SmackDown Live Results: Will Roman Reigns Get Punished For Punching Vince?

A week has passed since the Superstar Shake-Up and, as we saw last night on Monday Night RAW, the WWE still has some shaking-up to do.

Andrade and Zelina Vega - who were moved to RAW last week - are coming back to the blue brand. They won't be alone. Aleister Black will also make the jump from Monday Nights to Tuesday. Now that all three are on SmackDown Live, what does creative have in store for them? Andrade defeated Intercontinental Champion Finn Balor last week on RAW and could stake a claim to the title. We'll just have to wait and see.

Roman Reigns was revealed as the big acquisition for SmackDown Live as he took out Elias and Mr. McMahon. But after hitting Vince with a Superman Punch will there be repercussions for the "Big Dog"?

WWE Champion Kofi Kingston will take on his first one-on-one opponent since his emotional win at WrestleMania 35. Shinsuke Nakamura, with Rusev and Lana in his corner, will take on the champ. But with Xavier Woods and Kevin Owens - the Big O - at Kofi's side does The King of Strong Style have a chance at pinning the champion?

In the women's division, Becky Lynch continues to pull double duty as she is expected to show up on SmackDown Live. But she's not here just to drop a promo, she's expected to come face-to-face with Charlotte for the first time since their WrestleMania 35 match with Ronda Rousey.

Will Charlotte stake a claim for the SmackDown Women's Championship? With a division that includes Bayley and Ember Moon there may be a fight for the top prize on the show.

A lot is expected to go down on the April 23 episode of SmackDown Live. Here's everything that happened on this week's show.

roman reigns punches vince mcmahon smackdown live results april 23
Roman Reigns made his debut on SmackDown Live the week after WrestleMania 35. WWE

SMACKDOWN LIVE RESULTS

Opening Segment

  • Shane McMahon starts the show and calls out Roman for what he did to Vince last week. He asks "what kind of man hits another man's father." Shane also says that he didn't just hit his father but the CEO and Chairman of a multi-billion dollar company. He challenges Roman to settle their differences in the ring and since Reigns works for them he has to come out.
  • Roman Reigns comes out and the two are about to throw hands when Elias comes out to distract Reigns. This gives Shane the opportunity to throw punches and the two eventually take Roman down. Elias hits Reigns with the Drift Away for the punctuation.

New Day Interview

  • Kofi Kingston is asked about his upcoming match with Shinsuke Nakamura. He doesn't seem fazed because he's the WWE Champion and Kevin Owens comes out to make sure Kofi and Xavier Woods know he's in their corner.

Finn Balor vs Andrade (with Zelina Vega)

  • Balor pins Andrade.

Elias Promo

  • Elias sings a song and challenges Roman Reigns to a one-on-one match at the Money in the Bank pay-per-view.

Kairi Sane (with Asuka) vs Peyton Royce (with Billie Kay)

  • Sane pins Royce after an Insane Elbow
  • After the match, Sonya Deville and Mandy Rose come out to stare down the team of Asuka and Sane.

Jinder Mahal vs Chad Gable

  • Jinder Mahal is now part of the SmackDown Live roster
  • Before the match, Lars Sullivan comes out and attacks Chad Gable while he's walking down the ramp. He then goes into the ring and takes out the Singh brothers.
  • After the beatdown, Lars says that he's unstoppable before R-Truth comes out. He tries to fight The Freak but Lars eventually gets the upperhand and puts him away.

"The truth is #TheFreak is UNSTOPPABLE!" We couldn't have said it better, @WWEGraves. #SDLive @LarsSWWE @RonKillings pic.twitter.com/Ljubq7Yuxo

— WWE (@WWE) April 24, 2019

Charlotte Flair Promo

  • Charlotte says that the three best performers in the WWE main evented WrestleMania. But she says that Becky pinned Ronda to get both titles and she didn't tap or get pinned. She says that Becky never beat her and calls out Lynch for an explanation as to why she thinks she's the best when she didn't beat Charlotte.
  • Lynch comes out and says that it was "winner take all" and she doesn't make the rules. She also beat Ronda, the woman that Charlotte couldn't beat. Becky says that she didn't pin or make Charlotte tap because she already beat her before, she wanted to beat Ronda.
  • Charlotte says it's an injustice that Becky is holding the SmackDown women's championship without beating her. She says that she's in Becky's head because in Lynch's feud with Lacey Evans she keeps talking about Charlotte.
  • Becky says she's actually in Charlotte's head because Flair has not had a great record lately.
  • Charlotte says that when Becky is done with Lacey she is next in line. Becky says that Charlotte is the web that she can't get rid of and Lynch wants Flair to start from the bottom and give everyone else a chance.
  • Bayley comes out and says she appreciates Becky giving her a shoutout but Becky hasn't beaten Bayley. Charlotte tells Bayley to get in the back of the line. Bayley tells Charlotte it's time she starts earning her opportunities by beating her now.

Bayley vs Charlotte

  • Charlotte pins Bayley after a Spear
  • Charlotte earns a future opportunity against Becky Lynch
  • After the match, Becky Lynch is asked why she would take another challenger when she's already fighting Lacey Evans. Lynch says that she will defend both her belts at Money in the Bank.

Kofi Kingston (with Kevin Owens and Xavier Woods) vs Shinsuke Nakamura (with Rusev and Lana)

  • Kofi Kingston wins via DQ after Rusev comes in to break up the pin. Kofi hit Shinsuke with the S.O.S.
  • After the match, Kevin Owens and Xavier Woods come to Kofi's aid and help clear out the ring. Kofi takes out Shinsuke but when he turns, Kevin Owens superkicks him. KO has turned on the New Day.

Uncommon Knowledge

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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.

About the writer


Phillip Martinez is a game and culture reporter for Newsweek. Prior to joining Newsweek in 2018, he was a reporter ... Read more

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