5 Ups & 4 Downs From WWE SmackDown (June 5)

2. Perfect Casting

Ready for some expert character work from three guys who know their stuff?

Whereas AJ Styles happily fast tracked his way to the IC Title tourney finals by way of a bye last week, Daniel Bryan willingly put his spot on the line against a reinstated Sheamus. This week, Dan explained his rationale by saying he believes the belt deserves a fighting champ who will defend its honour every single week.

That suckered AJ in, changed his tune and stoked his own competitive fires. As a result, Styles forgot his aloof cool-headedness and accepted a match he didn't need to take because of arrogance. This kind of storytelling is so unbelievably simple, and yet it's totally effective.

AJ then lost to Drew Gulak, which shut his big mouth and gives Daniel Bryan's pal something to crow about if D-Bry ends up winning the Intercontinental gold. Was that...some foreshadowing from WWE there? If so, it was very well handled.