WWE SmackDown before Royal Rumble: 5 Superstars who impressed – AJ Styles and Braun Strowman return, top favorite picks biggest win of career (Jan 29th, 2021)
The final episode of WWE SmackDown before Royal Rumble delivered a fairly decent show. While there weren’t any flops this week, the show did not boast of many memorable moments either. That said, the creative did manage to deliver a few pleasant surprises that did just enough to keep the fans interested in the latest developments leading into Royal Rumble 2021.
In this article, we will take a look at five Superstars who managed to impress us on WWE SmackDown this week. So, without further ado, let’s begin.
#1 Impressed on WWE SmackDown: AJ Styles
It is always great to see AJ Styles back on WWE SmackDown. After all, it is the house that he built. This week, he came back on the show to lock horns with Daniel Bryan – a match that was modified twice and ended up being a part of an extended main event. Overall, Styles was one of the best parts of the show tonight, and he indirectly orchestrated a big brawl.
It all started in the opening segment of WWE SmackDown when Daniel Bryan walked out to address the fans. He claimed that he is entirely focused on winning the Royal Rumble as he wants an opportunity to main event WrestleMania and thinks that this might be his last chance. Bryan also added that he has never won the Royal Rumble match in WWE and is looking forward to creating a personal history at the pay-per-view.
He was soon interrupted by Styles who arrived on WWE SmackDown as a part of the brand-to-brand invitation. The two Superstars got involved in a heated exchange that eventually led to a match being booked between them. Given both these Superstars' collective in-ring caliber, it quickly had the fans invested in their impending bout.
Both Styles and Bryan engaged in a highly technical match on WWE SmackDown that saw them bring out their best inside the squared circle. From sly mind games to jaw-dropping counters, this match featured it all. Finally, Styles tried to deliver a Phenomenal Forearm before Bryan managed to respond with a Yes Lock.
Their match ended in disqualification after Sami Zayn decided to interfere. Eventually, it turned into a ten-man tag team match on WWE SmackDown. It should be noted that Bryan is one of the clear favorites to win the Royal Rumble on Sunday. Thus, it was good to see AJ Styles going above and beyond to ensure that Bryan appears to have a lot of momentum on his side ahead of the pay-per-view.