21 Years Of WWE SmackDown Mistakes

2. 2018 - No Tomorrow

Daniel Bryan
WWE.com

"Asuka is Japanese".

Flippantly appraising Asuka's chances in the 2018 Royal Rumble before she actually won it, WhatCulture.com's own Michael Sidgwick cynically but succinctly summarised WWE's cack-handedness with performers from the Far East. His cynicism was proven shrewd just three months later.

'The Empress Of Tomorrow' has been buried so far underground on SmackDown Live! since losing at WrestleMania that the character may as well literally lay six feet under. Her entire aura was enveloped in an undefeated streak WWE callously concluded with not a thought for a palpable Plan B. Her blue brand career hasn't just been a mistake - it's been a total f*cking catastrophe.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 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 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, 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