Randy Orton vs. Alberto Del Rio
Del Rio starts his offense with a backstabber and begins to attack his shoulder. He throws Randy into the ring post and then heads up top. Orton stops in on the ropes and then connects with a superplex. As he stalks Del Rio, he smartly slides out of the ring to catch his breath. The Viper clotheslines him into the timekeeper’s area and rips apart the announce table. Del Rio uses a chair and unloads on Randy. They get back into the ring and Orton hits an RKO out of nowhere. The segment ends.
This was a really good match and the right opponent for Randy Orton tonight. Del Rio is a really good wrestler, but he is physical and tests the endurance and limits of each of his opponents. Randy looked unhinged after getting attacked by a chair, which is good. The guy is a superstar and has brought back a fresh perspective. If I was WWE, I make Randy Orton do a little more. I let him break the rules, go outside of his comfort zone. This was a buffer week, a week where Randy needed to get back into the ring with a former champion and dust off the rust. He looked really good and I want to see an altercation with Brock Lesnar next week, one that gives The Viper a realistic chance and reason to be able to pull off the upset at SummerSlam. WWE needs to make us believe he can win.
A Glaring Problem
Smackdown Live has treated American Alpha like the best tag team in the world. It makes sense because they probably are. They are on another level in the ring than most, but when you parade out The Vaudevillians, Hype Bros and The Ascension you have a problem. First off, where are The Uso’s? At least those guys have credibility and have been tag team champions in the past. The tag team division on Smackdown is weak. Why would they need to introduce a championship when there is no reason for anyone aside from American Alpha to hold them? This looked bad and had nothing to do with Gable and Jordan.
There could be hope with The Hype Bros, but they have killed any momentum The Ascension or Vaudevillians had two months after each of them debuted. I ask you to tell me what the answer is here because I sure do not know.
