Summerslam 2011
Date: August 14, 2011
Location: Staples Center, Los Angeles, California
Attendance: 17.404
Commentators: Michael Cole, Jerry Lawler, Booker T

This is a pretty big show with the blowoffs to two amazing feuds. The headlining act match is CM Punk vs. John Cena in a champion vs. champion match and the rematch to their masterpiece a month earlier. The match I was more excited about though was Christian vs. Randy Orton in one of the most underrated feuds in recent years. Let’s get to it.

The guitarist from Tool plays the national anthem.

The opening video talks about a domino effect, triggered by CM Punk winning the Raw World Title back in Chicago at Money in the Bank. As a result, Vince McMahon was stripped of power (for all of a few months) and John Cena became the other Raw World Champion. Tonight it’s champion vs. champion and nothing else is worth talking about.

Kofi Kingston/John Morrison/Rey Mysterio vs. Awesome Truth/Alberto Del Rio

Mysterio had beaten Miz to win the vacant Raw World Champion so Miz attacked him on Raw to help set this up. This is in during the full on Cole Love Miz period and the annoyance begins early. Before the match Miz complains about not being on the show but here’s R-Truth to complain about various letters. He doesn’t like spiders and Summerslam or Cee Lo Green performing so S and C are on his bad list. Cue Alberto (Mr. Raw Money in the Bank) to cut him off and we’re finally ready to go.

Morrison and Del Rio are both WAY over here but it’s Kofi vs. Miz to get things going. A double flapjack with Morrison helping out plants Miz and we get stereo nipups. Morrison gets all fired up to hammer on Truth because their partnership from a few years ago just means nothing to him. Everything breaks down for a bit with Morrison being knocked off the top rope to change control.

Miz grabs the chinlock but gets kicked in the head to knock him silly. It’s back to Kofi as things speed up and the SOS counters the Skull Crushing Finale for two. Everything breaks down for a bit and Miz hits a Diamond Cutter into a 1%er for two. I’m still not wild on that move but Kofi’s selling made it look better. The heels start taking turns on Kofi with Del Rio starting in on the arm and mocking Kofi’s clapping taunt.

Miz gets two off a clothesline as Cole sings his praises, even listing off Miz’s high school accolades. A double stomp allows the hot tag to Rey, who comes in to a roar. Mysterio starts cleaning house but Del Rio breaks up a double 619. Morrison dives onto Alberto and Truth takes the 619, followed by a top rope splash for the pin at 9:36.

Rating: B-. Take six guys and give them ten minutes to have a fun opener. I like a good six man tag and it can accomplish multiple goals in a short span. For some reason though WWE feels that the only kinds of matches you can have are singles, regular tags and triple threats so we don’t get enough of something like this. If nothing else it gave the fans a lot to cheer about in a short time, meaning they’re ready to go early on. Well done indeed.

Executive Vice President of Talent Relations Johnny Ace (you get tired just listing his job title) wants CM Punk to publicly apologize for embarrassing him on Monday. Punk says he’s sorry and offers a big grin but he turns around to see Stephanie. The champ insults the men in her life but she doesn’t seem phased. Stephanie: “But what would I know? I’m just Vince McMahon’s clueless daughter.” Punk: “Yeah pretty much.” Stephanie offers a handshake for luck but Punk says no because he knows where that hand has been. WHY CAN NO ONE BURN STEPHANIE LIKE THIS TODAY???

We recap Mark Henry vs. Sheamus. This was during Henry’s rampage over everyone in his path and his Hall of Pain period. No one was left for him to beat so Sheamus, a heel at the time, came out and simply said “I’ll fight him.” I still really like that line as it sums up everything and gives you a reason to like Sheamus in two seconds. Simple, yet effective.

Sheamus vs. Mark Henry

Henry shoves him around to start but Sheamus comes back with knees to the ribs and forearms to the back. The Irish Curse attempt is easily shrugged away though and Sheamus is tossed outside. Back in and Henry does the running crotch attack to the back of Sheamus’ head, followed by a backbreaker for your run of the mill heel offense.

An over the shoulder backbreaker keeps Sheamus in trouble but Henry misses a Vader Bomb. That means it’s time for forearms to the chest but a double shoulder puts both guys down. Sheamus is up first and the Brogue Kick knocks Henry to the floor. Ever the not that bright good guy though, Sheamus goes out after him and gets driven though the barricade for the countout at 9:22.

Rating: C+. I like that finish a lot as they made Sheamus look like a real threat with the Brogue Kick and then didn’t have him get pinned. The important thing here though was Henry looking unstoppable as he was on the way to the World Title soon after this. Smart booking here and everyone comes out looking like they should.

Christian has an insurance policy for his match against Randy Orton. It’s going to be a summer blockbuster and he’ll be like Harry Potter. Orton on the other hand will be like Cowboys and Aliens: an overrated, overproduced and overhyped flop. Hey now that movie was underrated.

Cee Lo Green does his mini concert for reasons I don’t understand. Bright Lights, Bigger City is catchy though. Some Divas come out to dance during Forget You.

Divas Title: Kelly Kelly vs. Beth Phoenix

Kelly is defending in your standard Barbie vs. monster feud and has Eve Torres in her corner. Beth on the other hand has Natalya. Kelly goes straight after her to start and fires off some forearms in the corner to send Beth outside, followed by a middle rope cross body to the floor. Back in and Beth knocks her out of the corner to take over before we hit a quick chinlock. An over the shoulder backrbeaker (good move for Beth) has Kelly in trouble and Beth ties her in the Tree of Woe to make it even worse. Kelly gets knocked around in the corner but counters the Glam Slam into a victory roll to retain at 6:33.

Rating: D+. Total squash for the most part here with a fluke ending, albeit the same fluke ending to almost every Kelly vs. Beth match ever. Kelly certainly got her push because of her looks but she was getting much better in the ring near the end of her career with matches like this one being far more watchable than some of the disasters that the division hard around this time.

Stephanie leaves John Cena’s locker room. For some reason we have to see the Cena logo twice for the announcers to catch on.

R-Truth is annoyed about getting ripped off so Jimmy Hart of all people offers his managerial services. Truth agrees but realizes that Jimmy is named….uh, Jimmy, and freaks out. Ron Artest and his daughter are shown watching for a worthless cameo.

Daniel Bryan vs. Wade Barrett

Fallout from Money in the Bank where Bryan won by knocking Barrett off the ladder. Bryan doesn’t have his Flight of the Valkyries (yes Flight, which was the name of his WWE theme instead of Ride) theme song yet and it’s really weird to have it missing. Daniel starts in with the kicks and works on the arm as Booker talks about Daniel’s diet.

Bryan fights out of a wristlock and dropkicks Barrett down before bending Barrett’s shoulders around in a variety of painful looking ways. The running dropkick in the corner and a running kick to the chest, only to walk into the yet to be named (or at least not named here) Winds of Change. Barrett fires off his knees in the ropes and kicks Bryan out to the floor.

Back in and we hit the chinlock before Daniel escapes the Wasteland, setting up a running knee off the apron. Barrett’s pumphandle slam doesn’t work and it’s time for the yet to be named YES Kicks. Again, those chants really add a lot. The guillotine goes on and Barrett gets taken down into the LeBell Lock, only to reach over to the rope for the break. Bryan gets crotched on top though and Barrett hits a quick Wasteland for the pin at 11:47.

Rating: B. I still really like this match as it’s two guys beating on each other for the better part of twelve minutes until one of them can’t get up again. Barrett was the bigger star at this point as Bryan really was just a guy in trunks at this point, albeit one with a huge upside. Sometimes you just need a good wrestling match without a lot of meaning behind it and that’s what you got here.

The California National Guard is here.

We recap Christian vs. Randy Orton in a feud that has been going on for months. Christian lost the title less than a week after winning it and then wanted one more match. Orton eventually lost the title via DQ at Money in the Bank, setting up the rematch here with No Holds Barred. This is one of the best feuds in a long time and would have won Feud of the Year had it not been for Cena vs. Punk. It was perfectly put together and one great match after another. The two of them had chemistry together and that’s the most important thing you can do.

Smackdown World Title: Christian vs. Randy Orton

Christian is defending and this is no holds barred but first the champ has a big surprise for everyone as he brings out Edge. After an insane ovation, Edge thanks the fans but reminds them that he can never compete again due to his neck injuries. He was kind of glad that he left when he did though because it opened the door for Christian to become champion.

Christian lost the title five days after winning it and then complained about it for week after week. He just whined until he got his way and then won the title via disqualification. Edge might have done some dastardly things in his time but he did it with some style. Somewhere along the way, Christian became a disgrace to himself. Edge isn’t going to help him tonight and leaves Christian all alone.

Orton starts hammering away in the corner and backdrops Christian to set up the circle stomp and a knee drop for two. They head outside but Christian is smart enough to run away from an RKO through the announcers’ table. Christian grabs the title and runs into the crowd but Orton easily catches him (hint: it’s the guy in wrestling gear carrying a big gold belt) and sends it back inside.

The champ sends him shoulder first into the post (completely legal remember, even though you’ll almost never hear it called a DQ in the first place) to take over. It’s kendo stick time as we hit the standard street fight tropes. Christian misses a shot though and has to settle with an elbow to Orton’s jaw. There’s an interesting story here with Christian not being able to pull off the cheating but doing just fine with the wrestling. Orton grabs a rollup for two but gets caught in a spinebuster for the same.

It’s kendo stick time again but Christian dives into a dropkick to the ribs to keep up the subtle story. Orton can’t get in a stick shot either as the no holds barred rule hasn’t played a big role yet. The elevated DDT is countered into a Killswitch attempt which is countered into Orton’s backbreaker. He can’t hit the Punt but Christian can’t crotch him against the post as Orton uses his legs to pull Christian face first into the post instead.

Now it’s time for the real weapons as Orton pulls out some tables but Christian gets in a shot from behind and sets one up on the floor. Back in and Christian goes up top, only to get superplexed down onto an unset table for a unique spot. It also gets a near fall but that’s not as important. That table is set up in the corner but Christian has to counter the RKO by sending him to the floor. Orton sends him knees first into the steps, only to have Christian send him head first into the steps.

Next up it’s a monitor off Orton’s head to knock him onto the announcers’ table. Like any cocky heel would do though, Christian tries an RKO but gets caught in the real thing through the table for a double KO spot. Back in and Christian gets two off a Killswitch and you can hear the fans going nuts on the near fall. Well deserved too. With the table still looming in the table and another one at ringside, Christian opts for two chairs.

That’s enough for Orton as he takes one away and cracks Christian over the back, followed by a second one to send the champ off the apron and through the first table. Orton brings in the steps and some trashcans but Christian avoids a stomp onto the steps. He can’t avoid a powerslam through the table or a DDT onto the trashcan as this is getting brutal. Christian blocks the RKO with a kendo stick shot, only to have Orton hit another one a few seconds later to win the title back at 23:43.

Rating: A. I love this feud and the matches get better and better every time. There was a great story here of Christian being able to compete in the wrestling but being in WAY over his head against Orton, who has that evil streak in him. This started off as more of a wrestling match with Christian poking his toe into the violence but then embracing it full on, only to be destroyed by the more violent Orton. It’s a great story with a great match to go with it and that’s as good as it gets.

Video on WWE taking over Los Angeles for the week, including an Axxess.

We recap John Cena vs. CM Punk in a narrated video. Punk won the Raw World Title from Cena last month in a masterpiece, only to leave the company with the title immediately after. Cena won the title a few weeks later but Punk came out that night (good thing he just happened to be there), setting up a champion vs. champion match to see who really is the best man. Ignore the fact that they already established that fact at Money in the Bank when Punk beat him in the first place. Due to Punk leaving under Vince’s watch, the Board of Directors replaced Vince as boss with HHH, who Punk hates in general.

Raw World Title: John Cena vs. CM Punk

Punk is defending and HHH is guest referee. As expected, Punk is now a mega face and gets a big old pop, much to HHH’s annoyance. Cena on the other hand is booed out of the building as you kind of have to expect as well. Feeling out process to start with Punk grabbing a headlock for that horribly blatant spot calling. Punk was on a roll at this point but he was as bad as Shawn Michaels at hiding that stuff.

The dueling chants start up and sound even louder than usual, as they should at a major show. Now it’s Cena working a headlock into an armbar before Punk hits a leg lariat for two. Cena takes him down into a chinlock as this is firmly in first gear over five minutes in. The fans tell Cena that he can’t wrestle. True but at least he still is a wrestler and not someone who has been waiting two years for a UFC fight.

Punk finally escapes and puts Cena down for a breather, earning a loud CM PUNK chant. Off to a body vice as this match seems to be collapsing under the weight of the expectations from the previous match. Back up and Punk snaps his throat across the top rope to block a superplex attempt, followed by dropkicking Cena out to the floor. That goes nowhere so Punk grabs a seated abdominal stretch, only to have Cena power up into a spinning slam for a breather. Fans: “FRUITY PEBBLES!”

The finishing sequence is countered by Punk’s headlock takeover but he gets caught in the ProtoBomb. Punk comes right back with an enziguri and a Koji Clutch (I love that move) which is countered into an STF which is countered into the Anaconda Vice (Not a key lock Booker. Learn your details.). That actually gets some near falls until Cena reverses into a crossface to continue this pretty awesome sequence. Punk gets to the ropes and sends Cena outside for a suicide dive to put both guys down again.

HHH, who has been a total non-factor for the first fifteen minutes, gets to nine but can’t bring himself to finish the countout. Instead he throws both of them back inside and it’s time for the big strike off. Cena takes over with a dropkick and the Shuffle but the AA is countered into a sunset flip and kick to the head for two each. Cena’s sitout powerslam gets the same, as does Punk’s middle rope bulldog.

A very weary Punk’s springboard clothesline is countered into the STF but they haven’t traded enough finishers yet. Speaking of finishers, Cena gets two off the AA. The GTS gets the same result with Punk staring up at HHH in shock. Punk comes up holding his knee though but drops the top rope elbow for two anyway. Cena pounds Punk down but eats a running knee to the face, setting up the GTS for the pin at 24:08, despite Cena’s foot clearly being on the rope.

Rating: B+. This match would be remembered so much more fondly if it wasn’t for the fact that they had such a masterpiece just a month earlier. They had to try and follow that up and it just couldn’t be done. The screwy ending didn’t help things, just like having HHH out there for the sake of waiting on a screwy finish that doesn’t seem to mean much since this is a night when instant replay doesn’t exist.

HHH applauds Punk post match and raises his hand before leaving. Punk poses….but here’s Kevin Nash through the crowd to lay Punk out. That means Alberto time and here we go.

