Time to set the Rules of Engagement!

For tonight, FS1 means Friday Night Smackdown’s number 1! But to determine who is THE ONE, Roman Reigns and Jey Uso meet face to face!

OFFICIAL RESULTS

• WWE United States Championship Invitational Tournament Fatal 4 Way: Rey Mysterio VS Sheamus VS Cameron Grimes VS LA Knight; Rey wins and advances to the finals next week.
• Charlotte Flair VS Iyo Sky w/ Bayley; Charlotte wins.
• Austin Theory VS Santos Escobar; Escobar wins.
• NXT North American Championship: Dominik Mysterio w/ Rhea Ripley VS Pete Dunne; Dom wins and retains the title.

PLAY BY PLAY

The Bloodline is roaming backstage.

Roman Reigns is not in a good mood, but neither is Paul Heyman. Solo Sikoa seems the same as always, but that’s not good news for anyone. Will the Tribal Chief and what is left of his table be ready for the face-to-face with Jey Uso?

WWE United States Championship Invitational Tournament Fatal 4 Way: Rey Mysterio VS Sheamus VS Cameron Grimes VS LA Knight!

We already know Santos Escobar awaits in next week’s tournament finals, and Austin Theory is ringside just like last week to watch this up close and personal. Will the King of Lucha meet his LWO ally next week? Or will it be the Celtic Warrior, The Carolina Caveman, or the Mega Star?

As Knight makes his entrance, he as a mic. “Lemme talk to ya!” Fans fire up for that! Knight says that SummerSlam is the biggest party of the summer YEAH, and he’s always invited to the party! SO he wants to go to the party where he takes that US Championship. “YEAH!” So tonight, this is a little stepping stone, cuz he’s got three men that stand in his way. But one by one, each will fall because you all know whose game it is! “L A KNIGHT, YEAH!!” The bell rings and the brawl is on! Grimes ahs Rey and Sheamus has Knight! Rey whips, Grimes stops himself and dumps Rey out, to DECK him!

Knight turns things around on Sheamus but Sheamus throws knees! Sheamus hits a back suplex but Knight lands on his feet! Knight then clotheslines Sheamus out! Fans fire up but Grimes tosses Knight out. But Knight slingshot SHOULDER TACKLES back in! Knight TOSSES Grimes out and fans fire up! Orlando loves L A KNIGHT, YEAH, and SmackDown goes to break.

SmackDown returns and Knight swings but misses, and then Sheamus runs him over! Fans are torn, but Rey takes out Grimes on the outside! Rey brings Grimes up, whips him, but Grimes reverses and Rey hits barriers! Knight CLOBBERS Sheamus, covers, TWO! Knight CLUBS away on Sheamus, bumps him off buckles, then knees low. Sheamus hits back with a hard body shot! Sheamus mocks the “YEAH!” then hits a ROLLING SENTON! Cover, ONE!! Knight is hanging tough but Sheamus looms over him. Fans are thunderous for “L A KNIGHT!” as Sheamus whips, but then Knight dodges to ELBOW Sheamus down!

Knight waits, Sheamus stands, and Knight runs in, but Sheamus puts him on the apron! And CLOBBERS him! Grimes runs up to O’Conner Roll, TWO! Rey RANAS Grimes into Knight! Those two fall out and Rey stares down with Sheamus. Grimes is on the ropes, Rey asks what’s the play. Sheamus sees Knight get up, and he ROCKS Knight! Then Sheamus stands both Knight and Grimes up, and Rey joins in! Fans fire up for DOUBLE BEATS OF THE BODHRAIN! They go all the way to DIEZ! Sheamus and Rey shake hands, but then Sheamus blocks a whip! Rey apologizes, but then Sheamus scoops him!

