Smackdown
Date: January 19, 2007
Location: Alltel Arena, Little Rock, Arkansas
Commentators: Michael Cole, John Bradshaw Layfield

We’re less than two weeks away from the Royal Rumble and that means it is time to put the finishing touches on the card. This year’s show has taken things in a slightly different direction by just having the majority of the field announced without much in the way of talking about it on screen. Other than that, Batista is getting ready to defend against Mr. Kennedy. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Here is Mr. Kennedy for a chat after becoming #1 contender last week. There were sixteen men trying to beat the clock but Kennedy was the only person who could pull it off. He beat Chris Benoit in five minutes and Miz of all people lasted that long against the Undertaker. People accuse him of cheating but who wouldn’t have done what he did?

After beating six World Champions, it is time for him to win the title, but here is Teddy Long to interrupt. Long congratulates Kennedy for his win last week, but tonight is a little different. Tonight, Kennedy is going one on one with the Undertaker, and if Undertaker wins, we’ll make the Royal Rumble a triple threat match.

Maryse welcomes us back.

We look at Matt Hardy accidentally blowing up Joey Mercury’s face at Armageddon, followed by Mercury jumping Hardy for some revenge.

Matt Hardy vs. Joey Mercury

Mercury starts fast with a cheap shot so Hardy goes for the bad face, sending Mercury running into the corner. Hardy is patient enough to hit a clothesline but it’s too early for the Side Effect (you never go with the signature that soon). They head outside with Mercury sending him into the steps to take over, followed by some choking in the corner. A snapmare sets up a chinlock but Hardy is right back out with a jawbreaker. Now the Side Effect connects and the middle rope elbow to the head connects. The Twist of Fate is countered into a tiger driver which is countered into a rollup to give Hardy the fast pin.

Rating: C. These two worked well together and there is a personal story to give them a reason to fight. This is a good example of taking something that happened and letting them fight each other because it makes sense. That is the kind of thing you don’t see enough of these days and it worked just fine here.

Post match here’s Johnny Nitro to jump Hardy, setting up a Snapshot on exposed concrete. That’s what you call escalating quickly.

Post break, here’s exactly what we saw before the break.

Miz is bragging to Layla and Ashley about what he did to Undertaker and knows he could have won with more time. Kane pops up and running ensues.

Kristal tries asks Vickie Guerrero about the feud between Chavo Guerrero and Chris Benoit but Vickie wants to talk alone in the locker room. Ok then.

Video on Chavo Guerrero vs. Chris Benoit.

MVP/Dave Taylor/William Regal vs. Paul London/Brian Kendrick/Vito

This could be different. Ashley is here with the latter and MVP is still taped up. It’s a big brawl to start until we settle down to London monkey flipping Regal. Vito comes in but gets kicked in the ribs, allowing MVP to come in and send him into the buckle. Back up and Vito is fine enough to hit a slam onto the banged up back but Taylor comes in to hammer away.

Regal and MVP take turns on Vito until he manages a rollup for two on Regal. Choking puts Vito back down in the corner as JBL refers to Vito as “her”. MVP has to cut off a hot tag attempt but a jawbreaker allows the hot tag off to Kendrick to clean house. Everything breaks down and London dives onto Taylor. Kendrick loads up Sliced Bread on Regal but MVP catches him in an Emerald Flosion for the pin.

Rating: C+. This is the kind of match I can go for most of the time: take some people and put them into a combination you don’t see too often, as it will give you something fresh for a change. You don’t get to see MVP vs. London or Kendrick very often so mixing it up a bit can do some good. Nice little match too, with talented people doing their thing.

US Title: Chris Benoit vs. Chavo Guerrero

Benoit is defending and this is No DQ. Chavo starts smart by kicking Benoit low and snapping off a Saito suplex. With Benoit down, Guerrero unhooks the top and middle buckle pad but gets dropped onto the top rope for taking too long. Benoit tries the Crossface but Chavo rolls outside, only to get Crossfaced out there anyway. That’s broken up and Chavo’s chair shot hits the post.

Back in and the Crossface goes on again with Chavo having to roll out again. Another chair shot is cut off by a backdrop but Chavo whips him chest first into the exposed buckle for two. Now the chair shots can connect, including Chavo driving the chair into Benoit’s neck. A flying armbar onto the open chair gets two but Benoit is right back up to send him outside.

Benoit hits a dropkick through the ropes and sends Chavo hard into the barricade. Chavo staggers over to the timekeeper and nails Benoit with the belt though and it’s time for Three Amigos, including suplexes onto the belt and the chair. The frog splash only hits chair though and Benoit gets two. Now it’s Benoit suplexing Chavo onto the belt but he misses the Swan Dive, banging up his shoulder again in the process. Chavo grabs the chair but gets pulled into the Sharpshooter for the tap to retain the title.

Rating: B-. The matches have been pretty good but it is time to wrap this one up. Chavo has now lost to Benoit several times now and Benoit needs a fresh challenger. They did something with the stipulation here so it did make sense in the situation. Hopefully we get to see something new for both of them now, as their rather nice feud should be over.

Batista is excited for the main event and is going to be ringside.

Mr. Kennedy complains about the main event so Jillian Hall suggests that she go talk to Long.

Deuce And Domino vs. ???/???

So now we get a new team in the form of Deuce And Domino, a pair of greasers who come out in an old car with a woman named Cherry, who blows bubblegum and wears roller skates. You know, for all of those people in 2007 who were nostalgic for the 1970s version of the 50s.

Before the match, the team introduces themselves, thankfully not talking like Fonzie to match the looks. Domino mentions that Cherry is his sister and Cole mentions that she is dating Deuce. The other team gets jumped before the bell with Deuce kicking away. A running kick to the seated head finishes for Deuce in a hurry. Total squash but it’s kind of hard to get your head around the gimmick, which I think I like.

Mr. Kennedy yells at Teddy Long, who just recaps the idea of the main event. I’m assuming they just needed to fill in a minute with anything here.

Maryse welcomes us back.

Kane vs. Miz

Kane unloads with shots to the face to start but the big boot misses. That doesn’t really matter as Kane is right back with a backbreaker, followed by some knees to the back in the corner. The logical bearhug goes on but Miz fights his way out and goes up, only to dive into a boot to the face. The chokeslam is good for the easy pin.

Rating: C-. Total squash and that’s all it needed to be. There is no reason to believe that Miz is going to be a threat to Kane and it isn’t going to hut him to take a loss here. They didn’t do anything beyond what they should have done here and it was an effective use of about four minutes. Kane can move on to the Rumble and Miz can annoy someone else, as he should.

King Booker interrupts Krystal talking to Teddy Long. He isn’t happy about not getting a title shot but he’ll win the Royal Rumble and get it back at Wrestlemania. Long is fine with that, and puts Booker in a six man Over The Top challenge next week.

Royal Rumble rundown.

Mr. Kennedy vs. Undertaker

Batista is on commentary and if Undertaker wins, the Royal Rumble match is a triple threat. Undertaker suplexes his way out of a headlock to start and sends Kennedy head first into the buckle. Old School connects early and Undertaker is annoyed by a kickout. Kennedy avoids a charge and hammers away but gets sent outside. A bit of pummeling ensues and we take a break.

Back with Undertaker hitting a headbutt but Kennedy fights his way out of a superplex attempt. Undertaker sits up though and it’s time to stalk Kennedy on the floor. Back in again and Kennedy gets smart by dropkicking the knee. Kennedy cranks on the leg but Undertaker uses the good leg to kick his way to freedom. They head outside again with Undertaker being sent knees first into the steps.

The knees are fine enough to send Kennedy back first into the post and there’s the apron legdrop for two. The Last Ride is broken up and Kennedy goes right back to the knee. Undertaker’s knee is fine enough to hit Snake Eyes into the big boot to knock Kennedy outside, where he shoves Batista. Back in and the chokeslam is loaded up….but Batista charges in to spear Kennedy for the DQ because Kennedy is smart.

Rating: C. The match was just kind of there but the ending was really smart with Kennedy understanding that he can’t beat Undertaker on his own but he can avoid him being in the title match. That’s the kind of thinking you don’t see often enough and it worked really well here. Good, smart ending as we’re not ready for Undertaker vs. Batista just yet.

Undertaker glares down at Batista to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. Given that the show had very little to do with changing up the Royal Rumble, this was still pretty good with the smart ending and Deuce And Domino debuting. Other than that, we had a show that was mainly a placeholder as we move towards the pay per view. Enough stuff happened here and that is often enough to make a show work out.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Smackdown
Date: June 18, 2021
Location: Yuengling Center, Tampa, Florida
Commentators: Pat McAfee, Michael Cole

For the first time in over twenty years, we’re getting a Hell in a Cell match on free TV, as Universal Champion Roman Reigns is defending against Rey Mysterio. Why you ask? There doesn’t seem to be much of a reason other than “let’s do it on TV”. That is quite the change of pace and I’m not sure how bright of a move it is. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

We open with a recap of Rey Mysterio vs. Roman Reigns and the setup of their Cell match. That was back when it was taking place at the pay per view of the same name, before the change was made this week.

Here is Rey Mysterio for a chat with the Cell partially lowered. A rather emotional Rey talks about how Reigns attacked him as a father by taking out his son Dominik. Rey remembers seeing the pain in his son’s eyes and he will never forget that feeling. He can’t wait another day so tonight it is time for him to get his revenge inside the Cell. Rey wants Reigns out here right now and the Cell lowers to the floor. Cue Paul Heyman and Roman Reigns, with Roman saying this wasn’t his fault. What happened to Dominik was PG, so is Rey sure he wants this? Rey is sure, so Reigns says not we’ll do it his way.

Video on Commander Azeez.

Apollo Crews is ready for Azeez, his secret weapon, to show Kevin Owens and Big E. true pain.

Apollo Crews/Commander Azeez vs. Big E./Kevin Owens

In the back, Owens talks about how great of a tag wrestler Big E is. Big E.: “Kevin is very good.” Owens: “That’s it?” Big E. gives one of his fired up speeches about how Crews and Azeez are about to feel the power. Sami Zayn comes out for commentary as Big E. drops Crews for the Warrior Splash. Owens adds a backsplash for two, with Sami wondering how legal this is. It’s off to Azeez (in his uniform) to kick Big E. in the face and slam him on the floor.

We take a break and come back with Azeez hitting a suplex as Sami wants more punishment. There’s another suplex (Sami: “That’s good form.”) but Azeez misses the big elbow. Crews comes in and they head to the apron, with Big E. hitting a release gordbuster. It’s off to Owens for a Swanton for two and a Pop Up Powerbomb gets the same. Azeez makes the save and comes back in to run Big E. over on the floor. Owens gets posted and a quick Sami distraction sets up the Nigerian Nail to give Azeez the pin at 9:09.

Rating: C. This was all about Azeez and that worked out well. Azeez came off like a total monster and ran over both guys, just as he was supposed to. What mattered here was setting up someone new and making Apollo Crews look that much better by association. Sami being all gleeful about Azeez hurting Owens made it that much more fun.

Sami is rather pleased with the result.

Post break a barely able to breathe Kevin Owens comes in to see Adam Pearce and Sonya Deville, demanding a match with Sami Zayn. Pearce makes it for Sunday.

King Corbin vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

It’s the Battle For The Crown and the rubber match after they have traded a pair of wins apiece. Rick Boogs handles the guitar intro and McAfee loses his mind all over again. Nakamura strikes away to start and hits the sliding German suplex. Boogs is rather pleased as we take a break.

Back with Corbin grabbing a chinlock, followed by Deep Six for two. A German suplex gives Corbin two more but Nakamura is back up with the knees to the head. Corbin nails a running clothesline and shouts about it being his crown. That takes a bit too long though, allowing Nakamura to strike away. The middle rope knee connects and another knee breaks up a chokeslam attempt. Kinshasa gives Nakamura the pin and the crown at 9:07.

Rating: C+. It was a better match than they have been having as of late, though that might not be the highest bar to clear. What matters is that we’re done with this feud, which has gone on quite a bit too long. It wouldn’t surprise me if this somehow set up the return of the King of the Ring, which is something that will always work, at least for a few weeks.

Post match Boogs crowns Nakamura as Corbin is crying.

