Contract Signing & Multiple Matches Announced for 5/17 WWE SmackDown

This week’s edition of Friday Night SmackDown saw a new challenger emerge to challenge Cody Rhodes’ title reign and kicked off the first-round festivities for the King and Queen of the Ring tournaments for the blue side, setting the tone for next week’s SmackDown.

At the start of the show, The Maverick Logan Paul was revealed to be the new No.1 Contender to battle Cody Rhodes for his Undisputed WWE Championship at WWE King and Queen of the Ring PLE in Saudi Arabia. Both men will meet each other next week for a contract signing segment to make their title bout official.

Following the conclusion of the first round of the Queen of the Ring matches, the next matches were announced for the upcoming SmackDown edition. Jade Cargill will compete against The Irresistible Force Nia Jax, while her partner Bianca Belair will battle against the winner of the Michin vs Tiffany Stratton bout set to take place at an upcoming WWE Live Event.

Similarly, on the men’s side, the upstart Carmelo Hayes will collide one-on-one against The Viper, Randy Orton following his epic main event bout against AJ Styles, while the debutant victor, Tama Tonga will compete against the winner of the upcoming first-round match between LA Knight and Santos Escobar.

What are you most looking forward to for next week’s edition of Friday Night SmackDown? Sound off in the comments!