WWE SMACKDOWN LIVE RESULTS 2.20.18 Daniel Bryan’s Return Ignites Fastlane Tensions, Gable Shocks Orton, and Ruby Riott Leaves Charlotte in Ruins on a thrilling SmackDown LIVE
February 20, 2018 – Talking Stick Resort Arena – Phoenix, AZ
SmackDown LIVE barreled toward Fastlane with explosive momentum, as Daniel Bryan returned hellbent on revenge, Chad Gable pulled off a shocking main event upset, and Ruby Riott brutally dismantled Charlotte Flair in a devastating contract signing ambush. From pipe-wielding retribution and title implications to betrayals, referee collisions, and locker room brawls, this week’s SmackDown LIVE delivered non-stop action and major Fastlane fallout in the making. With tension rising across all divisions, WrestleMania season may have just found its spark.
Daniel Bryan Demands Revenge — Fastlane Match Set in Fiery SmackDown Opening
The road to Fastlane kicked into high gear with an explosive opening to SmackDown LIVE, as tensions between Commissioner William Regal, Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn, and the returning Daniel Bryan reached a boiling point that shattered any sense of order.
As the SmackDown LIVE theme faded and the crowd settled into their seats, the camera panned the sold-out Talking Stick Resort Arena before settling on the aisle — where Commissioner William Regal made his way to the ring. Dressed in a dark blazer, his expression was equal parts composed and weary. The commentary team noted the physical toll from last week’s shocking attack in the parking lot, where both Regal and Daniel Bryan were assaulted by Owens and Zayn in a moment that left fans stunned.
Once in the ring, Regal raised a mic as the arena quieted slightly.
“Last week… was disgraceful,” he began, his voice low and deliberate. “Kevin Owens. Sami Zayn. You didn’t just attack WWE officials. You attacked the foundation of what this brand stands for.”
He paused as light boos filled the arena.
“This is the road to WrestleMania. But instead of preparing for glory, we’re fighting chaos. And I’ve had discussions with the Board of Directors. Fines, suspensions—”
Suddenly, Kevin Owens’ music hit. The Phoenix crowd erupted into jeers as Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn sauntered onto the stage, smirking like they owned the place. Both wore street clothes — Zayn in a leather jacket and beanie, Owens with his usual KO Fight tee — and they strutted down the ramp, completely unbothered.
The camera cut to Regal, clearly biting his tongue as the duo entered the ring.
“Fines? Suspensions?” Owens mocked, shaking his head. “You should be thanking us, Regal. This show was flatlining until we shocked it back to life.”
Zayn took over, pacing around the ring like a preacher. “The people needed a wake-up call. Last week, we gave it to them. We reminded them that we are the heart of this place. Not Daniel Bryan. Not you.”
The boos grew louder. A “DAN-IEL BRY-AN!” chant echoed throughout the arena.
Regal stared both men down. “You’re proud of what you did last week?” he asked sharply. “Proud of assaulting a man with a history of brain injuries? Proud of jumping me from behind?”
Sami rolled his eyes. “You were in the way, William.”
Owens chimed back in. “Face it. The era of ‘Yes’ is over. The era of ‘Fight and Flight’ is here.”
Suddenly, the TitanTron flickered.
The feed switched to a live shot outside in the arena’s parking lot. A black SUV came screeching into view. The door flung open—Daniel Bryan stepped out.
A massive pop thundered through the building. The camera zoomed in: Bryan was limping slightly, still nursing the bruises from last week’s assault. But what stood out most was the object gripped in his right hand: a steel pipe.
The crowd ERUPTED.
Bryan stormed through the parking lot with fire in his eyes, pushing through security as he made his way toward the arena.
Back in the ring, Owens and Zayn exchanged nervous glances.
The arena plunged into anticipation — and then Bryan’s music hit.
