7 Ups & 1 Down From WWE SmackDown (14 Feb - Results & Review)

3. Second Half Of Women’s Title Bout Hits

Think of Tiffany Stratton vs. Nia Jax as a tale of two parts. The first half was a little uncoordinated and threatened to go off the rails. Nia, in particular, was clumsy and things weren’t coming off for either woman. Right then, it seemed like Jax was reverting to type from her first run. That's something WWE hinted at last year in storyline. One could almost hear the sound of keyboards/phones rattling and pinging away as people took to socials for a dig.

Mercifully, the second half was a vast improvement.

Nia and Tiffy turned things around during that second act, which was great to see. They're still likely capable of better, and a lot of people won’t like the disqualification finish, but the second half was good. Trish Stratus getting involved leads to a tag at Chamber in Toronto too, which is nothing to sniff at and keeps Stratton warm for Charlotte Flair heading into WrestleMania 41.

Honestly, either Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez or Nia and Candice LeRae would be a decent shout to replace Naomi and Bianca Belair as Women's Tag Champs once Jade Cargill returns and one of them turns heel. There are worse ideas on the table. Jax needs something fresh to do, LeRae has shown herself to be an able lackey, and there must be a reason why WWE decided not to have Tiffany pin Nia here.

They could've got to the Trish stuff post-match regardless, so they're not protecting Jax for no reason.

Skip the awkward early portions of this, but join in progress once Tiffany starts her comeback. That babyface fire will stand the champion in good stead if she manages to survive Charlotte in Las Vegas.