On this week's episode of SmackDown, things started strangely with John Morrison calling his abs official social media influencers and The Miz still shocked Otis was the Money in the Bank briefcase holder. It was anything but a typical first promo of the night considering all the elements that were thrown in.
From there, the Intercontinental Title Tournament continued and AJ Styles and Jeff Hardy moved forward, Sonya Deville and Mandy Rose shined, and Otis, Sheamus and Shinsuke Nakamura left disappointed. It seems next week's show will see a number of stars try to get a measure of revenge.
Here are you winners and losers for SmackDown, May 22, 2020:
Winner: The Dirt Sheet
John Morrison and The Miz kept proving they may have the best chemistry in WWE these days, specifically this time opening the show with old jokes and cheap humor meant to get cheap laughs. It actually worked.
Their opening segment targeting Otis and Braun Strowman was kind of hilarious, even with crazy puppets they suggested Bray Wyatt liked more than Braun Strowman who used to be in his Wyatt Family. Strowman eventually came out to give a backhanded compliment to the show and Morrison started to run his mouth to the point The Miz found himself in a match.
The Universal Champion ended up taking the win, dropping Morrison off the apron and pinning Miz after a running powerslam. It wasn't much of a contest. Perhaps the two will fare better when they take the champion on in a 2-on-1 handicap match at Backlash. That match was made official later in the evening.
Winner: AJ Styles Moved to SmackDown, Advances
Prior to their match, Michael Cole shared huge news, announcing AJ Styles had been traded back to SmackDown in exchange for future considerations. From there, he and Shinsuke Nakamura picked up where they last left off. Fortunately, this quarterfinals bout of the Intercontinental Championship Tournament wasn't plagued by low blows and dirty tricks. It was a good match, plain and simple.
The only downside of all this is that Raw doesn't get anyone in return for Styles which is a huge blow to the brand. Unless WWE plans on offering some sort of Monday night surprise in short order, this feels extremely lopsided.
That said, Styles is back at home where he's seen his greatest success.
Winner: Bayley
This was a good night for Bayley, considering as the SmackDown Women's Champion, she might have actually been considered the underdog vs. Charlotte. Bayley picked up the win using some of Charlotte's old tricks and earned the victory in a competitive, physical bout that showcased how strong a heel character she's become.
The good news seems to be that this feud is far from over. There wasn't much teasing drama between Bayley and Sasha Banks though, so fans will have to wait longer to see where creative is taking all of this.
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Winner: Mandy Rose and Sonya Deville
The two women out shined the two men on Friday as the heavily-promoted mixed tag match took place. WWE has done a good job of keeping things fresh and really showcasing Sonya Deville's strengths. She shined again.
Dolph Ziggler seems to be looking for repeated punishment because regardless of how many times he loses or gets beat on by Otis, he keeps coming back for more. This match didn't suggest this is going to end anytime soon.
Loser: Sheamus
A well-deserved win for Jeff Hardy means an early loss for Sheamus in what should have been a comeback that included numerous victories, and not just over enhancement talent. The match wasn't wonderful, but merely ok and the hint here is that Sheamus will likely show up next week and cost Hardy and semi-finals win over Daniel Bryan. It will take Sheamus looking good there to keep his momentum going.
Sheamus did get a lot of offense in here so an argument can be made that this isn't the end of the world. Maybe he'll take this early loss and become especially dangerous. One can only hope.
This was a no win really. Neither Hardy nor Sheamus were helped by a loss.