King & Queen of the Ring - SmackDown Fallout....

How’s It Going, Enthusiasts?

Happy Friday? So, there are few rumblings in the Wrestling World. I should have at least 3 talking points. Are you down to go over them? Let’s break it down.

To start, there are a lot of contracts expiring in the next month or so. Will we see some shuffling? The most of noticeable of which is Becky Lynch’s. The word on her is that she plans to take an extended leave. She’s still very popular in WWE and performs well so, no one really anticipates her jumping ship but she may take some time out to stay at home and focus on raising her daughter. She’ll be starting school soon and many believe Lynch will want to take some time off to be a present mother. It’s hard to knock if that’s what she wants to do. Hard to say how long the break will be but all power to her as she contemplates the larger scope of life.

Chad Gable’s and Ricochet’s contracts are also said to be up for renewal as well and I doubt WWE will let them go. Some may feel that Ricochet is being underutilized but I think that may be more due to his persona. He doesn’t really have one. He’s such a talented high-flier that he may not need one but what to do with him does seem to have WWE stumped. Not sure other promotions would do much more with him so, I feel WWE should continue experimenting and see what works. He is just phenomenal to watch so it’d be a shame to let him go over creative laziness. Let’s see if they can figure this out.

As for Gable, he could probably work just about anywhere but I feel he’s earned his keep. He’s inherited the Kurt Angle “You Suck” chants and I don’t even think that was the endgame so that says something. I’m not sure if he works as a Heel but if they can make it more comical I think it would land better. Gable seems like he’s too much of a good guy to be believably bad but I would believe him being clueless so. Kind of like Butters from South Park. A little bit more of a back bone but I see him thinking he’s a lot worse than he actually is. Makes it easier to have “epiphanies” and Face turn from time to time. That’s just what I’d do with him.

In the Realm of AEW, Jeff Hardy’s contract is also up for review. Given how many feel that it’s time for both Hardy brothers to hang it up, it’s hard to say how this one goes. I’m not sure if there’s hope for a WWE return but Jeff would like to go out on a high note if possible, according to reports. Let’s see if AEW allows him to sail off to Valhalla. 

In other news, WWE is exploring a collaborative relationship with TNA. This is definitely a mark of the new era because we all know this would be impossible under the old guard. Jordynne Grace has been welcomed to NXT on a loaner contract and there’s talk of more crossover in the future. I just wonder how long this was in the works because that could be why WWE opted to let Dolph Ziggler/Nic Nemeth and Mustafa Ali go as they may cross paths again anyway. Perhaps they were early offerings in the hopes of paving new relations. I kinda hope so because I wasn’t a fan of the decision but to see them return to WWE from time to time to “start shit” is fine with me. We’ll see how this develops but I like the option. Definitely have some fodder for Survivor Series. Let’s hope they make the most of this.

And so, that brings us to tonight’s SmackDown. It will do its job of concluding the Fallout from King/Queen of the Ring and set our sights on Clash at the Castle next month.  We can expect Andrade to get more comfortable courtesy of Apollo Crews. We’ll have Tama Tonga & Tonga Loa team up to take on the Street Profits to earn their Bloodline street-cred. And Nia Jax will be formally crowned Queen of the Ring. That’s not much for a show so, there will probably be some “surprises” mixed in. I hear we can also expect an appearance from Cody Rhodes. 

The unofficial watch party starts at 8pm PDT. I’ll be doing my thing and all who are willing are welcome to play along. Pick your platform and enjoy yourself.

See You in a Bit,

-Nicole Alexis (^_~)