3 Ups & 6 Downs From WWE SmackDown (July 28)

5. Not Sold On Any Of This

Austin Theory Santos Escobar
WWE.com

Problems have popped up on the US Title side too.

Originally, this guy was willing to give Santos Escobar challenging Austin Theory a chance. "Prove me wrong", he said after watching Rey Mysterio and his LWO buddy be paired together for a number one contendership showdown last week. Sadly, things have gone t*ts up.

Rey and Santos weren't having a bad match before Mysterio's apparent concussion by any means, but the whole story of either worker challenging Theory does feel very heatless. Unfortunately for Triple H and his writers, Escobar gunning after Austin hasn't gripped fans at all.

It hasn't gripped creative either - Theory vs. Escobar probably won't get a pay-per-view spot at SummerSlam, and that honestly tells the full story of Austin's struggles as of late. He's on the outside edge of WWE's glare, and that won't change unless they're the ones to do it.

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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.