10 Post-Brand Split Wins For WWE SmackDown
3. The Feud Of A Generation
It was touted as a ‘WrestleMania-worthy main event’, a ‘dream match’, and a bonafide ‘clash of styles’, but nobody could have expected that John Cena vs AJ Styles would be as good as it was. Lasting over six months on-and-off, the feud between ‘Mr WWE’ and ‘Mr TNA’ has produced two legitimate Match of the Year candidates for two separate years, and has furthered Smackdown Live’s pre-existing reputation as ‘the wrestling show’.
It was also one very few feuds in which fan favouritism mean absolutely nothing. Both Cena and Styles had entire arenas split down the middle, and when all was said and done, The Doctor of Thuganomics and the Phenomenal One silenced any doubters they may have had. John Cena proved, categorically, that he can wrestle, while Styles put paid to any claims that ‘he couldn’t talk’ or ‘couldn’t work in WWE’s style’.
Why was this such a huge deal for SmackDown?
Well, the pairing of Styles and Cena pretty much ensured that SmackDown would produce the match of the night on any joint PPV card. At SummerSlam, they produced their first MOTY contender, rising head and shoulders above RAW’s offerings.
At Royal
Rumble, they were the only SmackDown
match on the card - and they still managed
to be pull out the best match of the night.