Here is Bianca Belair for a chat. Belair calls out Bayley but no one comes out, leaving her to talk about how hard she has worked to get here. She has overcome all of the odds and is ready to get the last laugh against Bayley. They’re fighting on Sunday, but Belair wants it to be inside the Cell. Belair is going to throw her all over the Cell and Bayley won’t be laughing when Belair retains the title.

Cue Bayley for the brawl but Belair tosses her outside in a hurry. Bayley pulls the hair though and sends Belair into various things, setting up the Rose Plant inside. Bayley holds up the title and the screens turn into the same image again. I’m really not sure if these two need to be in the Cell, but that has been the case with at least one match almost every year since the show debuted.

We recap the Usos’ history with Rey Mysterio and Dominik Mysterio, including Roman Reigns costing them a Tag Team Title match. This has caused some issues between the Usos and Reigns, sending Reigns into a rather emotional rant to Jimmy last week.

Jimmy Uso comes in to see Reigns, who asks about Jey. Jimmy hasn’t seen him this week, but he knows that Reigns is his family. Tonight, Jimmy will have his back but Reigns says he needs Jey. Don’t worry about the match, because finding Jey is more important.

Otis vs. Angelo Dawkins

Or not as Chad Gable and Otis jump Dawkins before the bell and send his bad shoulder into the steps. Dawkins gets laid out with the discus lariat/German suplex so the Alpha Academy can stand tall. No match.

We look at Seth Rollins attacking Cesaro, who returned last week to attack him.

We get a sitdown interview with Cesaro, who thinks Rollins didn’t go far enough. Rollins comes in and Cesaro is ready to fight. That’s not why Rollins is here, so he takes Kayla Braxton’s place as the interviewer. Rollins doesn’t think Cesaro deserves even a single ounce of respect and on Sunday, he will put Cesaro in his place. Cesaro respects Rollins for coming here to face him man to man and he’ll see him on Sunday. Rollins gets shoved out of his chair and is shaking with anger. Not enough to do anything about it, but he is shaking.

Hell in a Cell rundown, with Belair vs. Bayley confirmed for the Cell, plus Cesaro vs. Seth Rollins officially announced.

Universal Title: Roman Reigns vs. Rey Mysterio

Reigns is defending inside the Cell. Rey grabs a chair to start and knocks Reigns down, setting up a fire extinguisher blast to the face. A toolbox off the head knocks Reigns silly again and we take a break. Back with Rey wrapping a chair around Reigns’ throat and sending it into the Cell wall. That isn’t enough as Rey sends the chair into the post as well, leaving Reigns reeling even more.

Rey sets up a table and avoids a spear to send Reigns through it, but a hurricanrana is countered into a swing into the Cell. Reigns tosses him face first into the Cell and we take another break. Back with Reigns firing off knees in the corner and nailing the Superman Punch (Heyman: “HE’S GOING TO ACKNOWLEDGE YOU!!!”).

The spear is cut off with a dropkick though and a 619 connects in the corner. Some chair shots to the back and arm have Reigns down again and the frog splash onto the chair onto Reigns connects….but Rey can’t cover. Rey adds another splash just onto Reigns for two but a top rope hurricanrana is countered into a toss powerbomb over the top and into the Cell (well that was awesome). Back in and Reigns grabs a choke to make Rey tap at 16:02.

Rating: B. It was hard hitting and violent with the frog splash being a nice near fall and that toss powerbomb looking awesome. Reigns wasn’t going to lose here but it was a little more dramatic than I was expecting. It’s not like Mysterio is going to be hurt in something like this either, though I’m still not sure if it needed to be inside the Cell. Heck of a TV main event though, and it would have been fine on pay per view as well.

Post match Jimmy Uso comes out to acknowledge Reigns. That’s not enough for Reigns, who chokes Mysterio out again. Reigns: “HAPPY FATHER’S DAY!”

Overall Rating: B. Pretty solid show here, even if it was a one match night. They almost doubled the Cell card in two hours, which is quite annoying but it is nice to do it on TV rather than over the weekend. The Cell match is the big story here of course and that worked very well, so it is kind of hard to complain about getting this much on a regular TV show.

Results
Apollo Crews/Commander Azeez b. Big E./Kevin Owens – Nigerian Nail to Owens
Shinsuke Nakamura b. King Corbin – Kinshasa
Roman Reigns b. Rey Mysterio – Inverted guillotine

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Smackdown
Date: January 12, 2007
Location: Peoria Civic Center, Peoria, Illinois
Attendance: 2,600
Commentators: John Bradshaw Layfield, Michael Cole

This is a bit of a weird show as it is part two of the Beat The Clock Challenge. Last week we had a bunch of people trying to set the fastest time with the winner getting to challenge Batista for the Smackdown World Title at the Royal Rumble. Tonight we have even more people trying to do the same so let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Mr. Kennedy likes his chances with a time of 5:07. That’s a pretty long time actually.

Beat The Clock: Finlay vs. Matt Hardy

The clock is set at 5:07. They start brawling on the floor with Finlay getting the better of things and taking it back inside for one. Hardy grabs a rollup for two and hits the running corner clothesline into the bulldog for the same. Finlay’s backslide gives him two of his own but they collide for a double knockdown. It’s Hardy back up first with a pair of Side Effects for two each but Finlay breaks up the third. Instead Hardy takes him down and goes up, only to be distracted by the Leprechaun. Finlay uses said distraction to hit him in the knee with the shillelagh. An Indian Deathlock goes on but time expires at 5:07.

Rating: C. They were beating on each other rather well here and it felt like they were both trying to win the match. That’s how the match should go and it made sense, though there is only so much quality you can get in such little time. On top of that, it doesn’t make Finlay look great when he can’t win a match in five minutes with interference and a weapon shot.

Post match here is Joey Mercury to blast Hardy with a chair over and over like a bit of a mad man.

Post break, Mercury says he is going to go after Hardy until their faces look alike. That’s quite the threat.

Tatanka vs. Jimmy Wang Yang

Rematch from last week’s surprisingly good match. Yang hammers away at the bell to send Tatanka outside for a breather. Back in and Yang jumps him again but this time it’s a whip into the corner so Tatanka can pound him down for a change. A few kicks to the back set up a chinlock to keep Yang in trouble, followed by a suplex for two. Tatanka hits a shoulder in the corner and grabs another chinlock but Yang jawbreaks his way to freedom. Some kicks to the face stagger Tatanka and it’s a crossbody into a neckbreaker for two. A spinwheel kick lets Yang go up but Tatanka pulls him down into the End of the Trail for the pin.

Rating: C-. Not as good as last week but at least Tatanka got a pin. Granted this was his last match in WWE so it isn’t like it matters that much. Tatanka asked to be released the following week and was let go, which makes a bit of sense. There wasn’t much of a role for him, but he wasn’t a total disaster or anything close to it. Just not the right time for him, so this was probably the best idea.

Maryse, in the shower, welcomes us back to the show.

Clips of the four team ladder match from December, with Joey Mercury’s nose exploding.

Chris Benoit vs. Mr. Kennedy

Non-title rematch from last week where Kennedy won. Benoit wastes no time in taking Kennedy around the ring to start and sending him into the buckle. A backdrop sets up a snap suplex for two on Kennedy but an elbow to the face cuts him down. Benoit is right back with the German suplex to send Kennedy outside, but Benoit throws him back inside. That earns him a toss to the floor with a pull of the trunks, setting up a few slams on the floor.

Back in and Kennedy drops an elbow for two but Benoit snaps off the northern lights suplex for two of his own. The rolling German suplexes connect but here is Chavo Guerrero for a distraction as we take a break. Back with Chavo on commentary and Benoit having to go to the ropes to get out of an armbar. That means a suplex over the top to put both of them on the floor for the big crash. They get back in with Kennedy whipping him into the corner for two, setting up the abdominal stretch.

The referee does his job for once and catches Kennedy grabbing the rope so Kennedy drops Benoit ribs first onto the top rope for two. Back in and Benoit manages to send him into the corner for a breather. Benoit heads up top but gets superplexed right back down for another near fall. Kennedy picks him up but Benoit snaps him down into the Crossface attempt, sending Kennedy bailing out to the floor.

Back in and Kennedy has to punch his way out of the Sharpshooter attempt, followed by a backbreaker to put Benoit down for a change. Another Crossface attempt is broken up in a hurry so Benoit rolls the German suplexes for two instead. The Swan Dive connects for a delayed two but Kennedy flapjacks him onto the top rope. There’s the Regal Roll and Kennedy goes up top, where he has to shove Benoit back down.

A missile dropkick gives Kennedy two but the Kenton Bomb misses. That means Benoit can hit five straight German suplexes and the Sharpshooter goes on this time. Cue Chavo for a distraction so Benoit tries the Sharpshooter on him as well, only to have Kennedy roll Benoit up with the tights for the pin.

Rating: B. This was a heck of a match despite the fairly eye roll inducing ending. Benoit vs. Chavo is done already and I’m not sure why they are keeping it going. Kennedy continues his rise to the top and it would not surprise me to see him hold on after how they have set him up here. Good match too, and one of the better ones in recent memory on Smackdown.

Post match Benoit beats up Chavo, who bails to the floor.

We see another part of the career history of Batista, including his comeback to become World Champion again. As usual, WWE is really good at this stuff.

Tag Team Titles: William Regal/Dave Taylor vs. Brian Kendrick/Paul London

London and Kendrick, with Ashley, are defending. Joined in progress after a break with Taylor headlock takeovering Kendrick to grind away a bit. A monkey flip into a dropkick gets Kendrick out of trouble and it’s off to London as we start plugging Ashley’s Playboy. Regal comes in and gets double suplexed, followed by a top rope double stomp to Regal’s back.

Cole actually gets in a smart question by asking how the APA would have dealt with London and Kendrick. See how easy that can be? Taylor comes back in to slam London down and a suplex gets two. We hit the chinlock for a bit, followed by a tag back to Taylor for a chinlock of his own. Make that another chinlock from Regal and then a quickly broken dragon sleeper from Taylor.

London charges at Regal and manages to drive him into the corner for the hot tag off to Kendrick. The pace is picked up and a middle rope crossbody hits Regal but he rolls through for two. London and Taylor go outside, leaving Kendrick to backslide Regal and retain. Regal’s scream of anger makes it that much better.

Rating: C+. Good match here, as you kind of knew would be the case. Regal and Taylor are fine challengers for the pretty awesome champs, though the problem is becoming obvious: there is no one to give London and Kendrick a real challenge, which is making things a little less interesting. Maybe a new team can come in, but for now, it is fun to watch these guys hang onto the titles in entertaining matches.

Remember when Kane burned MVP in the Inferno match?

Beat The Clock: MVP vs. Vito

The clock is set at 5:07 and MVP is taped up after the Inferno match. MVP rakes the eyes to take over to start and stomps away to put Vito down. Vito pulls him down to the mat for two as Kennedy watches anxiously in the back. A kick to the back gets two on Vito as JBL is freaking out over Vito’s dress.

Back up and Vito hits a slam into a Vader Bomb for two, followed by some rollups for two each. Vito goes for the arm but MVP kicks him down again. A running boot in the corner gets two on Vito and there’s a faceplant for the same. Vito sweeps the legs into a jackknife rollup for two but time expires at 5:07.

Rating: C-. This went by fast but it never really felt like they were going for the win as hard as they could. What matters is keeping the overall story moving while also building something up with each match. This showed you just how banged up MVP’s ribs really are, which could give us something new in the whole Teddy Long Is A Horrible Boss deal. It was an energetic enough match, though the Vito deal is totally over already.

Post match MVP kicks him to the floor but gets dropped on his ribs for good measure.

Raw Rebound.

Next week: Chavo Guerrero vs. Chris Benoit for the US Title in a No DQ match.

Batista is ready for anyone and he won’t sleep on Mr. Kennedy. Facing Undertaker would be cool though.

Beat The Clock: Miz vs. Undertaker

The clock is set at 5:07 and JBL is VERY happy when Miz is announced as the opponent. Miz dodges around to start but gets thrown into the corner to start the right hands. Old School gets two and the chokeslam is loaded up with 3:00 left. Cue Mr. Kennedy for a distraction so Undertaker drops him, allowing Miz to score with some dropkicks.

Undertaker knocks Miz outside and there’s the apron legdrop. Snake Eyes sets up the big boot but the referee gets bumped. Undertaker has to deal with Kennedy but comes back in for a chokeslam. Kennedy pulls Miz to the floor so Undertaker throws him back in for the Tombstone and the cover as time expires at 5:07.