Raw World Title: CM Punk vs. Alberto Del Rio

Punk is defending and loses the title to an enziguri in eleven seconds.

A quick celebration ends the show.

Overall Rating: A. This show is nothing short of excellent with only the Divas Title match being short of good (and seeing Kelly Kelly in shorts is never a bad thing). Orton vs. Christian is great stuff with a great story, the main event is awesome, Barrett vs. Bryan is a hidden gem, the crowd is white hot all night and the rest is all worth watching…..until you get to the ending.

That’s where the show falls apart as not only did the ending only make limited sense here but it would turn into one of the biggest messes anyone had seen in a few short weeks. Somehow Punk wouldn’t get his rematch next month because he was busy jobbing to HHH in the main event of Night of Champions.

Oh and Nash? Yeah he sent himself a text message telling him to come out there right then because he wanted one more crowd reaction. That’s how they followed up on the potentially hottest angle in years: Kevin Nash sent himself a text message and HHH pinned CM Punk, setting up HHH vs. Nash, who never fought Punk in this whole thing. Such is life in WWE, or out of WWE actually and you can’t blame Punk after all that.

Ratings Comparison

Kofi Kingston/John Morrison/Rey Mysterio vs. Awesome Truth/Alberto Del Rio

Original: B-

2013 Redo: B-

2016 Redo: B-

Mark Henry vs. Sheamus

Original: C

2013 Redo: C+

2016 Redo: C+

Beth Phoenix vs. Kelly Kelly

Original: C+

2013 Redo: D+

2016 Redo: D+

Wade Barrett vs. Daniel Bryan

Original: B

2013 Redo: B+

2016 Redo: B

Christian vs. Randy Orton

Original: B+

2013 Redo: A-

2016 Redo: A

CM Punk vs. John Cena

Original: A+

2013 Redo: B+

2016 Redo: B+

Alberto Del Rio vs. CM Punk

Original: N/A

2013 Redo: N/A

2016 Redo: N/A

Overall Rating

Original: A+

2013 Redo: A

2016 Redo: A

I think we can call this my definitive thoughts on the show as the ratings were almost identical in the last two reviews. Definitely check this one out.

Here’s the original review if you’re interested:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2011/08/14/summerslam-2011-that-was-i-need-a-cigarette/

And the 2013 redo:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2013/08/16/summerslam-count-up-2011-a-screwy-ending-isnt-a-bad-thing/

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: July 17, 2026
Location: MVP Arena, Albany, New York
Commentators: Joe Tessitore, Wade Barrett

It’s the night before Saturday Night’s Main Event and the big story continues to be the setup for CM Punk vs. Cody Rhodes in a little over two weeks at Summerslam. Gunther and Sami Zayn are less than thrilled with this situation and that means it is time for their final push towards tomorrow’s tag match. In addition, Gunther is having issues with GM Nick Aldis, which feels like a Summerslam match in the making. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of the World Title situation and Gunther vs. Aldis.

Here is Gunther to get things going. He prides himself on being a professional but since he joined Smackdown, he has been treated horribly. Nick Aldis is the one who made this personal, and he made it worse by putting him in a tag match at Saturday Night’s Main Event. This brings out Adam Pearce, who says Gunther only owes Aldis for saving his job

Aldis has made sure that the match is still on and that the stipulation (this is new) is still on: if Gunther and Zayn win, they’re added to the Summerslam title match and it’s a fatal four way. Gunther absolutely approves but here is Cody Rhodes for the brawl. Rhodes yells about how Gunther had to know this was coming so he wants a match tonight. Pearce makes it official.

Earlier today, Pearce announced that Rhea Ripley is injured and will not be able to compete at Summerslam. There will be an Interim Women’s Champion crowned in a five way ladder match at Summerslam, with Ripley getting the shot against the winner when she gets back. Qualifying matches begin tonight. I’m really not wild on the interim thing, but if Ripley is going to be back relatively soon, it’s fine enough.

Finn Balor vs. Talla Tonga

Talla has Tama Tonga with him. Balor knocks him into the corner to start and gets choked on the ropes for his efforts. Talla gets tossed to the floor but comes back with a clothesline and we take an early break. We come back with Talla’s running powerslam getting two but he misses a charge into the corner. Balor knocks him down and goes up, where Talla’s chokeslam is countered into a DDT. Tama offers a distraction but gets crotched (and bounced) on the top, allowing Balor to dropkick him into the corner. The Coup de Grace finishes Talla at 9:35.

Rating: C+. Balor is getting a nice start to his run on Smackdown, at least after losing in the first round of King Of The Ring. He very easily could be a B show pay per view World Title challenger and they very well may be leading up to that. The Tongas are in the middle of nowhere at the moment but at least they’re putting people over.

CM Punk confirms the Saturday Night’s Main Event stipulation with Adam Pearce. Damian Priest comes up and says if Punk is retaining, he’ll be coming for the title. That works for Punk, who leaves in peace. R-Truth comes up to ask what that was about. Priest: “Dude, you were here the whole time.”

Various women are ready to win the ladder match.

Women’s Ladder Qualifying Match: Tiffany Stratton vs. Jacy Jayne

Non-title and the rest of Fatal Influence is here with Jayne. The three of them beat Stratton down but Brie Bella and Paige run in for the save. With the four non-participants gone, Stratton strikes away to officially start and gets two off a basement dropkick. We take an early break and come back with Jayne hammering away until they hit stereo crossbodies. Stratton is up with an Alabama Slam but gets crotched up top. The Rolling Encore misses though and it’s a Regal Roll into the Prettiest Moonsault Ever to give Stratton the win at 7:45.

Rating: C+. They only had so much time here but there is something to be said about Jayne having gotten so far that I could have seen her pulling the upset here. It is nice to see her doing so well on the main roster thus far and it should be interesting to see if she finds a way into the ladder match. Stratton has to be a favorite though, as she’ll be in her home state.

Baron Corbin talks about his return last week. He attacked Trick Williams and Carmelo Hayes because he’s sick of hearing people pretending to be tough.

Williams wants some of Corbin, because he’s a big bald b****. Hayes comes in and argues a bit but seemingly wants Corbin as well.

We look at Oba Femi and Brock Lesnar’s near brawl from Raw.

Women’s Ladder Qualifying Match: Jade Cargill vs. Nia Jax

B-Fab and Michin are here with Cargill. Jax wastes no time in knocking her down but misses a middle rope elbow. Cue Charlotte to go after B-Fab and Michin though, followed by a big boot to Cargill for the DQ at 57 seconds.

Post match a ticked off Jax lays out Charlotte, allowing Cargill to give Charlotte Jaded.

Gunther is ready for the main event and runs into Candice LeRae, with Johnny Gargano. LeRae wants Gunther to win for Sami Zayn’s sake tomorrow so Gunther says Zayn needs to show up. Blake Monroe runs in to jump LeRae and tells Gargano that he needs a haircut.

Lash Legend and Nia Jax yell at Adam Pearce over the DQ and Jax gets Charlotte next week as a result.

War Raiders vs. Fraxiom

The Raiders’ AAA Tag Team Titles aren’t on the line. Ivar drives Frazer into the corner to start but it’s off to Axiom for some running forearms. Frazer’s dive to the floor is cut off though, leaving Axiom to moonsault onto both of them. We take a break and come back with Ivar cleaning house, including the spinning powerslam to Frazer.

Ivar’s moonsault misses both of them but Erik drives Ivar into Axiom into the corner. Back up and the dives take out the Warriors on the floor, setting up the superplex into the Phoenix splash to Ivar. Erik makes the last second save though and the Raiders have had it, with Frazer getting crushed. Ragnarok finishes Axiom at 10:30.

Rating: B. I was expecting a squash here (Fraxiom were in the ring for the Raiders’ entrance) and wound up getting a heck of a match. The impressive thing about Fraxiom is that they have been able to do this time after time. They were able to make this work in NXT and they’re doing it again here and it would be nice to see them getting a better chance than what they’ve been doing lately.

We look at LA Knight and company being fired up at Fanatics Fest about their six man tag at Summerslam.

Video on Fanatics Fest.

CM Punk comes up to Cody Rhodes to talk about the Saturday Night’s Main Event stipulation. Punk will have Rhodes’ back tonight, but they’ll also see each other tomorrow and at Summerslam.

Video on Roman Reigns vs. Seth Rollins.

Saturday Night’s Main Event rundown.

Danhausen is reminded about his match with JD McDonagh at Saturday Night’s Main Event and has a black cat…but accidentally curses his computer. An evacuation is recommended.

Cody Rhodes vs. Gunther

Rhodes jumps him at the entrance to start fast and they get inside for the opening bell. Gunther cuts off a springboard and shoves Rhodes to the floor as we take a break. We come back with Gunther missing a clothesline and getting caught with the Cody Cutter. Another Cody Cutter drops Gunther but he’s back up to wrap the leg around the post. Cue CM Punk as they clothesline each other down.

We take a break and come back with Gunther holding a half crab but Rhodes slips out. Gunther misses a boot in the corner and Rhodes starts in on the leg, with a dragon screw legwhip bringing Gunther out of the corner. Rhodes grabs a Figure Four but here is Sami Zayn to go after Punk. That’s enough for Rhodes to let go of the hold and dive onto Zayn. The brawl is on and Rhodes gets posted for the DQ at 12:30.

Rating: B. This was getting going near the end but as usual, the two of them just do not get to have that big match. Granted in this case that wasn’t the point, as this was about pushing tomorrow’s tag match and that part worked. You also don’t want either of them losing a fall and the DQ made perfect sense here. Nice job.

The big brawl is on and can’t be broken up as the show ends.

Overall Rating: B+. Yeah this worked, if nothing else because I wasn’t bored out of my mind as the show went an extra hour. This show was focused around two big ideas, with the ladder match having to be set up in a hurry and the much bigger issue of the stipulation for Saturday Night’s Main Event Main Event.

That was a great example of what happens when you make a match more important, as Saturday Night’s Main Event has gone from ho hum to having a match that could make a big impact on Summerslam. I want to see where that match goes now and that’s an important upgrade for tomorrow night. This show did what it needed to do with a pair of hot matches to wrap it up. Well done here, though Saturday’s show is only looking so important outside of the main event.

Results
Finn Balor b. Talla Tonga – Coup de Grace
Tiffany Stratton b. Jacy Jayne – Prettiest Moonsault Ever
Jade Cargill b. Nia Jax via DQ when Charlotte interfered
War Raiders b. Fraxiom – Ragnarok to Axiom
Cody Rhodes b. Gunther via DQ when Sami Zayn interfered

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

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

Summerslam 2010
Date: August 15, 2010
Location: Staples Center, Los Angeles, California
Attendance: 14,178
Commentators: Matt Striker, Michael Cole, Jerry Lawler

This is the Nexus show, as the main event is an elimination tag between Team WWE and the Nexus. The evil group has been ransacking the company all summer and it’s time for John Cena to stand up to them for good. Why the big elimination tag is at Summerslam instead of Survivor Series isn’t clear but not a lot about this story went well. Pretty much nothing else matters on this show so let’s get to it.

The opening video is all about change, which can come in a variety of forms. The show’s three main matches all get a look, with the big elimination tag getting the major focus, as it should.

Intercontinental Title: Dolph Ziggler vs. Kofi Kingston

Ziggler, with Vickie Guerrero, is defending. Guerrero says EXCUSE ME and has something to say, but Kingston cuts her off and we’re ready to go. They start fast with Kingston getting the better of things but Guerrero pulls Ziggler out of the way of a dive, sending Kingston crashing down hard. Back in and the chinlock doesn’t last long for Ziggler and he kicks Kingston back into the corner.

A Hennig necksnap gives Ziggler two and it’s off to a reverse chinlock. Kingston can’t fight out and we get to continue this thrilling hold. Back up and Ziggler misses a splash in the corner, allowing Kingston to start firing back for a bit. Kingston’s high crossbody is rolled through for two and Ziggler gets the same off a Fameasser. Trouble In Paradise misses though and Ziggler gets his sleeper…and the Nexus runs in to lay them both out for the no contest at 7:05.

Rating: C+. The match had some moments but there is only so much you can do in what was basically a Raw match. A good chunk of those seven minutes were spent in Ziggler’s chinlock and that didn’t make for the most thrilling star. The good thing is that these two fought so many times that they could have a nice match in their sleep, but they were in a tough spot here.

Post match Nexus lays Kingston out with ease. Wade Barrett calls that a preview for what is in store for Team WWE tonight. Team WWE is looking for a seventh member but anyone they pick won’t make a difference. The locker room is such a mess that they couldn’t get together to sign a birthday card, let alone form a cohesive unit. On the other hand, Nexus is united and ready to fight.

Chris Jericho tries to get Miz (Mr. Money In The Bank and the US Champion) to join Team WWE. Edge, already on the team, enjoys a Slim Jim and says tonight is about seizing the ultimate opportunity. Miz isn’t sure if he wants Nexus on his plate, but he’ll take that Slim Jim.

Divas Title: Alicia Fox vs. Melina

Fox is defending, it’s the Raw Women’s Title at this point and this is the Ariane Special. Melina pushes her into the corner to start but Fox is right back with a rather impressive headlock takeover. That’s broken up and Melina stomps her down, followed by some double knees in the corner.

Melina grabs a flapjack but her knee is banged up, though she’s fine enough to snap off a superkick. Fox sends her into the post and things slow down again, with Fox then kicking her in the arm. Not the leg, which is hurt and was hurt before, but the arm, because of course. Commentary tries to make sense of it but Melina is back up with a rollup for two to get them out of that mess. Melina shrugs that off, hits a dropkick and grabs what would become known as a BFT for the title at 5:23.

Rating: D+. Shockingly enough, this really didn’t work, as the title was in a rather terrible place at this time. Melina was talented, but there is only so much you can do when you have her bad knee right there and Fox goes after the arm. On top of that, the match was another one that belonged on Raw, which doesn’t make it that much better.

Post match Melina is asked about her win for the sole purpose of having Laycool (with their broken title) interrupt. They mock Melina’s looks and then go to REAL TALK because there are three champions in the ring at the moment. Layla says that Melina has cellulite (which McCool doesn’t understand) so they tease some photos, with Melina trying to fight both of them off. As usual it works for awhile but the numbers get the better of her. Fox gets back Sup to go after Melina and gets taken out by Laycool as well.

We recap Big Show unmasking the bald CM Punk (who sold it like he was being dropped into a vat of boiling butter). This sent Punk and his Straightedge Society after Show, with the team crushing Show’s hand. I think you know where this is going.

