TV

WWE SmackDown results: Bray Wyatt challenges John Cena to Firefly Funhouse Match


This should be something special (Credit: WWE)

We’re just a week away from WrestleMania 36, and the whole weekend still seems to be up in the air.

Despite reports that Roman Reigns has pulled out of his scheduled Universal Title match with Goldberg due to the coronavirus pandemic – and other talent rumoured to be out for various reasons – SmackDown appeared to be business as usual on Friday.

For WWE right now, business as usual means no fans in an empty Performance Center, but the company is certainly finding its feet as the pacing, presentation and action were all great this week with the whole show being very enjoyable.

The definite highlight saw Bray Wyatt let us into the Firefly Funhouse once again as he refused to listen to the sinister head lantern and claimed his former self ‘failed’ against John Cena six years ago.

Wyatt insisted he has a recipe to beat the wrestler-turned-Hollywood star and mixed it into a blender, with poor Ramblin’ Rabbit dying yet another death as his negativity was thrown in.

Bray sipped the potion and insisted the foes needed more than an ordinary contest as The Fiend called for a Firefly Funhouse Match.

Of course, we still have no idea what exactly that means, but like AJ Styles and Undertaker in a Boneyard Match, it should give WWE the chance to be creative with filming going on in multiple locations this week.

With the freedom they have to try new things for next weekend’s Mania showcase, let’s hope WWE goes all out for something weird, wonderful and utterly bonkers.

The Performance Center itself has a green screen room large enough to fit a ring in, and it’d be great to see that set up and used to its full potential. We’ll have to wait and see!

Best of the rest

At the top of the show, Bayley and Sasha Banks discussed Paige’s Fatal Five Way announcement from last week, insisting it’s not right to pit them against each other.

The Boss didn’t look convinced, but Lacey Evans interrupted them, followed by Naomi as the challengers made their case before Tamina came out and proved actions speak louder than words.

Although it was very paint by numbers, this segment did a lot as everyone got a word in before the Samoan star looked strong as she was reintroduced to the TV audience.

We also got some confirmation that Sami Zayn will defend the Intercontinental Championship against Daniel Bryan next weekend after Drew Gulak defeated Shinsuke Nakamura in a decent but all-too-brief bout to earn his friend the shot.

Mania match making was the order of the day too, as Dolph Ziggler – interrupted again by the mysterious screen glitch – challenging love rival Otis to a grudge match.

In an interesting twist, Mandy Rose objected to the match backstage later on as she seemed to feel sorry for Otis – it’ll be interesting to see where it goes.

There’s still a LOT of mileage left in Heavy Machinery as a tag team, but the feud between Dolph and Otis over Mandy has earned a one-on-one spot at WrestleMania as the fans really got behind the lovable brute.

Elsewhere, the current empty Performance Center situation is forcing WWE to get creative with its storytelling, and that was on show as Elias delivered a song on the raised podium before a sneak attack from King Corbin.

After some Lion King-esque theatrics and some great camera angles, the poor troubadour got thrown to the concrete floor below.

There was a definite change of tone next as Nikki Cross’ charisma shone through on commentary with Michael Cole as she watched her partner Alexa Bliss pin Asuka in singles action.

This week’s repeat was Roman Reigns vs. Triple H from WrestleMania 32, with the latter appearing in the PC afterwards to reflect on his wars with both the Big Dog and Goldberg.

In the main event, The New Day and The Usos fought for a chance at the SmackDown Tag Team Titles but the champs Miz and Morrison – who were hilarious on commentary – jumped both tandems leaving the match a no contest.

Michael Cole interrupted with some breaking news, ending the show on the bombshell that the Mania bout is now set to be a Triple Threat Ladder Match.

Got a story?

If you’ve got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the Metro.co.uk entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@metro.co.uk, calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we’d love to hear from you.

MORE: WWE reveals coronavirus measures as Stephanie McMahon addresses health crisis

MORE: Roman Reigns pulls out of Wrestlemania match with Goldberg over coronavirus fears





READ SOURCE

Leave a Reply

This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this site, you accept our use of cookies.