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WWE SmackDown Results [6/20/25] Cena Drops Pipe Bomb on Punk; Orton & Asuka Advance

WWE Champion John Cena cut his own pipe bomb promo on CM Punk after dumping his Night of Champions challenger through a table.
Rick Ucchino|
John Cena
John Cena | WWE.com

WWE SmackDown went live Friday night in front of a raucous crowd that gathered inside of the Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Just eight days away from his WWE Title defense against CM Punk at Night of Champions, John Cena gave the self-proclaimed 'Best in the World' a taste of his own medicine with a spoof of Punk's famous pipe bomb promo from 2011.

After he cracked him in the face with the WWE Title belt and dumped him through a table, Cena tore into Punk for nearly 10 minutes. He called him nothing more than the best bullsh*tter in the world and accused Punk changing his values as much as Cena changes t-shirts.

The WWE Champion proclaimed his longtime rival to be a loud mouth opportunist who will step on the necks of actual hardworking guys in the business if it means getting ahead. Cena then called out Claudio Castagnoli, Nic Nemeth and Matt Cardona specifically. Which as you can image, garnered quite the reaction.

It was truly a once in a decade promo that had WWE fans across the globe on the edge of their seats, wondering what John might say next. It'll be very interesting to hear Punk's rebuttal.... once he's able to make one.

The Semi-Finals of the King & Queen of the Ring also got underway Friday night with two huge match-ups.

Randy Orton was able to advance to the finals of the tournament for the second year in a row by knocking off Sami Zayn, while Asuka got the best of Alexa Bliss in an equally competitive contest. Both Orton and Asuka will now have the opportunity to claim their crowns at Night of Champions next Saturday.

Here's everything you may have missed Friday night on SmackDown:

Full Match & Segment Results:

LA Knight kicked-off the show and the crowd in Grand Rapids gave him a thunderous reception. The Megastar called out Seth Rollins with designs on a fight, but it was Paul Heyman who made his way down the entrance ramp.

The Wiseman said he was the biggest LA Knight fan in Michigan, and because of that, Seth Rollins allowed Heyman to deliver a message. He told Knight to get out of Grand Rapids or something really bad would happen to him by the end of the night.

As anyone could have predicted, The Megastar did not heed Heyman's warning and soon Bron Breakker and Bronson Reed would march down to the ring. Rollins' cronies would orchestra a 2-on-1 assault, but Knight would get his hands on a steel chair during the fight and chased both men off.

Back from commercial break, Byron Saxton informed Paul Heyman that SmackDown GM Nick Aldis had booked Bronson Reed vs. LA Knight for later in the night.

Asuka defeated Alexa Bliss to advance to the finals of the Queen of the Ring Tournament. This was a really strong back-and-forth contest between these two former Women's Champions, but in the end, it was Bliss going to the well one too many times that cost her. She went to the top rope for her second Twister Bliss attempt, but Asuka got her knees up. She then connected with the Empress Impact to score the three count.

Byron Saxton interviewed Jade Cargill, who will face Roxanne Perez in the second Queen of the Ring Semi-Final Monday on Raw. Cargill said The Prodigy has potential, but she's the one who is ready to reign as Queen.

Chelsea Green and her Secret Hervice approached Alexa Bliss backstage and screamed at her for costing Green the Queen of the Ring crown. Charlotte Flair then interjected to say that Chelsea's replacement last week actually cost her a spot int he Semi-Finals. The Queen then challenged Green to a match, prompting her to storm off in a panic. Bliss told Flair she didn't need her help. Charlotte told her not to be cute. She didn't do that for her.

Aleister Black vs. Kit Wilson ended in a no contest. Before the bell could even ring, Ron Killings blindsided Wilson and locked him in the STF. He grabbed a mic and demanded that Cena make his way to the ring and then he put Wilson back in the STF. Security eventually pulled him off and escorted him to the back.

Black watched the entire attack from the ringside area in complete disbelief. Prior to Killings hitting the ring, Joe Tessitore announced on commentary that Kit Wilson's tag partner Elton Prince has been sidelined with an injury.

Back from commercial break, we see Ron Killings walking backstage. Aleister Black got in his face and asked why Truth was sticking his nose in Black's business. Killings said it wasn't personal. Just then Damian Priest showed up. He asked to talk to his old friend alone for a second. Black walked off with an annoyed look on his face.

