WWE SmackDown Results: Nikki Cross Debut Makes Sanity Relevant and Top Takeaways

Credit: WWE.com

With WWE Survivor Series only a few weeks away, the November 6 edition of SmackDown Live had no time to reflect on WWE Crown Jewel. The focus turned immediately to the conflict between the red and blue brands, with SmackDown quickly setting up the teams that would fight Raw.

This led to some inspired interactions between Daniel Bryan and The Miz as co-captains of Team SmackDown. As always, these two are great rivals that make the blue brand better, but they showed this week that they could also be unique allies.

Survivor Series inspired multiple great matches as well, with The New Day fighting The Usos once again for a chance to captain the tag teams of SmackDown and Rey Mysterio looking to prove he's ready to represent the blue brand by fighting the young upstart Andrade Cien Almas.

More than all of that, though, the biggest story from SmackDown this week was the debut of Nikki Cross, who chose to fight Becky Lynch despite the SmackDown women's champion being at her best. The ace of Sanity hopefully has arrived to stay on SmackDown.

These are the biggest takeaways from a night of great wrestling that hinted at a unique future for SmackDown going forward.

After Lynch got done running down Ronda Rousey once again, the champ demanded a fight, and Sanity answered with Cross emerging from the group ready to play. While the unstable fighter kept The Irish Lass Kicker off her game, the challenger still fell into the Dis-arm-her and tapped out.

Sanity has been a letdown so far on the main roster despite working strong matches consistently. The problem is they lacked their ace, the woman that defined the frantic energy of the group. Cross makes the stable more volatile in the best way possible.

NXT's Twisted Sister may still have obligations on the secondary brand, but she should be a permanent fixture on SmackDown soon enough. She's a strong wrestler but an even better character performer. She stands out from just about everyone else.

On a brand in need of fresh stars, especially in a women's division that has heavily relied on Charlotte Flair and Lynch, Cross will make the blue brand even more fun to watch. Moreover, she should help her stable stand out again.

With talent that can compete in every division, there's no more excuse for Sanity to miss SmackDown for months on end.

The New Day and The Usos went to war for the latest time as the teams fought for the role of captain for the tag team Survivor Series clash. After a competitive bout, Jimmy and Jey emerged victorious and announced that New Day would join them on the team for Survivor Series.

While SmackDown has a tendency to wear out good matches, this is one battle that never fails. Kofi Kingston, Big E and Xavier Woods have incredible chemistry with the brothers, no matter who competes.

It is a shame they couldn't fight for the titles at any time during New Day's reign, but this victory by The Usos could at least mean the two are headed for a title shot down the line. Somehow, Sheamus and Cesaro have barely fought The Usos over the years.

SmackDown's tag team division is absolutely stacked, which means matches like this are just another week on the blue brand. The tag team elimination match should define the divide between the two brands with other great teams like Sanity as well as Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson just waiting.

It is smart to showcase that SmackDown depth even at the expense of Raw's lack of that same depth.

Shane McMahon and Paige announce that Bryan and Miz would be co-captains for Survivor Series and would need to pick their complete team by the end of the night. They decided on Shane first together then chose Mysterio and Samoa Joe after both won big matches.

The dynamic between Bryan and Miz throughout the night was great, and it showed they have more chemistry than what they've shown previously. They can work well together, and their back and forth hinted at the possibility of the two working together down the line.

It may not come soon, but The A-Lister could be in line for a fresh start as a babyface. Miz has long played the heel in WWE with his first face run mostly a dud. However, part of that was down to bad booking and the movie star not quite hitting his stride yet.

Now fans would likely buy right in to cheering Miz. It will just come down to the right story. Who better to help lead the former WWE champion back to the light than his biggest rival, The "Yes" Man? The two could even work as a tag team down the line.

Hopefully, that story doesn't happen immediately as Miz vs. Bryan still has legs as a feud, but that doesn't mean the two can't eventually be great allies as well.

Credit: WWE.com

Mysterio fought Almas for the first time with the co-captains watching backstage to see if the luchador was worthy of a spot on the men's team. While Cien pushed the legend to his limit, the future WWE Hall of Famer did not disappoint, hitting the 619 into a springboard splash for the win.

This match more than lived up the hype that surrounded this potential clash for the returning Mysterio. The two were fluid together and never let up. It was a great first showcase of what they can do together. However, it should be the last time they fight with no story.

This is a money match that should be treated as such. The two stars have both made a name for themselves in Mexico and have the perfect mix of styles to steal the show night after night. This may just be the feud that defines Mysterio's new WWE run.

El Idolo has drifted too long without purpose, putting on great matches when he gets an opportunity. He needs to be given the chance to take the next step, and that can begin with fighting The Master of the 619 on a grander stage with more time to deliver.