Apollo Crews will defend his Intercontinental Championship on SmackDown.
WWE SmackDown advertised Apollo Crews defending his WWE Intercontinental Championship, continued buildup for Bayley vs. Bianca Belair and Roman Reigns in search of his next opponent, which projects to be Cesaro.
Last week’s broadcast of Friday Night SmackDown drew 2.119 million viewers for the fallout from WrestleMania 37.
- April 16, 2021—2.119 million
- April 9, 2021—2.250 million
- April 2, 2021—2.036 million
- March 26, 2021—2.191 million
- March 19, 2021—1.946 million
WWE Friday Night SmackDown—Key Competition
- NBA Friday Night Slate
- ABC’s Shark Tank
Pro Wrestling Bits—Chris Jericho Interview
WWE SmackDown Total YouTube Viewership this past Friday: 4,539,577 views
- Most-Viewed: Roman Reigns Disrespects Cesaro (1,540,995 views)
- Least-Viewed: Paul Heyman Says Cesaro can Face Jey Uso Rather than Roman Reigns (297,859 views)
- Median Viewership: 408,495
WWE Friday Night SmackDown Results—Friday, April 23, 2021
Opening Segment Featuring Cesaro and Seth Rollins
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Daniel Bryan cut the type of main event promo, on behalf of Cesaro, that Cesaro could never cut. That’s why it has taken Cesaro this long to get a Universal title shot.
Roman Reigns’ new double-pin t-shirt is an excellent display of trolling.
Cesaro and Daniel Bryan def. Seth Rollins and Jey Uso
Pat McAfee was fantastic on commentary. At points, having a new commentator shows the viewer the type of silly rules WWE has about words. For example, at one point, McAfee said Cesaro and Rollins hate each other, only for Michael Cole to correct him and say they “disdain” one another.
Cesaro did not seem like he was being positioned as the next challenger to the dominant Roman Reigns. Not only did Daniel Bryan get the win, he instructed Cesaro to swing Jey Uso like Cesaro was Frankenstein.
I have a fleeting feeling that Daniel Bryan may actual turn on Cesaro when all is said and done. He seems way too invested in seeing Cesaro win a world title.
Tamina def. Nia Jax
The announcers were really putting over how much Tamina was being cheered at WrestleMania.
WWE has screwed up and/or released so many women’s tag teams, they need to go back to Tamina and Natalya as No. 1 Contenders for the Women’s Tag Team Championships.
When are Reggie, Nia and Shayna not having problems and internal strife?
Apollo Crews def. Kevin Owens—WWE Intercontinental Championship
Pat McAfee called Commander Azeez the biggest human he’s ever seen, even though Omos is just three nights away.
McAfee was standing up during this match after admitting that WWE officials didn’t enjoy him doing so last week.
The Nigerian Nail is a great name for a finisher.
Sami Zayn was constantly calling out the referee for counting too fast or slow, depending on who was being pinned.
The “Dancing Man” Sami Zayn gimmick is beginning to take on a life of its own.
Rey and Dominik Mysterio def. Alpha Academy
It’s good to see Alpha Academy finally coordinate like a real tag team.
There’s some serious potential in a Rey Mysterio vs. Chad Gable feud.
Roman Reigns Challenges Daniel Bryan, if Bryan Loses he’s Banished From SmackDown
Cesaro looked like he was wearing a life vest that was trying to be a t-shirt.
Roman Reigns challenged Daniel Bryan because “Cesaro isn’t on his level.” If this goes through and Cesaro doesn’t turn on Daniel Bryan, Cesaro never deserves a title shot.