After a confrontation last week, LA Knight will go one-on-one with Tama Tonga on tonight’s WWE SmackDown.
The Knight vs. Tonga match was set up after a brawl between Tonga, Knight, Jacob Fatu, and Braun Strowman last Friday. Knight was looking to seek revenge for Fatu and Tonga interfering in his match against Shinsuke Nakamura two weeks ago for the United States Championship.
Also slated for the episode, the Motor City Machine Guns (Alex Shelley & Chris Sabin) will take on Pretty Deadly (Kit Wilson & Elton Prince). Pretty Deadly interfered in MCMG’s match last week against Los Garza, but the interference backfired and MCMG still came out on top.
Tonight’s show will serve as the final build for this weekend’s Saturday Night’s Main Event episode. Ahead of his contract signing with Kevin Owens at SNME, Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes will appear tonight for an exclusive interview. It will be conducted by Joe Tessitore.
Rhodes and Owens are set to meet in a ladder match for the Undisputed WWE title at the Royal Rumble on February 1.
Join us for live coverage starting at 8 p.m. Eastern time.
**********
– Joe Tessitore spoke as outdoor shots of Texas were shown. Footage of Tama Tonga, Jacob Fatu, LA Knight, and Tiffany Stratton walking in various places was shown. Turned out, Tessitore was standing in the middle of the ring and he introduced Cody Rhodes.
The Cody Rhodes Interview
There wasn’t a lot to this. I suppose you couldn’t expect Owens to interrupt because Cody and Owens will be around each other at SNME, but I did kind of think they might set up a proper main event for tonight with Cody involved. Instead, we got three (maybe four?) standard questions from Tessitore and Cody doing his best to be engaging … but truthfully falling a tiny bit short. It felt like the live crowd wanted more – and it felt like more was coming – but the segment just never blossomed into anything of note. Kudos for WWE for trying something different, though. That’s encouraging.
Tessitore started talking and the crowd broke out into “Cody!” chants. Tessitore mentioned how Austin was the hometown of Dusty Rhodes. Tessitore noted how Cody will have his title taken from him to be hung above the ring and asked Cody how he felt about these being the final moments of him having the belt in his possession. Cody said Shawn Michaels knows something about ladder matches (Michaels will host the contract signing for the match at SNME) and reminded everyone that to main event WrestleMania, you have hold the title he holds and he, like everyone else, wants to main event WrestleMania.
Tessitore asked Cody about Kevin Owens and Cody threw the question to the crowd, who booed. Cody said a lot of people have a lot of opinions on Owens and they shouldn’t because he will subvert everyone’s expectations. Cody called Owens a once-in-a-generation superstar and said 10 times out of 10, Owens will always chose the easy way out. Because of this, Cody said, this is why the ladder match is the best way to go because it will simply be about who can climb the ladder and leave Indianapolis WWE Champion.
Following that up, Tessitore said he wasn’t sure if Owens could remain calm at SNME’s contract signing and asked Cody what his final message before the Royal Rumble to Owens would be. Cody said he might appear to be a good guy, but he was the one who defeated the greatest champion of his era, Roman Reigns, and he was also a student of Randy Orton. Therefore, he was and is as mean as people can get. Cody said simply put, he had only one thing to say to Owens: “Good luck.” Cody’s music hit and that was the end of that.
**********
– #DIY and Pretty Deadly were talking backstage and Johnny Gargano told Pretty Deadly they wouldn’t be able to help them later because Gargano has a match against Apollo Crews later. Ciampa told Pretty Deadly to handle their business. Gargano told them they believe in them. This all came after Pretty Deadly tried to see what might happen after tonight. #DIY walked away and Pretty Deadly ran into Legado Del Fantasma, who stared the team down. No words were said. Back in the ring, MCMG’s theme hit for the night’s first match.
Motor City Machine Guns (Alex Shelley & Chris Sabin) defeated Pretty Deadly (Kit Wilson & Elton Prince) [9:55]
A fine TV match, if not a little too predictable. Much like the opening segment, it felt like there was something else that was supposed to happen, but it didn’t happen. In this case, interference from some tag team somewhere felt inevitable, but this was simply a clean win for MCMG. No complaining from me. I enjoy some of the edge that Pretty Deadly is showing, but seeing believing when it comes to if it will mean anything substantial moving forward. Here’s hoping.
