Not only is WWE building towards its Crown Jewel premium live event on November 7, but it is also loading up the next few week’s of Raw and SmackDown building to the show.
The October 30 episode of SmackDown will see two major title matches, while the following week’s Crown Jewel go-home episode in Brooklyn will see CM Punk and Kevin Owens go one-on-one for the first time since August.
Here are three big surprises we could see booked on Raw and SmackDown before we get to Crown Jewel.
Jacob Fatu returns
Jacob Fatu has now been on the shelf for almost a month after being run over in a car by the 946’s Jaida Parker.
Despite the severity of the attack there are still questions from fans regarding what side of The Bloodline and 946 divide Fatu will ultimately land on, given his former ties to Royce Keys and the Northern California area 946 represents.
If a betrayal is going to happen – whether from Jacob or anyone else – one would think WWE may save that for WarGames at Survivor Series. In the mean time however, Fatu will return with a score to settle with 946, and we could see him do so before we get to Crown Jewel.
If Fatu does return before Crown Jewel we could also see him challenge Keys or another member of 946 to a match at the show, helping continue the feud before WarGames.
Damian Priest costs Trick Williams Undisputed WWE Championship
After continuously getting in Sami Zayn’s face over the past few weeks, this past Friday’s SmackDown (October 23) saw Trick Williams demand a shot at the Undisputed WWE Championship. And after a backstage conversation with SmackDown GM Nick Aldis, that is exactly what Trick received.
This decision appeared to irk Damian Priest, who was shown outside of Aldis’ office after Trick announced his title opportunity; a potential tease of what may be coming next week.
With Priest on his own mission to win singles gold after turning heel, we could see “The Archer of Infamy” show up during Williams’ WWE Title match and cost him his opportunity.
Whether this is motivated by Priest wanting the next shot at Zayn or Williams’ own United States Title, the former World Heavyweight Champion could establish himself as a major threat once again by interfering in such a big match.
Bayley bids farewell… For now
The October 26 episode of WWE Raw will see Bayley and Lyra Valkyria look to settle their differences once and for all when they face off in a No Disqualification match.
Valkyria has two wins over Bayley, making it an absolute must win for “The Role Model” if she is to build some momentum for herself for the remainder of 2026; that is, if she is sticking around in WWE.
Questions remain regarding Bayley’s future in the company heading into Monday’s match. While her return to TV in September after months away appeared to suggest she had signed a new deal with WWE, it was reported by PWInsider afterwards that this was actually not the case.
Links with AEW remain, and if Bayley is leaving WWE then she will likely be giving Valkyria another big win on the way out.
Even if Bayley is remaining where she is however, WWE could still lean into the speculation by having her appear to say goodbye to the fans after her match with Valkyria before making a surprise return later in the year or, perhaps even at the 2027 Royal Rumble.
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