Smackdown and the Mixed Match Challenge will take place inside the Bok Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma tonight. No episode of 205 Live will air following Smackdown, however. The cruiserweight division will now begin airing on Wednesday nights before NXT.
Smackdown Live 9/18
AJ Styles vs Andrade “Cien” Almas
2 nights ago at WWE Hell in a Cell, controversy clouded the finish to the WWE Championship match. Although the referee counted Samoa Joe’s shoulders to the mat while he had the Koquina Clutch locked in, video replay would show Styles tapped before the ref’s hand hit the mat for the 3rd time.
Smackdown General Manager Paige has said Styles and Joe will clash for the title once again at Super Show-Down. Joe likely will not want to wait until Australia to send a message to the champion, however.
United States Championship
Shinsuke Nakamura (c) vs Rusev
Rusev and Aiden English failed to win the Smackdown Tag-Team Championships on the Hell in a Cell pre-show Sunday. Tonight, Rusev will have another chance to win gold when he takes on Shinsuke Nakamura for the United States Championship.
Nakamura has defended the title 3x on WWE programming since winning it at Extreme Rules. He’s defended the title all 3 times against Jeff Hardy, beating him once and dropping the other two matches via DQ.
Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair Segment
Becky Lynch won the Smackdown Women’s Championship on Sunday in San Antonio. Tonight we will get reactions from both the new champion and the woman who just lost the championship.
In a segment which will likely cause fans to debate who is being booked as a heel and who isn’t, this much-talked-about storyline will continue. The likely time and place for the next title match between Lynch and Flair seems like it would be Super Show-Down in Melbourne but we willl find out more tonight.
Randy Orton and Jeff Hardy Segment
WWE gave a medical update on Jeff Hardy recently. After his match with Randy Orton inside Hell in a Cell, Hardy was taken to a local medical facility for treatment. Hardy was complaining of severe abdominal pain but then checked out of the facility on his own early Monday morning.
With Jeff Hardy’s injury and Matt Hardy’s retirement, change is in the air for the brothers.
MizTV with Mystery Guest
Following their victory Sunday against Brie Bella and Daniel Bryan, Miz and Maryse should be riding high tonight. WWE has scheduled an episode of MizTV for tonight’s Smackdown but has yet to reveal who the guest will be.
Miz and Daniel Bryan will clash one-on-one at Super Show-Down once again, this time with the winner receiving a shot at the WWE Championship.
WWE Mixed Match Challenge 9/18
This year’s Mixed Match Challenge will be contested under round-robin rules. The tournament gets going tonight on Facebook Live at 10: 15 PM.
Braun Strowman & Ember Moon vs Natalya & Kevin Owens
WWE just announced that Strowman’s partner, Alexa Bliss, has been pulled from action this week due to an arm injury. Bliss will not be competing at live events this weekend nor during the MMC tonight. She’ll likely be put back on her team following this week, however. Last season, Strowman and Bliss made it to the semi-finals before losing to Miz and Asuka.
Natalya was beaten up last night by members of the Riott Squad, so she’ll have to make a quick comeback to be competitive tonight.
Charlotte Flair & AJ Styles vs Naomi and Jimmy Uso
Naomi and Jimmy Uso were knocked out by Strowman and Bliss in the quarter-finals last year. Flair teamed with Bobby Roode in the first tournament and made it all the way to the finals before losing to Miz and Asuka.
Both Styles and Flair will have to put their current rivalries with Samoa Joe and Becky Lynch respectively on hold as they look to start off the tournament tonight with a win.