Straightedge Society vs. Big Show

Serena is here with the Society (and Punk’s I BROKE BIG SHOW’S HAND is a great touch). Show has a big surprise of his own though: the hand is totally fine. Mercury charges at Show to start and is knocked down just as quickly. Gallows gets one heck of a loud chop and Punk wants a meeting before facing Show himself.

This results in Mercury and Gallows getting thrown outside and now Punk realizes he’s in trouble. Serena’s distraction works for a bit but Punk can’t stomp the hand on the steps again. Instead Show chops the steps by mistake (that’s on him for being dumb), allowing the rest of the Society to jump him at once. The group beatdown is on but Show shrugs them off without much trouble and clears out Gallows and Mercury.

Punk kicks his way out of a chokeslam and avoids a charge in the corner. The running knees in the corner stagger Show and a double DDT gets two, with the kickout sending Mercury all the way back to the floor. Punk hammers away but gets caught in a fireman’s carry. The other two try to go after Show, earning Punk a dump over the top. That’s enough for Punk, who leaves with Serena, as Show chokeslams Mercury onto Gallows for the double pin at 6:49.

Rating: C+. This was a nice way to keep the feud going, as the whole point is to see Show get his hands on Punk. We got a taste of that here and it worked out well enough, though it would be nice to see something important actually happen on this show. That is kind of the point of Summerslam yes?

Smackdown World Champion Kane is ready to end Rey Mysterio and slams a casket shut. Raw World Champion Sheamus comes up to say the casket is too big for someone like Mysterio. It’s perfect for Randy Orton though so maybe Sheamus can use it after his match. Kane: “No.” Sheamus says he’s being called the real Big Red Machine around here so Kane threatens to disembowel him. That’s enough for Sheamus to leave after a rather intense comeback from Kane.

Here is Miz for an unscheduled chat. Striker thinks it might be to cash in his Money In The Bank and Cole thinks that’s a great point. Lawler points out that there’s no champion out here and that’s shut down rather quickly. Anyway Miz asks if he should join Team WWE because a lot of people in the back think he should. The team has been begging him to join for weeks because they understand that he is the future.

Bret Hart has called him the excellence of execution, R-Truth wrote him a bad rap and he’s shown that he was the Shawn Michaels to John Morrison’s Marty Jannetty. So is he joining Team WWE? Yes. Miz loads up his catchphrase but gets annoyed at the fans wanting to do it with him. Now the catchphrase can be completed. Cole freaking out over Miz being the big savior is great.

We recap Randy Orton vs. Sheamus for the latter’s World Title. Orton is on a roll and wants his World Title back from Sheamus, who won it earlier this year thanks to some Nexus interference. He has his shot, but if Orton loses, he never gets another shot at Sheamus.

Raw World Title: Sheamus vs. Randy Orton

Orton is challenging and if anyone interferes, they’re suspended. Feeling out process to start with Sheamus posing at him, earning quite the stomping down into the corner. Orton’s running clothesline out of the corner lets him stomp away for two and another clothesline drops Sheamus again. They fight outside with Orton knocking him over the barricade but noticing the count and getting back inside in time.

The stomping gets two more and they go outside again, with Orton whipping him into various things. Sheamus reverses a hard whip into the steps though, which is finally enough for a breather. Back in and Sheamus hammers away, setting up the reverse chinlock. A suplex gets Orton out of trouble but the hanging DDT is broken up with a rather nasty backdrop. Sheamus ax handles him down for two and goes after the arm. Granted not the arm that went into the steps but it’s better than Alicia Fox.

Sheamus goes for the armbar but misses a charge into the post, allowing Orton to knock him down for two, with the bad arm making it a weak cover. Orton fights back and hits the powerslam before Sheamus misses a charge into the post. The arm is fine enough to catch Orton in the Irish Curse but the Brogue Kick misses and Sheamus crashes out to the floor.

Back in and the hanging DDT connects and the fans go nuts as Orton goes into flopping like a fish mode. The RKO is shoved away to give Sheamus two though and the Brogue Kick connects…for two more. With the frustration setting in, Sheamus goes to get a chair and shoves the referee for the DQ at 18:56.

Rating: B-. Yeah it was ok, with the result not being the greatest as Orton wins, meaning he can get another title shot. At the same time it was only a pretty good match, with the fans going nuts for Orton but not much going on until the last few minutes. Again, it feels like something setting up another match down the road and that’s not what I want from Summerslam.

Post match Sheamus takes too long loading up the chair and gets kicked low, allowing Orton to use said chair. They go outside with Orton clearing off the announcers’ table for the RKO onto (not through) the table. Orton leaves and Sheamus can barely move so the fans want Miz and get….nothing.

We recap Kane defending the Smackdown World Title against Rey Mysterio. Someone has attacked the Undertaker and Kane has sworn to find out who did it. Kane attacked various people before naming Mysterio as the attacker. Mysterio denied it but is fine with getting the title shot anyway. Then Mysterio said Kane was the attacker, which Kane angrily denied. This doesn’t sound like it is going to end well.

Smackdown World Title: Kane vs. Rey Mysterio

Kane is defending and wheels out a casket, with promises to put Mysterio in it after the match. Mysterio picks up the pace to start and misses an early 619. Instead Kane sends him rolling to the floor but Mysterio is back up with a dive off the apron. Back in and Kane’s arm gets snapped over the top rope, only for Kane to knock him off the top.

Mysterio gets sent ribs first into the post for a nasty crash and Kane drives him back first into the post a few times to make it worse. A whip into the corner gives Kane two (with an odd hook of the inside leg) and he slaps on the bearhug. Mysterio fights out and is promptly clotheslined right back down. Back up and Mysterio manages a top rope headbutt from the top (nice) but gets backbreakered for two more.

Kane gets caught going up and something like a Destino, followed by a tornado DDT give Mysterio two each. Mysterio Drops The Dime for two and kicks Kane in the head for two more, leaving they’re both down. Back up and Kane opens the casket, which is empty, allowing Mysterio to fail at the 619. Kane kicks him into the casket so Mysterio fights out and closes the casket, followed by a springboard dropkick. Now the 619 can connect but Kane boots him in the face. The chokeslam retains the title at 13:32.

Rating: C+. This got going better near the end but they were all but saying that Mysterio was just a warm body to give Kane something to do before Undertaker came back to fight Kane. Mysterio knows how to fight a monster and the match wasn’t bad, but much like a lot of other things on this show, it didn’t feel important and that’s not a good thing. At least they didn’t go too long though.

Post match Kane promises Mysterio eternal punishment and opens the casket, revealing…nothing. You can hear the fans sounding disappointed but Mysterio fights back and Kane closes the casket again (there it is). A chokeslam and Tombstone plant Mysterio so Kane opens the casket again…and NOW Undertaker is inside to give the show a big moment.

Undertaker looks very shaky (remember that he’s recovering from a major attack) and Kane looks terrified. Undertaker gets in Mysterio’s face and asks if he has ever heard of an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. He asks Mysterio why he did it but Mysterio swears it wasn’t him.

With a grab of the neck, Undertaker says he believes Mysterio and then does the throat slit, only to turn to face Kane. Well yeah, of course it was Kane. Undertaker grabs Kane by the throat but he’s still weak, allowing Kane to fight back and beat him down. This would result in Kane actually beating Undertaker twice in a row, including in the Cell (which was the last time the World Heavyweight Title headlined a PPV for over three years).

We look at WWE’s charity stuff, plus a Summerslam Axxess.

We recap the main event. Nexus arrived in June and has turned into an unstoppable force. John Cena has led the charge for WWE (shocking isn’t it) and joined forces with a bunch of people to fight back in the form of an elimination tag (which is odd as Bragging Rights and Survivor Series were coming up in a few months).

Anyway, Team WWE had problems, with some of the quitting along the way. Great Khali has been taken out and didn’t have a seventh member until tonight. Chris Jericho and Edge quit and rejoined the team as well and Miz joined earlier so things are even. Well as even as it can be with David Otunga and Michael Tarver on a team.

Team WWE vs. Team Nexus

WWE: John Cena, Edge, Chris Jericho, Bret Hart, R-Truth, John Morrison, The Miz
Nexus: Wade Barrett, Skip Sheffield, Darren Young, David Otunga, Justin Gabriel, Heath Slater, Michael Tarver

Elimination rules and dang We Are One is a catchy song. Miz comes out last but hold on as Cena says wait a minute. Cena declares that Miz is too late because he already has a seventh man. The team has agreed to this because it is someone who hates Nexus as much as them…and it’s the returning Daniel Bryan (Cole LOSES IT, almost as much as anyone on WWE.com earlier in the day lost it when they spoiled Bryan’s return by mistake). The brawl is on before the bell and Nexus is cleared out with ease as Barrett has to calm everyone else down. Bryan kicks Young down to start and the LeBell Lock gets the tap at 43 seconds.

As commentary points out, that’s the first time Nexus doesn’t have the numbers advantage and it’s off to Gabriel, who gets elbowed in the face by Jericho. R-Truth comes in for something like a Stunner for two but Gabriel kicks him down. It’s off to Tarver to hammer R-Truth into the corner but Morrison gets the tag, along with a Flying Chuck. Starship Pain gets rid of Tarver at 3:35 and it’s already 7-5.

Nexus has a meeting on the floor and it’s Sheffield (Ryback) coming in to shove Morrison down. Back up and Morrison slaps him in the face, earning himself a hard powerslam. Morrison is whipped hard into the corner and suplexed down even harder for another near fall. A kick to the back of the head from the apron cuts off Morrison’s comeback and Sheffield lariats him for the pin at 7:32. R-Truth comes in and gets lariated down as well for the pin to tie it up at 8:00.

Jericho comes in for a quick shot but is knocked into the corner with Otunga getting to come in for a slam. Jericho fights out of the corner though and hands it off to Hart, who gets quite the reaction as he beats on Slater in the corner. An atomic drop and clothesline set up the Sharpshooter but Nexus sends in a chair. Sheffield comes after Hart, who grabs the chair and blasts Sheffield, which is a DQ (I wonder if Hart was unable to take a bump, which if true is perfectly fine) at 12:08.

Hart yells a lot before leaving, with Jericho’s Codebreaker and Edge’s spear finishing Sheffield at 13:13, leaving us at four each. Gabriel is in next and gets booted by Edge but kicks Edge right back down. It’s back to Slater to stomp away before Barrett sends Edge into the buckle. The chinlock doesn’t last long as Edge is back up to knock Barrett down. Otunga is dropped as well and it’s back to Jericho to pick up the pace. The Walls make Otunga tap at 19:13 and Jericho beats up Slater on the floor.

Back in and the elbow drops Slater but Jericho runs into Cena by mistake. That’s enough for Slater to hit Sweetness (basically a Zig Zag) for the pin on Jericho at 20:05. Edge is so livid that he argues with Cena, who walks away, but Slater rolls Edge up for the pin at 20:38. That has Edge even angrier and he takes Cena out, with Jericho getting in a shot of his own. The banged up Cena is sent back inside as Cole goes on a rant about how much better it would be with Miz instead of Bryan.

Cena is too hurt to make a comeback and gets knocked down by Gabriel, allowing Barrett to come back in. A suplex gets Cena out of trouble but Slater cuts off the tag attempt. Cena and Slater clothesline each other though and it’s back to Bryan to clean house. The suicide dive hits Slater and even Cole has to admit Bryan is showing heart. Back in and Slater taps to the LeBell Lock at 29:03, leaving us with Cena/Bryan vs. Barrett/Gabriel.

Cue Miz with the Money In The Bank briefcase to Bryan though and Barrett gets the pin at 29:32, leaving Cena all alone. Cena gets back in and fires off the shoulders, followed by the ProtoBomb. Barrett makes the save and comes in to stomp away, with Gabriel getting to do some of the same. With nothing else working, Nexus takes Cena outside and peel back the floor mats. Barrett DDTs him onto the concrete and takes him back inside, where Cena avoids Gabriel’s 450 for the pin at 34:50. Barrett comes in and gets STF’d for the tap at 35:15.

Rating: C. I remember being ok with this at the time and now I remember wondering how in the world this was ever approved. The key to Nexus was that they could survive as a big group and here they are losing as a big group. Therefore, why should anyone worry about them after this? No one could ever find an answer and while the team would be around for a few months, with Barrett focusing on the World Title, this was pretty much the fatal blow.

Cena has since said that this was a bad idea (because it was his idea) but the team was finished here and pretty much everyone knew it. The match wasn’t even that great as it was just a Survivor Series match, making me wonder WHY THEY DIDN’T DO THIS AT SURVIVOR SERIES! Bryan coming back was a nice surprise (if you stayed offline during the show) but it’s not like there was anything must see in here. Really big miss here and unfortunately it finished a pretty weak show.

Overall Rating: D+. And that’s probably being generous. There is nothing on here worth seeing with most of the matches feeling like they were just previews for something else. That might be fine for like, Night Of Champions, but this is one of the biggest shows of the year. The main event, while fine for the most part, is a huge letdown as Nexus just dies right in front of our eyes. This show wasn’t awful, but it was rather dull and in this case, that’s a lot worse.

Results
Kofi Kingston vs. Dolph Ziggler went to a no contest when Nexus interfered
Melina b. Alicia Fox – Faceplant
Big Show b. Straightedge Society – Double pin
Randy Orton b. Sheamus via DQ when Sheamus shoved the referee
Kane b. Rey Mysterio – Chokeslam
Team WWE b. Nexus last eliminating Wade Barrett

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

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

Cyber Sunday 2008
Date: October 26, 2008
Location: US Airways Center, Phoenix, Arizona
Attendance: 7,981
Commentators: Michael Cole, Jim Ross, Tazz, Jerry Lawler, Matt Striker, Todd Grisham

It’s time for a weird show, as the point of the show is about the fans choosing the stipulations. That means a lot of the show isn’t really set up, even down to the kinds of matches that we’ll be seeing. The big matches are HHH defending the Smackdown World Title against someone (case in point) and Chris Jericho defending the Raw World Title against Batista, with guest referee to be determined. Let’s get to it.

The set is rather cool, with the entrance looking like a big phone.

Pre-Show: US Title: Shelton Benjamin vs. ???

R-Truth – 59%
Festus – 26%
MVP – 15%

Shockingly, Benjamin is defending against the person who has been coming for his title. Benjamin backs him into the corner to start but R-Truth backflips away and gets in a leg lariat. That’s cut off though and Benjamin grabs a chinlock, which is quickly broken up for some running clotheslines. Benjamin catches him on top though and jumps up, only to get knocked down for a missile dropkick. Back up and a quick Paydirt retains the title in a hurry.

