WWE SmackDown: 10 Things You Might Have Missed (Aug 9)

3. Jinder Mahal's First TV Loss Since Winning The Title

Jinder Mahal Randy Orton
WWE.com

Jinder Mahal was a regular loser on WWE TV before winning the WWE Title at Backlash this past May. Since then, Mahal hasn't been beaten on television, although anyone who has attended a house show will tell you that he's still doing the honours for SmackDown's babyfaces more than he is winning.

This week marked Jinder's first televised loss since becoming WWE Champion. That's a pretty big deal, especially considering how close we are to SummerSlam and Mahal's defence opposite Shinsuke Nakamura. Was it necessary to have Orton beat Mahal here? Their feud is over, so WWE should be looking forward.

Writing Rusev to interfere would have been the better play here, because then Jinder could've been protected a little better. As things stand, he's getting ready for SummerSlam by losing, and that hardly makes him look like a strong and powerful champion.

The hidden message here seemed to be that Jinder will lose when he doesn't have The Singh Brothers by his side.

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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.