On Saturday, August 9, 2008 at 2:23 PM EST WWE Smackdown
August 8, 2008
Atlanta, GA
Report by: Mike Tedesco of WrestleView.com
“Yes, sir, we promised you a great main event…” The WWE video leads us into the show.
Smackdown opens up with a video package highlighting Edge’s promo from last week. It shows him in the ring with the tables, ladders and chairs and calling out Mick Foley to be his guest on the Cutting Edge. This was a great segment last week. Mick Foley is truly great. It’s a pity he won’t be coming back to the Smackdown announce team. That was a great spot too with Edge coming off the ladder with a chair and driving it through Foley on a table.
The Smackdown video now plays followed by a great pyrotechnics display in Atlanta, Georgia. Jim Ross mentions that Mick Foley was severely injured at the hands of Edge last week so the person filling in for Foley tonight will be the man that JR feuded with back in 2000: The Human Suplex Machine Tazz!
The matches being advertised for tonight are Jeff Hardy vs. the US Champion Shelton Benjamin and Triple H vs. Great Khali in an Indian Broken Glass Arm Wrestling contest.
There’s some cheesy music playing right now that sounds like a rip off of the Olympics (which began tonight) and Justin Roberts is in the ring and he states that the following contest will be a Six Diva Olympic Tag Team Match. Yippee.
Maryse comes out dressed as a Tennis Player with Canadian Maple Leafs on the sides of her shorts. Victoria comes out dressed as an acrobat and she does summersaults down the ramp and gets caught in the ropes coming in. Hilarious! Natalya comes out dressed as an equestrian. To quote Lewis Black: “Equestrian, by the by, that’s the gayest word in the English language.”
Michelle McCool comes out dressed as a volleyball player with her horrible Diva’s Championship. Cherry comes out dressed as a boxer. Maria comes out as a skier but it’s the Summer Olympics going on right now… Oh well, they tried.
Six Diva Olympic Tag Team Match
Maryse, Victoria & Natalya vs. Michelle McCool, Cherry & Maria
The bell rings and this match is going to start out with our Diva’s Champion Michelle McCool, officially the only lady in WWE that has a last name, going against Natalya. They lock up and Michelle gets Natalya in a hammerlock but Natalya turns that into a hammerlock, sweeps her legs and floats over to a headlock. McCool quickly grounds her with a hammerlock and rolls her over for a one count. You’re not going to get a Hart that quickly. Back to the vertical base Michelle takes the left arm and does a Russian Leg Sweep and floats over nicely into the pin for a one count. Michelle wrenches the left arm but Natalya twists out and wrenches Michelle’s arm. Michelle stops it with a kick and runs over to the corner and jumps to the second rope and back flips out of the move nicely and hits a nice arm drag. Michelle is a good wrestler. Natalya is quickly up and quickly down via a McCool dropkick.
Michelle picks Natalya up by the hair and Natalya hits a knee to the stomach, a forearm and Irish whips Michelle. Natalya goes for a backdrop but McCool rolls on her back and lands on her feet nicely. Maria was already waiting in the corner and when Natalya turns around they knock her down with a double shoulder block. No tag was made as Maria goes for the pin and gets a sloppy one count. Maria has a headlock and goes for a headlock takeover but Natalya is too strong as she lifts Maria up for what looks like a back drop but Maria comes down and hits a big headlock takeover. Good stuff. Maria is up with Natalya in a headlock and Natalya starts trying to elbow out of it and Maria responds with a forearm to the face and an Irish whip but it doesn’t bode well for her as Natalya comes off the ropes and kicks her in the face.
Natalya then throws Maria out of the ring and elbows Michelle off the apron. Michelle is trying to get back in the ring but the referee is admonishing her. Having seen enough, Cherry gets in and kicks Natalya in the gut and hits her finisher the Hammerlock Lifting DDT. That looked painful. Natalya rolls out of the ring as Victoria is in (no tag) and hits a nice Widow’s Peak on Cherry. That’s another nice finisher. As Victoria poses, Michelle McCool is waiting and levels her with a big boot. Maryse is now in and she throws the Diva’s Champion out of the ring. Maria is now in and hits a nice bulldog on Maryse whose face just slams against the mat. I haven’t heard anything but that looked bad and she’s lucky if she didn’t break her nose. She was clutching at her face. Natalya now hits a back heel trip and locks in the Sharpshooter for the submission victory!
