8 Ups & 2 Downs For WWE SmackDown Superstar Shake-Up

3. Building Blocks

Spare a thought for Shelton Benjamin, who could end up as one of the Superstar Shake-Up's biggest losers. He lost his partner, Chad Gable, on Monday night. The team had lost much of their direction, but it was a solid act that gave the former Intercontinental Champion purpose, and given the general state of SD's pre-Shake-Up midcard scene, it's hard to feel too enthusiastic about him as a solo grappler.

Regardless, he cut a solid heel promo on his former partner last night, and followed up with a cracking match against United States Champion Jeff Hardy (now an official member of the SmackDown roster). Though nothing spectacular, it was two game veterans who know exactly what they're doing, working through a solid eight-minuter that had the crowd hooked throughout, and delivered plenty of exciting back-and-forth action.

Hardy won, hitting his opponent with the Twist Of Fate/Swanton Bomb one-two punch. Here's hoping SmackDown's bookers use guys like him and Shelton as building blocks for a new United States division. The belt has been one of the brand's biggest low-lights this year, but these guys are fantastic wrestlers, and could form the basis of a fun title scene.