CM Punk and Kevin Owens both appear on tonight’s SmackDown from the Xfinity Mobile Arena in Philadelphia, on a show WWE has built around the fallout from SummerSlam.
Owens returned on night two, pinning Sami Zayn in a four-way to become number one contender to Punk’s Undisputed WWE Championship, in his first match in 17 months. Punk retained against Cody Rhodes the night before. Both are advertised, and their first exchange since is the obvious centrepiece.
One match is announced. Charlotte Flair meets Jade Cargill one on one for the first time, a pairing widely assumed would be held back for a premium live event. Both were in the ladder match at SummerSlam and neither won it.
Chelsea Green appears as Interim WWE Women’s Champion, in her first televised appearance since winning the title. She is not defending.
What she says may matter more than usual, because the situation around the championship changed yesterday. Rhea Ripley, the reigning WWE Women’s Champion, announced on Thursday that she has undergone surgery on her right knee. She has been out since June with a slightly torn meniscus and had hoped to avoid an operation.
“Surgery was never a first option for me, but it got to the point that it was needed,” she wrote, adding that she would see everyone down the road. She gave no timeline.
The interim championship was created in her absence, and Adam Pearce had said the interim holder would eventually face Ripley to settle it. Whether that plan survives the surgery is now an open question, and Green is on the show.
Cody Rhodes, Tiffany Stratton, Gunther and Trick Williams are also listed as featured. Randy Orton, who returned on night one to cost Rhodes the Undisputed WWE Championship, is not advertised and has not been addressed on television since.
SmackDown starts at 8 p.m. ET, 7 CT, on USA Network in the United States and on Netflix internationally.
WWE SmackDown card
- Charlotte Flair vs. Jade Cargill
- CM Punk and Kevin Owens appear
- Chelsea Green appears
