WWE SmackDown Review - July 16, 2015

Rusev sets his sights on Cesaro.

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Bray Wyatt Interrupted Roman Reigns

I've been of two minds on this feud since it started. Initially, I was (and still am to an extent) excited about seeing a match between the two because it feels fresh, but the feud has been all over the place. Wyatt does a great job of delivering his lines, but what the hell is he even saying? It worked for him early on in his run, but by this point no one takes what he says seriously because very rarely does he back it up. It's also obvious Reigns will win Sunday (though I hope I'm wrong), so why bother investing in their feud?


The New Day def. The Lucha Dragons

The two teams contested a solid match, but it was designed to give The New Day a win and not meant to be a show-stealing showcase. The Lucha Dragons have been featured here and there since their main roster arrival, but I hope it's only inevitable before they enter the WWE Tag Team Championship picture. I enjoy both The New Day and the Prime Time Players, but their feud hasn't resonated with me at all because they've barely been given any mic time to give viewers a reason to care.

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Neville rolls up Stardust to pick up the victory.

King Barrett def. Jack Swagger

I hate to say it, but it's gotten to the point where I simply zone out during Barrett's matches because almost all of them lately have been inconsequential. If he's not losing to R-Truth, he's beating fellow enhancement talent like Swagger, which makes him look even worse. There was nothing wrong with the match, but this whole program with Truth has been a complete waste of time. He showed how talented he is on the mic following the bout, but it's a shame his abilities aren't being utilized in a meaningful manner.


Cesaro def. Rusev

Despite how down I've been on the pairing of Rusev and Summer Rae as of late in addition to their atrocious storyline with Dolph Ziggler and Lana, Rusev is still an incredible athlete and he proved that both on Monday's Raw and in this match. Seeing as how this was their first ever one-on-one match against each other, Rusev and Cesaro worked well together and put together a very good match. I had totally forgotten about Rusev's being unpinned (outside of his feud with John Cena) until the commentators brought it up, so I was glad to see Cesaro score a major win and his brief backstage segment with Kevin Owens gives me hope he'll be another United States Championship match before long.


Neville def. Stardust

This was a nice match while it lasted and I liked it more than their encounter on Raw, but I'm still slightly disappointed WWE didn't bring him back as Cody Rhodes. I've read his wife Brandi's blog and he may even enjoy portraying the character, but I feel it's a waste of his potential as a performer because the Stardust shtick has such a short shelf life. At the very least they should turn him heel after his mini-feud with Neville runs its course because fans simply don't want to boo him.


Roman Reigns and Dean Ambrose def. Sheamus and Big Show by Disqualification

What a random match. Reigns is feuding with Wyatt, Sheamus is feuding with Randy Orton, Big Show is feuding with Ryback and The Miz, and Ambroe isn't feuding with anybody right now. Orton, Ryback (who we've now learned is injured) and Miz were all absent from this show, so this match did nothing to boost my enthusiasm for any of these Battleground matches. It was a rather formulaic tag team match and the Wyatt-Reigns brawl was kept to a minimum, but their best work came on Raw. It was bizarre for them to end their go-home show on such an odd note.


Overall Show

Serious question: Has a go-home edition of SmackDown ever gotten you more excited for a pay-per-view? No? Well, I didn't think so as this show wasn't an exception. The main event was beyond random and everything else was just kind of "there." The only entertaining match on this show was Cesaro vs. Rusev, which has nothing to do with Battleground. I'm already looking forward to the event (especially after the Undertaker and Sting rumors that surfaced earlier today), but this episode felt pointless.

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