Join 411’s Live WWE Smackdown Coverage

Keep Refreshing For The Latest Results

Well everyone, now that Ring Royalty and Saudi Blood Money is in the rear view mirror let’s see what WWE Smackdown has in store tonight. Nia Jax became Queen of the Ring and will challenge Bayley for the women’s title at SummerSlam but until then Bayley seems to have Piper Niven for Clash at the Castle. Meaning Jax will have to wander around and take up air time in some other capacity until after that match. Tiffany Stratton and Bianca Belair seem like they’re still orbiting each other, ditto Carmelo Hayes and LA Knight so both of those issues could develop. DIY and the Street Profits seem like they’re going to have to go through each other to get a shot at Adelaide, you know, a town down under. Andrade is still looking to make his TV debut though it seems like he’ll be involved with Legado del Fantasma in some capacity, and speaking of debuts Shinsuke Nakamura still has yet to reappear on TV since being drafted back to Smackdown. Logan Paul came up short in his title match but might have to defend his US title at some point, though if they wanted to stretch his stuff with Cody out to Clash at the Castle they could then get both titles on the line for that one. Speaking of WWE champion Cody Rhodes, after beating Logan Paul he’s in need of either a reason to perpetuate that feud or a new challenger for the Castle event. Of course there’s also Bloodline 2.0 which is fighting with Randy Orton and Kevin Owens, botch machine Tonga Loa couldn’t get into Saudi Arabia but will probably be on hand tonight so we’ll see if another good guy joins Randy and Owens in the fight against Solo’s slightly more anemic Bloodline. Lots of stuff to start sorting out in the wake of a PPV, so let’s get to the action.

Tonight the Guerillas of Destiny will take on the Street Profits, that’s our announcement to start the episode. After that a recap of Saudi Blood Money.

To the ring where Nick Aldis is here to crown Nia Jax. . . again. There’s a podium and the crown in the ring and here comes Jax to make things worse. Aldis congratulates her on her win then says the floor is hers. Jax gets a mic, this is probably going to go badly, and wants to set the facts straight. She’s our queen of the ring, and she gets a title shot at SummerSlam so she’s ordering Bayley to come out. Bayley does show up but gets jumped by Piper Niven and Chelsea Green. Piper bounces Bayley around the barricades for a bit then they head into the ring. Low crossbody from Piper then she stares down Jax. Green talks, and says that Jax doesn’t have to worry about Bayley because by the time SummerSlam rolls around Piper will the women’s champion. Jax doesn’t care, she’ll annihilate whoever holds that belt. Pretty much none of that was good.

Aldis walks in the back, we get a brief overlay of “hello” in various languages. AJ Styles is waiting on Aldis and would like to address his future tonight. Aldis asks if there’s something AJ wants to tell him, and AJ says this will be hard enough to do once so he’d rather just talk in the ring.

Back to the ring here’s DIY, after this break Tommaso Ciampa will take on Austin Theory.

Post break Bayley is getting checked by the trainer. Naomi shows up and asks if she’s good to fight and then heads out to get that match made.

Back to the ring here’s Austin Theory to up the apathy.

Match #1: Tommaso Ciampa w/ Johnny Gargano vs. Austin Theory w/ Grayson Waller

Quick tie up then Theory backs things into a corner and taunts. Ciampa then starts punching and chopping him before following up with a back elbow. 10 punch from Ciampa gets to 8 before Waller jumps up to get punched and set up Theory landing a neckbreaker to take over. Some corner work from Theory but Ciampa fights back with a boot then hits the ropes but misses a flying attack. Theory then hits a neckbreaker off the apron to the floor and we head to break.

Post break Theory is working a headlock. Ciampa fights upright but then gets run over by Theory. Theory to the apron, but Ciampa counters his rolling dropkick with a dropkick of his own. Ciampa fires up with punches and chops then hits the ropes and lands a running clotheslines. Reverse DDT from Ciampa and he starts attacking the back of Theory’s head. Theory avoids a Fairy Tale Ending and superkicks the back of Ciampa’s head then hits Ataxia for a 2 count. Ciampa avoids A-Town Down and chops away at Theory. They start trading strikes then we get a double boot and Ciampa hits a running knee strike to put both men down. Theory rolls out of the ring, Waller puts him back in then Waller whines to commentary about something, Theory and Waller then bicker about Waller taking credit for Theory’s career and Ciampa shoves them together then grabs a School Boy to win.

