As seen at Sunday’s (December 16th, 2018) WWE TLC pay-per-view event in San Jose, California at the SAP Center on the WWE Network, Carmella and R-Truth won this year’s WWE Mixed Match Challenge tournament. Carmella and R-Truth beat Jinder Mahal Alicia Fox in the finals.
As a result of this victory, Carmella has earned the #30 entrant in the Women’s Royal Rumble Match while Truth has earned the #30 entrant in the Men’s Royal Rumble Match at the upcoming Royal Rumble pay-per-view event on Sunday, January 27, 2019 in Phoenix, Arizona at Chase Field that will air on the WWE Network.
The series featured 10 teams with female and male WWE Superstars going against each other in a tournament format. Fans were able to watch Superstars compete in a round robin-style Mixed Tag Team Elimination Tournament in which all teams will face each other. The show aired live on Facebook after SmackDown Live went off the air starting on September 18th at 10 PM ET/PT.
Last year’s tournament had the Superstars compete to win $100,000 to support the charity of their choice. The first season saw The Miz and Asuka defeat Charlotte Flair and Bobby Roode in the finals.
What are your thoughts on this team winning the tournament? Sound off in the comment section.
Last night’s episode of SmackDown Live went down from Las Vegas, Nevada, and was the go-home show before this weekend’s Tables Ladders and Chairs (TLC) pay-per-view (PPV). In the main event of the night, Charlotte Flair and Asuka went one-on-one in a preview of what’s to come this weekend. They’ll be involved in the first-ever female TLC match. Asuka, Flair, and Becky Lynch will compete in a Triple Threat TLC bout for the SDL Women’s Title.
After SDL, WWE held its tapings of the second season of its Mixed Match Challenge tournament. This saw the teams of Jinder Mahal and Alicia Fox, and R-Truth and Carmella punch their tickets to the tournament finals. The finals will also take place at this weekend’s TLC PPV in San Jose, California. The winners will earn the 30th entry spots in the men and women’s Royal Rumble matches this year.
Finally, after the conclusion of the SDL and MMC tapings, WWE held a dark match to send fans home happy. Rey Mysterio defeated Randy Orton after hitting a 619 and splash off the top rope. Mysterio and Orton will face off in a Chairs match at TLC this weekend as well. Check out a video from their dark match here below:
The team of Braun Strowman and Ember Moon was going strong at the Mixed Match Challenge with winning all four of their matches and they surely seemed like the favourites of this season.
But since Braun has been injured on last week’s Raw, Ember needed a new partner to continue competing in the event.
WWE announced that Curt Hawkins will be replacing Braun Strowman as Ember Moon’s partner at the Mixed Match Challenge. Hawkins, known for his losing streak, has lost 236 matches without a single win.
Moon had a singles match against Alicia Fox on this week’s Raw where Fox was accompanied by her Mixed Match partner Jinder Mahal as well as The Singh Brothers. Curt Hawkins was at ringside for Moon and she ended up winning the match.
“Mahalicia” and the team of Ember Moon and Curt Hawkins will face each other on tonight’s episode of the Mixed Match Challenge following SmackDown Live.
EXCLUSIVE: With @WWEEmberMoon as his #WWEMMC partner, could @TheCurtHawkins' losing streak soon be coming to an end?? #Rawpic.twitter.com/KXRhYZngF7
On the other hand, there is no information on when Braun Strowman will return, as he was attacked by Bobby Lashley, Drew McIntyre and Baron Corbin last week, shattering his elbow in the process.
Last night’s episode of WWE SmackDown Live certainly brought a ton of surprises. After Becky Lynch’s injury, Charlotte Flair will now face Ronda Rousey at Survivor Series this weekend. Also, we have a new WWE Champion, and a new opponent for Brock Lesnar on Sunday. AJ Styles opened up SmackDown Live last night to cut a promo about his match with Lesnar.
Paul Heyman came out to interrupt Styles, instigating a match between Styles and Bryan later on that night. With the WWE Title on the line, Bryan turned heel and hit Styles with a low blow after the referee was knocked down. He then hit a flying knee for the WWE Title victory. The title change was obviously a huge surprise to fans.
Now, Bryan will face Universal Champion Brock Lesnar at Survivor Series this weekend due to the Champion vs. Champion format of the show. After SmackDown Live, however, Styles didn’t work his scheduled Mixed Match Challenge match on Facebook Watch. He was set to team up with Charlotte Flair against The Miz and Asuka.
