WWE SmackDown live results: Jimmy Uso vs. AJ Styles
A match between Jimmy Uso and AJ Styles headlines tonight’s SmackDown from TD Garden in Boston.
Jimmy is apparently looking to get back into The Bloodline after helping Solo Sikoa defeat Styles last week. Issues between Jimmy and Styles began earlier in the episode when Jimmy disrespected O.C. member Michin.
A tag team bout with Charlotte Flair & Shotzi taking on IYO SKY & Bayley has also been announced for tonight. Last Friday, Shotzi defeated Bayley in a singles match after Charlotte assisted her in evening the odds against Damage CTRL.
Tonight is the first SmackDown since Payback. At last Saturday’s PPV, Finn Balor & Damian Priest defeated Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn in a Steel City Street Fight to win the Undisputed WWE Tag Team titles. Balor & Priest are facing Ridge Holland & Butch in a non-title match on tonight’s show.
Our live coverage starts at 8 p.m. Eastern time.
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– The show opened with a video package recapping last Saturday’s Payback event. From there, a new SmackDown opening, complete with a new Smackdown theme song, aired. Kevin Patrick welcomed everyone into the show on commentary.
Shotzi & Charlotte Flair defeated IYO SKY & Bayley [9:04]
This was fine for what it was. It was a pleasant surprise to see Asuka back and even more of a pleasant development to see Asuka go right after SKY after the match because I think that’s a match we’ve all been waiting to see on the main roster with big time stakes for a long time now. Shotzi is good for one or two spots a match where you kind of/sort of wonder if she actually might have just severely injured herself and this match had a couple of those, but I’m happy to see her get some booking love last week and this week. Sure, they protected the heels here, but until a couple months ago, you could be forgiven if you forgot Shotzi was even hired to wrestle on the main roster in 2023. So, good stuff all around. Shotzi got a win and we started the (hopeful) road toward Asuka vs. IYO SKY.
Bayley and Charlotte started the match and pushed each other. Charlotte fired up and attacked SKY and Bayley. Shotzi ran in for reinforcements and things broke down. With Shotzi and Charlotte on the outside, SKY landed a springboard moonsault off the second rope. The show then went to commercial break. When the show returned, SKY had control on Shotzi and Bayley tagged in to hit a stereo kick to Shotzi’s head. Bayley got a two count out of it.
Bayley worked a chin-lock on Shotzi until Shotzi worked out of it … until Bayley kicked Shotzi in the leg. No matter because Shotzi ultimately kicked Bayley in the ear and Shotzi got the hot tag to Charlotte. Charlotte landed a cross body on both Bayley and SKY. Charlotte hit a series of chops on Bayley before landing a fallaway slam. Charlotte followed that up with a walkover clothesline and a fallaway slam on SKY. Charlotte went for a figure-eight, Bayley rolled Charlotte up for a two-count. Charlotte came right back and sunk in a figure-four until SKY broke it up with a Meteora.
SKY tagged in and hit a top-rope Frankensteiner. Bayley went to the top, but was stopped as she saw Asuka grab the women’s title from Dakota Kai on the outside. Charlotte hit a boot on Bayley and tagged in Shotzi, who hit her finisher on Bayley for the win. AFter the match, Asuka threw the title down in the ring and engage in a stare down with SKY. Asuka then left the ring.
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– Paul Heyman was backstage and Jimmy Uso came up to tell Heyman that Jimmy is happy to be in the Bloodline. Heyman said both Roman Reigns and Solo Sikoa weren’t there. Heyman advised Jimmy to handle AJ Styles business and at the same time, Heyman said if Jimmy does that, Heyman will bring the family back together. Jimmy with for a handshake, but Heyman walked away before shaking it. Heyman ran into AJ Styles as he was walking. Heyman told Styles he has too many problems in his life and Styles grabbed Heyman … until Jimmy saved the day, attacked Styles and threw Styles over some crates. The segment ended with Heyman telling his phone to call Roman Reigns.