“Flight of the Valkyries” roared through the speakers as Bryan stepped through the curtain to one of the loudest ovations of the night. The pipe still in hand, he stomped down the ramp, his expression a perfect storm of pain and rage.
Owens and Zayn backed toward the ropes as Bryan entered the ring. He didn’t raise the pipe — yet — but stared daggers through both men.
Regal tried to speak, but Bryan stepped past him, microphone now in hand.
“I’m not here for suspensions,” Bryan said, seething. “I’m not here for apologies. I’m not here for fines or legal memos.”
He paused, raising the pipe slightly before letting it drop to his side.
“I’m here for revenge.”
A booming pop echoed around the arena.
Bryan pointed at both men. “Last week, you beat me in the dark. In a parking lot. But I’m still standing. So here’s what I want — no more running. No more sneak attacks. I want one of you in a match.”
Zayn laughed, incredulous. “You’re in no shape to fight.”
Regal stepped in again, concern on his face. “Daniel… this isn’t smart. WrestleMania is right around the corner. You should wait. Heal up. We’ll sort it out by then.”
Bryan turned to Regal, voice rising.
“Why wait for WrestleMania?!” he roared. “Why let these two even make it to that stage? Why reward them with a spotlight after what they’ve done?”
The crowd was red-hot now, feeding on every word.
Bryan pointed toward the WrestleMania sign hanging in the rafters.
“They don’t deserve that. I want them at Fastlane. I want them in Seattle. My hometown. In front of my people. So they can see exactly what happens when you push Daniel Bryan too far.”
Zayn’s face twisted into a smug grin. Owens looked unsure.
“I’ll do it,” Zayn said. “I’ll fight you. And I’ll end you. In front of your family. In front of your precious fans. I’ll put you down for good.”
The crowd erupted with gasps and fury.
Regal stepped back. The decision had been made.
Daniel Bryan vs. Sami Zayn — Fastlane — Seattle.
The arena thundered as Bryan stared down Zayn, steel pipe raised again, daring him to make the first move. Zayn held his ground, Owens slipped to the outside, and Regal stood between them to maintain order — barely.
Bryan lowered the pipe but didn’t lower the intensity in his eyes. The “YES!” chants began to echo through Phoenix as SmackDown LIVE’s opening segment ended not with a fight — but a firestorm of emotion and anticipation.
Main Event Chaos: Gable Outsmarts Orton as Styles Goes Down
As the clock wound down on SmackDown LIVE’s high-stakes main event, tensions among all three men in the ring were about to boil over.
Randy Orton and Chad Gable had gone toe-to-toe in a brutal, highly technical contest for over 15 minutes, and now they were deep into the final stretch. Special Guest Referee AJ Styles had tried to maintain control — but with WrestleMania stakes looming and ego colliding with ambition, the ring was a powder keg ready to blow.
Gable ducked a lariat from Orton, grabbed him in a waistlock, and tried to muscle him into position for the Chaos Theory Suplex — the very move that had stunned opponents for weeks. Orton fought it off with back elbows and spun out of the grip. Gable charged again… but Orton shoved Gable backward, and Gable crashed directly into AJ Styles, knocking the referee to the mat!
The crowd gasped as Styles tumbled to the outside, clutching his shoulder.
The timing couldn’t have been worse — Orton caught Gable by surprise and immediately struck with a lightning-quick RKO in the center of the ring! The Viper made the cover:
1… 2… 3… 4… 5…
But there was no referee.
Orton looked up, livid, slapping the mat in frustration. He rose, walked over to the ropes, and slapped AJ Styles across the face to rouse him. “Wake up! That was three!” Orton shouted, yanking Styles by the shirt and shoving him toward the ring.
The crowd buzzed as a wicked look came over Orton’s face.
Turning back toward Gable — still dazed from the RKO — Orton backed into the corner and dropped to his knees. His fists slammed the canvas. The Viper was coiled, ready to strike.
