5 Ups & 4 Downs From WWE SmackDown (July 3)

Downs...

4. Bringing It...Via Zoom

AJ Styles Drew Gulak
WWE.com

Maybe this one wouldn't have been a 'Down' had it happened before the IC Title match.

Daniel Bryan's Zoom calls were a distraction to the action going on between AJ Styles and his good pal Drew Gulak. It never really felt like Bryan was in-tune with what was happening (his comments were rather disconnected from the match), and that was a shame when AJ and Gulak were working tirelessly.

It also felt weird that Dan wouldn't be there to cheer on his buddy. Sure, the narrative did leave room for some 'Drew is his own man' stuff, but these guys are supposed to be training partners, great friends and a solid unit these days. That never came across.

The Zoom idea was kinda' generic, didn't enhance the match at all and made it seem like Bryan was too busy doing other things to really pay attention. It would've been better had WWE removed his chatter or had Daniel talk to Gulak post-match.

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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.