OFFICIAL RESULT: Tommaso Ciampa won in 9:44

Rating: 2.5 stars
Thoughts: A decent enough preview of their upcoming tag team stuff, which will probably be alright. Waller and Theory having dissension has been a bit overdue, and Theory as a face coming out of that might help him since right now he’s kind of flatlined in this iteration. Ciampa is still pretty good in the ring and that did showcase here.

Naomi finds Nick Aldis talking with Blair Davenport. Blair gets pissy about being interrupted and storms off. Aldis then says Naomi has got her tag team match tonight. LA Knight walks in after that and asks if AJ is really retiring. Neither of them is sure about that. Knight wants to know where Logan Paul is, and Aldis invites him to sit and talk about that as we head to break.

Post break, a recap of Cody Rhodes vs. Logan Paul from Saudi.

LA Knight leaves the office of Aldis and runs into Kayla, he says there’s not a whole lot to tell. Logan Paul isn’t here this week but Knight is here, and if he can’t get the answer he wants he’ll force the issue and challenges Logan for the US title. Carmelo Hayes wanders over and Hayes asks why LA would want to face LA and LA calls him out for the botch. Hayes says if Logan wants to talk then he’ll work Knight but if he wants to walk then Hayes is him. Hayes has not really come off well thus far on the main roster.

To the ring here’s Apollo Crews already in the ring, and out comes Andrade.

Match #2: Andrade vs. Apollo Crews

They tie up, then trade go behinds before Andrade avoids a suplex and lands a dropkick. Andrade is selling his left arm after that landing, but he hits a back suplex for a 1 count. Next Andrade heads up top but Angel wanders down the ramp to distract him so Apollo lands a kick. Apollo follows up with a moonsault from the apron to send us to break.

We come back to both men fighting on the top rope, Andrade headbutts Apollo down then hits a crossbody and both men are down. They trade some strikes for a bit then Andrade lands a flying forearm then kips up. Angel is still hanging out ringside then Andrade with a double knee in the corner for a 2 count. Apollo then lands an German suplex but Andrade fights off the second and boots Apollo. Andrade up on the ropes but Apollo catches him with a military press then a standing moonsault for 2. Angel hops on the apron to bother Apollo then Andrade hits his spinning back elbow and follows with a butterfly neckbreaker to pin and win.

OFFICIAL RESULT: Andrade won in 7:03

Rating: 2.5 stars
Thoughts: I think might have been better off as a squash but Andrade can still go and got to show some of that off here.

Post match Santos Escobar and the rest of Legado del Fantasma show up, but Andrade walks away from them despite Angel being happy. Snatos death stares Angel who scurries off to try and fix this.

Next a recap of Randy Orton beating Tama Tonga last week then Kevin Owens returning to continue his war with the Bloodline.

In the back Solo tells Tonga Loa and Tama Tonga to take people out tonight. Paul Heyman enters the frame and says he’s been thinking about things recently. How he might better serve Solo, he says the violence before was to preserve things, and violence was considered carefully. He sees the violence Solo is putting around himself but all Heyman can see is random violence, there’s no strategy behind it. The strategy has to be that when Roman comes back they’ve got Cody Rhodes in check. Solo says they’ve already got Cody in check and he doesn’t even know it. Heyman asks who “we” is, but the music of Kevin Owens interrupts things. Solo tells Heyman to go fix that and Heyman heads out.

To the ring where Owens has entered the ring. After this break Owens will talk.

Post break we find Andrade in the back. Angel shows up to ask what happened but Apollo attacks Angel for messing with his match.