Winners by Submission: Natalya, Maryse & Victoria
Match Rating: * ¾
Natalya does the laugh like her dad would. She’s pretty homely with red hair. Good Diva’s match.
Backstage, there are some empty kegs (containing what? I thought this show was rated PG?!) and Hawkins and Ryder are trying to revive Bam Neely, who is laid out. They call over Chavo and Vickie. Chavo asks who had done this and no one knows. Chavo then picks up a black rose off the chest of Bam Neely. Ominous – I like it! Vickie looks at it sadly as we go to commercial.
:::Commercial Break:::
Did you know that last Friday more males watched Smackdown than any show on CBS, ABC, NBC or Fox? Awesome – my column is working!
It should be noted that the stage has been switched around a little bit. Wrestlers are now coming out on the right hand side of the stage and so is the big WWE logo.
Hawkins and Ryder are making their way out to the ring and they show a recap of what just happened to Bam Neely with the WWE Tag Team Champions discovering him with a black rose.
Hawkins & Ryder vs. Jimmy Wang Yang & Shannon Moore
Being that Shannon Moore was just released today, I’m pretty sure he won’t be going over the Tag Champs.
The bell rings and Curt Hawkins is starting out the match against Jimmy Wang Yang. They lock up and Hawkins immediately gets him in the headlock. Hawkins is really wrenching it in and Yang puts him against the ropes and whips him off but gets floored by a shoulder block. Hawkins goes into the ropes and Yang lays flat so Hawkins jumps over him and goes back into the ropes and Yang trips him up and Hawkins flies and spikes himself on his face. Hawkins is quickly up and gets arm dragged by Yang and Yang has him in a sitting arm bar. They get up and Yang knees him in the abdomen and tags in the recently released Shannon Moore. Yang suplexes Hawkins and Moore jumps over the ropes and hits a nice senton and goes for the cover and gets a one count.
Moore picks Hawkins up and wrenches his left arm hard and elbows him and then he tags back in Yang. Moore whips Hawkins off the ropes and into a HUGE dropkick from Jimmy Wang Yang. Nicely done but it only gets a quick two count. Yang punches Hawkins and he falls back into the corner. Yang goes for the ten punches but only gets four when he’s pushed off. Yang lands on his feet and goes to charge Hawkins but he gets hit with a back elbow followed by a clothesline to the back of the head. Hawkins now tags in Ryder who clubs Yang’s back and turns him over and mounts him for some serious punching. Ryder is told to get off by the referee and he does a quick taunt. Ryder picks Yang up and hits a nice neckbreaker for a two count. Ryder now gets Yang up in a neck wrench submission hold. Yang is refusing to submit as Shannon Moore is trying to get the crowd into it and behind Yang. It works as Yang gets up and gets out of it. Ryder goes for a back suplex but Yang turns it into a pin for a one count. Yang is now on the apron near Hawkins & Ryder’s corner. Ryder gets hit with a shoulder through the ropes and Yang goes for a sunset flip and while Ryder is going down he tags in Curt Hawkins.
Hawkins comes in and kicks Yang in the back twice and then goes around front and kicks him again and gets a one count. Hawkins hits a nice textbook suplex and goes for the cover again but can’t beat him. Moore really wants to get in as Hawkins drops a knee to the small of the back and pulls back on Yang’s chin while also applying an arm bar. Shannon Moore is really getting the crowd into this one now. It’s my opinion that he never should have been released. Yang finally gets up and gets out of the move with a sitting jawbreaker. Hawkins is stunned and falls back and tags in Zach Ryder and he comes in and clubs Yang before he can make the tag.
Ryder goes for a big punch but Yang ducks and finally makes the hot tag to Shannon Moore who clotheslines Ryder down and knocks Hawkins down on the apron. He then levels Ryder with a dropkick and quickly celebrates with the crowd. Ryder is in the corner and Moore hits a spinning leg kick and climbs the top rope and hits a nice crossbody for a two count that’s broken up by Hawkins. Yang then jumps up into Hawkins face and knocks him down and punches but the referee stops him and admonishes him back into the corner as the WWE Tag Team Champs Double DDT Moore and Ryder makes the cover. Hawkins runs over and knocks Yang off the apron as the referee counts the pinfall, ending Shannon Moore’s final match with the WWE.