Rating: C. This was a glorified dark match and that was only going to be so good no matter what they did. R-Truth continues to be a good way to start any show, as he is one of the most entertaining people on the roster. It should be time for Benjamin to move on to another challenger, though I’m not sure who that is going to be at the moment. Festus maybe?

The opening video features a bunch of wrestlers saying your vote doesn’t count. They then realize that it absolutely does, so the people better have voted wisely. Kind of an odd shift there, as what would the people have been voting for in the first place if the votes didn’t count?

Kane vs. Rey Mysterio

No Holds Barred – 39%
Falls Count Anywhere – 35%
2/3 Falls – 26%

That’s a lot more like it, as any of those could have conceivably won. Mysterio starts fast and knocks him outside, where a kendo stick shot to the leg has Kane in more trouble. Back in and Mysterio’s stop sign is cut off though and Kane sends him ribs first into the post. Kane drives him into a different post (for some variety you see) for two and the bad back is bent over Kane’s knee. The nerve hold sets up another backbreaker as Mysterio is in quite the level of trouble.

Mysterio finally goes to the eyes and comes out with a bulldog for the needed breather. A 619 attempt is cut off with a big boot so Kane grabs a chair, only to get caught in something like a Destino. An Arabian Facebuster gives Mysterio two but Kane easily uppercuts him out of the air. The steps are loaded up in the corner, with Kane missing a charge and getting drop toeholded into the steps. The springboard seated senton gives Mysterio two and he can’t believe the kickout. Back up and Mysterio slugs away with the air, setting up a quick 619. The springboard splash gives Mysterio the upset pin.

Rating: C+. This could have been a lot worse, though it was kind of weird that Mysterio beat him relatively clean. Mysterio just beat him down and got the pin for the big upset. I like the idea of an underdog coming back and getting the win, but it just didn’t have the most impact. Either way, not a bad opener as Mysterio knows exactly how to wrestle this kind of a match.

It’s time to meet the Divas in their Halloween costume.

Michelle McCool is an army brat.

Katie Lea is a vampire.

Lena Yada is a ninja.

Candice Michelle is Marilyn Monroe.

Chris Jericho runs into Ted DiBiase, Manu and Cody Rhodes to thank them for costing CM Punk the World Title. If they ever want to take it to the next level, do the same thing to Batista. That’s a no, because Rhodes and DiBiase might have a title defense, but DiBiase thinks Jericho’s match will be priceless.

Here are ECW GM Teddy Long and his assistant Tiffany to introduce the one ECW match tonight.

ECW Title: Matt Hardy vs. ???

Evan Bourne – 69%
Finlay – 25%
Mark Henry – 6%

Hardy is defending and dang that’s a pretty horrible result for Henry. Bourne was the pretty obvious pick but you would think the top heel would have done better than that. Hardy hits a running shoulder but gets caught with a dropkick to slow things down. A test of strength goes to Hardy until Bourne is back up with some rollups for two each. Back up and Hardy sends him into the corner and hits a hard clothesline so Bourne switches gears by going after the arm.

The standing moonsault gives Bourne two and he’s right back on the armbar. Bourne sends him to the floor but an Asai moonsault is broken up, allowing Hardy to get in a slam on the floor. The middle rope elbow to the back gives Hardy two more and it’s off to the abdominal stretch. With that broken up, Bourne gets in a quick hurricanrana but walks into a Side Effect for two more.

It works so well that Hardy does it again but Bourne kicks him out of the air. A moonsault press gives Bourne two and the top rope Meteora connects for the same. Hardy catches him up top but gets shoved down, only to avoid the shooting star press. The Twist Of Fate is countered into a backslide for a heck of a near fall but a second Twist connects to retain the title.

Rating: B. Hardy’s great look at Bourne after the match tells you the story, as he knows he survived over a talented but inexperienced challenge. Bourne is getting better and better every time and he’s the kind of young star that ECW needs. The roster is just dying for talent and Bourne is a good, young name who could boost it up rather nicely.

Post match Bourne goes to leave but Hardy shakes his hand to show some respect.

More Halloween costumes:

Beth Phoenix is a Knight Templar. That sword looks horrible.

Jillian Hall is Batgirl (missing on Netflix due to song issues).

Maria is a rabbit.

Kelly Kelly is a ship’s captain.

Next up, you get to pick the tag match we get to see:

John Morrison/The Miz vs. Cryme Tyme – 38%
Raw Tag Team Titles: Kofi Kingston/CM Punk vs. Cody Rhodes/Ted DiBiase Jr. – 35%
Mickie James/Jamie Noble vs. Layla/William Regal – 27%

John Morrison/The Miz vs. Cryme Tyme

Morrison and JTG take turns driving each other into the corner before it’s off to Miz. That’s fine with JTG, who takes him into the corner as well, this time for a running clothesline from Gaspard. A reverse Alabama Slam sends JTG onto Miz for two and it’s back to Morrison, who gets splashed in the corner (popular place in this match).

The villains are sent outside and Gaspard gorilla presses JTG onto them for a nice big crash. Back in and Morrison gets in a shot to Gaspard’s knee and Miz gets to elbow said knee as we slow down. Gaspard powers out of a half crab though and it’s back to JTG for some flipping neckbreakers. Morrison kicks him back down and scores with a running knee to the head for two of his own.

Miz grabs a chinlock for a bit but a catapult is broken up, allowing JTG to…roll Morrison into the wrong corner. With Morrison backing off, the tag brings in Gaspard to start cleaning house. A spinebuster gets two on Morrison so JTG forearms Miz, say it with me, into the corner. Miz gets in a shot to the knee though and the Moonlight Drive gives Morrison the quick pin.

Rating: C. This was a match that could have been on any given episode of Smackdown and it wouldn’t have felt much different. The good thing here though is they did have an actual feud and that made the match more interesting. Unfortunately it wasn’t particularly good and I wasn’t overly engaged for the most par.

Hey look. More costumes.

Tiffany is a nun in some less than standard attire.

Brie Bella is Cleopatra.

Natalya is a cop.

Eve Torres is a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle (Raphael, which likely can’t be used).

Chris Jericho asks Great Khali to make things fair in the main event. No.

Here are Santino Marella and Beth Phoenix for the Intercontinental Title match. According to the Honk-A-Meter, in just one week….and one year….he will be the greatest Intercontinental Champion of all time. After mocking Phoenix for being a place where wrestlers go to retire, like Shaquille O’Neal, Marella is quickly shut up by realizing that O’Neal is in the crowd. On to the others who should retire!

Intercontinental Title: Santino Marella vs. ???

Honky Tonk Man – 35%
Roddy Piper – 34%
Goldust – 31%

Marella, with Beth Phoenix, is defending and Honky Tonk seems rather pleased to be here. Before the match, Honky Tonk says he doesn’t know about cool and cocky, but Marella is BAD. Marella could be Intercontinental Champion for ten years and not be as great as he is. The dance off (you knew it was coming) is on and even Phoenix realizes this isn’t Marella’s thing. Marella hits him in the face and we’re ready to go, with a chase not really working. Honky Tonk gets in a knockdown but Phoenix trips him for the DQ in just over a minute.

Post match Marella screams at Phoenix for causing her to lose and here are the other legends to beat Marella up (thankfully Piper and Goldust have gotten over their 1996 issues). Honky Tonk getting in a Shake Rattle And Roll for old times’ sake is a nice bonus, even if he slips on Goldust’s wig.

Final costumes.

Maryse is a French maid. She previewed this on TV in the buildup

Layla is Princess Layla in a Star Wars joke.

Victoria is a banana who has appeal.

Mickie James is Lara Croft and….yeah she’s easily the best out of these options, mainly because her costume looks a lot more well made and doesn’t feel like she got it at Spirit Halloween.

We recap Big Show vs. Undertaker. Big Show beat him up last month at No Mercy (in a heck of a match) but you know that’s not how Undertaker accepts things. Therefore, it’s time for revenge.

Big Show vs. Undertaker

Last Man Standing – 49%
I Quit – 42%
Knockout – 9%

I’m a bit surprised Knockout was so low, but it did at least feel like all three were viable choices. Undertaker strikes away to start, as is his custom, before being sent over into the timekeeper’s area. That just earns him a heck of a chair shot to the head and Show staggers back inside. Show charges into a boot but just runs Undertaker over without much trouble.

It’s too early for the count so Show kicks him out to the floor with quite qthe impact. The ensuing chair shot only hits post and Undertaker blasts him in the face with a chair of his own for an eight count. The apron legdrop has Show in more trouble but he gets in a clothesline to put them both down. Some big headbutts have Show in trouble so Undertaker slugs away.

Show’s chokeslam attempt is countered into a DDT so he rips a turnbuckle pad off. Undertaker’s running boot in the corner misses and he crashes out to the floor, where Show sends him into various hard objects (sending Matt Striker running away, which at least makes the show better). A monitor to the head and a superkick put Undertaker over the barricade but he comes back with a chair shot.

For some reason Undertaker climbs onto the barricade, earning himself a chokeslam through the announcers’ table for a heck of a crash. It’s also good for a nine count so they go back inside, where Show decides to start punching. Naturally Undertaker gets the better of that and tries Old School, only to get chokeslammed for another near ten. The KO Punch gets another nine as Undertaker sits up, earning a chair to the head. Show goes after him but gets pulled into the Hell’s Gate. Show taps but then passes out, which is enough to give Undertaker the win.

Rating: B-. This was a pretty nice fight as these two can do some things if you don’t ask them to have a regular match. Trim a few minutes off of this and it’s even better but it did feel like Undertaker survived a war against a real monster. Undertaker could still go with this kind of a match and he survived until he caught Show, which worked rather well. Good stuff here and it should blow off the feud.

Chris Jericho complains to Mike Adamle and wants the guest referee stipulation thrown out, with teases of violence. Adamle still won’t change it, so Jericho says they can do this later. Dude there’s less than an hour in the show. How much later do you think you have?

Tazz brings out the Divas for the costume contest and Mickie James wins. And then they all fight. This is a perfect example of “it was what it was”.

We recap HHH defending the Smackdown World Title. This is less a question of “will Jeff Hardy get the shot” and more “can Vladimir Kozlov get less than 0%”. At least triple threat is there to offer the slightest drama.

Smackdown World Title: HHH vs. ???

Jeff Hardy – 57%
Jeff Hardy and Vladimir Kozlov – 38%
Vladimir Kozlov – 5%

HHH is defending and I’m surprised it was that close. HHH backs him into the corner to start (JTG did it better) and tells Hardy that he was that close. To what? They fight over arm control until Hardy snaps off some armdrags into an armbar. That stays on for a bit until Hardy goes up, only to get shoved hard into the barricade (ala Rob Van Dam). Back in and HHH stomps away before sending him arm first into the post.

Now an armbar has Hardy in trouble for a change, followed by a facebuster. Hardy shrugs that off and hits his wrap around clothesline to put them both down. Hardy’s basement dropkick connects, as does a sitout gordbuster for two. The slingshot dropkick is countered into a spinebuster though (that looked good) for two more.

Hardy goes up but dives into a crossface, which stays on for so long that Hardy looks more dismayed than in pain. That’s reversed into a cradle for two but HHH knocks him outside in another heap. Hardy is back up with Poetry In Motion off the steps and a pair of Whispers In The Wind (yes two of them) gets two, leaving them both down.

Now the slingshot dropkick can connect for two more but HHH is right back with a sleeper. That’s broken up rather quickly and a Twist Of Fate gives Hardy two. The Swanton connects but Hardy goes up again, with a second Swanton hitting raised knees. Hardy kicks him outside and connects (barely) with a slingshot dive before loading up another Swanton. This one is cut off a lot faster though, with HHH pulling him into the Pedigree to retain.

Rating: B+. These two work very well together and they did it again here, though dang Hardy losing to HHH again is a hard thing to see. The fans love him quite a bit but that is only going to survive so many losses. Hardy keeps getting closer to the title, though he has to actually win it a lot sooner rather than later.

We recap Batista challenging Chris Jericho for the Raw World Title. Batista became #1 contender but there have been issues with referees so let’s have a special guest. Unfortunately that has become the focus of the whole thing, with Batista and Jericho barely having an issue between them.

Raw World Title: Batista vs. Chris Jericho

Steve Austin – 74%
Shawn Michaels – 22%
Randy Orton – 4%

Jericho is defending and they would have been better off just announcing Austin and picking something else for the vote. Jericho slaps him in the face and is promptly shouldered in the corner. That’s enough for Jericho to try and leave, only for Austin to say the title is changing hands on a countout or DQ.

Austin not going after Jericho himself is a bit much to buy, though at least Jericho gets back inside for the beating from Batista. A suplex puts Jericho down again but Jericho pulls him to the floor for a baseball slide. The Triangle Dropkick is swatted away but Batista gets his leg tied in the rope to give Jericho a target. Jericho goes with the standard assortment of knee work, including a running dropkick to the leg.

The chinlock doesn’t do much to Batista and he sends Jericho into the corner, only to be sent face first into the buckle. The Walls are blocked so Jericho goes right back to the knee in a smart move. Batista is able to use the good leg for a big boot and they’re both down for a rather slow count.

Now the Walls can go on, with Jericho switching into a half crab (former partner Lance Storm would be proud). Batista makes the rope and grabs a Boss Man Slam for two, followed by a clothesline out of the air for the same. The spear only hits post but the shoulder is fine enough to hit a flying shoulder. The spinebuster is countered into a DDT to give Jericho two but Austin gets bumped.

Jericho hits a Codebreaker so here is Shawn Michaels for a ridiculously slow count. Batista hits the spear but JBL of all people comes in to break up the count (Why was he in full wrestling gear?), Austin is back up but Randy Orton runs in to knock him down. A belt shot gives Jericho two but Austin is back up and yells at Orton for being an idiot. The Stunner sends Orton outside and Jericho blocks a Stunner attempt. That means it’s a spinebuster into the Batista Bomb to give Batista the title.

Rating: C+. This was a weird one as again, it didn’t feel like Batista was having some personal issue with Jericho. Instead, it came off more like one of those indy show main events over Wrestlemania Weekend where an outsider gets the title shot and that’s the whole story. In this case the title happened to change hands but the focus wound up being on the referees. That’s a really odd way to go and while Batista getting the title is fine, it absolutely doesn’t feel like some big moment.

Beer is consumed to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. I really couldn’t figure out what to think about this overall as it’s so thrown together. We wound up seeing parts of what had been built up in previous weeks because so little was set in stone coming into the show. I didn’t hate it and it’s far from some disaster, but I can also see why they dropped this gimmick after this edition. It’s too hard to build to a show where you don’t know what you’re getting and that took away a lot from this one.

