8 Ups & 5 Downs From Last Night's WWE Raw (Nov 21)
6. Sensible Squashing
Yes, it stinks that WWE haven't followed-up on Sami Zayn's huge win over Kevin Owens at Battleground. The Canadian underdog has been stuck twiddling his thumbs on the midcard ever since, and while his former best friend is loving life as Universal Champion, Sami's often lucky if he even gets on the show. He's in a bad spot at the moment, and he'll likely end 2016 as one of WWE's most underused wrestlers.
Despite all this, playing Braun Strowman's sympathetic victim isn't a terrible spot for Sami. Braun has been built-up as an unstoppable force on Raw, and looked like a million dollars prior to his elimination at Survivor Series. He's clearly someone that WWE have huge plans for, and while he's still finding his feet as a performer, it won't be long before Strowman's a regular presence in the main event scene.
Feeding the beloved indie darling to one of WWE's inexperienced muscle monsters is always a tough pill to swallow, but it worked well last night. Strowman ambushed Sami before the bell, tore him to pieces, and the match was stopped when Sami was rendered unable to continue. The circumstances mean Zayn loses very little from the mauling, while Braun continues to look like an all-conquering behemoth. Whatever your opinions on the performers and their pushes, this feud makes perfect sense at the moment.