Starting with the most important feud, the road to WrestleMania has truly gotten underway. This week’s episode featured some important matches, storyline progression, and a build-up to the upcoming Elimination Chamber.

Here’s what happened this week on an action-packed episode of SmackDown:

#7 Goldberg’s return to SmackDown and the dreaded WrestleMania match

This week’s SmackDown opened with an extremely long Paul Heyman promo. It was essentially used to serve as him rebuilding the bridge with Roman Reigns and accepting his forgiveness.

Paul Heyman ultimately admitted that he didn’t need to protect Roman Reigns from Brock Lesnar, but needed to protect The Beast Incarnate from Reigns. Now, what was notable about this promo, apart from the unnecessary length of it, was the fact that Paul Heyman repeatedly mentioned a possible Title vs Title, Winner Takes All match at WrestleMania, saying it wasn’t going to happen.

Unfortunately, this means that it’s more than likely to happen. Paul Heyman repeatedly mentioning the possibility of the match going away means either one of two things. Either Brock Lesnar is going to win back the WWE Title at the Elimination Chamber, or the company simply isn’t sure of the plans at the moment and is keeping the possibility open.

But if a Title vs Title match is happening, it could potentially mean unification, which is a bad idea as of this writing. WWE has RAW and SmackDown on two big networks and both benefit from brand exclusivity, so we’re not sure how unifying the World Titles would serve any purpose.

Ending the brand split won’t do any good either, as the product is likely to suffer in quality by using the same set of superstars on both brands.

As for what happened next, that is a bit more interesting. Goldberg came out to acknowledge Roman Reigns…as his next victim. He challenged him to a match at Elimination Chamber. If you remember, this was supposed to happen in 2020 at WrestleMania 36.

As you may know, the match was changed in the last minute after Roman Reigns pulled out. Had Reigns not withdrawn from the match, he never would have taken that break, and he likely would never have returned as The Tribal Chief in a new heel persona.

In a way, it all comes full circle. Unlike 2020, it’s good to have Goldberg challenging because he’s almost guaranteed not to become the Universal Champion.

If he pulls off another upset and ends Reigns’ historic run, however, there might be more outrage than there was when he dethroned ‘The Fiend’ Bray Wyatt in Saudi Arabia.

#6 Ronda Rousey’s SmackDown debut and the far-reaching consequences

Ronda Rousey appeared on SmackDown, and her decision has already been made. It was the SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair who came out, and Sonya Deville relayed Becky Lynch’s message to her.

Lynch said that Rousey had made her pick, and that she chose the RAW Women’s Champion instead. Flair responded by saying that Rousey made a wise choice going for the “Mother vs Mother” option instead.

Flair would then go on to choose Sasha Banks as her WrestleMania opponent, but Rousey interfered and confronted the most decorated woman in WWE history. After a slightly awkward verbal back-and-forth, Rousey declared that she would face Charlotte Flair at WrestleMania instead.

Post-that, Sonya Deville tried to prevent a physical altercation and while Charlotte Flair got out of the ring, the authority figure suffered an attack from the Women’s Royal Rumble winner. This means that Rousey will likely be suspended on-screen to prevent an appearance at Saudi Arabia for Elimination Chamber.

What it also means is that it essentially confirms that Ronda Rousey vs Becky Lynch will be one of the two main events for WrestleMania 39 - assuming that it will be another two-day event in 2023.

#5 Is Sami Zayn set to become the next Intercontinental Champion?

Sami Zayn went to the office on SmackDown and rightfully asked when he would get his Intercontinental Championship opportunity. It’s odd because he won the opportunity in December, and he still hasn’t gotten his Title shot.

Adam Pearce and Sonya Deville confirmed that he would get his shot in two weeks on SmackDown, and he was at ringside to watch Shinsuke Nakamura defeat Jinder Mahal in a somewhat pointless match which we momentarily forgot was once a marquee WWE Title bout at SummerSlam 2017.

