wrestling / TV Reports
411’s WWE Smackdown Report 8.02.13
No writer intro, no nonsense.
Here’s the show:
Taped in Houston, Texas.
Commentators are Michael Cole and Alex Riley (JBL is off this week. Riley usually commentates on Superstars, for those not in the know).
Opening Promo: Alberto Del Rio
Bertie saunters down and grabs a microphone.
ADR: “What I want to start by saying…is thank you. Thank you…for nothing. When I was Champion before, you didn’t care for me, you didn’t support me, you didn’t want me to be your Champion. Well guess what? I’m the World Heavyweight Champion and there’s nothing you can do about it! But I do want to say thanks to someone; Someone with vision, someone with leadership. I’m talking about the Smackdown General Manager, La Mamacita, Vickie Guerrero.”
(Crowd boos, naturally)
ADR: “John Cena was allowed to pick his opponent for Summerslam, and now Vickie has allowed me to do the same. Come on people, let’s hear it! Vickie! Vickie! Vickie! (More booing). Of course, John Cena wasted his pick on that little troll Daniel Bryan. You gotta be kidding me! (Crowd: Yes! Yes! Etc). But we all know he only did that because he’s afraid of Alberto Del Rio. And that’s when I started thinking, Alberto, why don’t you choose….The Beast, Brock Lesnar!…Well it turns out Brock has other plans for Summerslam, so it’s his loss. Then I thought Alberto, why not go loco, why not go crazy and give an opportunity to Houston’s own…Booker T!….Then I remembered, like everything coming out of Houston, Booker is a big disappointment.
So the person I chose deserves this opportunity more than anybody else. This person is a great performer, one of the greatest athletes of all time. He’s big, he’s fast, he’s strong! He’s the perfect opponent for the World Heavyweight Champion and the perfect opponent for Alberto Del Rio. And that’s why I’m giving this person his first opportunity to become World Heavyweight Champion. So people, the person I’m talking about, the man who will face Alberto Del Rio is….(Drum roll sound)….RICARDO RODRIGUEZ!!”
Ricardo’s picture shows up on the tron, crowd boos. Then Vickie Guerrero comes out. She says Excuse Me, twice to the crowd and once to Bertie.
Vickie: “Alberto, I feel you’re trying to disrespect me. Cena named Daniel Bryan as his opponent and he is a worthy competitor. (Bertie tries cutting her off, but she stops him, in Spanish. “calleto” (Shut up) I think?) You? You name some biasa, he looks like a jiggly middle man child! I expected so much more from you.”
ADR: “Vickie, please don’t be mad, I wasn’t trying to disrespect you. If you don’t want me to pick Ricardo to be my opponent for Summerslam then I can pick someone else right now. How about…The BROOKLYN BRAWLER?!”
Vickie: “Alberto, the man who appointed me, the Chairman of the Board Mr. McMahon, wouldn’t have liked your decision either. I anticipated you’d make an immature decision. So I’m here to announce tonight that at Summerslam, you’ll face the winner of tonight’s triple threat match!”
And with that, the three superstars come out. Rob Van Dam’s first, followed by Christian, followed by Randy Orton. So tonight’s main event is RVD vs Christian vs Orton and the winner meets Del Rio at Summerslam for the gold.
Thoughts: Not the greatest verbal delivery from Del Rio but he got his point across. Vickie as a babyface GM is an interesting proposition but it’ll take some doing to stop the booing.
Recap reel: Kaitlyn pinning AJ on Raw.
Recap reel: Cody Rhodes taking Damien Sandow’s briefcase and throwing it into the Gulf of Mexico. “I can’t swim!!” (Damien’s encounters with people backstage are brilliant, like his interaction with Sin Cara).
Before the first match, Jack Swagger gets the jobber entrance. Cody comes out to face him, but before that Zeb Coulter gets the stick:
Zeb: “Houston Texas, look at you! And you call yourselves Americans? Shame on you, and what I saw outside this building today. There are hundreds of people out there…”
Cody cuts him off, and we’re on.