Rating: D+. The match wasn’t the point here, as this was about Kennedy being an annoyance to keep Undertaker from beating Miz. There is something to be said about Kennedy managing to hang in there long enough to win in the end, as it is not the kind of thing you would have expected to happen. Kennedy is fine in the Royal Rumble title shot too, so this worked out well for a story, though not so much for a match.

Kennedy is happy to win end the show.

Overall Rating: C. Just like last week, this was mainly about one idea and that worked well enough. What mattered here was setting up the Royal Rumble title match and Kennedy is a good choice for the shot. The rest of the show set up a few more things, but the Rumble itself continues to be a thing that happens to be happening. The match does not need a lot of build, but a little build might help things out.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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AND

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Smackdown
Date: June 11, 2021
Location: Yuengling Center, Tampa, Florida
Commentators: Pat McAfee, Michael Cole

We are on the way to Hell in a Cell and odds are we have the main event set on the blue side. It looks like we are going to be seeing Rey Mysterio get the Universal Title shot against Roman Reigns, assuming they don’t go nuts and give it to Dominik. Normally I would say there is no way, but have you been watching WWE lately? Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

We open with a recap of the Usos failing to win the Tag Team Titles and Roman Reigns destroying the Mysterios to let off some steam.

Reigns is in the back with Jey Uso, saying the Usos owe him an apology. Reigns knows Jey is with him, but we have to see about Jimmy.

Here’s Jimmy Uso for a chat. Jimmy recaps last week and wants to know why Reigns cost them their second title shot. Maybe Reigns is jealous, because the Usos could be the champs and have some gold of their own. Jey isn’t Reigns’ brother and Jimmy is his brother’s keeper. Tonight, he’s doing something about it.

In the back, Reigns isn’t happy. Reigns to Jey: “He’s not my brother. He doesn’t look just like me. He’s not my twin. Ain’t no one going to confuse me for him.” Jey goes to take care of things.

Post break, Jimmy talks to Jey and asks if he thinks they could have won last week. Jey reluctantly says he thinks they could have been the champs, sending Jimmy into a rant about how this can’t keep happening. They’re twins and Reigns is the one disgracing the family. Jey says his loyalty is with Reigns because Jimmy was out for a year. Now Jey is stuck in the middle with no way out.

Kevin Owens/Big E. vs. Apollo Crews/Sami Zayn

Commander Azeez is here with the villains. Owens and Crews start but Owens would rather throw Zayn into the barricade. A backsplash crushes Crews but he knocks Owens down into the corner. The beating doesn’t last long and it’s off to Big E. to clean house. The Warrior Splash hits knees but Crews charges into the Rock Bottom out of the corner for two. Everything breaks down and Big E. is dropped on the floor as we take a break.

Back with Crews cutting off the tag attempt and bringing Sami back in but a high crossbody misses. That’s enough for the hot tag to Owens so house really can be cleaned. A Cannonball sets up the Swanton for two but Sami jumps over Owens to get over for the hot tag. Crews comes in but walks into the Pop Up Powerbomb from Owens.

Sami dives in with a kick to the face for the save before getting brought back in. Everything breaks down and the Blue Thunder Bomb gets two on Owens. Big E. Cactus Clotheslines Crews to the floor (and lands on him for a scary shot), leaving Owens to Stun Zayn for the pin at 12:50.

Rating: C. Totally fine way to combine a few stories at once while keeping Crews safe. They could go in a few directions for the next title match as Crews is becoming an interesting champion. I’m curious to see where this goes and that is not something I’ve been able to say about the title for a good while now.

Post match Crews says hang on a second and blames Zayn for the loss. How about we do this again next week but with Commander Azeez instead of Zayn? That sounds cool with Owens and Big E., but Zayn gets up to complain. The conspiracy is strong, so Zayn get Nigerian Nailed down.

Chad Gable comes up to the Street Profits in the back and blames himself for Otis taking them out last week. Instead, Gable can face one of them at once, with Angelo Dawkins saying he has this. Actually hang on as Montez Ford says he’s got this instead, with Gable being cool with the move. Otis and Dawkins will both stay out of ringside.

Jey Uso comes in to see Roman Reigns, who isn’t happy with Jimmy Uso not being here. Jimmy has said if Reigns wants to see him, come to the Usos’ locker room. Reigns starts chuckling and asks if he means Reigns’ cousins’ locker room. He’ll go see Jimmy…and things get a bit more serious. Reigns walks off saying “my locker room” and chuckling some more. See? He’s happy!

Carmella vs. Liv Morgan

Rematch from last week where Liv lost after getting a pre-match promo and new catchphrase. Liv, in caution tape gear, jumps Carmella to start and stomps her down in the corner. A missed charge only hits the ropes though and Carmella takes her outside to send her into the barricade.

Hold on though as Carmella yells at the commentators to talk about how beautiful she is. After the cameraman falls down while filming the exchange, Carmella takes her back inside for an elbow to the face. That means some more posing until Liv gets in a few shots. A missed charge lets Carmella slap her in the face a few times, but a superkick is blocked. Liv is back with Oblivion for the pin at 2:59.

Post match Carmella insists on being announced as still the most beautiful woman in WWE.

It’s time for Ding Dong Hello, with Bayley welcoming her fellow Grand Slam winner, Seth Rollins. After coming through the door, Rollins has a seat and talks about how much he likes the new set (which isn’t very new). He is rather proud of how much Bayley has been doing as of late, especially when you have Bianca Belair treating her with such a lack of respect.

We see Bayley’s face taking over all of the screens last week as she laughed a lot and Seth finds it great. Bayley has a clip of her own, and we see Rollins attacking Cesaro three weeks ago. More cackling ensues but the doorbell rings. Rollins answers and it’s Cesar, who punches Rollins in the face. The brawl is on and Rollins’ suit is ripped apart. Cesaro throws him into the door to knock it over and Rollins is sent running. The guys leave so here is Bianca Belair to laugh at Bayley’s destroyed set.

We look at Roman Reigns attacking the Mysterios last week.

Rey Mysterio isn’t happy with the way Roman Reigns attacked Dominik last week. He doesn’t care show big Reigns is, because he is coming to fight for his son.

Chad Gable vs. Montez Ford

Gable wrestles him to the mat to start and works on an armbar. Back up and Ford grabs an armdrag into an armbar, followed by an armdrag into an armbar. That’s broken up and Ford’s leapfrog is countered into an ankle lock, only to have Ford lean back onto him for two. They go to the apron and crash down to the floor, sending us to a break.

Back with Gable hitting a belly to back suplex but they both try crossbodies for a double knockdown. We cut to the back where Otis jumps Angelo Dawkins and come back to the ring for Ford hitting a spinebuster. From The Heavens gets two but Otis runs in for the DQ at 9:25 (I wonder if Otis was supposed to break up the cover and was a bit late).

Rating: C. Not a bad match and it’s nice to see that Ford can hang in the ring on his own. The ending wasn’t the best but at least they seem to be setting up a pretty nice tag match. The good thing to see here is the fact that this is a simple yet perfectly effective tag team feud. They aren’t breaking any new ground, but I’ll take something done well over something new being a mess any day.

Post match the beatdown is on, with Angelo Dawkins’ attempted save failing badly.

Shinsuke Nakamura vs. King Corbin

We don’t even get the Rick Boogs entrance! The bell rings and Boogs starts playing to distract Corbin, allowing Nakamura to strike away. The middle rope knee connects for two but Kinshasa is countered into Deep Six for two. Corbin strikes away and pulls Nakamura down by the head. A quick victory roll gives Nakamura the pin at 1:52 (it’s as sudden as it sounds).

Post match Boogs runs after the crown but gets decked. Nakamura takes it from Corbin though and throws Corbin over the announcers’ table. McAfee inches over to Boogs, who goes inside (McAfee, seemingly thinking his mic is off: “Oh, I thought we were going to do something there.”).

Roman Reigns says he and Jey Uso can go to “their” locker room.

King Corbin storms into Adam Pearce and Sonya Deville’s office and demands his crown match. Pearce says no but Sonya says they can have a rubber match next week in a Battle For The Crown. For those keeping track, that will be the fifth match in six weeks. So far, they haven’t combined to go fifteen minutes yet.

Roman Reigns and Jey Uso come in to see Jimmy Uso (with Jey standing in the middle for a perfect visual). Reigns holds up the Universal Title and asks what Jimmy is thinking. Jimmy goes on about how he doesn’t care about the title, saying that Reigns has been doing this since they were all kids. Jimmy knows that Reigns is going to the Hall of Fame one day, but he’s going in as a spoiled b****.

Reigns starts talking to Jey about what Jimmy is doing, but Jimmy says Reigns is doing the same thing. Jey says he’s tired of both of them and walks out. Jimmy is ready to fight but Reigns says they aren’t kids anymore. This is their family business and Jimmy needs to start using his head.

Reigns should be able to depend on Jimmy because it is all of them and continue to be the best every single week. That is all he has ever known: being the best. It’s time for Jimmy to make this right with him and his family. Jimmy leaves and Reigns looks serious. Reigns was VERY fired up here and sounded a bit like the Rock when he started talking fast.

Here is Rey Mysterio to call out Roman Reigns so here he comes (with Paul Heyman of course). Rey gets straight to the point by acknowledging Reigns as the rat that he is for putting his hands on Rey’s son. He wants to fight Reigns and he wants it inside the Cell. Reigns acknowledges him…and Rey whips out a surprise kendo stick to hammer him down. That’s broken up but here’s Dominik with a stick of his own to break up the spear. You don’t do that to Reigns, who POWERBOMBS Dominik over the top in a great visual (though you don’t see the landing). Rey dives onto Dominik to end the show on fire.

Overall Rating: C. As usual, this was the Roman Reigns Show, as anything he did was great and everything else was pretty hit or miss. The problem here is the rematches, as we had two matches we saw last week which went about the same (save for the winners). It really does kind of feel like they’re out of ideas to promote the pay per view and are just filling time, which isn’t the best look. The show still has some matches to make for the pay per view so next week should be covered, but this wasn’t a thrilling show.

Results
Kevin Owens/Big E. b. Apollo Crews/Sami Zayn – Stunner to Zayn
Liv Morgan b. Carmella – Oblivion
Montez Ford b. Chad Gable via DQ when Otis interfered
Shinsuke Nakamura b. King Corbin – Victory roll

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Smackdown
Date: January 5, 2007
Location: Lakeland Center, Lakeland, Florida
Attendance: 4,800
Commentators: John Bradshaw Layfield, Michael Cole

It’s the first Smackdown of the new year and we are just a few weeks away from the Royal Rumble. That means we need to get some things ready and in this case that includes a theme show, as Teddy Long has announced the Beat The Clock Sprint. In other words, we are getting a Beat The Clock Challenge to determine Batista’s challenger for the pay per view. Let’s get to it.

Here are the most recent results if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Here is Teddy Long to get things going. As has already been announced, Long explains the Beat The Clock Challenge. There will be sixteen wrestlers in eight random matches, with whoever wins in the fastest time getting the World Title shot against Batista at the Royal Rumble. This brings out Batista (to quite the eruption) to say he likes the idea of being in the ring against the best. With that out of the way, it’s time to get things going.

Beat The Clock: Kane vs. Chavo Guerrero

Chavo looks a good bit nervous to start and an early rollup attempt goes rather badly. Kane powers him out to the floor where Chavo isn’t sure what to do. Back in and a slam into a jumping legdrop gives Kane two, followed by another trip to the floor. Chavo gets in some stomps on the way back in and sends Kane into the steps for his first breather. Back in and Chavo hits a dropkick between the shoulders, setting up a headscissor choke to keep Kane in trouble.

That’s broken up in a hurry but Kane’s suplex is countered into a DDT. That just makes Kane sit up and the real beating is on. A running clothesline in the corner sets up a side slam but the chokeslam is broken up. Instead Kane backdrops him down and puts Chavo on top. That is broken up as well though and Chavo hits the frog splash….with Kane catching him by the throat for the chokeslam and the pin at 7:53.

Rating: C-. I’m not sure how much drama there was here but it is nice to have some kind of stakes on the match. That time isn’t going to last for more than a match or two but at least they had something simple and to the point here. Kane beating up Chavo worked, even though Chavo’s offense wasn’t exactly the most convincing.

