The full 8-man lineup for the ongoing WWE SmackDown World Cup has been unveiled during this week’s episode. Two Superstars advanced to the second round of the tournament to advance to a championship opportunity in the future.
In the first match of the WWE Smackdown World Cup 2022, Mexico’s Santos Escobar alongside his Legado del Fantasma members, defeated Japan’s Shinsuke Nakamura to head into the next round of the tourney. Then in the second matchup, USA’s Braun Strowman literally squashed India’s Jinder Mahal to move further. Their opponents in the second round will be determined, next week.
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Two more first-round matches will take place on the November 25 episode of WWE Smackdown where Ricochet (USA) will go up against Mustafa Ali (Pakistan), and Sami Zayn (Canada) will go up against Butch (England). The winners of those two matches will advance to semi-final matches against Strowman and Escobar, respectively.
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The semi-finals of the ongoing World Cup will take place on the November 25 episode of WWE SmackDown in Providence, Rhode Island, the night before the Survivor Series premium live event in Boston. The final match is assumed to go down at Survivor Series PLE. The winner of the World Cup will receive a future title shot against Intercontinental Champion GUNTHER.
Next week’s episode of WWE Smackdown will also witness a singles match featuring Shotzi going up against Shayna Baszler. Shotzi won a Six-Pack Challenge on last night’s episode to get a title shot against Ronda Rousey’s women’s title at Survivor Series.
Upon going to the backstage area, Shotzi was congratulated by Emma but she was also interrupted by Shayna Baszler who claimed that Shotzi had just “won a beating of a lifetime” and not a title shot against Rousey. Shotzi promised to “surprise Ronda and the entire world” at Survivor Series.
But with Rousey watching from behind, Baszler then attacked Shotzi and put her to sleep using the Kirifuda Clutch. As a result of this altercation, the two will be meeting in the ring with Rousey watching the back of Baszler at the ringside.
WWE Smackdown November 18 episode match card
The November 18 episode of WWE Smackdown takes place at the XL Center in Hartford, Connecticut. The confirmed match card for the night goes as follows,
– Sami Zayn vs. Butch – World Cup First Round
– Mustafa Ali vs. Ricochet – World Cup First Round
– Shotzi Blackheart vs. Shayna Baszler