Match 1: Jack Swagger w/Zeb Coulter vs Cody Rhodes
Cody with a stiff right to start, and then he takes a page from Goldust’s book with the drop-punch move. A knee to face from Cody gets 1. Swagger recovers with his big pick-up slam and knees him in the corner before delivering a clothesline for 2. Cody fights out of a rest hold but the Disaster Kick is blocked.
Swagger Bomb (Vader Bomb) gets 2.
He goes for the Gutwrench Powerbomb but, in a slick finish, Cody counters it to a sunset flip. 1…2…3. Cody’s won it, leaving the heels fuming.
Result: Cody Rhodes via pinfall.
Thoughts: Short but sweet.
3-way main event hyped again.
Josh Matthews interviews Cody backstage, looking for his comments on Sandow.
Cody: “Let’s go back to Money in the Bank. Like Damien said, every man for himself. I don’t blame him for preventing me from capturing the contract. If I think about it I might’ve done the same thing. But that doesn’t mean I wasn’t fed up with Damien. I don’t like it when someone thinks they’re better than me, talks down to me, I don’t like someone who talks down to anyone (Yuck). I’ve seen enough of this arrogant, so called aristocrat. But hey, apologies are in order. Me throwing that case into the Gulf of Mexico was the pollution equivalent of the deep water horizon oil spill. (He turns and says to Josh “It’s a joke, you can laugh!”) In all seriousness, I was in Team Rhodes Scholars, but contrary to what he says, the best part about that, was Rhodes.”
Josh goes to ask him another question, but Sandow attacks Cody from behind. He beats him down and rams his head into one of the production carts repeatedly, leaving him well and truly laid out. He’s restrained by a ton of officials.
Thoughts: Cody’s already showing signs of becoming a bland babyface who panders too much. The “I hate it when someone talks down to anybody!” line is cringeworthy, not to mention he’s been doing exactly for that for years now as a heel. Sandow is a fantastic villain though.
Match 2: Sin Cara vs Big E Langston
No AJ at ringside for this one. Dimmed lights as usual for a Sin Cara match. Massive shoulder block from Big E almost immediately. Sin Cara fires back with a sloppy enziguri for 2. We cut backstage to Dolph who’s watching on a monitor. Big E sends Sin Cara flipping over him onto his back. Headlock resthold next before a big clothesline. Big E toys with him on the apron for a bit and then locks him in the abdominal stretch. Sin Cara sells it well, screaming in agony, and Big E grabs the ropes for leverage to further annoy the crowd. Sin Cara rallies back into it but gets caught on a crossbody attempt.
Big E tries for the Big Ending but Sin Cara slithers out of it and goes for a springboard Moonsault, but Big E catches him right in position again, and the Big Ending finishes it for the 3 count.
Result: Big E Langston via pinfall.
Thoughts: Again, short but sweet and Big E looks like a dominant threat.
Recap Reel/Hype promo: The Wyatt family. Great package from the production team as usual, covering their moments since arriving on Raw recently and their path of destruction. Extra emphasis on Bray’s “Follow the Buzzards!” line.
Rene Young is backstage with Kaitlyn, who also has Layla in tow.
Kaityn: “AJ messed with my head. Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, you’ll get Speared. As Everyone knows, I was born and raised right here, in Houston Texas. (cheap pop), and this arena is actually where I won the Diva’s title the first time, and tonight, history repeats itself.”
Layla also weighs in:
Layla: “I have to say, I’ve been in the Diva’s division a long time and I’ve never seen anyone with the drive and determination she has. Kaitlyn is the real deal.”
They embrace. End interview.
Cut to Alberto and Vickie in her office. He says she went back on her word. Any opponent she said. She asks if he’s afraid of competition. He scoffs at that. Then Raw GM Brad Maddox walks in. They don’t appreciate being interrupted. Bertie asks who he thinks he is.
Brad: “I’m the general manager of Raw, and you’ll be under my authority this Monday.”
The Champ storms out.
Recap reel: CM Punk beating down Fandango last week, and his skirmish with Curtis Axel and Paul Heyman on Raw.
