Friday Evening SmackDown aired a pre-recorded episode on Black Friday from contained in the Ball Enviornment in Denver, Colorado, lower than 24 hours away from Survivor Collection: WarGames.
Cathy Kelley interviewed Damian Priest, his face utterly healed however nonetheless embroiled in his feud with Aleister Black, when Zelina Vega (now referred to in on-screen graphics as “Zelina”) walked as much as him. Vega tells Priest that he retains promising her and Black all this punishment, however has he ever observed that he’s on the receiving finish of all that punishment?
Priest laughs and crouches down to speak to her, asking if her “actually actually robust husband” despatched her to inform him that, however Vega says she’s not doing this for Black, she’s doing this for Priest. Black has his thoughts on greater issues, however the final time folks had been speaking about Priest was when Aleister burned his face almost two months in the past. If he insists on extra punishment, she is certain Black could be completely happy to oblige; the 2 wished to indicate him how simple it was for them to get to him. Vega walks off after delivering a sinister giggle, however Priest factors out to Kelley how the extra Black and Vega speak, the much less they perceive.
Priest then notices a well-recognized, pleasant face, and the digicam zooms over to disclose Rhea Ripley, who offers him a hug. With Kelley strolling out to present them time to catch up, Priest asks her if she’s prepared for WarGames tomorrow, however Ripley already is aware of the reply to that, clearly in an excellent temper and assured her group will win. The Eradicator has to depart to be able to go hype up Charlotte Aptitude for her benefit match later, however she needs to run an thought by her former Judgment Day teammate later.
Chelsea Inexperienced, the blue model’s twin Girls’s United States Champion and AAA Combined Tag Workforce Champion, made her manner out for her championship celebration (which was promised final week, however delayed on the final minute) to notable cheers together with her Slaygent, Alba Fyre, alongside her.
Contained in the ring, lined within the flags of Mexico, the US, and Canada, Inexperienced waved and took the mic to deal with her “PatriHOTs”, standing earlier than them not solely to be topped, celebrated, and applauded, however to formally enter her second time period as “our first and fourth, two-time, most harmful” Girls’s United States Champion. It’s an honor to function the best ladies’s champion not solely within the historical past of each WWE and the US, however within the continent of the North Americas.
Asking the followers to lift their voices and flags with a really costly show of pyrotechnics in her title, Inexperienced begins counting down from 5, however earlier than that treasured pyro can go off, the music of Jade Cargill interrupts, and the WWE Girls’s Champion walks out with a vengeance. With Fyre attempting to guard Inexperienced, the redheaded Slaygent was hit with a boot to the face from Cargill. Inexperienced herself barely may get out of the ring earlier than Cargill grabbed her and set her in place to carry out Jaded.
Cargill then walked out and held her Girls’s Championship within the air as pyro went off, irritating each Fyre and Inexperienced, who threw a hissy match within the ring over her celebration being ruined.
Alexa Bliss was backstage speaking to her tag group companion Charlotte Aptitude, who says she has no strain to win the benefit within the ladies’s WarGames match; she additionally mentions that the final time she confronted Asuka, again in 2023, she tore her ACL, promising to tear her aside tonight and calling Rhea Ripley “mate”, however tells Alexa to loosen up when Blisster means that Ripley may be rubbing off on The Queen.
AJ Lee lastly reveals up and says she wasn’t eavesdropping on that dialog. She’s glad that Aptitude is feeling assured and he or she is, too, as a result of it doesn’t matter what occurs tonight, she is aware of they’re going to win tomorrow, saying in a barely extra threatening tone that she’ll make sure that of it. Bliss likes Lee’s angle, and the remainder of the group seems to agree together with her sentiment.
The present returned a bit afterward with Jade Cargill strolling backstage when Cathy Kelley ran as much as her. Questioning why Cargill attacked Inexperienced and Fyre, the roving reporter of Workforce Blue requested the champion if she had an issue with them, to which Cargill stated that she has an issue with anyone who runs their mouth; the assault was an announcement to your complete ladies’s locker room, and if they’ve an issue with it, they will step up and get stepped on.
Cargill stored happening her manner when she bumped into B-Fab. With the 2 former mates being at odds since Cargill’s title win, the champion requested if she had one thing to say, however walked off as The Fab Feminine stated nothing. Michin ran as much as B-Fab and requested if she was okay, not realizing why anyone isn’t checking on Jade’s new angle. The Hardcore Princess lastly says it may need to be her.
