SmackDown rolls into Albany tonight as the curtain-raiser for Saturday Night’s Main Event at Madison Square Garden, where CM Punk and Cody Rhodes will team up against GUNTHER and company. The blue brand is operating without Nick Aldis—Raw GM Adam Pearce is calling the shots—and with the SummerSlam ticket sales disaster still hanging over WWE’s head, tonight feels like a holding pattern before the real action kicks off at MSG tomorrow night.
Charlotte Flair could use tonight to escalate that CM Punk robe bit from the live events into something more substantial on broadcast—a physical confrontation or the start of an actual program. Punk vs. Flair would be fresh and plays into her stated interest in new storyline directions.