Instead, Styles was replaced by Jeff Hardy, who teamed with Flair to defeat Miz and Asuka. There’s no news as to why Styles missed his MMC match, however, it’s likely in regards to the storyline after losing the WWE Title.
What do you think about Styles not working the MMC after losing the WWE Title?
WWE.com has announced a major grand prize for the winning team of Mixed Match Challenge Season 2. The man and woman on the winning team will be awarded the 30th entry into their respective Royal Rumble matches. In addition, they will receive an all-expenses paid vacation to anywhere in the world.
The 2019 Royal Rumble event takes place on Sunday, January 27th from Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona.
WWE Mixed Match Challenge Season 2 airs Tuesday nights at 10pm ET on Facebook Watch. 10 teams are currently competing in a 14-week ’round robin’ tournament. The finals of MMC season two will take place at the upcoming TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs pay-per-view event on December 16th.
As of this writing, four MMC teams have 3-0 records and are far and away ahead of the other teams. The teams with undefeated records include:
– Ember Moon & Braun Strowman
– Asuka & The Miz
– Mickie James & Bobby Lashley
– Charlotte Flair & AJ Styles
Who do you think will win Mixed Match Challenge Season 2? What do you think about this high stakes grand prize?
The third episode of WWE’s Mixed Match Challenge Season 2 is in the books as it took place on Tuesday night in Portland, OR at the Moda Center on Facebook after SmackDown Live went off the air. As seen on the episode, Finn Balor & Bayley, Jimmy Uso & Naomi advanced. Balor and Bayley defeated Alicia Fox & Jinder Mahal while Naomi & Jimmy defeated Rusev & Lana.
The episode peaked with a live audience of 42,800 viewers. This is a continuation of a decline in viewership as the premiere of season 2 peaked at 52,400 live viewers, which was down 61% from the season one premiere in January that peaked at 135,600 viewers.
As of this writing, the first episode has a total of 1.1 million views while episode 2 has 555,000 and episode 3 has 430,000.
Matches for next week’s episode is slated to have Bayley & Balor vs. Braun Strowman & Ember Moon plus R-Truth & Carmella vs. Charlotte Flair & WWE Champion AJ Styles. Ten co-ed teams will participate in a round-robin style tournament to determine the winners. The finals of the tournament will take place at the upcoming WWE TLC pay-per-view on Sunday, December 16th, 2018 in San Jose, California at the SAP Center and will air on the WWE Network and some traditional pay-per-view outlets.
We have an update on the injury that has taken Alexa Bliss out of action. The former Raw Women’s Champion was pulled from this week’s Mixed Match Challenge tournament. She is also being kept of this weekend’s WWE live events. WWE stated that Bliss injured her arm during her match against Ronda Rousey at Hell in a Cell. The Wrestling Observer has provided an update on the situation and it’s not good.
The Observer reports, “Bliss is suffering from numbness in her left arm. The storyline reason behind it is the armbar Rousey used to beat her at Hell in a Cell.”
As of this writing, Alexa Bliss has been cleared for “minimal exertion.” She won’t be wrestling full matches until she gets checked out again. Numbness in the extremities is a sign of nerve damage, which has shortened the careers of many Superstars.
WWE Statement
The official WWE response to the injury was reported this past Tuesday by Cathy Kelley. She highlighted that “despite appearing on Monday Night Raw last night, Alexa Bliss woke up this morning and sought medical attention complaining about numbness in her left arm.”
WWE is using Ronda Rousey’s armbar finisher to explain Bliss’ arm injury. Cathy Kelley continued ,”As a reminder, Alexa had a match against the Raw Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey this past Sunday night at WWE Hell In A Cell, where Alexa tapped to the champion’s armbar. We can officially announce at this time that Alexa Bliss has not been medically cleared to compete at the WWE Live Events this weekend or in tonight’s WWE Mixed Match Challenge.”
We hope that the injury Bliss is dealing with isn’t too serious and wish her a speedy recovery.
WWE Mixed Match Challenge Season Two premieres tonight on Facebook Live after SmackDown Live goes off the air. Ten co-ed teams will participate in a round-robin style tournament to determine the winners.
As announced on Tuesday morning that Alexa Bliss is injured and will be unable to compete on tonight’s premier episode. As a result, NXT Women’s Champion Ember Moon will take her place tonight and team with Braun Strowman. Alexa will return to competition when she is medically cleared.