Winners by Pinfall: Hawkins & Ryder
Match Rating: * ½
Eve Torres is backstage and introduces Montel Vontavious Porter – MVP! MVP says check this out – the biggest blockbuster of the summer. The highest paid athlete in the history of Smackdown versus the most reckless athlete in the history of Smackdown. MVP vs. Jeff Hardy at Summerslam. Eve says she’s glad he brought that up because things between him and Hardy have gotten very personal as MVP accused Hardy’s lifestyle of affecting his career, personal life and the outcome of his matches. Eve then mentions that at Saturday Night’s Main Event it appears it wasn’t Jeff Hardy’s behavior that cost him the match – it was MVP. We now see what happened at SNME with Jeff Hardy taking on Edge and MVP kicking him in the head. Eve goes to say something but MVP pulls the microphone from her and says that it’s obvious he needs to remove his Cartier sunglasses because they must be obscuring his vision. MVP asks if he’s the only one who can see Jeff Hardy for what he really is. MVP says that Eve will show footage of MVP doing that but not footage of Jeff Hardy attacking him at the conclusion of his match on Friday Night Smackdown. MVP says that what happened to Jeff Hardy was a direct result of what he had done the previous night. MVP says he can’t wait to have his match against Jeff Hardy at Summerslam because he doesn’t need to beat him. Jeff Hardy will beat himself. MVP says he just has to sit back and be him – better than everyone /*, Eve and Jeff Hardy.
Up next is Shelton Benjamin vs. Jeff Hardy in a non-title match.
:::Commercial Break:::
Still to come tonight – an Indian Broken Glass Arm Wrestling match with Triple H and The Great Khali.
Jeff Hardy vs. Shelton Benjamin
Hopefully Shelton is over his bout of bronchitis.
The crowd is really hot for Jeff Hardy in Hot-lanta as we’re set to begin this match. The bell rings and this feels like a title match (it isn’t) as both competitors are still warming up. The two lock up and roll along the ropes. They stop in the corner and the lock up is broken up. The Tazz says they’re feeling each other out. The two competitors lock up again and they jockey for position. Hardy grabs Benjamin’s arm and wrenches it. He wrenches it some more and locks in a standing arm bar. Benjamin is fighting to get out of it and finally does with a drop toe hold and locks in a side headlock. Jeff Hardy fights up to his feet and pushes the Gold Standard into the ropes and whips him off. Benjamin goes into the ropes and levels him with a shoulder block for a two count. Benjamin now has Hardy in a sitting face lock and switches between that and a chin lock. Hardy again fights up to his feet and punches out of the hold but Benjamin kicks him and locks in the headlock again. This crowd is really hot tonight. I love a good crowd.
Hardy pushes Benjamin into the ropes and throws him off. As Benjamin comes off the ropes Hardy drops down so Benjamin jumps over him and comes off the ropes again into a hip toss. Benjamin is quickly up and gets taken down by an arm drag and Hardy locks in an arm bar. Benjamin is fighting and finally gets up and pushes Hardy into the corner, legally obligating him to break the hold. Benjamin, however, doesn’t feel obligated to make it a clean break as he kicks and punches the Rainbow Haired Warrior. The referee finally gets Benjamin off and really gets in his face. Charles Robinson rules.
Benjamin goes back to the corner and kicks him and then picks him up out of the corner. Benjamin hits a snapmare and gets Hardy in a chinlock again. Hardy is really fighting this one as he gets up and elbows out. Benjamin stops it with a kick and pushes Hardy into the ropes who in turn comes off the ropes and kicks him in the face. Hardy goes for a kick but Benjamin catches him and Hardy hits that nice flipping mule kick sending the Gold Standard out of the ring. Hardy follows it up with a slingshot baseball slide, knocking Benjamin down again on the outside. Benjamin now gets up and Hardy hits a nice crossbody Plancha. The crowd is happy with that result as Hardy picks Benjamin up and rolls him back into the ring. Hardy hits a body slam and walks towards the corner and climbs up to the second rope before Benjamin quickly gets up and jumps up to the top rope like a cat and starts punching Hardy. Hardy fights back and pushes him off and goes for a Swanton Bomb but Benjamin rolls out of the way and Hardy crashes and burns! Benjamin slowly crawls over for a close two count! So far so good as we go to commercial.