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– Backstage, Bayley yelled about Asuka until SKY chimed in and said she will fight Asuka for the title.
– LA Knight made his entrance to a massive pop. Knight grabbed a microphone and soaked in a ton of cheers and chants. Knight did his “Ley me talk to ya!” catchphrase. Knight mocked the Miz and the Miz’s song. Knight recalled the Kevin Nash adjective moment from Nitro and corrected it to a verb. Knight talked about Miz fighting invisible John Cena. Knight mocked Miz for crying about Cena. Knight said he has all the respect in the world for Cena, and Cena counted to three at Payback and was about to say Miz can consider his challenge … but Grayson Waller’s music hit and the crowd booed.
Waller told Knight to hold on. Waller said Miz ran through Cena on Raw and before Knight accepts Miz’s challenge, Waller wanted to bring out Austin Theory. Waller said Waller and Theory are the only tag team on the roster that is undefeated after last week. Knight responded by telling the heels to talk to their mommy … and to say Knight said hi. Theory noted that he beat both Cena and Knight previously. Theory reminded everyone at 26 years old, he’s been a two-time US Champion. Theory told Knight to soak in his 15 minutes of fame. Theory said when he’s done with Knight, the Miz won’t waste his time on Knight. Knight then welcomed Theory and Waller into the ring. Knight said TD Garden stands on Legends Way and Theory can “get his keister kicked tonight.” The match was made for after a commercial break.
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LA Knight defeated Austin Theory [9:29]
This was a solid television match. The nonsense was fairly useless and even a bit gratuitous by the end. Theory and Waller are supposed to be annoying, but we can talk all day about Theory and still probably never find a way to properly end the conversation. Waller is off to a nice start on the main roster by being a pest, but I fear his association with Theory will hurt more than it helps. Knight, meanwhile, is still very over, though his Kevin Nash callback didn’t seem to land with the live crowd, which disappointed this viewer. Knight isn’t the smoothest performer and Theory isn’t the most refined 20-something-year-old on the roster, but the match made sense and the right guy went over. It was never going to be Omega vs. Ospreay and that’s OK.
Grayson Waller sat in on commentary and announced that John Cena will be on the Grayson Waller Effect next week on SmackDown. Theory and Knight locked up to start the match and exchanged momentum until Knight landed a European Uppercut and a neck-breaker to gain slight control. Theory eventually came back and hit a snap suplex for a two-count. With Knight on the apron, Knight fought Theory off and hit a shoulder block. The action spilled to the side of the outside where the commentary team was and Knight slammed Theory’s head off the top of it repeatedly.
Back inside the ring, Knight ran at Theory, but Theory countered and eventually hit a neck-breaker on Knight from the apron to the floor on the outside. The show then went to commercial break. The show returned, Knight fired up inside the ring and landed a DDT before putting the boots to him. Knight lifted Theory, but Theory punched Knight and hit a rolling Blockbuster for a two-count. Theory ran at Knight and Knight dropped Theory over the top. Knight landed a dropkick through the bottom ropes and went for a suplex on the outside, but Theory countered into a suplex of his own.
With the wrestlers down, Waller ran to a corner and untied a turnbuckle to expose it. Knight and Theory got back into the ring and Knight hit a powerslam before hitting the big elbow drop. Waller got on the apron to distract Knight and Theory rolled Knight up to no avail. It looked like the exposed turnbuckle might come into use, but Knight stopped it and hit the BFT on Theory for the win.
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– AJ Styles was interviewed by Cathy Kelly backstage. Styles said he’s standing and as long as he’s standing, he can fight. Styles said Jimmy Uso can jump Styles as much as he wants, but nothing is going to stop Styles from tearing Uso’s head off. The Judgment Day’s entrance began back at ringside (sans Rhea Ripley).
