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

5. Job Done!

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.