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

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Smackdown
Date: October 24, 2008
Location: Entertainment Center, Laredo, Texas
Commentators: Jim Ross, Tazz

It’s the last show before Cyber Sunday and Smackdown has the more interesting parts of the pay per view card. That includes Big Show vs. Undertaker in a violent match with rules to be determined, which is oddly the most interesting thing on the card. Other than that, WWE is begging you to care about Vladimir Kozlov in the World Title scene and I’m really not sure it’s clicking. As for tonight, Undertaker vs. HHH should do just fine. Let’s get to it.

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

In Memory Of Lia Maivia, the Rock’s grandmother.

Opening sequence.

Here is HHH to get things going, asking if everyone is as sick of Vickie Guerrero as he is. He lists off some of her annoying habits, including being an annoying hag. This time though, he can get away with it because a Twinkie truck was outside so she’ll be grazing for hours. For tonight though, he has to face Undertaker, because it favors Vickie Guerrero. If he doesn’t make it through Undertaker tonight, he might not make it to Cyber Sunday and all of the votes will mean nothing.

This brings out Jeff Hardy to interrupt, saying he knows the audience a bit better than HHH. Hardy thinks he’ll get the title shot and win at Cyber Sunday, which brings out Vladimir Kozlov. He thinks he’ll get voted in and be champion, but HHH has no idea what Kozlov said. HHH also doesn’t care who he faces and then Pedigrees Hardy.

In the back, HHH runs into the Undertaker. Unfortunately he doesn’t apologize.

Maryse/Natalya vs. Maria/Michelle McCool

Hurricane Helms pops in to suggest the women are attractive and McCool works on Maryse’s arm. Natalya’s distraction lets Maryse get in a shot of her own…but here are Jesse & Festus with a mariachi band (Erg, again?). Maria is distracted and misses the tag, allowing Maryse to roll McCool up for the pin. This was in the category of “here’s a Divas segment disguised as a match”.

Colons vs. Bam Neely/Chavo Guerrero

Non-title. Primo takes Guerrero down to start and Guerrero is already looking frustrated. Neely comes in and gets sent into the corner, allowing Carlito to get the tag for a suplex. It’s already back to Guerrero, with Neely distracting Primo so Guerrero can get in a Liger kick. Back up and Neely hits Guerrero by mistake, allowing Carlito to come in with a springboard flipping afro to the face. Something like Cross Rhodes gets two with Guerrero making the save, but Neely goes after Guerrero, who runs away. The Backstabber gives Carlito the pin on Neely.

Rating: C. Oh no. Not the end of Guerrero and Neely! I had basically forgotten that Neely was even on the roster at this point as he hasn’t done anything important in months. It doesn’t help that he wasn’t any good on his best day so this felt more like a way to write off a team who was pretty much already gone.

Post match Hurricane Helms pops up to suggest that Guerrero and Neely could split, ending that amazing team.

Kizarny is coming.

John Cena is returning and celebrities like him a lot.

Michelle McCool yells at Maria about her lack of focus but she’s off to find Festus. Wouldn’t McCool want Maria unfocused before their title match?

Primo hits on Brie Bella but Carlito interrupts, seemingly with no idea what he did. Then Jesse & Festus chase the mariachi band by them, with Maria following them all. Can you tell they don’t have much to talk about on this show?

R-Truth/Kung Fu Naki vs. MVP/Shelton Benjamin

During the entrances, Hurricane Helms pops up to mock MVP for the loss of his tunnel? I like Helms, but is he ever going to actually wrestle? MVP and R-Truth start things off but MVP wants Funaki, with Tazz immediately starting the rhymes. Funaki strikes him into the corner and it’s already off to Benjamin. A belly to back suplex drops R-Truth and it’s back to MVP for the overhead belly to belly. R-Truth clotheslines his way out of trouble and the tag brings Funaki back in to strike away. The Crane Kick puts MVP down for the pin.

Rating: C. Odds are that’s about it for Funaki winning matches like this and that’s not a bad thing. He’s a goofy guy who is going to be doing comedy segments and this one win gives him a bit of credibility. At the same time, MVP continues to have issues getting to his big money bonus and that could lead to some interesting desperation.

Primo goes to hit on Brie Bella and she is suddenly not interested at all. Carlito consoles him but Great Khali comes in to say watch the Kiss Cam.

Here is Khali, with Runjin Singh, for the Kiss Cam. Apparently Khali has gotten some love letters from various fans, including Bruce from San Francisco. With that out of the way, one woman gets to kiss Khali, but Singh brings in a second, heavier, woman. Singh has Khali kiss her because that would take a real man, so kissing ensues. And that’s it. Sweet goodness this is a fillery show.

Kizarny is still coming. We’re not even an hour and a half into this show and we’ve seen this guy twice.

Cyber Sunday rundown.

Undertaker is ready to seal Big Show and Vickie Guerrero’s face on Sunday. As for tonight, he’s ready for HHH as well. Believe it or not, he didn’t have much to say on this show.

The Brian Kendrick vs. Super Crazy

Kendrick’s tickle has been defeated and he still has Ezekiel Jackson with him. Crazy jumps him to start fast and gets in a quick backdrop, followed by a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker. Kendrick gets in a cheap shot though and finishes in a hurry with the Kendrick.

Post match Jackson lays Crazy out.

Video on the recent tour of Mexico.

HHH vs. Undertaker

Non-title. Undertaker shoulders him down a few times to start but HHH is back up with the right hands in the corner. Naturally you don’t do that to Undertaker, who unloads with right hands and the corner clothesline. Undertaker grabs an armbar and a half nelson of all things to stay on the arm.

Old School is broken up though and it’s a double clothesline to leave both of them down. Undertaker is back up with Snake Eyes but the big boot is cut off with the jumping knee. The Pedigree is countered as well though and now the big boot gets two. Another Old School attempt is broken up and HHH superplexes him right back down.

They head outside with HHH being sent hard into the steps but the Last Ride doesn’t work. A jumping clothesline gives Undertaker two more and HHH is right back with a spinebuster. The Pedigree and Tombstone are countered so HHH hammers away in the corner, earning himself a Last Ride. That’s enough to bring in Big Show to jump Undertaker for the DQ.

Rating: B. They did a good job here, as the DQ ending came at the right time. They had me wanting to see who was going to win and while the interference was the only good option, it would have been nice to see these two have a big time match. This did feel big and while it’s not enough to save the show, it was by far the best part.

Post match Show lays both of them out with fists and chair shots.

Post break Undertaker and Show are gone so here is Vladimir Kozlov to beat HHH down to end the show.

Overall Rating: D+. Oh my goodness they have got to get past Cyber Sunday. The problem is there are either no specific rules to build matches around or no matches at all. That’s basically saying we find out everything on Sunday and then the matches can take place. It’s not working, because these television shows have nothing to do and you get stuck with a show like this one. Nothing show here, with even a forgotten HHH vs. Undertaker match not being enough to save it.

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

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Smackdown
Date: October 17, 2008
Location: Thomas & Mack Center, Las Vegas, Nevada
Attendance: 6,500
Commentators: Tazz, Jim Ross

We’re getting close to Cyber Sunday and the question now is who will be challenging HHH for the World Title. That should make for an interesting choice, as we get to see just how high Jeff Hardy can run up the margin for his win. Hardy has his hands full already tonight though as he has to face Vladimir Kozlov. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of the wild ending last week, with Undertaker costing Big Show a World Title shot. That left Vladimir Kozlov to jump HHH, with Jeff Hardy making the save.

Opening sequence.

Here is Big Show, with Chavo Guerrero, who Show saying this isn’t going to go well. Show can’t believe that Undertaker has been messing with him again because they are going to fight at Cyber Sunday. The fans are going to be able to pick the stipulation, with the choices of Last Man Standing, I Quit and a Knockout Match. Tonight, Show is going to demonstrate all three of these things.

Big Show vs. ???

KO Match. Commentary doesn’t know who he is (I do, as it’s Joey Ryan) but he’s knocked cold in about ten seconds.

Big Show vs. ???

I Quit match and it’s another unnamed wrestler (Ryan Taylor, who wrestled under a bunch of names, including Tyler Rust and Rust Taylor). Show makes him give up with a cobra clutch in about thirty seconds.

Big Show vs. ???

Last Man Standing and this would be none other than a VERY young Matt Jackson (with Hurricane Helms popping up to mock Jackson’s sideburns). Guerrero sets up a table and Show chokeslams Jackson through it for the win at a whopping minute and a half or so. Totally fine segment, but more importantly all three options are realistic choices. KO Match is the most likely, but the other two wouldn’t be insane and that’s great to see.

Post match, Jackson is put in a neck brace and Taylor is still out cold on the floor. The devastating was a success.

Tag Team Titles: Colons vs. Curt Hawkins/Zack Ryder

Hawkins and Ryder are challenging. Carlito takes Hawkins down for a legdrop to the back but Ryder’s distraction lets Hawkins take over. Hawkins’ waistlock has Carlito in more trouble but he’s up rather quickly for the tag off to Primo. The pace picks up with a jumping shot to the face getting two on Hawkins as everything breaks down. A quick missile dropkick retains the titles in a hurry.

Rating: C+. That was quick and I was half expecting a title change. The good thing is that the Colons are a fine team who work well together and they do well when they’re given the chance to get in the ring. There is still hardly a tag division around here and a match that only gets a few minutes isn’t that interesting, but at least the champions were out there.

Video on John Cena’s recovery from neck surgery, as he was at the arena about five hours after the operation to visit the wrestlers.

MVP is focused on winning one more match as it gives him a big incentive package.

MVP vs. R-Truth

R-Truth hiptosses him out of the corner to start but gets sent outside for a crash. Back in and MVP’s chinlock doesn’t last long so R-Truth is back up with the spinning forearm. A shoulder to the ribs and an ax kick finish MVP off in a hurry.

Funaki comes in to see Vickie Guerrero and Big Show, who throw him out. Maryse, in a French maid costume, comes in and wonders why she is in a match tonight. Guerrero suggests that it’s for a chance to get a title shot. With Maryse gone, Great Khali comes in and is given a match with Undertaker. That doesn’t work for Khali, so Show gets in his face for some less than subtle threats.

Kizarny says…I have no idea actually but he seems to be on his way to Smackdown.

The Brian Kendrick and Ezekiel Jackson come to the ring for a match but Kendrick has a TICKLE in his throat and can’t wrestle. Jackson can though.

Ezekiel Jackson vs. Super Crazy

After Hurricane Helms asks if Jackson’s tights come in the right size, Jackson runs Crazy over and finishes with a release Rock Bottom in rather short order.

Post match Kendrick celebrates and hits the Kendrick. On Crazy if that’s not clear.

HHH watches a clip of Vladimir Kozlov brawling with Jeff Hardy last week and says it shows him how much they want to be champion. If you want to do that though, you have to go through him and that’s not an easy task. Pretty simple promo here and I’ll take that over one of his long speeches.

Undertaker vs. Great Khali

Runjin Singh is here with Khali. Undertaker strikes away in the corner to start but gets reversed for the big chops. With those not really working, Khali knocks him down and grabs the vice grip. Undertaker breaks that up as well but here is Big Show to jump Undertaker for the DQ.

Rating: C. This was another match that didn’t have time to do anything, which is a theme tonight (granted that’s the point in some of the cases). At the same time, there is something to be said about keeping Khali’s matches short and WWE seems to understand that. This was about getting Undertaker vs. Show further along and it worked fine for a fast angle advancer.

Post match Show grabs a chair, but Khali slaps it out of his hand for Show costing him the match. Khali leaves but Undertaker gets the chair to crack Show in the back.

Next week: HHH vs. Undertaker. Ok then.

Maria vs. Maryse vs. Natalya vs. Victoria vs. Brie Bella

Say it with me: Fuzzy Dice On A Pole match and the winner gets a Divas Title shot against Michelle McCool. Natalya wastes no time in turning on Victoria and Maryse has to cut Bella off. Maria knocks Maryse down as well and gets the dice (which are bigger than her head) to win rather quickly. This was as dumb as it sounds.

Video on John Cena, who is just peachy. He’s on his way back.

Jesse & Festus vs. Ryan Braddock/Kenny Dykstra

The bell rings and Festus goes Festus, sending the rather big Braddock into the corner. Jesse comes in for an elbow and a headlock but Dykstra pulls him down without much trouble. The chinlock goes on and Hurricane Helms pops up to mock Dykstra a bit. Jesse gets up and brings Festus back in to clean house. The fireman’s carry flapjack ends Dykstra.

Rating: C. This was just a step above a squash with Jesse getting in his big move: the hot tag to Festus. That’s what he does as well as anything else but it’s not like they’re trying to say he’s anything better. I keep forgetting that Dykstra is around but he’s fine enough for a slightly named jobber.

Remember Kizarny? The one who was coming? He still is.

Maria runs into Michelle McCool, who is looking forward to their match. Maria doesn’t look overly convinced but Jesse & Festus come in. The latter has a flower for Maria, who seems appreciative. Scared, but appreciative.

Cyber Sunday rundown.

Jeff Hardy vs. Vladimir Kozlov

HHH is on commentary. After a quick promo about how he wants the title, Kozlov powers Hardy into the corner for the shoulders to the ribs. A powerslam gives Kozlov two and he sends Hardy into the post a few times. We take a break and come back with Hardy staying on the arm as this is totally one sided thus far. Some headbutts and a belly to belly give Kozlov two but Hardy is up for a quick Whisper In The Wind. Something off the top misses so Kozlov headbutts him in the chest for the fast pin.

Rating: C+. This was a total squash for Kozlov as Hardy got in a Whisper In The Wind and that’s about it. The idea here is an attempt to make Kozlov into someone that the fans want to see face HHH at Cyber Sunday so he squashed the person the fans REALLY want to see get the spot. That’s not likely to work, but at least they were trying.

Post match HHH gets in the ring for the staredown as WWE continues their efforts to try to make fans care about Kozlov. It won’t work, but they’re trying.

Overall Rating: C+. They weren’t exactly focusing on the wrestling here with a bunch of short matches. Instead the focus was on building towards the two big matches at Cyber Sunday and oddly enough, Big Show vs. Undertaker was WAY more effective. If nothing else, they had something kind of unique with Big Show demonstrating the matches and I’ll take that over another boring Kozlov match. Not a great show overall, but the big stories got the focuses that they needed.

