After standing tall to end last week’s episode, Solo Sikoa will have a face-to-face confrontation with Roman Reigns on tonight’s edition of WWE SmackDown.
Reigns, along with Jimmy Uso, suffered an attack from Sikoa and his version of The Bloodline last week. Jimmy tried to convince Reigns they needed help against Sikoa, but Jimmy was rebuffed by his brother Jey on Raw.
Also set for tonight is an appearance from the Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. He will address his upcoming match against Gunther at Crown Jewel in Saudi Arabia on Saturday, November 2. The winner of that match will become the first-ever Crown Jewel Champion.
Motor City Machine Guns — Alex Shelley & Chris Sabin — have officially signed with WWE and will make their debut tonight, facing Angel & Berto and Austin Theory & Grayson Waller in a triple threat match. Johnny Gargano & Tommaso Ciampa vs. The Street Profits vs. Pretty Deadly is also taking place tonight. The winning teams will meet in a WWE Tag Team title number one contender’s match next week.
Join us for live coverage starting at 8 p.m. Eastern time.
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– The show opened with important-looking people carrying a case with the Crown Jewel Championship into the building. Shots of Columbia, South Carolina, were shown while Corey Graves set up a video package recapping what happened last week. A recap of what happened between Jimmy and Jey on Monday’s Raw was part of the recap.
– Back in the arena, Solo Sikoa’s music hit and The Bloodline walked out. The announce team was Corey Graves and Wade Barrett. Graves said Michael Cole was “out on special assignment.”
The Bloodline segment
This was pretty good and both Jey and Solo used good pro wrestling logic to explain what they are doing and where they are coming from (“pro wrestling logic” because no, this isn’t Shakespeare, and if I never hear the phrase “this is cinema” in a pro wrestling context again, it will be too soon). We all know it can’t possibly go in this direction (can it?), but I actually kind of root for Jey to swerve everyone and join up with Sikoa just to spice things up. It’s wishful thinking because this exchange all but cemented Jey is here to help Jimmy and Roman despite his initial reaction on Raw. The line Jey had about Fatu raised my eyebrow, at least, because I whined and wondered aloud for years about why WWE didn’t sign Fatu forever ago, and the dialogue gave the confrontation between Jey and Fatu a lot more intensity than I would have anticipated otherwise. Good stuff.
Sikoa stood in the ring with a microphone as the crowd chanted “OTC!” Sikoa said what we all knew he’d say: “Columbia, South Carolina, acknowledge me.” He received a ton of boos in response. “Solo sucks!” chants then broke out. Sikoa told the crowd they were looking at the present and the future, the Bloodline and the Tribal Chief. Sikoa said he created a bigger and stronger family, a bigger and stronger Bloodline.
Sikoa said Roman Reigns can’t do anything about that. Sikoa said Jimmy Uso can’t do anything about it, either. Sikoa said Jey Uso doesn’t want anything to do with him. The crowd chanted “Yeet!” and Sikoa said “No yeet.” Sikoa said the beatdowns will continue unless Reigns comes down to the ring by the end of the night and acknowledges Sikoa. On cue, Jey Uso’s music hit and Jey appeared in the crowd yeeting along with the rest of the fans. Jey walked to the ring and boy that crowd loved him.
Jey grabbed a microphone and asked Solo, “What’s up, little brother?” Jey said it’s been a minute. Jey said he wasn’t out there to fight Sikoa because he still cares about him because Sikoa is his little brother. Jey said he was out there to talk Uce-to-Uce. Jey told Sikoa to think about what he was doing to his family and the Bloodline. Jey said he still has issues with Roman, but dividing the family isn’t the way to go. Jey said he left the family, went to Raw and became the Intercontinental Champion. Jey said fighting over the Ula Fala “is not it” because it’s earned, not taken. Jey pleaded with Sikoa to not divide the family.
Sikoa asked if Jey was done wasting his time. Sikoa said he wasn’t trying to divide the family, he was trying to unite the family. Sikoa told Jey not to call him his little brother because he is Jey’s Tribal Chief now. Sikoa said he will always have a place for Jey and Roman in his Bloodline – all they have to do is acknowledge Sikoa. Sikoa asked Jey if he was in or out. Jey asked if what Sikoa said was true, why did Sikoa have to go get Tama, Tonga and Jacob. Jey said there was a reason they stayed away from him and if Jacob kept staring at Jey, Jey would “knock his ass out.” The crowd erupted.
Jey said the next time he sees Sikoa, it’s going to be different, whatever that means. Jey said “yeet,” threw down the mic and left the ring to his music playing.
