WWE SmackDown preview 09/22/23: What’s next for John Cena?

WWE SmackDown from Glendale will also feature a highly anticipated WWE Women’s Championship match between IYO SKY and Asuka.

After only appearing on WWE programming a few times in 2022, that John Cena fella sure has become a regular on WWE SmackDown. The writers and actors strikes have delivered the company an unexpected gift in that regard, we reckon.

But while Cena has had some fun interactions with faces both familiar (The Rock!) and new (Grayson Waller), there hasn’t been anything set up for him yet that would point toward a definite match at one of WWE’s upcoming premium live events. You get the feeling that might change tonight in Glendale.

All that WWE has promoted for the show is that Cena will show up and get to talk, something he didn’t do last week as he kept being interrupted. Will we see receive a challenge from Waller or someone else who could benefit from a bout with The Greatest of All Time? That’s one thing to watch for tonight.

UPDATE: PWInsider has a spoiler for what might be planned for Cena, so click here if you’d rather know and not be surprised.

A highly anticipated women’s title match should be another highlight of this week’s SmackDown. IYO SKY and Asuka know each other very well, but they somewhat incredibly have never had a televised singles match against each other. Not only will they change that in Glendale, the meeting will come with high stakes since SKY’s WWE Women’s Championship is on the line.

Plus we’ll see tag team action as well. Rey Mysterio and Santos Escobar have remained friends and allies despite Rey having something Santos wants (that would be the United States Championship), resisting efforts by others to drive a wedge between them. They’ll put that bond to the test again when they face the Street Profits, who have only been winning since aligning themselves with Bobby Lashley (though they really should have a group name by now, come on WWE creative).

All this and more awaits at 8 p.m. ET on FOX, your home for SmackDown for the next year or so. Catch it then or join us here at Wrestling Junkie for live results and updates, like we always do about this time.