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

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Smackdown
Date: July 10, 2026
Location: Paycom Center, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Commentators: Joe Tessitore, Wade Barrett

And then everything changed, as CM Punk won the Smackdown World Title on Raw, despite not being a Smackdown wrestler. He might be now, but it’s not sure if that’s the case or not. Odds are we’ll hear something about that tonight as there is a good chance that Punk will be on the show. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of the Smackdown World Title situation on Raw, with Gunther attacking Cody Rhodes and costing him a chance to challenge Sami Zayn for the title. CM Punk stepped in and got the title shot instead, beating Zayn to become champion.

Here is Nick Aldis, who got Punk to challenge for the title, to say that he is officially back as Smackdown GM. With that out of the way, here is Punk for a chat. Aldis welcomes Punk to the show and steps aside, with Punk saying he missed the Smackdown fans. Punk has been negotiating to come to Smackdown and those discussions were expedited on Monday, when he got into his gear at his house and drove to the Allstate Arena where he won the title. When title opportunities fall out of the sky, he’s there to catch them and he’s ready to defend this title anytime.

If someone thinks he has something that belongs to them, come try and take it. Punk brings up Sami Zayn, who deserves a rematch, Gunther, knowing it’s a mistake to bring up, and Finn Balor, who can come get a third shot any time. He lists off a few other names but here is Cody Rhodes to interrupt. Rhodes asks about Punk’s black eye, with Punk saying he knows Rhodes wants to know something else…so what does he want to talk about?

Rhodes brings up the title matches falling out of the sky, but there are other matches that have been built up for years. Punk: “You mean like CM Punk vs. Cody Rhodes?” That sounded like a Wrestlemania main event but they can’t run from each other much more. The challenge is made for Summerslam so they shake hands, with Aldis making it official. Yeah that’s a big time Summerslam match and worthy of a main event.

Jade Cargill, with Michin and B-Fab, has requested and received a match with Alexa Bliss tonight. This is part of Cargill ruining Charlotte’s life and she’s not responsible for taking Bliss out.

Finn Balor vs. Tama Tonga

Talla Tonga is here with Tama and this is fallout from the Tongas attacking Balor last week. Balor double legs him to start and hammers away but Tama gets in an elbow to the face. A clothesline puts Tama on the floor but Talla breaks up the big dive, allowing Tama to get in the shot from behind.

We take a break and come back with Balor striking away, setting up a Nightmare On Helm Street for two. A spinning belly to back suplex gets Tama out of trouble but Balor puts him right back into it with the Sling Blade. Tama cuts him off again and hits a spinning Pedigree for two so Balor backdrops him to the floor. The big running flip dive hits both Tongas and the Coup de Grace gives Balor the pin at 9:47.

Rating: B. I’m not sure what happened but they flipped a switch in the last few minutes and turned on the jets. The final two or so minutes here was an awesome fast paced slugfest with one big move after another. Balor can work well with anyone and Tama held up his end rather well here. It started good and then got very good, which made it even more fun than I was expecting.

Carmelo Hayes is ready to prove himself again because he wants to get his hands on Trick Williams.

R-Truth pays off Fraxiom over a lost bet but the War Raiders come in to say these games need to end. Jimmy Uso and Jacob Fatu come in, saying they’re looking for Solo Sikoa. R-Truth agrees to tell Sikoa they’re looking for him. Damian Priest comes up and seems ok with them, while also saying Royce Keys is here. R-Truth doesn’t like that, but Priest says Keys isn’t with them.

Sami Zayn, on a mental health break, is on the phone with Nick Aldis, who says he does have the authority to make a match between CM Punk and Cody Rhodes. Gunther comes in to slap the phone away and says he belongs in the World Title match. Aldis has until the end of the night to fix that.

Here are Jimmy Uso and Jacob Fatu to call out Solo Sikoa. Instead they get Royce Keys, who Fatu doesn’t think looks like Sikoa. Keys says their family business is starting to affect him and Fatu doesn’t like that. Fatu says Keys can say a lot, but please don’t go there about OTC business. Uso clarifies that Keys isn’t part of this family but Keys talks about all of the family members he has lost.

Fatu has been his brother and Keys isn’t letting him go. Uso says this is crossing a line that he can’t come back from and he doesn’t want to do this. Keys isn’t here to fight…but steps forward over a line. Uso says that the two of them are going to give Keys the worst beating they’ve ever given anyone. Keys: “We?” This is all on Uso so he says get a referee out here. Keys knocks Uso outside with a clothesline and we take a break with the referee arriving.

Jimmy Uso vs. Royce Keys

Keys knocks him down to start and fires away right hands in the corner. A suplex puts Uso down but they head outside, with Uso sending him into the steps. The chinlock goes on back inside but Keys is up, only to be sent back to the floor. Keys is sent over the announcers’ table and we take a break.

We come back with Keys getting two off a powerslam so it’s time for the straps to come down. Keys plants him onto the announcers’ table but gets posted to cut off the momentum. Cue Solo Sikoa behind Uso to load up the Spike, which brings out Jacob Fatu. The brawl is on, allowing Uso to spear Keys for the pin at 9:25.

Rating: C+. I’m not wild on Keys losing, though it’s even worse when he loses to Jimmy Uso’s spear. Trying to make it the family move is quite a stretch when only Reigns really has the power/explosiveness to make it look good and the Samoan drop already exists. Anyway, this was more of the Bloodline drama, which is going on underneath everything Roman Reigns has going on with Seth Rollins for Summerslam. That’s a lot at once and I’m still not even sure where this part is going.

Post match Fatu lays out Sikoa and then superkicks Keys. Fatu loads up the Umaga Attack on Sikoa, who has a chair around his neck, but hits the brakes and yells at him instead.

After losing the title on Monday, Sami Zayn went on a rant about how unfair the whole thing was.

CM Punk wants everyone to get in line to come after the title but here are Candice LeRae and Johnny Gargano. LeRae yells at Punk for taking away their hope of Gargano getting better. Punk remembers him as Johnny Wrestling and says whatever this is, it isn’t working. As Punk goes to leave, Finn Balor welcomes him to the show, with an eye on the belt.

Fatal Influence have had fun taking out Brie Bella and Paige and they’re ready to do it again for the Women’s Tag Team Titles at Saturday Night’s Main Event. I’d certainly hope so.

Alexa Bliss vs. Jade Cargill

Charlotte and the minions are here too. An early Charlotte distraction lets Bliss go after Cargill’s leg and a knee to the face puts Cargill down. That just earns Bliss some backbreakers and we take a break. We come back with Cargill missing a boot in the corner so Bliss can hammer away. The running Blockbuster gives Bliss two but Sister Abigail is broken up. Charlotte gets in a neck snap across the top to give Bliss two so it’s time for the seconds to get in a fight. Cargill gets in a pump kick into Jaded for the pin at 7:04.

Rating: C+. This was another way to continue the path towards Cargill vs. Charlotte, which absolutely feels like a big showdown. I could go for seeing the two of them fight and hopefully they manage to make it work. Bliss and Charlotte have come incredibly far as a team and this was a good use of a story that has worked for years in wrestling.

Post match Charlotte fights off the minions for a bit but Cargill uses a chair to snap Bliss’ arm, allowing Bliss to do her arm out of joint deal.

Trick Williams can’t find his title but Lil Yachty comes up to present him a custom fur lined title.

Alexa Bliss is taken to the trainer’s room. I’m not sure why we needed to see this.

Carmelo Hayes vs. Trick Williams

Non-title and Lil Yachty is here with Williams. Hayes gets knocked into the corner to start so Williams can stomp away. Back up and Hayes gets in a spinning crossbody, earning himself a Trick Slap as we take an early break. We come back with Hayes grabbing Dirty Diana for two and they both need a breather. Williams gets in some leg lariats, followed by a Rock Bottom for two.

Hayes flips out of a fireman’s carry though and grabs a middle rope DDT for two of his own. The jumping neckbreaker gives Williams two but Hayes knocks him off the top, setting up a frog splash for another near fall. The Trick Kick gives Williams two more but he misses a charge in the corner. Yachty gets dropped and the First 48 takes Williams down. Hayes goes up top…but Baron Corbin of all people is back to pull him into the ropes for the DQ at 10:30.

Rating: B-. They were having a good match before the big surprise return. Corbin isn’t everyone’s cup of tea but he could be a great addition to the midcard. As long as he doesn’t become the focal point of the show, he should be perfectly fine and could have some good matches with Williams, Hayes and more. The match itself was good, but these two are likely to have a big PPV match somewhere down the line after their lengthy history together.

Post match Corbin lays both of them out and drops the furry title on Williams.

Here is Gunther, with Nick Aldis coming in to say Gunther can have what he wants. Gunther can have Punk and Rhodes…at Saturday Night’s Main Event in a tag match, when he teams up with Sami Zayn. Summerslam isn’t changing one bit, which earns Aldis a beatdown. Gunther boots him in the face and grabs the sleeper a few times. Cody Rhodes runs in for the save (though the show cuts off when he’s still in the aisle) to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. This was designed to set up a few big matches for Summerslam, which certainly needs the help to boost things up with a few weeks ago to go. Punk vs. Rhodes being set up is a good move, as that’s absolutely a main event level match. Other than that, some of the matches which were either already set or close to it got a few nice upgrades. I liked this show, as it’s nice to have a more clear direction after everything has been shaken up in recent weeks.

Results
Finn Balor b. Tama Tonga – Coup de Grace
Jimmy Uso b. Royce Keys – Spear
Jade Cargill b. Alexa Bliss – Jaded
Carmelo Hayes b. Trick Williams via DQ when Baron Corbin interfered

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

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

Smackdown
Date: July 3, 2026
Location: Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves

We’re stateside for Smackdown and the big story this week is that Sami Zayn is the new World Champion, having beaten Gunther and reigning champion Cody Rhodes on Saturday at Night Of Champions. That means we have about a month to go before Summerslam and a lot of ground to cover so let’s get to it.

Here is Night Of Champions if you need a recap.

Here is Sami Zayn to quite the strong reaction to get things going. Zayn talks about how a lot of people are here to ride or die with the last real good guy. He appreciates the reactions he has gotten and gives the fans a genuine thank you. It’s funny though, because a lot of those people booed him and jumped on and off of the bandwagon. He won’t say he told you so though because he’s a good guy who won that title the right way.

We’re here to celebrate him and he will forever be known as a Wrestlemania main eventer and a Grand Slam Champion, but also as a WWE Champion. Nothing can ever take that away from him but here is Cody Rhodes to interrupt. Zayn asks what he wants to talk about but Rhodes wants to just congratulate him. Rhodes goes to leave but Zayn tells him to just say what he really wants one time. This brings out Jey Uso to give Zayn a big hug and say that he deserves it.

As much as he respects Zayn, Uso, has to do his business and bring the title back to the family. Rhodes asks what year it is because bringing it back to the family sounds ridiculous. Uso is already a former World Champion but we’re here to talking about Rhodes’ rematch. Zayn isn’t happy with Rhodes saying Zayn would never take the title from him, and as far as Uso is concerned, the title is still in the family.

They can both stay away from him, but here is Adam Pearce (acting GM as Nick Aldis is on leave due to an incident with Gunther) to interrupt. Pearce says it’s his job to find Zayn a challenger, but Zayn says he should have some say in who he faces at Summerslam. Pearce says no one is talking about Summerslam, because Zayn is defending the title this Monday on Raw, and tonight Rhodes and Uso have a #1 contenders match tonight. They’re certainly not wasting time with Rhodes, but Zayn very well could be like Mick Foley, as winning the title itself is what matters rather than a long reign (which is ok).

Charlotte says she cost Jade Cargill at Night Of Champions because Cargill cost her. Alexa Bliss pops up to say it would have been nice to have been told Charlotte would be there but Charlotte says Bliss didn’t tell her she would be teaming with Tiffany Stratton. This brings in Stratton, who says she didn’t need Charlotte but Chelsea Green comes in to have Stratton’s back and….awkwardly say she’ll see Charlotte out there.

Charlotte/Chelsea Green/Tiffany Stratton vs. Jade Cargill/B-Fab/Michin

Stratton and Cargill start things off with Michin quickly coming in for a sunset flip. It’s quickly off to Charlotte to kick Michin down and send B-Fab flying with a suplex. A Cannonball off the apron hits Michin but Cargill is right there with the clothesline to Charlotte as we take a break.

We come back with Cargill sending Charlotte flying and even throwing in a mocking victory dance. The splash misses in the corner though and it’s B-Fab coming in to cut off the tag attempt. Charlotte fights back and Green comes in to clean house, with a Rough Ryder getting two on B-Fab. The Unprettier is loaded up but Cargill reverses into Jaded, which is reversed into a rollup. B-Fab offers a distraction though and Jaded finishes Green at 8:51.

Rating: C+. Cargill gets to look dominant again, Green isn’t hurt by the loss (or by any loss really) and Charlotte continues to kind of annoy a lot of people. Michin continues to be a solid hand in the ring and B-Fab is acceptable enough as a lackey. Just don’t ask her to do much of anything else.

We look at the Gunther/Nick Aldis incident, leading to both of them being sent home and Adam Peace being put in charge of Smackdown for the time being.

Pearce is on the phone with Aldis and doesn’t seem pleased. Then he runs into Sami Zayn, who isn’t happy with the situation. Pearce suggests that he’ll bring some Smackdown stars to Raw for a supershow and Zayn will have an opportunity. Zayn is annoyed but goes over to Johnny Gargano and Candice LeRae, saying he might not have won without Gargano being there for him. Zayn even has a reluctant LeRae take a picture of them together.

AAA Cruiserweight Title: Rey Fenix vs. El Hijo del Vikingo

Fenix is defending and Vikingo’s Latin American Title isn’t on the line. Vikingo snaps off a spinning headscissors to start but Fenix kicks him away. A springboard frog high crossbody gives Fenix two but Vikingo ties him in the ring skirt for a dropkick. Vikingo’s dive drops Fenix again and we take a break.

We come back with Fenix hitting his rope walk kick, setting up a frog splash for two. Vikingo is back up with his running knees in the corner, followed by his flipping hurricanrana out of the corner. A super spinning poisonrana (how do you even do that) drops Fenix again but he knees Vikingo back. That’s enough to set up the Mexican MuscleBuster to retain at 8:55.

Rating: B. “And then he did THIS and it was AMAZING!” That’s basically Vikingo in a nutshell and yeah that’s always going to work. This was the definition of a flippy match and as usual, it did its job. The fans get to have fun and it’s not like this is going to hurt either of them in AAA. In other words, it’s a nice use of some TV time.

We look at Blake Monroe attacking Giulia last week.

Giulia is happy to put Kiana James behind her and would love to fight Monroe face to face anytime. James comes in to say it would be like Giulia to bite the hand that feeds her, but here is Monroe to jump Giulia from behind. Not to be unfair, she jumps James too in a bit of a surprise.

