5 Ups & 3 Downs From WWE SmackDown (18 Sept - Results & Review)

3. Sami Slithers Out Of A Deal

Time for a generous helping of stunning character work.

That's nothing new for Sami Zayn, but the way he sneakily backed out of the deal he’d made with Johnny Gargano last week was majestic. First, the new WWE Champion said that it was Johnny who booked himself in a WWE Title match if he helped Zayn become champ against CM Punk. Then, when Nick Aldis interrupted to say he’s the one who makes championship matches, Sami shifted blame onto the GM and corporate BS like it was nothing.

That's sensational character work, for the record, and it must be said there wasn’t a ton of excitement for Sami vs. 'Johnny Wrestling' from the Corpus Christi crowd anyway. They didn't actually want to see Gargano match up against Zayn for the belt, so Triple H will have to stick that match in his back pocket and pick the right spot for it. Perhaps it'd be ideal for the next visit to Ohio for TV? Just a thought.

Sami's slithering and the way he got under Nick's skin was wonderful to see. This is the kind of personal issue that Hunter warned Aldis not to get involved in after that Gunther business at SummerSlam too, but here he is falling into exactly the same trap with another heel on his watch. That can't go unchecked. There's surely a PLE showdown coming between Aldis and Zayn in the future.

On that subject, there's a lot more to say about it. So, Aldis vs. Sami is getting its own entry. What a time to be alive.