WWE King and Queen of the Ring SmackDown bracket: How did Randy Orton and Nia Jax reach finals?

The last time WWE crowned a King and Queen of the Ring was back in 2021. Xavier Woods defeated Finn Balor in the finals to win the King of the Ring Tournament, while Zelina Vega became the inaugural Queen of the Ring after defeating Doudrop, now known as Piper Niven. Over two years later, both tournaments are back, but have heavier implications.

WWE chief content officer Paul "Triple H" Levesque revealed that the winners of the King and Queen of the Ring Tournaments would receive a championship match at SummerSlam, which will take place on Aug. 3 at Cleveland Browns Stadium in Cleveland, Ohio. The finals will take place at WWE King and Queen of the Ring on Saturday, May 25, in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

We know the representatives from RAW for the King and Queen of the Ring Tournaments will be Gunther and Lyra Valkyria. But on the SmackDown side, they will have Randy Orton and Nia Jax in their respective finals matchups.

So, how did Orton and Jax reach the finals?

WWE King of the Ring Tournament SmackDown bracket: How did Randy Orton advance to the finals?

For the first time, Randy Orton is in the King of the Ring finals. His journey first started in the opening round, taking on AJ Styles. "The Phenomenal One" almost picked up the win with a Phenomenal Forearm, but Orton was able to grab the bottom rope to break the pinfall. After Styles argued with the referee, Orton hit the RKO to pick up the win and advance to the second round.

Next up for Orton was former NXT champion Carmelo Hayes, who was a first-round pick of SmackDown in this year's WWE Draft. Hayes had defeated Baron Corbin in the opening round to reach the SmackDown quarterfinals. Hayes was considered one of the favorites to win the tournament on the SmackDown side of the bracket. Hayes attempted to hit a springboard crossbody but was hit with an RKO out of nowhere by Orton to pick up the pinfall victory.

Orton faced Tama Tonga in the SmackDown finals. Tonga is one of the newest members of the Bloodline, led by Solo Sikoa in Roman Reigns' absence. Tonga defeated Angelo Dawkins in the opening round and LA Knight in the quarterfinals. Orton picked up the win over Tonga with an RKO and will now face Gunther in the King of the Ring finals.

WWE Queen of the Ring Tournament SmackDown bracket: How did Nia Jax advance to the finals?

Nia Jax opened up the Queen of the Ring Tournament by facing off against Naomi. While Naomi put up a fight, Jax was able to pick up the win after a powerbomb, a leg drop to the back of the neck, and an Annihilator to get the win.

Next up for Jax was the undefeated Jade Cargill, who won the WWE Women's Tag Team Championships with Bianca Belair at Backlash earlier in the month. Jax happened to bait Cargill into a disqualification. Jax attempted to hit Cargill with a chair, only for it to be blocked. Cargill grabbed the chair and hit Jax with it, all within view of the referee. As a result, Jax picked up the disqualification win and advanced to the SmackDown finals.

In the finals, on the night before the King and Queen of the Ring premium live event, Jax faced off against Belair. The WWE Women's Tag Team champion attempted to hit Jax with the K.O.D., only for her leg to buckle. That allowed Jax to hit a running senton and an Annihilator to pick up the win and advance to the finals, where she'll face Lyra Valkyria.