WWE: Changes Made to Fri. SmackDown Show, Naomi Contract Update, Top Dolla on Botched Dive

WWE
WWE
Dec 18, 2022

WWE Reportedly Made Major Changes to Plans for This Past Friday’s SmackDown Show

WWE reportedly made major changes to their original plans for this past Friday’s SmackDown show in Chicago, Illinois, according to Fightful Select.

It was reported that their sources stated that the reason for the changes was due to Kevin Owens being unable to travel to the show, which was described as a “nightmare travel situation.”

WWE officials reportedly had originally planned for Owens to be featured on the show in order to setup his tag team match with John Cena against Roman Reigns and Sami Zayn for the December 30th SmackDown show in Tampa, Florida. WWE reportedly also had planned for Owens to be involved in the tapings for the December 23rd SmackDown show, which was taped following this past Friday’s show.

Both of those plans reportedly were dropped due to Owens’ travel issues causing major changes and rewrites to be made for both shows as a result.

Naomi Contract Status Update

As noted before, Sasha Banks and Naomi have been absent from WWE since this past May due to their current suspensions over a walk out incident during a WWE RAW show in Norfolk, Virginia. Naomi’s contract with the company was set to expire this summer but is currently believed to have been frozen.

Dave Meltzer reported in this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter that his sources stated that WWE officials recently informed Naomi that she has to make a decision soon regarding her future in the company.

Naomi reportedly had originally told WWE officials that she wanted to return and resume working as a tag team with Banks. WWE officials reportedly told her that would not be possible and the options available to her were to either continue serving her suspension at home, leave the company, or return but without Banks.

Top Dolla Comments on His Botched Dive Incident on SmackDown

This past Friday’s WWE SmackDown show in Chicago, Illinois featured a #1 Contender’s Triple Threat match for the Undisputed Tag Team Championship between Hit Row, The Viking Raiders, and Legado Del Fantasma. This match featured Hit Row’s Top Dolla being involved in a botched dive spot he performed on the outside resulting in him landing hard on the apron instead.

Following the match, Top Dolla provided an update on Twitter stating that he is feeling fine and the reason for his botch was due to one of his legs gave out while he leaped for the dive.

In a follow-up tweet, Top Dolla stated that he managed to perform this spot successfully in the past in the indies despite being a lot heavier in weight than he is now.

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