Betting site Skybet has released the opening Mixed Match Challenge Betting Odds. The Miz and Asuka won last year’s inaugural challenge, but it’s actually Strowman and Bliss who are favored to win season 2.
Mixed Match Challenge Betting Odds
Braun Strowman and Alexa Bliss (2/1)
AJ Styles and Charlotte Flair (7/2)
The Miz and Asuka (4/1)
Kevin Owens and Natalya (5/1)
Finn Balor and Bayley (6/1)
Sasha Banks and Bobby Lashley (7/1)
Rusev and Lana (7/1)
Jimmy Uso and Naomi (9/1)
R-Truth and Carmella (9/1)
Jinder Mahal and Alicia Fox (12/1)
Who do you think will win Mixed Match Challenge Season 2?
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.
WWE is bringing back Mixed Match Challenge. On Tuesday, the company made the news official as the second season of the series was revealed in a video that was presented by Cathy Kelley.
The series will feature 10 teams with female and male WWE Superstars going against each other in a tournament format. Fans will be able to watch Superstars compete in a round robin-style Mixed Tag Team Elimination Tournament in which all teams will face each other. Last year’s tournament had the Superstars compete to win $100,000 to support the charity of their choice.
The show airs live on Facebook after SmackDown goes off the air starting on September 18th at 10 PM ET/PT. The first season saw The Miz and Asuka defeat Charlotte Flair and Bobby Roode in the finals.
In this video, which you can watch below, she revealed the teams that will compete from the rosters of Monday Night RAW and SmackDown Live. Those teams are listed as the following:
Team RAW
Braun Strowman & Alexa Bliss
Bobby Lashley & Sasha Banks
Finn Balor & Bayley
Jinder Mahal & Alicia Fox
Kevin Owens & Natalya.
Team SmackDown Live
The Miz & Asuka
Jimmy Uso & Naomi
Rusev & Lana
WWE Champion AJ Styles & SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair
While the viewership of WWE Mixed Match Challenge was not as strong as the Officials may have expected, it appears that the company still made decent money from its broadcasting.
During the latest episode of Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer talked about the Facebook Watch show and revealed how much the social media company paid for it.
According to him, WWE was paid an average $100,000 per episode which would mean that the company made over a million dollars for the 12 episodes series.
Mixed match challenge was a web series exclusively made for Facebook Watch. The show aired on the platform from January 16th to April 3rd earlier this year and it featured 12 tag teams.
The teams for the show consisted one male and one female star from either SmackDown or Raw roster and the challenge was won by the team of Asuka and the Miz.
However, while the show’s debut was good, the viewership numbers dropped as weeks passed by and only after a few weeks of its premiere, it was reported that the Officials have soured on the series.
According to reports, the officials were unhappy with the massive drop in the Live viewership numbers and despite the money they made, it doesn’t appear that WWE will produce another similar series anytime soon.
Bobby Roode and Charlotte Flair faced The Miz and Asuka in the final round of the Mixed Match Challenge tonight following WWE SmackDown. Charlotte defeated Natalya on SmackDown and was confronted by Asuka after the match. The two Superstars traded words ahead of their match for the SmackDown Women’s Championship at WrestleMania 34 this Sunday.
The Miz and Bobby Roode started off the match. They traded taunts and Asuka started shouting at The Miz. Roode and Flair got into the ring and delivered a few chops to The Miz as the crowd chanted “woo!. The Miz retreated and tagged in Asuka.
Charlotte and Asuka went back and forth for a moment before The Miz tagged back in. The crowd booed as The Miz got back into the ring. Roode sprinted into the ring and started beating the hell out of The Miz. Eventually, The Miz was able to battle back and locked in the Figure Four on Roode. The Miz then decided to strut in the ring as Charlotte shouted on the ring apron.
The strut backfired on The Miz, as Roode regrouped and knocked him to the canvas. Charlotte and Asuka got back into the match and Asuka connected with a flurry of kicks for a two count. Asuka went for a Hip Attack but Charlotte was ready for it and caught her. Charlotte connected with a couple of chops and followed it up with a Belly to Back Suplex. Charlotte scaled to the top rope and hit a Moonsault for another two count.
Charlotte went to apply the Figure Four but Asuka was able to escape. The Miz started taunting her from the ring apron and Charlotte missed with a slap. Asuka capitalized and booted her from behind. The Miz and Roode tagged back in and Roode immediately connected with a Neckbreaker. Roode followed it up with a Clothesline off the top rope. Bobby went for the Glorious DDT but The Miz blocked. The Miz then tried for the Skull Crushing Finale, but Roode was able to block that as well.