:::Commercial Break:::
As we come back from the break we see Benjamin holding Hardy’s hair while kneeing his back and then he violently locks in another chinlock. Hardy’s facial expressions while selling the hold are fantastic. Benjamin is doing a great job too. Hardy gets up to his feet and tries to punch out of it but Benjamin takes Hardy’s face and slams the back of his head against the canvas for a close two count. Benjamin picks Hardy up and tries to punch him but Benjamin stops him. Hardy is in the corner now and Benjamin is punching and head-butting Hardy in the corner. Hardy finally punches back as does Benjamin. This is turning into a brawl as both men are punching each other but Jeff Hardy gets the upper hand and headlocks him but its brief as he’s pushed into the corner and Hardy scales up the ropes for Whisper in the Wind but Benjamin is quickly behind him and takes his leg out and Hardy lands crotch first on the top rope and back flips off to the mat! Benjamin drags him to the middle of the ring for a close two count again! Benjamin can’t believe it! Benjamin is kicking Hardy in the hamstring and drags him to the ropes and hangs his foot on the bottom rope and jumps on it. They’re selling the knee injury from Saturday Night’s Main Event. Good continuity – FINALLY!
Benjamin has Hardy up and hits a chop block to the back of the left knee and Hardy goes down and that’s another close two count. Benjamin is doing everything he can to wrench Hardy’s knee and really break it. He has him in a leg lock and Hardy is reaching for the ropes but Benjamin drags him to the middle of the ring again and locks in a single leg Boston Crab. Hardy is in pain but he won’t quit. Benjamin breaks the hold and kicks the knee some more. Jeff Hardy is up and only has one good leg and he’s fighting back, punching Benjamin. Benjamin stops the comeback with a simple kick to the knee. Benjamin is now stepping on Hardy’s head. That’s just rubbing salt in the wounds you jerk! Just kidding – he was nice enough to hold himself up on the ropes so he didn’t really hurt him. Benjamin now drags him to the middle and locks in the single leg Boston Crab again. Hardy eventually gets to the ropes and rolls out of the ring.
Hardy is hobbling around outside on one leg and finally drops down. Hardy is pulling himself up on the barricade as Benjamin goes to the apron and jumps off into the foot of Jeff Hardy! Both men are now down on the outside. Hardy is the first up and he throws Benjamin back into the ring. Hardy is now punching Benjamin and whips him in the ropes and goes for a back drop but Benjamin grabs him by the hair and throws him into the ropes and Hardy comes off with a clothesline! Benjamin is up quickly and Hardy takes him down with a running forearm for a two count. Hardy goes to whip Benjamin into the ropes again but Benjamin twists the arm and hangs on but Hardy jumps and hits a spinning neckbreaker on the United States Champion for another close two count! Hardy is moving his leg to get some life back into it and goes to whip Benjamin into the corner but Benjamin reverses and Hardy scales the corner for a Whisper in the Wind! The crowd is really into it now as Hardy gets another near fall!
Benjamin kicks Hardy but Hardy hits his trademark jawbreaker and Benjamin falls into the corner and sits. Hardy goes for that slingshot dropkick but Benjamin was playing possum as he quickly (and impressively) gets Hardy on his shoulder and hits a running powerslam for a really close two count!! Nice spot!! Benjamin is really frustrated and is waiting for Hardy to get up and this crowd is nuts! Hardy is up and Benjamin goes for Pay Dirt but Hardy pushes him off and hits the Twist of Fate!! Now Hardy goes up to the top rope and hits the Swanton Bomb but MVP is running on the outside and gets in the ring and does that Player Kick to Hardy’s head, causing the disqualification.
Winner by Disqualification: Jeff Hardy
Match Rating: ** ¾
MVP takes off his necklace that says MVP and holds it over Hardy’s face. The crowd in Atlanta is furious as MVP raises up the necklace for all to see. MVP gets out of the ring and raises his arms as he’s going up the ramp.
Backstage, Chavo Guerrero and Vickie Guerrero are talking. Vickie is holding the black rose. Chavo says it’s a symbol of death. Vickie asks if Chavo thinks it’s from but before she can say the name Curt Hawkins comes in and asks if they’ve seen Zach Ryder. They tell him to check the showers or the parking lot and Hawkins goes to.
:::Commercial Break:::
The Tazz thanks Jet Black Stare for the use of their song “Ready to Roll”, which is Summerslam’s official theme song. Better than last year’s. Kat Deluna sucks.
In the ring there is an arm wrestling platform with a plate of broken glass on each side. It looks like broken Budweiser, Heineken and Corona bottles.
Now The Game’s music hits and the WWE Champion is ready to make his first appearance since the birth of his second child. Triple H is wearing his wrestling gear with that T-Shirt that has Latin writing on it. Anyone knows what that means?
Now The Great Khali’s music hits and he comes out with Ranjin Singh. The guy really truly is huge. It’s not a camera angle. He’s humungous.
