WWE SmackDown Results: Winners, Grades, Reaction and Highlights from October 2

This week's SmackDown will serve the dual purpose of being both the Clash of Champions fallout show and the beginning of the build for Hell in a Cell on October 25.

Following his big win in an incredible Ladder match on Sunday, Sami Zayn defended his Intercontinental Championship against Jeff Hardy. 

We also saw Kevin Owens make the trip from Raw to host an episode of The KO Show with Alexa Bliss as his special guest. Did The Fiend show up to continue his mind game with The Goddess?

After defeating Jey Uso in a brutal display of dominance at The Clash, Roman Reigns held a coronation ceremony to officially crown himself as the Tribal Chief of WWE.

Let's take a look at everything that happened on this week's SmackDown. 

Friday's Lineup

Here are the segments WWE advertised ahead of Friday's show:

• Reigns holds a championship coronation ceremony.
• Zayn vs. Hardy for the IC title.
• Bliss appears on the KO Show.

The Tribal Chief

After a long and dramatic video package recapped his match from Clash of Champions, Reigns made his way to the ring with Paul Heyman by his side.

Heyman began by saying he was a little nervous. He talked about how he has known Reigns' family since the day the universal champion was born and they all knew this was destined to happen. Heyman said Reigns is not just the Tribal Chief of his family or WWE, he is the leader of the entire WWE Universe.

The Big Dog held out his hand and Heyman gave him the mic. Reigns said he doesn't want anyone to call him the Tribal Chief until Jey acknowledges him as such. He asked for his cousin to come to the ring so he could bend the knee. 

Jey came out and said he didn't know the man standing in front of him anymore. Uce told him that he survived everything Reigns threw at him and never gave up. He claimed the title would be his if Jimmy had never thrown in the towel. Reigns told him The Clash was the worst night of his life because he didn't want to hurt his cousin. He claimed he was trying to help him by putting him in a main event.

Reigns said all Jey had to do was acknowledge him as the Tribal Chief and none of this would have happened. He told Jey that he embarrassed his entire family and broke his heart. He offered his cousin another title shot at Hell in a Cell but said if he accepts, it will have the highest stakes in WWE history. He hugged his cousin and advised him not to accept the challenge for his own good. 

As Reigns began to leave, Uso told him he accepted the challenge no matter what the stakes are. For some reason, AJ Styles came out and berated Uso. This led to Jey taking him out before a commercial break. 

Grade: A+

Analysis

Reigns as a heel has been the revelation we have been waiting for from him ever since WWE strapped a rocket to his back. He is stepping up and becoming one of the best characters in all of WWE.

The performance by Jey and Reigns in this segment was awesome. This storyline is one of WWE's most intriguing and engaging because it involves family drama. 

This segment was another chapter in the story they are telling, and if they continue to make every segment this interesting, Reigns will quickly become one of the most popular heels in all of wrestling. 

AJ Styles vs. Jey Uso

This match kicked off after the break. Styles kept talking trash at Uso and took control with a stiff kick to the gut. He whipped Uso into the corner, but Jey came back at him with an uppercut and a jumping headbutt.

The Phenomenal One avoided him in the corner and scored a two-count with a jumping forearm to the face. He choked Uce against the bottom rope until the ref forced a break. 

Uso countered a Style Clash by dropping his opponent on his face. He sent Styles out of the ring, but when he attempted a suicide dive, Styles met him with a kick to the head. He lifted Uso off the apron in an impressive show of strength to drop him on the announce table with a vertical suplex.

We returned from a break right as Styles hit a backbreaker for a two count. Uso turned things around with a popup neckbreaker. Styles blocked a Superfly Splash with his knees and set himself up for the Phenomenal Forearm. Uce kicked his feet out from under him and delivered two more kicks to the face before climbing the ropes for a big splash to get the victory. 

Grade: B+

Analysis

After the segment we saw at the top of the show, this was a great followup. Styles is known as one of the top wrestlers in the world, and that makes him a valuable asset when WWE wants to put somebody else over. 

Uso has been thriving for the last few weeks, and he looked great in the ring against Styles. They do not have a ton of experience working together, but when you have as much experience as these two, developing chemistry with someone becomes easy.

This wasn't designed to be a showstopper, but it ended up being a great back and forth fight. Both guys had their moments to shine, but it was Jey who came out of this looking like a threat to Reigns. 

John Morrison vs. Otis

John Morrison came out first for a singles match against Otis in their ongoing feud. The Friday Night Delight tried to use his speed to take control early on, but Otis was able to keep the upper hand.

The Dozer took him down for a Vader splash in the corner for a quick win. 

Grade: D

Analysis

This was a match that happened. That is about the nicest thing that can be said about it. Having Morrison job to Otis might have worked with a live crowd, but in this situation, it just made the former ECW champion look like a loser.

The Miz and Tucker's absence was a bit strange. Had they been there, they could have caused some kind of interference that would better justify Morrison losing so quickly. 

