14 Ups & 2 Downs From Last Night's WWE SmackDown (Mar 19)

11. Keep It Simple, Styles

The AJ Styles vs. Randy Orton feud continues to yield microphone magic.

Last week saw the former World Champions go bar for bar with a heated back-and-forth based on their divergent paths to the top, as AJ took on the role of hard-grafting ex-indie warrior versus Orton's entitled company man shtick. Yesterday's offering wasn't as pointed, but it still worked, as 'The Phenomenal One' joined Kayla Braxton to shoot more barbs at his apparent WrestleMania opponent.

Styles put Orton over with his opening salvo, calling him a great competitor with the kind of agility that'd usually belong to a man half his size, before diving into last week's material. He called Randy "a first-round draft pick" and himself "a walk-on," then said that at 'Mania, 'The Viper' will be stood across from a man who'd never been handed a thing, promised to tear the house down in New York, before signing off by wishing good old Kofi Kingston luck in the main event.

AJ typically benefits from keeping things simple in his promo work. That was the case here, with the former WWE Champion coming off as he should ahead of his next clash with Randy.

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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.