Wrestling On FanNation

WrestleMania 41 Challengers For Liv Morgan & Raquel Rodriguez Determined on WWE SmackDown

Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez will defend their WWE Women's Championships at WrestleMania 41 and their opponents were determined Friday night on SmackDown.
Rick Ucchino|
Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez
Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez | WWE.co

They were opponents this past Monday on Raw, but Lyra Valkyria and Bayley are now heading to WrestleMania 41 as the No. 1 Contenders for the Women's Tag Team Championships.

The Women's Intercontinental Champion and former WWE Women's Champion went wire-to-wire in a six team gauntlet match Friday night on SmackDown to earn a shot at Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez next weekend in Las Vegas.

Valkyria and Bayley competed for the better part of the first hour of SmackDown and had the Seattle crowd with them every step of the way.

Shayna Baszler and Zoey Stark were the first team eliminated after Valkyria was able to lock in a jack knife pin on the Queen of Spades. Natalya and Maxxine Dupri were the next team out of contention after Maxxine attempted a sharpshooter on Bayley, and the Role Model countered into an inside cradle for the three count.

Kayden Carter and Katana Chance hit the ring with a ton of energy and wowed the crowd with their unique tandem offense, but Lyra was able to catch Carter with a Nightwing to eliminate the former Women's Tag Team Champions.

B-Fab and Michin were out next and dominated much of their time in the ring against Bayley and Valkyria, who had already competed in three matches to that point. As they appeared to be closing in on the elimination, Bayley would surprise B-Fab with a Rose Plant and score another pinfall.

Women's United States Champion Chelsea Green then followed her Secret Hervice into battle as Piper Niven and Alba Fyre represented the final roadblock to Vegas for Valkyria and Bayley. Niven and Fyre scored several near falls on their already exhausted opponents, but they just couldn't keep either woman down.

Valkyria would deliver a powerbomb to Niven off the ring apron, with the help of a drop kick from Bayley. The Role Model would then hit the Rose Plant on Fyre and tag in Lyra who hit a top rope leg drop to complete the sweep.

Morgan and Rodriguez then entered the ring to stare down their new challengers.

Current card for WrestleMania 41:

Cody Rhodes (c) vs. John Cena for the WWE Championship

Roman Reigns vs. Seth Rollins vs. CM Punk

Tiffany Stratton (c) vs. Charlotte Flair for the WWE Women's Championship

Gunther (c) vs. 'Main Event' Jey Uso for the World Heavyweight Championship

IYO SKY (c) vs. Bianca Belair vs. Rhea Ripley for the Women's World Championship

LA Knight (c) vs. Jacob Fatu for the United States Championship

Bron Breakker (c) vs. Penta vs. Finn Balor vs. Dominik Mysterio for the Intercontinental Championship

Liv Morgan & Raquel Rodriguez (c) vs. Lyra Valkyria & Bayley for the WWE Women's Tag Team Championships

War Raiders (c) vs. New Day for the WWE World Tag Team Championships

Drew McInytre vs. Damian Priest

AJ Styles vs. Logan Paul

Jade Cargill vs. Naomi

Rey Mysterio vs. El Grande Americano

The Latest On WWE, AEW & More

Exclusive: Rhea Ripley Defends WrestleMania 41 Match, Explains Intricate Storyline Details

Saraya Reveals Why AEW Run Fell Short Of Her In-Ring Expectations

Published
Rick Ucchino
RICK UCCHINO

Rick Ucchino is the Assistant Editor & Content Coordinator for The Takedown on SI. He also works full-time for 700WLW Radio in Cincinnati, Ohio as a local news and sports anchor, in addition to his time covering the Cincinnati Bengals for Sirius XM. Rick has been on the professional wrestling beat since 2019, having provided coverage for a number of outlets, including Fightful, SB Nation’s Cageside Seats and the Bleav Podcast Network. With an educational background in theater, creative writing and journalism, Rick focuses primarily on the storytelling aspect of pro wrestling, but he’s no stranger to the squared circle himself. He had the privilege of training with former WWE & WCW cruiserweight Jimmy Wang Yang for nearly two years and retired early due to back issues with a perfect 1-0 record in singles competition. Rick is a married father of two incredibly adorable children, who are budding pro wrestling fans themselves. Much to the chagrin of their mother. You can reach Rick at rwucchino@gmail.com

Home/WWE