We look at the Seth Rollins/Roman Reigns showdown from Raw, setting up their Summerslam title shot.

Jimmy Uso is talking to Jacob Fatu when Royce Keys comes in to say Fatu has been ignoring him. Did Roman Reigns not give him permission? Uso says they’re here to find Solo Sikoa and asks if Keys can help them or not. Keys says that blood doesn’t make you family (check). He’s been there for Fatu for fourteen years and that makes them family. Uso disagrees and leaves with Fatu.

Here are Trick Williams and Lil Yachty for a chat but here is Carmelo Hayes to interrupt. Hayes says he deserves another title shot and accuses Williams of turning that title, a title Hayes helped make, into an accessory. He can get Williams a discount code on WWE Shop if Williams just wants something to hold, so put the title on the line.

Yachty isn’t impressed and asks if we should give this “young small man” a match. Apparently the match is on for next week…but not for the title. That has to be earned and Williams knocks him down. Yachty and Williams go to leave but Hayes takes them out with a big dive.

Danhausen is on the phone (seemingly from the 30s) as Miz and Kit Wilson are there in the background. Matt Cardona comes in to say hello but Danhausen says he has a match with JD McDonagh at Saturday Night’s Main Event and has help coming in from New York. He was just on the phone with them, but Cardona points out that the phone isn’t plugged in

Danhausen says don’t worry about it and has Cardona twist a nob. It seems to fry Wilson and Miz even more, with Danhausen blaming Judgment Day and telling Cardona that he’s in charge of the two of them. Cardona mentions spiking your hair and Wilson might say AWESOME. Oh dear this won’t end well.

Brie Bella vs. Lainey Reid

Paige and the rest of Fatal Influence are here too. Bella takes her down by the arm to start fast but gets sent throat first into the middle rope. Reid misses a wind up elbow though and Bella sends her arm first into the corner. Some shots to the face slow Bella down but she fires off the YES Kicks. Bella pulls her down by the arm and rolls into the YES Lock, with Page cutting off Fallon Henley from interfering. Jacy Jayne gets posted but Henley is back up, with Bella going outside for the save. That lets Reid hitting a running knee for the pin at 3:19.

Rating: C. This was as standard of a booking trope as you can get on your way to a Women’s Tag Team Title match. That’s a good thing too, as I could go for Fatal Influence being the ones to end this title reign. Commentary hyped up Bella not having a singles match on Smackdown in years and while that’s true, it’s quite the stretch for something to brag about here.

R-Truth beats Nathan Frazer in a hot dog eating contest. Damian Priest wants ketchup but the War Raiders come in to say Priest and R-Truth should be focused on their challenge. R-Truth gets annoyed at Ivar eating Priest’s wiener but the match is on for some time in the future. It’s just going to take place on Smackdown, with R-Truth promising to take the masks too. There are no masks.

We look at the Brock Lesnar/Oba Femi segment from Raw, resulting in their match being set for the Cell.

Cody Rhodes is coming to the ring and runs into Finn Balor. Rhodes apologizes for not saying it yet but welcome to Smackdown. Balor says one of the reasons he came here was to face Rhodes and he wanted it to be for the title, so go start getting it back. Tama Tonga comes in to say he went to the family elders for guidance. Then the Tongas jump Balor, with Tama saying he’s closing the books on his past, with Balor being next.

Jey Uso vs. Cody Rhodes

For a shot at Sami Zayn on Raw. An early superkick and Cross Rhodes are both avoided so Uso sends him outside for the suicide dive. We take a break and come back with Rhodes hitting a Cody Cutter for two but Uso gets in a Samoan drop. Rhodes rolls outside where he cuts off a spear but gets sent onto the announcers’ table. Uso’s suicide dive is blocked as well and they go back inside for a double clothesline.

We take another break and come back with Uso hitting a Superfly Splash. Rhodes is up with another Cody Cutter for two of his own but Uso gives him a spear for two more. Another Superfly Splash misses though and Rhodes hits a spear, followed by Cross Rhodes for his own near fall. Uso knocks him down and tries a Superfly Splash, which hits raised knees. A sleeper works a bit better for Uso and they go into the corner where Uso tries…I’m not sure (neither is commentary). Rhodes slips away and grabs Cross Rhodes for the pin at 15:33.

Rating: B. There was just enough of a reason to believe that Uso could win here to keep things interesting. At the same time though, Rhodes is the right choice to move on to the title match, as either he gets the belt back and sets up a match with CM Punk or Zayn gets the big win in the singles match. This was a good main event though and it still helps to have Rhodes beat another former World Champion.

Overall Rating: B. Oh sweet goodness did losing an hour help this show. One of the most annoying things in wrestling is a show that just keeps going and Smackdown has been doing that since the show was extended to three hours. Switching back allowed it to feel much tighter with far less filler. It still has problems, but I wasn’t sitting there dreading how long it was going to go and that’s a great feeling. They’re flying through the World Title scene though and that almost has me worried for what they have planned at Summerslam. At least I’m wanting to see what it is though so they must be doing something right.

Results
Jade Cargill/B-Fab/Michin b. Charlotte/Chelsea Green/Tiffany Stratton – Jaded to Green
Rey Fenix b. El Hijo del Vikingo – Mexican MuscleBuster
Lainey Reid b. Brie Bella – Running knee
Cody Rhodes b. Jey Uso – Cross Rhodes

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

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Smackdown
Date: June 19, 2026
Location: T-Mobile Center, Kansas City, Missouri
Commentators: Joe Tessitore, Wade Barrett

It’s a big fight feel here as we have the World Title on the line, with Cody Rhodes defending against Gunther. That’s not all though as Sami Zayn, who isn’t happy with Rhodes, is the guest referee. That should make for a heck of a main event as we’re also closing in on Night Of Champions next Saturday. Let’s get to it.

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

We recap Gunther challenging Cody Rhodes for the World Title. Rhodes beat him at Clash In Italy but Gunther’s foot was underneath the rope. Gunther demanded a rematch and got to pick the stipulation, which is having Sami Zayn as guest referee, mainly because Zayn and Rhodes aren’t getting along either.

Smackdown World Title: Cody Rhodes vs. Gunther

Rhodes is defending and Sami Zayn is guest referee. Gunther knocks Rhodes down to start and works on the arm but Zayn breaks up Rhodes trying to throw a right hand in the corner. Zayn cuts Rhodes off again and this time Gunther boots Rhodes in the face. Gunther elbows him in the face and commentary isn’t pleased with Zayn not getting on Gunther as much.

A Cody Cutter connects out of nowhere and Rhodes follows up with a powerslam. Gunther is right back with a knockdown into the Figure Four but Zayn catches him grabbing the ropes. Rhodes’ rollup gets a fairly counted two and he follows it up with Cross Rhodes but Zayn sees Gunther’s boot underneath the rope. For some reason Rhodes complains and Zayn shoves him, right into a sleeper from Gunther.

Rhodes gets the rope as well and Zayn has to drag Gunther off the hold, which isn’t going well for Gunther either. Gunther shoves him so Zayn comes back with a slap, earning himself a powerbomb. Rhodes makes the big comeback and hits Cross Rhodes for two from a second referee. Gunther’s shotgun dropkick and powerbomb get two, with Zayn pulling the referee out. Back in and Rhodes tries a sunset flip, with Gunther grabbing the rope. Zayn kicks his hands away though and the fast count retains Rhodes’ title at 11:19.

Rating: B-. Much like their previous match, I was expecting something a bit bigger than this, which was pretty much just good enough. That ending all but guarantees a third match, and it wouldn’t surprise me to see Zayn added to make it a triple threat. That’s a good way to make it more interesting, and hopefully they go a bit bigger with the whole thing, as it deserves.

Post match Gunther yells at Nick Aldis and Zayn as Rhodes says get a proper referee out here and restart the match. Gunther decks Zayn and sprints to the ring with a regular referee and we’re back at it.

Smackdown World Title: Cody Rhodes vs. Gunther

Rhodes is defending again and they slug it out before trading sleepers. Gunther’s works a bit better until Rhodes escapes, only to get caught in it again. Cue Zayn to Helluva Kick Gunther for the DQ at 1:09 (Rhodes and Gunther were both in the corner so it wasn’t clear who Zayn was aiming for but he screams at Gunther after to make things obvious).

Post match Zayn grabs the title and decks the regular referee before hitting Rhodes with the belt by mistake (though I’m not sure who else it was supposed to be). An upset Zayn leaves, ripping up a fan’s sign in the process.

We look at the recent issues between Jade Cargill/her minions and Charlotte/Alexa Bliss.

Cargill isn’t worried about what is going on and wants the Women’s Title.

We recap the whole World Title situation.

Gunther blames Aldis for what happened and wants another title match at Night Of Champions.

Jacob Fatu comes in to see Solo Sikoa about Roman Reigns wanting him in the Bloodline. Sikoa turns him down again but Fatu says that’s a bad idea. Sikoa is running out of time, which leaves him confused. Fatu leaves and the MFT’s come in to say Sikoa’s family business is starting to mess with their family business. Sikoa says he has this.

You know how Blake Monroe has been teasing her…well return actually? She still is.

Tag Team Titles: Damian Priest/R-Truth vs. MFT’s

Priest/R-Truth are defending. Talla shoves Priest into the corner, where Priest gives him a crotch chop. Priest gets sent into the corner for some stomping as the War Raiders are watching backstage. Tama comes in and gets knocked into the champs’ corner, with R-Truth coming in for the flying shoulders. The John Cena sequence is cut off as R-Truth is sent to the floor for a big boot and apron chokeslam from Talla.

We take a break and come back with R-Truth kicking Tama down and making the diving tag to Priest. Talla gets knocked to the floor but Tama is back with a swinging neckbreaker. Cue Solo Sikoa to yell at Talla and then get taken down by Priest. R-Truth grabs a rollup on Tama to retain the titles at 10:10.

Rating: C+. This was another match where it felt like Priest and R-Truth should have lost the titles, though the Raiders might be the ones to take the belts off of them. At the same time the Bloodline Lite issues continue and that has to clash with the main version of the team sooner or later. I’m just not sure if that is a good thing or not.

Post match the MFT’s walk away from Sikoa.

Sami Zayn does his weekly rant to Johnny Gargano when Nick Aldis comes in to ask what that was about. Zayn says he’s the one who keeps getting cheated and he’s not going anywhere.

Jey Uso and Je’Von Evans jaw at each other before their King Of The Ring semifinals.

Carmelo Hayes vs. Ricky Saints

For a future US Title shot. Hayes starts fast with a clothesline but Saints is back up with the strutting Old School. Well most of it at least as he dives into an atomic drop but at least he looked good in the process. Hayes hits a slingshot DDT to the apron and we take a break. We come back with Hayes fighting out of a chinlock. Saints’ bulldog out of the corner is countered into a belly to back suplex and Hayes’ springboard DDT gets two.

They clothesline each other down but Hayes is back up with Dirty Diana. The suplex cutter gets two but Hayes misses Nothing But Net. Saints’ tornado DDT is blocked as well so Hayes throws him off the top, only to get crotched on an exposed buckle. The Roshambo is countered into the First 48 but Saints kicks him into an exposed buckle for the pin at 14:25.

Rating: B. I can go for Saints getting the title shot as Hayes vs. Trick Williams is likely going to be a big deal when it finally happens. For now though, Saints is still getting established around here so a win over a former champion, even one that came through less than fair means, is a good idea. It helps that they can both work this style rather well and they have some chemistry despite not having a ton of experience against each other.

Cody Rhodes wants and receives a triple threat against Gunther and Sami Zayn at Night Of Champions.

Charlotte wants her fifteenth World Title.

We look at Danhausen being discussed in the fallout from the New York Knicks winning the NBA Championship. Danhausen going from nothing more than a comedy goof to being discussed on the Tonight Show and being interviewed on ESPN is insane, but also evidence of what can happen when you stick with something and get to showcase your talent.

Danhausen is doing experiments on the still messed up Miz and Kit Wilson when Los Garza come in. They lost a lot of money on the NBA Finals because of the curse but Matt Cardona comes in to clear the out (he’s happy because his team finally won). Danhausen thanks “Zack”, who corrects him and then touches Miz, which gives him a shock. Cardona: “Woo woo woo!” Danhausen asks if Cardona is ok. Cardona: “You know it.” Danhausen is all giddy.

Finn Balor comes in to see R-Truth, who talks about dragons, Rikishi and the Wild Samoans. He’ll help Balor when he needs it because when you’re Judgment Day, you’re Judgment Day for life. Damian Priest comes in (with R-Truth thinking they need to play water polo) and says he’s out of any celebration for Balor, because he doesn’t celebrate with people he doesn’t trust. R-Truth doesn’t get why Priest doesn’t trust him when they’re partners.

We recap the World Title situation again.

King Of The Ring Semifinals: Jey Uso vs. Je’Von Evans

Evans rolls him up to start and hits an early dropkick out to the floor. We take an early break and come back with Uso still in trouble but hitting a pop up Samoan drop. Evans loses his shirt and reveals tape around his ribs so Uso has a target. A backbreaker stays on the ribs and Uso shoves him off the apron and into the barricade.

We take another break and come back with Evans still in trouble but catching Uso on the top. A super Spanish Fly plants Uso and they’re both down for a breather. Evans fights up and they knock each other down, where at least they can see the Fireflies for some reason. Back up and the spear gives Uso two but he charges into a superkick. The spinning kick to the head drops Uso again but he’s right back up with another spear. The Superfly Splash pins Evans at 17:57.

Rating: B. I’m not sure how much the result was in doubt here but it was nice to see Evans getting to hang in there against a former World Champion. Evans is pretty clearly becoming an established name around here and it’s working, which is a good sign. Uso is the bigger deal here though and him facing Oba Femi could be rather interesting.

Post match Uso shows respect. That’s a bit of a surprise.

Jacob Fatu goes to see Solo Sikoa, who thinks Roman Reigns sent Fatu here to mess with their business. If Reigns keeps messing with things, Sikoa will be coming to Raw to mess with him.

Giulia wants to face Kiana James next week in London.

Tiffany Stratton is ready to defend the Women’s US Title at Night Of Champions when Chelsea Green comes up to offer her help. Stratton appreciates it but she’s got this on her own.

NXT Origins video on Alexa Bliss.

Liv Morgan talks about how Charlotte is always talking about her success because she lives in the past. Morgan is the present.

Paige and Brie Bella are ready for Bayley/Lyra Valkyria.

Fatal Influence blame their loss last week on the referee so they want another chance.