Maryse, in limited clothing, welcomes us back to the show.

Beat The Clock: Paul London vs. Brian Kendrick

The clock is set at 7:53 and what a coincidence. They trade quick rollups to start and Kendrick grabs a headlock. This gives JBL a chance to talk about drinking with Faarooq as Batista is watching in the back. London’s headlock is countered into a headscissors and Kendrick grabs a headlock takeover of his own. They trade some more near falls until London tries to force Kenrdrick’s arms down for a cover. London’s double underhook doesn’t work either as Kendrick backdrops him for two.

You can hear the BORING chants as they get up for a standoff. Kendrick tries an O’Connor roll but gets sent outside for….nothing actually. Back in and they hit stereo crossbodies for a double knockdown. Another exchange of rollups goes nowhere as Kendrick falls out to the floor. Back in and Kendrick grabs a headlock with less than a minute to go. That doesn’t last long so they try some rollups for two each as time expires.

Rating: C-. I wasn’t feeling this one and there were times where they came off as rather dumb. Why would you grab a headlock in a timed match with less than a minute to go? On top of that, JBL wasn’t even screaming at them for being stupid. This was going off the style of they know each other so well and are mirror images of each other, which might make for a nice idea but it rarely works well in practice.

Post match Ashley comes out to make sure everything is cool, allowing JBL to plug her Playboy appearance. Again.

JBL is in the ring for a chat, as he continues to rant about Teddy Long ruining Smackdown. We see another clip of the Inferno match with MVP’s back being burned, plus some photos of MVP’s burned back. Cue MVP to thank JBL for speaking for him, as he was busy being in the hospital and all that jazz. Then he heard about the Beat The Clock Challenge and knew he had to come back and get his shot at the title. That’s why he’ll be here next week in case Long is willing to put him in the competition. This wasn’t exactly a heel promo as it’s kind of hard to take issue with MVP being mad about being SET ON FIRE.

Beat The Clock: King Booker vs. Gregory Helms

Non-title, Queen Sharmell handles Booker’s introduction and the clock is set at 7:53. Booker wastes no time (because he’s smart) by clotheslining him into the ropes as, again, Batista looks on. Helms escapes a suplex and hammers away but Booker grabs a spinebuster for two.

Booker hits a superkick and strikes away in the corner but Helms is back with some forearms. Helms wraps the leg around the rope and hammers away in the corner until he is dropped throat first across the top. Another kick to the face gives Booker two but Helms gets fast and hits a quick middle rope dropkick. A high crossbody/forearm gives Helms two more and he dodges the ax kick for a bonus. Sharmell offers a distraction though and it’s the side kick into the ax kick to give Booker the win at 6:24.

Rating: C. This was a weird one but both guys felt like they were trying to win as fast as they could here. It is nice to see people being smart in a match like this for a change as that has not quite been the case so far. Again though, can we PLEASE get rid of the Cruiserweight Title already? It is very clear that WWE does not care about it so drop the thing before it makes Helms look even worse.

Post match Booker and Sharmell leave so here is the Boogeyman to plant Helms again. Boogeyman worms him to make it worse.

We gt a pretty long video on Batista, looking over his entire career from the Deacon days to Evolution to the injury to the return to get the title back. This was pretty good.

Ashley vs. Jillian Hall

During the entrances, Jillian talks about wanting to destroy Ashley’s pretty face. Jillian takes her down to start and rips at the face a bit. A running knee hits Ashley in the face but she gets a boot up in the corner. Ashley headscissors her out of the corner but walks into a powerbomb for two. Not that it matters as Ashley grabs a quick small package for the pin.

Maryse welcomes us back to the show again.

Beat The Clock: Tatanka vs. Jimmy Wang Yang

The clock is set at 6:24 and JBL is all over the cowboy vs. Indian story. Tatanka jumps him to start but walks into a rollup and a neckbreaker for two each. A sleeper doesn’t work very well on Tatanka as he powers out and gorilla presses Yang outside for a crash. Back in and it’s something like a pumphandle slam into a suplex into a backbreaker for two each on Yang.

A few kicks get Yang out of trouble though, including a middle rope missile dropkick for two. The comeback is so strong that Yang’s chaps fall apart. Yang goes up but gets suplexed back down as the time is starting to wrap up. A slam gets two on Yang but he is right back up with the moonsault press as time expires.

Rating: C. I wouldn’t have bet on this working but they had a pretty nice match here. Tatanka isn’t exactly lighting the world on fire but he can wrestle a good enough power style. Yang is quick enough to hang in there with most opponents and they pulled out a pretty shocking match here. Not great, but what kind of expectations would there have been coming in?

Post match, Tatanka beats Yang down again.

Vickie Guerrero talks about how Chris Benoit caused the problems between herself and Chavo Guerrero. Everyone has turned their backs on her and now she has nothing. Crying ensues.

We recap the Challenge matches so far.

Here is Mr. Kennedy to talk about how he is sports entertainment. I think he means he’s going to win.

Beat The Clock: Mr. Kennedy vs. Chris Benoit

Non-title and the clock is set at 6:24. They grapple into the corner to start with Kennedy actually getting the better of things. A whip into the corner puts Benoit down for two as we see Batista watching in the back. There’s another whip into the corner for two more as this is one sided so far. Benoit grabs a quick rollup for two but the Sharpshooter is countered into Kennedy’s own near fall.

The Kenton Bomb hits raised knees and it’s time to roll the German suplexes. The Swanton misses though and Kennedy takes a turnbuckle pad off. Benoit snaps on the Crossface, with Kennedy going straight into the rope. Back up and Benoit is sent into the exposed buckle to give Kennedy the pin at 5:07.

Rating: C. This was kind of a weird match as Kennedy dominated for the most part with Benoit barely getting in any offense. I did like the recurring idea of Benoit being whipped into the corner before the big one at the end finished him off so they did have a theme to the match. This worked out well enough and Kennedy is a good potential challenger for Batista.

Post match Kennedy brags about the win but here is Teddy Long to remind us that the second half of the challenge is next week. Next week we will have MVP, Finlay, Matt Hardy and the Undertaker trying their luck, which does not sit well with Kennedy. Kennedy: “KENNEDY!”.

Commentary recaps the remaining challengers to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. I love a show where there is a theme throughout the night and that was absolutely the case here. They had a good show with almost everyone working on the same angle. It was a smart idea to have something like this as the year starts, as it isn’t like the title match is going to mean given that it is at the Royal Rumble. Simple and to the point here, which might not be exciting, but it is rather safe and that is not a bad thing from time to time.

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Smackdown
Date: June 4, 2021
Location: Yuengling Center, Tampa, Florida|
Commentators: Michael Cole, Pat McAfee

It’s time for a double title show as the Intercontinental and Tag Team Titles are on the line. First up Apollo Crews is defending against Kevin Owens with Commander Azeez barred from ringside. Next up, likely in the main event, the Usos get their shot against Dominik and Rey Mysterio in what could be a pretty awesome match. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Here are Roman Reigns and Paul Heyman to get things going. Reigns talks about being direct in how he is feeling, because he wasn’t happy last week. He has had the counsel of a wise man and a week to chew on it though and now he has changed his mind on the Usos getting a Tag Team Title shot tonight.

Reigns may be the centerpiece but he is also a giver. Let’s get the Usos out here right now (Heyman: “USOS’ MUSIC RIGHT NOW!”) because we need to talk about this. Jey is cool with Reigns and Jimmy says it’s time to become the seven time champs. Reigns says bring him the titles when it’s over and drops the mic. The Usos seem cool with that.

Tag Team Titles: Usos vs. Dominik Mysterio/Rey Mysterio

The Usos are challenging. Jimmy shoulders Dominik to start but it’s a dropkick into an armbar to put Jimmy down. Rey comes in and gets powerbombed onto Jimmy for two as Cole says the Usos have somehow never had a match against Rey Mysterio of any kind (I love little trivia like that). It’s off to Jey for a backbreaker, setting up an assisted hot shot for two. Jey gets in a cheap shot from the floor and drops Rey onto the apron to bang up his back.

Back in and Rey manages to send Jey over the ropes to the floor but a suicide dive is countered into a Samoan drop onto the announcers’ table (OW). We take a break and come back with Rey still in trouble, including Jey grabbing a reverse chinlock. Jey hands it off to Jimmy but Rey sends them into each other in the corner. The tag brings Dominik back in to dive onto both Usos at once. Back in and a neckbreaker drops Jey but Jimmy catches him with a kick to the ribs.

A run up the corner sets up a tornado DDT for two on Jimmy as everything breaks down. Rey hits a running seated senton to take Jey down on the floor but walks into a superkick from Jimmy. Back in and Jimmy hits Dominik with one as well but Dominik grabs a rollup to retain at 14:25, thought he replay shows that the shoulder was up at two (with commentary pointing it out several times).

Rating: C. The ending didn’t help things but the rest of this worked out well enough. What matters here is the finish though, as that is going to give Reigns a reason to yell at them. A pay per view rematch wouldn’t surprise me but I can’t imagine that this is done anytime soon. The Usos seem destined to get the titles eventually, and that is probably best for everyone.

Roman Reigns tells Paul Heyman to bring them to him.

Post break, Reigns yells at the Usos (Reigns: “YOU LOST TO A CHILD!”) for calling their shot and screwing it up. Reigns says they better get another shot at this and correct the mistake. He wants this fixed tonight, but before they go, they need to understand his position. They are six time Tag Team Champions and made it to Wrestlemania once. Then Jey closed the show on his own with his head held high for the whole world to see. Jimmy needs to understand, but the way it is going, it won’t matter anyway. Reigns was amazing here.

We get a sitdown interview with Seth Rollins, who is asked about attacking Cesaro over and over. Rollins says he doesn’t owe the WWE Universe anything, including his time or an answer to that leading question. When asked about Cesaro returning to Smackdown, Rollins takes the mic off and slowly throws it at Kayla Braxton.

Chad Gable talks to the Street Profits about how he has not been liking what is on their tapes lately. It is clear that profits are down, with Montez Ford losing about six inches off of his frog splash and Angelo Dawkins’ Sky High looking like a medium. Gable offers to coach them up, but that’s a hard no.

The Usos complain to Adam Pearce and Sonya Deville but Pearce says the result is final. Sonya says they’ll get back to them on this.

Liv Morgan vs. Carmella

Morgan says she thinks it’s cute that Carmella thinks she’s so beautiful. She would give Carmella a 7/10 but a boot to the face would make it a 10. After the Liv Morgan Makeover, everyone is going to want to watch her. Morgan gets sent outside to start but throws Carmella into the barricade to take over. Carmella goes face first into the apron and it’s a Backstabber into a toss into the corner back inside. Not that it matters as Carmella kicks her in the face and grabs the Code of Silence for the tap at 2:30. So Liv gets a singles match, a new look and a catchphrase and loses in less than three minutes. Shocking I know.

The Mysterios are leaving but Adam Pearce and Sonya Deville stop them. They have looked at the tape and the rematch is tonight. The Mysterios aren’t happy but they head back to the locker room.

Here is Bianca Belair for a chat. Bayley has been laughing at her lately but everyone is laughing at Bayley instead of with her. Belair talks about being bullied a lot over the years and even being called mannish. It hurt her a lot, but she just won trophy after trophy and proved everyone wrong. Now Bayley is disrespecting her, so let’s just do this at Hell in a Cell.

Bayley doesn’t come out, but we hear her laughing and she eventually pops up on the screen. She talks about how she is here via satellite and we see her sitting on a couch, surrounded by pictures of herself. The challenge is accepted, and she promises that she won’t be the only one laughing. The video screens in the arena all turn into pictures of Bayley laughing for a pretty creepy moment. Granted it was better a few months ago when Alexa Bliss did it on Raw.

Otis asks the Street Profits if they’re joining the Alpha Academy but they say he should get a refund. That’s a shot to Ford’s face and Dawkins gets driven into an anvil case.

Here is King Corbin to recap his issues with Shinsuke Nakamura. Well at least to introduce a video on them. Cue Rick Boogs to give a royal introduction to Shinsuke Nakamura, the King of Strong Style (complete with Corbin’s crown). McAfee gets up on the announcers’ table to dance to Boogs’ entrance in what continues to be one of the best parts of the show.

