WWE SmackDown Results: Winners, Grades, Reaction and Highlights from June 16

Every week on Bleacher Report, I take an in-depth look at WWE SmackDown to recap the results, offer analysis and grade the matches, segments and anything else that takes place on the show, as well as make a few predictions for future events.

This was the final show before Sunday's Money in the Bank pay-per-view, which meant this episode of SmackDown was all about addressing the major storylines heading into the weekend.

Once again, the only representation Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins had was through a video package. With the exception of Sheamus and Apollo Crews, every other match on the PPV card had at least one person appear live to promote it.

Let's take a look at what happened on Thursday's episode of SmackDown.

The Highlight Reel

This week's show opened up with Chris Jericho's Highlight Reel. Dean Ambrose was Jericho's guest, but as expected, everyone competing in Sunday's Money in the Bank match came down to the ring.

We all knew this segment was coming. WWE jumped the gun on naming the Money in the Bank competitors the first week after Extreme Rules, so we have seen all these guys interact countless times over the past few weeks.

Before everyone joined the party, Ambrose and Jericho had some funny banter about his new set and what kind of carpet Y2J used, which ended up being the catalyst for a huge brawl.

Ambrose poured some coffee on Jericho's new carpet, which caused Y2J to freak out and everyone to attack each other. It was a basic segment to build the MITB match, but Jericho and Ambrose made it entertaining.

Grade: B-

Notes and Highlights

• Jericho said the set for his show was brand-new, but it looks exactly the same as it always has.
• Why did Ambrose have coffee during this segment? Because coffee is for closers.
• It's sad how Alberto Del Rio went from being a top star in the company to being the least likely person to win the MITB match.
• Only Jericho could make the term "stupid idiot" into a hilarious catchphrase.
• Who else wants to see a tag team where Sami Zayn and Cesaro are arguing all the time?

Kofi Kingston vs. Luke Gallows vs. Aiden English vs. Big Cass

Instead of having another tag match between two or more teams in the upcoming Fatal 4-Way tag title bout, management opted to have one member from each team compete in a four-way singles match.

Kofi Kingston, Aiden English, Luke Gallows and Colin Cassady represented their teams, so Kingston was at a big disadvantage in the power department.

What Kingston lacks in strength, he more than makes up for with experience and excitement, so he was able to keep up with everyone else just fine. In fact, he managed to get the win, giving the tag champs some momentum heading into Sunday's title match.

This was a lot less chaotic than expected, especially since five guys were at ringside to watch four other guys compete. WWE resisting the urge to have a huge brawl cause a disqualification was the right way to go. 

Grade: B-

Notes and Highlights

• Enzo and Cass' entrance music would be a horrible song under normal circumstances, but it works for them so well. The crowd always gets hyped when it plays.
• Apparently there weren't enough chairs for Big E, so he had to sit on the ground while Xavier Woods did commentary.
• I'm worried WWE will break up Enzo and Cass because management will see Big Cass as more of a singles star due to his size and overall look.

Baron Corbin vs. Zack Ryder

Dolph Ziggler was on commentary to watch his buddy, Zack Ryder, take on his nemesis, Baron Corbin.

There's no point in beating around the bush. Ryder played the jobber and put Corbin over like he has been doing for everyone else for as long as anyone can remember.

This match didn't do anything to help Corbin and Ziggler's feud any more than a backstage segment or interview would have, but at least Ryder got some screen time. 

Grade: D

Notes and Highlights

• I like the creative use of spotlights during Corbin's entrance. It saves money on pyrotechnics and makes him stand out from everyone who comes out to standard lighting. 
• The Broski Boot looks so much more dangerous than most wrestling moves. It's surprising Ryder hasn't been forced to drop it from his arsenal.
• Ziggler is starting to act more like a veteran when he speaks, which is exactly what he is compared to a lot of the younger guys on the roster.

Rusev vs. Kalisto

This match didn't even have a chance to get going because Rusev caught Kalisto as he was coming over the top rope for his entrance and threw him across the ring.

Sin Cara tried to save his partner, but Rusev easily took him out, too. It took Titus O'Neil running down the ramp to send Rusev packing.

