WWE SmackDown opened with Paul Heyman in the ring for a promo, inviting Cody Rhodes to the ring. After filling Rhodes with compliments, Heyman announced Roman Reigns’ intention of winning the Royal Rumble and taking the title back from Cody. Kevin Owens would interrupt the two, on the mic, in the crowd. Owens explained that Reigns coming after his title was his own fault, and a brawl ensued.
Left alone in the ring, Paul Heyman was cornered by Tama Tonga and Jacob Fatu. Jimmy Uso came to the rescue, laying both men out with sloppy superkicks. However, the numbers would be too much for Uso, as The Bloodline would wrap a chair around his neck, stomping him in the corner. The Bloodline took out any WWE officials who tried to intervene. The Bloodline powdered as Cody Rhodes came back to the ring.
The night’s first match was Michin versus Chelsea Green for the WWE Women’s United States Championship. This match was noticeably better than their first championship bout, especially in smooth execution and reversals. It did, however, lack intensity, with neither breaking a sweat.
Los Garza and Pretty Deadly faced off in tag team action. The crowd was understandably quiet outside a couple of high spots, it was boring and uneventful. Neither team seemed to have an interesting reversal to speak of. Los Garza would win with the assistance of Legado del Fantasma, who was distracting the referee.
LA Knight received a title shot against Shinsuke Nakamura for his United States Championship. While the striking was noticeably soft, they did execute smooth and crisp reversals. Things got interesting after a superplex and a couple of false finishes. It appeared LA Knight had the championship in hand until The Bloodline rushed the ring and jumped him. Confronting them once again, Cody Rhodes and Jimmy Uso would challenge them to a match later in the night.
Motor City Machine Guns versus A-Town Down Under was next. They did a great job making it a true tag match, utilizing tandem moves and the non-legal men. Both teams showed top-tier reversals and false finishes, putting on a tag team clinic. Motor City Machine Guns hit their tandem finisher for the pinfall victory.
Fresh off a successful cash-in of her Money in the Bank contract, Tiffany Stratton was interviewed in the ring. They were quickly interrupted by former champion, Nia Jax. After a slow, awkward speech, Jax tells Stratton to up the belt before she takes it. Bayley and Naomi followed up with their claims at the next title opportunity. The general manager jumped into action, calling for a number one contender fatal four-way match, right then and there, including Bianca Belair.
The moment of the match was the one-on-one segment between Bayley and Bianca Belair. They showed the best pace and reversals of the contest. Belair was tangled up with Nia Jax and Candice LeRae on the outside, when Naomi tried to take advantage, only to be reversed by Bayley for the pinfall. Bayley is your number-one contender.
After building up the tension over the night, The Bloodline had their match against Jimmy Uso and Cody Rhodes. The Bloodline beat up on Uso until he could make the hot tag. Rhodes got caught up with Kevin Owens, and the two would brawl into the back. With Uso alone, the numbers would prove too much, and he would fall to The Bloodline. The action between Owens and Rhodes continued after the match, escalating to a table spot off the backstage equipment.
Cody Rhodes and Kevin Owens are set for a ladder match at Royal Rumble, and The Bloodline saga continues. With a new number one contender for the women’s title, and Roman Reigns announcing his intention of winning the Royal Rumble and taking the title from Cody, the tension builds as the PLE approaches.
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