13 Ups & 3 Downs From Last Night's WWE SmackDown (July 23)

11. Elevating The Ordinary

Kevin Owens
WWE.com

Last night's in-ring opener began with Shane McMahon. After The New Day's arrival in the announce booth, the 'Best In The World' claimed he was glad that Kevin Owens didn't show up at the Raw Reunion. He said KO was "hiding on social media" having challenged him to a match at SummerSlam, and after accepting, noted that Owens would quit WWE if he lost, before lambasting Big Kev for going back on this promise in the past.

Out came KO. On fire at the moment, he cut another character-fuelled promo in which he claimed last year's "I quit" fake-out was the lowest point of his career, then stated that he'd moved on, grown, and knew Shane would accept his challenge because he can't stay out of the spotlight. He promised to "beat the living hell" out of McMahon at SummerSlam and even tried to do so there and then, but the former SmackDown Commissioner stopped him in his tracks by booking Owens vs. Roman Reigns for the main event.

Formulaic? A tad, but SmackDown's obligatory talky opener was elevated by the strength of the performers. KO was tremendous, Shane wasn't much worse, and their respective positions make sense.

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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.