5 Ups & 2 Downs From WWE SmackDown (29 Nov - Results & Review)

Downs...

2. Weakest Triple Threat Thus Far

WWE has gone down a strict three-way path for these Women’s United States Title tournament matches. That’s fine when they get the combos right, but this was definitely the weakest one to date. Piper Niven, Michin and Lash Legend all worked hard, sure, but the length of the match maybe hurt them a bit. It also doesn’t help that none of the three have much of a story going on that’s connecting with fans.

Formulaic would just about cover it. It wasn't horrible at all, because Piper and Michin are experienced workers who know their way around the ring, but it didn’t come close to prior triple threats in the tourney. Bayley vs. Candice LeRae vs. B-FAB and Bianca Belair vs. Chelsea Green vs. Blair Davenport were both superior to this. Here’s hoping Naomi, Tiffany Stratton and Elektra Lopez follow their lead instead of having another mediocre match - the first round brackets could do without that.

Perhaps the triple threat idea is just already overexposed. Admittedly, it's difficult to format these bouts without getting too formulaic. Anyone who has watched a couple knows the 'one in, one out' drill by now. Again, Piper, Michin and Lash all did their best, but it would've helped all three if someone had been replaced by a bigger star.

Michin is trying her hardest to come across as a spunky spitfire babyface who's all high fives and smiles, to be fair. Where's the hardcore/no nonsense air WWE gave her a few months ago though? That has all but vanished in recent weeks, and nobody's quite sure why.