Austin Theory, not LA Knight, gets the next United States title shot

The United States championship took center stage at the start of Friday Night SmackDown this week, with Grayson Waller attempting to drive a wedge between new champion Rey Mysterio and his LWO stablemate Santos Escobar, whose opportunity he took to win the strap from Austin Theory. It didn’t work, and eventually Theory hit the scene to try to get his title back. That didn’t work either.

Instead, LA Knight showed up to throw out the idea that he wrestles Theory for the right to challenge Mysterio for the U.S. title. Adam Pearce, naturally, went for it.

Knight, wouldn’t you know it, was dominating the match and well on his way to victory when The Miz, who had shown up to hang out ringside on commentary, decided to get involved. The distraction proved enough for Theory to score a roll up pin to set up a rematch with Mysterio.

This ensures a continuation of Knight’s issue with The Miz.

Hey, look at the bright side — it means more trips to Monday Night Raw, at least.

Get complete SmackDown results and coverage of this week’s show right here.