Styles officially announce in the ring that the U.S. Open challenge was back on. Owens' music hit immediately, and while Styles said Owens already had his chances, Owens refused to accept that he lost at SummerSlam. "A McMahon screwed a legendary Canadian out of a title once again," he said, referring to the Montreal Screwjob 20 years ago. This brought out McMahon, who said the result was fair and final but had to sit and listen to Owens argue his point. Styles then called Owens "a whiny ass little bitch" and offered another title opportunity tonight, promising to shut Owens up for good. Owens refused to accept the match unless he could pick his own referee, which Styles and McMahon eventually agreed to as long as Owens understood it was his last shot at the U.S. title as long as Styles is the champion. The Singh Brothers announced Mahal's presence, who cut a promo about his value to the brand. The general manager said all he saw was a champion who can't win without the Singhs, so Mahal called Bryan a xenophobe. Bryan then set a match between Shinsuke Nakamura and the Singhs for later in the night.
Owens approached Zayn, saying he was hoping to find him backstage. Reminding Zayn that they have 15 years together in the industry, he said Zayn is the only one he can actually trust despite their recent problems. "Sometimes, I think we've been fighting for so long, I forget what we're even fighting about," Zayn responded. Owens countered by saying, since coming to SmackDown Live, Zayn hasn't really been doing much of anything, but he could do something that counts tonight by refereeing the match.
Bobby Roode def. Aiden English via pinfall: Glorious! Roode interrupted English's singing and received a tremendous ovation from the crowd. Roode hit a blockbuster and kicked out of the Director's Cut from English before hitting his Glorious DDT for the easy victory. After the match, Roode congratulated McMahon and Bryan for "breaking the bank" and signing him. "If you don't know by now, you're about to find out that everything that I touch and everything that I do is big box office. In a New York minute, SmackDown Live went from being great to being absolutely ... glorious."
Bryan explained to Gable that he did not simply send Jason Jordan over to Raw for nothing, he made a deal with GM Kurt Angle in exchange for Angle's helping Bryan sign one of Angle's friends. The SmackDown GM then introduced Shelton Benjamin, saying he would be a great tag team partner for Gable. "Shelton Benjamin? This is so sick!" said Gable, who immediately took to Benjamin due to their Minnesota connection. Bryan offered a match next week, which Gable immediately accepted as Benjamin looked a little tentative.Owens brought Zayn a referee shirt, which Zayn rejected while telling Owens that he reflected on the request and remembered all the times he had been stabbed in the back.
The Usos def. The Hype Bros via pinfall: Zach Ryder and Mojo Rawley certainly got their fair share of offense and were put over for most of the match, but a quick distraction by Jey Uso allowed Jimmy Uso to hit a superkick on a kneeling Ryder for the win. The Usos then grabbed a couple mics and cut a promo on the entire tag team division. New Day was nowhere to be seen.
Shinsuke Nakamura def. The Singh Brothers via submission in a handicap match: The Singhs worked in their dress clothes, and Nakamura quickly picked up a win with a triangle choke. Mahal attacked Nakamura after the match, but Nakamura quickly turned the tables and hit the WWE champion with Kinshasa to knock him out cold in the middle of the ring.
Though the off-duty Fashion Police offered to officiate the match for Owens, he refused. Owens had second thoughts after his dismissal but was stopped by Corbin, who said he would referee the contest as long as he got a guaranteed U.S. title match if Owens won. The challenger agreed.
Becky Lynch & Naomi def. Natalya & Carmella via pinfall: Natalya hit the ring before the match to cut a promo about her title win, and Carmella soon followed with one of her own about the Money in the Bank briefcase. At one point during the match, Carmella jumped off the apron to leave Natalya to fend for herself, but she soon returned with briefcase in hand. Natalya eventually blind-tagged a distracted Carmella, who was hit with a Beck-sploder suplex and Naomi's split-legged moon sault.
In a sarcastic shoot-style promo, Ziggler said he was thrilled to be returning to SmackDown Live with a backstage segment and that he now knows what it takes to be a star in WWE -- singing, playing guitar, rapping, lights, a fancy robe and a valet. Lana, who was back wearing a version of her suit, promised Snuka that her journey to the women's championship begins next week. As for this week, she tasked Snuka with visualizing all of her haters as motivation. "The ravishing reign of terror begins ... and it will not stop until you become champion," she said.Styles would not guarantee Corbin the same title shot Owens did, but he noted that the U.S. Open challenge would be held every week and Corbin could step up to the plate any time he wants.
United States Championship -- AJ Styles (c) def. Kevin Owens via pinfall to retain the title: Controversy began midway through the match when Corbin, the special guest referee, forced a break of the Calf Crusher after Owens' fingers brushed the bottom rope. Styles took exception to this and argued with Corbin; Owens eventually ran Styles into Corbin, who proceeded to give Owens a pair of fast counts. This led McMahon to run down to the ring to debate with Corbin, allowing Owens the opportunity to hit a low blow on Styles behind Corbin's back. Corbin attempted to count to three, so McMahon pulled him out of the ring by his leg. An angry Corbin took off the referee jersey and gave it to McMahon, enraging Owens. Back in the ring, Styles snapped Owens' neck over the top rope and hit the Phenomenal Forearm with McMahon counting to three.An exasperated Owens could not believe what unfolded after the match and stared blankly at the ring, which still contained Styles and McMahon. He will no longer receive a U.S. title match as long as Styles is the champion.
