5 Ups & 5 Downs From Last Night's WWE SmackDown (July 3)

3. Sanity Strike Back

Sanity Xavier Woods
WWE.com

Sanity were dealt an unnecessary blow last week, falling to The Usos and Jeff Hardy in a quick six-man tag. Fortunately, they regained ground this week, and now look set for a big trios showdown with SmackDown's most popular stable.

Eric Young, Alexander Wolfe, and Killian Dain brought The New Day's goofy pancake eating contest to a quick halt. Their music hit, the lights cut, and they attacked in the shadows, battering Woods, Kingston, and Big E around ringside, with Woods going through a table.

What started as a potentially Lashley's Sisters-esque catastrophe ended up being an effective rebound for the brand's most chaotic group. Sanity's gimmick gets corny from time to time, but their best NXT moments came through segments like this. Their feud with The Undisputed Era clicked on every level, and while they'll be playing heels against The New Day, this new storyline should be a good way to establish them as a genuine force on SmackDown, even though it's something WWE should've pulled the trigger on months ago.

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Andy has been with WhatCulture for eight years and is currently WhatCulture's Wrestling Channel Manager. A writer, presenter, and editor with 10+ years of experience in online media, he has been a sponge for all wrestling knowledge since playing an old Royal Rumble 1992 VHS to ruin in his childhood. Having previously worked for Bleacher Report, Andy specialises in short and long-form writing, video presenting, voiceover acting, and editing, all characterised by expert wrestling knowledge and commentary. Andy is as much a fan of 1985 Jim Crockett Promotions as he is present-day AEW and WWE - just don't make him choose between the two.