Rey slips free, dropkicks legs and Sheamus is on ropes! Rey dials it up, but runs into a BACKBREAKER! Fans fire up while Sheamus drags Rey up again. Fireman’s carry, but Grimes CROSSBODIES them both down! Grimes KICKS Sheamus, KICKS Rey, repeat! Not quite Yes Kicks but fans still fire up for them! Grimes powers up, but Knight runs in, so Grimes ENZIGURIS him down! Grimes sees Rey run in, scoops him, and swings him out for a SIDE SLAM! Fans rally, Sheamus drags Grimes from the corner to ROCK him with a right! Sheamus scoops Grimes, but Grimes slips off to DROPKICK! Sheamus stays up so Grimes KICKS away at the ropes!

Grimes runs, but Sheamus CLOBBERS him! And then clinches, IRISH CURSE BACKBREAKER! Knight returns, Sheamus tosses him out, but Knight drags Sheamus out to join him! Sheamus kicks Knight away, but Knight RAMS him into the apron! And hits an APRON BACK SUPLEX! Rey is up top, and Grimes builds speed! Grimes DIVES into a forearm from Knight! Rey hops down to WRECK Knight with a dropkick! Rey puts Knight in, goes back up top, but Knight trips him up! Knight climbs up after Rey and Sheamus joins in! Sheamus CLUBS Knight, though, but Knight hits back with body shots! Both men fall back!

Knight gets up first, Grimes ROUNDHOUSES Sheamus! Grimes RAN- NO, Sheamus blocks! And lifts Grimes up! Grimes waistlocks, SUPERPLEX POWERBOMB GERMAN SUPLEX COMBO!! Fans are thunderous as SmackDown goes to break!

SmackDown returns and Grimes whips Rey hard into a corner! Rey falls back, Knight brawls with Sheamus outside, and Grimes covers, TWO! Grimes keeps his focus on Rey while Knight and Sheamus DOUBLE LARIAT outside! Grimes whips Rey corner to corner again, runs in, but Rey ELBOWS Grimes back! Rey goes up the corner, but Grime Electric Chair Lifts! Rey punches away to then RANA Grimes and himself out of the ring! But Grimes holds on, brings Rey back up, only for Rey to SPINNING RANA! Theory gets out of the way, Grimes is sent into the armchair! Theory is mad at Rey, but Rey says he can just shut up and go sit in the front row then.

Rey brings Grimes up, but Sheamus DOUBLE FLYING CLOTHESLINES! Sheamus drags Grimes up, and RAMS him into barriers! Sheamus then goes back for Rey, and sends him into barriers! Sheamus storms up the steps, Knight rushes in but Sheamus HOTSHOTS him! Sheamus goes up, FLYING CLOTHESLINE! Sheamus waits on Knight, but Rey runs in! Sheamus scoops to POWERSLAM! Sheamus fireman’s carries Knight, WHITE NOISE! Cover, TWO!! Knight survives but Sheamus doesn’t lose his cool. Sheamus hobbles but the fans rally for Knight. Sheamus gets fans cheering for him, too, and he mocks “L! A! KNIGHT!”

Sheamus beats his chest, fans chant along with “BROGUE! BROGUE!” But Grimes runs up, Sheamus DECKS him! Sheamus runs in, but Knight POWERBOMBS him!! Cover, REY splashes it apart!! Grimes crawls back in, Knight brings Sheamus up. B F- NO, Sheamus shoves free, Grimes ROUNDHOUSES Knight! Sheamus KNEES Grimes down! Knight torture racks Sheamus, BURNING HAMMER!! Cover, Rey SENTONS it apart! Rey dodges Grimes, but runs into a COLLISION COURSE!! Cover, TWO!! Rey survives and Grimes is beside himself! Knight was half a second late but he brings Rey up.

Knight whips but Rey 619s through!! Knight takes a shot to the gut and falls back, Rey GAMANGIRIS Grimes! Rey climbs up, but Grimes UPPERCUTS! Grimes climbs up but then Sheamus CLUBS him on the back! And CLUBS him again! Sheamus Electric Chair Lifts Grimes, but Grimes slips off to set Sheamus up, but Rey DOUBLE RANAS them onto rope! Rey dials it up, DOUBLE 619!! Sheamus flops out, Grimes stays in, so Rey FORG SPLASHES Grimes! But THEORY drags him off!? And RAMS him into steel steps!! Fans boo as The Now screws Rey! But here comes Escobar! Escobar LEAPS and CLOBBERS Theory!

