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WWE SmackDown recap, review: Fridays get a fresh start with Gunther, more
By Ryan Satin
FOX Sports WWE Analyst
The emergence of new faces and intriguing storylines helped SmackDown after WrestleMania feel like a season premiere.
Welcome back to my "Highs and Lows," this time covering the 4/8/22 edition of Friday Night SmackDown featuring a few debuts, the return of Lacey Evans, Roman Reigns hinting at a unified future in WWE and more.
Here’s a quick recap of the match results:
- Xavier Woods defeated Butch via pinfall with an inside cradle
- Gunther (w/ Ludwig Kaiser fka Marcel Barthel) defeated a local enhancement talent via pinfall
- Drew McIntyre defeated Sami Zayn via countout
- Liv Morgan defeated Sasha Banks via pinfall
SMACKDOWN HIGHS
Raw After Mania, but make it SmackDown
This is what I was expecting to see on Monday.
The shows directly after WrestleMania should feel like the beginning of something new, not just a standard episode. That’s exactly what SmackDown accomplished this week. It was exciting and helped fans get invested in the future potential of the brand for a few different reasons.
For starters, Gunther being added to the roster is a big deal.
Regardless of what you think about his name change, fans know the former WALTER as an internationally-renowned talent who had previously not been interested in staying stateside.
Now that he’s arrived, though, there are some huge possibilities on the table. Here are just a few from SmackDown:
- Gunther versus Drew McIntyre
- Gunther versus Sheamus
- Gunther versus Shinsuke Nakamura
- Gunther versus Roman Reigns
If handled correctly and done in the right way, Gunther could be molded into one of Roman’s toughest challengers yet.
Raquel Gonzalez (now known as Raquel Rodriguez) is another boost to the SmackDown roster. Same for the returning Lacey Evans —although, right now, I’m starting to wonder when some of the other female talent who recently debuted are going to get more opportunities. Shotzi and Xia Li were both sitting in the audience at WrestleMania, rather than in matches. I’d love to see them on TV more instead.
As for the future of the brand beyond new talent, Shinsuke Nakamura finally entered the title picture again opposite Reigns and Drew McIntyre kicked off a program with a red-hot Sami Zayn. Two smart moves coming off of WrestleMania.
Roman Reigns plans for The Usos to unify the Tag Team Titles I WWE on FOX
SmackDown also teased something we haven’t seen in quite a while — more unified champions — and that could ultimately change the entire landscape of WWE.
I’ll write a more in-depth article on this topic in the days ahead, but for now I can say it was smart to give a better idea of what the future may hold. Especially after not much was said during Raw about this.
Lacey Evans shows her true self
Evans detailing her real-life backstory was powerful and a unique change of character following her last run.
The "real lady" gimmick had been working for the 32-year-old performer, and as surprising as it was to see it ditched upon her return, showcasing Lacey’s true story could make her into a hell of a babyface.
That story has touched many fans who’ve heard it in interviews (myself included), so putting her on a platform to share it more can be beneficial in many ways, especially for the young children watching who can relate and need hope.
SMACKDOWN LOWS
Let me start by saying this split is good for both parties. Madcap has lots of potential as a singles performer, and hopefully this will allow him to drop the comedic aspect of his character going forward. I think he’s shown real improvement these last few months. and I’m interested to see where he can take things on his own.
What I didn’t like about this is that fans haven’t been given a reason to cheer for Moss in the breakup. Yes, Corbin has belittled his partner, but we as the audience have basically felt the same way about everything Happy has been saying. Therefore, when it happened, there wasn’t much of a reaction.
So, while this split was good in theory, the execution was off.
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Ryan Satin is a WWE analyst for FOX Sports. Satin previously appeared on FS1's "WWE Backstage" and founded Pro Wrestling Sheet, where he broke countless news stories as editor-in-chief.