O'Neil chased him right out of the ring and beat him up at ringside, making himself look like a real contender for the United States Championship for the first time since this feud started.

This segment made their feud a lot more interesting, which isn't saying much because it wasn't that interesting to begin with.

Grade: C+

Notes and Highlights

• Finally, Sin Cara came down to help his partner. Kalisto took too many beatings during his reign as U.S. champion where Sin Cara did nothing.
• O'Neil's entrance music is the worst. He needs something with more energy.

AJ Styles vs. Xavier Woods

For the first time in what feels like forever, Xavier Woods got to compete in a singles match, and he did it against AJ Styles.

Woods is such an underrated competitor, so it was nice to see him get the chance to show off against someone who is capable of having a great match with almost anyone.

The first half was slow so Styles could be more aggressive, but they picked up the pace in the second half so Woods could pull out a few of his flashier tricks.

Woods put up a good fight, but he was forced to tap out when Styles applied the Calf Crusher.

Grade: B+

Notes and Highlights

• I never realized how short Styles was until I saw him standing next to Woods.
• Here's a fun fact: Woods once replaced Adam "Pacman" Jones in a TNA tag title match with R-Truth against AJ Styles and Tomko.
• Styles has transitioned to the heel style of wrestling well. He has played the bad guy before, but he looked more vicious in this match than he has since he attacked John Cena a couple of weeks ago.

Charlotte vs. Natalya

Natalya battled Charlotte in what feels like their 100th singles match over the past few months, but this time, there was no title on the line. Becky Lynch and Dana Brooke were at ringside to support their partners in Sunday's tag match at Money in the Bank.

Charlotte and Natalya always have entertaining, physical bouts, but with no real stakes, it was hard to get excited about this one.

Brooke and Lynch ended up brawling their way into the ring, which caused the distraction Charlotte needed to lock in the Figure Eight to get the win.

Grade: B

Notes and Highlights

• You would think the bun on top of Natalya's head would get yanked out during her matches. It's not the most practical hairstyle for wrestling.
• Charlotte taking a page out of Eddie Guerrero's playbook was a nice touch.
• Charlotte is a great wrestler, but she may have been propelled to the title too soon. She's not believable as the dominant force she is trying to portray herself as.

Dean Ambrose, Cesaro and Sami Zayn vs. Kevin Owens, Alberto Del Rio and Y2J

At this point, we have seen every combination of these six men fighting each other in singles and tag team matches, so what's one more six-man tag match before Money in the Bank?

They barely waited for the bell to ring before breaking out into a giant brawl. Once the dust settled, Cesaro and Del Rio were the legal men in the ring.

Cesaro spent several minutes being beaten in the corner by the heels until he was able to tag in Zayn, who also ended up in a bad position before needing to bring in Ambrose.

Some miscommunication led to Cesaro accidentally taking out Ambrose before Zayn accidentally took out Cesaro. Even with those issues, Ambrose was able to pin Owens to get the win. 

Grade: B-

Notes and Highlights

• Ambrose took a stiff shot to the mouth and ended up bleeding a bit.
• Owens has to be one of the loudest wrestlers. You can always hear everything he is saying to his partners and opponents, and it's usually funny.
• Ambrose being the last man standing probably means he won't be winning on Sunday.

Final Thoughts and Predictions

This was a decent episode of SmackDown in terms of the action in the ring, but it didn't have the urgency the final show before a PPV should have.

Unfortunately, a few storylines were only addressed through video packages, including the WWE World Heavyweight Championship match between Rollins and Reigns.

The great thing about this year's Money in the Bank event is how unpredictable some of the matches are, especially when it comes to the titular ladder match.

Predictions

• Titus O'Neil will defeat Rusev by disqualification, so Rusev retains the U.S. title.
• Natalya and Becky Lynch will defeat Dana Brooke and Charlotte.
• Apollo Crews will defeat Sheamus.
• Baron Corbin will defeat Dolph Ziggler.
• Enzo and Cass will win the Tag Team Championships.
• AJ Styles will defeat John Cena.
• Kevin Owens will win the Money in the Bank match.
• Roman Reigns will retain the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.

What did you think of this week's SmackDown, and what are your Money in the Bank predictions?

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