Prince and Sabin started the match and Sabin got the best of it briefly, but Prince turned it around. Shelley tagged in, but Wilson soon followed. Sabin quickly tagged back in and MCMG landed a double-team move, but it wasn’t long before Pretty Deadly got aggressive and ran Sabin into a ring post on the outside. Shelley followed the heels and roughed them up. Pretty Deadly posed as the show went to a picture in picture.
The show returned and Wilson was beating down Sabin inside the ring. Prince tagged in and kept the pummeling going. Wilson tagged in, but Sabin fought back and hit a running enziguri on Wilson to then get the hot tag to Shelley. Prince tagged in, but Shelley took care of both of them, complete with a DDT on Prince for a two-count. Pretty Deadly were on the outside and Sabin tagged in to land a suicide dive on Pretty Deadly.
Back inside the ring, MCMG set up for Skull and Bones, but Pretty Deadly worked out of it to take control on both Sabin and Shelley. Prince landed a Bulldog from the top on Shelley for a near-fall. With Wilson as the legal man, MCMG hit their signature double-team moves before ultimately hitting Skull and Bones for the win.
**********
– The Miz was shown meeting with Nick Aldis backstage. Miz said Tessitore does a great interview, but it’s not Miz TV. Aldis informed Miz he is now on SmackDown permanently. Miz noted how the Wyatts are on SmackDown and flipped out. Aldis told Miz he’ll need to make new friends and make them fast.
– A video package/tale of the tape ran on the Braun Strowman vs. Jacob Fatu match for SNME.
The Kevin Owens/Jimmy Uso segment
Kevin Owens appeared out of nowhere as Tessitore and Wade Barrett were talking at the commentary table. Owens berated Tessitore for interviewing Cody and not him. Owens asked why everyone wants to be Cody’s friend because all Cody does is betray his fans. Owens said he will prove at the Royal Rumble that he is the true WWE champion. Matthew McConaughey was in the crowd and started jawing at/with Owens. Jimmy Uso’s music hit and Jimmy walked out.
Jimmy stepped into the ring and Owens asked Jimmy why he was there. Jimmy said it was because Owens “talks too damn much” and then attacked Owens. Jimmy went to the top rope, but Owens rolled out of the ring with his Winged Eagle belt. Jimmy got on the mic and asked Owens where he was going. Jimmy challenged Owens to a match for later tonight. And it appears we have found our impromptu main event.
**********
Carmelo Hayes was shown talking to Aldis in Aldis’s office. Melo was supposed to face Jimmy Uso later, so Melo was angry about it. Aldis said he has an opponent for Melo, but Hayes said he wants to meet his opponent instead of waiting until he gets in the ring because the last time that happened, Strowman came out. Melo said he’d wait to see who shows up.
B-Fab & Michin defeated Chelsea Green & Piper Niven [3:25]
This wasn’t much, either. At least Owens injecting something into the first hour. Sadly, it didn’t carry over into this tag, which was clearly here only to set up the eventual Green vs. Michin rematch. At this point, it would be nice if we got there sooner than later.
Michin and Niven began the match. Michin kicked Niven and Green tagged in. Michin dragged Green into the ring and went for Eat Defeat, but Green countered. The sequence ended up with Green in a corner and Michin twerking. Michin went for a Cannonball, but Green moved and took control. Green suplexed Michin for a one-count. Niven tagged in and went for an elbow drop, but Michin moved. B-Fab received the hot tag while Green tagged in.
B-Fab worked over Green, complete with a DDT and a cover that was broken up by Niven. Niven slammed B-Fab and Michin dropkicked Niven. Somehow, Green and Michin were the legal women (I guess I missed at least one tag) and Michin hit Eat Defeat on Green for the win.
**********
– Melo was still in Aldis’s office and Damian Priest showed up and Aldis asked Priest if he was interested in a one-on-one match with Melo later. Priest said he was there to work and it looks like Priest will be on SmackDown full-time now.
– A Charlotte vignette aired for the second week in a row. This time, Charlotte spoke over the fancy video footage. Charlotte declared for the Royal Rumble.
The Tiffy Time segment
This was fun for what it was and finally threw some energy into the proceedings. We’ll see what Aldis was about to announce before the show went to break.
