Tonight’s episode of SmackDown on SyFy features an Elimination Chamber qualifying triple threat match of Damian Priest vs. United States Champion Carmelo Hayes vs. Trick Williams. The competition is stiff here, and it looks like two very talented wrestlers are going to miss out on the chamber. On paper, I think Trick has an edge over the others. He’s quickly caught on with WWE fans, who always go crazy for his entrance and shtick. He was also ringside for a recent Elimination Chamber qualifying match, has been mixing it up with the likes of Sami Zayn and Randy Orton on the mic, and even crossed paths this month with WWE Champion Drew McIntyre.

Some of those same things can be said about Damian Priest, except for the fans always going crazy for his entrance and shtick. Priest has that upper card credibility of being a former world champion, but he’s a lot less cool these days without having Rhea Ripley by his side, like when they were both members of the Judgment Day. Then there is Melo, who is a current champion and quickly raised his stock in WWE over the last couple of months, but has generally been involved in more mid-card angles than Damian and Trick. There are no disqualifications in a triple threat match, so Hayes’ mid-card beef with The Miz may come back to bite him in this high stakes bout if the A-Lister decides to interfere.

Williams was called up to the main roster and had his first SmackDown match less than two months ago. Since then, he’s only picked up wins on TV over low card guys Rey Fenix and Matt Cardona. The results of his other matches include a No Contest against Priest, failing to win a WWE championship number one contender’s 4-way match on SNME (where Priest took the fall), and being eliminated by Cody Rhodes in the Royal Rumble match. Nothing has been set in stone, but it seems like Nick Aldis wheelin’ and dealin’, handing what looked like a contract to Oba Femi on last week’s SmackDown, before they were rudely interrupted by the “Toxic Masculinity” fighter himself, Kit Wilson. A few weeks ago, Femi absolutely mauled Kit on SmackDown, and Kit had a poem that aired his grievances, which Aldis read out loud to the dismay of Kit in front of Oba Femi. Femi had a huge grin on his face, saying that these feelings need to be settled in the ring, and Wilson begrudingly agreed to a rematch next Friday night. Since graduating to the main roster, Oba Femi has been absolutely dominant, carving out a list of bodies on both Raw and SmackDown, similar to what he did in his time in NXT.