Match 3: Fandango w/Summer Raye vs CM Punk
Stiff kicks and a scoop slam from Punk to start, with an elbow and some chops thrown in for good measure. Fandango recovers with a shoulder block, but takes a roundhouse kick to the gut soon after and another elbow for 2. Big standing calf kick from Punk and he tries for the GTS, but FDG rolls out to the floor to recover and we go to commercial.
Back from the break and Fandango is hiding behind Summer Raye. Punk goes to grab him but gets blind sided and then thrown into the ring stairs. He just about makes the countout at 9. FDG whips Punk from one turnbuckle to the next back in and puts him in the chinlock to soak up some heat. Punk recovers and goes for a sunset flip, but FDG breaks it by stamping on his face, followed by a nasty kick to the back and shoulders for 2. Back to the chinlock, but Punk breaks it. He charges for his knee to the face in the corner, but winds up eating boot himself for 2. FDG goes up top but misses on the landing, and a Punk neckbreaker gets 2. Punk gets the knee in the corner this time followed by a clothesline. FDG manages to catch him with a stiff kick though, and nails him with a sit-out Falcon Arrow for 2.
FDG goes for the top rope leg drop but Punk gets to the corner before he can fly. Punk wears him down, then nails a top rope Superplex. On the landing, he floats right over into the Anaconda Vice and Fandango taps. Match over. Nice finish.
Result: CM Punk via submission.
Thoughts: Very enjoyable bout with both looking good coming out of it. Punk looks strong in the build-up to Summerslam and Fandango more than held his own.
Earlier tonight: Recap of the opening segment. Del Rio wants Ricardo to be his Summerslam opponent, or the Brooklyn Brawler. Vickie says no dice and he’ll face the winner of the triple threat match with RVD, Christian and Orton.
Rene Young is backstage with Rob Van Dam, asking how he feels about tonight.
RVD: “I feel fantastic. Staying on top of my game has allowed me to be ready for anything including Christian and Randy Orton. And let’s face it, they’re no pushovers, but they’re not Rob, Van…”
Christian cuts in.
CC: “…Dam! It’s good to see you Rob and it’s been a while. Since you left some things changed, and some haven’t. Namely, everyone knows Captain Charisma deserves One, More…”
Randy Orton cuts HIM off.
Randy: “…Loss. Just because I’ve got the briefcase doesn’t mean I’ll be complacent out there. Who knows, maybe I can be WWE Champion and World Heavyweight Champion at once. Rob, I’ve got a little welcome back gift for you. It’s coming to you in the form of an R…K…”
RVD cuts him off.
RVD: “Bro, This is my interview! I didn’t just come back for a stroll down memory lane. Just like everyone else, I want the gold. There’s only one winner tonight, R…V…D.”
Three-way staredown. End segment.
Match 4: Diva’s title, AJ Lee vs Kaitlyn w/Layla
Cole and Riley mention that Big E has been barred from appearing at ringside for AJ’s matches from now on. Kaitlyn starts strong with some shoulder thrusts in the corner and a clothesline. AJ recovers by tripping her onto the ropes and then locks in a sleeper hold, piggy-backing on Kaitlyn in the process to wear her down. Kaitlyn backs her into the corner to break, but AJ catches her with a spinning wheel kick. Kaitlyn responds to that with a sloppy dropkick, followed up by a Gutbuster that sends AJ reeling.
Kaitlyn chucks her into a barricade on the outside and prepares to charge, but Layla blocks her path. That cues her heel turn, and AJ sneaks in to attack. She chucks Kaitlyn into the barricade herself, before getting her back in and locking in the Black Widow submission. Kaitlyn fights through it for a bit, but eventually has no choice but to tap.
Result: AJ Lee retains via submission and a Layla heel turn.
Thoughts: Another short bout, but just as sweet as the first two tonight and with a major talking point with Layla’s turn (well, major is a bit generous, but you catch my drift). The only thing that confuses me, and do pardon me if I’m wrong, but I thought Layla was initially jealous of Kaitlyn when she was the champion. So does she not want to be champion now and just go after Kaitlyn? Anyway, Layla and AJ as a crazy duo is interesting.