King Corbin vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

Corbin hammers away in the corner but Nakamura kicks him into the corner. The running knee to the ribs gives Nakamura two, earning himself a two arm chokeslam for two. A cross armbreaker sends Corbin bailing to the rope and then the floor, where he drops Boogs with a clothesline. Back in and Corbin pulls Nakamura down by the hair and cradles him for the pin at 1:55.

Post match Corbin grabs the crown but Boogs slows him down, allowing Nakamura to kick Corbin in the head and steal it back.

Kevin Owens is on his way to the ring when Commander Azeez jumps him. The beatdown is on with Apollo Crews looking on approvingly.

Intercontinental Title: Apollo Crews vs. Kevin Owens

Crews is defending and Owens can barely make it to the ring. Crews gets smart by hitting a backbreaker to stay on the bad ribs and a suplex makes it worse. Owens’ chop doesn’t do much as Crews whips him hard into the corner. Somehow Owens manages to send him outside but running the ropes hurts the ribs again. Crews sends him outside and it’s an Angle Slam on the floor to send us to a break.

Back with Crews still in full control, including an overhead belly to belly suplex. Crews snaps off a German suplex but Owens hits one of his own. Owens manages to get up top but has to break up a superplex attempt. A headbutt puts Crews down and for some reason Owens decides to try the Swanton, which hits raised knees.

An enziguri into a German suplex gives Crews two but the frog splash only hits mat. Owens hits a superkick (dig that thigh slapping) and the Pop Up Powerbomb gets two. Crews heads to the apron so Owens goes up again, only to get pulled down into a Death Valley Driver onto the apron to retain the title at 11:58.

Rating: C+. This worked well and there is a door open for Owens to get a rematch later on if that is where they want to go. Crews has done rather well with the title and I’m curious to see where he goes from here. Good match with a better story, and that is not something you get to say very often in WWE.

Post match here’s Sami Zayn to hit the Helluva Kick on Owens, because these two can’ apart for very long.

The Street Profits think Chad Gable is the disrespectful one and it’s time to send Otis back to the dump where he belongs.

Tag Team Titles: Usos vs. Dominik Mysterio/Rey Mysterio

The Usos are challenging and Jimmy takes Dominik down for three straight near falls. It’s off to Jey, who hits a belly to back suplex into a neckbreaker to send Dominik outside. Jey’s dive takes Dominik out again and we take a break. Back with Jey hammering away on Dominik but getting rolled into the corner for his efforts. Rey, in a shirt for an odd look, comes in and hits the springboard spinning crossbody for two on Jimmy. A hurricanrana takes Jimmy down and there’s the sliding splash to crush him on the floor. Back in and the 619 connects and Dominik goes up….but Roman Reigns comes in for the DQ at 8:12.

Rating: C. The ending surprised me but it is cool to see Reigns getting to wreck people. There is a good chance that they do this a third time at the pay per view, which would be a good enough way to have the Usos take the titles. Either way, Reigns continues to be excellent and that is all you need around here for the most part.

Post match Reigns cleans house and yells at Jimmy for embarrassing the family twice. Reigns destroys both Mysterios with stair shots before throwing Rey over the barricade. Dominik gets choked out and Jimmy says that’s enough. Roman finally lets go as Jimmy says it doesn’t need to be like this. Jimmy walks off and calls Jey to come with him. Hold on though as Reigns gets in Jey’s face, leaving Jey confused. Reigns isn’t done with Dominik though as he hammers away and nails a big powerbomb to end the show. Rey vs. Reigns could work for the pay per view title match.

Overall Rating: C+. This was the Roman Reigns Show again as he more than carried everything else. His presence is more than enough to make things that much better and it was a good show mainly due to what he did. There were a few other good parts to it as well though and I liked more of it than I didn’t. Outside of stuff like Nakamura vs. Corbin and Carmella beating Morgan in such quick fashion, this was a pretty nice show as they continue the build towards the pay per view.

Results

Dominik Mysterio/Rey Mysterio b. Usos – Victory roll to Jimmy

Carmella b. Liv Morgan – Code of Silence

King Corbin b. Shinsuke Nakamura – Rollup

Apollo Crews b. Kevin Owens – Death Valley Driver onto the apron

Dominik Mysterio/Rey Mysterio b. Usos via DQ when Roman Reigns interfered

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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AND

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Smackdown
Date: December 29, 2006
Hosts: Michael Cole, John Bradshaw Layfield

It’s the final show of the year from any brand and that means it’s Best Of time again. This show will likely feature a bit of a better selection than ECW so it should be a nice upgrade. There were some good things to pick from this year so hopefully it’s a rather easy night. Let’s get to it.

Of note: I’ll be posting the full versions of the matches rather than the clipped versions shown on the broadcast.

Michael Cole and JBL welcome us to the show and throw us straight to the first match.

From the Royal Rumble.

Royal Rumble

Ninety second intervals with HHH in at #1 and Rey Mysterio, in a low rider, in at #2. Lawler: “If you’re number one or two, you’re screwed.” This company really doesn’t have much of a memory does it? Rey goes fast to start with a running dropkick to the knee and a headscissors. The right hands in the corner set up the missed 619 and it’s Simon Dean in at #3. Dean stomps on Rey but can only send him to the apron. For some reason Dean thinks HHH will like him and that’s good for an elimination in a hurry.

Rey hits the Bronco Buster on HHH and it’s Psicosis in at #4. Psicosis goes after Rey as well and a swinging sitout faceplant drops him again. An attempt at a Razor’s Edge over the top results in a hurricanrana to get rid of Psicosis. Before anything else can happen, it’s Ric Flair in at #5 (Flair was in five Rumbles. In four of them, he was in the first five entrants.). HHH panics and the fight is on, with Flair grabbing him low but getting poked in the eyes.

A backdrop gets rid of Flair and it’s Big Show in at #6. That means another beatdown on HHH, including the standing legdrop and an elbow. Jonathan Coachman is in at #7 and Big Show gets rid of him as quickly as you would expect. Show stands on HHH’s head again and it’s Bobby Lashley (a dark horse according to Cole) in at #8. A big right hand puts Lashley down but he backdrops Show in a nice power display.

Lashley kicks Show to the floor (not eliminated) and it’s Kane in at #9 as they’re stacking the first part of this thing. Kane and Lashley slug it out with Kane hitting a big boot. Lashley snaps off a belly to belly, knocks down HHH, and hits the Dominator on Kane. It’s Sylvan in at #10, giving us HHH, Mysterio, Big Show, Lashley, Kane and Sylvan.

After Lashley dispatches him even faster than Show got rid of Coach, it’s a double chokeslam to plant Lashley. Kane and Show get rid of him after a strong showing and it’s the giant slugout. They choke each other on the ropes until HHH dumps both of them out (I’m shocked too) so here’s Carlito at #11 to fill in the ring a little more. Carlito stomps on Rey and HHH until a Roddy Piper style eye poke gets HHH out of trouble. Chris Benoit is in at #12 with Cole explaining about Benoit winning last year (hopefully jogging Lawler’s memory a bit).

The Crossface has Carlito in trouble, with HHH making the fast save. That wasn’t the brightest idea in the world but he sends Benoit to the apron where they fight over a suplex attempt. Benoit puts him down and hits the Swanton but here’s Booker T. (back in the long tights) in at #13. Benoit gets rid of Booker in about 20 seconds (Booker was probably still injured) so it’s back to chopping away at everyone else.

Joey Mercury is in at #14 and Benoit gives him a German suplex in a hurry. More chopping ensues as Tatanka of all people is in at #15 to go after HHH. The fans seem to remember him, but that might just be the Florida State Seminoles chant. Everyone pairs off and it’s Johnny Nitro in at #16 as Benoit gets HHH to the apron. Trevor Murdoch is in at #17 (Lawler: “He looks like a big bottle of milk.”) as the ring is getting full in a hurry. Rey is sent to the apron for the third time but is right back in with a basement dropkick to HHH.

Eugene is in at #18 for an airplane spin on Murdoch so Rey gives the two of them a double bulldog. Animal, with bright green shoulder pads, is in at #19. Things slow down again with the only thing between entrances being MNM failing to get rid of Rey. The returning Rob Van Dam is in at #20, giving us HHH, Mysterio, Carlito, Benoit, Mercury, Tatanka, Nitro, Murdoch, Eugene, Animal and Van Dam. Rob goes after almost everyone, including a spinwheel kick to HHH. MNM goes after Rob but he shrugs that off and gets rid of Animal.

Orlando Jordan is in at #21 and doesn’t even get a reaction in his hometown. There are WAY too many people in there and it’s making it hard to do much. Van Dam manages a middle rope kick to Carlito’s face and it’s Chavo Guerrero in at #22. Rolling Thunder hits Jordan and Chavo gets to clean a little house, including Three Amigos to Nitro. For some reason Chavo goes up top and HHH shove shim out without much effort.

Matt Hardy is in at #23 as there is only room for about two people to do anything at a time. MNM dumps Tatanka and it’s Super Crazy in at #24. He comes in with a very high crossbody to MNM and it’s back to fighting on the ropes. Shawn Michaels is in at #25 and PLEASE GET RID OF SOME PEOPLE. Murdoch is Shawn’s first victim and it’s Chris Masters in at #26 because the ring MUST stay overly full. Mercury and Hardy both save themselves and HHH has to do it as well.

Viscera is in at #27 (lucky us) for a Samoan drop on Hardy. There’s the Visagra and Hardy is out for daring to try a Twist of Fate on the monster. Shelton Benjamin is in at #28 as Benoit gets rid of Eugene. There’s a Dragon Whip to HHH as Goldust is in at #29. Crazy seems to have been put out off camera and Randy Orton is in at #30.

Side note: Cole says Orton is coming off a phenomenal 2005. What exactly did he do? Lose the title match against HHH at the Rumble, lose against the Undertaker at Wrestlemania and in the Cell, and need his dad to help him beat Undertaker. Oh and be the sole survivor at Survivor Series (thanks to a distraction), which he had done twice before. That’s phenomenal?

Anyway, the final grouping is HHH, Mysterio, Carlito, Benoit, Mercury, Nitro, Van Dam, Jordan, Michaels, Masters, Viscera, Benjamin, Goldust and Orton, or nearly half of the field. Orton gets rid of Benoit in a hurry to make up for Smackdown and Carlito/Masters dump Viscera. Carlito immediately turns on Masters to eliminate him as they’re picking up the pace in a hurry.

Goldust hits Shattered Dreams on Carlito, and is quickly eliminated by Van Dam. Orton gets rid of Jordan (after a ridiculous sixteen minutes), leaving Shawn and HHH to do their big showdown. MNM breaks that up but Michaels breaks that up and sends Nitro into Mercury to get rid of Joey. Michaels clotheslines Nitro out and skins the cat back in but Shelton jumps him. Shawn superkicks Shelton out without much effort but here’s Vince McMahon to order Michaels out.

Cue Shane McMahon from behind to dump Shawn, who charges back in, chases Shane off, superkicks HHH for old times’ sake, and follows the McMahons to the back. Van Dam gets rid of Carlito and we’re down to Van Dam, HHH, Orton and Mysterio. The tag match breaks out with Van Dam and Mysterio getting the better of it. For some reason Rob goes up and gets crotched by HHH, who sends Rey into Van Dam for the elimination.

Rey has to knock HHH and Orton down at the same time, setting up a double 619. Orton clotheslines Rey down though and powerslams HHH for a bonus. HHH is back up with a spinebuster to Orton but Rey gets rid of HHH to bring the fans WAY back into it. Just because he’s evil, HHH pulls Mysterio to the floor and sends him into the steps. The EDDIE chants start up and Rey manages to slip off Orton’s shoulder and a hurricanrana gives Rey the win.

Rating: B-. It’s good enough, but the Eddie praise got a little rough to take as the match went on. The far bigger problem though was having so many people in the ring at once for long stretches, leaving the people to have to find what openings they could in their limited room. That’s not a good setup for the Rumble and when it’s for the sake of having people like Tatanka and Jordan in there for long stretches, they seem to be missing the point.

Next up is the Diva Search, with Layla winning.

From June 9.

Miz is in the ring to host a Divas bikini contest between Ashley, Jillian Hall (Miz: “She’s buoyant!”), Kristal and Michelle McCool. The first three disrobe, Miz makes jokes, and Michelle stands up for teachers who are being accused of having inappropriate relations with students because the teachers have needs too. Anyway, she leaves because no one should see her A+ body. Ashley wins.