– Backstage, Paul Heyman was talking to Adam Pearce and wanted to know who SmackDown was receiving after Jey Uso was traded to Raw. LA Knight interrupted things and asked Pearce to make the Miz vs. Knight match for next week and Pearce obliged. Heyman told Knight he’s a huge admirer. Heyman did the “Yeah!” catchphrase. Heyman also told Knight to knock on the door the next time he wants to enter a room in which Heyman is doing business. Knight didn’t appear happy about that, but said “Yeah!” when Heyman asked if he was clear.
– Damian Priest told the crowd to all rise for the crew that holds all the gold, the Judgment Day. Finn Balor introduced himself as “Grand Slam Finn.” Balor introduced Dirty Dom and the crowd booed. Dom tried to talk, but the crowd erupted in boos. It was hard to make out what Dom was saying because of the boos. Priest chimed back in and said he was proud that his group accomplished something not even the Bloodline could do. Priest said not only did they beat Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens, but they took the Undisputed Tag Team Championship from Owens and Zayn. Dom called out Jey Uso, but it was still hard to hear Dom because of the boos. Dom (I think) was saying Judgment Day is the most dominate … something until the Brawling Brutes music hit and Butch and Ridge Holland came out with microphones. Holland said they were looking to put on a banger in Bean Town. Holland said it wasn’t him they needed to worry about and rather, it was Butch they had to worry about. Balor laughed until Butch went to snap Balor’s fingers. The Brutes shot Balor off into the ropes, but Balor rolled to the outside and the show went to commercial while the match was set to begin after the break.
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The Judgment Day (Damian Priest & Finn Balor) defeated the Brawling Brutes (Butch & Ridge Holland) [12:20 of TV time]
Good for the Brutes for getting in a lot of offense and showing a lot of fight, but there was no way anyone could have thought they’d get the win here. The new tag champs aren’t coming out of a PLE and losing the first time the crowd sees them as champs on TV. Still, Holland and Butch worked hard and this was much more enjoyable than I thought it would be – especially considering how the match went through two commercial breaks, which was yet another welcome surprise of the night. I’m more intrigued to see where this Judgment Day vs. Lashley & Profits thing goes. Last I read, Lashley’s new group was internally listed as heels and I can’t imagine WWE is going to run a long-term program between two heel factions. The crowd was up for Lashley, though, so perhaps we actually have a new hot babyface trio that was at first mischaracterized? Time will tell.
The match was shown in progress when the episode returned. The Brutes had control and worked over Balor. Holland spun Balor around and slammed him, but Balor shot back up and tagged in Priest, who took control with a shoulder-block on Holland. Holland fired up and had both Balor and Priest on separate shoulders before slamming them. Priest came right back with a clothesline and Balor tagged in. Pretty Deadly were shown watching the match on a TV backstage. Balor worked a headlock on Holland until Holland fired up and got the hot tag to Butch. Butch landed a moonsault on both Priest and Balor, who were on the outside, and the show went to another commercial break.
Coming back from that break, Butch hit a super-plex on Balor inside the ring. Butch went for something, but Balor countered into a falling elbow. Priest and Holland tagged in and traded blows. The exchange ended with Holland hitting a suplex and tagging in Butch, who ran at Priest, but Priest got a boot to the face for a two-count. Priest kicked Holland and landed some version of a bulldog/headlock driver on Butch for a two-count. Balor tagged in and ran at Butch, but Butch countered while Dominik got on the apron. Butch went for 10 Bells on Butch, but Balor interrupted it with a Slingblade. Balor went for a Coup De Gras, but Butch moved and Balor hit an enziguri before tagging in Priest.
Butch kicked Priest and tagged in Holland. Holland lifted Priest and Butch went to the top, but Balor pushed Butch off the top. Priest landed South of Heaven on both Holland and Butch. Balor went to the top and hit the Coup De Gras on Holland and that was enough for Balor to get the pin. After the match, Bobby Lashley’s music hit and Lashley came out with the Street Profits. Lashley and the Profits entered the ring and engaged in a stare down with Balor, Priest and Dominik. Lashley said the Bloodline is crumbling, but it won’t be the Judgment Day that takes over and instead it will be Lashley and the Profits that will take over.
