5 Ups & 3 Downs From WWE SmackDown (May 22)

3. AJ Styles In The Hunt

Shinsuke Nakamura AJ Styles
WWE.com

It might seem like a controversial statement to some, but Shinsuke Nakamura is done as a worthwhile singles star in WWE. Nowadays, the jumpsuit-wearing Michael Jackson homage is much better in the role of 'jobber to the stars'. That's what he was asked to do on SmackDown, and it worked out nicely.

AJ Styles was the right winner, no doubt.

Seeing AJ in the mix for the Intercontinental Title is great too. He hasn't won that belt yet, and it must've been on his bucket list when he joined WWE. If he wins out in this tournament and becomes the linchpin for a revived division on Friday nights, then everyone is a winner.

It's possible. Styles meets Elias in one semi final next week, and there's a tasty-looking Jeff Hardy vs. Daniel Bryan match on tap as well. Both AJ vs. Hardy and AJ vs. Bryan would be awesome to see at Backlash, so there's really no downside to this one.

Bring it on.

Advertisement
Contributor

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.