3 Ups & 5 Downs From Last Night's WWE SmackDown (Jan 9)

1. A Support Act On His Own Show

AJ Styles drew one of the pops of the year when his merciful pinfall victory spelled the end of Jinder Mahal's torturous WWE Championship reign on November 7th, but his run with the belt hasn't been good. At all.

Don't get us wrong, 'The Phenomenal One' is infinitely more credible than 'The Maharaja,' and it's hard to imagine a scenario in which his reign becomes worse than Jinder's, but the company have done a poor job in his presentation as SmackDown's figurehead thus far. This is primarily down to the Sami and Kevin vs. The World storyline, which has effectively shunted the man who should be the blue brand's primary focus into a peripheral main event role.

Shane McMahon interrupted Styles' opening promo, and essentially told his champion that the Commissioner's own rivalry with the alpha trolls was more important than the belt. Furthermore, AJ was but a peripheral player in the main event. He had no demonstrable impact on the match, and with Orton and Nakamura working the finish, there was no real point in AJ even being there.

Styles is the best wrestler in the company. He's a legitimate all-time great, and someone the fans want to see in the biggest spotlight, but WWE are undermining him. This story has made him the fifth most important player in the World Title program - the company's focus must be shifted.