WWE SmackDown Results: Winners, Grades, Reaction and Highlights from March 31

This SmackDown marks the final show for the main roster before the men and women of WWE head to the biggest event of the year, WrestleMania 32.

The buildup to the pay-per-view has been a mixed bag at best. Roman Reigns has failed to get the crowd on his side despite being portrayed as the solution to Triple H's reign of terror.

His reactions vary from city to city, but there is always a large number of fans who just don't like him. When he heads down the ramp Sunday to face The Game, he has to be ready to deal with an overwhelmingly negative reaction.

The Undertaker and Shane McMahon did a great job of making their feud more interesting on Raw with a physical opening segment, but if the match doesn't produce a satisfying outcome, more boos can be expected.

The SmackDown before WrestleMania is always light on action so that everyone is as fresh as possible for the PPV; therefore, video packages, interviews and recap segments filled up most of the show.

Let's take a look at everything that happened on Thursday's edition.

AJ Styles vs. Heath Slater

WWE wasted no time before getting to the action. Instead of an opening promo segment, we got a match featuring AJ Styles against Heath Slater of The Social Outcasts.

Styles took control early and showed off some of his signature high-octane offense, but Slater didn't just job to him. The redheaded rocker got in some good shots.

Slater's friends got involved while the ref wasn't looking, but their interference did little to slow Styles down. Slater plays a great midcard antagonist in these situations. Nobody expected him to win, but he is good enough to make it hard for his opponents to get a victory.

This wasn't a memorable match, but it's always fun to watch Styles in the ring, especially when he has a decent amount of time to work. The Phenomenal One picked up the win with a springboard elbow.

Grade: B-

Notes and Highlights

• Adam Rose and Curtis Axel always bickering about their one-liners is getting funnier each time they do it.
• The Social Outcasts should be in the hunt for the WWE Tag Team Championships. They could have some great segments with The New Day.
• Styles may have found the fountain of youth. He's a 38-year-old who moves like he is in his 20s.

D-Von Dudley vs. Jey Uso

Before The Dudley Boyz and The Usos meet at WrestleMania, Jey and D-Von had a singles match to keep the feud going.

Jey started off with an aggressive string of offensive maneuvers, but D-Von's size and experience advantage helped him take over. Of course, having some help from Bubba Ray didn't hurt.

Jey avoided a flying head-butt to get some breathing room, and then he ran through a series of signature moves to get back control.

D-Von eventually used a spinebuster to pick up the win in a quick but fun match between two game competitors.

Grade: B-

Notes and Highlights

• I have said Kevin Owens should teach a class on talking trash numerous times. If he is unwilling, Bubba Ray would make a great teacher, too.
• D-Von paying tribute to Ron Simmons by calling his spinebuster the RDS (Ron Damn Simmons) is awesome.
• Whenever someone loses right before a PPV, he usually wins at the event. This means The Usos will almost certainly defeat The Dudley Boyz Sunday.

Dean Ambrose vs. Erick Rowan

Dean Ambrose has faced every member of The Wyatt Family in one way or another ever since he was part of The Shield, so he was well prepared before stepping into the ring with Erick Rowan in the main event.

Putting Ambrose against someone close to Brock Lesnar's size was a good way to show how capable The Lunatic Fringe is against someone who could eat him for breakfast, but Rowan is no Lesnar.

This was exactly what you would expect it to be. Rowan dominated for a little while, only for Ambrose to come back and get the win. The action was good but nothing special. 

Grade: B

Notes and Highlights

• What do you think is the significance of Bray Wyatt and Braun Strowman not accompanying Rowan to the ring?
• Rowan is a lot better in the ring than anyone gives him credit for. He knows who his character is and plays to his strengths well.
• Ambrose should have had the opportunity to give a quick promo to hype his match with Lesnar.

Final Thoughts and WrestleMania 32 Predictions

Byron Saxton and Renee Young introduced several video packages from the site of WrestleMania throughout the night, so the amount of time spent with Mauro Ranallo and Jerry Lawler was limited.

Three bouts spread over the course of the two-hour show helped keep things moving in the right direction, but none of them had any real impact on storylines.

Sunday's event in Dallas will be one of the biggest in WWE history, because of the amount of fans in attendance and the level of excitement produced by the matches on the card.

Since this is the final weekly show before WrestleMania 32, this week's predictions will revolve around the results of Sunday's matches.

Predictions

• The Usos will defeat The Dudley Boyz.
• The Total Divas team will defeat BAD and Blonde.
• Kane will win the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal.
• Ryback will defeat Kalisto to become the United States champion.
• Sami Zayn will win the WWE Intercontinental Championship.
• The League of Nations will defeat The New Day.
• Dean Ambrose will defeat Brock Lesnar. (Probably wishful thinking on my part.)
• AJ Styles will defeat Chris Jericho.
• Roman Reigns will defeat Triple H to win the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.
• Sasha Banks will defeat Charlotte and Becky Lynch to become the new Divas champion.
• Shane McMahon and The Undertaker will not have a definitive winner after some kind of outside interference.

Make sure to join us here at Bleacher Report for analysis and live coverage of NXT TakeOver: Dallas, the 2016 WWE Hall of Fame ceremony and WrestleMania 32 throughout the weekend.

What are your predictions for WrestleMania?

Thanks for reading and follow me on Twitter: @BR_Doctor.