Due to their touring schedule, on last week’s edition of Friday Night SmackDown, World Wrestling Entertainment held two shows from the same venue. Thus, this week’s edition will be a taped show. Nonetheless, this week’s SmackDown looks to be nothing short of promising, as Drew McIntyre faces Sami Zayn in a Steel Cage Match. This isn’t all, as viewers can expect to see Charlotte Flair and Ronda Rousey take part in separate Beat the Clock matches, Ricochet defend the Intercontinental Championship, and much more. Here’s what to expect before the show airs live on FOX.
WWE SmackDown (4/29/22) Announced Card
- RK-Bro and The Usos Sign Contract for Title Unification Match at WrestleMania Backlash
- WWE Intercontinental Championship: Ricochet (c) vs. Shanky (w/Jinder Mahal)
- Charlotte Flair and Ronda Rousey Take Part in Beat the Clock “I Quit” Challenge
- Drew McIntyre vs. Sami Zayn (Steel Cage Match)
THIS FRIDAY on #SmackDown@MsCharlotteWWE & @RondaRousey go the distance in their Beat the Clock Matches. PLUS: @DMcIntyreWWE gets @SamiZayn in a Steel Cage Match!
📺 8/7c FOX pic.twitter.com/END8uSyUFf
— WWE (@WWE) April 26, 2022
RK-Bro Put Pen to Paper on SmackDown
In a little over a week, at WrestleMania Backlash, Raw Tag Team Champions RK-Bro will face SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Usos in a title unification match. This match initially came about due to Roman Reigns, who expressed interest in his cousins unifying gold, not unlike what “The Tribal Chief” did following his WrestleMania 38 victory over then-WWE Champion Brock Lesnar. Jimmy and Jey Uso took this to heart; thus, they took the fight directly to Raw’s tag team titleholders, Riddle and Randy Orton. On this week’s SmackDown, both teams make their WrestleMania Backlash match official. If contract signings over the year are any indication, however, expect to see the peace held for only so long.
Ricochet Defends the Gold
This week’s SmackDown will also see Shanky challenge for WWE gold for the first time, setting his sights on the Intercontinental Champion, Ricochet. Recently, the champion found himself in the sights of former WWE Champion Jinder Mahal, who Ricochet successfully defended the Intercontinental Championship against. Mahal took umbrage with this loss, as one may imagine. Furthermore, “The Modern-Day Maharaja” claimed that if Ricochet believed himself to be a real champion, he would have no trouble defending his title again. Thus, the title match between champion Ricochet and challenger Shanky was made official. As the high-flying human highlight reel, Ricochet is no stranger to larger foes; can he overcome his latest mammoth of an obstacle on SmackDown as well?
Tonight, @MsCharlotteWWE and @RondaRousey are set to take part in a Beat the Clock “I Quit” Challenge on #SmackDown pic.twitter.com/2s1F83G7Cj
— WWE on FOX (@WWEonFOX) April 29, 2022
Charlotte Flair and Ronda Rousey Attempt to Beat the Clock
Another match set for WrestleMania Backlash is Ronda Rousey challenging Charlotte Flair for the SmackDown Women’s Championship. Despite coming up short against “The Queen” at WrestleMania 38, the “Rowdy” former UFC star has not wavered in her pursuit for gold. Before they clash once more, Rousey and Flair will put their respective submission expertise to the test as they participate in the Beat the Clock “I Quit” challenge. Given the fact that both wrestlers tend to finish their matches with submission maneuvers, focusing on this area of their offense is a no-brainer. Who will both competitors face off against as WrestleMania Backlash fast approaches? Tune into this week’s edition of SmackDown to find out.
Drew McIntyre Faces Sami Zayn in a Steel Cage on SmackDown
On last week’s SmackDown, Drew McIntyre faced Sami Zayn in a Lumberjack Match. What should have been a match in which Zayn couldn’t easily escape saw him slip away during the chaos, making his way through the crowd. WWE Official Adam Pearce stepped forward, ensuring that a similar result would not come to fruition in the next encounter. Thus, on this week’s SmackDown, McIntyre and Zayn will take on each other once again, this time in the confines of a steel cage. This isn’t to say that an escape is impossible for Zayn, especially given how “The Master Strategist” prides himself on being one step ahead of everyone else from a mental standpoint. However, against a game competitor such as McIntyre – a former multi-time world champion at that – escape may be next to impossible.
Stay tuned to the Last Word on Pro Wrestling for more on this and other stories from around the world of wrestling, as they develop. You can always count on LWOPW to be on top of the major news in the wrestling world, as well as to provide you with analysis, previews, videos, interviews, and editorials on the wrestling world. You can check out an almost unlimited array of WWE content on the WWE Network and Peacock.
