WWE SmackDown Live Results: Highlights, Analysis, and Grades for January 31
By Grant Mannis
John Cena & Luke Harper vs. Bray Wyatt & Randy Orton
Result: The Wyatt Family win via pinfall.
Rating: 4.0 out of 5 stars
When we return from break, Luke Harper is in the ring and in firm control of the match and Randy Orton. He takes the action to the outside and slams Orton on the announce table, staring down his former mentor Bray Wyatt in the process. The action eventually makes his way back into the ring and Orton tags in Wyatt, which leads to a stare down in the center of the ring. Instead of attacking Wyatt, Harper decides to tag in Cena as we head to another commercial break.
By the time the cameras returned to the in-ring action, Cena was in dire straits. Both Orton and Wyatt would continue to damage the champion, and Cena’s attempts at a comeback were unsuccessful. He tried to tag Harper in several times, but each effort was put down by his opposition. Towards the closing moments of the match chaos ensued, and at one point Harper had entered the ring and attempted Sister Abigail on Wyatt. Orton managed to make the save at the last second, which allowed Wyatt to hit his finisher on Harper. A short time later Orton leveled Cena with an RKO, earning his team the pinfall victory.
A refreshing matchup, this encounter served as a way to both advance the ongoing battle between Harper and the new Wyatt Family, and it also builds towards the upcoming Elimination Chamber match. It was quite surprising to see Cena take the pinfall loss after winning the title less than a week ago, but it does help to further his animosity with Orton. These two probably won’t collide at WrestleMania, however, Orton’s victory tonight certainly foreshadows another encounter between the two.