We see JBL losing the US Title to Bobby Lashley and then being retired by Rey Mysterio later in the night.

Video on Tribute to the Troops.

We recap Vickie Guerrero/Chavo Guerrero vs. Rey Mysterio.

From October 20.

Chavo Guerrero vs. Rey Mysterio

I Quit match. Chavo hammers away in the corner to start but the 619 chants bring Rey back up. Rey sends him outside for the big running flip dive and they’re both down on the floor. A posting puts Chavo down again, followed by Rey dropkicking a chair into Chavo’s face in the corner.

Back up and a Vickie distraction lets Chavo start in on the leg, which has a history of working against Rey. Chavo even ties the chair around the knee for a frog splash, which still isn’t enough to make Rey give up. They go up the ramp with Chavo staying on the knee, only to have Rey kick him off the ramp. The running seated senton to the floor hits Chavo again, which shows you just how high that stage is.

A Crossface isn’t enough to make Chavo quit so Rey chokes with the chair. He can’t follow up though, allowing Chavo to throw him onto some equipment cases. Rey gets in a right hand and climbs the lighting structure but Chavo knocks him into a Tree of Woe in the structure. Some chair shots to the knee are enough to make Rey give up.

Rating: B-. That’s the last you’ll be seeing of Rey until August as he needed another knee surgery. This was a heck of a showcase for Chavo, who really does not have a major win to his credit. Rey was World Champion about three months ago so this still carries some weight. Rey needed to go away and it was nice to see them elevate someone on his way out for a bit.

Teddy Long announced the Smackdown Sprint, which is basically a Beat The Clock Challenge for the World Title shot against Batista at the Royal Rumble.

Cole and JBL talk about Undertaker/Kane vs. MVP/Mr. Kennedy.

From December 15.

MVP/Mr. Kennedy vs. Undertaker/Kane

MVP gets scared by the fire during his own entrance, which I’m not sure I remember being there before. Kennedy slowly opens the door of the hearse in the aisle and finds nothing, which doesn’t mean much around here. Joined in progress with Kane stomping Kennedy into the corner and then lifting him into the air for the choking. A rake to the eyes allows for the tag off to MVP, who is side slammed down in a hurry. The top rope clothesline makes it even worse and Undertaker comes in to unload in the corner.

Kennedy finally does something worthwhile by offering a distraction to break up Old School and Undertaker gets stomped down for a change. Undertaker is right back with right hands to MVP in the corner though and now Old School connects. Kane tags himself in and the brothers hit some big boots. The double chokeslam plants Kennedy but MVP saves him from the Tombstone. Undertaker stalks MVP to the back as Kennedy and Kane fight on the floor for the double countout.

Rating: C-. This was the teaser trailer for Sunday and that’s all it needed to be. We’ve seen these four fight in various combinations for weeks now and there isn’t much left to do than have the big blowoff matches at the pay per view. I’m glad they didn’t waste time on a long match before the ending either, so while this might not have been very good, it was at least efficient.

Post match Kennedy sends Kane into the steps and gets in the hearse. Kennedy revs the engine but the lights go out, allowing Undertaker to appear in the driver’s seat. That sends Kennedy and MVP running….right into Kane as he sits up for a pretty funny moment. The villains run off in a hurry.

We hear about Undertaker vs. Kennedy and Kane vs. MVP at Armageddon.

We look at the Finlay’s Leprechaun debuting.

From Judgment Day.

Chris Benoit vs. Finlay

They had a good match a few weeks ago so this should work. Finlay takes him into the corner to start and we actually get a clean break. The lockup goes all the way to the floor and against the barricade before they finally break up. Back in and they go nose to nose until Benoit grabs the legs for a failed Sharpshooter attempt. The chinlock goes on Finlay instead before Benoit switches over to a headlock. Finlay accuses Benoit of an eye poke though and then jumps him when the referee stops to check on things.

It’s a chinlock on Benoit this time but he isn’t sitting in that for very long. Instead it’s Benoit getting up and unloading in the corner, setting up another chinlock. Benoit tries to switch into the Crossface before turning Finlay over for two. Finlay hits him in the face and then pulls on the arm while putting his foot on Benoit’s head for some pulling. The chinlock is countered and Benoit snaps off another German suplex, followed by the Swan Dive for two.

Finlay is right back with a knockdown of his own into a running seated senton and it’s off to a chinlock with a knee in the back. A hammerlock/dragon sleeper combination (that’s a new one) keeps Benoit down and Finlay just pounds him in the back. Finlay says get up so he can show Benoit how tough he is. That means a clothesline to drop Benoit again but he’s right back up with a German suplex.

They head outside with Benoit hitting another German suplex on the floor, followed by Three Amigos back inside. The threat of another Swan Dive makes Finlay knock him off the top, with Benoit’s head hitting the barricade. Back in and Benoit’s shoulder goes into the post but he’s fine enough to snap on the Crossface for the tap.

Rating: B+. Oh like these two getting twenty minutes wasn’t going to be really good. They had an awesome match a few weeks back and now they did it again on the bigger stage. These two compliment each other really well and it felt like a fight with wrestling moves instead of a match, which worked very well. I could go for it again and it’s the kind of match where you could see it going either way.

Here’s a rapid fire recap of Gregory Helms, Paul London and Brian Kendrick, Jimmy Wang Yang, Boogeyman, Miz and Vito, the latter of whom kissed Cole. This was described as “fun”. That last bit was never before seen, which does make me feel a bit better.

Another Tribute to the Troops video.

We look at the rise of King Booker, which leads us to this.

From Survivor Series.

Smackdown World Title: King Booker vs. Batista

Batista is challenging and starts fast by jumping him before the bell. They get inside to officially start the match with Batista hammering away in the corner. The threat of a Batista Bomb sends Booker bailing to the floor and the fans aren’t pleased. Back in and Batista hammers away even more but a hot shot gets Booker out of trouble. A catapult sends Batista throat first into the bottom rope and Booker stomps away even more.

Booker pokes him in the eye but you don’t need two eyes to hit a side slam for two. They head to the apron for a slugout with Batista knocking him back in. Sharmell grabs the leg though and Booker kicks him out to the floor again. Back in and Booker pounds him down into a chinlock as Cole asks JBL what it feels like to try and get the title back. JBL: “I’m not a loser Michael. Bring up something else.”

Batista fights up and hits the clotheslines into a big boot to send Booker outside. That means a whip into the steps, followed by a top rope shoulder (dang) for two back inside. Booker is right back with a Bookend for two but Batista is up with the Batista Bomb. They’re right next to the rope so Booker saves himself, allowing Sharmell to hand him the title. A Sharmell distraction doesn’t work though as Batista ducks the shot and takes the belt away. Batista’s belt shot is enough for the pin, the title, and the energized celebration.

Rating: D, This really didn’t work and the ending was stupid. How much of a conqueror does this make Batista, when he needed a belt shot to beat Booker? It’s a reclaiming the glory story and that should work, but the lack of drama didn’t help anything. Pretty awful main event with the main bright spot being the fact that they didn’t go long here. It’s the longest match of the show at less than fourteen minutes and it felt every one of them.

Cole and JBL wrap it up.

Overall Rating: C+. It’s always a little weird when “Best Of Smackdown” turns into “Best Of Smackdown People In Various Places”. This was what you would expect from a clip show with some good matches, including some that you have probably forgotten about. What we got was good enough though, even if it had a few major names missing (Kurt Angle, Great Khali, Mark Henry etc.). Good show here, as it’s really, really had to have a bad Best Of show.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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AND

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Smackdown
Date: May 28, 2021
Location: Yuengling Center, Tampa, Florida
Commentators: Michael Cole, Pat McAfee

It’s a tag team show this week as the Usos are reuniting to face the Street Profits, marking their first match as a team in about fifteen months. Other than that, the Mysterios are defending the Tag Team Titles against Dolph Ziggler and Robert Roode because this feud must continue due to reasons. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

The Usos are ready for their first match back but here is Roman Reigns to interrupt. Reigns wants to know their endgame, with Jimmy saying the goal is to win. They want the Tag Team Titles next to Reigns’ Universal Title so they’ll have all the gold. Reigns is behind them and says good luck. Jimmy leaves and Jey looks worried, so Reigns asks if Jimmy is doing the talking for Jey now. Jey says he’s with Jimmy tonight but he’s with Reigns too. Reigns says he should go tell Jimmy, so Jey leaves too. You can feel the manipulation here.

Street Profits vs. Usos

Before the match, the Profits talk about how they had some fun with the Usos last week but now it’s time to get a little more serious. They were flattered by the challenge but they have been down since day one too. The Profits remember everything the Usos have been doing over the years, but these are some different Usos tonight. They haven’t been together in a long time and now Roman Reigns is living rent free in Jey’s head. Cue the Usos and we’re ready to go.

Well hold on actually as the Usos brag about their accomplishments and say a win here means they’re a step closer to getting the titles back. Angelo Dawkins doesn’t like the idea of being a stepping stone so they make a bunch of Mario references before we go to a break before the match.

Dawkins runs Jimmy over to start and it’s off to Ford, who wants to face Jey. That takes a little time to get going, so it’s a delay before Ford can armdrag him into an armbar. A double suplex lets Dawkins grab his own armbar but it’s off to Jimmy in a hurry. Jimmy hits a jumping forearm in the corner to take over and there’s a headbutt to keep Dawkins in trouble. Commentary can’t quite get Jey’s timeline with Reigns right (as the two of them have apparently been together for a year despite Reigns only being back about nine months) as Dawkins gets driven into the corner.

Jimmy comes back in and gets armdragged down, allowing the tag off to Ford. A double clothesline puts the Usos on the floor and Jey is sent into the timekeeper’s area. Jimmy goes over the announcers’ table and we take a break. Back with Ford ax handling Jimmy’s arm but Jey makes a blind tag and pulls Ford tot he floor. That means a toss into the barricade and the chinlock back inside as we see Roman Reigns watching in the back. A snap suplex gives Jimmy two and it’s back to Jey for a wishbone.

Ford manages a step up enziguri to send Jey outside so it’s Jimmy grabbing the legs. That’s fine with Ford, who nips up and hits a jumping enziguri to drop Jimmy as well. The diving tag….misses as Jey pulls Dawkins to the floor. Jimmy hits the Samoan drop and we take another break. Back again with Jey’s superplex being broken up and Ford hitting another enziguri. They clothesline each other though and that’s a double knockdown. Dawkins and Jimmy both come in with Dawkins sending him right back to the apron.

This time it’s Jimmy hitting an enziguri of his own but a right hand knocks him onto the top. Ford hits a heck of a running flip dive to drop Jey, leaving Jimmy to superkick Dawkins for two. The running Umaga attack is blocked and Dawkins’ double underhook swinging neckbreaker gets two, leaving him stunned. The spinebuster sets up the Cash Out but Jey pulls Jimmy out of the way. A low superkick finishes Ford at 21:46.

Rating: B+. This took some time to get going and they went a little enziguri happy but it was a heck of a match with the near falls and dives looking good in the end. The Usos are all but destined to get the titles back (or at least challenge for them) and I can certainly go for more of them. Either way, this was an awesome match from two great teams who got a lot of time. Check this out if you get the chance.

Robert Roode and Dolph Ziggler blame their loss on Rey Mysterio going nuts to protect his son at Backlash. Tonight is going to be different because they are a couple of aces.

Natalya/Tamina vs. Riott Squad

Joined in progress with Morgan coming in to….mess up a wheelbarrow toss to send Riott into the corner. Riott sends Natalya face first into the buckle for two and the chinlock goes on, as we see Tamina down on the floor thanks to an attack before the bell. Natalya can’t get a double Sharpshooter but Tamina is back up to break up a cover. The hot tag brings in Tamina, who gets forearmed by Riott. That’s broken up with a shove to send Riott throat first into the bottom rope. Morgan hits a Codebreaker on Natalya on the floor as Riott gets shoved off the top to set up the Superfly Splash for the pin at 3:57.

Rating: D. This was a total mess with spots missing, Tamina being gone for a good chunk of the match and the Codebreaker on the floor just being a detail at the finish. I’m still so glad to see the Riott Squad being fed to Natalya and Tamina, the latest thrown together team, making me wonder what the point is in having regular teams in the first place outside of being cannon fodder.

