3 MITB qualifiers, Nakamura's rules: WWE Smackdown Live preview, TV timings, venue - May 22 episode

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Bengaluru, May 22: Tuesday's episode of WWE Smackdown Live promises to be an exciting affair with a series of Money In The Bank qualifying matches and a possible brawl on The Miz TV.

There will be one MITB qualifying match from the men’s division and two from the women’s division. In a special of The Miz TV, The New Day will determine a member of their faction to go into the MITB ladder match.

We also expect to know about the stipulation and format of the next WWE Championship match. As confirmed last week, it will take place at the next PPV event between Shinsuke Nakamura and AJ Styles in June. This episode of Smackdown will come live from the DCU (Digital Credit Union) Center in Worcester, Massachusetts. The live streaming will air on the Ten 1 Network from 5.30 AM onwards. The repeat telecast will go on air at 5 PM and 10 PM on Wednesday (May 23).

Shinsuke Nakamura earned his rightful place at the WWE Championship match by pinning the reigning champion. By virtue of this win on last week’s episode, he is the one to declare the stipulation of the next title match at the MITB PPV. It is likely that we will get to know about the rules of the match this week. Most probably, a Last Man Standing match is waiting for us between these two.

This episode will also feature the last MITB qualifying match on Smackdown Live. It is going to be a slobber-knocker between Daniel Bryan and Jeff Hardy and the winner of this bout will go into the next qualifier against Samoa Joe. Meanwhile, Bryan’s current rival, Big Cass, is still recovering from a knee injury.

That apart, there will be two women’s division MITB qualifying matches on the show. The first one is between Lana and Billie Kay and the second one will be between Naomi and Sonya Deville. Peyton Royce will be present by Kay’s corner, giving her the upper-hand. It is likely that the one-half of the IIconic Duo will make the cut for the MITB ladder match this year.

In the second match, Naomi starts as the favourite because of her high-flying ability. The feud between Asuka and Carmella over the Smackdown women’s title will also start to heat up this week.

A special edition of The Miz TV will take place on Smackdown Live. The New Day will be the special guests on the show, as confirmed on WWE.com. The Hollywood A-lister will continue to get into the head of the trio, trying to form a crack in their unity. Perhaps, this will set up the potential breakup of the trio in the WWE.

image caption: Daniel Bryan (left) vs. Jeff Hardy (image courtesy WWE.com)