WWE SmackDown Results: Winners, Grades, Reaction and Highlights from March 19

WrestleMania 31 is just over a week away, so this is the time when WWE needs to really sell all of the big feuds as hard as they can.

The Intercontinental Championship feud filled up most of this week's SmackDown with a gauntlet match, so there was only enough room for three other bouts and a few non-wrestling segments.

The good thing about the low number of matches was that every feud featured felt important. Most of the big storylines were only addressed through video packages, so everything else got to shine.

Let's take a look at everything that happened on this week's SmackDown.

Mark Henry Endorses Roman Reigns

Roman Reigns kicked off the show with a promo in the ring but was quickly interrupted by Mark Henry. Henry told Reigns that he earned his respect after being Speared through a barricade last week.

The Authority came out and mocked the two of them, and Seth Rollins even teased cashing in his Money n the Bank briefcase at WrestleMania.

Kane put Henry and Reigns in a tag match against Rollins and himself for later in the evening in a basic SmackDown intro segment.

Henry's putting Reigns over was a nice way to follow up from last week. Other than that, nothing of note was said or done by anyone.

Grade: C

Notes and Highlights:

• Reigns got a better reaction here than he has been getting lately.
• "I can, I will" sounds like the catchphrase from a Tony Robbins seminar.
• Henry might not be the most popular Superstar, but there are much better ways to use him.
• This segment wasn't uploaded to YouTube, so instead you can watch Divas talk about AJ and Paige vs. The Bella Twins.

Paige vs. Brie Bella

Paige got things off to a great start by tackling Brie Bella in a way that took both women through the ropes to the floor. She then picked up Brie and slammed her on the announce table.

Brie's sister Nikki joined AJ on commentary while their WrestleMania partners tried to take each other apart. Paige and Brie didn't get as much time as AJ and Nikki had on Raw but managed to make their short match entertaining.

Paige picked up a win by countering Brie into a crucifix pin. AJ and Nikki took a few jabs at each other on commentary, but it wasn't anything too insulting.

Grade: B-

Notes and Highlights:

• AJ's commentary makes everything better.
• Paige's aggression is part of what made this match as fun as it was.
• AJ doesn't sound as nuts as she used to. I am not sure if that is a good or bad thing for her character.

Gauntlet Match

In a nice change from what we've seen lately, WWE took the competitors in the upcoming Intercontinental Championship Ladder match and had them run The Gauntlet. The only person who didn't compete was Wade Barrett.

Before we discuss, let's look at the order of entrances and eliminations:

• Dean Ambrose entered first and eliminated Stardust.
• Ambrose eliminated R-Truth.
• Luke Harper eliminated Ambrose.
• Daniel Bryan eliminated Harper.
• Dolph Ziggler defeated Bryan.

Opening with Ambrose and Stardust was a smart move. These two are crazy in completely different ways and could eventually have a fun singles feud together. Stardust took out his aggression on Ambrose by ramming his shoulder into the ring post a couple of times.

During the final fall between Bryan and Ziggler, things got really exciting. These two have great chemistry and should definitely have an extended singles feud at some point down the line.

Seeing Ziggler get a clean win over Bryan was a surprising outcome to this match, but it was the right decision. Having Barrett come out and nail both men with the Bull Hammer helped him look like a dominant heel who might retain at WrestleMania.

This was the best way to use everyone in the IC title feud. We can only watch them compete in so many combinations of tag team matches, which made this a nice change of pace.

Everyone did a great job in his role, and because nobody spent a significant amount of time in the ring, it felt like several small bouts instead of one long contest.

Overall, this was an entertaining way to fill up half the show and a great way to make this storyline look important.

Grade: A-

Notes and Highlights:

• It's about time R-Truth did something besides sit with the announcers.
• Is anyone else noticing that Stardust is incorporating traits from the Batman villain Two-Face into his character?
• Luke Harper gave a pretty good promo before he entered the match. It's good to see him get some time to talk for once. His use of a modified crossface was a happy surprise.
• Bryan's lifting Harper up for a surfboard stretch was impressive, but the best part was his use of the heel hook submission to defeat him.
• Bryan and Ziggler would have stolen the show at WrestleMania in a singles match. Their portion at the end of the gauntlet was outstanding.

Tyson Kidd, Cesaro and Natalya vs. El Torito and Los Matadores

Tyson Kidd, Cesaro and Natalya battled El Torito and Los Matadores in what was called a Six-Being Interspecies Tag Team match. El Torito played the role of a Diva and wrestled against Natalya.

Los Matadores were back to being babyfaces after playing the heels last week when teaming up with Kidd and Cesaro. They are just another example of lazy writing leading to inconsistency in character.

Natalya picked up the win for her team with a powerbomb to El Torito. Some of this match was fun, but it was a weird situation from the beginning. 

Grade: C+

Notes and Highlights:

• Seeing Natalya sit out most of this match was disappointing. She shouldn't be playing second fiddle to Kidd.
• It's a shame Diego and Fernando have to do this gimmick. They are actually a very talented tag team who can do a lot of exciting things in the ring.
• Natalya's new wrestling attire makes her look so much cooler than her old outfit. It fits her character as a heel a lot better.

Roman Reigns and Mark Henry vs. Kane and Seth Rollins

Before the match got started, Mark Henry was shown being looked at by doctors backstage following an attack from The Authority. This forced Reigns to fight Kane and Seth Rollins by himself.

Rollins brought out some extra security to protect him from Randy Orton. Reigns was able to fend off the security guards while putting on a good show against Kane and Rollins.

This was a great way to give Reigns some momentum heading into WrestleMania. However, the person who ended up looking the best was Orton. He came through the crowd and took out four security guards, Jamie Noble, Joey Mercury and Seth Rollins all by himself.

It was hard to follow Bryan and Ziggler from the Gauntlet match, but this whole series of events was a good way to cap off Thursday's show.

Grade: B 

Notes and Highlights:

• The way WWE has opted to use Henry after a lengthy absence is baffling. He should be booked as a monster, not a punching bag.
• Orton is back to being the dangerous babyface. It's a role that suits him well.

Final Thoughts and Predictions

It's pretty rare that you can say SmackDown didn't have a single bad match, but this was one of those weeks. The Six-Being Interspecies bout was a little strange but still had some enjoyable action.

Bryan and Ziggler definitely stole the show at the end of the Gauntlet match. These two complement each other so well. It would be a shame if they never have a real singles feud at some point.

Paige and Brie made the most of the few minutes they had, and Reigns looked good against Kane and Rollins, but it was Orton who stole the spotlight at the end of the night with a series of RKOs to a handful of people.

The Gauntlet was given more than enough time, but it also felt like too many video recaps from Raw were played throughout the night. Other than that, it was a solid week for the blue brand.

Predictions

• Ziggler and Bryan will have a singles match before WrestleMania after stealing the show in the Gauntlet match.
• The tag titles will be defended in a Triple Threat Tag Team match at WrestleMania.
• Sheamus will return at WrestleMania during the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal.
• Randy Orton will be put into a Handicap match on Raw as punishment for attacking Rollins.
• Mark Henry will attack The Authority on Raw.

What did you think of this week's SmackDown?

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