WWE SmackDown results, recap, grades: Roman Reigns vs. CM Punk vs. Seth Rollins set for WrestleMania 41
Randy Orton vs. Kevin Owens is also official for the two-day extravaganza
WrestleMania 41 is taking shape in new ways. Two blockbuster non-title WrestleMania matches were confirmed on Friday's WWE SmackDown. The one generating the most buzz is a heated encounter between Roman Reigns, CM Punk and Seth Rollins.
The seeds for their triple threat match were planted at the Royal Rumble. Reigns eliminated both of his rivals, but Rollins got the last laugh after stomping Reigns' head into steel steps. Upon his return, Reigns took out both men on Monday Night Raw. On Friday, the three parties officially agreed to settle matters at WrestleMania before going off the air with a chaotic brawl.
The bad blood between Randy Orton and Kevin Owens will also come to a head next month. Owens failed to mend fences with his former tag team partner. Owens and Orton will officially go one-on-one on the weekend of April 19.
CBS Sports was with you all night with recaps and highlights of all the action from Unipol Arena in Bologna, Italy
Chaotic brawl leads to colossal triple threat Mania match
The hotly anticipated meeting between Punk, Reigns and Rollins closed Friday's show. Reigns, accompanied by his Wiseman Paul Heyman, was the first to speak. Reigns elaborated on his actions on Raw. Reigns took out Rollins because Rollins attempted to end his career in Indianapolis. Reigns screwed Punk out of a victory because Punk eliminated him from the Royal Rumble.
Queue Rollins. Reigns' former Shield stablemate said it was pointless to convince Reigns how dangerous Punk is to the industry. There was too much bad blood between the former teammates. Rollins started to prepare for a fistfight before Punk's music hit.
Punk pointed out that neither Reigns nor Rollins had ever beaten Punk without the other's help. He also questioned why Reigns was so upset with his actions at the Rumble. After all, Punk did what he was supposed to do by eliminating his opponents. Punk drew a loud crowd reaction by reminding Reigns that Punk rescued "his family's ass" by aligning with the original Bloodline at Survivor Series: WarGames. Punk thanked his friend Heyman for delivering Reigns on a silver platter before cracking him with a microphone. That kicked off a wild three-person brawl. Security attempted to intervene with little success. Rollins hit a suicide dive on Punk and security members, and Reigns rammed steel steps into Rollins. The show went off the air as security struggled to separate the three parties.
Punk vs. Reigns vs. Rollins is big enough to headline night one of WrestleMania with no title. It's a fresh matchup with three of WWE's biggest personalities and so much source material to draw from. The history between them dates back to The Shield's debut when Punk hired a young mercenary trio including Reigns and Rollins. All three superstars can deliver on the mic and in the ring, not to mention what Heyman can contribute from the sidelines. A high-intensity brawl to kick off a cornerstone match for WrestleMania 41. Grade: A
What else happened on WWE SmackDown?
- Randy Orton vs. Kevin Owens is official for WrestleMania 41. Owens apologized and proposed they reunite for a tag title run, but Orton refused.
- Damian Priest and Jimmy Uso def. Drew McIntyre and Shinsuke Nakamura via pinfall after Priest hit Nakamura with the South of Heaven chokeslam.
- Tiffany Stratton and Charlotte Flair exchanged words in a split-screen interview.
- United States Championship No. 1 Contender Match -- Braun Strowman def. Jacob Fatu via disqualification after Solo Sikoa attacked Strowman. Post-match, Knight saved Strowman from The Bloodline. Fatu and Sikoa argued backstage.
- Piper Niven def. Zelina Vega via pinfall with a crossbody following a distraction by Chelsea Green and Alba Fyre.
- Liv Morgan def. Jade Cargill via pinfall after hitting Oblivian. Naomi struck Cargill with the women's tag team title belt moments before while Raquel Rodriguez distracted the referee.
- Street Profits (Angelo Dawkins and Montez Ford) def. Legado del Fantasma (Angel and Garza) via pinfall Ford hit a frog splash.
- Street Profits vs. Pretty Deadly for the tag team titles is announced for next week.
- Knight vs. Strowman for the U.S. title is announced for next week.
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