Jey Uso has some tough decisions ahead of him. Uso returned to WWE programming for the first time since walking out on The Bloodline at the Royal Rumble. He stood by his brother Jimmy Uso in a tag team title match, secretly met with Sami Zayn and cast further doubt on his allegiance to The Bloodline.
The Usos were scheduled to defend their undisputed WWE tag team championships against Braun Strowman and Ricochet on Friday night. Unfortunately, Jey Uso had been AWOL since walking out on his family at the Royal Rumble in protest of their assault on Zayn. Jey Uso arrived at the final hour to help his brother but that doesn’t mean he is firmly by The Bloodline’s side.
A new No. 1 contender for the intercontinental championship was also crowned in a fatal four-way match between Rey Mysterio, Karrion Kross, Madcap Moss and Legado del Fantasma frontman Santos Escobar.
CBS Sports was with you all night with recaps and highlights of all the action from the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut.
Jey Uso’s clouded allegiance brews trouble for The Bloodline
The Bloodline’s special counsel Paul Heyman opened the show by addressing Roman Reigns’ impending title matches against Zayn and Rhodes at the Elimination Chamber and WrestleMania 39, respectively. Heyman discredited Zayn as a potential world champion, drawing massive rebuttals from the crowd. Zayn snuck up behind Heyman before taking the microphone from him. Zayn warned Heyman that his departure from The Bloodline, Jey Uso’s walkout, Reigns pulling Solo Sikoa in tight and Jimmy Uso’s current absence were signs of the group’s imminent demise. Zayn hugged Heyman and warned him that Reigns need not worry about Rhodes because Zayn will take down Reigns in eight days.
Backstage, Jimmy Uso left his brother a voicemail, wondering if he would show up for the tag title defense against Strowman and Ricochet. Jimmy Uso pleaded for his twin brother to respond in a second voicemail.
Jimmy Uso later expressed his frustration and concern over Jey Uso’s absence from what should be a major tag title defense for the duo. Heyman completely ignored Jimmy Uso, instead wondering why he was left to fend for himself when Zayn appeared in the ring earlier tonight. Jimmy Uso shared that Solo Sikoa was away tonight and asked Heyman to defend the title with him. Heyman insisted that Jimmy Uso would have to compete alone, but Jimmy Uso expressed faith that Jey Uso would arrive in time.
Jimmy Uso entered the ring alone for his tag team title defense. Jimmy Uso spotted his brother in the crowd just as the ring announcer was about to call his name. Jey Uso walked down the stairs to a big ovation from the crowd. The brothers embraced before the impending title defense.
Undisputed WWE tag team championships — The Usos (Jey Uso and Jimmy Uso) (c) def. Braun Strowman and Ricochet via pinfall after Jey Uso hit Ricochet with a top rope splash. Jey Uso and Ricochet started at a ferocious pace countering and dodging each other’s moves. Jey Uso was in firm control of Ricochet for the majority of the contest, fighting with a chip on his shoulder after weeks of tension with his family. A tag to Jimmy Uso allowed Ricochet to take advantage and tag in the monstrous Strowman. Strowman hit the ring like a wrecking ball but it didn’t take Jey Uso long to get the better of his foe with speed and aerial offense. Strowman could have won the match after landing his signature powerslam on Jimmy Uso, but opted to have Ricochet hit a swanton bomb. The delay allowed Jey Uso to recover and yank Ricochet out of the ring before a three-count. In the closing moments of the match, Strowman tried to bulldoze Jey Uso on the outside but crashed solo over the announcer’s table. Jey Uso quietly tagged himself in, Ricochet landed a shooting star press on Jimmy Uso but immediately ate a splash from Jey Uso for a three-count.
The Usos caught up backstage. Jey Uso stated he always has his twin brother’s back. Jimmy Uso asked Jey Uso if he was in or out of The Bloodline. Jey Uso said he was undecided before walking away. Heyman secretly overheard the conversation and approached Jimmy Uso. When asked if Jey Uso said anything to his twin brother, Jimmy Uso denied it.
Jey Uso was spotted walking between production trucks in the parking lot where he ran into Zayn. “The Honorary Uce” expressed his appreciation for Jey Uso walking away from The Bloodline instead of joining in on the group’s assault of Zayn and Kevin Owens at the Royal Rumble. Zayn told Jey Uso that he did not need to go down with The Bloodline ship and that he knows the deep down part of Jey Uso — who fought Reigns for the universal title in 2020 — wanted to see his cousin go down. Zayn closed by acknowledging Jey Uso, who accepted Zayn’s fist bump after some consideration.
Heyman confronted Jimmy Uso to close out SmackDown. Heyman had spoken with Reigns and “The Tribal Chief” noted Jey Uso’s loyalty to his brother, Jimmy Uso. Heyman, on Reigns’ directive, asked The Usos to stay home and watch SmackDown from their TVs next week because sometimes you catch things on TV that you won’t see live. This was a tease that Reigns was aware of Jimmy Uso’s dishonesty and Jey Uso’s meeting with Zayn.
The Bloodline storyline is shaping up to be among the greatest in WWE history. The beauty of it is how the focus shifts from member to member: sometimes Reigns is the star, sometimes it’s Zayn and sometimes it’s Jey Uso. This can only be accomplished because of the care to flesh out characters with subplots. Jey Uso’s allegiance remains clouded: he won’t leave his brother hanging but he’s clearly having flashbacks to his 2020 rivalry with Reigns. Adding to the drama is his respect for Zayn despite the “Honorary Uce” feuding with his family. Fantastic stuff. Also a shoutout to Ricochet and Jey Uso for the phenomenal timing in the closing segment of their tag team title match. Grade: A+
What else happened on WWE SmackDown?
- Drew McIntyre and Sheamus def. Hit Row (Ashante Adonis and Top Dolla) via pinfall after Sheamus cracked Adonis with a Brogue Kick. An ominous video package featuring the Viking Raiders aired post-match.
- Lacey Evans def. Carmen Harress via submission after locking in the Cobra Clutch in a short match.
- Ronda Rousey and Shayna Bazler beat down Natalya in the ring. Shotzi Blackheart checked in on Natayla.
- LA Knight refused to talk about Bray Wyatt or the Pitch Black match in a backstage interview, stating that he was moving on after the Royal Rumble.
- Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez def. Sonya Deville and Chelsea Green via pinfall after Rodriguez powerbombed Morgan onto Green. Authority figure Adam Pearce made the match after being harassed by Deville and Green backstage.
- Moss def. Mysterio, Kross and Escobar via pinfall after hitting Mysterio with an elbow drop. Moss will challenge GUNTHER for the intercontinental championship next week on SmackDown.