Confirming what had been expected, WWE officially announced Natalya as the final member of SmackDown’s women’s team for Survivor Series today.
A spot was left open on the team when Charlotte Flair defeated Natalya to win the SmackDown Women’s Championship on Tuesday. When running down the card for the pay-per-view on SmackDown, WWE didn’t reveal who would be taking Charlotte’s place on the team — though Dave Meltzer reported it would be Natalya in this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
Shane McMahon made the storyline announcement on Twitter: “Individual competition drives every #SDLive Superstar. Even in defeat, @NatbyNature proved herself to be a fierce competitor and will be an asset to Team Smackdown’s 5 on 5 #SurvivorSeries Team. Let’s go to work, Nattie.”
Natalya will join Becky Lynch, Naomi, Carmella & Tamina as they take on Alicia Fox, Nia Jax, Asuka, Sasha Banks & Bayley in an elimination tag match at tomorrow’s PPV.
The Survivor Series card will mostly feature Raw vs. SmackDown matches, including the champions from each brand facing their counterpart from the other show in non-title bouts. Here’s the updated lineup for the PPV:
Brock Lesnar vs. AJ Styles (Universal Champion vs. WWE Champion)
Kurt Angle, Braun Strowman, Samoa Joe, Finn Balor & Triple H vs. Shane McMahon, Randy Orton, Bobby Roode, Shinsuke Nakamura & John Cena in an elimination tag match
Alicia Fox, Nia Jax, Asuka, Sasha Banks & Bayley vs. Becky Lynch, Naomi, Carmella, Tamina & Natalya in an elimination tag match
The Shield (Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins & Dean Ambrose) vs. The New Day (Big E, Kofi Kingston & Xavier Woods)
Alexa Bliss vs. Charlotte Flair (Raw Women’s Champion vs. SmackDown Women’s Champion)
Cesaro & Sheamus vs. The Usos (Raw Tag Team Champions vs. SmackDown Tag Team Champions)
The Miz vs. Baron Corbin (Intercontinental Champion vs. United States Champion)
WWE Cruiserweight Champion Enzo Amore defending against Kalisto (pre-show match)