4 Ups & 4 Downs From WWE SmackDown (24 July - Results & Review)

1. Contract Signing Smoulders

Well now, this was just really, really good.

Nick Aldis relinquishing his SmackDown GM duties to sign the contract, Adam Pearce trying to keep the peace, and Gunther poking the bear. All of it worked. Those facial expressions from Aldis were spot on throughout; he wore the face of a man who has accepted the consequences of his actions, but detests the 'Ring General' who pushed him to “breaking point”.

Meanwhile, Gunther was glorious as a braggart, and even mentioned that Aldis is a former NWA World Champion. However, he’s “just not good enough”. These contract signing segments are usually lame and too laid back, but this was great. The way it simmered, boiled over then exploded was excellent. A boot to the balls from Gunther turned the tables, then he powerbombed Nick through the wood as a final statement pre-SummerSlam.

Fab stuff. Simply top tier. Everyone is playing their respective roles to the hilt, and anyone moaning that Gunther has gone from WWE Title matches to 'working against an authority figure' needs a reality check. They clearly don't know how good Nick can be between the ropes on his day, and he'll have prepared properly for this bout. It's his first WWE match ever, and it's coming on a top PLE like SummerSlam, so he won't take the opportunity lightly.

Who knows if WWE try and elevate things further on the 'go home' show next week. They probs don't need to, because this was glorious. It might be the best contract signing segment in a long time.

What did you think of this week's WWE SmackDown? For more like this, check out 10 Things We Learned From Dark Side Of The Ring: Necro Butcher vs. Samoa Joe and 2 Ups & 6 Downs From WWE Raw (20 Jul - Results & Review)!