11 Ups & 2 Downs From Last Night's WWE SmackDown (3 Sept)

2. Brawl With Elias

Ali Elias
WWE.com

Above all else, the revived King of the Ring tournament has succeeded as a guaranteed source of great weekly matches on WWE television. Raw saw the much-maligned and much-improved Baron Corbin work out of his skin versus Cedric Alexander. Here, another unfashionable wrestler met an athletic wonder as Elias battled Ali, with 'The Drifter,' like Corbin, delivering a performance way above his old batting average.

Stifling Ali's explosiveness was always going to be Elias' most obvious route to victory. Such layouts usually result in a tedious, grinding match layout, but not here, with effective pacing and spots like Ali nailing a 450 to Elias' arm (hi there, Robbie Eagles) keeping things exciting. If there's a better Elias singles match, this columnist can't recall it off the top of his head.

Ali tried to put Shane McMahon's stooge away with his 054 towards the end. He missed and Elias' earlier knee-work paid off, with the brawler crushing the joint once more then hitting Drift Away for the WWE. Afterwards, the big bell-end played guitar from the King of the Ring throne. Let's hope he delivers a similar performance against Chad Gable.

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Channel Manager
Channel Manager

Andy has been with WhatCulture for eight years and is currently WhatCulture's Wrestling Channel Manager. A writer, presenter, and editor with 10+ years of experience in online media, he has been a sponge for all wrestling knowledge since playing an old Royal Rumble 1992 VHS to ruin in his childhood. Having previously worked for Bleacher Report, Andy specialises in short and long-form writing, video presenting, voiceover acting, and editing, all characterised by expert wrestling knowledge and commentary. Andy is as much a fan of 1985 Jim Crockett Promotions as he is present-day AEW and WWE - just don't make him choose between the two.