R-Truth wins United States title on WWE SmackDown

This week’s SmackDown saw the United States Championship change hands for the second time in three days.

R-Truth defeated Shinsuke Nakamura on SmackDown to win the United States title. The finish of the match was R-Truth reversing the landslide into a small package, with the referee counting to three as Nakamura was kicking out.

Nakamura had won the US title from Rusev on the Royal Rumble pre-show. Rusev came out after R-Truth won the title. He challenged R-Truth to a match, and R-Truth accepted and retained the championship.

Rusev and Nakamura both attacked R-Truth and laid him out after Rusev lost the match. A backstage segment later in the show set up a match where Rusev & Nakamura will face Luke Gallows & Karl Anderson. Rusev said he’d team with Nakamura one time and told Nakamura not to screw him over.

R-Truth had been announced as the 30th entrant in Sunday’s men’s Royal Rumble match as a stipulation of winning Mixed Match Challenge with Carmella, but there was an angle where Nia Jax attacked him as he was making his entrance and took his spot.