WWE SmackDown Star Takes on New Backstage Role

WWE recently introduced WWE Speed, a new segment that the company is testing that will see WWE Superstars compete in short five-minute matches every week. The matches will air exclusively on X (formerly Twitter) sometime in April. WWE has been working to batch film matches as of late and the latest set were produced by a surprising name.

At the WWE SmackDown tapings, Odyssey Jones faced off against Cedric Alexander while Tyler Bate took on Legado Del Fantasma’s Angel. According to a new report from Fightful Select, SmackDown star Pete Dunne produced the matches with no co-producer. This is his first time in the role and it’s unclear if there are plans for him to have a more hands on approach with matches in the future. 

Dunne remains an active member of the SmackDown roster, recently reuniting with his former tag team partner in Bate to form New Catch Republic. He also dropped the “Butch” name in favor of his former self and has really taken over the SmackDown tag team division. Dunne and Bate are currently competing in the Six-Pack Ladder Match finals for a chance at the Tag Team Championships at WrestleMania. 

So far, Awesome Truth (The Miz and R-Truth), DIY and The New Day (as well as current Tag Team Champions, Judgment Day) will compete in the match. There are currently two slots left and the winners of Legado Del Fantasma vs. New Catch Republic and Grayson Waller and Austin Theory vs. The Street Profits will qualify and head to the two-day event in Philadelphia.

Who’s Competing at WrestleMania 40?

The WrestleMania cards continue to flesh out as matches begin to shape up on Raw and SmackDown. Back in January, Cody Rhodes and Bayley won their respective Royal Rumble matches, kicking off this WrestleMania season. Rhodes made it clear he was coming after the Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns again while Bayley decided to go after her former Damage CTRL stablemate and WWE Women’s Champion IYO SKY. 

With that, things were smooth sailing to the Elimination Chamber where Becky Lynch entered and won her very first Chamber match. She earned a shot at Rhea Ripley’s Women’s World Championship while Drew McIntyre came out on top to challenge Seth Rollins for the World Heavyweight Championship. Rollins will compete on both nights alongside Rhodes as they challenge The Rock and Reigns. If Rock and Reigns come out victorious, Rhodes’ match with Reigns on night two will be a “Bloodline Rules” match.

On WWE Raw, Sami Zayn earned an opportunity to face Gunther for the Intercontinental Championship at WrestleMania after defeating Chad Gable in a gauntlet match. Another installment in the brother vs. brother match trope will also take place when Jimmy and Jey finally meet face-to-face after Jimmy turned on Jey at SummerSlam 2023. Logan Paul will defend the United States Championship in a three-way against Kevin Owens and Randy Orton and everything comes to a head when LA knight and AJ Styles will be across the ring from one another, their second singles match.