12 Ups & 2 Downs From Last Night's WWE SmackDown (Mar 5)

7. Tag Team Clusterf*ck

Aleister Black Jeff Hardy Matt Hardy Ricochet
WWE.com

Chaos erupted following Ricochet and Aleister Black's victory over The Bar.

The duo barely had time to celebrate before last week's losers, Shinsuke Nakamura and Rusev, stormed the ring. A beatdown followed, with the heels joining forces, before the reunited Hardy Boyz stormed down. This was enough to turn the tide. In the end, it was the Hardyz and the NXT team standing tall, having run the bad guys up the ramp, hinting at the division's future direction.

We often bemoan WWE's insistence on cramming WrestleMania with as many performers as possible, giving said performers a pay-per-view payday at the cost of creativity, but it makes sense here. SmackDown's tag division is a relatively even playing field. Throwing the brand's best teams together in one monster feud (this lot plus The Usos, essentially) makes sense if the company don't have a strong two-on-two programme up their sleeves. Besides, just imagine the chaos those five teams could concoct if WWE threw them in a ladder match on 7 April...

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Andy has been with WhatCulture for six years and is currently WhatCulture's Senior Wrestling Reporter. 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.