Indian Broken Glass Arm Wrestling Match
Triple H vs. The Great Khali w/ Ranjin Singh
Mickie Jay is the official for this contest. Triple H feels a piece of the glass and pricks his finger. It’s confirmed – its sharp glass. Even though Triple H isn’t wearing anything on his hands or wrists, Mickie makes sure that Triple H didn’t perform surgery on himself to hide an object in his skin. He does the same for Khali, who also isn’t wearing anything on his hands or wrists.
Mickie Jay is going over the rules when Ranjin Singh grabs the microphone and says before we get this match on, The Great Khali says he has something he’d like to say to Triple H. Khali begins speaking his language to Triple H and all I can make out is WWE and Smackdown. It really sounds like gibberish.
Triple H now grabs the microphone and says that’s a really good point. He then admits to having no idea what Khali said. Singh translates saying Khali said Triple H should get out while he can; while he’s still WWE Champion. A twelve time champion to be exact. Khali doesn’t care that he’s beaten some of the greatest wrestlers in the industry like Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Rock, The Big Show, Shawn Michaels, Edge and John Cena. The fact of the matter is he’s never gone one on one with the 7’3 Punjabi Nightmare The Great Khali.
Triple H says that’s what he thought he said. Triple H asks Ranjin what his name is and then just calls him Bunyan. Triple H tells Bunyan to go get a lamp and rub the side of it until Khali goes back into it. Yeah… Atlanta didn’t dig that one either. He then tells him to stick a cork in the top of the bottle to protect him because at Summerslam even though he’s never been in the ring with Khali, Khali hasn’t been in the ring with him! Triple H says normally he’s one of those guys who comes up with a plan to beat people but today he’s going to tell us exactly what he’s going to do. Triple H says he’s going to break Khali’s legs and when he’s down to Triple H’s height he’s going to beat him. He now calls Singh onion and says there isn’t a thing that the jolly genie can’t do anything about it and if he’s not down with that he’s got two words for him – SUCK IT! Nice save!
Mickie Jay now has both men approach the table and Triple H backs away playing mind games and stretching out. Both men put their elbows in the cups and when Khali goes to lock up with Triple H he pulls his arm away, angering the jolly genie. They now lock up and Mickie Jay secures their wrists. He’s actually tying their wrists together.
Mickie Jay releases and Triple H has the early advantage, pulling down hard on Khali’s wrist. Triple H is really wrenching down hard but to no avail. Khali begins evening out the arms. Triple H’s face is beet red. Khali now is bringing Triple H’s hand down to the glass and Triple H is fighting with everything he’s got to not let it happen. Triple H screams and starts bringing Khali’s arm back to his side of the glass. Khali’s hand is now mere inches from the broken glass when he takes his other hand and pulls Triple H’s head into a head-butt.
No Contest
Khali throws the table out of his way and the broken glass goes everywhere. Another head-butt takes Triple H down. Khali now unbinds their wrists and goes for his Khali Bomb. Khali lifts him up but Triple H gets a thumb to the eye and starts punching Khali! Triple H kicks him in the gut and goes for the Pedigree but Khali holds onto Triple H’s leg. Khali finally gets out and pushes Triple H into the ropes and knocks him down with a Big Chop. Khali now locks in the Khali Vise Grip and Triple H is fighting and he makes a valiant effort but he eventually succumbs to the pressure to his skull.
Singh now says that Khali says that at Summerslam he’s got two words for him – GAME OVER! Khali defiantly raises his arms in the air and motions for the WWE Title as he leaves the ring. JR says he’s never seen anyone without a weapon take out The Game like that.
:::Commercial Break:::
Back from the break we go backstage to see Curt Hawkins laid out backstage with a black rose on his chest.
JR and Tazz discuss what’s going on. Tazz said there can be no question who’s behind it as he heard Vickie talk about an ominous feeling hanging over her today. JR says it’s been a surreal night for La Familia. JR leads us into a video package for R-Truth. R-Truth talks about playing basketball and you have to be in the game to win it.
Backstage, Chavo Guerrero and Vickie are talking about Hawkins, Ryder and Bam Neely being taken out and Chavo says that they’re vulnerable to these attacks too. Chavo says they have to find the only person who can help them – her husband Edge. Vickie says there’s no way. Chavo says that he’s next and she’s next and they have to find Edge. Chavo says that he’ll do the talking because they really have no choice. Vickie tells Chavo to be careful and she looks stressed as we go to commercial. Chavo’s leaving her alone right after saying they’re both vulnerable to attacks?! What a family man.