Fans fire up as Escobar throws Theory over the timekeeper’s area, then CROSSBODIES! Those two run off and brawl into the night, as Knight spells it out! BIG ELBOW on Grimes, but a BROGUE outta nowhere!! Grimes goes up, SUPER CAVE-IN!! But Rey returns! Rey RANAS Grimes down! REY WINS!!

Winner: Rey Mysterio, by pinfall (advances to the finals)

The LWO helps its own, and now we’ll see LWO VS LWO in next week’s finals! Theory is gonna pay for what he did tonight either way, but will it be the King or the Emperor of Lucha that proves they are numero uno?

Jey Uso roams around backstage.

And he says hey to the visiting NXT stars, Tony D’Angelo and “Stacks” Channing Lorenzo! And even the Creed Brothers, Julius & Brutus! Will we see these young tag teams on SmackDown sooner or later?

Austin Theory storms up on Adam Pearce.

Pearce ends his phone call, and Theory demands to know who Escobar thinks he is. Theory is the US Champion, he has every right to be ringside, and yet Escobar just attacks him!? Theory wants a match with him tonight! Pearce likes it, and wants to make it for the title. What? No! Escobar doesn’t deserve that! Theory wants to make Escobar respect him! Well, fine, that will be official. Good. Theory storms off, but is he only going to get a preview of what’s (possibly) coming for him in a few weeks?

Charlotte Flair VS Iyo Sky w/ Bayley!

The Queen didn’t get a proper title match with Asuka because of Bianca Belair. But then Bianca Belair didn’t get a proper title match because of Charlotte, and Damage CTRL. The solution: a Triple Threat is set for SummerSlam! Will Charlotte teach Miss MITB to keep her nose out of Flair business? Or will the Evil Genius take the Queen of the board before putting Asuka in checkmate?

SmackDown returns as Iyo makes her entrance, Bayley right behind her. The bell rings and the two circle. The two tie up, go around, and Charlotte puts Sky in the corner. Sky goes up the ropes, jumps and arm-drags, but Charlotte cartwheels through. Fans “WOO~!” and Charlotte struts. The two tie up and Charlotte headlocks. Sky pulls hair, powers out, but Charlotte runs her over! Charlotte smirks, runs, and cartwheels over the dropdown. Sky runs back in, Charlotte hurdles, but then Sky handsprings over Charlotte’s dropdown! Things keep moving, and Sky dropkicks legs out! Sky grins at Charlotte, but Charlotte blocks the kick!

Charlotte shoves Sky down, Sky goes to a corner, and Charlotte handsprings, but into BOOTS! Sky runs in to fire off fists! Fans fire up with Sky and she brings Charlotte up. Sky whips, Charlotte goes up and out, then BOOTS Sky down! Charlotte goes up a corner, and CROSSBODIES! Charlotte fires up and fans fire up with her as she GAMANGIRIS Sky! Charlotte scoops but Sky slips free to dropkick a leg out! Charlotte hobbles, Sky runs corner to corner, but Charlotte puts Sky on the apron. Sky ducks, shoulders into Charlotte, and she springboards to MISSILE DROPKICK! Cover, TWO!

Sky argues the count but the ref defends it was fair. Sky fires forearms, headlocks, and then waistlocks. Charlotte switches, Sky runs to ropes and slips through to HOTSHOT Charlotte down! Charlotte avoids the Drive-By Dropkick to BOOT Sky down! Charlotte aims, but Bayley barks at her! Sky avoids the Plancha, and she goes up to FLYING RANA! Charlotte tumbles and Bayley cheers, and SmackDown goes to break.

SmackDown returns again and Charlotte flashes the Four Horsewomen hand sign at Bayley. Bayley tells Charlotte to get away, she doesn’t care about that anymore. Charlotte puts Sky in the ring, Sky goes to a corner, and Charlotte storms up. Sky BOOTS Charlotte but Charlottes ROCKS Sky! Charlotte puts the leg on ropes but Sky avoids the knee drop! Charlotte jams her knee on the mat, and Sky SHINKANSENS in the corner! Cover, TWO, but into a CROSSFACE! Charlotte endures, fights around, and fans fire up! Charlotte powers up and lifts Sky for a BIG back suplex! Fans rally while both women are down!