The Miz planted Roode with a DDT for a two count. The Miz went for the Figure Four again but Roode countered into a roll-up for two. Charlotte got into the ring and delivered a Spear to The Miz. Flair applied the Figure Four to The Miz in the middle of the ring, but Asuka quickly broke up the hold with a Dropkick.
Roode connected with a Spinebuster on The Miz for another two count. Bobby Roode went for the Glorious DDT one more time but Asuka attacked him from behind. Asuka took out Charlotte with a sliding Dropkick and then The Miz planted Roode with the Skull Crushing Finale for the pinfall victory. The Miz and Asuka won the Mixed Match Challenge tournament.
After the victory, Asuka and The Miz were interviewed by Renee Young in the ring. The Miz claimed that this week was the best of life because of the birth of his daughter and winning this tournament for the Rescue Dogs Rock charity. Asuka grabbed the microphone and vowed to become the new SmackDown Women’s Champion at WrestleMania 34.
WWE’s Smackdown, 205 Live, and Mixed Match Challenge shows will emanate from the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, TN tonight.
In total 5 matches have been confirmed for tonight’s show.
Confirmed Matches and Segments for Smackdown Live
AJ Styles & Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Chad Gable & Shelton Benjamin
Styles and Nakamura will team up one last time before WrestleMania. They have been watching each other’s back recently but we’ll see tonight what happens on the last Smackdown before their WWE Championship match.
Rusev vs Jinder Mahal
The team of Rusev and Jinder Mahal defeated Bobby Roode and Randy Orton last week after Rusev pinned Orton. At first, Jinder wanted to reward Rusev by getting him front row tickets to WrestleMania. Instead, Rusev was added to the United States championship match at WrestleMania.
Charlotte Flair vs Natalya
Two weeks ago, Natalya defeated Charlotte in a non-title match. This match will also be non-title however.
Shane McMahon scheduled to appear
Despite saying he would be taking a leave of absence from Smackdown, Shane McMahon will be on hand for the last Smackdown before WrestleMania.
Mixed Match Challenge:
Finals: Charlotte Flair & Bobby Roode vs Asuka & the Miz
205 Live:
Drew Gulak vs Mark Andrews
A segment involving Cedric Alexander and Mustafa Ali is expected but details have not been revealed.
Bobby Roode & Becky Lynch faced Finn Balor & Sasha Banks this week in the Mixed Match Challenge. Charlotte was held out of action this week and the fans voted Becky Lynch to be her replacement.
Becky Lynch did her best imitation of Bobby Roode during their entrance. Finn Balor and Roode started off the match in the ring. Roode did his glorious pose and Balor responded with a too sweet and placed his fingers on Roode’s head. Becky and Sasha tagged in. Becky mimicked Bayley’s taunt and that pissed Sasha Banks off. Banks and Lynch traded punches and then Balor tagged back in.
Finn beatdown Roode for a bit before Banks and Lynch tagged back in. Banks connected with Double Knees and went for the cover but Becky kicked out at two. Sasha quickly went for a roll-up but Becky was once again able to kick out. Banks drove Becky to the corner and then made her way to the top rope. That wound up being a mistake as Becky battled back and planted her with a Superplex.
Roode and Balor got back into the match and Balor quickly took control. Balor connected with a Double Stomp for a two count. Roode battled back and connected with a Blockbuster off the second rope for a two count. Finn planted Roode with a Slingblade and was gearing up for the Coup de Grace but Banks tagged herself in. Banks connected with Double Knees off the top on Becky. Balor and Roode battled outside the ring and Finn decked him with a Dropkick into the barricade. Back in the ring, Becky rolled up Sasha out of nowhere for the victory.
RAW GM Kurt Angle came down to the entrance ramp and announced that Bobby Roode & Charlotte will face The Miz & Asuka in the finals of the Mixed Match Challenge.
You can check out this week’s episode of the Mixed Match Challenge by clicking here.
Michael Cole explained to the viewers that a loss in a tag team match would mean that Asuka’s streak would come to an end. Bliss and Asuka started off the match. Alexa Bliss wanted absolutely nothing to do with Asuka and quickly tagged in Strowman. The Miz didn’t want anything to do with Strowman either and tagged Asuka back into the match. Bliss once again tagged in Braun and Strowman demanded that The Miz get in the ring so that he could “get these hands!”. The Miz got himself pumped up and made it seem like he was going to battle Braun, but he made the wise decision and tagged Asuka back into the ring.