Back to the ring where Owens is hanging out. Owens has a mic and says last week he returned and made sure that he had Randy’s back. Randy has had his back for a while now and he made sure Solo and company weren’t going to ruin Randy’s chances. Randy might not have been King of the Ring, he really didn’t lose that match. Well Randy isn’t here tonight, but Solo and company are so of course Owens is here too. Paul Heyman interrupts and introduces himself as he walks to the ring. He has served as special counsel and wise man to Roman Reigns. In Roman’s absence he serves for Solo and the Bloodline, and in that capacity he’s out here tonight to talk with Owens man to man, professional to professional, father to father, as there is a mutual interest here. Owens tells him to get to the point. Pretty loud “we want Roman” chant which gets Heyman a little emotional, and he says no one wants Roman here more than he does. He wants that because Roman has respect for Owens, and everything they did to each other was based in that while Solo has no respect. Solo has been recruiting criminals, while Roman and Heyman didn’t let them in because they weren’t good representatives of the Bloodline. Now Solo is bringing these bloodthirsty thugs into this, and they’re not looking for a reason to hurt Owens, they’re just looking for an excuse. If Owens keeps this up they’re going to do something really bad about it, and Heyman is asking, nay begging, for Owens to back off of this please. Owens isn’t buying this act, nothing in the last years of their interactions has built any kind of trust. He knows this is all Heyman, Heyman went from Brock to Roman and now that Roman lost the belt he moved on to Solo. Owens figured that out, but he doesn’t get this act. Is it all about fear? Owens has been fighting the Bloodline for four years, they’ve done everything to him, chair shots, tossed from high places, innumerable superkicks, even got run over by a golf cart. But that was Roman and the Usos, men he respected, but now it’s Solo and a couple of guys no one wants here. Owens isn’t going to stop fighting them, they don’t belong in his world. As far as Heyman’s help goes, he doesn’t want or need it. Heyman says maybe he’s just trying to save Owens. Maybe just maybe their kids have met, and that a man can’t redeem himself. He wants to get through to Owens, and Heyman has a mild meltdown about now no one listens to him and how this isn’t his vision. He accidentally bumps into Owens during this and Owens menaces him before Solo’s music hits. Solo and his goons show up, but the Street Profits show up behind Owens to even the odds. That doesn’t deter anything and we’ve got a brawl between everyone. Solo and Owens brawl into the crowd while the Profits and Guerillas battle in the ring. Loa’s punches are still comical by the way. Dawkins dives onto Tonga and Loa as we head to break, that tag team match will be up after the break. That was really good, Heyman unraveling as he realizes how in over his head he is and how things are breaking apart around him is pretty great.

Match #3 – Tag Team Match: Guerillas of Destiny (Tama Tonga and Tonga Loa) w/ Paul Heyman vs. Street Profits (Montez Ford and Angelo Dawkins) w/ B-Fab

Ford and Tonga are trading strikes as we come back. Corner work from Ford now then he tags in Dawkins. Some strikes from Dawkins then he tags in Ford and they hit a double back suplex. Tonga sends Ford to the apron where Ford kicks Loa but that allows Tonga to knock Ford off the apron. Loa then tosses Ford the barricade then back into the ring. Tonga hits a sliding clothesline, then another one. Loa tags in and hits an Oklahoma Stampede in slow motion. Tonga tags back in and hits a slingshot elbow drop. Corner work from Tonga now but Ford looks to fight out of the heel corner and tags in Dawkins. Dawkins runs wild on Tonga for a bit but he can’t put Tonga away. Loa forgets to make the blind tag but does on the second attempt and then he lays out Dawkins with a clothesline. Saito suplex from Loa then he sends Dawkins out of the ring, and almost on top of Tonga because who cares about positioning for dangerous spots? Loa then heads out to bounce Dawkins off of the announce desk then he sends Dawkins into a flying clothesline from Tonga as we head back to break.

We come back to Tonga tagging in and laying in mounted punches. Some stomps from Tonga then he petitions the crowd for a reaction before missing a jumping elbow. Dawkins drags himself up then avoids a corner attack. Right hand from Dawkins then after a bit hits an exploder suplex to put both men down. Both men tag out and Ford unloads on Loa with punches. Ford with a backflip then a series of kicks but Loa cares no for selling until Ford levels him with a clothesline, then a flapjack for Tonga for good measure. Enziguri to Loa then a corner splash and Dawkins tags in. They set for the Doomsday Blockbuster, it connects but Tonga breaks up the pin. Loa with a running attack to Dawkins, but then he runs into a Pounce and Tonga tags in blind. Dawkins with a Sky High to Loa, then Ford tags in for From the Heavens but Tonga is legal and when Ford tries to pin Loa Tonga catches him with the Flatliner to get the win.

OFFICIAL RESULT: Guerillas of Destiny won in about 12:01

Rating: 3 stars
Thoughts: It was nice to see the Profits get more physical and intense, it’s a side of themselves they need to show off more often.

We get a recap of Bianca Belair and Jade Cargill retaining the women’s tag team titles. Then we see Jade and Belair walk in the back, Indi Hartwell comes in to complain about Candice LeRae being on the shelf. Jade threatens to put Indi on the shelf right beside her and Indi scurries off.

Bayley and Naomi head to the ring, they’ll be in action after this break.

Post break commentary reminds us that AJ Styles will talk to close the show.

