6 Ups & 3 Downs From WWE SmackDown (July 2)

Ups...

6. Otis Is Alpha

Hands up who else was worried when Otis shaved off his beard and started looking like the son of Nailz. This fan was, but WWE (thus far) has elected to stick by Alpha Academy and present the former MITB winner as an absolute beast capable of tearing through anybody on his own.

Long may it continue.

That one-sided squashing of Angelo Dawkins made Otis look like the man. Fingers crossed the company realise what they have here and give Alpha Academy a sustained tag-team push - they're ideal as long-term challengers for Rey and Dominik Mysterio when the reigning SmackDown Tag Champs return.

Otis and Chad Gable are excellent together. They're living proof that it's possible to maximise one's minutes, make the best of even the most meagre WWE scraps and still get over. Now, if live crowds give them big reactions then they'll really be cooking.