Sky stirs, Bayley doesn’t wanna talk Shotzi, she just wants to see Sky beat Charlotte Freakin’ Flair. Charlotte ROCKS Sky, counter punches her, but Sky dropkicks the legs out! Sky whips, Charlotte holds ropes, and she KICKS Sky! Charlotte CHOPS, and CHOPS, and CHOPS! And CHOPS! And CHOPS! Bayley coaches Sky and Sky rebounds, but into a scoop! Charlotte carries Sky around as fans fire up, and Charlotte FALL AWAY SLAMS! And then kips up! Fans fire up with Charlotte but Bayley is annoyed. Sky rises, Charlotte handsprings to LARIAT! Cover, TWO!! Bayley is relieved as Sky survives.

Sky goes to a corner, Charlotte runs in but Sky dodges the splash! Sky comes back, but into the BACKBREAKER and BUCKLE SHOT! Charlotte puts Sky up top, Bayley coaches Sky on, but Charlotte CHOPS! Bayley gets mad and gets off commentary to shout at Charlotte! Sky SMACKS Charlotte off buckles! And adjusts to SUPSER SUNSET  POWERBOMB! Cover, TWO!! Charlotte survives and DMG CTRL can’t believe it! And then Shotzi’s on the tron! She haunts Bayley with the sound of scissors snipping and her deranged laughter! Bayley gets spooked, starts pacing around the ring, and Sky asks where Bayley’s going!

Bayley says she’s sorry, she has to get outta here. Bayley goes up the ramp, so Sky hurries up the corner. But Charlotte YANKS Sky down! And runs in, but Sky sends her into buckles! Charlotte is down and Sky steps on her to go back up! And up! And OVER THE MOONSAULT but FLOPS as Charlotte moves! Charlotte goes up now, to MOOONSAULT into boots! Sky runs in, LA MYSTICA! CROSSFACE!! Charlotte endures as Sky pulls way back! But then Sky shifts to a ghost pin, TWO! Charlotte ghost pins, TWO! Both women scramble up, Sky runs in but Charlotte dodges! Sky goes to the apron and ducks the boot!

Sky HOTSHOTS Charlotte’s leg! Charlotte hobbles, Sky goes up, and fans fire up as Sky leaps, MISSILE- NO, Charlotte deflects it and grabs the legs! BOSTON CRAB!! Almost a Walls of Jericho! Sky endures, powers through, trips Charlotte to a cover, TWO!! Sky runs to basement dropkick! Charlotte is down and fans “WOO~!” for her but Sky fires up! Sky brings Charlotte up to fire off forearm after forearm! And more and more and more! Sky runs, but Charlotte SPEARS!! Cover, TWO!!! Sky survives and Charlotte is frustrated! Charlotte drags Sky around by her legs, steps through, FIGURE- NO, CRADLE COUNTER! TWO!!

Charlotte scrambles to waistlock, GERMAN SUPLEX! Bridging cover, TWO! Charlotte holds on, drags Sky back up, but Sky victory rolls through, STOMP 182! Charlotte sputters and fans fire up! Charlotte is in the corner again, Sky runs in, but into a BOOT! Charlotte goes up, but Sky CHOP BLOCKS the leg! Sky SHOTEIS, then climbs up after Charlotte! Sky fires more shots, fans rally behind her, and Sky SUPER STEINERS! Cover, TWO!! Charlotte sunset flips it, TWO!! Sky sits on it, TWO!! Charlotte escapes to NATURAL SELECTION!! Cover, Charlotte wins!!

Winner: Charlotte Flair, by pinfall

The Evil Genius came close, but the Queen still wins out! But then ASUKA slides in! GERMAN SUPLEX, and a SLIDING KICK! The Empress puts the Queen in an ARMBAR!! Fans are torn as Asuka makes Charlotte suffer, but refs rush out to stop this! Asuka lets go and swaggers around with the WWE Women’s Championship! Will neither Charlotte or Bianca be ready in that Triple Threat? Or will the numbers be what defeats Asuka?