In the back Kayla talks with Michin, Michin says AJ has been quiet to them recently. Nia Jax interrupts this to make things worse. Michi and Jax bicker and Jax promises that Michin will regret this. As a viewer I regret most things about this.

Back to the ring where Bayley and Naomi wait for Green and Piper.

Match #4 – Tag Team Match: Bayley and Naomi vs. Piper Niven and Chelsea Green

Green and Bayley start, and Bayley runs her over for a bit then Green runs away to tag in Piper. Piper backs Bayley into a corner and unloads on her there. Green tags in and kicks away at Bayley but Bayley hits a back suplex then tags in Naomi. Naomi with a running leg drop for a 2 count. Bayley tags back in and they clothesline Green out of the ring. Naomi then hits a suicide dive onto Green. Piper asks a camera man to move, that allows Bayley to jump from the apron onto Piper and send us to break.

We come back to Piper working over Bayley. Green tags in and tries to get a pin but can’t find a 3 count. Naomi avoids a cheap shot then Bayley fights back only for Green to back Bayley into the heel corner and tag in Piper. Bayley again tries to fight back but Piper cuts her off and prevents the tag. Some kicks from Bayley then she avoids an elbow drop. Both women tag out and Naomi unloads on Green with a kick then a modified Heat Seeker and a crossbody. Naomi hits a basement dropkick in the corner then a split legged moonsault for a near fall. Piper pulls Green out of the ring and Naomi then hits a pescado onto both of them. Back in the ring Naomi climbs up top but Green distracts the ref so Piper can shove her off the top rope and Green lands a superkick only for Bayley to break up the pin. Piper bounces Bayley into the ring apron then slams her into the ring steps. Naomi avoids an Unpretty Her, then hits a Rear View but Piper breaks up the pin with a senton on both of them then she pulls Green on top of Naomi for the pin.

OFFICIAL RESULT: Chelsea Green and Piper Niven won in 8:27

Rating: 2.5 stars
Thoughts: This gained a surprising amount of steam down the stretch, Green and Piper are still a fun duo and Piper will work fine as an interim challenger for Bayley.

Next week we’ll get Jade Cargill vs. Indi Hartwell plus Johnny Gargano vs. Grayson Waller, and Apollo Crews will go one on one with Angel. Solo Sikoa will officially welcome Tonga Loa into the Bloodline as well.

In the back AJ walks and finds LA Knight. Knight says if the rumors are true he wanted to give respect. Cody Rhodes is next and offers AJ his hand, AJ accepts then whispers something to him. AJ fights the Good Brothers just before the tunnel and says it’s only right that they be out there with him as we head to break.

We come back to AJ making his entrance with Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows flanking him. AJ gets a mic and is definitely selling the emotion here like he’s retiring, and says he’s been thinking about things said to him. If he wants another shot at the WWE title he’d have to go to the back of the line, he gets that in principle but he just isn’t in a position to make that run again. He’s been doing this for over 20 years, busting his body in rings all over the world, blood, sweat, tears, all over the world. All so he could become phenomenal, but his son graduated from high school this week and he was there for them. It was right then when clarity struck him, he’s missed so many moments like that. Instead of being the phenomenal AJ Styles he should stay home and be a phenomenal father. He turns to Gallows and Anderson and calls them over, he couldn’t have done this without them and loves both of them. They’re his brothers and if this is the last time they put up the Bullet Club sign then all three men embrace. But before AJ goes he said something to Cody back there, and if Cody doesn’t mind coming out he could come out now. That does bring out Cody Rhodes sans title belt. Cody gets a mic as well and AJ says before he came out here to do what he’s got to do he wanted to be sure and look Cody in the eye and say that Backlash was one of the greatest matches he’s ever had. The crowd was electric and that would be a suitable last match, and this is still the house that AJ Styles built. He called Cody out to hand him the keys. Cody looks emotional now, and says he and AJ have had a whopping single text message between them and it was just AJ telling Cody he was all good after their match. Cody, on behalf of an entire locker room, thank you very much. They shake hands and hug, then AJ poses for the crowd with Cody and naturally levels Cody with a clothesline. Mounted punches from AJ now and then he stomps away at Cody. AJ tosses Cody out of the ring then ramps him into the ring steps. AJ pulls Cody onto the rings steps as the Good Brothers keep officials at bay, then AJ with a Styles Clash off the ring steps and to the floor. Evil heel AJ stares into the crowd as commentary curse him and the episode ends.