Lesnar's Suspension Ends, Big Battle Royal and More WWE SmackDown Fallout

Friday's SmackDown was the fallout episode after Sunday's Survivor Series pay-per-view, but it felt like there wasn't much time spent addressing the event since SmackDown lost to Raw in overall wins.

Ridge Holland made his in-ring debut in a singles match against Cesaro, Adam Pearce held a Battle Royal to determine a new No. 1 contender for the Universal Championship and Kayla Braxton revealed some interesting news about Brock Lesnar.

Let's take a look at some of the biggest moments from Friday's show.

Ridge Holland Fails to Make an Impact

Ridge Holland was called up during the draft, but it took until Friday for him to have his first big singles match. His opponent for the evening was Cesaro.

The usual strategy for bringing up a new Superstar would be to give them a few wins to help them build some momentum. It's the only way you can push a new talent right after their debut. For some reason, WWE management opted to go with a different strategy and booked Cesaro to beat him with a roll-up. 

Holland wasn't being positioned as a top star right away, but the least WWE could have done is give him a win in his debut match on the blue brand. Now he just looks like a muscular dude who can't get the job done.

His alliance with Sheamus is still happening, so we could see Cesaro recruit a partner for an eventual tag team match. If that happens, Sheamus and Holland need to get the win, especially if WWE hopes to push them as future contenders for the tag titles.

Brock Lesnar's Suspension is Lifted

At the conclusion of Friday's main event, Braxton revealed that WWE had lifted Lesnar's suspension, much to Pearce's dismay.

Throughout the night, the correspondent teased some kind of announcement regarding The Beast while Paul Heyman taunted her about using rumors without confirmation.

The big reveal is clearly setting up another showdown with Reigns, possibly as early as Day 1 on January 1 or The Royal Rumble later that month.

The Tribal Chief and Lesnar have been feuding on and off for years, but the dynamic is different because Reigns is the dominant heel with Heyman by his side.

While he came out on top in their previous encounter, it seems unlikely WWE would book a rematch just to give us the same result. At this point, it almost seems more like a matter of when rather than if Lesnar will be the champion again. 

A Big Battle Royal

Just six days after holding a Battle Royal at Survivor Series, WWE held another over-the-top-rope contest, but this time it was to find a new No. 1 contender for Roman Reigns' universal title.

The match included people at every level of the card, from Drew Gulak and Mansoor to former world champions like Jeff Hardy and Sheamus. One man who was left off the list was Drew McIntyre, and he showed up with his trusty sword to let Pearce know he was unhappy with his decision.

In the end, Sami Zayn was able to steal the win from Hardy to earn a title shot, but his celebration was short-lived because of Braxton's big announcement. Zayn acted as if Lesnar's return will somehow affect his title opportunity, which doesn't make a lot of sense. He won the match, so he should get the prize.

Friday's SmackDown had a couple of storyline developments, but feuds like Naomi vs. Sonya Deville have hit a brick wall. The blue brand needs to regroup and start booking each division with strong contenders again. Right now, most of the champions feel like they are directionless.