7 Ups & 2 Downs From Last Night's WWE SmackDown (Aug 14)
1. Momentum? Pfft...
If Shelton Benjamin vs. Jeff Hardy happened 10 years ago with triple last night's runtime, we could be looking at a sure-fire match of the month contender. Instead, we got a dull-as-piss four-minuter between two 40-year-olds.
Benjamin is fine. His athleticism has obviously declined with age, but his fundamentals are solid, and his instincts far stronger than any ground-up Performance Center product. Jeff Hardy is fine. The problem with him is that he's clearly working hurt, and, while still capable of popping the crowd with his signature offence, likely needs some time off to heal his wounds.
The bout was designed to give Hardy a tune-up victory ahead of his United States Title challenge at SummerSlam. Again, this is fine in theory, but isn't the concept of "momentum" a fallacy in a company where wins and losses don't really matter? SmackDown's lead writer has even said it himself.
Jeff was attacked by Shinsuke Nakamura post-victory, but dropped the champion with a Twist Of Fate and Swanton Bomb, which all but guarantees 'The Extreme Enigma' loses at the weekend. 50/50 booking, ladies and gentlemen! Another bloody formula...