11 WWE Fastlane 2019 Impulse Reactions

10. The New Day (Big E And Xavier Woods) Vs. Shinsuke Nakamura & Rusev

The Shield
WWE

A sluggish and sloppy clash featuring arguably the most tragic foursome on SmackDown Live highlighted exactly why none of them will be in the blue brand's 'Show Of Shows' main event instead of former WrestleMania midcarders Daniel Bryan, Kofi Kingston et al.

Shinsuke Nakamura and Rusev's race to the bottom earlier this year concluded with them joining forces at the finish, but the duo have circled new drains since forming a turgid team. Such was the case here where they examined the lighting rig for Xavier Woods and Big E after Lana's interference failed like just about everything else attempted in the match.

Much of the KofiMania fantasy booking has involved a split in The New Day, and this match unusually proffered a vision where that would be preferable to several more years of pancake patter. The whole presentation was uncharacteristically indifferent - perhaps a low key tell from the pair pondering their future without Kingston on board?

The Road To WrestleMania may yet twist and turn for the quartet, but it was hard to see anything beyond an even bigger Kickoff battle for all of them in a month's time.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation over 7 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 30 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz", Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 50,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, 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