Stratton said once again she is the center of attention. Stratton said she wasn’t worried about who wins the Royal Rumble because things will still operate on Tiffy Time. Rhea Ripley’s music hit and Ripley walked out to a loud ovation. “Mami!” chants broke out. Ripley said she knew Tiffy was still new there, but she wanted Tiffy to know she was a women’s champion, too. Ripley said she respects what Tiffy did to Nia Jax, but it won’t compare to what she’ll do to her at SNME. On cue, Nia Jax’s music hit and Jax walked out with Candice LeRae.
Jax said she didn’t understand why she was “catching strays,” and that’s a young person’s phrase, so who knows what that means. Jax officially declared for the Royal Rumble match as the crowd booed. Jax looked at a kid in the entranceway and said “Your mom sucks, kid.” Jax said she will beat Ripley at SNME. Jax said she’d take back Tiffy’s title eventually because that title is hers. As Jax stepped into the ring, Bianca Belair’s music hit and out came Belair and Naomi.
Naomi asked Belair if she could believe it. Naomi officially entered the Royal Rumble match. Belair did the same. Belair and Naomi went back and forth on who was going to win. Liv Morgan’s music then hit and Liv walked out with Raquel. While standing in the entranceway, Liv noted how Ripley lost her man “to a real woman.” Live called Tiffy a Liv Morgan wannabe. Liv shouted that she doesn’t care about anybody because the headline news will be all about Liv … because she is also declaring for the Royal Rumble match. Liv also “declared her victory” for the Rumble match. Liv said Raquel will ensure that Liv wins and Ripley headbutted the hell out of Liv. All the women then brawled. Nick Aldis walked out and the show went to a commercial break.
**********
Liv Morgan, Miz Jax & Candice LeRae defeated Bianca Belair, Naomi & Rhea Ripley [12:13]
Lots of star power here and that’s a good thing. The match itself was a bit of a cluster, but what else would you expect? I said this last week, but I’ll say it again: Why wouldn’t WWE advertise a match like this ahead of time? It will most likely end up as the most star-powered bout of the night … why not put it out there to entice viewers to tune in? I digress. Anyway, a fluke win for the heels all but ensures Ripley beats Jax tomorrow night, but we knew that anyway. In the meantime, this was fun for what it was.
Ripley started the match and suplexed LeRae. Naomi and Belair got involved and threw Naomi onto Jax. Morgan tagged in and Naomi took her down before tagging in Belair and hitting a double arm-drag. Belair started pounding on Morgan, but LeRae interfered and Morgan then started pulling on Belair’s braid. Jax tagged in and clotheslined Belair. Jax rag-dolled Belair. Jax set up for her finisher, but Belair pushed Jax over the top and to the outside. The show then went to a commercial break.
The show returned and Morgan had the upper hand on Naomi. Jax tagged in and hit a splash on Naomi. Jax followed that up with a stink face. LeRae tagged in and rolled up Naomi for a two-count. Jax attacked Ripley on the outside of the ring. Morgan did the same to Belair. All of this allowed the heels to triple-team Naomi, but Naomi fought back and landed an X-Factor on LeRae. Ripley hopped back on the apron and received the hot tag. Morgan tagged in and Ripley went to work on Liv.
Belair tagged in and went for a moonsault on Morgan, but Morgan got her knees up. Belair landed a weird spear/tackle. Things broke down and Ripley set up for a Riptide on Jax, but Morgan broke it up. As a result, Ripley hit a Riptide on Morgan, onto Jax. After all was said and done, Belair hit a KOD on LeRae, but Morgan rolled Belair up immediately after that and got the win.
**********
– Chelsea, Piper, Michin and B-Fab were talking backstage. Michin said she got a rematch with Green for the U.S. title next week.
Apollo Crews defeated Johnny Gargano [4:15]
A fun win for Crews, who needs wins. This obviously sets up MCMG vs. #DIY for the tag titles and if anything, I’m hoping they get at least 20 minutes to tell a solid story because we all know these teams can do just that. No nonsense. No limitations. Just let them loose. You won’t be sorry, Mr. H.
Crews had some offense early, but he ran into a super-kick from Gargano for a two-count. Gargano stomped a mudhole in Crews after that. Ciampa and Gargano pat themselves on the back and Gargano ran into a kick from Crews. From there, Crews pressed Gargano and landed his standing moonsault for a two-count. Crews leapt at Gargano, but Gargano moved and followed it up with a back-cracker for a two-count.
Back on their feet, the two traded blows. The sequence ended with Gargano throwing Crews to the outside, where Ciampa hit a running knee on Crews. MCMG walked down the aisle and that distracted Gargano. From there, Crews rolled up Gargano for the win.
**********
– Jacob Fatu said he was both Godzilla and King Kong as he cut a promo on Braun Strowman while walking to the ring. Fatu told LA Knight that Tama Tonga was coming for him. Fatu then accompanied Tonga through the entranceway and to the ring for the next match.
– Comedians Shane Gillis and Fluffy Iglesias were shown in the crowd.
– LA Knight had a microphone before his match and said “Let me talk to ya!” Knight talked about he got his ass kicked last week, but it was worth it as long as he got a shot at Tonga tonight. Knight mouthed off to Fatu and did his catchphrase with the crowd. The match between Tonga and Knight then began.
LA Knight defeated Tama Tonga [12:07]
This was pretty good despite the fluky (but expected) finish. Knight is low-key getting better in the ring and Tonga is … well … Tama Tonga. This all but ensures that Fatu gets the win over Strowman tomorrow night, but that’s the right call. Of note: Where is Solo Sikoa again? With all of these things happening, all we get is a mic-drop moment last week and that’s it?
Knight had control early and the action spilled outside, where Tonga threw Knight into the crowd barrier. Tonga walked the crowd barrier and clotheslined Knight off the barrier. The two got back into the ring and Knight hit a springboard shoulder block for a two-count. Knight landed a back-body-drop and clotheslined Tonga over the top to the outside. Knight followed him out there and and Tonga rammed Knight into the corner of the ring steps. The show then went to a commercial break.
The show returned and Knight hit a neck-breaker inside the ring for a two-count. Tonga came back with a dragon-screw leg-whip. Tonga then went to work on Knight’s leg. Tonga went for a vertical suplex and Knight countered into a neck-breaker. Tonga cut off a comeback attempt with a knee to the gut. Knight worked his way back and cut off Tonga off as Tonga went to climb the ropes. Before long, Knight hit Tonga off the apron and onto the commentary table. Knight rolled Tonga back into the ring and lifted him, but Tonga countered into his DDT finisher, but Knight kicked out at two.
Tonga placed Knight on the top and the two traded blows. Knight threw Tonga off the top and executed his step-up elbow from the top. Fatu climbed onto the apron and that allowed Tonga to get in a rollup. In the end, though, Knight hit a BFT on Tonga for the win. Immediately after the match, Fatu dropped Knight onto the commentary table and placed Knight on the table. Braun Strowman’s music hit and Strowman stomped to the ring to stop the carnage. Fatu and Strowman stared each other down and Fatu tried to go after Strowman, but Tonga stopped Fatu … until Fatu punched Tonga away and stepped in the ring with Strowman. Fatu and Strowman circled each other. Strowman tore off his shirt and the crowd poped. Tonga hopped on the apron, but Strowman clotheslined Fatu over the top. Tonga then stopped Fatu from getting back into the ring as the segment ended.
**********
– The Miz was shown talking to Austin Theory and Grayson Waller backstage. The Miz pitched “The Marine 7” and they all said they’d be rich. Aldis walked in and told Waller and Theory they were going to Raw for good. The Miz was upset and confused.
– A Nakamura vignette aired.
Damian Priest defeated Carmelo Hayes [10:48]
Melo got in a lot of offense here, which is good for Melo, but is that a great way to debut Priest, who is a former WWE Heavyweight Champion, on the Blue Brand? These are the things that can be debated in the current wild world of professional wrestling commentary. In the meantime, Melo came out of this looking better than he did going in, even though he lost. I wonder what happens with Priest moving forward. Does he get into the world title mix once things settle in, roster-wise? Is he somehow defined down on SmackDown? I hope not. There’s so much equity in Priest these days and he’s earned that; I hope the WWE booking minds don’t take that away from him.
Melo had the upper hand early … until he ran into an elbow from Priest. Priest walked the top rope ala Undertaker and came down in a cross-body for a two-count. The action spilled outside and Priest tried to run Melo into a ring post, but Melo countered and kicked Priest repeatedly. Melo posed on the second rope and the show went to a break.
