16 WTF Moments From SmackDown (7 Jan)

By Jack G King / January 8, 2016

These days, SmackDown has a far sillier feel than Raw. It's sadly become something of a sandbox for WWE's writers, with segments that would at least be treat seriously on Raw afforded none of the gravitas. But was it just me, or did this week's edition seem a lot more serious? Sure, we were forced to endure SmackDown's usual dosage of "comedy" - providing a rather large percentage of our 'WTF Moments' in the process - but the two top matches on the card seemed like legitimately important encounters. First, Becky Lynch took on Charlotte in her long-awaited title shot for the Divas Championship, a bout followed by Kevin Owens' chance at reclaiming his Intercontinental title from Dean Ambrose. Both matches were given a decent chunk of time, and actually reported on in a serious manner by the commentary team. This probably had something to do with the brand new face sat alongside Jerry Lawler and Byron Saxton...

16. A New Commentator Makes His Debut - And He's Actually Good!

After weeks of speculation (and sheer hope), Mauro Ranallo finally gave us a taste of his ability on SmackDown's USA Network debut - and he knocked it out of the park, by all accounts. Feedback towards Ranallo's performance has been incredibly positive, with fans across social media praising his ability to tell the story of a match, invoke appropriate emotions, and actually call some damn moves by their real names. Lawler even gave him the nickname 'MR', a direct reference to play-by-play legend JR. Such comparisons can only bode well for Ranallo's WWE career.