Shorty G vs. Sheamus

The next match was just as short as Morrison vs. Otis. Shorty G and Sheamus reignited their feud for what turned out to be their quickest encounter.

Chad Gable avoided one Brogue Kick and hit a suplex before Sheamus recovered and hit two Brogue Kicks for an easy win.

Grade: D-

Analysis

We get it. WWE is not going to give Gable the push he deserves, but how does this win benefit Sheamus? A former multi-time world champion gains nothing from a squash victory. 

This felt more like a way to keep him on television than anything else. If that is all WWE wanted to do, it should have just let him have a backstage brawl or give a promo. It would have accomplished the same goal. 

The KO Show

Owens was in the ring after the commercial and said he might be calling SmackDown his home after the draft next week. He said he has been paying close attention to SmackDown and welcomed Bliss to the show to talk about what she has been going through recently. 

KO said he has seen a shift in her attitude recently, and she said she didn't know what he was talking about. She started talking in a strange tone and asked him if he wanted to be better.

Owens said she is acting like she has been brainwashed, and she said it was true. She said he has cleansed her mind of all the lies. She told Owens to let him in before the lights went out.

A red light came back on and we saw The Fiend in the ring taking Owens down with a Mandible Claw as Bliss sat in her chair and watched with a blank stare. The segment ended with Wyatt and Bliss holding hands.

Grade: A 

Analysis

After two unsatisfying matches in a row, WWE brought the show back up with an awesome segment featuring Bliss, Owens and Wyatt.

The transformation of The Goddess into The Fiend's muse has been a joy to watch. She is killing it with every performance, and The Fiend has been equally good in his segments.

Owens is so good that he can recover from an attack like this in no time. If he ends up moving to SmackDown, The Fiend might even be his first rival. If that is the case, it's smart for WWE to start setting it up now instead of waiting until next week. 

Corbin, Nakamura and Cesaro vs. Riddle, Dorado and Gran Metalik

Two feuds were combined for a six-man tag match, with Matt Riddle teaming up with Lucha House Party to take on King Corbin, Cesaro and Shinsuke Nakamura.

The babyfaces took an early lead. Kalisto came out to join his team as the show went to a commercial. We returned to see the heels dominating the pace.

Metalik hit a DDT out of nowhere to give himself a chance to tag in Riddle since Dorado had already been knocked off of the apron by Cesaro. The Bro and The King came in at the same time, and Riddle went on a rampage.

He almost won with a running knee before Nakamura broke up the pin. Cesaro tagged in and knocked Riddle's head off with an uppercut for a two-count. Everyone started fighting at once, and when Kalisto tried to help, he ended up nailing Dorado in the face with a kick. 

Riddle wound up grabbing Cesaro for the Bro Derek to get the pin for his team. Kalisto congratulated Riddle, but Dorado got into a shoving match with his teammate after the miscommunication. Nothing else happened. 

Grade: C+

Analysis

This match was alright. It kept two different storylines going but didn't do much to advance either. We already knew Riddle and Corbin hated each other, and we already knew Lucha House Party was having issues.

The action was fast-paced and had some fun moments, but the match didn't have much in the way of a steady pace. It was all over the place at different times, but that had more to do with how much time they were given than anything else. These are six good performers who did their best to make a somewhat pointless match seem important. 

Jeff Hardy vs. Sami Zayn (IC Title)

Zayn was taped up on his ribs and shoulder while Hardy held his side as he made his entrance. Both men were selling the injuries they suffered during their hellacious ladder match on Sunday. 

They locked up right away, and Zayn backed Hardy to the corner so he could beat him down with hard right hands. He choked Hardy with his boot until the ref forced him to break. 

The Charismatic Engima fought back with a few punches. Zayn attempted a leapfrog, but Hardy dropkicked him out of the air. The former champion started to build some momentum, but Zayn kept finding ways to turn the tide in his favor again. 

When we returned from a break, Zayn leveled Hardy with a clothesline for a quick two-count. The champion kept the upper hand for a long time, but he was unable to keep Hardy down for the three-count. 

The Enigma countered him on the top rope and hit a huge superplex. After a brief exchange, Zayn sent Hardy into the corner with an exploded suplex. The Great Liberator saw an exposed turnbuckle, but Hardy would not let himself be whipped into it. 

Zayn blocked a Swanton Bomb with his knees. Hardy tried a Whisper in the Wind, but Zayn tripped him, so his head hit the exposed turnbuckle. The champion covered him to retain the belt. 

Grade: B+

Analysis

This was a solid followup to the great Ladder match these two were in at Clash of Champions. Hardy and Zayn are both the kind of veterans who can make any match they are in entertaining, and this was no exception.

For two guys who were in a physical encounter on Sunday, they competed like they were at full health. It speaks to their level of passion for this business. 

Zayn won by using his wits and a little bit of cheating, so Hardy still looks strong despite the loss. Let's hope they both end up on the same brand after the draft, because this is a feud that could go for a couple of months before losing steam.