Backstage interview with Dominik Mysterio & Rhea Ripley.

Kayla Braxton is with the NEW NXT North American Champion, and asks what brings him and Mami to SmackDown tonight. Well, he wants to really show his deadbeat dad what a real champion looks like. Because if Rey happens to win the United States Championship, then that only makes him a champion of the USA. Dom, on the other hand, is the champion of all of North America! That makes him the champ of like 23 countries! But then in walks Pete Dunne. He “congratulates” Dom on winning the title. And they’re in the home of NXT! So it feels like Fight Night! What does Dom say to a match for the title tonight?

Dom laughs that off. He’s not dressed to compete, the title’s not polished up, and he has to get the NXT General Manager- WAIT! Shawn Michaels is here! And HBK says that this all sounds like a wonderful idea. Dom VS Dunne for the North American Championship as Dom’s first defense. Where is Pearce’s office? Dunne gives him directions, and HBK goes to do some business. After cheating Wes Lee, the man with the longest NAC title reign, will Dirty Dom get beat and have the shortest?

Roman Reigns sits in his private suite.

He looks at the red lei, the symbol of his title as Tribal Chief. Heyman is pensive as Roman holds it in his hands. Roman then looks at Solo, who was also looking at the lei. Solo nods, perhaps to say he understands who truly owns that title. Roman surpasses 1055 as Undisputed Universal Champion, but are the days he have left numbered as well?

DMG CTRL regroups backstage.

Iyo doesn’t wanna go but Bayley says she has to because Shotzi is lurking. But then they see someone STABBED a picture of Bayley to her luggage, with scissors! This is what Bayley was talking about! They grab what they can and get outta the locker room! Is Shotzi’s revenge already working wonders?

Austin Theory VS Santos Escobar!

Speaking of champions, the United States Champion takes on his could-be contender, but does not put the title up. Is it because he knows he’ll win? Or because he knows he’d lose? We find out, after the break!

SmackDown returns as Escobar makes his entrance. The bell rings and the two tie up. Theory powers Escobar to a corner, swings, but Escobar dodges to ROCK Theory! And ROCK him again! Escobar keeps on Theory with haymakers, then CLUBS him on the back! Theory fireman’s carries, Escobar slips free, shoves and trips Theory up, to then DROPKICK Theory down! Theory staggers up and kicks back, then throws haymakers of his own. Theory bumps Escobar off buckles, stomps a mudhole in, but the ref counts. Theory lets off and shouts at the fans but the fans boo him in return.

Theory goes back to Escobar, brings him up and suplexes! Cover, ONE! Theory is annoyed, talks more trash, and fans boo again. Theory brings Escobar up, but Escobar throws haymakers! Theory kicks low, whips, but Escobar comes back to tilt-o-whirl RANA! Escobar storms over and stands Theory up, but Theory kicks low to DDT! Cover, TWO! Theory is annoyed but he stalks Escobar. Fans rally up, Theory brings Escobar around and bumps him off buckles. Theory stomps Escobar, throws hands, but the ref counts. Theory tells everyone to shut up but Escobar turns things around! Escobar rains down fists!

Fans count all the way to DIEZ, and then Escobar covers, TWO! Escobar tries again, TWO! Theory hangs tough, he isn’t champion for nothing. Theory kicks low, whips, but Escobar ducks ‘n’ dodges to wheelbarrow and victory roll, then he hooks the legs! Theory scrambles away, but Escobar runs in to clothesline Theory out of the ring! Fans fire up with Escobar and he builds speed! But Theory moves, so Escobar goes up the corner to taunt him. Theory wants a timeout, which isn’t a thing here, but SmackDown still goes to break.

