WWE Smackdown Live: Analysing and Grading each segment (January 17th 2017)
Although this week’s Raw was a better show than it usually is, Smackdown Live still managed to outdo the red brand. Sure, the show wasn’t entirely focused on building towards the Rumble, but feuds and storylines once again advanced well, with effective segments leading to a strong show.
Shane McMahon opened the show with a big announcement, but AJ Styles, John Cena and The Miz made their presence known.
AJ Styles and The Miz clashed after tensions boiled over between the two earlier on, with John Cena standing tall post-match after getting involved while on guest commentary.
Nikki Bella called out Natalya, with another chaotic brawl taking place between the former friends.
Dean Ambrose and Randy Orton faced off in a fresh matchup, with the bad blood between all three members of the Wyatt family increasing even more after Harper cost Orton the match.
Jerry Lawler returned with an edition of the King’s Court, but Dolph Ziggler’s new vicious attitude soured the King’s return. A teaser of a JBL-Ziggler showdown was also a takeaway from this segment.
Alexa Bliss and Becky Lynch main evented the show with a Steel Cage Match, although a returning Mickie James disguised as La Luchadora once again helped Bliss retain.
These segments contributed to another good showing for the blue brand, who continue to produce strong weekly television.
So, which segments stole the show? Let’s find out, as I Analyse and Grade Each Segment from the January 17th edition of Smackdown Live.
#1 Shane McMahon opens the show:
Grade: 8/10
This was a strong way to open the show, with the opening match smartly set up here between Styles and Miz.
Shane-O-Mac announcing that the WWE Championship will be defended inside Elimination Chamber at the PPV in February was great, with excitement already brewing for the PPV even though the Royal Rumble PPV hasn’t even happened yet.
The announcement was also a smart way of planting the seeds for potential tension between AJ Styles and Shane McMahon who have been rumoured to be possibly clashing at Wrestlemania 33. If AJ were to lose the title inside the Chamber, he has the perfect reason to go after Shane O-Mac.
The electricity from the crowd when Cena and AJ were in the ring was awesome, with duelling chants of ‘AJ Styles’ and ‘Let’s go Cena’ showing how hot fans are for this rivalry.
The Miz making his presence felt among the main eventers was a wise choice, as he deserves to be alongside the main event stars of SD Live. A future main event run for him was teased here, as was a potential full-blown rivalry with Styles.
Cena was also hilarious here, as he attempted to increase the tensions between Miz and Styles as the antagonist of the situation.
Overall, a good opening segment that set up the Miz and Styles match for the next part of the show.
Check it out here: