30-year-old WWE star responds to Roman Reigns' message ahead of SmackDown

Roman Reigns is set to make an appearance on Friday Night SmackDown tonight. The show will air live from the Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, South Carolina.

Ahead of the blue brand's episode, which will feature the fallout from an eventful Bad Blood PLE last Saturday, Reigns dropped a cryptic message. He wrote, "Tonight, We Acknowledge Him." Who he was referring to is anyone's guess, as Jimmy Uso and Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson also returned at the premium live event. Curiously, Carmelo Hayes took notice of this.

Taking to X (fka Twitter), Hayes reacted to The OTC's post by sharing an edited picture of him holding the United States Championship, currently in possession of LA Knight. SmackDown GM Nick Aldis made their title match official for the October 11 episode of the blue brand.

"Woke up today and chose to be undeniable," wrote Carmelo Hayes.

You can check out his post below:

Last week, the former NXT Champion scored a huge victory over returning two-time WWE Champion, AJ Styles. Unfortunately for The Phenomenal One, he suffered a legitimate injury during the bout and had to forfeit.

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SmackDown's Carmelo Hayes was Bron Breakker's best rival thus far, says the 26-year-old

Reflecting on his career at this stage, having moved to the main roster in 2024, Bron Breakker named Carmelo Hayes as his best rival thus far.

In an interview with 99.5 WKDQ, Breakker spoke highly of the former NXT Champion. The second-generation star feels that Hayes was going to be one of those wrestlers on the roster who he would step into the ring with numerous times in the future, building on the foundation they had laid in the developmental brand:

"[Carmelo Hayes] and I've been, sort of, built on the path near each other. We've stayed away from each other just to build the tension from one another. I'm excited to build our relationship over the years while being on the main roster and build that rivalry to maybe take it to the next step as him and I get better as wrestlers. Things are only going to get better for him and I," Bron Breakker said.

On SmackDown, this is Carmelo Hayes' first major opportunity to win gold. Meanwhile, on RAW, Bron Breakker is already a former Intercontinental Champion.