SmackDown returns again and Escobar whips corner to corner, but Theory reverses. Escobar bounces off buckles, into a BACKBREAKER! Cover, TWO! Theory is annoyed but Escobar is tougher than that. Theory kicks Escobar to the apron, goes out after him, and grins as the fans boo. Theory drags Escobar up and goes to suplex, but Escobar fights it! Theory tries again, but Escobar still fights it! Escobar then gets free to ENZIGURI! Fans fire up and Escobar builds speed, ARROW FROM HELL! Direct hit and Theory hits the desk! Fans fire up and Escobar catches his breath. Fans cheer him on and Escobar stalks Theory.

Both men get in the ring, Escobar runs, ducks ‘n’ dodges, and rallies on Theory with FLYING FOREARMS! And then another RANA! Theory ends up in a corner, Escobar runs in, but Theory puts him on the apron. Escobar ROCKS Theory with a forearm, then a GAMANGIRI! Escobar climbs up, leaps, CROSSBODY! Cover, TWO! Fans rally again while both men are down! Escobar rises, brings Theory up and fireman’s carries, but Theory slips free to CHOP BLOCK a leg! And then DECKS him with a left! Cover, TWO! Theory hurries to fisherman and suplex, AOI SHODO!! Cover, TWO!! Escobar survives and Theory is beside himself!

Theory calls his shot and fans boo. Theory drags Escobar up, fireman’s carries, but Escobar slips free and CALF KICKS! Theory staggers to a corner, Escobar puts him up top! Escobar climbs up after Theory, but Theory shoves him down! Escobar rolls back to his feet, hurries back up top, but Theory throws haymakers! Theory says he’s the Now, but Escobar SUPER DUPER STEINERS!! Theory flops into a corner, Escobar spells it out! L W O! DOUBLE KNEES! And then fireman’s carry, PHANTOM DRIVER! Cover, ESCOBAR WINS!

Winner: Santos Escobar, by pinfall

Theory not putting up the title ends up the only silver lining for him, because Escobar proves what he’s capable of! Will Escobar make it through Rey to do this all again?

Bobby Lashley meets Trick Melo Gang backstage.

The All Mighty shakes hands with Trick Willy and HIM, and they both are dressed to kill. What advice will the NXT Champion and Trick get from the Rocky Mountain Machine?

NXT North American Championship: Dominik Mysterio w/ Rhea Ripley VS Pete Dunne!

Dirty Dom lived up to that new nickname when he and the entire Judgment Day did Wes Lee dirty last Tuesday. But will the Bruiserweight break Dom’s fingers to take that title from him? Or will Dunne have to watch his back for The Prince and the Punisher?

SmackDown returns and Dunne makes his entrance. The introductions are made, the belt is raised, and we see if Dunne wins on Fight Night!

The bell rings and the two tie up. Dunne powers Dom to ropes, the ref counts and Rhea protests. Dunne lets off, and Dom DECKS him! Dom talks trash, stomps Dunne, then drags him up to headlock. Dunne powers out and drops, then hurdles, then drops again before he CLOBBERS Dom! Rhea is upset as Dunne stands Dom up. Dunne wrenches the arm, and kneels on it to bend it back! And he bends the fingers! Dom endures and Dunne grinds his forearm into Dom. Dunne bends the fingers, fans chant for “MAMI! MAMI!” and Dunne isolates the arm. Dunne STOMPS the arm! Dom scrambles to a corner, BOOTS back, and storms up, but Dunne wrenches the arm again!

Dunne wrangles Dom down, hammerlocks that arm and traps it, so he can bend the other hand’s fingers! And SNAP the fingers!! Dom scrambles as Dunne goes for an armbar, ROPEBREAK! Dom gets up, and he HOTSHOTS Dunne away! Rhea checks Dom, and hands him a steel chain! Fans boo and Rhea distracts the ref! Dom takes aim, but RIDGE snatches the chain! Dunne ENZIGURIS Dom, and then hits an X-PLEX! Cover, TWO! The numbers are even now that Ridge is watching Dunne’s back, and SmackDown goes to break.

