Naomi via pinfall: Of course, Sonya Deville came into play here. had ENOUGH of all the talk and took matters into her own hands! #SDLive /776Gh5vJ2b- WWE JanuWhat else happened on SmackDown? Solid start to the go-home show with this segment. We have a lot of questions surrounding the entire women's division at the moment, but we're on our way to getting some answers in a few days.
It was also wise to throw Flair in the mix, a favorite to win the Rumble match this weekend, to remind both women that no matter who gets the victory, she'll be waiting - if she passes on challenging for the Raw women's title, that is. These are two legit badasses who just want to tear each other apart, and we got a taste of that here with the scuffling both at ringside and in the back.
Lynch on Sunday has all the makings of coming away with match of the night honors, and the build has been done rather well to this home stretch here. They cut backstage after commercial, and the two were still brawling with one another as the officials pried them apart again.Īsuka vs. Lynch finished off Asuka by climbing atop the table and laying out the champion with a flying forearm. Officials tried to break the two women up but they battled around the ring, with Lynch tossing Asuka over the announce table. Asuka then pounced, attacking Lynch from behind. Flair then mentioned that when she does win, she'll have her options between either the Raw or SmackDown women's champion. Standing in the aisle, Flair said nothing is gonna be more exciting than when she wins the Royal Rumble on Sunday. The champ held the title in Lynch's face and taunted her in Japanese.Ĭharlotte Flair didn't take long to crash the festivities. SmackDown women's champion Asuka stopped Lynch in her tracks right there and made her way to the ring. While the former champion is impressed with Asuka's career thus far, she's never beaten her for that SmackDown women's title. That journey begins Sunday at the Royal Rumble. When it comes to it, the only thing she cares about is main-eventing WrestleMania, and she'll slap anyone's head to get there. Lynch said it wasn't that long ago that no one paid attention to her, but now, everyone seems to have an opinion. "The Man" herself, Becky Lynch, kickstarted the go-home edition of SmackDown on Tuesday night. "If a face-to-face is what you want, it doesn't necessarily have to happen in this ring." - #SDLive /eXIQ6iWzGA- WWE JanuBecky Lynch and Asuka brawl Plus, McMahon really didn't add much to the feud here aside from simply screaming at Bryan twice because he was annoyed. These two will put on a fantastic showing in the ring, without a doubt, but this has seemed like simply a time-killing affair before Styles and Bryan break off into their respective WrestleMania feuds with Bryan holding onto the championship to further his heel run. I very well may be in the minority here, but the brief inclusion of McMahon into this feud really did nothing to amp up any excitement for this WWE championship match on Sunday. Distracted, Styles ate the running knee from Bryan, then the champion fled up the ramp. As he was going for the Phenomenal Forearm, though, Bryan used McMahon as a shield, stopping Styles in the process. Styles flew from the ring and began taking Bryan apart. Get in the ring." Styles told McMahon that he wanted a face-to-face, but it doesn't necessarily have to happen in the ring.
McMahon lost it again, telling Bryan, "Damnit, I'm not gonna tell you again. He's created an environment for someone like Styles to become a champion. Bryan said of course he doesn't want to listen to him because he and the baby boomer generation are what's wrong with this world. As Bryan was about to take another turn on the mic, McMahon lashed out, said he was tired of this and told his champ to get in the ring again. The former champion said Bryan is afraid to step into the ring just as he's afraid to face him on Sunday at the Royal Rumble. Styles called out Bryan by saying that he must've taken a plane to get to the arena just like he did, which makes him, you guessed it - fickle. Bryan again reiterated that he's not the people's champion like Styles, rather he's the planet's champion. Styles uses his power for fame and money, while Bryan uses his for the greater good. The champion said that as Styles was on his tirade last week, he had visions of an impotent and illiterate future with Styles as the champion. Bryan refused, however, saying that he was not falling into the trap of getting in the ring with the sociopath Styles. Bryan circled the ring, with McMahon telling him to get in. The chairman made his way out first as he was set to preside over the final confrontation between WWE champion Daniel Bryan and challenger AJ Styles.