Post-match AJ and Layla skip away together, leaving Kaitlyn dazed and confused.
Raw Rebound: Recap of the Cena/Daniel Bryan build-up and also highlights of the Cena/Ryback tables match and the aftermath. Go to the Raw report for a full recap of that.
Match 5: #1 contenders match – Rob Van Dam vs Christian vs Randy Orton
Del Rio comes out just before the bell sounds, stating he’ll be watching backstage and he’ll enjoy seeing the three of them beat each other down. He claims Ricardo would’ve made a better opponent than any of them and he’ll make one of them tap.
Randy attacks first but the other 2 chuck him outside. Christian eats one of RVD’s springboard kicks. He goes for Rolling Thunder but Orton grabs his legs on the apron. RVD doesn’t take kindly to that and throws him into the stairs. He props him on the barricade and goes to the apron for another one of his signature spots, but Christian tries to cut him off. RVD catches him with a shoulder thrust, then turns and spins out catching Orton on the barricade after all. RVD soaks up the cheers but turns right round into a meaty Spear from Christian, and we go to commercials with all 3 men down on the outside.
Back from the break, there’s a great sequence of counters in the corner before Christian nails a sick looking Tornado DDT on Van Dam for 2. Orton gets back in and gets a Thesz press on Christian. He wears him down in the corner and then nails a superplex for 2. RVD’s involved again and it’s spin kicks all round, and Christian gets caught with the monkey flip from the corner. Split legged moonsault on Randy, it gets 2. RVD eats knees on a charge and Christian counters Orton’s rope-assisted DDT. They mix it up on the outside and Christian slams Orton, but RVD slams Christian. He goes back in and then dives back out, flipping onto them.
After another commercial break, Orton and Christian exchange roll-ups getting a 2 count each before Christian nails his reverse DDT. He calls for the Spear, but Orton leapfrogs it. Christian returns fire by leaping off the ropes with a spinning elbow smash. He tries for the Killswitch. RVD springboards back in, but Christian ducks the kick and Orton takes it. Rollup on RVD gets 2 for Christian. RVD kicks him down and he lies prone on the mat, so RVD goes up top. Five Star Frogsplash is beautifully executed, but Randy breaks up the pin. There’s a cracking sequence next: Randy goes for the Powerslam, but RVD holds onto the ropes and avoids it. He sets Randy up for Rolling Thunder. After his first roll, Orton catches him with the Powerslam after all. Fantastic spot. He tries for the Rope-assist DDT again, but RVD escapes it. He tries leaping back in and over the ropes, but Orton just swats him away with a dropkick.
Orton grabs Christian and finally lands the Rope-DDT on him, then he panders for a bit and signals for the RKO. He’s about to strike when RVD cuts him off, only to eat the RKO himself. He tries it on Christian, but he counters it to a backslide, 1…2…3. Another win for the Captain.
Result: Christian via pinfall. Christian faces Alberto Del Rio for the World Heavyweight title at Summerslam.
Thoughts: Excellent, one of the best matches on the show all year which showcased some of the best attributes of all three guys. Also, the right person went over and the right person did the job for me. RVD didn’t need the win and taking the fall would stem his momentum a bit. Randy’s already got Money in the Bank so giving the rub to Christian with that to fall back on made perfect sense. Some brilliant sequences, brilliant move executions and just generally brilliant.
Post-match: Both Orton and RVD shake Christian’s hand and Josh Matthews tries to get a word with him, but Del Rio attacks from behind. Kick to the head, and it’s lights out for Christian. It’s lights out for the show too, as Del Rio stands over his downed challenger and we fade out.
Overall: There isn’t a bad match on the show. They were either quite short and action packed or long and well executed like Punk/Fandango and the triple threat. Also, every single finish was really, really well thought out and pulled off nicely. The promos weren’t so strong for me, mainly due to the cheesy tone that lingered over them at times, but it does fit their target audience of youngsters. Strong recommendation for this week for the matches alone.
END.