Becky Lynch walked into the locker room to speak to her WarGames teammates, reminding Asuka, Kairi Sane, Nia Jax, and Lash Legend to recollect what’s necessary to the group, and he or she doesn’t need to shade anyone, however she’s going to, as a result of there’s just one particular person within the room with regards to a 100% success price at WarGames: herself, singling out Nia and Lash for “0 p.c” and Asuka for “8 p.c”, Asuka having been on the profitable facet with Lynch in 2022, however not getting the ultimate pin, whereas Lynch has gotten the pin “10 out of 10 occasions”, having additionally received in 2023.
Urging the group to depart it to her when the door of the cage is closed, Jax tells Lynch it’s not about her tonight, it’s about Asuka, and her beating Charlotte Aptitude and getting the benefit for his or her group at WarGames. Asuka then briefly talks about how the final time she confronted Charlotte, she was out for a complete 12 months afterward. All the group is in fairly the excited temper, at the least till Asuka yells out for Kairi, at which level The Pirate Princess should go.
Asuka and Charlotte Aptitude then fought in a WarGames benefit match, with the stipulation being that the winner of tonight’s match would get to decide on a member of their group first to enter the cage throughout tomorrow night time’s large showdown.
The match started with Asuka and Aptitude attempting to counter one another’s makes an attempt to lock up. Aptitude was capable of ship three kicks to Asuka, focusing on her facet, stomach, and face, however The Empress of Tomorrow was unfazed, throwing punches and a kick of her personal to The Queen earlier than the present reduce to commercials.
After the break, the present returned with Aptitude and Asuka doing their greatest to proceed countering one another’s offense, however Aptitude rapidly took management climbing to the highest turnbuckle for an tried crossbody, which Asuka rolled by way of and reversed right into a pin that Aptitude kicked out of. Asuka then hit a collection of strikes to her opponent, however Aptitude nonetheless prevailed with a boot as soon as once more. After some extra punches and chops between the 2 ladies, Aptitude hit Asuka with a clothesline and a fallaway slam, incomes cheers from the gang. The 2 stored it at a quick tempo contained in the ring, with each exhibiting the willpower to earn an important victory.
Utilizing a knee to the face of Aptitude, Asuka tried to lock in her signature armbar, however Aptitude was capable of muster up sufficient energy to hit a sitout powerbomb, squashing Asuka flat on the mat, however the Empress kicked out. Annoyed over not placing her away, the motion spilled outdoors the ring, the place Aptitude threw Asuka into the commentary desk. Trying to stroll to try to seize her, Aptitude ducked when Asuka tried to spit her inexperienced mist into her face, as an alternative spitting it into the eyes of the timekeeper, blinding him and surprising her. Aptitude then slammed Asuka head-first into the commentary desk earlier than throwing her proper again into the ring.
Now within the ring once more, Aptitude tried to place Asuka within the Determine Eight, however Asuka stopped it and tried to reverse it into the Asuka Lock. Aptitude was capable of escape the Asuka Lock utilizing her legs to roll by way of, and carried out Pure Choice on Asuka to lastly win the match, that means that Charlotte’s group would be the ones with the benefit tomorrow night time.
Survivor Collection: WarGames airs tomorrow night time on Saturday, November twenty ninth from Petco Park in San Jose, California. Right here is schedule for the occasion, associated programming, and the platforms the place yow will discover it:
Countdown – 5:00 p.m. Jap Time / 2:00 p.m. Pacific Time on the ESPN app and WWE’s social media accounts
Survivor Collection: WarGames – 7:00 p.m. Jap Time / 4:00 p.m. Pacific Time on the ESPN app and Netflix in different nations
Publish-Present – instantly after the primary occasion on the ESPN app and WWE’s social media accounts
Recap: hosted by Megan Morant and Sam Roberts, accessible Sunday on WWE’s YouTube channel
As for the precise matches on the present, right here’s what you may anticipate:
Girls’s WarGames match: Rhea Ripley, IYO SKY, Alexa Bliss, Charlotte Aptitude, and AJ Lee vs. The Kabuki Warriors (Asuka and Kairi Sane), Nia Jax, Lash Legend, and Becky Lynch
Girls’s World Championship: Stephanie Vaquer (c) vs. Nikki Bella
As at all times, make sure that to share your ideas on this week’s episode of SmackDown, plus your Survivor Collection predictions, within the feedback beneath.
