8 Ups & 1 Down From Last Night's WWE SmackDown (July 17)

4. What Extreme Rules Could've Been

Jeff Hardy Shinsuke Nakamura
WWE.com

Shinsuke Nakamura and Jeff Hardy's Extreme Rules match sparked confusion. Nailed with a low blow then quickly dispatched with the Kinshasa, Jeff lost his United States Championship in just seven seconds. It provided a jolt of excitement to a dragging show that desperately needed one, and Hardy had reportedly been working through an injury leading up to the event, but the huge transgression from WWE's usual title match formula left large portions of the audience shocked.

Nonetheless, the duo had the match they could've delivered at Extreme Rules last night, and it was strong. Hardy is a marvel. At his age, and with the physical ailments he is seemingly dealing with, he has no right operating on this level. He is holding back, but only a little, and last night was another tick in the workrate column for one of SmackDown's most consistently enjoyable performers since the Superstar Shake-Up.

Randy Orton's interference prompted a DQ victory for Nakamura. We'll get to the post-match angle in a moment, but the bout worked, even if the outcome ultimately presented Shinsuke as a secondary heel in his own division.

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Channel Manager
Channel Manager

Andy has been with WhatCulture for eight years and is currently WhatCulture's Wrestling Channel Manager. 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.