WWE SmackDown Review – February 2, 2024
Kicking off this week’s Smackdown with a video recapping Royal Rumble.
United States Champion Logan Paul says he underestimated Kevin Owens and says he did more damage to him than Floyd Mayweather. He says Owens made him bleed and almost knocked him out but he still lost. He calls himself one of the toughest people on the roster and mocks World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins & CM Punk for their respective injuries.
Kevin Owens’ music hits and he makes his way down to the ring & he tells Paul no one wants to hear anymore from him and calls him an unbearable idiot. He says even though he came up short at the Royal Rumble, it’s still a moral victory for him because he knocked him out. He vows to take the United States Title off him and sanitize him and Paul says Owens didn’t take advantage of his one and only shot at his title. He explains that the brass knuckles were a set up and meant to lure him in and Owens says while everyone was mad at the referee for catching him with the brass knuckles, the referee did a great job catching him. He says the next time they stand across from one another for the title, he won’t need brass knuckles.
Paul says he’s going to go find a real challenger while Owens focuses on his upcoming match with Austin Theory and he joins commentary.
Kevin Owens vs. Austin Theory
Match starts off with a lock up before Kevin Owens connects with a shoulder tackle and an arm drag then transitions into an arm submission before Theory escapes and fires off a few right and left hands then hits a senton.
Theory gets his knees up and fires off more left hands, and they find themselves on the apron. Theory sends Owens crashing onto it spine first as we go to a break.
After the break Owens fires off strikes on Theory and hits a tornado DDT out of the corner. He ascends to the top rope and hits a Swanton Bomb then looks to hit a Stunner.
Theory prevents him from landing it and sends him crashing into the ring post shoulder first then delivers a rolling blockbuster and goes for a pin but Owens kicks out and they find themselves teetering on the ropes.
Theory pulls Owens down onto his shoulders and hits a variation of a Blue Thunder Bomb He goes for a pin but Owens kicks out.
Grayson Waller distracts the referee and Paul slides Theory a pair of brass knuckles.
Owens gets a hold of them and Paul tries pointing it out to the referee but she tells him to hop down from the apron.
Owens clocks Waller on the apron with the brass knuckles then hits a right hand to Theory with them for the win.
Winner: Kevin Owens
After the match Paul retreats through the crowd.
We then head backstage and see Naomi emerge from Nick Aldis’ office having signed a contract to be an exclusive member of the Smackdown roster as Michin, Shotzi & Bianca BelAir celebrate with her. Tiffany Stratton then emerges and announces she’s done the same thing leading to a verbal exchange between the 5 women and Stratton clocking Michin.
Fatal 4 Way Undisputed WWE Tag Team Titles #1 Contenders Qualifying Match
Legado Del Fantasma (Angel & Humberto) vs. Latino World Order (Cruz Del Toro & Joaquin Wilde) vs. British Strong Style (Pete Dunne & Tyler Bate) vs. Pretty Deadly (Kit Wilson & Elton Prince)
Elton Prince fires off stomps on Tyler Bate before Pete Dunne & Joaquin Wilde tag in and Wilde locks in a side headlock on Dunne then Bate tags in and hits a hurricanrana to Wilde but Cruz Del Toro does the same to him and Dunne follows suit.
Both teams stare one another down until Legado Del Fantasma & Pretty Deadly blindside them before all 4 teams then begin brawling in the ring and go spilling out of the ring.
LWO then hits a double baseball slide to Legado Del Fantasma & Pretty Deadly on the outside and Wilde flies as British Strong Style & Del Toro assist him as we go to a break.
After the break Prince has a chin lock cinched in on Wilde but Wilde escapes and tags in Dunne & he hits a step up enzuigiri to Prince then lands one on Wilson, Angel & Humberto.
He connects with a kick on Wilson then sends Del Toro crashing into the mat and lands a right hand on Wilde mid air as he flies.
Bate hits an airplane spin to Prince and all 4 teams begin brawling with one another once again. LWO looks to fly but Elektra Lopez hops up on their apron to block their path.
Zelina Vega pulls her off and holds the ropes open for Wilde & Del Toro to fly to take down Angel & Humberto before firing off right hands on Lopez.
Back in the ring Wilson rolls up Dunne after Prince causes a distraction but Dunne kicks out and snaps Wilson’s fingers then tags in Bate & British Strong Style hits a double team Tyler Driver 97 on Wilson for the win.
Winners & Gets Into The Undisputed WWE Tag Team Titles #1 Contenders Match: British Strong Style
We then head backstage and see Bayley catching Women’s Tag Team Champions Kabuki Warriors & Women’s Champion Iyo Sky making fun of her.
