WWE SmackDown Results: Bloodline takes out John Cena's Fastlane tag partner; big upset in title match
We got a great episode of WWE SmackDown tonight with some great matches and a big altercation before John Cena and the Bloodline to close the show.
- LWO def. The Street Profits
- IYO SKY def. Asuka to retain the WWE Women's Championship
- Austin Theory & Grayson Waller def. The Brawling Brutes
John Cena kicked off SmackDown and said he was done being a referee and wanted to make his in-ring return. He was going to face the Bloodline and had a tag partner in mind.
The partner in question turned out to be AJ Styles, who joined him in the ring.
AJ and Cena called the Bloodline out, and Jimmy Uso and Solo Sikoa got on the apron.
AJ and Cena were getting ready for a fight, but Jimmy backed off and said, 'Not tonight' before Solo backed off too, and the duo headed backstage on SmackDown.
WWE SmackDown Results (September 22, 2023): LWO vs. The Street Profits
Dawkins and Escobar kicked off the match, and the LWO was in trouble early on as Angelo powered through them. Santos came back with a takedown and got the tag before Ford also came in.
Rey sent Ford outside but missed the splash. Santos tried to help Rey up but took a big slam from Dawkins before the match continued in the ring. Rey went for a 619, but Angelo countered with the Sky High hurricanrana.
Lashley tried to run interference and took out Rey with a big slam, but Dawkins saw it and was stunned momentarily. Rey used the distraction to come in with a roll-up and pick up the win.
Result: LWO def. The Street Profits
Grade: B
We got a recap of The Rock's appearance from last week before Austin Theory came out to make fun of Michael Cole. He was booed out of the arena before we headed backstage, and Butch and Ridge Holland were making fun of him there.
Grayson Waller took Theory's side, and the two teams set up a tag match for later at night.
Alba Fyre and Isla Dawn were backstage, and they teased that the Women's Tag Titles were cursed because of them.
Bobby Lashley was yelling at the Profits in the locker room for not following orders. The duo looked distressed as Bobby said he would take everything back, including their suits.
IYO SKY (c) vs. Asuka - WWE Women's Championship match on SmackDown
Asuka got a headlock early on before SKY reversed it and came back with a hip toss. IYO went for a big springboard move but missed before the two went up the turnbuckles.
IYO knocked Asuka off the top and hit a big dive before Asuka returned with some big kicks and a superplex. Asuka got a near fall off a massive top-rope dropkick before heading to ringside, where IYO hit a moonsault.
Back in the ring, Asuka tried for the Asuka lock multiple times before Bayley put IYO's foot on the bottom rope. Charlotte took Bayley out with a big boot, and the distraction allowed IYO to take Asuka down and hit the moonsault finisher for the win.
Result: IYO SKY def. Asuka to retain the WWE Women's Championship
Grade: A
Adam Pearce told Heyman, Jimmy Uso, and Solo Sikoa about the tag match at Fastlane with Cena and AJ, but before he could say something, Uso said he would sign it tonight.
After Pearce left, Heyman tried to tell Jimmy that he should have waited for Roman's orders. Uso said that Paul should let him know what the Tribal Chief says about the match, showing that he cares little about what Roman thinks.
After Jimmy left, Solo made an ominous threat about there not being anyone left to face them at Fastlane after tonight.
Austin Theory & Grayson Waller vs. The Brawling Brutes on SmackDown
Theory and Butch kicked off the match, and Waller was tagged in early on before the Brutes isolated him in the ring. Butch caught Waller on the barricades, and Holland caught Theory on the ropes before the two hit the simultaneous Beats of the Bodhran.
After a break on SmackDown, Waller was in control and tried for the Beats of the Bodhran on Butch, but the latter snapped his fingers before he could hit the move. Holland hit some hip tosses before getting a near fall off a powerslam on Theory.
Ridge blocked the A-Town Down and hit the Alabama Slam for a near fall. Holland applied the Boston Crab, but Waller came in with the Rolling Cutter to break it up. Theory came back with the A-Town Down and picked up the win.
Result: Austin Theory & Grayson Waller def. The Brawling Brutes on SmackDown
Grade: B+
On the last segment on SmackDown, Adam Pearce was out for the match contract signing for Fastlane. Cena was out, but after AJ's music hit, we saw Jimmy Uso beating him backstage. Cena rushed backstage, where Solo hit a big dive off camera, and it sounded like he put AJ through some equipment and a table.
When the officials and Cena arrived, we saw AJ lying on a broken table surrounded by road cases. We saw the latter being carried away in a stretcher and then an ambulance before Solo and Jimmy came out and cleared the ring.
Heyman had the match contract in his hand and said it was already signed by John Cena but not by AJ. Jimmy took the mic and taunted Cena before the latter showed up and attacked the Bloodline.
The WWE legend took out Solo and Jimmy, but Solo returned, and the duo took Cena down. Solo hit the Samoan Spike before he and Jimmy kicked the downed superstar. Jimmy headed to the top rope, and the cameras kept cutting out for some reason before he hit a big splash on Cena.
Jimmy signed the contract and handed it to Solo, who also signed it, making it a two-on-one handicap match. Jimmy returned for another splash before posing in the ring as SmackDown went off the air.