10 Impulse Reactions Following WWE Battleground 2017

7. The Contenders

Rusev John Cena Battleground
WWE.com

Truthfully, it wasn't all that exciting to watch play out, but at least the loose thread of intrigue running through the blue brand's Women's Division remains in tact after Natalya picked up a surprising victory to leave Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair free to tackle the uniquely tight bond between Tamina and Lana.

It was the new pairing that robustly stuck together for the bulk of the contest with Tamina repeatedly bailing the 'Ravishing Russian' out as well as enhancing Lana's extremely limited strikes and attacks. WWE should be credited with attempting to shield the former valet's weaknesses as they so often fail to do in the nihilistic modern era, but even bigger blockades may be needed after viewing her brief flirtations with 'offence' in this encounter.

A Natalya/Naomi pairing on paper looks a little pedestrian for a sure-to-be blockbuster card, but working on the assumption that the champion will retain her title, could afford the young titleholder a chance at a match that will give her reign a memorable talking point.

Natalya's form fluctuates, but matches and feuds with Charlotte, Becky Lynch and Nikki Bella did wonders for the younger foes, and the former 'Funkadactyl' may be next to add some shine to her 'Glow'.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett