Smackdown’s top ten picks are set. AJ Styles, John Cena and Randy Orton will join Dean Ambrose on the WWE’s retooled Tuesday show. Cena was widely expected to act as the “face” of Smackdown, but wasn’t selected until the second round after Ambrose and Styles. Orton is coming back on TV after a lengthy recovery from a shoulder injury and is set to face Brock Lesnar (who was drafted to Monday Night RAW) at Summerslam.
The rest of Smackdown’s Top Ten are a mixed bag. Wyatt, the Miz, and Corbin are all secondary heels and have suffered from uneven storytelling in recent years. The Miz is currently the Intercontinental Champion, largely winning matches with the help of his wife Maryse. Corbin won this year’s Andre the Giant Battle Royale in his main roster debut, but hasn’t done much since. And while Wyatt remains a popular character (one that the fans desperately want to root for), he’s yet to win a feud this year.
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Becky Lynch was Smackdown’s sole woman in the top ten. Lynch is the second most popular woman’s wrestler on the main roster after Sasha Banks and it appears that Smackdown plans to build its women’s division around her.
Finishing out the top ten are the former NXT Tag Team Champions American Alpha (Justin Jordan and Chad Gable) and Dolph Ziggler. Jordan and Gable quickly became fan favorites after teaming up and could be one of Smackdown’s top acts. Ziggler has been a longtime WWE fan favorite, but has usually been used as an enhancement talent recently, losing feuds to Kevin Owens and Corbin this year.