The Usos come in to see Adan Pearce and get a Tag Team Title shot next week against the winners of tonight’s title match. Jimmy is pleased but Jey looks very unsure.

Bianca Belair vs. Carmella

Non-title. In the back, Carmella says she has this and mocks Kayla Braxton’s dress. She says Bianca won at Wrestlemania in a bit of a shady way but Carmella has won a lot of things over the years. Tonight, it’s time to end Belair’s happily ever after. Hold on again as here is Bayley to join commentary. We get going with Belair driving her into the corner for some shoulders to the ribs. There’s a flying headscissors to put Belair on the floor so Carmella follows, only to get shouldered down.

Bayley keeps talking about Belair’s hair as Carmella is pressed back inside. Carmella gets in a cheap shot to set up an X Factor onto the apron for two. Some elbows in the corner keep Belair in trouble and we hit the chinlock. That’s broken up in a hurry with a backbreaker, followed by a handspring moonsault for two. Bayley rants about Belair’s hair again as a missed charge lets Carmella hit a superkick for two more. The Code of Silence can’t go on so “Belanca” according to Cole (Bayley: “BELANCA??? YOU STUPID IDIOT!”) hits the KOD for the pin at 5:41.

Rating: C-. Bayley was the absolute highlight here as she was firing off one great line after another as we seem to continue the build towards a hair vs. hair match. Belair is an athletic machine but she still needs a lot more polishing in the ring as there were a lot of sloppy sections in here. Carmella is a good choice for an opponent here as she has enough of a resume to matter, but this was all about Bayley.

Post match Belair poses with the title and Bayley laughs hysterically (Bayley: “LAUGH WITH ME!”)

The Mysterios promise to win tonight.

Here is a ticked off Seth Rollins to call out Cesaro for a fight right now. There is no Cesaro but Rollins isn’t going to let that ruin his birthday. We see a clip of Rollins attacking Cesaro last week to make his already banged up arm even worse, including when Cesaro was on a stretcher. Back in the arena, Rollins has exclusive audio from Cesaro’s hospital room (oh boy) and it’s…..I believe some kind of bodily function.

Rollins cracks up but then gets serious to talk about how unfortunate last week was. It was a scary situation and some of the blame has to be placed on the people at home. The fans are the people who made Cesaro believe he could disrespect Rollins, whose hands are clean. Rollins sings himself Happy Birthday to wrap this up.

Kevin Owens vs. Apollo Crews

Non-title and Commander Azeez is here with Crews. Owens sends him into the corner in a hurry and hits the Cannonball into a Swanton for a fast two. A superkick looks to set up the Pop Up Powerbomb but he has to settle for the Stunner instead. Azeez nails Owens for the DQ at 1:14. Were they running long and had to keep this short here?

Commentary makes it clear that Crews is still champion, mainly due to it being non-title. Owens can’t breathe after the Nigerian Nail so referees and agents come down to confirm that he in fact cannot breathe.

Jey Uso comes in to see Reigns, who isn’t happy about the title match. Reigns isn’t pleased as Jimmy is back and the Usos are relegated to the opening match. He doesn’t want Jey to go back to being “which one is he”. Jey seems to like this line of thinking.

Here is Rick Boogs to play play Shinsuke Nakamura to the ring again and McAfee is REALLY happy.

Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Chad Gable

Otis is here with Gable and jumps Nakamura to start, only to have Nakamura kick Gable down. Cue King Corbin to take his crown back as Nakamura can’t hit Kinshasa. Instead it’s a rollup for two and then Kinshasa can connect for the pin at 1:57.

Post match Corbin leaves with the crown but Boogs guitars him in the back and Nakamura gets the crown again.

Kevin Owens can barely talk but manages to tell Adam Pearce that he wants his title shot against Apollo Crews next week. The match is on, with Commander Azeez banned from ringside.

Rey Mysterio is praying before the match.

Post break and Rey has been attacked. You know the real money in wrestling seems to be in being a backstage security guard.

Tag Team Titles: Rey Mysterio/Dominik Mysterio vs. Dolph Ziggler/Robert Roode

Ziggler and Roode are challenging and insist that they had nothing to do with Rey being attacked (which makes sense as they were in the ring when we came back from a break). That should mean a forfeit, but Dominik says he’s going to step up like his dad did at Backlash. Ziggler: “THIS IS CHILD ABUSE!” So Dominik goes it alone and is taken down in a hurry to start.

Roode takes him into the corner to hammer away and Ziggler kicks Dominik down as well. A neckbreaker gives Ziggler two but Dominik manages to dropkick him to the floor. The slingshot dive drops both challengers but Roode breaks up the 619. With Roode knocked down, the 619 misses and Ziggler hits a Fameasser for two. A powerbomb/neckbreaker combination gets two but here is Rey, with the distraction allowing Dominik to roll Roode up for the pin at 6:59.

Rating: C-. As exciting as it was to see Dominik win in a handicap match, I’m rather looking forward to the Usos taking the titles so we can move on from the father/son thing. It hasn’t been very interesting and seeing the champs against any combination of Roode/Ziggler has not exactly made me want to see more of them. Not a terrible match but move on from this stuff already.

Post match here are the Usos for the staredown. Roman Reigns is not happy in the back to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. The opening match more than carried this whole thing but that and the Reigns stuff was all that really worked on this show. That story is absolutely carrying Smackdown at the moment and I don’t see that changing anytime soon. Feuds over a crown and Dominik and Rey being father and son champions aren’t quite gathering my attention. Good show though, as the time continues to fly by.

Results

Usos b. Street Profits – Superkick to Ford

Tamina/Natalya b. Riott Squad – Superfly Splash to Riott

Bianca Belair b. Carmella – KOD

Kevin Owens b. Apollo Crews via DQ when Commander Azeez interfered

Dominik Mysterio/Rey Mysterio b. Dolph Ziggler/Robert Roode – Rollup to Roode

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

Smackdown
Date: December 22, 2006
Location: Hampton Coliseum, Hampton, Virginia
Commentators: Michael Cole, John Bradshaw Layfield

We are done with Armageddon and pretty much a grand total of nothing happened. The main event saw John Cena joining forces with Batista to beat King Booker and Finlay. Other than that, Kane and Undertaker beat up MVP and Mr. Kennedy to presumably end both of those feuds. That means we have about a month to get to the Royal Rumble so let’s get to it.

Here is Armageddon if you need a recap.

King Booker, Queen Sharmell and Finlay are in Teddy Long’s office and demanding a rematch with Batista and John Cena. That isn’t happening, but they can have Kane and Undertaker instead. This does not go well.

Opening sequence.

Here’s Batista to get things going. He wishes us a Happy Holidays and even has red trunks on in celebration. It was a good ending to the year and he is going to start the new year even better, because he is World Heavyweight Champion. Cue Santa Claus (JBL: “I don’t need presents. I’m rich.”) with some presents, including a shirt and Roddy Piper DVD for Cole. Batista gets some candy canes, which he throws into the crowd, but Santa hits him in his bad arm with a pipe. Cue Teddy Long and the match is on.

Santa Claus vs. Batista

Santa charges in and goes after the arm, including slamming it into the apron. Batista uses the good arm to hit a clothesline and spear, which reveals that it’s Sylvan as Santa. The spinebuster and Batista Bomb finish Santa in a hurry. This was harmless Christmas fun.

We look at Chris Benoit retaining the US Title over Chavo Guerrero at Armageddon.

Tribute to the Troops video.

US Title: Chris Benoit vs. Chavo Guerrero

Chavo is defending and has Vickie Guerrero with him. The fans are all over Chavo as he pounds away in the corner to start. That earns him a hard whip into another corner and the snap suplex gives Benoit two. Back up and Chavo gets in some forearms, setting up a whip into the corner of his own. A small package gives Benoit two and there’s the first German suplex. Another is blocked though and they fall outside as we take a break.

Back with Chavo holding a waistlock until Benoit belly to back suplexes his way to freedom. An over the shoulder backbreaker gives Chavo two but he has to break out of a quick Sharpshooter attempt. Benoit tries it again but gets kicked away again, allowing Chavo to hit a running knee to the ribs. Some chops have Chavo staggered though and there are the rolling German suplexes. The Swan Dive gets two and the Crossface goes on, drawing in Vickie with the title for the DQ.

Rating: C. I’m not quite sure why we needed a rematch here but the ending might set them up for another rematch. I don’t think the feud has that kind of legs, though that has never stopped WWE before. Maybe they have some kind of twist coming for it later, but for now, this is losing steam in a hurry.

Post match Benoit stares Vickie down but walks away without going near her. Chavo yells at Vickie and knocks her down himself. Benoit comes back in to check on Vickie and gets jumped by Chavo.

King Booker is worried about the tag match tonight but Finlay says they can do this. That’s enough to convince Booker.

Here is Gregory Helms for a chat. Helms says he is ready to move up to the heavyweight division because he needs some competition….and here is Boogeyman to interrupt. Helms’ shots to the back do nothing so he runs away from the threat of worms. Ring announcer Tony Chimmel says Boogeyman’s catchphrase for no logical reason and gets wormed instead.

Here is Joey Mercury, whose face looks horrible after Sunday’s ladder match, for a chat. Mercury talks about his injuries and we see what happened, which is even worse in slow motion. He holds the Hardys responsible for what happened because he has lost 50% of the vision in his left eye. His movie star good looks are gone and it might be forever!

Cue Matt Hardy, to say no one meant for this to happen. It was a ladder match for the Tag Team Titles and that’s a dangerous place to be. Any of them could have been hurt and that is the price you could pay, but nothing was intentional. Matt goes to leave but Mercury doesn’t like Matt saying it was “unfortunate”. The challenge is on but Matt isn’t going to fight someone as banged up as Mercury is right now. That’s fine with Mercury, because Matt can fight this guy.

Matt Hardy vs. Johnny Nitro

Melina is here with Nitro, who jumps Matt before the bell. The beating is on in a hurry with Matt falling out to the floor, where Nitro stays on him in a hurry. Back in and Matt hits a bulldog for two but Nitro is back with some right hands to the face. Nitro grabs a ladder from underneath the ring (this can’t end well) and we take a break.

Back with Hardy knocking him down and they get a quick breather (and the ladder nowhere in sight). It’s Hardy getting back up first but Melina grabs his foot, allowing Nitro to hit an enziguri out to the floor. The springboard kick to the face misses though and they’re both down again. Some knees and a kick to the face give Hardy two and a neckbreaker sets up the middle rope legdrop for two. Nitro comes right back with a backslide and throws his feet on the ropes for the pin.

Rating: C. Perfectly logical match here, though I’m not sure how much vindication there is for Mercury to have Nitro win with a backslide. The ladder part was kind of weird as it just came and went with nothing changing. There are a few ways they could go with this, but until Mercury is back healthy, it is going to be Nitro on his own, assuming he doesn’t get a new partner. Mercury’s face alone gives it some interest though and that’s a good thing.

Here is JBL in the ring for a chat. He isn’t happy with Teddy Long bringing back all these horrible matches, including the Inferno match. On Sunday, we saw a man burning (with JBL referring to MVP as a corpse) and he had to be put out. That is Long’s doing so JBL wants him out here right now for an apology.

Long doesn’t show up, so JBL blames the fans, going into a rant about how they keep demanding more, no matter what happens to the wrestlers. Rome did not fall because of the gladiators but because of the sick people in the stands. No one will pay to see them though, and they might even bring down America. JBL can sell something like this, though this feels like it is going to be the start of something long.

Ashley/Layla vs. Krystal/Jillian Hall

Ashley slams Krystal down to start as we hear about Ashley’s Playboy short. JBL complains about the lack of closeups of Layla as Jillian knees her down and sends her head first into the mat a few times. Jillian’s handspring elbow hits raised boots in the corner and it’s off to Ashley to clean house. Everything breaks down and Krystal breaks up a monkey flip out of the corner. Layla breaks up a monkey flip though and Ashley drops a middle rope elbow for the pin.

Rating: D. You can only get so annoyed at four women who were given the bare minimum of training and then sent out there on national TV. As usual, this was about getting the good looking women in revealing outfits in the ring so you can only get so mad at the whole thing. Bad match of course, but were you expecting anything else?

Vladimir Kozlov is very excited and shouts in Russian a lot.

