Roman Reigns vs. LA Knight WWE Universal Title Match Set for 2023 Crown Jewel PPV

Ahead of Friday night's episode of SmackDown, WWE officially announced that Roman Reigns will defend the undisputed WWE Universal Championship against LA Knight at Crown Jewel in Saudi Arabia on Nov. 4.

Reigns returned to WWE programming on last week's SmackDown after being away for about two months, and he was quickly confronted and challenged by Knight.

Knight is arguably the fastest-rising Superstar in WWE, and Crown Jewel will represent his first opportunity to vie for a world title during his WWE career.

Reigns has been world champion for over 1,100 days, marking the fifth-longest title reign in WWE history behind only Hulk Hogan, Bob Backlund and Bruno Sammartino's two runs as WWE champion.

The Tribal Chief's return to SmackDown last week instantly made it feel like must-see TV, and Knight's involvement only added to the excitement level for the WWE Universe.

John Cena opened last week's SmackDown with a promo only to be interrupted by Reigns, who warned Cena against trying to challenge him for his title.

Cena said that while he hadn't earned the right to challenge Reigns, he knew someone who had, which signaled Knight's arrival.

Reigns and Knight had a highly entertaining promo battle, and while Knight was looking for a fight, Reigns walked away without incident.

Knight went on to beat Bloodline member Solo Sikoa in the main event of SmackDown, which set the stage for Friday's announcement of Reigns vs. Knight at Crown Jewel.

Over the past several months, Knight has become hugely popular with the WWE fanbase, and it has led the company to slowly but surely push him toward the top of the card.

Knight won a battle royal at SummerSlam, beat The Miz at Payback and teamed with Cena to defeat Sikoa and Jimmy Uso at Fastlane, but Crown Jewel will undoubtedly be the biggest match of the 40-year-old veteran's career thus far.

While the expectation is that Reigns will win at Crown Jewel since WWE seems to be building toward a Reigns vs. Cody Rhodes rematch at WrestleMania 40, Knight still has a chance to reach the next level and stay there with a strong performance against Reigns, regardless of the result.

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