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#DIY (Tommaso Ciampa & Johnny Gargano) defeated The Street Profits (Montez Ford & Angelo Dawkins) & Pretty Deadly (Elton Prince & Kit Wilson) to advance in the No. 1 contender’s tournament for the WWE Tag Team Titles [8:11]
Lots of action – and the type of action that has a fairly large audience these days. The guys worked hard, but it is suspect to put together an eight-minute match that has all this stuff crammed into it … and still take two minutes away via a commercial break. My prediction was #DIY going over because MCMG vs. #DIY feels like an indi-rific fever dream in WWE in the year 2024, but they did a nice job protecting the Profits with the creative finish. Also worth asking: Does this mean Pretty Deadly is back now? Consistently? Maybe?
Only The Street Profits’ entrance was televised. Ciampa, Ford and Prince started the match, but Prince retreated to the outside and Ciampa and Ford took the first 30 seconds of the match. Prince thought he had a chance to get some offense and lured Ciampa to the outside, where Wilson took Ciampa out. Things broke down from there and bunch of dives and blind shots occurred. It resulted in Ford leaping from the top toward Ciampa, but Ciampa hit Ford with a knee and got a two-count out of it.
Pretty Deadly took control and hit a double-team move that included a Codebreaker on Ciampa for a two-count. Pretty Deadly posed in the middle of the ring and the crowd booed. Ford rolled up Prince during the pose and that earned him a quick two-count before the show went to a picture-in-picture break.
The show returned and Ciampa hit an Air Raid Crash on Prince, but Ford landed a Frog Splash on Ciampa for a near-fall. All six men traded moves while an announcement regarding the main event for next week’s Dynamite … er … just kidding. Anyway, Ford went back to the top, but Prince cut Ford off and Pretty Deadly went for something on Ford, but Dawkins appeared and hit the Doomsday Blockbuster on Prince. #DIY followed that up with a Meet In The Middle on Wilson. Ford covered Prince and Ciampa covered Wilson. They got simultaneous pinfall wins, but because Wilson was the legal man, #DIY was ruled the winners of the match.
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– An SUV pulled up backstage and out of it came Roman Reigns and Jimmy Uso. It wasn’t long before they ran into Jey, who glared at Roman and walked away. Roman pulled at Jey and Roman told Jey, “I’m proud of you. We all are.” Jey said, “Man, no yeet,” and walked away, and buddy, it’s hard to take a single person in this world seriously if they say “No yeet,” but Jey sure tried to do just that.
– Nia Jax was shown talking on the phone in Nick Aldis’s office. Jax said Tiffany Stratton was sick and therefore wasn’t there. Jax tried to say her tag match was canceled as a result of that. Aldis said the match wasn’t canceled because Jax needed to find someone else. Candice LeRae walked into the frame with Indi Hartwell. LeRae offered her services and Aldis booked the tag match. It will be Jax and LeRae vs. Bayley and Naomi later in the show.
Lash Legend defeated Piper Niven [3:01]
This was all right. Sort of in the middle (how much can two people really do in three minutes … unless you’re booking a squash, but this wasn’t a squash). That said, it’s good to see Niven and Green on WWE TV each week because they work their asses off in every aspect of the pro wrestling game and it’s good to see that rewarded. Better yet, Legend got somewhat of a surprise win here and that suggests Jackson & Legend might be here to stay when it comes to the main roster, and good on them for it. Legend’s finisher is a lot of fun to watch on whatever show she’s on, but this time around, it was mighty impressive and Niven took it fantastically. Credit to both women.
Jade Cargill & Bianca Belair were shown in the crowd, watching the match. Legend pushed Niven to begin the match. Niven returned the favor. Legend hit the ropes, but ran into Niven, who didn’t move. Niven then ran the ropes and took Legend down. Niven went for a splash, but Legend moved and hit Niven with a Pump Kick and a splash on her own for a one-count. Niven caught Legend and slammed her before landing a running Senton for a two-count.
Niven went for a Cannonball, but Legend moved and hit a few strikes on Niven. Legend tried to lift Niven, but she couldn’t and Niven headbutted Legend, but Legend ultimately bodyslammed Niven to a pop from the crowd. Chelsea Green and Jakara Jackson brawled outside, which distracted Legend enough for Niven to briefly get the upper hand. Niven went for a splash, but Legend moved and hit her finisher on Niven, which was very impressive, and got the win.
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– Roman Reigns was shown backstage and Jimmy impersonated Paul Heyman for a second, which was funny. Jimmy tried to convince Roman to talk to Jey. Roman said if the Wiseman was there, it would have already happened. Roman said he’s going to fix it later tonight. Jimmy asked Roman how he’d do that. Roman said he’s going to acknowledge Solo Sikoa and things got serious for a second as the segment ended.
– The Crown Jewel Championship was shown and Graves talked it up, saying it has something like a trillion diamonds and 900 pounds of gold in it. Ish. Cody’s theme played and out walked the American Nightmare.
