8 Ups & 6 Downs From Last Night's WWE SmackDown (Aug 27)

5. Buddy's Broken Momentum

Ali Buddy Murphy
WWE.com

Perhaps we should stop using the word "momentum" when talking about WWE wrestlers. It might not even exist anymore.

Two weeks ago, Buddy Murphy got a nice little rub by pushing Roman Reigns to his limits on SmackDown. WWE immediately undermined this with a beatdown. Last week, the former Cruiserweight Champion went one further, besting Daniel Bryan in a riveting clash. Seconds later: beatdown. Now, with the wind in his sails and the announcers putting him over as a hot commodity, he loses to the stop-start Ali in their King of the Ring first-round match.

Are WWE trying to push this guy or not? Yes, it's fantastic that he's on our screens more, but constant flip-flopping isn't how you elevate guys: it's how you make the audience give even less of a sh*t.

Murphy is a hard enough worker and a good enough wrestler that he might get over in spite of all this, though his current "push" is bittersweet.

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Andy has been with WhatCulture for six years and is currently WhatCulture's Senior Wrestling Reporter. 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.