Braun Strowman is the new No. 1 contender set to challenge for the United States Championship after defeating Jacob Fatu on WWE SmackDown.
Prior to his match, he had a backstage segment with LA Knight where the champion told him he’d watch his back if Solo Sikoa and Tama Tonga got involved. Strowman revealed then that SmackDown General Manager Nick Aldis told him whoever won would get a shot at the United States Championship, and as far as he was concerned, that was the means to punch his ticket to WrestleMania.
Solo Sikoa and Tama Tonga interfered in the match, supposedly to “help out” Fatu as he would explain later backstage, but that caused Fatu to lose by disqualification, granting The Monster of All Monsters the title opportunity instead, which has been set for next week’s SmackDown in England.
Another title match will also take place, as Pretty Deadly had earned a shot at the WWE Tag Team Championship by winning their No. 1 contenders’ Triple Threat against Los Garza and The Motor City Machine Guns two weeks ago. They’ll get their opportunity against The Street Profits in London, which may give them the homefield advantage.
Drew McIntyre also put it out there that he’ll see Damian Priest next week, but nothing has been confirmed as far as a match or anything.
As a reminder, SmackDown next Friday is once again airing at an early time internationally on Netflix and 8 pm ET per usual on the USA Network in the United States, as it will take place in The O2 Arena.
To recap, here is your lineup for next week’s episode of WWE SmackDown:
- United States Championship Match: LA Knight (c) vs. Braun Strowman
- WWE Tag Team Championship Match: The Street Profits (c) vs. Pretty Deadly
What are your predictions for next week? Drop your thoughts in the comments below!