The Cody Rhodes segment
There was a little bit of heel Cody in this. His slow delivery almost never translates into seriousness and instead, it indicates he might be up for being a bad guy for a little bit. Perhaps that’s foreshadowing. Perhaps it’s nothing. Either way, this probably didn’t inspire the reaction that WWE or Cody wanted from the live crowd, who largely sat on their hands for this. Cody has his tropes, no matter the company, and the notion that he’s the only wrestler that ever does anything for his child has run its course for this viewer. I understand how and why he tried to make it seem like this match with Gunther has higher stakes than normal via said tropes, but I’m not buying it. Next week will hopefully be better with Gunther able to respond and (probably) troll Cody in real time.
The crowd chanted “Cody!” loudly and Cody soaked it in. Cody said it was an “unbelievably sized crowd this evening.” Cody noted how someone told him that “the next one doesn’t look like the last one,” when it comes to who leads the company. Cody said about the Crown Jewel Championship isn’t about the next one or last one; it’s about the first one. Cody referenced Harley Race, Ric Flair, Nick Bockwinkel, Goldberg and Stone Cold Steve Austin. Cody said at the end of Crown Jewel, there will be a definitive Crown Jewel Champion. The crowd was flat.
Cody said he wouldn’t disparage Gunther. Cody said Gunther is respected by everyone and could chop a tree down with his hand. Cody said everyone is terrified of Gunther, but he is not. Cody said he wouldn’t bet against him and he thinks he will leave Crown Jewel as the Crown Jewel Champion. Cody talked up the Crown Jewel title. Cody said in the last two years, he and the pro wrestling audience has gotten to know each other, and as such, he wanted to take the John Cena schedule/model, and Cody said he has done just that. Cody said the real reason he thinks he’s leaving Crown Jewel as champion is because he needs to do it for his daughter (in so many words).
Cody invited Gunther to SmackDown next week. Cody said he wants to know what Gunther’s reasons for all this are. Cody said he wants to look in Gunther’s eyes and say, “Hey champ. What do you want to talk about?” And that was the end of the segment.
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– Video of the Kevin Owens attack on Cody at Bad Blood aired. Footage of Owens’s run-in last week then aired. The social media video that Owens posted earlier on Friday then aired. In short, Owens is mad that officials told him to stay home because he feels it’s unfair and ridiculous because we see ambushes every week on TV. Owens mocked the fact that he “dropped their golden boy outside a stupid bus,” and let’s be honest: He wasn’t wrong. Owens questioned how much he’s valued in WWE. Above all, he’s mad that Randy Orton betrayed him. Owens said he thought their friendship was different from the other friends he’s had and he said Orton picked Cody over Owens. The final seconds of the promo featured Owens saying he doesn’t know if or when he can come back.
– Randy Orton walked into Aldis’s office. Orton said he needs to get his hands on Owens and it needs to be at Crown Jewel. Aldis said it wasn’t something he could do. Aldis said it wasn’t that he won’t; it’s that he can’t. Orton screamed, but Aldis cut him off and said the order was coming “from up above.” Orton said he then knew who he was going to have to talk to.
Motor City Machine Guns (Alex Shelley & Chris Sabin) defeated A-Town Down Under (Grayson Waller & Austin Theory) & Los Garza (Angel & Berto) to advance in the No. 1 contender’s tournament for the WWE Tag Team Titles [8:35]
Hey. You have to start somewhere. I’m a proponent of wrestlers who you think should go to AEW actually going to WWE because it’s simply more interesting. No shade on AEW – I love AEW as much as you do, I promise – but Shelley and Sabin in AEW would be a tag team that looks a whole lot like a lot of other tag teams on that roster. In WWE, they can stand out and see if it works. Maybe it will. Maybe it won’t. The reaction to them here wasn’t lighting the world on fire, but Shelley, especially, worked the crowd into a position that was advantageous to both the match and his tag team by the end of everything. You can tell how hard they tried and how much it meant to them and that really does say something in such a jaded world of pro wrestling these days. There’s still work to do, but it was a fine enough WWE debut.
Sabin started the match and the heels worked him over – the heels in this case being Waller and Angel. Shelley tagged in and basement dropkicked Berto & Angel. Sabin took everyone except Waller out and Waller went after Shelley, but Sabin helped Shelley out to regain control. “Motor City” chants broke out. Shelley went after Waller, but Waller hit a forearm on Shelley and tagged in Theory. From there, the show went to a picture-in-picture break.
