8 Ups & 2 Downs From WWE SmackDown (Dec 22 - Results & Review)

5. Job Done!

Kevin Owens Carmelo Hayes
WWE.com

It's been pretty obvious since the start that this United States Title contenders tournament is a vehicle to get Kevin Owens in front of Logan Paul at Royal Rumble. Being fair though, the tourney has showcased some cracking matches to date, and KO vs. Carmelo Hayes was just the latest example.

SmackDown successfully put some shine on the NXT man and pushed KO towards LP in one fell swoop. There was a fresh feeling to the bout, and it showed how ready Hayes is for the main roster. Also, and this is rather impressive, the match was taped on the same night Owens wrestled Austin Theory and Carmelo worked Grayson Waller.

Double duty was no sweat to these dudes, apparently.

Kev endorsed Hayes post-match by embracing him with a handshake, and the announcers did well to explain that Carmelo hopes to make his own splash on Raw or SmackDown soon. A match like this will stand Hayes in good stead when he eventually moves on from developmental.

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Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.