He lunged forward and charged for the Punt Kick — but at the last second, Gable rolled out of the way, just narrowly avoiding devastation! Orton’s leg hit the turnbuckle pad, and Gable pounced, catching Orton from behind in a deep schoolboy roll-up!
AJ Styles, still groggy, slid in…
1… 2… 3!!
The Phoenix crowd exploded in stunned disbelief as the bell rang. Gable immediately rolled out of the ring, hands in the air, his face a mixture of shock and triumph.
Chad Gable had pinned Randy Orton.
Post-Match Fallout: Styles Hits Gable, Orton Hits Styles — And Nakamura Watches Coldly
Inside the ring, Randy Orton sat on his knees, jaw slack, processing what just happened. AJ Styles, now recovering fully, tried to raise Gable’s hand from the apron — but Gable backed away warily, shaking his head.
Orton wasn’t done.
He stormed over and shoved AJ Styles in the chest. “That was on you!” he shouted. “You cost me the damn match!”
Styles shoved back.
Things escalated fast — Styles launched himself for the Phenomenal Forearm — but Orton ducked…
And Gable ate the full brunt of it!
The crowd groaned as Gable crumpled at ringside.
Styles looked shocked — he hadn’t meant it. Orton seized the moment, spun Styles around, and nailed him with a sudden, ferocious RKO!
The crowd roared in stunned disbelief as all three men were now down — Gable laid out at ringside, Styles motionless on the mat, and Orton standing over the wreckage, chest heaving, eyes blazing.
But then… the mood shifted.
The camera panned up the ramp.
Shinsuke Nakamura appeared on the stage.
Arms folded. Stoic. Cold. Dressed in all black. His eyes locked on the ring — not blinking, not moving.
Orton turned his gaze to Nakamura. Styles groaned, pulling himself up in the corner. Gable began to stir on the outside.
Three men. One title. One stage.
The WWE Championship picture had never looked more combustible — and Fastlane was about to become a battlefield.
Ruby Riott Lays Out Charlotte Flair During Brutal Contract Signing Ambush
Earlier in the night, cameras caught up with Ruby Riott backstage as she approached SmackDown Commissioner William Regal outside his office. With a subtle smirk and an uncharacteristic air of composure, Ruby made a surprising request.
“I don’t want Liv. I don’t want Sarah. Not tonight,” she told Regal. “When I sign that contract, I want to do it alone. Face-to-face. No chaos. No smoke. Just me and the ‘Queen.’ I want her to look me in the eyes when I tell her her time is up.”
Regal, wary but intrigued, agreed. It would be a one-on-one contract signing between the champion and her challenger. No distractions. Or so it seemed.
As the top of the hour struck, the ring was decked in all the usual formalities — black cloth covering the table, Fastlane contract front and center, chairs set opposite each other, and the championship belt gleaming under the lights. The Phoenix crowd buzzed with anticipation as William Regal stood stoically between the two competitors.
First out was the challenger. Ruby Riott, alone, made her way to the ring. No Liv Morgan. No Sarah Logan. Just Ruby — focused, cold, and radiating menace in every step. She stared straight ahead as she entered the ring and took her seat, never breaking eye contact with the ramp.
Then, to a thunderous ovation, the champion arrived. Charlotte Flair, title slung over her shoulder and head held high, walked with the regal swagger befitting a queen. She stepped into the ring slowly, purposefully, circling her side of the table before finally sitting down and setting the title gently before her.
Regal welcomed both women and began explaining the importance of the contract signing, but neither Ruby nor Charlotte took their eyes off each other. There was no microphone needed — the tension did all the talking.
Ruby Riott was the first to speak, her voice cold and deliberate.
“Do you feel it, Charlotte?” she asked. “That thing in your chest right now? That’s fear. Because you know your time is running out. You were born into this. Bred for this. But I’m going to prove that someone who clawed their way up from nothing is stronger than a thousand silver spoon titles.”
