Dolph Ziggler’s Surprising Win Over AJ Styles On ‘SmackDown Live’ This Week Was A Botched Finish
In less than three weeks, Dolph Ziggler and AJ Styles will compete in the Money in the Bank Ladder Match at the PPV of the same name, but WWE officials thought it would be a good idea if the two men faced off in a match during this week’s edition of SmackDown Live. The match was entertaining and very solid, but the WWE Universe was shocked to see Dolph Ziggler get the clean victory over AJ Styles in the main event.
WWE fans weren’t surprised by the result. It’s just that the situation seems like a win for Styles was classic booking from WWE officials. Based on their momentum, Styles losing clean like that isn’t something that happens often, and Ziggler being given a big win like that out of the blue was unexpected. However, it’s being reported that WWE officials weren’t intentionally booking a surprise finish for Styles and Ziggler.
Apparently, Dolph Ziggler may have screwed up the finish because the finish of the match was supposed to see Dolph get the pinfall win over him, but Styles should have had his foot on the bottom rope. Many people have noted how close the pin happened to the ropes. Ziggler rolled Styles up too far, and it made AJ take the loss clean instead of having his leg on the bottom rope as it was originally booked by the powers that be.
As of this writing, there is said to be no backstage heat on Ziggler for potentially screwing up the finish. He was intended to get the win anyway, but Dolph will just receive a bigger boost of momentum after defeating AJ Styles. Generally, the fans were content with Dolph getting the win over AJ, and many felt it was a good thing for him to get a clean win over a top guy, especially after putting over Shinsuke Nakamura recently.
The expectation is WWE officials will book one more match between Styles and Ziggler on SmackDown Live next week or in the weeks before the WWE Money in the Bank PPV. The powers that be are going to want to even the score between the two men before the Money in the Bank Ladder Match. Because of that, Styles is expected to win the rematch between them over the next few weeks, but it’ll create an interesting mini-feud.
If nothing else, the conflict between The Phenomenal One and The Show Off will create competition for the two men heading into the WWE Money in the Bank PPV. There is a ton of speculation about who will walk out St. Louis with the briefcase, but a strong case could be made for either Dolph Ziggler or AJ Styles.
It’s been reported that Baron Corbin is the favorite to become Mr. Money in the Bank. Shinsuke Nakamura seems to be the next in line to win the briefcase after him. The contract has always favored heels, but a few babyfaces have been given a run for the Money in the Bank briefcase. A lot of people would argue that AJ Styles is the right choice for the simple reason that he didn’t receive a rematch for the WWE Championship.
The WWE Universe is now fully behind The Phenomenal One as a top babyface on SmackDown, so winning the Money in the Bank contract would mean he could re-enter the WWE Title picture anytime. He does not necessarily need the briefcase to do so. However, the fans would embrace Styles as the contract holder, and he would have the next year to cash in the briefcase. He could use it for a better spot on the WrestleMania card next year in New Orleans.
[Featured Image by WWE]