Jey Uso runs into Cody Rhodes and warns him about Summerslam, which is fine with Rhodes. Sami Zayn comes in to praise Uso but thinks he’ll be the champion at Summerslam. Uso says he’ll do what he has to do, so Zayn says say hi to the family for him.

Night Of Champions rundown.

Charlotte runs into Jade Cargill/Michin/B-Fab but doesn’t seem worried. That doesn’t seem to be a good idea as the three of them jump her and damage her knee.

Post break, Charlotte is getting looked at when Liv Morgan comes in to say she’ll see you out there.

Queen Of The Ring Semifinals: Charlotte vs. Alexa Bliss

Non-title and Charlotte limps to the ring, earning her an early chop block from Morgan. The medics and Nick Aldis come out to check on Charlotte but she insists she can go. That just means Morgan can go after the knee again, including ramming it into the ring skirt board. We take an early break and come back with Bliss wrapping the leg around the post. A dropkick puts it into the post and a suplex sends it into the rope.

Charlotte reverses another suplex though and uses the good leg for a big boot. For some reason Charlotte goes up top for a high crossbody before winning a slugout. Morgan fights back but gets booted out of the air but Charlotte’s knee gives out as she tries a moonsault. We take another break and come back with Morgan kicking her into the corner and going after the knee again. Charlotte’s backbreaker out of the corner doesn’t get her very far as Morgan ties her in the Tree Of Woe.

Somehow Charlotte fights out and hits a super Natural Selection. The Figure Four has Morgan in trouble for a change so she rolls out to the rope. A half crab puts Charlotte in trouble again so she makes the rope, which has the medics checking on her. Charlotte wants to keep going and Oblivion out of nowhere gets two. Morgan grabs a rather hard half crab and Charlotte gives up at 18:57.

Rating: B. So we have the Raw Women’s Champion vs. another Raw star for a shot at either the Raw or Smackdown Women’s Title in the finals? Anyway, this was a classic story with Charlotte fighting through the injury but not being able to make it in the end. It’s good enough that I barely remembered Je’Von Evans and Jey Uso doing the same thing in the previous match.

Overall Rating: B+. This was a rather busy show with a bunch of stuff happening, including the rather fun World Title situation. The story jumped forward a long way in one night and they made it work, which isn’t something I was expecting. Other than that you had good action up and down the card, with only the Sikoa/Bloodline stuff being less than interesting. Rather good show here, with Night Of Champions looking better as a result.

Results
Cody Rhodes b. Gunther – Sunset flip with a fast count
Gunther b. Cody Rhodes via DQ when Sami Zayn interfered
Damian Priest/R-Truth b. MFT’s – Rollup to Tama
Ricky Saints b. Carmelo Hayes – Kick into an exposed turnbuckle
Jey Uso b. Je’Von Evans – Superfly Splash
Liv Morgan b. Charlotte – Half crab

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

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Smackdown
Date: June 12, 2026
Location: Amica Mutual Pavilion, Providence, Rhode Island
Commentators: Joe Tessitore, Wade Barrett

We’re back in America after the two week European tour and this week is about setting up something in the future. In this case, it’s Gunther getting to announce the stipulation for his title shot against Cody Rhodes, which takes place next week. That could go in a few directions, but it’s Gunther’s call. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a long Cody Rhodes/Gunther recap.

Rhodes arrives and runs into Nick Aldis, who says Gunther will name the stipulation tonight. That works for Rhodes and Aldis leaves, with the Usos replacing him. Jey says that he’s winning the King Of The Ring and coming for the title, but it’s not personal. That’s fine with Rhodes as well, but he hopes it’s what Jey wants and not Roman Reigns.

Commentary tells us that Rhea Ripley has a knee injury and is undergoing treatment so we’ll see where things go from there.

We look back at Jade Cargill and company winning last week’s six woman tag.

Jade Cargill, with B-Fab and Michin, is ready for the Queen Of The Ring and Charlotte, whose entrance cuts her off.

Queen Of The Ring First Round: Charlotte vs. Sol Ruca vs. Lyra Valkyria vs. Jade Cargill

Non-title. Everyone goes after Cargill to start so she suplexes Valkyria and Ruca at the same time. Charlotte is knocked outside and Cargill’s minions jump her, drawing out Alexa Bliss and Tiffany Stratton for the save. The four of them brawl off and Charlotte high crossbodies Cargill for two as we take a break.

We come back with Ruca rolling Cargill up for two but Valkyria throws Ruca outside. Charlotte goes up top but Ruca jumps up top with her, only to have Valkyria take Ruca out again. Cargill powerbombs Valkyria and Charlotte down at the same time but Ruca is back in for the save. Valkyria rolls Ruca up for two so Ruca moonsaults off the top onto all three at once for the huge crash.

We take another break and come back with Charlotte catching Cargill on top, where Ruca helps Charlotte with a double superplex. Ruca is back up with a springboard double flipping clothesline, only to have Cargill take her down. Cargill gives Charlotte Jaded but gets caught with the Sol Snatcher. Valkyria is back in but gets caught in Natural Selection. The Figure Eight makes Valkyria tap at 17:59.

Rating: B. This was a heck of a match with Charlotte getting the win but it didn’t feel like she dominated the whole match as she has been known to do before. Cargill was the big force here but the other two were hardly just cannon fodder. I liked this and Charlotte is oddly working as a heroine after so many years as the big evil.

In the back, B-Fab and Michin come after Tiffany Stratton again but Chelsea Green runs in for a save with a kendo stick, with one heck of a crazy look on her face. Stratton has no idea what to make of this.

Jacob Fatu comes in to see the Usos but he’s here to see Solo Sikoa.

Blake Monroe doesn’t like Charlotte either. Why did they have her pop up in that backstage segment if she’s just doing these “she’s coming” vignettes?

Gunther comes in to see Nick Aldis and makes the announcement: he gets to pick the referee for the title match next week. That’s fine with Aldis, but we have to wait to find out who the referee will be.

Finn Balor is fired up to be here when R-Truth comes in to say the Judgment Day is back together. Balor is confused but Damian Priest comes in for a rather tense reunion.

Women’s Tag Team Titles: Paige/Brie Bella vs. Fatal Influence

Paige/Bella are defending after Fatal Influence jumped them last weeks. Henley takes Bella into the corner to start but it’s off to Paige to take over. Everything breaks down and the champs strike away to take over until Jacy Jayne trips Bella down. Bella has to fight out of the corner but another distraction means the referee misses the tag. That means Reid can grab her running Blockbuster for two and we take a break.

We come back with Bella getting over for the tag to Paige and house is cleaned. Henley gets caught in the Scorpion Crosslock, which is quickly broken up. The Rampaige drops Reid with Henley making the save. Jayne has to make another save and gets ejected, leaving Paige to small package Henley to retain at 10:34.

Rating: C. This was the latest time for the Cinderella run between the team no one was asking to see continues. It’s another case where the initial win was fine but it’s hard to buy that so many teams can’t beat Paige and Bella. The match wasn’t awful, but it’s become clear that there is nothing to the champs and they get less interesting together week to week. Then again it keeps us from them losing the titles and getting the Bellas’ magic moment so this could always be worse.

We look at Sami Zayn getting involved with Cody Rhodes and Gunther.

Zayn rants to Johnny Gargano again, with Candice LeRae asking when Gargano is going to get up and do something.

Los Garza gives Danhausen money and Matt Cardona comes in to say he doesn’t have money but gives Danhausen a watch and ring. Kit Wilson brings in Miz, who is only able to spout catchphrases since Danhausen electrocuted him. Danhausen electrocutes Wilson as well and leaves, with Wilson sparking. Pretty normal night.

Here is Sami Zayn for a chat. Zayn isn’t sure why he isn’t getting as nice of a reaction as he got in Europe but that’s ok. Do you want to boo him or ride or die with the Last Real Good Guy? Zayn is out here to clear the air with Cody Rhodes, who comes out to join him. Rhodes does his usual but Zayn doesn’t want this Rhodes for a change. A few weeks ago, Rhodes made Zayn feel terrible when he walked away while Rhodes was choked out.

That’s what Rhodes deserved on that day and Zayn wants Rhodes to tell him the truth. Rhodes says that Zayn is asking for an explanation of professional wrestling and Zayn is smarter than that. Zayn talks about being the first person to congratulate Rhodes when he won the title because he’s a good guy.

Rhodes snaps about how the fans telling Zayn that he sucks and it’s true right now because Zayn is whining. Let’s not pretend that this is about anything but the title. Zayn slaps him in the face and immediately realized he went too far. Rhodes says they’re done so Zayn grabs a chair, only to drop it and leave. I think you know where this is going and that’s a good thing.

Jacob Fatu comes in to see Solo Sikoa and has a message from Roman Reigns: it’s time to come home. Sikoa doesn’t know what has happened to Fatu, but Reigns is humiliating him. Sikoa gets fired up and wants Fatu to be himself but Fatu says he’s made his decision. When his business with Reigns is done, he’s coming for Sikoa. That’s fine with Sikoa, who says if Reigns wants him back, come get him.

We look at Rey Fenix winning the AAA Cruiserweight Title.

AAA Cruiserweight Title: Rey Fenix vs. Axiom

Fenix is defending and starts fast with a dropkick out to the floor, setting up the big running flip dive. Back in and Axiom snaps off a suplex but Fenix sends him outside for a crash. Axiom catches him with a dropkick on the floor though and the big moonsault takes him down again.

We take a break and come back with Fenix kicking away but getting caught on top. Fenix knocks him right back down and hits a frog high crossbody for two. Axiom counters a springboard into a German suplex but the Golden Ratio is cut off with a kick to the head. Something like a Death Valley Driver gives Fenix two but Axiom jumps the corner for a super Spanish Fly. Fenix kicks him in the head again in the corner and the Mexican MuscleBuster retains the title at 12:15.

Rating: B-. It was good, high flying action but at the same time I really hope that this is a one off title defense. I do not need to see another title on this show, especially from another company (even if it is owned by WWE). WWE has had Cruiserweight Titles before and it doesn’t need to be happen again.

Gunther comes up to Nick Aldis and picks Sami Zayn as the guest referee for next week’s title match.

Here are Trick Williams and Lil Yachty for a chat. Williams is not happy that he lost last week but he is still the US Title and the Lemon Pepper Stepper. This brings out Ricky Saints to interrupt but Carmelo Hayes interrupts his interruption. Hayes is tired of the catchphrases from Saints, who says he is the only one who should be getting a title shot. Bickering ensues but Williams tells them to shut up and figure it out themselves. Until then, let the grown folks talk. The brawl is on and Williams stands tall.

Royce Keys is interrupted by Solo Sikoa, who wants to help even the odds against the Bloodline. Sikoa doesn’t need Keys to fight with him, but he doesn’t want Roman Reigns to get his way.

Chelsea Green/Tiffany Stratton vs. B-Fab/Michin

Stratton and Michin start things off with Stratton giving her an Alabama Slam. It’s off to Green, who gets kicked in the ribs and head, followed by a double faceplant. We take a break and come back with Green getting rammed into the corner, setting up Michin’s middle rope hurricanrana for two. Back up and Green avoids a charge to send B-Fab into the post but here is Jade Cargill to pull Stratton off the apron. The Unprettier hits B-Fab but Michin is in with the Styles Clash for the pin at 8:07.

Rating: C. This was more of a step in what feels like a bigger story of Green and Stratton becoming friends. Stratton is going to want to thank Green for her help and that could make for a fun way to go. If nothing else, Green brings all kinds of energy to anything she does and that could be great to see.

Post match Cargill lays out Stratton with Jaded and holds up the US Title.

We look at Kiana James and Giulia splitting last week.

James rants about how she’s done everything she has done for Giulia, which brings in Giulia to interrupt. Giulia didn’t need James’ help in the ring and gives her a heck of a slap.

Finn Balor runs into Tama Tonga, who welcomes him to Smackdown.

Cody Rhodes talks to Nick Aldis and isn’t sure about Sami Zayn as guest referee. Zayn comes in to repeat Rhodes’ issues with him and says good luck next week.

Here’s what’s coming next week.

LA Knight isn’t worried about the Bloodline being in the building because Knight is in the building. He can’t wait for Jey and Jacob to be back in the Bloodline, barefoot and pregnant. He’s coming for the crown and then Roman Reigns.

King Of The Ring First Round: LA Knight vs. Finn Balor vs. Jey Uso vs. Royce Keys

It’s a brawl to start with Keys clearing out Uso and Knight, leaving Balor to take them out with a running flip dive. We take a break and come back with Uso striking away on Keys until Knight makes the save. Keys runs Knight over with a clothesline and gives Balor a super spinning powerslam. Uso knocks Keys to the floor but his dive is dropped onto the apron. Jimmy Uso pops up for a staredown with Keys and here is Solo Sikoa as we take another break.

We come back again with Keys planting Balor onto the apron but running into a superkick from Jey. With Keys down, the other three TripleBomb him through the announcers’ table. That allows Balor to knock Knight down for two with Jey making the save. Jey’s spear is cut off and the shotgun dropkick sends him into the corner.

Knight is cut off and the Coup de Grace connects but Keys makes the save. Sikoa yells at Keys, who gets dropkicked through the ropes by Knight. Back in and Knight gives Jey a Burning Hammer and drops the top rope elbow on Keys. Knight gets up but walks into the USB, only for Jey to hit the Superfly Splash for the pin at 18:41.

Rating: B. This was more of a hard hitting match and you could have had multiple options for the winner. Keys seems to be the wild card in the whole Bloodline story at the moment and that could go in a few directions, including not at all. Uso winning keeps things going with the Bloodline, though having Balor lose in his first match on Smackdown is a bit odd. I’m not sure where this leaves Knight either and I’m tired of that being the case.

Overall Rating: B-. The tournament matches were good but the rest of the matches left a little something to be desired, with nothing really standing out. Green joining forces with Stratton, and Stratton actually approving, is a good thing, but the match was hardly anything noteworthy. This show really needs to get back to two hours as soon as possible, as it’s going to tighten things up a lot and cut out a bunch of the filler. At least Gunther vs. Rhodes is going to be huge next week, especially with the Zayn issue. Not a great show here, but the good parts were enough to carry it by.

Results
Charlotte b. Sol Ruca, Lyra Valkyria and Jade Cargill – Figure Eight to Valkyria
Paige/Brie Bella b. Fatal Influence – Small package to Henley
Rey Fenix b. Axiom – Mexican MuscleBuster
Michin/B-Fab b. Tiffany Stratton/Chelsea Green – Styles Clash to Green
Jey Uso b. Finn Balor, Royce Keys and LA Knight – Superfly Splash to Knight

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