3 Ups & 3 Downs From WWE Smackville

Ups...

3. Ali Was a Fine Replacement

WWE Smackville
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As much as nobody believed Ali would upset Shinsuke Nakamura to become the new IC Champ, it is true that the neon Mortal Kombat warrior was a suitable babyface replacement for Finn Bálor. He got a nice pop from the live crowd when he came out (kids love this guy), and his similar style to Finn meant people weren't shortchanged in-ring.

If WWE can take anything from his performance, it's that Ali deserves better.

Again, he's cutting some career-best promos in the background on SmackDown, and his heroic talk of giving children a role model is potentially inspiring. If the writers can back up his fire on the mic with some wins in the ring, then who knows what Ali could go on to achieve. He's already surpassing prior expectations fans had for him when he was promoted from 205 Live anyway.

Anyone who's a fan of Ali's babyface-in-peril routine, comebacks and neat, well-produced offensive flurries, will like seeing him wrestle Nakamura too. They gel well, and that's why the first down was so preoccupied by frustrations over how things were flung together last-minute.

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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.