Our WWE SmackDown results for tonight include Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes kicking off the show, WWE Women’s United States Championship Tournament starting with B-Fab vs. Bayley vs. Candice LeRae facing off in a triple threat match, Motor City Machine Guns defending the WWE Tag Team Championship against The Street Profits, Naomi challenging Nia Jax for the WWE Women’s Championship. Here’s our review and grades for tonight’s show, live from Fiserv Forum Arena in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
WWE SmackDown Card:
- WWE Women’s Championship Match: Nia Jax (c) vs. Naomi
- WWE Women’s United States Championship Tournament Match: B-Fab vs. Bayley vs. Candice LeRae
- WWE Tag Team Championship Match: Motor City Machine Guns (c) vs. The Street Profits
- Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes kicks off SmackDown
WWE SmackDown Results:
Time for an American Nightmare
Rhodes looks pensive as the crowd chants his name. In a low, severe tone, Rhodes says Kevin Owens crossed a line. Rhodes demands Owens come to the ring right now. Nothing happens. Rhodes yells for Owens to come out right now. Again, nothing happens. SmackDown GM Nick Aldis walks to the ring and gives a dissertation about why the piledriver is banned and says that Owens did cross the line. Aldis notes that Randy Orton is laid up in the hospital after Owens’ piledriver last week.
Owens isn’t here because Aldis can’t have him here until they solve this issue internally. Rhodes reads Aldis the riot act for talking like a suit and forgetting he used to be a wrestler. Rhodes explains why Orton is important to him and that he feels responsible for what happened to Orton. If Aldis doesn’t give Rhodes what he wants, he will do what he has to do to get what he wants. If Rhodes has to go to Owens’ house and beat his @$$ he will. Rhodes says the ball is in Aldis’ court, but he won’t wait long.
Grade: B-
Rhodes was phenomenal here. At times, Rhodes can be a bit too dramatic in his delivery, but he was outstanding here. We all know the connection between Orton and Rhodes, but with Rhodes’s passionate speech tonight, he drove home that he feels responsible for his mentor’s career is potentially over. The only drawback here was Aldis. Aldis is usually solid when cutting a promo, but tonight, he seemed a bit off, tripping over his words and coming off as if he was reading a script for the first time. Odd stuff.
Backstage, Jimmy Uso runs into Jey Uso and Sami Zayn. Jimmy looks Zayn up and down to drive home the fact that he’s not a fan of Zayn being around. Jimmy let Jey and Zayn know Roman Reigns wants to meet with them later tonight to gameplan for WarGames. Zayn tells Jey and Jimmy he may have another idea for a fifth member of their team. Jimmy is unconvinced.
WWE Women’s United States Championship Round One Tournament Match: B-Fab vs. Bayley vs. Candice LeRae
LeRae dropkicks Bayley‘s knee. Bayley rolls out of the ring. B-Fab runs over LeRae. B-Fab lifts LeRae for a bodyslam and walks around the ring before driving her to the mat. Harlem sidekick by B-Fab. Bayley tries to get in the ring but gets cut off by B-Fab. B-Fab clotheslines Bayley and LeRae simultaneously. After the break, everyone trades strikes. A triple clothesline leads to everyone being down.
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LeRae lands a codebreaker/Senton combo on Bayley and B-Fab. B-Fab kicks out. LeRae goes up top. B-Fab tries to cut her off, but LeRae throws her to the mat. Bayley cuts off LeRae. Bayley sets up a superplex. B-Fab turns it into a tower of doom, but LeRae shifts in midair and lands on top of Bayley! Bayley kicks out. Swinging Facebuster by B-Fab. LeRae kicks out.
Bayley charges in and eats a modified neckbreaker. LeRae kicks out. Bayley lands a Bayley-to-Belly on B-Fab. LeRae pushes Bayley out of the ring and tries to steal the pin. B-Fab kicks out. LeRae is sent flying off the apron by a big boot from B-Fab. B-Fab tries another Harlem side kick, but Bayley turns it into a pin for the win!
Winner- Bayley
Grade: C
Is this the first time we are seeing B-Fab have a singles match with her own entrance? Not a bad night’s work for someone who hasn’t been wrestling for long. Having B-Fab in the ring with veterans like Bayley and LeRae was an intelligent choice, as they led most of the action here, leading to a match that was better than it had any business being. Bayley winning made sense, as you need a few of your big names in the women’s division to go deep in the tournament to help legitimize the new championship. Bayley is the obvious choice to fit that role.
