Matches Announced for the Final WWE SmackDown Before Royal Rumble

Two matches have been announced for the Royal Rumble go-home edition of WWE SmackDown on FOX, which will air next Friday from the T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, MO.

SmackDown is scheduled to feature Sonya Deville’s actual return to the ring. She will go up against Naomi, unless her recent shenanigans continue.

After weeks of feuding with Naomi and getting involved in her matches, this week’s SmackDown saw Deville appoint herself as the special guest referee for Naomi’s Championship Contender’s Match against SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair. This ended with Flair getting the win for the second week in a row.

Deville was later confronted by Adam Pearce, and special guest WWE Hall of Famer Eric Bischoff, who agreed that Deville crossed a line. They also said Deville’s issues with Naomi are affecting her leadership abilities, and Pearce agreed to suggest a Deville vs. Naomi match to WWE officials. WWE later confirmed the match.

Deville has been involved in a few bouts as of late, but she hasn’t actually wrestled a real match since losing the “No DQ Loser Leaves WWE” match to current WWE NXT Women’s Champion Mandy Rose at SummerSlam 2020.

Next week’s SmackDown will also feature The New Day’s Kofi Kingston and Big E vs. Madcap Moss and Happy Baron Corbin.

This week’s show saw Kingston bring RAW Superstar Big E to ringside for his match with Moss. Big E and Corbin ended up getting involved, but Kingston got the pin to win. After the match, Big E and Corbin had words and Big E challenged Corbin to come back into the ring. Corbin watched as Moss recovered and took a Big Ending in the middle of the ring.

Big E is working with Kingston on SmackDown as King Xavier Woods is currently out of action with a calf injury. He is expected to be out for another month or so.

Stay tuned for more on next week’s go-home SmackDown. Below are a few related clips from this week’s show: