6 Ups & 4 Downs From WWE SmackDown (Mar 18)

5. Everything Before The Run In

Sasha Banks Naomi Rhea Ripley
WWE.com

Man, this quartet really tried.

Rhea Ripley has been defending the women's tag division recently, and she put her money where her mouth is on the latest SmackDown. Ripley and Liv Morgan vs. Sasha Banks and Naomi, for all the division's troubles, was blossoming into a fine match before Shayna Baszler and Natalya ran in.

There's already been a whine about that in the 'Downs' section, so let's not go there again. On the positive side, the final few minutes pre-interference here was blistering and the kind of thing these tags should be. Yes, these ladies are fighting an uphill battle against creative indifference, but at least they're trying their best.

That's to be admired. Maybe there is hope for the Women's Tag belts after all. Stick them on Banks and Naomi at 'Mania, then shove them into a hotly-contested rivalry vs. Rhea and Liv. It's not like Queen Zelina and Carmella are the long-term solution anyway.

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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.