8 Key Victories In 2019 That WWE Never Followed Up On

6. Apollo Crews Beats Andrade (SmackDown, July 16)

Drew McIntyre Seth Rollins
WWE.com

WWE botched Apollo Crews from the moment he arrived on the main roster, and the latest instance of the company bungling his potential came this past summer.

Kevin Owens alluding to Crews' lack of television time in a promo in July should have led to him becoming more of a fixture on SmackDown Live, and for a few weeks, it did. He earned a match against Andrade on the July 16 episode and shockingly defeated him in short order.

Granted, Andrade isn't a main event player (at least not yet), but it was considered an upset in the sense that Andrade is featured on WWE TV far more often than Crews is. The former Uhaa Nation has always had what it takes to be either an Intercontinental or United States champion, and this victory should have solidified his spot in the upper midcard.

They continued to feud going into King of the Ring, and in the first round of the tournament, Andrade decisively defeated Crews, who hasn't been seen on SmackDown since.

What could have been his last shot at super stardom was quickly squandered. The upcoming WWE Draft may present him with new opportunities, but that remains to be seen.

Contributor
Contributor

Since 2008, Graham has been a diehard pro wrestling fan and, in 2010, he combined his passions for WWE and writing when he joined Bleacher Report. Equipped with a master's in journalism, Graham has contributed to WhatCulture, FanSided's Daily DDT, Sports Betting Dime, and GateHouse Media. Along the way, he has conducted interviews with wrestling superstars like Chris Jericho, Edge, Goldberg, Christian, Diamond Dallas Page, Jim Ross, Adam Cole, Tessa Blanchard, Ryback, and Nick Aldis among others.