WWE Friday Night Smackdown recap, results and highlights: June 18, 2021

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Bengaluru, June 19: WWE Friday Night SmackDown presented a special edition this week in which a first time ever Hell in a Cell Match went down for the Universal Title on regular WWE TV instead of a pay-per-view.

Also, Commander Azeez made his in-ring debut in a tag team match, while Otis faced Angelo Dawkins in a singles contest and a battle for the King of the Ring crown between Corbin and Shinsuke Nakamura was also in-store on the show which took place at the Yuengling Center in Tampa, Florida.

Check out the recap, and results from the June 18 episode of SmackDown:

– SmackDown kicked off with Rey Mysterio offering a promo from the ring toward Universal Champion Roman Reigns. Rey informed that his son Dominik is lucky to be able to walk after Reigns powerbomb-ed him off the ring to the floor last week.

Reigns and Paul Heyman came out and mentioned that it wasn’t his fault. None of Rey and Dominik is ready for him. He also said what he did to Dominik would be PG in comparison to what he will do to Rey inside that Hell In A Cell structure.

– Intercontinental Champion Apollo Crews and Commander Azeez defeated Big E and Kevin Owens in the opening contest. Crews was neutralized by Owens with a Pop-Up Powerbomb after which Azeez neutralized E at ringside with a clothesline. Sami Zayn appeared at ringside to cause a distraction to Owens allowing Azeez to hit the Nigerian Nail on him for the pin to win.

– Kevin Owens was irate about this loss as Sami Zayn continued to cost taunt him, week after weeks. He went to WWE Officials Adam Pearce and Sonya Deville, asking for a rematch against Zayn. Pearce made the match official for this Sunday’s Hell In A Cell 2021 PPV.

– Shinsuke Nakamura defeated King Corbin in their scheduled match which was contested for the King of the Ring crown. Nakamura went for the third consecutive flying knee but Corbin caught him with a Chokeslam attempt.

Nakamura somehow dodged it and hit him in mid-portion. He ran through Corbin with the Kinshasa finisher for the victory. Per the match stipulation, Nakamura now gets to keep the crown who will now be called King Nakamura.

– SmackDown Women’s Champion Bianca Belair and Bayley had a face-to-face segment on SmackDown before they square off at Hell In A Cell PPV. Bianca wanted their match to take place inside the Cell structure. They got into a brawl where Bayley hit Belair on her face before dropping her with the Rose Plant to stand tall.

– Backstage, Jimmy Uso said that he might not agree with everything that Roman Reigns says, but at the end of the day, they are family. Jimmy claimed that he has not heard from Jey Uso since last week.

He added if Roman would need his help during the title match, he’d be there to help him. Roman replied that he won’t need his help but they both need Jey, as they are at their best when all three of the family members will be together.

– Otis was scheduled to face Angelo Dawkins in a one-on-one match that never took place. Otis and Chad Gable attacked Dawkins before the match bell rang to leave him in a battered state.

– Seth Rollins and Cesaro appeared in a backstage segment with interviewer Kayla Braxton to inform that a rematch between them has been made official for Hell In A Cell PPV. The segment ended with Cesaro pushing Rollins over in his chair.

– Roman Reigns (c) defeated Rey Mysterio in a brutal Hell in a Cell match to retain the Universal Championship during the SmackDown main event segment. Mysterio went for a third consecutive Frogsplash off the top ropes but Reigns caught him with a Powerbomb into the Cell walls.

??????#SmackDown #UniversalTitle #HIAC @WWERomanReigns @reymysterio @HeymanHustle pic.twitter.com/Jwat6HZtDX

— WWE (@WWE) June 19, 2021

“Happy Father’s Day.” – @WWERomanReigns #SmackDown #UniversalTitle #HIAC @reymysterio @HeymanHustle pic.twitter.com/eGyGwoYs73

— WWE (@WWE) June 19, 2021

Reigns brought back Mysterio to the ring and made him tap out to a new variation of the Guillotine Chokehold submission. Jimmy Uso came out after the match to raise Reigns’ hand and acknowledge him. Reigns applied the Guillotine on Mysterio again after the match was over to rag-doll with him. The Tribal Chief kept on talking trash toward his opponent as the show went off the air.

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Story first published: Saturday, June 19, 2021, 11:58 [IST]

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