SmackDown returns again and Dunne goes after Dom at the ropes, but Dom HOTSHOTS him away again! And then SLINGSHOT SENTONS! Cover, TWO! Dunne hammers Dom’s head from below but Dom hits back. Dom wraps on a chinlock, and wait, Pretty Deadly is here? Kit Wilson is wheeling Elton Prince out in a wheelchair, but it’s only Elton’s arm that got hurt last week! Fans boo but Ridge stares them down. Dom wrangles Dunne with a wrench and stomps the arm. Dom taunts the Bruiserweight, stomps him again, then gives mocking kicks and pats on the head. Dunne snarls and Dom pie faces him. Dunne ROCKS Dom!

Dunne runs to GAMANGIR in the corner, and again, and again! Rhea freaks out, but Dunne drops KNEES On Dom’s arm! Then DECKS him with a forearm! Dom sits up, into Dunne’s PENALTY KICK! Rhea freaks out some more as Dunne stands on Dom’s fingers! Rhea tells Michael Cole to shut up, but Dunne STOMPS! Dom avoids that and puts Dunne on ropes! Dom dials it up, but Dunne dodges to SNAP GERMAN SUPLEX! And then he STOMPS the hands! BUZZSAW! Cover, TWO!! Rhea is relieved, but then Pretty Deadly demand an apology from Ridge! Ridge storms up and they wheel away! Kit ROCKS Ridge!

Dunne DECKS Kit! Elton freaks out as Kit runs away! Elton begs for mercy from the Brawling Brutes. Then he runs away himself! Ridge chases him, Dunne GAMANGIRIS Dom! But then Rhea runs up to CHOP BLOCK Dunne!! Dom drags Dunne up to POST him! Dom dumps Dunne, covers, but the ref says they’re in the ropes! Dom hurries to drag Dunne to center, covers, and Dom wins!

Winner: Dominik Mysterio, by pinfall (still NXT North American Champion)

Mami is happy that her Dommy survives Dunne, but he sure had plenty of help tonight. Will Dom survive knowing NXT Great American Bash is coming in just 9 days?

Jey Uso heads to the ring!

Orlando fires up for Main Event Jey, and as the shirt says, he is ready to be “The REAL Chief.” The face to face approaches, what will be the Rules of Engagement between Jey and Roman? We find out, after the break.

SmackDown returns and the table is set as Jey paces inside the ring. Roman makes his entrance, Heyman and Solo behind him. They of course raise their fingers and the pyro goes off, and Jey does his best to stay calm. Roman, Heyman & Solo continue down the ramp as the introductions are made, and then they step into the ring, for the second round of pyro. Heyman is wary but Jey keeps his distance, and Solo keeps his eyes on Jey. Roman chuckles and tells Heyman he can relax. Fans chant for “USOS! USOS!” and that annoys Roman. But even so, he holds out his hand and Heyman gives him the mic.

Roman takes a moment, then says, “Orlando…! ACKNOWLEDGE ME!” Fans are torn, and Roman swaggers around to sit at the head of the table. Jey sits down, fans continue to cheer for “USOS! USOS!” but Roman smiles. Roman asks “Lil’ Jey” if he still wants to do this. Jey picks up his mic to say, “Yeah, I still wanna do this.” Fans cheer that! Roman is amused, but Jey says he’s supposed to do this. Roman is making Jey do this. Roman put Jimmy in the hospital, so now Jey has to get Roman. Roman sighs and says “Lil’ Jey, you ain’t gonna get me because you don’t get it.” Jey is a soldier, a pawn.

Roman takes the contract, opens it up, looks it over, and looks to Heyman. Heyman hands him a pen while the fans chant “UCE! SO! UCE! SO!” Roman shakes his head, but signs on the dotted line. Jey snatches the contract, smashes it up, and slams the folder closed. That confused Roman and Heyman. Jey says they don’t need a contract! This is in blood! “This right here… This is Tribal Combat now!” Fans like the sound of that, and Roman seems confused by that claim. He laughs it off, and then thinks. Do the Elders know about this? It was their idea, Uce! That worries Roman again.

