Smark Out Moment

Welcome to another edition of POWER RANKINGS from Smark Out Moment! Each week, we will break down the current roster and examine who has gone up the WWE hierarchy and who has unfortunately taken a step down the ladder. Factoring in things such as wins and losses, suspensions, injuries, making a name for one's self, being humiliated, and more, who is at the top of the food chain and who needs to make up some ground next week?

Here is the key code for the rankings shorthand when referencing their position in relation to the previous week:




In undoubtedly his biggest win since the formation of 205 Live, Tony Nese defeated Cedric Alexander in a tournament final to book his place on the WrestleMania Kick-Off Show. Nese will face Cruiserweight Champion Buddy Murphy with that purple prize on the line.


When one door closes, another opens. As Tommaso Ciampa is cruelly stripped of his NXT Championship due to injury, Adam Cole swooped in by winning a Fatal Five-Way, earning an opportunity to fight for Goldie against Johnny Gargano at NXT Takeover: New York.


A bad week for the Women's Tag Team Champions. On Raw, a match between Sasha Banks and Natalya ended a No Contest following interference by Nia Jax and Tamina Snuka. Then, on their first trip to SmackDown Live as champions, they were upset by The IIconics, who have likely added to the growing list of challengers for Bayley & Banks' belts.


I don't think I'm alone in feeling that Becky Lynch's momentum has greatly slowed since her Royal Rumble win, and this storyline is starting to stumble towards WrestleMania. Lynch's action this week was contained to a paint-by-the-numbers pull-apart brawl on SmackDown with Charlotte Flair.


The WWE Champion went the extra mile to make sure Kofi Kingston wouldn't be challenging for his title at WrestleMania. After Kingston defied the odds in an hour-long gauntlet match, Daniel Bryan entered as a surprise final opponent, defeating his rival with the running knee to end hopes of his title challenge for now.


After losing the Intercontinental Championship last week, Finn Balor scored a measure of revenge against both Bobby Lashley and Lio Rush on Raw by defeating them in a tag team match, with Balor's buddy Braun Strowman as his partner.


It was a case of so close and yet so far for Kofi Kingston on SmackDown. Placed in a near-impossible situation, Kingston defied the odds to defeat Sheamus, Cesaro, Erick Rowan, Samoa Joe and Randy Orton in a Gauntlet Match to earn a WWE Championship opportunity. That was until Vince McMahon cut the celebrations short and forced Kingston to face Daniel Bryan there and then, with Bryan crushing Kingston's dreams for another day.


After a couple of dominant weeks as the new United States Champion, Samoa Joe is stuttering once again. A loss to Rey Mysterio in last week's tag team match was compounded this week by losing in the Gauntlet Match to Kofi Kingston, despite Kingston already having endured three grueling matches prior to this.


A mixed week for this up-and-coming tag team, as on Raw Ricochet scored a pedestrian win over Jinder Mahal. But it was at their old stomping grounds of NXT that both Ricochet and Aleister Black came unstuck. Both competed in the Fatal Five-Way to crown a contender for the NXT Championship at TakeOver: New York, but both fell short to Adam Cole in that quest.


It was a dominant, destructive display by Ronda Rousey this week on Raw, as she decimated Dana Brooke in well under a minute to defend her Raw Women's Champion. Like her or loathe her, Rousey is carrying the most momentum right now heading into the WrestleMania Triple Threat, and making many fans furious along the way.

HONORABLE MENTIONS

Drew McIntyre - Another week, another Shield member defeated by Drew McIntyre. This time it was Seth Rollins, who was distracted by Brock Lesnar to help McIntyre towards another victory.

Kurt Angle - The Kurt Angle Retirement Tour continued on Raw in a match with Chad Gable. While it's clear the Olympic Gold Medalist has lost several yards of pace, he picked up the win on his Road to WrestleMania.

The IIconics - The IIconics pulled off an upset on SmackDown Live, defeating the Women's Tag Team Champions The Boss & Hug Connection.

The Miz - While he wasn't in action this week, The Miz was on fire, cutting an impassioned babyface promo at the start of SmackDown Live to build to his match with Shane McMahon at WrestleMania.

Mike Kanellis - The losing streak is finally over, as Mike Kanellis (with a helping hand from his wife Maria) defeated Akira Tozawa on 205 Live.

BIGGEST MOVES THIS WEEK