Detailed Results
With Fastlane just a few weeks away where he, along with his ‘brother’ Dean Ambrose and Brock Lesnar, will compete in a Triple Threat Match to determine the #1 Contender for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania, SmackDown kicks off with Roman Reigns as Roman would go one-on-one with “The Bulgarian Brute” Rusev, with his League of Nations brethren King Barrett & Alberto Del Rio in his corner. During the match, Roman Reigns had Rusev right where he wanted him as he sized “The Bulgarian Brute” up for the Superman Punch, but that is when King Barrett & Alberto Del Rio would get involved, pulling Reigns out of the ring for the disqualification. Del Rio then throws Reigns into the barricade before Dean Ambrose rushes out to make the save and, after taking it to Rusev, the Intercontinental Champion would dive off of the ring apron, but Barrett & Del Rio would move out of the way and Ambrose would inadvertently strike Reigns! Del Rio then levels Ambrose with a kick to the face before Ambrose is rolled back into the ring where Rusev locks the Accolade in on the Intercontinental Champion. Reigns then storms the ring with a steel chair and The League of Nations makes a quick exit from the ring.
With a United States Championship rematch against Alberto Del Rio coming up at Fastlane, United States Champion Kalisto would go one-on-one with Kevin Owens in a non-title match with Dolph Ziggler a guest on commentary. During the match, Kevin Owens brings Kalisto to the outside, dropping Kalisto face-first on the barricade before exposing the announce table. However, it was a ploy by Owens as, just when it looked like Owens was going to powerbomb the high flyer on the announce table, Owens instead throws Kalisto right into Dolph Ziggler! Owens then catches Dolph with a super kick before rolling Kalisto back into the ring, but that is when Dolph would scramble towards the ring. This would distract Owens long enough for Kalisto to take advantage, quickly rolling Owens up to score the three-count and pick up the win. After the match, Owens would knock Kalisto down before Dolph Ziggler rushes the ring and Owens is quick to escape the ring.
Sporting a new look, Ryback was in action on SmackDown as “The Big Guy” would face The Wyatt Family’s Erick Rowan, with Braun Strowman in his corner. During the match, Braun Strowman would get on the ring apron, but Ryback would shove Erick Rowan into Strowman, knocking Strowman to the floor before connecting with the Meat Hook Clothesline, pinning Rowan to pick up the win. After the match, Strowman would blindside Ryback, knocking “The Big Guy” out of the ring.
Chris Jericho would then be a guest on commentary for a match that he has a vested interest in as, after a confrontation on RAW, “The Phenomenal One” AJ Styles would go one-on-one with The Miz on SmackDown. During the match, AJ Styles would go for the Styles Clash on The Miz, but The Miz would roll out of it before the veteran competitor would lock in a submission maneuver called the Calf Crusher, making Miz tap out to pick up the win. After the match, Chris Jericho would confront AJ Styles in the ring, saying that Styles is proving to the world how good he is and, if AJ wasn’t good, then he wouldn’t have defeated Jericho a couple of weeks ago. Jericho then asks AJ if he is “great”, asking Styles if he has what it takes to be a champion and does he have what it takes to beat Jericho twice. Jericho then challenges Styles to a rematch on next week’s SmackDown, telling AJ to “prove” that he’s great. Jericho then extends his hand and asks if AJ accepts his challenge and Styles accepts the handshake before both competitors go face-to-face, refusing to look away before Jericho finally exits the ring.
The WWE Tag Team Champions were in action on SmackDown as The New Day would face The Social Outcasts’ Heath Slater, Adam Rose, & Curtis Axel in a 6-Man Tag match. In the end, it came down to Kofi Kingston and Curtis Axel in the ring and that is when Kofi would roll Axel up, putting his feet on the ropes for the illegal advantage to pick up the win for The New Day.
After being pinned by Brie Bella on RAW, Charlotte would be looking to rebound on SmackDown as the Divas Champion, with Ric Flair in her corner, would go one-on-one with Alicia Fox, with Brie Bella in her corner, in a non-title match. In the end, it was Charlotte locking in the Figure-Eight, making Alicia Fox tap out to pick up the win.
Then it was time for the main event as, after a battle earlier in the night, Roman Reigns would team with his ‘brother’ Intercontinental Champion Dean Ambrose to face League of Nations’ members Rusev & Alberto Del Rio, with King Barrett in their corner. During the match, Alberto Del Rio would have Roman Reigns on the outside and Dean Ambrose would go for a dive to take out Del Rio, but King Barrett would pull Del Rio out of the way and Ambrose would nearly take Roman out again. The confrontation between Reigns and Ambrose would then be interrupted when Reigns drops a charging Rusev with the Superman Punch. Roman then rolls Rusev back into the ring, connecting with the Spear and pinning Rusev to pick up the win for himself and Ambrose. Reigns & Ambrose then stand tall in the ring, managing to remain on a unified front despite a couple of inadvertent incidents.
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