It’s unfortunate that WWE has done everything to make Nakamura’s reign feel unimportant, a story that has been repeated for all of his US and Intercontinental Championship Title runs on SmackDown. Given that Sami Zayn recently signed a new WWE contract, it wouldn’t be surprising to see him emerge as the Champion in two weeks as a “reward.”

Zayn has also been open about how he is happy in his role with WWE, and that not every superstar is unhappy with their place.

Some have compared Sami Zayn’s place to that of the late, great “Rowdy” Roddy Piper, and that is a big legacy spot to have in the long run.

Would you like to see Sami Zayn become the next Intercontinental Champion on SmackDown in two weeks??

#4 Drew McIntyre’s unfortunate road to WrestleMania on SmackDown

Drew McIntyre announced his return to SmackDown earlier on Twitter, and it’s a much-welcomed one. After all, the blue brand is completely lacking in top babyfaces, with McIntyre being perhaps the only remaining top star who can credibly challenge or dethrone Roman Reigns.

Unfortunately, it isn’t going to happen this year because of all the plans around Roman Reigns and Brock Lesnar. Instead, WWE picked up where they left off and McIntyre is back feuding with Happy Corbin and Madcap Moss.

He made the latter tell a joke which was unironically funny this time and soon hit him with a Claymore Kick. We’re going to have a rematch at Day 1 between McIntyre and Moss, and it seems to be an indication that there isn’t anything big in store for The Scottish Warrior on SmackDown this year at WrestleMania.

He won’t be in any World Title match, and he doesn’t seem to be positioned to be for it as well. It’s a shame because he is deserving of a big spot on the biggest show of the year. He is yet to have his moment of coronation in front of a large live audience.

#3 Are The Viking Raiders in a prime position on SmackDown?

For The Viking Raiders, it could be all about timing and placement on SmackDown. This week, Jimmy Uso defeated Erik of The Viking Raiders, but the luck of The Usos may not continue as long.

They have undoubtedly benefited from their association with Roman Reigns, with their current SmackDown Tag team Title run being the longest in the Championship’s lineage.

However, at Eliminatoin Chamber, they put the titles on the line again, and they may not be so lucky. Jimmy Uso’s win may simply set up The Viking Raiders for a big win in Saudi Arabia. Ultimately, the plan for a Title change depends on what the story with Roman Reigns will be like heading into WrestleMania.

#2 Sheamus could have something big in store

This week, Ridge Holland lost to Ricochet, but it set up a tag team match featuring Sheamus and Holland against Ricochet and Cesaro - a match we’ve already seen before.

Sheamus and Holland won again, and the downfall for Cesaro and Ricochet continues. There isn’t much of a purpose being served here, apart from potentially elevating Sheamus to challenge for the Intercontinental Championship - the only accomplishment he has yet to achieve in WWE.

#1 Naomi’s SmackDown Women’s Title pursuits

Naomi went to confront Sonya Deville on SmackDown yet again, and this time, she made sure to keep her distance because the latter was in her suit, meaning that it was “office duty” time for her.

Naomi managed to scare Sonya Deville into somehow giving her an opportunity at the SmackDown Women’s Title next week. While Naomi didn’t believe her rival, Adam Pearce confirmed that in a week, we will see Charlotte Flair defend the SmackDown Women’s Title against Naomi.

Now, there are a few possible things to interpret from this. For one, Naomi is one of the most regularly-utilized female superstars on the blue brand roster, which means that she can’t be labeled as underutilized anymore.

Secondly, it’s obvious that Sonya Deville is going to cheat her out of winning the Title match, and Naomi is likely to come closer than ever to dethroning Charlotte Flair.

Unfortunately for her, the Ronda Rousey vs Charlotte Flair match at WrestleMania means that she won’t be getting her third Women’s Title win anytime soon.

However, it could lead to an ultimate blow-off match between Naomi and Deville, potentially at WrestleMania 38.

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