolph has that Braun Strowman murder look in his eyes.

So many things happening, but each with a proper build. I can’t wait for the show tonight, can you? Also catch my live report of 205 right after!

NOW CHECK OUT LAST WEEK’S ARTICLE: SMACKDOWN PRIMER: What to expect tonight based on what happened last week with John Cena, Miz vs. Ambrose, Nikki Bella, Ellsworth, Corbin, Ziggler, Bliss