Charlotte remained calm, lips curled slightly into a knowing smirk. She slowly picked up the mic.
“You want to talk about fear? Let me explain something to you, Ruby. Fear is watching people like you try to drag this division back down to your level. But I won’t let that happen. I wasn’t given this crown. I earned it every single night. And if you want it… come and take it.”
The crowd roared with approval as Charlotte signed the contract with fierce confidence. Ruby, expression unreadable, calmly signed her name next — then stood up.
Charlotte stood, too. The table remained between them — for now.
Regal stepped forward, hand extended to take the contract — but at that moment, Ruby struck.
Without hesitation, Ruby snatched the SmackDown Women’s Championship off the table and cracked it across Charlotte’s skull with sickening force. The crowd gasped as Charlotte crumpled to the mat, dazed from the ambush.
Regal shouted for order, but Ruby had already flipped the table onto its side and dragged the champion to her feet. With a primal roar, Ruby Riott lifted Charlotte into the air and drove her clean through the wooden table with a devastating Riott Kick-assisted slam, leaving shards of the table scattered across the ring.
The crowd rained down boos as Ruby stood over the wreckage, holding the SmackDown Women’s Title high above her head. Security and referees rushed the ring, but Ruby backed away slowly, eyes never leaving the motionless champion.
No Liv. No Sarah. Just a lone wolf who had made her move — cold, calculated, and utterly destructive.
As EMTs checked on Charlotte and Regal looked on in disbelief, Ruby Riott marched up the ramp alone, her voice barely audible over the chaos: “She never saw it coming.”
Naomi Def. Sarah Logan; Becky Lynch Attacked Backstage
The SmackDown Women’s division took center stage next as Naomi battled Sarah Logan, but before the match even began, something felt off. Cameras cut to the backstage area where Becky Lynch was shown unconscious on the concrete floor. Medical personnel rushed in. No one had seen what happened, but speculation immediately pointed to the Riott Squad.
Furious and alone, Naomi came to the ring with a point to prove. Sarah Logan, accompanied by Liv Morgan, controlled the early moments with rugged offense and hair-pulling tactics. But Naomi fought back with explosive kicks and high-flying agility, eventually landing the Rear View for a clean pinfall victory.
As Naomi celebrated, Liv slid into the ring to attack — but Naomi wisely bailed, escaping into the crowd. She stared daggers back toward the ring, seething with frustration as the Riott Squad regrouped. With Becky sidelined and Charlotte under siege, Naomi might be SmackDown’s only line of defense.
Breezango Investigate Their Disappearance
Backstage, the always entertaining Breezango returned with a new mission: figuring out why they hadn’t been booked in recent weeks. Dressed in oversized trench coats and wielding magnifying glasses, Fandango and Tyler Breeze combed through papers and interrogated passersby.
They accused catering of being “suspiciously overstocked,” hinting someone was hiding there. They blamed “corrupt fashion conspiracies” and even suggested Baron Corbin might be stealing their TV time due to “hair envy.”
The segment was light-hearted and quirky — exactly the comedic palate cleanser needed before the night’s escalating drama resumed.
Baron Corbin Def. Shelton Benjamin; Nakamura Drops a Message
The first match of the night pitted two heavy hitters against each other as Baron Corbin faced Shelton Benjamin in a bruising contest. From the opening bell, it was clear both men were out to prove something. Benjamin used his veteran instincts and grappling prowess to keep Corbin off balance early on, chaining suplexes and knee strikes with pinpoint precision.
Corbin, however, absorbed the punishment and gradually imposed his size and strength. A thunderous deep-six nearly put Benjamin away, and after surviving a top-rope German suplex, Corbin exploded with the End of Days to secure a decisive victory.
But Corbin wasn’t finished. Grabbing a mic, he called out Chad Gable, still seething over Gable’s shocking pin on Orton the previous week. “You stole my moment,” Corbin barked. “I should be in the WWE Title picture. Not you. Not Orton. Me.”
