Hold onto your crowns, folks! Friday night’s “WWE SmackDown” served up a royal feast of drama, grit, and chair shots as the Queen of the Ring tournament quarterfinals unfolded. With Saudi Arabia’s premium live event just over the horizon, Bianca Belair and Nia Jax emerged victorious, inching closer to that coveted crown.
Match 1: Tiffany Stratton vs. Bianca Belair – The Knee-Crunching Clash
The night kicked off with a high-octane match between Tiffany Stratton and Bianca Belair. Stratton, riding high from her victory over Michin, aimed to exploit Belair’s injured knee like a politician exploits a photo-op. Despite some eye gouging and a strategic shove to her tweaked knee, Belair turned the tables on Stratton’s Prettiest Moonsault Ever, reversing it into a K.O.D for a triumphant win. In a post-match interview with Cathy Kelly, Belair, channeling her inner gladiator, declared that no injury would derail her quest for the throne.
Match 2: Nia Jax vs. Jade Cargill – The Rumble Rematch Redux
Next, Nia Jax and Jade Cargill reignited their fierce rivalry from the 2024 Women’s Royal Rumble. The match took a wild turn when Jax, never one to play nice, began taunting Cargill’s daughter in the front row. Cargill, seeing red, snapped and unleashed a chair-wielding fury on Jax, earning herself a disqualification in the process. This marked Cargill’s first official loss in WWE, but the carnage didn’t stop there. The two powerhouses brawled from the ring to the ramp, leaving a trail of chaos in their wake.
The Road Ahead: Semi-Finals and Beyond
With their victories, Jax and Belair are set to clash in the semi-finals of the Queen of the Ring tournament. The exact date for their showdown remains a mystery, but the winner will face off against either Lyra Valkyria or IYO SKY in Saudi Arabia on May 25.
So, brace yourselves for more mayhem, melodrama, and majestic maneuvers as the Queen of the Ring tournament races towards its epic conclusion!