Priest told Killings that he needed to channel his anger toward his match with John Cena tonight, and after he handles his business, the two of them will go out to celebrate. Ron said that sounded good to him.

Cody Rhodes made his way to the ring for a promo segment, but the American Nightmare did not get the chance to utter one syllable before a monster Yeet-fest broke out in Grand Rapids. Once he was able to speak, Jey Uso said there's nothing but love between himself and Cody. This Monday night on Raw, however, it's all business when they meet in the Semi-Finals of the King of the Ring Tournament

Jey said in the end, it'll be four letters... one word... YEET! Sami Zayn then made his way to the ring. He said when Cody and Jey both finished their stories, he was there to congratulate each of them in person. Sami then declared that now it's time that he finishes his own story and finally wins a World Championship. Cue Randy Orton, who entered the ring echoed similar sentiments as his other semi-finalists. The Viper said he had no doubt that Zayn will win a World Title one day, but it won't be at SummerSlam.

Randy Orton defeated Sami Zayn to advance to the finals of the King of the Ring Tournament. The Viper was able to back up his words from just moments before this match got underway, by becoming the first man to connect with his finisher. Orton and Zayn kept trading counter for counter, but neither man could put the other away. That was until Zayn tried one final time to hit the Helluva Kick. Randy was able to cut him off mid-sprint with an RKO, which punched his ticket to Night of Champions.

WWE Women's Champion Tiffany Stratton and Nia Jax had a brief promo exchange that ended with Tiffany granting her former mentor a title shot next week on SmackDown in a Last Woman Standing Match. Jax ambushed Stratton as she went to the leave the ring and left her laying with multiple big leg drops. Naomi ran to the ring with an official to attempt to cash-in her Money in the Bank contract, but for the second week in a row, Nia would not allow it to happen.

Charlotte Flair defeated Chelsea Green. The Secret Hervice did everything they could to help their 'fearless' leader pick up a win over the 14-time Women's Champion, and she got close after connecting with a Rough Rider. Green even showed some fight near the end of the match by kicking out of a spear, but once Charlotte locked in the Figure-8 it was all she wrote. After Chelsea tapped, Piper Niven and Alba Fyre pounced on the Queen but Alexa Bliss would rush the ring to make the save.

Solo Sikoa and Jacob Fatu met face-to-face for the first time since Money in the Bank. The former Tribal Chief said he still loves Jacob, even after he cost him the MITB briefcase. Solo claimed to be the only one who saw his true potential and he brought him to WWE because he wanted to help him put food on the table for his family.

Fatu didn't buy a single word of what Solo had to say. The Samoan Werewolf believes the only reason he was brought in was to help Sikoa gain money, power and gold. He said Solo hasn't been the same since Jacob won the United States Championship and if that's what he's really after, then he can fight him for it.

Sikoa went for a quick Samoan Spike, but Jacob caught him and the fight was on. JC Mateo came to Solo's aid and then two of them were able to take Fatu down. Jimmy Uso would then run to the ring to even the playing field. Big Brother Jimmy gave Jacob just enough time to recover and he proceeded to send his former allies running toward the back.

LA Knight defeated Bronson Reed via Disqualification. The Megastar kick-started the match by attacking Bron Breakker at ringside. The only thing he accomplished by doing that was successfully pissing Breakker off and it was just a matter of time before he snapped. Bron eventually hit the ring and cut Knight down with not one, but two spears. Reed would then deliver multiple Tsunami's, firmly fulfilling The Wiseman's prophecy from earlier in the night.

Multiple championship matches were officially announced for SmackDown next Friday in Saudi Arabia. WWE Women's Champion Tiffany Stratton will defend her title against Nia Jax in a Last Woman Standing Match, The Street Profits will put their WWE Tag Team Championships on the line against the Wyatt Sicks and Zelina Vega face Giulia for the Women's United States Championship. Jacob Fatu vs. Solo Sikoa for the Men's United States Championship was also made official for Night of Champions.

Ron Killings defeated John Cena via Disqualification. The Never Seen 17-Time World Champion may have underestimated the fight that R-Truth would bring to him in the main event, and Cena ended things early by cracking him with the WWE Championship belt. CM Punk would attempt to make the save, but he too would taste the gold before getting put through a table.

Cena would then cut the type of pipe bomb promo that's not been heard in 14 years to close the show.

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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

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