The penultimate episode of SmackDown ahead of The Royal Rumble took over The ThunderDome tonight with the fallout from Adam Pearce’s shock announcement set to take center stage while Big E defended the Intercontinental Championship against Apollo Crews.
1. Opening Segment
Roman Reigns kicked off this week’s SmackDown where he complained about Adam Pearce making excuses with injuries last week. Pearce then made his way to the ring and after Reigns felt disrespected, a match between Paul Heyman and Pearce was made official.
Sami Zayn made his way out to the ring and handcuffed himself to the barricade.
2. Asuka and Charlotte Flair def. The Riott Squad
Billie Kay was once again at ringside with The Riott Squad and cost the duo another match when she distracted the referee so he missed a pin from Liv Morgan. In the end, Charlotte Flair picked up the win with Natural Selection on Ruby Riott.
Daniel Bryan headed out to the ring and talked about winning The Royal Rumble before Cesaro interrupted, after Bryan laid down the challenge Cesaro instead made it an open challenge and Dolph Ziggler accepted.
3. Cesaro def. Dolph Ziggler
Both men were looking to build momentum for next week’s Royal Rumble match but it was Cesaro who took the win following The Neutralizer.
4. Sasha Banks def. Reginald
Banks requested this match last week in order for Carmella to be handed a Women’s Championship match. Reginald showed off his athleticism throughout the match but despite his skills, he was still forced to tap to The Bank Statement.
5. Big E vs Apollo Crews | Intercontinental Championship
Big E defended against Apollo Crews but Zayn remained handcuffed to the barricade and decided this was the perfect time to set himself free and hit the Helluva Kick on both men.
Bianca Belair and Bayley collided in an obstacle course. Bayley cheated and The EST was still able to come out on top and she even impressively managed to lift Otis.
6. King Corbin def. Dominik Mysterio
It was a short match between Corbin and Mysterio to continue their feud and Corbin came out on top following End of Days.
7. Paul Heyman vs Adam Pearce
Paul Heyman fell up the ring steps and was replaced by Roman Reigns. The Tribal Chief delivered a Superman Punch and began the beatdown on the WWE official before Kevin Owens made the save. The two men brawled and saw Owens deliver a Stunner to the Universal Champion at ringside before power-bombing him through the table.
