American Alpha out of SmackDown tag title finals due to Chad Gable “injury”
Despite winning their semifinal match on Tuesday night, American Alpha won’t be competing in Sunday’s SmackDown tag tournament finals at Backlash.
Shane McMahon and Daniel Bryan announced on Talking Smack that Chad Gable will be out 2-4 weeks with a MCL sprain after being attacked by The Usos on SmackDown. The injury is part of the storyline.
After making quick work of The Usos in their semifinal match, Gable and Jason Jordan offered a handshake to their opponents, but The Usos instead turned heel and laid them out. They isolated Gable’s knee, hitting a splash from the top rope on it.
The Usos will get a chance to redeem themselves in the tournament as they’ll face The Hype Bros at Backlash. Whichever team wins that match will fill the spot vacated by American Alpha and face Heath Slater and Rhyno later in the night for the newly created SmackDown Tag Team Championship. Slater and Rhyno defeated The Hype Bros on SmackDown to earn their spot in the finals.
BREAKING NEWS: @ShaneMcMahon says #AmericanAlpha is OUT for #WWEBacklash due to @WWEGable's injury. #TalkingSmack pic.twitter.com/0cgg87P3i6
— WWE (@WWE) September 7, 2016
Joseph Currier is the lead editor of F4WOnline.com, directing daily news coverage and writing articles on professional wrestling. He is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts, obtaining a journalism degree in 2016. Joseph joined F4W during his time at UMass and has now been writing about the industry for nearly a decade.
In addition to his work with F4W, Joseph has previously contributed to Sports Illustrated's wrestling coverage. He lives in Massachusetts and is a diehard fan of the Boston sports teams and Liverpool Football Club.