Before Corbin could continue, the lights dimmed and Shinsuke Nakamura’s music hit. The 2018 Royal Rumble winner danced his way to the ring to massive cheers, locking eyes with Corbin. The tension escalated—until Nakamura leveled Corbin with a Kinshasa out of nowhere, dropping him cold. The King of Strong Style didn’t say a word. His message was loud and clear.
Final Three Minutes: Chaos Unleashed as Bludgeons Brutalize Jimmy Uso for the Win
With the Phoenix crowd reaching a fever pitch, the final moments of this combustible six-man tag team match saw all six competitors explode into a chaotic storm of fists, kicks, and chaos both in and outside the ring.
Inside the squared circle, Jimmy Uso and Luke Harper were the legal men, trading stiff right hands and big boots in a gritty slugfest. Jimmy ducked a discus lariat and connected with a superkick flush on Harper’s jaw, staggering the big man. Tagging in Jey Uso, the brothers worked in tandem, delivering a double superkick to Harper that dropped him to one knee. A second wave — two more stereo superkicks — finally floored the monstrous Harper, sending the Phoenix crowd into a frenzy.
Meanwhile, outside the ring, Bobby Roode and Dolph Ziggler had spilled into the timekeeper’s area, their personal war intensifying with every second. Roode drove Ziggler spine-first into the barricade, but Ziggler responded by launching Roode over the barrier and into the front row, both men now effectively taken out of the match.
Back in the ring, Jey climbed to the top rope, signaling for the Uso Splash, but just as he launched off, Erick Rowan yanked him out of the air with a massive bearhug mid-fall, crushing him with a spinning slam on the canvas. The official briefly lost control as Rowan dragged Jey to the floor and tossed him ruthlessly into the steel steps, removing him from the equation.
Jimmy, desperate and alone now, charged back in — but walked straight into the clutches of Harper. One sharp elbow from Jimmy staggered Harper, and a leaping enzuigiri rocked him again. Jimmy hit the ropes, maybe looking for a third superkick — but Harper exploded forward, catching Jimmy with a vicious Discus Lariat that turned him inside out.
1... 2... 3.
The bell rang to a chorus of gasps and boos as Harper covered Jimmy for the decisive victory. The Bludgeon Brothers stood tall — emotionless, destructive, dominant — as Ziggler crawled back toward the ring, grinning like a man who had done just enough to cause damage.
The Usos Lay Down the Gauntlet
As Harper and Rowan stood center ring, towering over the fallen Usos, Ziggler backed up the ramp, motioning that his job was done. The Bludgeon Brothers didn’t celebrate. They didn’t pose. They simply stared, unblinking, into the chaos they had created.
But the moment wasn’t over.
Jey Uso, limping but upright, rolled back into the ring and helped his brother to his feet. Grabbing a microphone, Jey’s voice burned with defiance.
“You want a war?” he growled, staring directly at Harper and Rowan. “You got it. Fastlane. SmackDown Tag Team Titles. The Usos vs. The Bludgeon Brothers.”
The crowd roared. Harper cocked his head slightly. Rowan cracked his knuckles.
FASTLANE 2018 CARD
SEATTLE, WA
MARCH 11th, 2018
WWE CHAMPIONSHIP
TRIPLE THREAT MATCH
AJ STYLES (C) vs. RANDY ORTON vs. CHAD GABLE
THE RETURN OF DANIEL BRYAN
DANIEL BRYAN vs. SAMI ZAYN
WWE TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIPS
THE USOS (C) vs. THE BLUDGEON BROTHERS
SMACKDOWN WOMEN'S CHAMPIONSHIP
CHARLOTTE FLAIR (C) vs. RUBY RIOTT
UNITED STATES CHAMPIONSHIP
BOBBY ROODE (C) vs. DOLPH ZIGGLER
