We are traveling down Road to WrestleMania, and Friday night’s SmackDown marked the television offer for home before one of the crucial stops along the journey. The Elimination Chamber’s annual pay-per-view event gets the spotlight this Sunday, and while Friday’s show put a lot of emphasis on this weekend’s show, the only focus was on a dream fight that is likely to come .
The main event on Friday featured the six participants in Sunday’s Elimination Chamber match on the SmackDown side, but the main subject of the show will be centered on Edge, who is eyeing Roman Reigns eats WrestleMania. The universal champion sent a message to Edge to open the night, and then he sent a much more violent message to end the show going home, making it almost obvious at this point what the ‘Mania match will be for the winner of the Royal Rumble.
Let’s take a look now at everything that happened during Friday’s edition of SmackDown before the Elimination Chamber.
Roman Reigns presents Edge
Edge was out to open SmackDown this week. The Royal Rumble winner in 2021 discussed the choice ahead of him, considering the plethora of men who have the chance to leave the Elimination Chamber on Sunday as world champions. He considered this the biggest decision of his life before being interrupted by Reigns, who was, of course, flanked by Jey Uso and Paul Heyman.
Once in the ring, Reigns told Edge that he doesn’t have 13 men to choose from – he only has one. Edge responded by telling Reigns that he didn’t even realize he was being played like a violin. He then told Reigns that when he looks into his eyes, he sees insecurity before saying that he received too early and that he breaks under the pressure.
Sami Zayn would then interrupt the documentary crew in tow, claiming that he was being disrespected by the two men. He commanded his film crew to take a picture of him pointing at the WrestleMania sign before being knocked down by a Use superkick. After Zayn was shocked, Reigns put his hands behind his back and calmly whispered something to Edge who clearly hit a nerve with the “Definitive Opportunist”.
Throughout the night, Edge had personal behind-the-scenes interactions with participants in the Elimination Chamber match, and then left to comment during the main event.
Daniel Bryan, Kevin Owens and Cesaro won. Sami Zayn, Jey Uso and King Corbin via submission. Bryan got the win for the babyface team after getting Zayn to hit the YES! To lock. Chaos settled in the ring among the participants, prompting Edge to enter the ring to comment and launch Usage. The final message towards the Elimination Chamber would be delivered by the champion, however, when Reigns emerged and placed Edge on his own spear to end the show.
While the fights against WWE champion Drew McIntyre or even NXT champion Finn Balor are attractive, it is perfectly clear that the fight for the spotlight inside the Raymond James Stadium in April will be Edge challenging Reigns for the universal title. Friday night was further proof of that, as the energy between the two and the emotion they bring when in the ring are undeniable. After tonight’s attack, Edge will undoubtedly be looking for the “Head of the Table” after Reigns is likely to leave the Elimination Chamber still reigning champion by defeating one of the six men who were in the main event. Serie B
What else happened at SmackDown?
- Shinsuke Namakura def. Apollo Crews via pinfall. Big E, who was commenting, prevented Crews from using the steel steps during a post-game attack outside. Instead, Crews hit the intercontinental champion with the steps behind him as he attended Nakamura. After Big E rolled out and the referee pleaded with Crews to drop the steps he was holding on to his head, he threw them out over the champion.
- Seth Rollins was ready to do a promo on the stage. He said that each of his friends turned his back on him when he left last week, before he called a video package to relive the moment. He considered it unacceptable in the workplace and revealed that he is filing a lawsuit because his moment was ruined by a “bunch of losers”. Rollins concluded by calling Cesaro for being the biggest loser of all and telling everyone to “embrace the vision”.
- Tamina and Natalya def. The Riott Squad via pinfall. Billie Kay was out during the match and tried to celebrate with the winners, but was undone by Tamina.
- Reginald, Sasha Banks and Bianca Belair def. Nia Jax, Shayna Baszler and Bayley via pinfall. The fight came after chaos ensued during the appearance of the female champions as guests on “Ding Dong, Hello!” Reginald defeated Jax with the help of Banks.
- Rey Mysterio & Dominik Mysterio won. Otis and Chad Gable for disqualification after Otis failed to break the count of five. After the match, Otis hit Rey Mysterio with a splash from the top rope while Gable held the legend.