6 Ups & 1 Down From WWE SmackDown (30 Aug - Results & Review)

5. Ludwig Kaiser Answers The Call

Ludwig Kaiser LA Knight
WWE.com

LA Knight kicked off SmackDown by cutting a fan service-ish, catchphrase-laden promo and firing out his United States Title open challenge. In a refreshing turn of events, it was Ludwig Kaiser who answered it. The Hamburg native played Berlin's favourite son for a night, and was booked to push Knight all the way.

That's promising for his future.

Interestingly, LA leaned into a subtle heel role for one night only. He kinda had to, because Ludwig was always going to be the babyface by default in his homeland. Knight didn't swim against the tide there - he gave Kaiser a lot throughout the match, then fought back to retain his belt.

Trips will have to come up with a proper rival for Knight post-Logan Paul soon, but this match vs. Kaiser was a fine enough stopgap spot for the champ. Creative is probably waiting on a winner to emerge from Andrade's series with Carmelo Hayes before deciding on direction. More on that later.

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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.