The show returned and Melo continued to work over Priest. Melo landed a dive onto Priest on the outside. Back in the ring, Melo hit a cross-body from the top for a two-count. Melo went to work on Priest’s arm. Melo chopped Priest and Priest fired up. Priest followed up with a Broken Arrow and a front-face slam for a two-count. Outside the ring, Priest shoulder-blocked Melo into the time-keeper’s area. Back in the ring, Melo went for a springboard move, but Priest caught him … but then Melo came back with a First 48 for a nice near-fall.
Melo went to the top, but Priest moved when it came to a Nothing But Net attempt. Priest clotheslined the hell out of Melo and set up for his finish. From there, a South Of Heaven went down and that earned Priest the win.
**********
– MCMG and #DIY were backstage arguing around Nick Aldis. Turns out, it will be MCMG vs. #DIY for the tag titles at the Royal Rumble in a two-out-of-three falls match. Next week on SmackDown, #DIY will team with Pretty Deadly to face MCMG and Los Garza. Also, Liv Morgan will go one-on-one with Naomi. Plus, Jimmy Uso vs. Carmelo Hayes and Chelsea Green vs. Michin for the Women’s U.S. title.
– Michelle McCool was shown in the crowd. Ditto for Mark Henry.
– Priest was shown walking backstage and he ran into Cody Rhodes. Cody shook Priest’s hand and walked away. Priest said, “See you soon, champ.”
– The Miz was talking to Andrade backstage, sucking up to him. Andrade walked away and Jimmy Uso came into the picture. Jimmy walked past Melo and Jimmy taunted Melo on his way to the ring. Melo followed Jimmy and attacked Jimmy on Jimmy’s way to the ring. Officials ran out and tried to break things up. Jimmy smiled and Melo was escorted to the back. Jimmy made his way to the ring for the main event.
Kevin Owens defeated Jimmy Uso [13:46]
Jimmy got in a lot of fury here, but you knew KO wasn’t going into SNME a loser. As such, this worked well and I have to think an Owens vs. Jimmy Uso rematch (perhaps with Owens as the Undisputed Champion?). Both guys worked hard and Jimmy, especially, kept his string of strong performances up. Don’t look now, but he’s accruing a solid resume of wins/matches on WWE TV now that the Bloodline stuff has died down a bit. With Jey’s recent singles run in mind, you have to think a proper tag run for the two could work out awfully well, but that’s for another day. In the meantime, this was a worthy main event.
The match started outside and Jimmy punched Owens a bit. Back in the ring, Owens took control back with a Swanton. Owens ran Uso into the second rope turnbuckle and posed. Owens threw Uso into another corner and pummeled Uso. Uso turned the tables and the action spilled outside, where Uso slammed Owens on the commentary table. Things briefly made their way back into the ring, but it went right back outside and Owens hit a frog splash from the apron onto Jimmy. The show then went to its final commercial break.
Back from that break, Owens was working Uso’s arm in the ring. Jimmy tried to work his way out, but Owens countered with a side slam, which was good enough for a two-count. Owens went back to Jimmy’s arm. Owens went to the top and Jimmy cut him off to go for a super-plex, but, as is always the case, Owens fought back and fought Jimmy off. Owens then went for a Swanton, but Jimmy got his knees up and then followed that up with a hip attack. Both wrestlers were down to reset the match.
With everyone on their feet, Jimmy took control with a Samoan Drop and a two-count. Owens ran the ropes, which led to Owens running into a super-kick, which got Jimmy a two-count. Owens popped up and landed a Blue Thunder Bomb for a two-count (hi, Sami Zayn!). Owens jawed at Jimmy and went for a Stunner, but Jimmy countered and hit a super-kick for a two-count. Jimmy went to the top, but missed an Uso Splash and Owens landed a super-kick as a follow-up. Jimmy came back with one of his own and that resulted in a good near-fall.
Jimmy ran at Owens and Owens kicked Uso, but Uso came back with a spear. Jimmy went to the top, but Owens cut him off and pulled him down. Owens ran Uso into a ring post and hit the pop-up powerbomb for the win. After the match, Owens went to piledrive Jimmy on the commentary table, but Cody’s music hit and Cody ran out for the save. Cody and Owens brawled in and out of the ring. The credits rolled in the midst of this and that ended the show.