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– Backstage, Gallows, Anderson and Michin were shown watching a phone. AJ Styles came into the frame and asked the Good Brothers about Jimmy jumping Styles. Styles knocked the phone out of Karl Anderson’s hand and Styles screamed that they always had each other’s back. Styles told them he doesn’t want them anywhere near his match with Jimmy as the segment ended.
– Kevin Patrick and Michael Cole narrated a highlight package of the Superstar Spectacle in India from earlier Friday. The commentary team ran down what’s booked for next week, which will include LA Knight vs. The Miz and Cena on the Grayson Waller Effect. In two weeks, Asuka will face IYO SKY for the WWE Women’s Championship.
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AJ Styles defeated Jimmy Uso [15:55]
Well, now isn’t that something. I don’t know where WWE is going with the Judgment Day/Bloodline/OC/Lashley group stuff, but color me intrigued. I was happy to see Styles go over because it’s been far too long since he’s earned a meaningful win on WWE TV (no, whatever that was with Karrion Kross doesn’t count), but adding another layer of all these faction wars makes me interested in seeing what happens next week, and if I’m honest, it’s been a little while since I’ve been interested in seeing what happens next week. The match finish was a little flat and the crowd faded during the end, but the question of whatever is next made it worth it for me. Very interesting.
Styles had control early and kicked Jimmy in the back of the neck. Jimmy came back with a rollup, but Jimmy put his feet on the ropes and the ref stopped counting. Styles followed that up with some chops and a snap suplex. Styles landed a back-breaker. Styles jawed at Jimmy and kicked Jimmy a few times in the mouth. Styles set up a Styles Clash, but Jimmy rolled to the outside. After getting back into the ring, Jimmy hit an elbow to take Styles to the ground. Jimmy ran the ropes and held himself up before rolling to the outside. Styles landed a sliding dropkick and went for a knee, but Jimmy hit a superkick to slow things down. Paul Heyman and Solo Sikoa (who Heyman said wasn’t there!?) appeared in the entrance way. Jimmy smiled and slammed Styles’s head off the ring steps. The camera showed Jimmy smiling as the show went to a commercial break.
Back from the break, Jimmy had control inside the ring and Jimmy kept smiling. Jimmy did the “Uce!” chant with the crowd and landed a hip attack on Styles in a corner, which was good enough to get Jimmy a two-count. Jimmy worked a chin-lock. Styles tried to elbow his way out of it, but Jimmy cut him off with a clothesline. Jimmy went back to the chin-lock. Styles countered with a belly-to-back suplex and both guys were down. On their knees, the wrestlers traded slaps. Styles eventually hit a Pele Kick to slow stuff down again. Styles clotheslined Jimmy over the top rope and followed that up with a leaping forearm.
Inside the ring, Styles set up for the Phenomenal Forearm, but Jimmy moved. As a result, Styles slammed Jimmy on his neck and got a two-count out of it. Styles landed a clothesline, but Jimmy fought back with a punch, which was enough for a two-count of his own. On their feet, the two traded strikes until Styles hit a DDT, which led to a nice near-fall. Styles went to the apron, but Heyman and Sikoa distracted him. The lull was enough for Jimmy to hit a superkick on Styles. Styles was on the outside and Jimmy rolled out with him. Jimmy tried to talk to Sikoa, but Sikoa turned his back and Styles hit both Sikoa and Jimmy. Styles then confronted Heyman and ran Jimmy into the ring post. From there, Styles hit the Phenomenal Forearm on Jimmy, which was enough for the win.
After the match, Damian Priest and Finn Balor attacked AJ Styles and threw Styles back into the ring, where Sikoa and Jimmy were. Sikoa hit a Samoan Spike on Styles and stared at Priest and Balor. The show ended as Sikoa stared down the Judgment Day.
