6 Ups & 2 Downs From WWE SmackDown (May 13)

Ups...

6. A Nice Little Power Flex

Adam Pearce WWE
WWE.com

Onto the good stuff, because there was a lot of it.

Normally, WWE's authority figures look like tools when they contradict their own rules or let wrestlers get away with booking whatever the hell they please. This never makes sense, so it was nice to see Adam Pearce take some control back on this week's episode of SmackDown.

Pearce was happy to green light Sami Zayn vs. Riddle for the opener, but said that the match wouldn't carry a stip pre-agreed by the wrestlers. They'd thrashed out some sort of scenario that impacted next week's title unification bout - Adam was having none of that, and he cancelled it immediately.

He said that Zayn didn't have the authority to start tossing around stipulations. Thank God for that! This is something power players in WWE should be doing. They're supposed to be the ones calling the shots, not the roster.

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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.