Read More: Women’s US Title Tournament Match, Cody Rhodes And Kevin Owens Segment Set For WWE SmackDown
Backstage, Zayn is speaking to United States Champion LA Knight. We can’t hear what’s being said, but Knight storms off.
The Megastar wants to make someone Famous
LA Knight says everyone wants the United States Championship. After Crown Jewel, Knight is still the champion. Knight says he wants no part of the Bloodline civil war. That’s not his fight. He’s not Logan Paul, so he’s not going to defend the championship two times a year. It’s time for the United States Championship open challenge. Legado del Fantasma‘s music hits. Santos Escobar and co join Knight in the ring. Escobar wants the shot. Knight says he’s already beaten Escobar, so he’s all set. Knight is happy to give the shot to Berto. Escobar is not happy. Berto attacks Knight from behind.
United States Championship Open Challenge: LA Knight (c) vs. Berto w/Legado del Fantasma
This match started during the break. Berto floors Knight with a picture-perfect missile dropkick. Berto works over Knight. Knight sends Berto over the top. Knight bounces Berto’s head off the commentary desk repeatedly. DDT by Knight. Berto kicks out. O’Connor roll by Berto. Knight kicks out, but Berto bounces off the bottom rope and hits a head kick. Berto tries a moonsault. Knight gets a boot up. Berto goes flying. Knight misses an elbow drop. Knight goes up top. Berto cuts Knight off. Knight pushes Berto off the top and lands a double jump elbow drop. BFT by Knight. Knight pins Berto
Winner- LA Knight
After the match, Shinsuke Nakamura lays Knight out with a Kinshasa. Nakamura slinks off.
Grade: C+
We missed most of this match during the break, but what we did get to see was good. Knight gave Berto more than you would normally want a champion to give in a match like this, but since we never see Berto in singles action, letting him shine here is the right move. Knight needed a new challenger, and thank the heavens, it was Nakamura and not Santos Escobar. No shade to Escobar, but Knight is right; we’ve seen that before. A Knight/Nakamura feud is fresh. Hopefully, we get motivated, Nakamura, and not I’m just happy to be here, Nakamura.
The New Bloodline is Here
Solo Sikoa, Jacob Fatu, Tama Tonga, and Tanga Loa are in the ring. Sikoa tells the crowd to acknowledge him. They don’t. Roman Reigns music immediately hits. The original Bloodline, Roman Reigns, Jey Uso, Jimmy Uso, and Sami Zayn walk down to the ring. A huge brawl breaks out. Jey lands a huge dive that takes out Tonga and Loa. Fatu blindsides Reigns, then superkicks Jimmy and Jey. Sikoa sets Zayn up for the Samoan Spike. Reigns saves Zayn by Spearing Sikoa!
Zayn and Reigns share a nod, and Zayn promptly dives out of the ring onto the rest of the outlaw bloodline. Reigns and Fatu are left in the ring. After a staredown, Bronson Reed appears and attacks Reigns from behind. Bronson Reed and the outlaw Bloodline leave the OG Bloodline lying.
Reed lands two massive Tsunamis. Reigns manages to fight over Loa and Tonga. Reigns drops Fatus and Reed with Superman punches. Sikoa surprises Reigns with a Samoan Spike. Fatu crushes Reigns with a double jump moonsault. Reed follows that with a Tsunami. Security and officials rush to the ring and break up the brawl. After Sikoa and co have left the ring, Jey tells Reigns he needs to make the call. I wonder to who?
Grade: A
Everything about this was great. The Outlaw Bloodline’s WarGames team is complete, and Bronson Reed is a devastating addition. We all know what happens next, but it’s been so much fun watching these two groups try to murder each other each week. “As The Bloodline Turns” is the best show on TV.
WWE Tag Team Championship Match: Motor City Machine Guns (c) vs. The Street Profits
Ford clubs Sabin. Sabin and Ford trade pin attempts. Shelley and Sabin double-team Ford, landing a Manhattan drop/kick combo. Ford surprises Shelley with a nasty lariat. Shelley rolls out of the ring. Dawkins sends Shelley into orbit with a pounce. Shelley lands behind the commentary desk. After the break, Shelley manages to tag in Sabin. Sabin clears the ring.
