WWE adds major stakes match to SmackDown
WWE has announced a major match ahead of tonight's edition of SmackDown at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. This week's episode of the blue brand is shaping up to be a newsworthy show.
Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns is scheduled to have a face-to-face interaction with Cody Rhodes tonight. Rey Mysterio will be returning to the ring to battle Santos Escobar. The O.C. will take on Grayson Waller and Austin Theory, and The Authors of Pain will battle The Street Profits in qualifying matches for the six-pack ladder match at WWE WrestleMania XL.
Ahead of tonight's show, it was announced that Naomi will square off against WWE Women's Champion IYO SKY on SmackDown in a non-title match. SKY is scheduled to defend her title against Bayley at The Show of Shows. Although Naomi is not currently scheduled for a match at WrestleMania, a victory over IYO SKY tonight could cause the company to find a spot for her on the card on The Grandest Stage of Them All.
Former WWE manager claims match on last week's SmackDown was "filler"
Wrestling legend Dutch Mantell was not invested in the match between Grayson Waller and Randy Orton last Friday night on the blue brand.
Logan Paul will be defending his United States Championship against Kevin Owens and Randy Orton in a Triple Threat Match at The Showcase of the Immortals. The match was announced by SmackDown GM Nick Aldis last week. The Viper sent a message to the United States Champion, who had an impressive victory over Waller last Friday night.
Speaking on Sportskeeda Wrestling's Smack Talk show, Dutch Mantell noted that Orton picked up a solid victory over Waller. However, Mantell added that everybody knew who was going to win, and the match lacked suspense for the viewer.
"Well, it was about what I thought it would be with Orton and Waller, and I knew they would be in it," said Mantell. "If there were 2.5 million people watching this show, the 2.5 million knew that Theory was going to get involved; they kind of figured out the finish and the winner. Again, it is a maintenance show; its a filler match and they just got em on there. It was good for what it was intended to do. You know, I mean they are all pros.....As far as suspense, nah, it wasn't there." [51:54 - 52:34]
You can check out Mantell's comments in the video below:
IYO SKY and Bayley were former stablemates in Damage CTRL, but the group became fractured after The Role Model won the Women's Royal Rumble earlier this year. Only time will tell if Naomi can hand the WWE Women's Champion a stunning loss tonight on The Road to WrestleMania XL.