6 Ups And 2 Downs From Last Night's WWE SmackDown (Feb 14)

1. A Pointless Rematch

Mickie James Becky Lynch
WWE.com

Becky Lynch vs. Mickie James looks excellent on paper, but things haven't panned-out as expected. Their contest at Elimination Chamber was an unfortunate letdown, and last night's rematch was another step backwards.

Lynch vs. James II was perfectly average, which isn't good enough for two wrestlers of this calibre. They were given close to 13 minutes to impress, so a lack of time clearly isn't the issue, but Mickie and Becky have really struggled to escalate towards meaningful moments in their matches. The crowd were super into Lynch's comebacks last night, but that was the sole highlight, and, once again, the finish did her no favours whatsoever.

Elimination Chamber's opportunistic finish painted Lynch as a lucky wrestler who couldn't hang with the veteran, and last night made her look like a dope. WWE love making their babyfaces look stupid, and when Mickie lured Becky in by playing possum on a supposedly injured arm, that's exactly what happened. One Mick Kick later, and the match was over.

It's tough to call their two matches objectively bad, but as a feud, Becky Lynch vs. Mickie James isn't taking off between the ropes.

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Andy has been with WhatCulture for six years and is currently WhatCulture's Senior Wrestling Reporter. A writer, presenter, and editor with 10+ years of experience in online media, he has been a sponge for all wrestling knowledge since playing an old Royal Rumble 1992 VHS to ruin in his childhood. Having previously worked for Bleacher Report, Andy specialises in short and long-form writing, video presenting, voiceover acting, and editing, all characterised by expert wrestling knowledge and commentary. Andy is as much a fan of 1985 Jim Crockett Promotions as he is present-day AEW and WWE - just don't make him choose between the two.