The show returned and Los Garza worked over Shelley. Waller tried to intervene and Angel and Berto hit dueling moonsaults on the outside. Waller took care of Los Garza outside the ring. Waller set up for a rolling move, but Shelley countered and took out A-Town, but Angel hopped back into the picture and Los Garza took control. Berto and Theory battled it out briefly, but Sabin took a blind tag from his partner and the Guns instantly had the upper hand. Shelley and Sabin hit their splash/neckbreaker finisher on Berto to get the win.
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– Byron Saxton interviewed Carmelo Hayes and Andrade backstage. Immediately Andrade and Hayes brawled. Next week will be Game 7 for their series. Aldis showed up to yell and look important.
Nia Jax & Candice LeRae defeated Bayley & Naomi [7:34]
Look at that! I love it. You can’t change until you change and LeRae is long overdue for some booking love. Who knows what the story behind Stratton not being there is, but LeRae stepped up and LeRae is now kind of/sort in the women’s title picture. Good for her. And hats are off for Bayley, who probably was thrilled to take the pin, knowing how supportive she seems to be backstage of her coworkers. This was a nice, fun surprise.
Jax and Bayley started the match and Jax attacked Bayley quickly. LeRae tagged in and Bayley took control. Naomi then tagged in and LeRae rushed to tag in Jax. Jax ran at Naomi, but Naomi moved and stood on Jax’s back and danced a little. Jax came back and face-planted Naomi for a two-count. Jax hit a spinebuster and a Senton for a two-count. The show went to a commercial break.
The show returned and Bayley got the hot tag and Bayley came in to clean house with LeRae getting the worst of it. Naomi hit a splash on Jax on the outside, but Bayleu ran into a forearm from LeRae. LeRae tried to climb the ropes, but Bayley cut of her off. With the referee’s back turned, Hartwell attacked Bayley and rolled Bayley into the ring. LeRae then landed a moonsault on Bayley and actually got the win for her team.
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– Next week, Melo/Andrade Game 7 happens. MCMG vs. #DIY is also on tap. And Gunther and Cody will go face-to-face.
– Saxton interviewed Aldis backstage. Aldis named LA Knight as the special referee for Game 7 for Melo/Andrade next week. Knight came in and said he will call it down the middle.
– Roman Reigns’s music hit and the crowd instantly stood up. The show went to a break as Roman made his entrance.
The Roman Reigns/Bloodline segment
Maybe Roman Reigns needs to start yeet-ing and this could all go away. Whatever it is, another week, another show-ending segment with Roman being left for dead as Solo Sikoa and his faction stand tall. You have to appreciate the long-term approach, but the ending here did fall a tiny bit flat if only because we all knew Jey was in the building and we all probably thought this would be where Jey saves the day. But it was not to be. The slow walk continues. Even so, good promo work from both Sikoa and Reigns to end the night.
The crowd chanted “OTC!” and Reigns soaked it in. Reigns looked tired and fired himself up when he said, “Columbia, South Carolina … maybe for the last time, acknowledge me.” The crowd did their part. Solo Sikoa’s music hit and Sikoa walked out alone in wrestling gear. Sikoa and Reigns circled each other inside the ring. “OTC!” chants broke out. Reigns said that earlier tonight, Sikoa told Jey that their family is strong now. Reigns said Sikoa told Jey that the Bloodline was stronger now. Reigns said he doesn’t see it and he doesn’t see anything that tells him the family is better off now. Reigns said the family is divided and broken.
Reigns talked about everything they lost in the spring and summer and wondered how they stand like they do now. Reigns said he told his father that he could fix it. Reigns said all he wanted to do is put them back in the promised land. Reigns said he wanted titles around their waist and money coming in from everywhere. Reigns asked Sikoa what he has to do to fix it. Sikoa said all Roman has to do is acknowledge him. The crowd booed and started back in on the “OTC!” chants. Reigns took a minute and actually said, “I acknowledge you.” Roman asked if that made Solo feel better and Solo said that wasn’t good enough.
Instead, Solo said that he needs Roman to acknowledge Solo as his Tribal Chief … or else. Roman yelled “Or else what?!” The crowd blew up. Solo said he knew it – Roman never changed. Solo said since Roman never changed, Solo will never change, either, and Solo snapped his fingers. Tonga, Tama and Fatu walked out with a beaten up Jimmy Uso. Solo tried to attack Roman, but Roman got the best of Solo at first. Roman then tried to battle all of the Bloodline. Roman hit a Superman Punch on Solo and the Ula Fala fell off. Roman grabbed it and tried to put it on, but Solo low-blowed Roman.
The Bloodline beat up Reigns, complete with a suplex from Jacob Fatu. The four Bloodline members were yelling at Roman and set Roman up for a Samoan Spike, which Solo then delivered. Solo jawed at the crowd and hit another Spike on Roman. For the second week in a row, the Bloodline stood tall above Roman Reigns as the show ended.