Alexa Bliss locked up with Asuka for a moment and then thought better of battling the Empress of Tomorrow and tagged out of the match again. The Miz started mocking Alexa Bliss and got a Dropkick to the face courtesy of Braun Strowman. Braun slammed The Miz to the mat and went for the cover as Asuka shouted that she didn’t want her streak to end. Thankfully, Asuka was able to break up the cover just in time to keep her streak intact. Asuka then knocked Alexa Bliss off the apron and she landed right into Braun Strowman’s arms. These two just might go all the way, in the tournament that is.
Braun got back into the ring and he was pissed off. Strowman took out his anger on The Miz by throwing him into the turnbuckle like he was nothing. Braun stomped on The Miz’s back and then picked him up for a Powerslam. The Miz was able to wiggle free and then started to chop the big man down with kicks to his knees. Braun quickly battled back and knocked The Miz on his ass. Bliss called Strowman over to the corner and grabbed him by his beard. It appeared that Alexa was leaning in for a smooch but The Miz interrupted. This just pissed off Strowman even more and he wound up running at The Miz and they both crashed through the barricade outside the ring.
Back in the ring, Asuka beat the hell out of Bliss with a series of kicks. Asuka followed it up with a knee to the face and went for the pin but Bliss was able to kick out at two. Asuka then locked in the Asuka Lock in the middle of the ring and the RAW Women’s Champion had no choice but to submit.
Asuka and The Miz advanced to the finals of the Mixed Match Challenge. Braun Strowman and Alexa Bliss were eliminated. The fans voted Finn Balor & Sasha Banks back into the Mixed Match Challenge. They will battle Charlotte & Bobby Roode next week.
Tonight’s episodes of Smackdown, Mixed-Match Challenge and 205 Live will emanate from the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas.
Matches and Segments for Smackdown Live!
No matches have been announced ahead of time for Smackdown tonight. Many of the segments for tonight’s show will build towards WrestleMania, however.
Daniel Bryan Returns: Will Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens Face Repercussions?
Last week, Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn attacked Shane McMahon to close the show. McMahon’s WrestleMania announcement had been to book a match between Owens and Zayn for WrestleMania.
This week, Daniel Bryan returns to Smackdown for the first time since before Fastlane. It will be interesting to see what Bryan has to say about Shane’s leave of absence and the match booked between Owens and Zayn for WrestleMania.
Will Jinder Mahal Get a Shot at the United States Championship?
Randy Orton is the new United States champion after defeating Bobby Roode at Fastlane. Roode attempted to announce he is cashing in his rematch clause at WrestleMania but he was interrupted by Jinder Mahal.
Mahal has defeated both Randy Orton and Bobby Roode in successive weeks and claims he is the uncrowned United States champion. Some order should be brought to this situation tonight.
Smackdown Women’s Division Response to Asuka
The Smackdown women’s division is in a state of flux at the moment.
Asuka has just shown up to challenge Charlotte Flair and Carmella is still ominously holding onto the Money in the Bank briefcase.
Carmella defeated Namoi last week on Smackdown and on Fastlane her and Natalya defeated Becky Lynch and Naomi. Ms Money in the Bank could be on the verge of a hot streak.
Other members of the division, such as the Riott Squad, may have something to say regarding the upcoming Women’s WrestleMania Battle Royal.
The Bludgeon Brothers Put the Tag-Team Division on Notice
Since Fastlane, the Bludgeon Brothers have put the whole tag-team division on notice but specifically the Usos and the New Day.
Last week, only Big E and Jimmy Uso were cleared to compete from their teams. We’ll see if any other members of the New Day or Usos are available to fend off the Bludgeon Brothers this week.
AJ Styles and Shinsuke Nakamura
Nakamura saved Styles from a beatdown by Rusev and Aiden English last week. The two babyface WrestleMania opponents might find themselves watching each other’s backs until April 8th.
There are also rumors AJ Styles is dealing with an injury suffered at a house show over the weekend. PW Insider is reporting WWE plans to evaluate Styles at today’s show.
WWE Mixed Match Challenge
Tonight on the Mixed Match Challenge, one team will have a chance to qualify for the tournament finals.
Asuka’s streak isn’t technically on the line in this tournament as she has lost a tag-team match in WWE before. Asuka and Sonya Deville lost to Nia Jax and Lana on an NXT house show in 2016. Other than that, Asuka is 70-1 in WWE tag-team matches.
