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Charlotte Flair And Rhea Ripley Brawl, TNT Title Match Set For AEW House Rules | WWE SD x AEW Recap

Wrestling
Colin Tessier Mar 18, 2023 2:35AM

Here is your fight size update for WWE Friday Night SmackDown and AEW Rampage on Friday, March 17.

WWE SmackDown

Karrion Kross: There's Something Much Bigger Going On Here Than What's Happening In The Ring

- SmackDown Women's Champion Charlotte Flair came to the ring and noted that the business was built on Rhodes as a challenger and Flair as a champion, and that's where things stand now. She stated that Rhea Ripley couldn't be a top star until she won the title, and that wouldn't happen. Ripley came out and told Flair that the way she looked back at her without fear pissed her off. She called Flair one of the biggest stars in the WWE, but she needed her title. Rhea said Charlotte would learn to call her a champion. Dominik distracted Charlotte, and Rhea dropped her with a cheap shot. The two women brawled until they were pulled apart. Charlotte eventually stood tall and posed with her title.

- Sheamus faced Drew McIntyre in a match to determine Intercontinental Champion's opponent at WrestleMania 39. Before the bell, Imperium (Gunther, Ludwig Kaiser & Giovanni Vinci came to the ring to watch the match. Gunther and his stablemates brought the match to a premature conclusion as Vinci and Kaiser attacked Sheamus and McIntyre. WWE official Adam Pearce then confirmed that both Sheamus and McIntyre will challenge for the title at WrestleMania 39.

- Cody Rhodes opened the show and called Roman Reigns the greatest champion "in sports entertainment alike." He stated that he looked forward to beating Roman Reigns at WrestleMania. Rhodes then called out Kevin Owens. He quickly noted that Sami Zayn was also involved, so he called Zayn out as well. Despite Rhodes' best efforts, Owens still walked away as he claimed that Zayn didn't want to be his friend.

- Zayn chased Owens down in the parking lot and told him they were brothers, and he loved him. Owens silently got into his car and drove away.

- In the final segment, Jey Uso and Sami Zayn met face-to-face for the "Kansas Citty Showdown", and Jey said he never liked Sami. He called Sami a "fake-ass Uce" and said he didn't give him a choice. Sami turned it around by saying Jey did have a choice, and he thinks Jey was mad at himself for not turning on Roman Reigns first. Jey dropped Sami with a cheap shot. They brawled, and when Jimmy Uso got involved, Kevin Owens saved Zayn. He then hugged Zayn as SmackDown came to a close.

- The commentary team announced that two WrestleMania Showcase matches would be on the card for WrestleMania 39. Raquel Rodriguez and Liv Morgan defeated Tegan Nox and Emma in the first qualifying match.

- The Judgment Day (Dominik Mysterio & Rhea Ripley) faced Legado del Fantasma (Santos Escobar & Zelina Vega). In the end, Ripley gained more momentum by pinning Vega.

- After Dominik and Rhea won their tag team match, the young Mysterio talked trash about his father and complained about how Rey wasn't there for him. Rey then came to the ring, and Dominik asked him where he was when he had all those lonely nights when he was a kid. Rey admitted that he hasn't been the best father, and he wasn't always there for Dominik, but he said he still loves his son. Rey said Dominik is his world, but he'll find out that the business is selfish. He noted that he did everything he did so his family could have a life he could only dream of. Rey reminded Dominik that the Mysterio name bailed him out of trouble any time he needed. Rey emotionally said he wanted Dominik to support hiim at the Hall of Fame ceremony. He said his biggest regret was the person that Dominik became. Rey told Dominik he was being disrespectful, and he would gladly "kick his ass" if he wasn't his son. But he made it clear that fighting Dominik would be the biggest disgrace as a father, and it's not worth it. Rey said he would never fight Dominik. The young Mysterio insulted Rey as he walked away and called him a "scared little man."

- Xavier Woods took on LA Knight after a backstage confrontation between the two. He defeated the former NXT star with a roll-up in a fairly short match.

- Later in the show, LA Knight approached Rey Mysterio backstage. He offered to be LA Mysterio and fight Dominik because Rey wasn't willing to. Rey responded by slapping him. WWE announced that Knight will face Rey Mysterio on the March 24 episode of WWE SmackDown.

- In a SmackDown Exclusive, WWE Intercontinental Champion Gunther responded to the news about the Triple Threat match at WrestleMania.

Catch up on our coverage of WWE SmackDown here. For a full review, check out our post-show podcast on our YouTube channel.

AEW Rampage

- AEW announced that Powerhouse Hobbs will defend the TNT Championship against Christopher Daniels at the House Rules event on March 18.

- Taya Valkyrie defeated Ava Lawless in her AEW in-ring debut. TBS Champion Jade Cargill, Mark Sterling, and Leila Grey were on the stage scouting and taking notes. Valkyrie stared Cargill down after the match.

- In a video package, Adam Cole discussed his upcoming return to the ring and teased that he's looking for a technician to remind him how good he is.

- Stu Grayson noted that Evil Uno suffered a concussion and challenged Jon Moxley to a match on AEW Dynamite.

- Powerhouse Hobbs successfully defended the TNT Championship against Rey Fenix. After the match, Hobbs grabbed Alex Abrahantes, and QT Marshall dropped him with a Diamond Cutter.

- With the help of Matt Hardy, Ethan Page, and Isiah Kassidy, Stokely Hathaway prepared for his upcoming match with HOOK.

- Angelo Parker and Matt Menard of the Jericho Appreciation Society defeated the Bollywood Boyz (Gurv Sihra & Harv Sihra). They scissored after the match, clearly taking a shot at The Acclaimed (Max Caster & Anthony Bowens).

- The Gunns (Austin & Colten Gunn) agreed to defend the AEW World Tag Team Championship against Top Flight (Dante & Darius Martin).

- A video package hyped up the upcoming match between Kenny Omega and El Hijo Del Vikingo.

- Don Callis continued his recruitment of Konosuke Takeshita by giving him a warm welcome to Winnipeg.

- Daniel Garcia, accompanied by Chris Jericho, faced Brody King. In the closing moments, Jericho hit King with a baseball bat and seemingly knocked him out. Garcia locked in a dragon sleeper, and the referee called for the bell.

- In a tweet, Kenny Omega commented on his match against El Hijo Del Vikingo.

- Check out the card for the March 22 episode of AEW Dynamite here.

Catch up on our coverage of AEW Rampage here.

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