Bray Wyatt, Randy Orton vs. American Alpha: Winner, Reaction from WWE SmackDown

Bray Wyatt and Randy Orton defeated American Alpha Tuesday on SmackDown Live to become the No. 1 contenders for the WWE SmackDown Tag Team Championships.

WWE shared how the match ended:

Luke Harper appeared ringside at the end of the match to assist Wyatt and Orton, per WWE:

Bleacher Report's Kevin Berge thought this was a big match for American Alpha despite the loss: 

Chad Gable and Jason Jordan beat five other teams in a Tag Team Turmoil match last week on SmackDown to earn the No. 1 contendership, but they didn't have an opportunity to celebrate.

Immediately after eliminating The Usos to come out on top, Wyatt and Orton confronted American Alpha on the Titantron and challenged them to a match, according to WWE's official Twitter account:

The Wyatt Family's eerie message came just days after a dominant performance at Survivor Series that saw The Eater of Worlds and The Viper last as the sole survivors in the men's five-on-five traditional elimination match against Raw.

Near the end of that contest, Orton pushed Wyatt out of the way of a spear from Roman Reigns, which allowed Wyatt to hit The Big Dog with Sister Abigail and win the match for the blue brand.

That seemed to suggest the relationship between Wyatt and Orton was tighter than ever before. Despite that, American Alpha expressed no concern on WWE Network's Tough Talk, per WWE on Twitter:

Wyatt and Orton initially feuded with each other following SummerSlam, but WWE's Apex Predator decided to join forces with The New Face of Fear by turning on Kane.

Orton reasoned that "if you can't beat 'em, join 'em." That has led to a fruitful partnership thus far despite suspicion regarding how long it will last.

Although Orton has been in groups such as Evolution and Legacy over the course of his career, he has always been one to eventually chase individual success rather than committing to the betterment of a team.

His selfless actions at Survivor Series may have signaled the turning over of a new leaf, but The Viper could change course at any time.

That wasn't the case Tuesday, as he and Wyatt proved to be an excellent pairing in defeating American Alpha and establishing themselves as the top challengers for Heath Slater and Rhyno's SmackDown Tag Team Championships.

While Slater and Rhyno have made for a great Cinderella story, the clock seems likely to strike midnight at TLC.

If Wyatt and Orton do come away with the titles, look for American Alpha to continue their pursuit and bounce back despite losing the title opportunity they earned Tuesday.

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