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This week's WWE SmackDown was far from perfect but still managed to create some intrigue ahead of Elimination Chamber 2021.
The show opened with WWE official Adam Pearce coming out to the ring and saying that Roman Reigns will be defending his Universal Championship inside the Elimination Chamber at the pay-per-view. Reigns, accompanied by Paul Heyman and Jey Uso, made his way out to confront Pearce.
Heyman said although The Tribal Chief's contract indicates he has to defend his title at the pay-per-view, it doesn't necessarily have to be inside the Chamber. Pearce then booked an Elimination Chamber match, the winner of which will face Reigns later on the same night. He announced that Jey Uso and Kevin Owens had directly qualified for the bout, while the other four participants would be determined by the end of the night.
In the first qualifying match of this week's WWE SmackDown, Sami Zayn and Baron Corbin defeated the father-son duo of Rey and Dominik Mysterio to make their way into SmackDown's Chamber bout. While it's hard to imagine either Zayn or Corbin winning inside the Elimination Chamber, they seem like logical inclusions into the match, considering their positions on the roster.
Big E defended his Intercontinental Championship against Shinsuke Nakamura on this week's WWE SmackDown. Before the match began, Apollo Crews confronted Big E and demanded another shot at the title, but the champion asked him to leave. However, Crews ended up interfering in the match, ending it in disqualification. It seems like the two are far from done with each other, with Nakamura also in the mix now.
Seth Rollins returned to this week's WWE SmackDown and said being a father has made him a better man. He praised all the members of the roster standing on the ringside area and said he wants to be like a father-figure and mentor to all of them. The WWE Superstars were not flattered and chose to walk away.
Only Cesaro stood there, but even he proceeded to walk away. However, The Swiss Cyborg was attacked by a visibly furious Rollins. Daniel Bryan came to the rescue of Cesaro. By the looks of it, a short-term rivalry between Cesaro and Rollins, followed by Rollins vs. Bryan at WrestleMania 37, seems to be on the cards.
Bayley defeated Liv Morgan on WWE SmackDown, with Billie Kay yet again causing an unintentional distraction. The story seems to be going nowhere on the show, and the only surprising outcome could be that Kay is secretly working with Bayley all along. Next, Street Profits defeated Otis and Gable in a seemingly inconsequential bout that did neither of the teams any favors.
WWE SmackDown Women's Champion Sasha Banks and Royal Rumble winner Bianca Belair yet again went face-to-face on this week's WWE SmackDown. However, the two were interrupted by WWE Women's Tag Team Champions Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler. Jax and Baszler said nobody cares about who Bianca challenges at WrestleMania 37. Soon enough, the four got into a brawl. WWE is using the same tried and tested trope of babyfaces tagging along with each other before their eventual clash in the story.
Cesaro and Daniel Bryan qualify for the Elimination Chamber match in the main event of WWE SmackDown
In the main event of this week's WWE SmackDown, Cesaro and Daniel Bryan defeated SmackDown Tag Team Champions Bobby Roode and Dolph Ziggler. Post-match, all the competitors of SmackDown's Elimination Chamber match showed up, and a massive brawl ensued. Kevin Owens was the last one to show up, and he took everyone down with a couple of Stunners.
He then sat on a chair and spoke to Reigns through the camera, as the Universal Champion watched the proceedings from backstage. As great as the Elimination Chamber bout and the eventual Universal Championship match will be, it doesn't seem like Reigns will be dropping his title any time before WrestleMania 37.
That said, let's look at how the Twitterati reacted to this week's WWE SmackDown. Do share your thoughts in the comments section below.