Owens approached Zayn, saying he was hoping to find him backstage. Reminding Zayn that they have 15 years together in the industry, he said Zayn is the only one he can actually trust despite their recent problems. "Sometimes, I think we've been fighting for so long, I forget what we're even fighting about," Zayn responded. Owens countered by saying, since coming to SmackDown Live, Zayn hasn't really been doing much of anything, but he could do something that counts tonight by refereeing the match.
Bobby Roode def. Aiden English via pinfall: Glorious! Roode interrupted English's singing and received a tremendous ovation from the crowd. Roode hit a blockbuster and kicked out of the Director's Cut from English before hitting his Glorious DDT for the easy victory. After the match, Roode congratulated McMahon and Bryan for "breaking the bank" and signing him. "If you don't know by now, you're about to find out that everything that I touch and everything that I do is big box office. In a New York minute, SmackDown Live went from being great to being absolutely ... glorious."
Bryan explained to Gable that he did not simply send Jason Jordan over to Raw for nothing, he made a deal with GM Kurt Angle in exchange for Angle's helping Bryan sign one of Angle's friends. The SmackDown GM then introduced Shelton Benjamin, saying he would be a great tag team partner for Gable. "Shelton Benjamin? This is so sick!" said Gable, who immediately took to Benjamin due to their Minnesota connection. Bryan offered a match next week, which Gable immediately accepted as Benjamin looked a little tentative.Owens brought Zayn a referee shirt, which Zayn rejected while telling Owens that he reflected on the request and remembered all the times he had been stabbed in the back.
The Usos def. The Hype Bros via pinfall: Zach Ryder and Mojo Rawley certainly got their fair share of offense and were put over for most of the match, but a quick distraction by Jey Uso allowed Jimmy Uso to hit a superkick on a kneeling Ryder for the win. The Usos then grabbed a couple mics and cut a promo on the entire tag team division. New Day was nowhere to be seen.
Shinsuke Nakamura def. The Singh Brothers via submission in a handicap match: The Singhs worked in their dress clothes, and Nakamura quickly picked up a win with a triangle choke. Mahal attacked Nakamura after the match, but Nakamura quickly turned the tables and hit the WWE champion with Kinshasa to knock him out cold in the middle of the ring.
Though the off-duty Fashion Police offered to officiate the match for Owens, he refused. Owens had second thoughts after his dismissal but was stopped by Corbin, who said he would referee the contest as long as he got a guaranteed U.S. title match if Owens won. The challenger agreed.
Becky Lynch & Naomi def. Natalya & Carmella via pinfall: Natalya hit the ring before the match to cut a promo about her title win, and Carmella soon followed with one of her own about the Money in the Bank briefcase. At one point during the match, Carmella jumped off the apron to leave Natalya to fend for herself, but she soon returned with briefcase in hand. Natalya eventually blind-tagged a distracted Carmella, who was hit with a Beck-sploder suplex and Naomi's split-legged moon sault.
In a sarcastic shoot-style promo, Ziggler said he was thrilled to be returning to SmackDown Live with a backstage segment and that he now knows what it takes to be a star in WWE -- singing, playing guitar, rapping, lights, a fancy robe and a valet. Lana, who was back wearing a version of her suit, promised Snuka that her journey to the women's championship begins next week. As for this week, she tasked Snuka with visualizing all of her haters as motivation. "The ravishing reign of terror begins ... and it will not stop until you become champion," she said.Styles would not guarantee Corbin the same title shot Owens did, but he noted that the U.S. Open challenge would be held every week and Corbin could step up to the plate any time he wants.
United States Championship -- AJ Styles (c) def. Kevin Owens via pinfall to retain the title: Controversy began midway through the match when Corbin, the special guest referee, forced a break of the Calf Crusher after Owens' fingers brushed the bottom rope. Styles took exception to this and argued with Corbin; Owens eventually ran Styles into Corbin, who proceeded to give Owens a pair of fast counts. This led McMahon to run down to the ring to debate with Corbin, allowing Owens the opportunity to hit a low blow on Styles behind Corbin's back. Corbin attempted to count to three, so McMahon pulled him out of the ring by his leg. An angry Corbin took off the referee jersey and gave it to McMahon, enraging Owens. Back in the ring, Styles snapped Owens' neck over the top rope and hit the Phenomenal Forearm with McMahon counting to three.An exasperated Owens could not believe what unfolded after the match and stared blankly at the ring, which still contained Styles and McMahon. He will no longer receive a U.S. title match as long as Styles is the champion.
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