10 Things We Learned From WWE SmackDown Live! (May 2)

1. The End

Charlotte Carmella
WWE.com

Predictably (but in the very best sense of the word), Chris Jericho put Kevin Owens over strong on the final night of possibly the best run of his WWE career.

Losing his match, title and nearly a couple of his teeth in a post-match beatdown, 'Y2J' was typically professional in the manner he allowed his former 'best friend' to leave him for dead as SmackDown Live! went off the air.

The rising tensions between Owens and AJ Styles that escalated at the top of the broadcast signposted the exact direction of the United States title, but didn't detract from another superb match between the two that only slightly fell short of their Payback show-stealer last Sunday.

The contest was a fitting send-off for Chris Jericho, who was starting to look like a busted flush each and every time he returned for a select series of dates in between tours with band 'Fozzy'. His 2016/17 spell has been his his most creatively stimulating reinvention since the legendary 2008 series with Shawn Michaels, and the countless new elements he has added to his repertoire will join some of the era-defining catchphrases he coined during his maiden run with the company at the height of their mainstream boom. He will be hugely missed.

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