Jey explains that this is TRIBAL. COMBAT. Anything goes! If he wants to light Roman up with a kendo stick, he can! If he wants these armchairs, he can do it. If he wants a steel chair, he can use it. Put him through the announce desk? Sure wants to! This table right here? If he has to! That lady’s left slipper and slap Roman’s face, he’ll do that too!! Fans like the sound of that, but Roman laughs it off. Orlando, shut your mouths! They boo but Roman tells Lil’ Jey to shut his mouth! The Tribal Chief is talking now! Fans boo more and more but Roman says, “You think this is my first rodeo? You think I haven’t ran this business for almost a decade now?!”

Roman throws down the mic, stands up, and he puts his Universal Championship on the table, literally. Roman says it doesn’t mean a thing to him! Let’s go! Jey tells Roman again, it’s Tribal Combat now. Fans taunt Roman, and Roman looks to the red lei. Roman takes that off like he did a couple weeks ago. Fans chant “UCE! SO! UCE! SO!” as Roman sets that on the table, too! Roman stands across from Jey now as Heyman drops to his knees. The two are truly face to face, and they shake hands and go forehead to forehead. And then Roman takes his leave. Solo doesn’t care, he TOSSES the table!

But Roman stops Solo!! And then Jey SUPERKICKS Solo!! Heyman is stunned, but Jey leaves Roman alone, per the rules of what Tribal Combat mean. Roman is still wary as he takes his leave of the ring. What is coming will be more than enough for both of them. It will be a battle for everything Roman has, will he lose everything at SummerSlam? Or will he prove Jey is not ready to be neither Universal Champion nor Tribal Chief?

My Thoughts:

Awesome stuff for SmackDown here, and such great build to SummerSlam. Great opener in the second Fatal 4 Way, but I did not see Rey getting that win because he and Escobar are both LWO. But Theory and Rey having interaction, Theory trying to keep Rey from winning, bringing out Escobar, that was a bit of foreshadowing on Rey getting the win. Escobar VS Theory was also a great match, but it feels like Escobar got his win here so that Rey will face Theory at SummerSlam. Rey VS Escobar is going to be great stuff, and it won’t be out of a LWO breakup either. But this all is a bit of a shame, all the fans love LA Knight and wanted to see him win. But maybe they’ll save Knight for later, like Royal Rumble or even Mania for a true crowning moment.

Great to hear the Triple Threat of Charlotte VS Bianca VS Asuka is happening, as I figured it would. And great match from Charlotte VS Sky to not just give Charlotte momentum but to give Asuka an opening to attack and put herself on top. At the same time, a Triple Threat for the title could go any which way, and Sky has the MITB briefcase, she could even make it a Fatal 4 Way before the end if they so chose. And good stuff from Shotzi scaring Bayley, those two are definitely having some kind of grudge match at SummerSlam. One way or another with the Bayley VS Shotzi stuff and Sky as Ms. MITB, this is going to tear DMG CTRL apart so Bayley and Sky can go their separate ways, or maybe even feud on their own.

So great to see a lot of current NXT superstars tonight, both backstage and being in the crowd. The obvious reason is because they were in Orlando, but even then, someone *cough* Vince */cough* could’ve said no to these cameos. But seeing as we also saw HBK and a North American Championship match, the combination of HHHBK clearly gave the greenlight. Dom VS Dunne was a great match but of course Pretty Deadly and Rhea all contribute to Dom surviving. I appreciate Elton & Kit taking a page from The Miz playbook, with the wheelchair even though Elton doesn’t need it, and using the shoulder injury in story. I do feel Ridge needs to remember just how strong he really is, but also his limitations, or else people might start calling him “unsafe.”

And once again, great stuff out of The Bloodline story. I just felt in my gut that there would be a call for something like “Tribal Combat,” aka Anything Goes/No Holds Barred. It not only hearkens back to the Hell in a Cell I Quit combo match, but it fits their family legacy and the story they’re telling through that. Plus, putting both the Undisputed title and the family title of Tribal Chief on the line is a great way to up the ante of this already top level story. I don’t feel Jey’s odds are good, but it would certainly be a way to really shake up the story, as it seems even less likely that Solo changes allegiances after he wanted to spike Jey.

My Score: 8.8/10