WWE SmackDown in Riyadh was not off to a good start as the broadcast failed during the Randy Orton-Cody Rhodes opening segment. A new report has now revealed the reason behind the same.
Randy Orton and Cody Rhodes are slated to clash in the finals of the King of the Ring tournament tomorrow at Night of Champions. The duo came face-to-face on SmackDown. However, the Netflix feed got cut off abruptly, and the two men could not proceed as planned.
PWInsider has now revealed the reason behind the mishap, noting that there was a power loss in Riyadh that affected WWE’s entire production, including the control room and the gorilla position. The report also added that the power loss resulted in the company losing any ability to control the different facets of the show. It was also made clear that the incident was not a Netflix issue, but something that originated at the actual venue.
To our international audiences watching #SmackDown on Netflix: We apologize for any technical difficulties and should be back up and running shortly.
— WWE (@WWE) June 27, 2025
WWE also issued an apology for the incident on social media. The show is back on the air now and is moving as planned. However, the Randy Orton-Cody Rhodes segment was seemingly scrapped. Michael Cole also said sorry to the fans for the mishap when the feed returned.