WWE presented a special international broadcast of SmackDown today, airing live from the OVO Arena in London, England. The show, which aired on Netflix internationally and will broadcast in its standard slot on the USA Network, featured the kickoff to the tournament to determine the next Number One Contender for the WWE Championship. However, the night began with a shocking tonal shift from the new champion, Drew McIntyre.
The show opened with the new Undisputed WWE Champion Drew McIntyre entering to a live Scottish bagpipe band. Despite the pageantry, McIntyre quickly turned on the London crowd. He claimed the fans were never there for him during his release or his battles against The Bloodline and CM Punk.
“The only person I need to thank for my title win is me.”
McIntyre revealed that he had a clause inserted into the contract for last week’s “Three Stages of Hell” match that explicitly denies Cody Rhodes an automatic rematch, stating Rhodes would have to “work his way” back up. This brought out Randy Orton, who reminded McIntyre that he has beaten him for the title before. The segment devolved into chaos when Jacob Fatu attacked McIntyre, chasing him through the crowd. The Miz then seized the opportunity to attack Orton, hitting him with a Skull Crushing Finale to soften him up before their qualifying match.
Despite the pre-match attack, Orton managed to defeat The Miz to advance to Saturday Night’s Main Event. Later in the evening, Cody Rhodes received a mixed reaction as he declared his entry into the 2026 Royal Rumble. He then turned his attention to Jacob Fatu, promising a “receipt” for the interference that cost him the title. It was subsequently confirmed that Rhodes vs. Fatu is official for next Saturday.
The tournament qualifiers dominated the card. Trick Williams defeated Matt Cardona to advance, only for Cardona to be attacked post-match by Kit Wilson. Wilson, calling himself the “Tonic for Toxic Masculinity,” was immediately silenced by Jacob Fatu, leading to a massive pull-apart brawl between Fatu and Rhodes requiring security intervention.
Damian Priest secured his spot in the four-way by defeating Solo Sikoa. The match saw heavy interference, with Solo bringing a stolen Wyatt Sicks lantern to the ring and blowing it out. This summoned The Wyatt Sicks, who brawled with Sikoa’s “MFTs” at ringside. Priest capitalized on the distraction, hitting a South of Heaven chokeslam for the win. In the main event, Sami Zayn defeated a bloody Ilja Dragunov to earn the final spot. The show closed with Trick Williams attacking Zayn, hitting a Trick Shot to stand tall over his future opponent.
In a stunning moment, United States Champion Carmelo Hayes held an Open Challenge that was answered by TNA X-Division Champion Leon Slater. Slater put up a valiant effort but ultimately fell to Hayes. Elsewhere, Jordynne Grace defeated Chelsea Green while WWE Women’s Champion Jade Cargill watched from ringside. A post-match altercation saw Green accidentally strike
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