4 Ups & 3 Downs From Last Night's WWE SmackDown (Feb 20)

2. An Imperfect Setup

The New Day Chad Gable Shelton Benjamin
WWE.com

The New Day vs. American Beta was a solid little midcard tag team bout that delivered strong back-and-forth action until the closing stretch, when Road Dogg and his merry band of writers undid everything with a dopey finish.

With Benjamin and Gable loading Big E up for their Tower of Doom finisher, Kofi Kingston distracted the referee from the apron. Shelton made the cover, but the added time allowed Woods to make the save, and after Gable and Benjamin had argued with the officials, Xavier put the former 'Gold Standard' away with a Shining Wizard.

Most of the match was good, and it may have been an 'Up' if not for this finish, which put The New Day over in the most unconvincing fashion. They looked fortunate, not triumphant. Sure, their tactics were smart, but they were morally questionable, and sullied what could've been a cracking TV bout.

The plus side is that we're getting another Usos vs. New Day match at Fastlane. That should be fantastic, but the setup was poor.

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Channel Manager
Channel Manager

Andy has been with WhatCulture for eight years and is currently WhatCulture's Wrestling Channel Manager. A writer, presenter, and editor with 10+ years of experience in online media, he has been a sponge for all wrestling knowledge since playing an old Royal Rumble 1992 VHS to ruin in his childhood. Having previously worked for Bleacher Report, Andy specialises in short and long-form writing, video presenting, voiceover acting, and editing, all characterised by expert wrestling knowledge and commentary. Andy is as much a fan of 1985 Jim Crockett Promotions as he is present-day AEW and WWE - just don't make him choose between the two.