WWE SmackDown Live Results, Highlights, and Grades for March 26, 2019

After the gauntlet was announced, things went backstage where Becky Lynch was being interviewed about being the main event of WrestleMania. As she began to call out Charlotte Flair for being an undeserving “third-wheel” in the rivalry between Lynch and Ronda Rousey, the interview itself was interrupted by The Queen. Flair made her way to the ring, getting on the microphone to explain she was going to prove how deserving she is.

Her opponent, SmackDown Women’s Champion Asuka, made her way to the ring and it initially looked like we’d get a non-title match between these two championship level talents, but that wasn’t the case. Somehow, Flair had swung herself a title match, and it was announced this would be for the SmackDown Women’s Championship.

Grade: A, This felt REALLY out of nowhere. A proper swerve, and one that makes this title match feel extremely consequential. This short setup was great.

SmackDown Women’s Championship Match: Asuka (c) vs. Charlotte Flair

Commentary did a great job of emphasizing early just how spontaneous and consequential this title match was. Not only was it a rematch from WrestleMania 34, but one that could influence the women’s division of both brands in 12 days at WrestleMania 35.

Should Charlotte Flair walk out as SmackDown Women’s Champion, there’d be questions about whether she’d have to defend two separate titles in two separate matches at WrestleMania, or if both titles would be on the line in the main event against Becky Lynch and Ronda Rousey.

Those stakes were clear right from the start, as both Asuka and Flair were pulling out all the stops trying to escape as SmackDown Women’s Champion. We saw Asuka’s traditionally devastating strikes and submission expertise, but Charlotte Flair countered things at every turn.

Things heated up between both competitors, and we saw several callbacks to their past WrestleMania clash. Asuka looked close to victory on several occasions, slapping on the Asuka Lock at one point and looking like she would leave with her title. However, Flair fought out of it and kept the action rolling. There were several truly heart-stopping near falls, and this thing of beauty off the top rope.

https://twitter.com/WWEUniverse/status/1110702762872860675

The damage to Asuka was significant, but she fought through it and suddenly slipped an armbar on Flair. The Queen tried to slip out, but Asuka turned it into a triangle choke. Despite this, Charlotte still fought out of it, finally locking on the Figure Eight, and to the shock of all, Asuka tapped out.

Charlotte Flair captured the SmackDown Women’s Championship, and now we have more questions than answers about WrestleMania 35. Will Flair be defending two titles in two matches? Will both titles be on the line in the main event? What does this mean for Mandy Rose, Carmella, Sonya Deville, and Naomi who were scheduled to fight for a shot at Asuka later tonight?

https://twitter.com/WWE/status/1110703784613707776

Grade: A+, I’m reserving judgment on the decision to put the title on Flair until we know what the purpose of this is, but this match was really freaking great. Some genuinely believable near falls, and a great ending that’s added intrigue to WrestleMania.