Miz & Asuka vs Alexa Bliss & Braun Strowman
205 Live
The final semi-final match in the cruiserweight championship tournament takes place tonight. Drew Gulak will face Mustafa Ali with a spot at WrestleMania on the line. Cedric Alexander defeated Roderick Strong last week to become the first competitor to qualify for the finals.
The match started off with “woo!” and “Lana is the best, Lana number one!” chants. Lana slapped Bobby Roode in the face. Roode and Charlotte delivered dueling chops to Rusev and Lana, which forced them to exit the ring. Lana and Charlotte then got in the ring. Lana booted Charlotte and that was a big mistake. Charlotte responded by launching Lana into the turnbuckle. Lana then aimlessly started throwing haymakers and barely any of them landed. Lana connected with some chops to Charlotte that did nothing besides piss her off.
Charlotte planted Lana with a Fallaway Slam before Roode and Rusev tagged in. Roode connected with a couple of Clotheslines and followed it up with a Blockbuster for a two count. Rusev then controlled the next couple of minutes of the match. Rusev applied a choke hold to Roode and demanded that the camera man zoom in on Roode’s face. Bobby eventually escaped but was quickly knocked back down to the canvas.
Rusev hopped up to the second rope and waved his hands around to mock Bobby Roode’s glorious taunt. Roode dove off the turnbuckle and went for a Splash but Roode was ready for it and rolled out of the way. Roode quickly made his way to the corner and tagged Charlotte back into the match, which meant that Lana had to get in the ring. Charlotte connected with a flurry of massive chops to Charlotte and then booted her in the face. Charlotte tried to lock in the Figure Four but Rusev broke it up and brought Lana back to the corner. Charlotte wasn’t too fond of that and slapped Rusev across his face.
Lana snuck up behind Charlotte and rolled her up but Charlotte kicked out at the last moment. Rusev tagged in but Bobby Roode was on the floor outside the ring. Charlotte chopped Rusev across the chest a few times but Rusev laughed them off. Charlotte joined in on the laughter because Roode had gotten back in the ring behind Rusev. Roode spun Rusev around and planted him with the Glorious DDT for the pinfall victory.
Braun Strowman & Alexa Bliss will face The Miz & Asuka next week on the Mixed Match Challenge. In two weeks, Roode & Charlotte will face a team that has already been eliminated in the tournament. A team will be given a second chance and be voted back into the tournament by the fans.
You can vote for the team you want to see get back in the tournament by using the team’s hashtag on Facebook.
Tonight’s episodes of Smackdown Live, WWE Mixed Match Challenge, and 205 Live emanate from the Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, IN.
Smackdown looks to be a segment heavy show as no matches have been announced for it ahead of time.
Smackdown Live
Segments Announced for Smackdown Include:
Shane McMahon’s WrestleMania announcement
Following the events at Fastlane, where Shane cost both Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn a chance to win the WWE championship, Shane is scheduled to make an important announcement regarding WrestleMania tonight. It’s likely both Owens and Zayn will have a vested interest in what Shane has to say.
Asuka Appears on Smackdown
Two days after appearing at Fastlane and challenging Smackdown women’s champion, Charlotte Flair, Asuka is being advertised to appear on Smackdown tonight.
How will Charlotte Flair respond to Asuka’s challenge?
AJ Styles and Shinsuke Nakamura Road to WrestleMania Begins
Tonight will be the first Smackdown after AJ Styles versus Shinsuke Nakamura has been officially confirmed as the WWE championship match at WrestleMania. Now that Nakamura knows it will be him versus AJ Styles in a rematch from their Tokyo Dome encounter, what will he have to say to Styles tonight?
Randy Orton United States Championship Reign Begins
At Fastlane, Randy Orton defeated Bobby Roode to win the United States championship. After the match, he was attacked by Jinder Mahal and then by Bobby Roode as well. Orton has a target on his back now as champion, what will happen between him and his two challengers tonight?
What Comes Next for the Bludgeon Brothers?
Sunday night, the Bludgeon Brothers destroyed the New Day and the Usos causing their Smackdown tag-team championship match to be declared a no contest. With Smackdown’s two top tag teams having been put on notice by Harper and Rowen, we should find out what is next for the division tonight.
WWE Mixed Match Challenge
Tonight’s match is the final round of the quarter-finals. Thus far the advancing teams to the semi-finals include Alexa Bliss and Braun Strowman and the Miz and Asuka.
