Friday Night Smackdown preview: Three questions heading into May 27 episode

WWE Friday Night Smackdown comes live from Simmons Bank Arena in North Little Rock, AR, and we’re moving closer to the Hell in a Cell pay-per-view in just nine days.

Whether it’s an extremely important episode or a completely throwaway show that will be forgotten about in two weeks, there’s always questions that surround each edition of Friday Night Smackdown. I’ll ask some pertaining to tonight’s episode.

What is next for the Bloodline?

The Bloodline have fulfilled their destiny and will enter tonight’s show with all of the gold. The Usos successfully defeated RK-Bro to unify the tag team championships, joining their cousin Roman Reigns as unified champions.

So now what?

The trio are standing atop both WWE having conquered every challenger that have crossed their path and one has to wonder who’s next. We’ve gotten hints that we may be headed towards a match between Reigns and Riddle at Hell in a Cell while things are a bit unclear for the Usos in the tag division. We should get an inkling of their next plans tonight.

What is next for Ronda Rousey?

Smackdown Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey wasn’t on the show last week and is still without an opponent or program for Hell in a Cell. She was reportedly supposed to defend her title against Sasha Banks at the ppv but after the latter was suspended for her and Naomi’s walkout last week, those plans were scrapped.

So like I asked last week, I again ask what’s next for the new champ?

With Banks and Naomi out of the picture, the Smackdown Women’s division is in a weird spot. Upstarts like Raquel Rodriguez, Shotzi, and Aliyah have gotten tv time over the last few weeks but aren’t quite ready to step into a full title program just yet. Natalya is a tried and true hand as a veteran but her being named the next challenger would be met with a lukewarm reception. And then there’s Rousey’s real-life best friend Shayna Baszler, who hasn’t been featured as a singles star in nearly two years. The storyline between the two is right there and you could easily lean into their MMA backgrounds. We’ll see how they move with the champ.

Who is the New Day’s mystery partner?

The feud between the New Day and the newly named “Brawling Brutes” stable will continue tonight as they’ll compete against each other in a six-man tag match. Xavier Woods teased the audience last week that he and Kofi Kingston will be aided by a mystery partner in the matchup tonight, leaving a little bit of mystery heading into tonight’s show.

So who is it?

It’s not going to be Big E considering that the former WWE Champion is still in a neck brace and recovering from the career-threatening neck injury he suffered in March. Could it be someone like a Drew McIntyre, who missed last week’s show to promote the Clash at the Castle ppv in the U.K. Could it be someone who has history with Sheamus like a returning Cesaro? Or is it someone completely out of left field? We’ll find out.