The Phenomenal One talks about retaining the title with the odds stacked against him at Fastlane. He says he Cena putting him through a table made him think he would lose the match, but he found a way to succeed. Styles seems genuinely proud to be going into WrestleMania as WWE champion. He talks about how it was once unbelievable that he would even be in WWE, let alone be the champion.
Shinsuke Nakamura makes his way to the ring after AJ is done speaking.
Nakamura says everyone likes AJ, but everyone likes him, too. He says he respects Styles, but his dream is going to come true at WrestleMania and he will win the WWE title. Rusev's music hits and he gets a huge pop when he comes out on the stage with Aiden English.
AJ Styles vs. Rusev w/ Shinsuke Nakamura at commentary.
English jumps in the ring and attacks Styles to cause a DQ. Nakamura just sits and watches at ringside.
Shinsuke eventually comes in and takes out Rusev and English to make the save. Nakamura leaves without helping AJ to his feet.
Big E and Jimmy Uso will team up to take on The Bludgeon Brothers tonight. They appear to be on the same page after a backstage interview. Uso promises they will have another title match soon, but he wants them to focus on Harper and Rowan tonight.
The Bludgeon Brothers vs. Big E and Jimmy Uso
Big E skips his usual intro and is all business as he heads to the ring. Big E and Jimmy attack Harper and Rowan during their entrance. They grab a pair of steel chairs and bring them in the ring. The Bludgeon Brothers grab their mallets and get on the apron. The ref bails out of the ring as all four men have a standoff. Harper and Rowan knock the chairs out of their hands, but Big E and Uso are able to escape the ring. Back after the break the match has finally started.
The Bludgeon Brothers won
Harper and Rowan attack Big E and Uso after the match just to put an exclamation point on their performance.
Sami Zayn gives an interview backstage and talks about how he should have won the WWE title and blames Owens and
McMahon for being obsessed with each other.
After the break, Charlotte heads to the ring for Asuka's first
appearance on SmackDown Live.
Asuka comes out and Charlotte welcomes her to SmackDown. She vows to end Asuka's streak and cement her legacy as the greatest women's champion of all time. Asuka says she likes a challenge and bows to no one because nobody is ready for Asuka. Surprisingly, the
segment ends without anyone interrupting them or anyone throwing a punch. Even more surprisingly, Randy Orton's music hits and he makes his way to the ring while Charlotte and Asuka are still staring at each other.
Orton says he has been called many different things throughout his career, but he has never been called United States champion until now. Randy talks about being a Grand Slam champion and says Roode earned his respect at Fastlane. He claims nobody can stop him from taking the title to WrestleMania. This brings out Bobby Roode.
Roode congratulates Orton on his win and says their rematch
will take place at WrestleMania. Jinder Mahal comes out and he also congratulates Orton, but he reminds him that Roode won that title before Orton did after over a decade in WWE.
Bobby Roode vs. Jinder Mahal
Sunil Singh gets on the apron and Roode shoves him into the ring post. Mahal crotches Roode on the top rope and hits the Khallas for the pin and the win.
Mahal is celebrating when Orton runs in the ring and hits him
with an RKO. He holds up his U.S. title and looks at the WrestleMania sign.
Renee Young asks Kevin Owens what he thinks of Sami Zayn blaming him for what happened on Sunday. KO says Zayn was selfish and everything is Shane McMahon's fault. He is mad Sami betrayed him and calls him a liar and manipulator.
Carmella vs. Naomi
Carmella won
Shane McMahon comes out and to make a WrestleMania announcement
Shane talks about his problems with Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn over the past several months. He says he talked to Daniel Bryan today and he is going to be running SmackDown alone since Shane is going to be taking a hiatus as commissioner. Shane books Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn at WrestleMania. This brings Owens out to the stage.
KO says he finally agrees with one of Shane's decisions and he wishes him the best in his future endeavors. He claims he can beat up Zayn whenever he wants, so Zayn comes out to share his thoughts. Sami rips into Shane for listening to the fans to make his decisions. KO distracts Shane so Sami can attack him from behind. Owens holds McMahon so Zayn can nail him with the Helluva Kick.
KO hits Shane with a Popup Powerbomb while he and Zayn fight off several officials. Zayn grabs a chair and sets it up around Shane's neck. They ram Shane and the chair into the ring post before dragging him up the ramp to the backstage area. They powerbomb Shane into some equipment and Shane makes sounds like he is dying.
The show ends with Shane being loaded onto a stretcher.
Rating: 80/80
Pretty intense show and matches leading us to WrestleMania.
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