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The missile dropkick/flatliner combo is by Sabin and Shelley. Ford kicks out. Dawkins and Ford set up the Doomsday Blockbuster. Tommaso Ciampa appears out of nowhere and attacks Ford, causing a disqualification.
No Contest
Ciampa attacks everyone. Johnny Gargano runs to the ring to try to stop Ciampa. Ciampa listens to Gargano… for five seconds before pushing Gargano on his butt. Gargano looks shocked. Ciampa storms off and mutters to himself about wanting the championships. That’s all he cares about. Back in the ring, Sabin and Shelley try to comfort Dawkins and Ford. Sabin says this wasn’t them. Dawkins decks Shelley. Ford and Dawkins walk off.
Grade: A
This writer was very sports-entertained by this match. The Street Profits are underrated at this point, so seeing them show out against a team like MCMG isn’t shocking to anyone who watches this show consistently. Dawkins’ pounce to Shelley was impressive and hilarious, as Shelley landed in the funniest way possible. This is the most interesting tag division since the OG Bloodline had the titles during their record-breaking run. The slow burn turn of Street Profits is being handled quite well. Also, if all of this leads to Ciampa getting away from Gargano, the match gets a grade bump on that alone.
WWE Women’s Championship Match: Nia Jax (c) vs. Naomi
As soon as the bell rings, Jax runs over Naomi. Swinging cravat by Jax. Namoi tries to fire u, but Jax stops her again after a brief flurry of offense. WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions Bianca Belair and Jade Cargill are shown watching the match from backstage. The camera cuts to Miss Money in the Bank. Tiffany Stratton is watching the match from another monitor. Back in the ring, Jax lands a popup headbutt. Jax celebrates too long and ends up getting blasted by a heatseeker by Naomi. Jax falls off the apron.
Naomi lands a dive. After the break, Jax is working over Naomi. Jax tries a powerbomb. Naomi turns it into a sunset bomb. Jax kicks out. Naomi fires up and lands the Rear View. Jax kicks out at 2.9. Jax surprises Naomi with a popup Samoan drop. Naomi is rocked. Jax sets up her finish. Naomi pushes Jax off the top rope. Naomi lands a dive. Backstage, Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez have laid out Cargill and Belair. Back in the ring, Tiffany Stratton attacks Naomi from behind.
Jax goes up top. Naomi cuts her off. Jax sets up a bodyslam off the top. Naomi turns it into a flipping slam of her own. Jax kicks out. Bayley runs down and attacks Stratton. Naomi lands the Split-legged Moonsault. Jax kicks out. Candice LeRae appears and pushes Bayley into the ring post. In the confusion, Jax destroys Naomi with a Samoan drop off the top. Jax pulls Naomi over to the corner and crushes her with an Annhilator for the win.
Winner- Nia Jax
Grade: B+
Jax’s aggression here was great. Naomi embarrassed Jax, and on top of that, Jax recently lost the first-ever Crown Jewel Championship to Liv Morgan. Jax should be in a foul mood, and it showed tonight. The popup headbutt Jax landed was gnarly. Naomi used her speed here to stick and move, with varying results. The finish was a bit overbooked, but in an odd turn of events, the busyness of the finish didn’t take away from the match. The crowd was smoking hot for this and bit on every near fall. The people were begging to see Naomi come out on top. This was a great piece of business.
WWE SmackDown Review:
Overall, it was a good night. We started with a hot Cody Rhodes promo, setting the tone for the night. There was tons of great in-ring action tonight, highlighted by the tag title match and the main event for the women’s championship. B-Fab showed promise in the Women’s United States Championship tournament in a loss. Bayley’s win in the tournament will help give the title a much-needed rub.
“As the Bloodline Turns” continued, and in the latest installment, the OG Bloodline looks outnumbered and outgunned. Bronson Reed continues to develop into a legitimate main-eventer. He has been extremely impressive over the past few weeks. Reigns made the call to the Wiseman Paul Heyman, but the number was disconnected. What does that mean? Is the OG Bloodline on their own?
Rating: B
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