The A-Lister tricks Shane McMahon into teaming up for an on-the-spot tag team match.

For all The Miz’s trickery, give him this: When he decides to go in on something, he goes all the way in. The A-Lister’s strange desire to join forces with SmackDown LIVE Commissioner (and Best in the World trophy co-parent) Shane McMahon took another turn this week when The A-Lister went behind SmackDown General Manager Paige’s back and finagled a match between himself, Shane and a pair of locals called The Vegas Boys, who jumped Shane-O-Mac from behind.

The gambit paid off, albeit to a point: Shane singlehandedly defeated Chip & Chad to prove he and Miz can co-exist and win as a tag team, though the ruse was quickly uncovered by Paige. When Shane got in Miz’s face about it, The A-Lister got uncharacteristically sincere: Before crossing paths with Shane, he had never, despite all his accolades, been included among the best in the world. His attempt to genuinely shake on it with the Commissioner went nowhere, but fans of The Awesome One can still take heart. If his WWE career has proved nothing else, it’s that he will not be denied so easily.