King Booker/Finlay vs. Kane/Undertaker

Queen Sharmell is here with Booker/Finlay. Booker ducks a clothesline from Undertaker to start but the stalking is on in a hurry. Undertaker hammers him down in the corner and lifts Booker up by one arm. Old School connects with Booker but he breaks up the same thing to Finlay. A top rope superplex brings Undertaker back down for two and it’s off to Finlay for….actually for a kind of intriguing match.

Undertaker catches him with a running DDT and Kane comes in to clean house. Uppercuts abound and the side slam gets two on Booker. The threat of double chokeslams send the villains outside and us to a break. Back with Kane choking Booker in the corner, allowing Undertaker to add the apron legdrop. Finlay breaks up a cover but Kane is fine enough to drag Booker into the corner to keep up the beating. Booker gets in a shot to the face and brings Finlay back in, where he walks into Snake Eyes.

The big boot drops Finlay again but Booker low bridges Undertaker to the floor. Apparently Kane got a tag in there somewhere (Cole is confused as well) and Booker dropkicks him out of the air. Finlay drops Undertaker on the floor and goes inside for a chinlock. Booker takes Finlay’s place and chairs Undertaker down, with the distraction allowing Finlay to hit Kane with the shillelagh. Kane kicks Booker down though and somehow Undertaker is back up to get the hot tag. House is cleaned in a hurry and the Tombstone (Cole: “This may make Finlay think he’s an Englishman!”) finishes Finlay.

Rating: C-. Not awful here, but it was pretty clear that they wanted to get done with this and take their Christmas vacation. It isn’t like losing to Undertaker and Kane is going to hurt Booker and Finlay, the latter of whom more or less exists for the sake of taking losses. Booker is already falling down the Smackdown depth chart, but I’m curious to see where all four of them go from here.

Overall Rating: C-. This was far from a serious show, but it was hardly some disaster. They dealt with some fallout from the pay per view and did just enough to make it feel like a regular TV show. Nothing was too horrible and odds are next week is a Best Of show anyway, meaning it’s off to 2007 from here.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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AND

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Smackdown
Date: May 21, 2021
Location: Yuengling Center, Tampa, Florida
Commentators: Michael Cole, Pat McAfee

We’re done with Wrestlemania Backlash and it is time to start getting ready for the Cell next month. I’m not sure what is next up for some of the people on this show, but the ending to Backlash would suggest more of Cesaro vs. Seth Rollins. Other than that, we have a four way for the Intercontinental Title this week. Let’s get to it.

Here is Wrestlemania Backlash if you need a recap.

All of the champions, sans Roman Reigns, are on the stage and here is Sonya Deville in the ring. As you might have heard, WWE is going back on the road in front of the fans in July, starting with Smackdown on July 16. Deville introduces all of the champions on stage, with Apollo Crews promising to destroy everyone tonight to retain his title. With that out of the way, Sonya introduces Reigns, to his old music for some reason.

Instead she gets Paul Heyman, who says this isn’t a parade of champions, because it’s just a parade of title holders. Later tonight, at his leisure, Reigns will be here for the parade of champion, because there is no one on his level. Reigns is the reason that the people are going to buy tickets to those live events because he is the only real champion here.

Sonya tries to wrap it up but here is Bayley to interrupt. She wants to know why she isn’t being acknowledged and mentions everyone champion (Bayley: “Apollo and Azeez, what’s up?”) before getting to Bianca Belair. Bayley insults the hair so Belair comes down….and gets jumped by Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler. Tamina and Natalya run in and it’s six woman tag time.

Tamina/Natalya/Bianca Belair vs. Bayley/Nia Jax/Shayna Baszler

Joined in progress with Shayna knocking Tamina down and choking on the ropes as Cole explains the Brand to Brand Invitational again. Bayley comes in to take Tamina into the corner but gets dropped with a suplex. The tag brings in Natalya to kick away until Bayley takes her down by the hair. Shayna cranks on the arm and Jax comes back in to put on a chinlock.

That’s broken up with a jawbreaker though and the hot tag brings in Belair to really clean house. A spinebusters puts Bayley down so Belair can go up. The big dive to the floor takes everyone down (thankfully they were nice enough to stand there forever) but Belair grabs her knee as we take a break.

Back with Bayley working on Belair’s knee but missing an elbow drop. A rolling tag brings in Tamina to clean house and it’s Natalya coming in to do the same. The discus clothesline misses Bayley though and a blind tag brings Baszler back in. Everything breaks down and Bayley breaks up Belair’s handspring moonsault. Baszler grabs the Kirifuda Clutch to make Natalya tap at 10:20.

Rating: C. The action was good here, though it seems we’re getting ANOTHER Tamina/Natalya vs. Nia Jax/Shayna Baszler Tag Team Title match. You would think there would be more options than those two, but that’s not how this division works. Bayley getting another shot against Belair is a little bit better, though another rematch isn’t the most thrilling.

Big E. is ready to face the biggest names around and get back his title. It’s time to prove that he is the real Intercontinental Champion.

We get another Aleister Black lesson, as he talks about the Beautiful Plan. This one seems to be about his tattoos, which he uses to hide his deepest and darkest sins. His father always said that there this world is full of cruel thoughts. The people will live proudly in their cesspool of sins because it is all they are. That has become their identity, to become lonesome and blind. They are sick and dying animals and it is time to separate the weak from the strong and cull the herd.

Here is King Corbin for a match, but first we see Shinsuke Nakamura steal his crown last week. Nakamura has been carrying it around with him over the last week, which Corbin says is the most disrespectful thing he has ever seen. Nakamura is no king because a real king drives a Ferrari and has the dogs of war behind him. So now, Nakamura needs to get out here and take his beating from the real King of Smackdown. Instead, here is the debuting Rick Boogs (and yes he spells it) to play the REAL king to the ring. The guitar shredding is on and McAfee jumps out of his chair to jam with him, with Cole looking disturbed.

King Corbin vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

Boogs is at ringside and we’re joined in progress with Nakamura kneeing away. A big kick is countered into a powerbomb for two as the frustration is already high. Choking on the ropes ensues as Boogs is trying to lead the cheers on the floor. Nakamura fights out of a chinlock but runs into a hard elbow for one.

The real comeback is on with the run of the strikes and an STO to give Nakamura two. Kinshasa misses though and Corbin hits a heck of a German suplex for two. Nakamura knees his way out of a chokeslam attempt though and Deep Six plants him for two more. Then Boogs starts playing Nakamura’s theme on the guitar for a distraction, allowing Nakamura to grab a small package for the pin at 5:18.

Rating: C-. This was pretty much Kofi Kingston vs. Bobby Lashley from Raw, with the power guy dominating until a musical instrument sets up the fluke pin. That being said, I can go for Boogs, as he is a fun guitar guy, as opposed to the rather dull Elias. I’m sure we’ll get some blowoff match soon, though at least now Nakamura has beaten Corbin to validate taking the crown.

Jimmy Uso comes in to see Sonya Deville and wants amatch with the Street Profits. Deville asks if Jey Uso is on board but Jimmy knows he’s good. The match is made for next week.

Kevin Owens talks about being the prizefighter a few years ago and tonight he is winning another prize. He will powerbomb Sami Zayn until he can’t remember what conspiracy means, he’ll hand Big E. a big L and he’ll Stun Apollo Crews as many times as it takes. Either way, he’s walking out as Intercontinental Champion.

We see a clip from the Backlash main event, with Roman Reigns beating Cesaro to retain, followed by Seth Rollins attacking Cesaro again.

Here are Roman Reigns, Jey Uso and Paul Heyman for a chat. Reigns considers himself humble and teaches his kids about it every chance he can. Since he is humble though, he needs Paul Heyman to brag about him instead. Heyman goes over Reigns’ time as Universal Champion, including sending Daniel Bryan into Bella retirement. He asks if he can do anything for Reigns, who wants his cousin out here. Heyman: “JIMMY USO! JIMMY USO! PLAY JIMMY USO’S MUSIC!”

Instead he gets Cesaro, who talks about the annoying yapping that he has been hearing. Cesaro says he can fight with one arm (because it’s just a flesh wound) and wants to fight Reigns at Hell in a Cell. Cue Seth Rollins to jump Cesaro from behind and send the arm into the steps. Rollins is sent to the back but comes back to beat on Cesaro again. Referees get him away again but this time Rollins jumps over the barricade and hits a Stomp. Cue the stretcher to get Cesaro out of here.

Post break, Rollins jumps Cesaro on the stretch. They’re hammering this one home.

We look at the Mysterios winning the Tag Team Titles at Backlash.

Here are the Mysterios but Dolph Ziggler and Robert Roode cut them off in a hurry. Roode says tonight, bring your son to work day is over.

Robert Roode vs. Dominik Mysterio

Roode suplexes him down to start and then takes him down again without much effort. Dominik fights his way out of a superplex attempt and shoves Roode down again, setting up a high crossbody for two. Dominik’s sunset flip gets two more and Roode it sent post first into the shoulder (as Cole put it). The frog splash finishes Roode at 2:41.

Jimmy Uso comes up to Jey Uso in the back and is excited about next week’s tag match. Jey isn’t happy so Jimmy talks about their success without Reigns. That’s not enough to convince Jey, who walks off.

Post break, Jey Uso comes in to see Roman Reigns and apologizes for the tag match next week. Reigns tells him to take care of it and gives him a hug.

The Street Profits are ready for next week, because they aren’t paranoia. They want the smoke.

Sami Zayn accuses Kayla Braxton of messing with his mind by calling him a former Intercontinental Champion. Zayn isn’t having that and promises to show his documentary soon. Tonight though, he’s getting the title back.

Intercontinental Title: Sami Zayn vs. Kevin Owens vs. Big E. vs. Apollo Crews

Crews, with Commander Azeez, is defending and this is one fall to a finish. Owens charges at Sami to start and they fight out to the floor in a hurry. That leaves Crews to punch and forearm Big E. in various places but Big E. gets in his own elbow. Big E. comes back in but gets enziguried, allowing Sami to get back in and stomp on Owens. Sami is sent outside so Big E. can hammer away, setting up the apron splash onto Sami and Crews at the same time.

Owens hits the big flip dive onto Big E. though and we take a break. Back with Crews hitting a big standing dropkick to send Big E. outside. Crews moonsaults off the apron onto Big E. but Sami hits a dive off the barricade. That means some Sami gloating but here is Big E. to drop Owens again. Owens gets two off the Swanton back inside with Big E. having to make a save.

Back in and Big E. hits three German suplexes for two on Big E. Sami’s exploder suplex sends Owens into the corner and a Michinoku Driver gets two. Everything breaks down for a series of knockdowns, including Big E. spearing Crews through the ropes to the floor as we take a break.

Back again with Big E. suplexing everyone else until Sami kicks him in the face to break up the Warrior splash. Owens hits his fisherman’s brainbuster onto the knee but Crews catches him on top. Big E. suplexes Crews as he suplexes Sami, leaving Owens to hit the frog splash on Big E. for the near falls. Owens starts rolling the Cannonballs but walks into the Blue Thunder Bomb from Sami.

Some superkicks put everyone else down and Owens hits the Pop Up Powerbomb for two on Crews. Owens sends Sami into the timekeeper’s area but Sami is right back with a half and half suplex on the floor. Back in and the Big Ending hits Crews but Commander Azeez breaks up the pin. Big E. posts Azeez….and the lights go very bright. Cue Aleister Black for Black Mass on Big E., giving Crews the pin (seemingly as a side effect rather than Black intentionally helping him) to retain at 21:52.

Rating: B. They went with the all action formula here and that worked out rather well. The match certainly didn’t feel like it was nearly twenty two minutes and it was something that kept my attention. Crews retaining works and it also wraps up Big E. vs. Crews as Black can be the new villain. Good main event here, but more importantly it felt big, which is a lot more important.

Overall Rating: C+. The main event carried this show, but the rest of it was mostly positive as well. Above all else, it felt like things happened to move stories forward here, including having some people debut and give us at least one new story. Smackdown knows how to keep you wanting to come back next week, which is a trick Raw really needs to learn. Back on track this week, as last week’s mess feels like a small slip.

Results

Nia Jax/Shayna Baszler/Bayley b. Tamina/Natalya/Bianca Belair – Kirifuda Clutch to Natalya

Shinsuke Nakamura b. King Corbin – Small package

Dominik Mysterio b. Robert Roode – Frog splash

Apollo Crews b. Big E., Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn – Black Mass to Big E.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.