Tonight’s match will pit Lana and Rusev facing Bobby Roode and Charlotte Flair.
A 4th team will be voted back into the tournament for the semi-finals.
205 Live
Just one match has been announced for 205 Live tonight. The 1st semi-final match of the cruiserweight championship tournament will pit Cedric Alexander taking on Roderick Strong.
One of Strong or Alexander will make their WrestleMania debut this year and get a chance to win the cruiserweight championship.
The other semi-final will most likely take place next week and be contested between Drew Gulak and Mustafa Ali.
The two teams had a stare down and the crowd chanted “get these hands!”. Jimmy Uso decided start off the match with Braun Strowman and that was a big mistake. Strowman beat the hell out of him and connected with a Splash in the corner. Strowman picked Jimmy for a slam but Jimmy escaped and tagged Naomi in.
Alexa Bliss slapped Naomi in the face and Naomi responded with a slap of her own. Jimmy Uso then ran around the ring and knocked Strowman off the apron with a Dropkick. Bliss was knocked out of the ring and then knocked off the apron onto Braun Strowman.
Jimmy Uso started trash talking Strowman, which was another big mistake. Strowman chased after him and bashed him into the barricade. Naomi still had control of the match and connected with a Jawbreaker and followed it up with a Leg Drop for a two count.
Strowman then decided to clear off the announce table and slam Jimmy Uso through it with a Running Powerslam. Naomi was distracted by it and Bliss rolled her up from behind for the victory.
The Miz grabbed the microphone before the match started and told the crowd to shut up. Balor went for the quick win with a roll-up but Miz kicked out at two. The Miz took control with a knee to the ribs and followed it up with a knee to Balor’s face. The crowd wanted The Miz to tag in Asuka but The Miz ignored them. Asuka finally tagged herself in and that meant Banks had to get in the ring as well.
Asuka dominated right away and landed a flurry of kicks and followed it up with a Hip Attack. Asuka went for the It Kicks but Sasha blocked it. Banks then hit Double Knees and controlled the next couple of minutes of the match. Banks took a break to taunt The Miz and it cost her. Asuka connected with a big knee to the face and then tagged The Miz back in.
Balor and The Miz went back and forth for a minute. Balor got the upper-hand and connected with a Clothesline. Finn went for the cover but Asuka broke it up. Sasha sprinted into the ring and knocked Asuka to the floor outside the ring. Banks got onto the ring apron and leaped to connect with Double Knees to Asuka. Back in the ring, The Miz hit the Skull Crushing Finale and Banks had to break up the cover at the last second. The Miz was pissed off and started bickering with the referee. Balor hit the Slingblade and followed it up with the Coup de Grace.
Finn went for the cover but once again Asuka broke it up. Sasha got back in the ring and locked in the Bank Statement on Asuka. Balor then locked The Miz in a submission hold. Asuka reversed the Bank Statement into an Arm Bar and Balor got distracted by it. The Miz capitalized and rolled Balor up for the victory.
The Miz and Asuka have advanced to the third round of the Mixed Match Challenge. Alexa Bliss & Braun Strowman will battle Naomi & Jimmy Uso next week.
Smackdown, the Mixed Match Challenge, and 205 Live tonight will emanate from the Staples Center in Los Angeles.
5 matches spread out between the 3 shows have been announced for tonight.
Matches and Segments Confirmed For Smackdown:
John Cena Segment
Cena announced on Raw last night that he is heading to Smackdown to attempt to find a path to WrestleMania.
Ruby Riott vs. Naomi
The Riott Squad defeated the team of Flair, Lynch, and Naomi last week, earning Ruby Riott a title shot at Fastlane.
According to WWE.com, Riott called out Naomi for this match tonight.
Sami Zayn vs. Baron Corbin
2 members of the Fatal 5-way match at Fastlane go one-on-one.
Zayn has told Owens he would lay down for him in the 5-way match, so perhaps that will play into things here.
Corbin lost to AJ Styles last week.
The Usos and New Day Segment
New Day earned a title opportunity at Fastlane by defeating Chad Gable and Shelton Benjamin last week.
This week they renew their long rivalry with the Usos. A rivalry which has resulted in a Hell in a Cell match, a rap battle, and several title changes.
Mixed Match Challenge:
The first quarter-final of the tournament takes place tonight.
Asuka and the Miz vs. Sasha Banks and Finn Balor
205 Live Tonight
The cruiserweight championship tournament also begins its 2nd round tonight.
