6 Ups & 4 Downs From WWE SmackDown (July 31)

3. The Women's Main Event

Bayley Nikki Cross Alexa Bliss
WWE.com

It was hard not to flash a smile when WWE announced that the SmackDown Women's Title match between Bayley and Nikki Cross would main event the program. Both champion and challenger rank amongst the most entertaining and engaging characters on the roster, and they deserved to close out the broadcast.

As always, they delivered.

Both women showed bags of energy, and they did a neat job of teasing that Nikki might pull off a surprise win mere days after Bayley and Sasha Banks grabbed every belt going on Raw and SmackDown. The fact she didn't is another plus point; now, WWE can focus on Cross' simmering tensions and frustration elsewhere.

Credit where credit is due: Bayley has blossomed into a great heel who knows when to cheat and when to show vulnerability. Who would've thought that someone seemingly born to play a sweetheart babyface could do both so well?

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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.