WWE SmackDown results, recap, grades: Bianca Belair vs. Sasha Banks set for SummerSlam

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WWE

The SummerSlam card continues to come together with two major matches made official during SmackDown on Friday night. The most notable of those matches is a WrestleMania rematch between SmackDown women's champion Bianca Belair and former champion Sasha Banks.

Belair offered Banks the opportunity for a title shot one week after Banks' return to SmackDown and subsequent attack on the champion. Once again proving her dominance, Belair capped off her night by defeating Zelina Vega in a non-title match.

Another SummerSlam challenge was accepted on Friday, with Edge managing to get under Seth Rollins' skin enough to accept a meeting on Aug. 21. The match will be the first-ever one-on-one match between Rollins and Edge.

CBS Sports was with you all night with recaps and highlights of all the action from Amalie Arena in Tampa.

Bianca Belair vs. Sasha Banks set for SummerSlam

Sasha Banks opened the show with an in-ring promo, explaining her attack on Bianca Belair last week. Banks took credit for Belair's success, saying Belair would be nothing without her. This drew Belair out from the back. Belair said Banks begged her to face her at WrestleMania so they could make history before disappearing for four months when Belair beat her and took the SmackDown women's championship. Belair said that if Banks wanted a shot to get the belt back, she could get it. This brought Zelina Vega to the ring, with Vega saying Belair had accepted her challenge last week. Belair said Banks would get her shot at SummerSlam and Vega would get hers later in the show.

Bianca Belair def. Zelina Vega via pinfall with the Kiss of Death. Vega was told by Adam Pearce and Sonya Deville that she couldn't get a title shot on short notice without time to promote the match so the match was not for the title. As Belair was dominating the match, Banks' music hit and she began to walk to the ring. The distraction allowed Vega to turn the tables. That momentum did not last long before Belair was able to take back over before hitting the Kiss of Death for the win.

Belair vs. Banks makes more sense than anything else for Belair, which speaks both to Banks' status in the company and the lack of any other challenger having been properly built for the spot. In Vega's case, she has not won a match since returning to WWE but still acting as a potential challenger for the title. Also, it's a little hard to wrap one's mind around the call that they couldn't award Vega a title shot on the show because there wasn't time to promote it, which is never a consideration in other situations. But why apply logic or expect consistency. At least we're set for another classic between Belair and Banks. Grade: C

Finn Balor's sights remain fixed on Roman Reigns

Paul Heyman was interviewed backstage, saying that John Cena's contract to face Roman Reigns for the universal championship was meritless as the contract was intended for Finn Balor. Heyman asked if he would have a legitimate contract for $75 million if he attacked Tom Brady and signed his Tampa Bay Buccaneers contract in his place. Due to the absurdity of the situation, Reigns had nothing to say about Cena's contract, Heyman said.

Finn Balor def. Baron Corbin via pinfall after a Coup De Grace. Corbin apologized to Balor for ruining his SummerSlam contract last week, an apology Balor rejected. After the quick match, Balor said he wouldn't sit back and smile about the situation and that he'd run through John Cena to get his match with Roman Reigns, just name the time and place. This brought out Reigns. Reigns said he understands Balor's frustration, especially with Cena, but that he needs to remember that Reigns tried to give him an opportunity and that Balor needed to keep Reigns' name out of his mouth. Balor shoved Reigns from the ring only to be jumped from behind by The Usos. Balor fought back, taking out both Usos and drawing Reigns back to the ring. Balor took the fight to Reigns but was again attacked by the Usos, this time the numbers proving too great as Reigns posed over Balor's body as the show went off the air.

Heyman's points about the Cena situation were legitimate, which always helps a promo carry some weight. Of course, it doesn't actually matter because it's not like WWE is going to make the situation anything but an annoyance for Reigns. Balor continuing to hunt for his shot at Reigns and revenge on Cena is the right decision and sets them up with something meaningful beyond SummerSlam, though there is a risk of Reigns' act running out of steam is he cuts through the rest of the babyfaces in the locker room without suffering a legitimate setback sometime soon. Grade: B

What else happened on WWE SmackDown?

  • Jey Uso def. Dominik Mysterio via pinfall after a top-rope splash. Jimmy Uso provided interference from the outside throughout the match, helping the Usos build momentum ahead of their title defense against the Mysterios at SummerSlam.
  • Shinsuke Nakamura def. Apollo Crews via disqualification after interference from Commander Azeez. As has become routine in Crews' matches, Azeez made the save for the DQ as soon as it seemed Crews was about to lose.
  • Tegan Nox def. Tamina via pinfall with a roll-up. Shotzi Blackheart shot a missile from her tank that caused a distraction to allow Nox to score the pin.
  • Edge and Seth Rollins agreed to wrestle at SummerSlam. Edge laid down the challenge, which Rollins (appearing remotely) blew off, saying he'd consider it. Edge continued to push, saying Rollins was trying to follow in his footsteps but was really just "Edge-lite," pushing Rollins over the edge before he accepted Edge's challenge.
  • Montez Ford def. Dolph Ziggler via pinfall after a frog splash.
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