– As we’ve mentioned, former WCW World Heavyweight Champion and WWE Universal Champion Goldberg will be inducted into the 2018 WWE Hall Of Fame Class. It has not officially been announced who will be inducting Goldberg, however, PWInsider‘s Mike Johnson is reporting that Paul Heyman is being rumored as the man for the job. Here’s what he had to say:
“This word is that Paul Heyman will be inducting Goldberg into the Hall of Fame. I don’t know how that makes any sense but that’s the story making the rounds. I guess they are both Jewish? I don’t know. I don’t get it.”
– Last night the final match of the first round of the WWE Mixed Match Challenge tournament took place. WWE has announced its second round (quarterfinals) match-ups here:
Finn Balor & Sasha Banks vs. The Miz & Asuka
Braun Strowman & Alexa Bliss vs. Jimmy Uso & Naomi
Rusev & Lana vs. Bobby Roode & Charlotte Flair
Next week’s first quarterfinals match-up will be between Finn Balor & Sasha Banks vs. The Miz & Asuka:
Bobby Roode tried to to strut like a Flair but Charlotte was quick to correct him on his form. Roode started off the match in control of Apollo. Apollo quickly battled back and hit a few Arm Drags. Roode drove Apollo to the corner and connected with a few chops and shouted “Woo!”. Apollo responded with a Dropkick and then Charlotte was tagged in.
Nia Jax whipped Charlotte around the ring. Dana Brooke grabbed Charlotte’s foot but Nia Jax informed her that she didn’t want any help. Charlotte connected with a boot to the face and followed it up with a couple of shoulders to the midsection in the corner. Charlotte planted Nia with a Dropkick that sent her tumbling out of the ring.
Nia battled back and connected with a Splash in the corner. Nia knocked Charlotte out of the ring and took her eye off of her. This allowed Charlotte to recapture the momentum with a couple of chop blocks that knocked Nia to the canvas. Charlotte applied the Figure Four but couldn’t complete the transition to the Figure Eight. Nia Jax broke the hold with a headbutt and tagged Apollo back in.
Roode greeted him with a Clothesline off the top rope and went for the Glorious DDT but Apollo blocked it. Titus O’Neil started shouting at Apollo that there was 100k on the line and that he needed to remain focused. Both Charlotte and Nia wound up in the ring again. Charlotte knocked Nia to the mat and connected with a Moonsault off the top rope. Roode then quickly hit Apollo with the Glorious DDT for the pinfall victory.
After the match, Nia Jax blamed Titus O’Neil and Dana Brooke for the loss. Nia shoved Titus and then planted Dana Brooke with a Samoan Drop before heading backstage. Next week, The Miz & Asuka will face Finn Balor & Sasha Banks in the quarterfinals of the Mixed Match Challenge.
After Smackdown tonight, both the Mixed Match Challenge and Cruiserweight tournaments will continue. Tonight’s episodes will be held from the Talking Stick Resort Arena in Phoenix Arizona.
Mixed Match Challenge Match
Tonight is the final first-round match in the tournament. The winners will move on to face Rusev and Lana in the second round. Eliminated teams will have a chance to be voted back into the tournament during the semifinals, however.
Bobby Roode & Charlotte Flair vs. Apollo & Nia Jax
205 Live Tournament
The cruiserweight championship tournament will also conclude its 1st round tonight.
Last night’s Mixed Match Challenge show featured the unlikely team of Elias and Bayley going up against Rusev and Lana. Using the team name “Ravishing Rusev”, Lana and Rusev even unveiled matching outfits for the contest.
The finish of the match involved Lana pulling Bayley off the top turnbuckle. Bayley hit her head on the way down, allowing Lana to pin her and pick up the win for her team. It was Lana’s first victory in WWE… sort of.
Lana’s First WWE Victory
Congrats to the Wife @LanaWWE ! First EVER victory. Now the whole world knows …… Lana is the best Lana number 1 ??
Technically, Lana has won a bunch of matches in NXT. Most of them occurred on NXT house shows, however, so it seems WWE is not counting those in this case.
It is true, however, that Lana has never won a match on the main roster and has never won a match on WWE programming.
According to the German wrestling statistic site, Cagematch.net, Lana has wrestled 79 times in her career. She won 14 singles matches on NXT house shows from late 2016 to early 2017. She also teamed with Nia Jax and won a match on an NXT house show in May of 2016.
63-16 is her total record. 1-10 is her record for televised matches.
