Friday’s edition of WWE SmackDown was supposed to be universal champion Roman Reigns’ official coronation as the Tribal Chief. Instead, Reigns refused the title and offered a rematch to Jey Uso after their Clash of Champions match.
Reigns was driven to offer the rematch after Uso refused to acknowledge him as Tribal Chief at the conclusion of their Clash of Champions match. When Uso refused to acknowledge Reigns’ demands as the champion pounded on him at the pay-per-view, his twin brother, Jimmy, threw in the towel to end the match. That was not a satisfying enough conclusion for Reigns, who wants to assert his role as “head of the family table,” though his offer for a rematch came with a dire warning of how high the stakes would be at the Oct. 25 Hell in a Cell pay-per-view.
CBS Sports was with you all night bringing you recaps and highlights of all the SmackDown action. Read on for all the details.
Roman Reigns, Jey Uso agree to Hell in a Cell rematch
Reigns and Paul Heyman walked to the ring to open the show, a ring covered in a red carpet for his official coronation as Tribal Chief. As Heyman began to cut a promo, Reigns cut him off before saying that he didn’t want to be called Tribal Chief because Jey Uso didn’t acknowledge him as such at Clash of Champions. Uso came to the ring and claimed if his twin brother Jimmy hadn’t thrown in the towel, he would have eventually won the title. Reigns said he isn’t proud of his actions, calling the match the worst night of his career because Jey Uso didn’t allow Reigns to “help him” after putting his cousin’s name on the marquee, giving him a big payday and trying to raise him up. All Uso had to do in return, Reigns said, was acknowledge him. Reigns concluded by saying he would give Uso another shot at the title, this time at Hell in a Cell and with “the highest stakes that any match has ever had in WWE history,” an offer Uso quickly accepted despite not knowing what Reigns meant.
Jey Uso def. AJ Styles via pinfall after an Uso Splash. Styles came out and insulted Uso after Reigns left the ring, suggesting someone “more qualified” get the shot at the title at Hell in a Cell. Uso dropped Styles with a superkick and attacked him outside the ring, leading to an impromptu match. Styles took over early with more action outside, but Uso came blazing back with a big Samoan drop for a near fall. The action continued with momentum swings until Uso knocked Styles from the top rope as he went for a Phenomenal Forearm, that set Uso up to hit a superkick and an Uso Splash for the victory.
It’s ultimately a great decision for WWE to drag the Reigns vs. Uso storyline out another month. Everything has clicked so well for the pair so far and there’s no clear next challenger for Reigns, so continuing to tell an effective story without wearing out matches like WWE so often does is a good option. Uso going over former champion Styles clean also helped continue to establish that Uso is now an actual threat as a singles competitor and not simply a cog in the storytelling machine for Reigns. Grade: B+
What else happened on WWE SmackDown?
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Otis def. John Morrison via pinfall after a Vader Bomb in a very short match. During the match, an Otis promo aired where he vowed to defend himself in court against The Miz’s lawsuit.
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Sheamus def. Shorty G via pinfall after a Brogue Kick. Before the match, a Big E promo aired with him challenging Sheamus to a Falls Count Anywhere match next week on SmackDown.
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Kevin Owens hosted Alexa Bliss on the KO Show. Owens tried to get Bliss to talk about her recent transformation after being taken by The Fiend. Bliss said she had been brainwashed because “my brain has been washed.” Bliss then said The Fiend is everywhere and told Owens to “let him in,” before the lights went out and came back to reveal The Fiend, who was already locking Owens in the mandible claw. Fiend and Bliss stared at each other before he offered his hand, which she took before the show cut to commercial.
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Lucha House Party & Matt Riddle def. King Corbin, Cesaro & Shinsuke Nakamura via pinfall after Riddle hit Cesaro with Bro Derek. Lucha House Party before the match said they were leaving Kalisto in the back because he was having trouble getting his mask on his big head, but he did make his way to ringside during the match while complaining that Gran Metalik and Lince Dorado had left him. Kalisto would end up accidentally kicking Dorado during the match, but Riddle hit Bro Derek on Cesaro to score the win. After the match, Riddle stopped Dorado and Kalisto from brawling.
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Carmella was revealed as the woman in the last few weeks of vignettes. She cut a heel promo, blaming the fans for causing her to lose her way and saying, “I’m not your princess anymore.”
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Sasha Banks cut a brief promo on Bayley. Banks said she knows Bayley was not in the arena because she’s afraid of her, but that next week, they would face off for the thing that means the most to Bayley, the SmackDown women’s championship.
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Intercontinental Championship — Sami Zayn (c) def. Jeff Hardy via pinfall to retain the title. Zayn exposed one of the turnbuckles before the match and it was teased to come into play through the competitive match until Zayn swept Hardy off the top rope, causing his face to strike the exposed metal and set up the pin.