2 Ups & 5 Downs From WWE SmackDown (31 Oct - Results & Review)

by Jamie Kennedy

1. “It’s Nothing Personal”

Ilja Dragunov Nathan Frazer
WWE.com

Here's hoping that both Ilja Dragunov and Nathan Frazer get a tasty little bonus in their pay this week, because they saved SmackDown. The sub-heading comes from a killer line Ilja said to his Fraxiom foe before hitting a German suplex on Nathan outside the ring. Michael Cole neatly followed up on that by saying it's all about business and competitive wrestling for the new United States Champ.

Frazer answered the call for the 'Open Challenge' this week, and that was an inspired choice by creative. Tommaso Ciampa tried to muscle in but was sent packing, so that’s something to look out for in coming weeks. Ciampa challenging Dragunov would be another tidy match, and it looks like Tama Tonga is getting a title shot soon too. For now, there was some predictably excellent work between Ilja and Frazer.

Dragunov will need a proper feud at some point, but these exhibition matches are fine for the time being. Giving someone as skilled as him 15-20 minutes every week can never be considered a waste of airtime, let's be honest. This match also got more physical than you might imagine - Nathan’s chest looked like mincemeat, and Ilja’s head got busted open.

No, Ilja isn’t super-over quite yet, but he’ll continue earning respect with performances like this. Fans around ringside warmed to his intensity the longer the bout went on, and it's clear his best is yet to come if he can fend off injuries.

If you only watch one match from this week's SmackDown, make it this US Title 'Open Challenge'. What a wonderful display of pacing, intense bursts, physicality and more.

What did you think of this week's WWE SmackDown? For more like this, check out 10 Worst WWE Moments Of 2008 and 11 MORE WWE Returns That IMMEDIATELY Backfired!

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Contributor

Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.