With a truly phenomenal WrestleMania weekend in the rear-view mirror, the WWE have now set their fights on the future.
In the past week, Charlotte Flair discovered her opponent for next month’s premium live event, WrestleMania Backlash, while Roman Reigns and The Usos appeared to snuff out any challenge from Shinsuke Nakamura this past Friday on SmackDown.
There was also some exciting news for the company’s British fans, as Scotland's Drew McIntyre saw his dream become a reality.
Here are some of the biggest talking points from the last week in WWE...
Ronda Rousey vs Charlotte Flair rematch set
‘The Queen’ retained her SmackDown women’s championship at WrestleMania against Ronda Rousey by the skin of her teeth. The former UFC star was true to her word and made her opponent tap out after locking in the devastating armbar submission manoeuvre, but the referee didn't see it after a Flair previously knocked him down.
Ronda went to pull up the official but while her back was turned, Flair struck her with a big boot and picked up the win. On Friday’s episode of SmackDown, a fuming Rousey demanded a rematch, but with the stipulation of ‘I Quit’.
The brash and cocky Flair appeared backstage and declined the challenge with the savage remark of “Get to the back of the line, b****.” Later on Smackdown, Rousey got in the face of WWE Official Adam Pearce to make it known that she wanted a title shot. Pearce said that it was under consideration.
WWE officials then made the Flair-Rousey match official during Saturday's episode of Talking Smack on the WWE Network and it will indeed be an “I Quit Match” for the Smackdown Women’s Title.
Drew McIntyre’s wish came true
WWE fans in the UK have dreamt of a major show to be hosted on British shores ever since SummerSlam emanated from the old Wembley Stadium in 1992. Three decades later, a bombshell announcement was made as the company confirmed a stadium show will take place at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff, Wales on September 3, 2022.
Former WWE champion Drew McIntyre had been pushing for a significant event to be held in the UK. During the WWE’s UK tour last September, the 2020 Royal Rumble winner said: “We’re going to get this UK pay-per-view one way or another, I’m just going to keep saying it and saying it until it happens", he declared.
“Then I’ll be able to say ‘there we go’. Big thing off the bucket list would be that UK show.” He was thrilled with the news and tweeted earlier: “2 years ago I became WWE Champion and made it my mission to bring a major show to the UK… WE DID IT!!!”
A name for Cardiff’s September show has yet to be released, but fans interested in an exclusive presale opportunity can register at https://wwe.com/cardiff-2022-presale .
The Bloodline takes out Shinsuke Nakamura
Last week’s episode of SmackDown ended with the WWE Undisputed Universal champion Roman Reigns in the ring, accompanied by SmackDown tag champs The Usos and Paul Heyman. After a monumental win over Brock Lesnar to take the WWE title and unify it with his Universal championship, The Tribal Chief was set to tell fans what his next steps were.
The Head of Table bragged about his accomplishments and claimed he’s “done it all," before turning to his cousins. He demanded they go to Raw and win the RAW tag team titles from RK-Bro, meaning both he and the Usos would have two championships each.
However, they were interrupted by Shinsuke Nakamura, who lost his tag partner Rick Boogs to a quadricep injury during their defeat to the twins at WrestleMania. Before he could even speak, he was stopped by Reigns who chose to hug him, to the surprise of the former intercontinental champion.
It was all part of his ploy as the Usos delivered a devastating double superkick to Nakamura, completely dismissing any potential challenge. The trio then hoisted their championships in the air, but something tells me that won’t be the last we have seen of Nakamura and Reigns in the ring together.