Bayley says when she thinks about WrestleMania, she’s almost done it all. She says she’s defended both the Raw & Smackdown Women’s Titles, walked in as a Women’s Tag Team Champion and hosted the event. She says this year is special and different because she had her girls to support her going into WrestleMania. She says Damage CTRL has always been there for her, and says the group are family as Asuka, Sane & Sky laugh. She says she things about moments and magic when she thinks about WrestleMania, and says to be the best, she has to beat the best as Rhea Ripley watches on from backstage.
Bayley says sometimes it’s more personal than a championship. She says sometimes it’s about proving doubters wrong and proving people you thought were your friends wrong as she eyes Asuka, Sane & Sky. She speaks Japanese to show them that she understands what they’ve been saying about her in Japanese and says all she wanted was for Damage CTRL to be the best. She says she wanted to get to the top at WrestleMania together and asks SKY what happened.
Asuka & Sane clock Bayley from behind and beat her down as Sky watches on then they leave her laid out in the corner and Asuka pulls her to the center but Bayley gets back to her feet and goes after Sane & Asuka with the pipe. She looks to hit Sky with it but she prevents her from doing so by looking to do the same to Bayley with her Women’s Title. Damage CTRL retreats up the ramp and Bayley announces that she chooses Sky as her WrestleMania opponent.
6 Man Tag Team Match
The Final Testament (Karrion Kross, Akam & Rezar) vs. Street Profits (Angelo Dawkins & Montez Ford) & Bobby Lashley
Authors Of Pain brawl with Street Profits as Bobby Lashley goes at it with Karrion Kross before AOP & Street Profits spill out of the ring and Lashley sends Kross crashing into the mat.
He cinches in The Hurt Lock but Scarlett jumps on his back then B Fab appears to take Scarlett out and Lashley hits with a Spear on Kross.
Winners: No One (Match Never Got Started)
We then head backstage and see Bron Breakker about to sign a contract to be an exclusive member of the Smackdown roster. Adam Pearce walks in and tells him to hold off until Monday’s Raw so they can talk and Breakker agrees. Jade Cargill then walks in for a meeting with Aldis & Aldis kicks Pearce out of his office.
Tiffany Stratton vs. Michin
Michin goes right after Tiffany Stratton as she hits a dropkick then whips her into the corner and lands a kick on her chest.
She fires off right hands on Stratton then follows it up with a belly 2 belly suplex.
Stratton lands on the outside and Michin hits a dropkick through the bottom rope.
She looks to land a kick from the apron but Stratton catches it and trips her as we go to a break.
After the break Stratton hits a hip attack and a double stomp to Michin before Michin responds with a series of right and left hands then hits a clothesline and a pair of kicks.
She follows it up with a neckbreaker and a Codebreaker out of the corner then goes for a pin. Stratton gets her foot on the bottom rope to break the fall and sets up for Eat Defeat.
Stratton blocks it and connects with an Alabama Slam then follows it up with Prettiest Moonsault Ever for the win.
Winner: Tiffany Stratton
Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns tells Birmingham to acknowledge him then says while he prefers to move forward some things were said on Monday that he can’t let slide. He says World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins claimed that he had the title was the guy and was a workhorse but he objects to all those statements. He says he works 10x less than Rollins but makes 10x his salary and asks the crowd whose money they want. Reigns then calls Cody Rhodes an idiot for having values and not caring about money before telling him he won’t beg him like Rollins did on Monday.
2024 Royal Rumble Winner Cody Rhodes’ music hits and he makes his way down to the ring. He asks Birmingham and Reigns what they want to talk about and says he imagined their conversation to be a little more private. He asks if they can have the ring to themselves, and Reigns tells Jimmy Uso & Solo Sikoa to flank him on the outside. He says he had Reigns and he thinks he knew it. He says no matter what Reigns’ title is called he still wants it and asks Reigns what finishing the story is. He says he’s heard Reigns say everything is his and asks if finishing the story is simply taking the Undisputed WWE Universal Title from Reigns or taking everything from him.
Rhodes says he wants the Undisputed WWE Universal Title and warns Reigns that he’s coming for him. He says he won’t be at WrestleMania and says he mentioned taking counsel. He says he talked to an individual who knows Reigns very well.
The Rock’s music hits and he makes his way down to the ring & Rhodes makes his way to the back leaving The Rock with Reigns alone in the ring. The Rock then stares down Reigns to close out this week’s Smackdown.
Next Week’s Smackdown
Undisputed WWE Tag Team Titles #1 Contenders Match
British Strong Style (Pete Dunne & Tyler Bate) vs. TBD