:::Commercial Break:::
The WWE Rewind is brought to us by Mirrors, coming out August 15th. It’s really just a video package of the destruction Vladimir Kozlov has caused. Naturally this leads into another fantastically fun Vladimir Kozlov match. His song and music video really stinks.
Oh God. Kozlov has a microphone. He starts speaking Russian, I think. He just speaks, puts the microphone down stares evilly into the camera.
Its biscuits and gravy time! Jesse & Festus come out with a referee. Kozlov isn’t intimidated at all.
Vladimir Kozlov vs. Jesse w/ Festus
The bell rings and Festus goes insane as usual but Jesse and the referee restrain him and he leaves the ring. Jesse turns around into a straight kick to the chest from Kozlov which sends him flying and then a boot to the throat in the corner. Outside Festus is screaming up at Kozlov. That’s comedy people.
Kozlov charges Jesse but Jesse moves and Kozlov goes chest first into the turnbuckle and Jesse lays in the rights. Kozlov stops it with a knee thrust followed by hooking both arms and violently head-butting the chest twice before hitting a nice belly to belly overhead suplex. Jesse is in the corner now and Kozlov is hitting him with straight shoulders to the gut. This guy looks really stiff. Kozlov goes to charge Jesse but Jesse gets his feet in his face and then dropkicks Kozlov’s knee, bringing him down! Jesse comes off the ropes and hits a quick low dropkick to the face for a one count. Jesse gets up and jumps on Kozlov’s chest with both feet which is an old Spike Dudley move. I miss that guy. I saw him wrestle in March against Justin Credible. It was a blood bath.
Anyway, Jesse goes up to the top rope and comes off into that huge Head-butt and is pinned as if we didn’t see that coming.
Winner by Pinfall: Vladimir Kozlov
Match Rating: ¼ *
The bell rings to end the match and Festus goes back to normal. Kozlov screams at him then gets out of the ring and looks Festus up and down before leaving. Festus vs. Vladimir Kozlov would be good.
:::Commercial Break:::
The RAW Rebound was shown sponsored by WWE Mobile. Thank God RAW was good this week. It’s been lacking in recent weeks and I’d hate to say it but Mike Adamle is doing a great job thus far. The Main Event was good.
We now get a rundown of the Summerslam card. I’m digging the card so far except for CM Punk vs. JBL. Not interested whatsoever. Hopefully Jericho will be added to that match because so far Punk’s title reign has been worthless. Argue all you want – you know it’s true. I can’t wait for Hell in a Cell.
We’re backstage with Chavo and Vickie again and the audio when they recorded this was done terribly. You can hardly hear anything. A rare example of poor WWE production. Chavo says he talked to Edge and Chavo says Vickie has to be civil with Edge. Chavo says it’s about her survival and his. He pleads with her to be nice to Edge. Vickie picks up the black rose and breaks it.
:::Commercial Break:::
We’re reminded that Summerslam is one week from Sunday, August 17th. JR introduces himself with Tazz who is in for an injured Mick Foley and JR thanks all fans of the WWE Universe (gag), especially the males, because more males watched Smackdown last week than any other show on all the major networks. Tazz says he has a very big male following so this weeks rating are going to be off the charts. Probably not with the Olympics.
The Brian Kendrick’s music hits and he makes his way out to the ring with Ezekiel. He has a microphone and The Kendrick says we all know that knowledge is power so with his intellect he’s the most powerful man in the WWE today. The Kendrick introduces his advisor Ezekiel Jackson. He has a last name.
Now the Super Stupid jobber Super Crazy comes out to the ring.
The Brian Kendrick w/ Ezekiel Jackson vs. Super Crazy
The bell rings and they circle the ring before going to lock up but The Kendrick gets a knee to the midsection of Super Stupid and starts clubbing his back. In the corner The Kendrick lays the right hands into SC. The referee pulls him off and The Kendrick goes back to punch Crazy but SC blocks the punch and lays some right hands into The Kendrick’s face. Super Crazy comes off the ropes and into a jumping back heel kick from The Kendrick. Nicely done. That was a close two count as well. The Kendrick now hits some hard running kicks to the back and front of Super Crazy and levels him with a straight thrust to the forehead for a two count. The Kendrick now takes Super Crazy’s arms and uses them to choke him. Haven’t seen this move done in a while! Ezekiel Jackson is looking on intently.
Super Crazy is fighting out but The Kendrick punches him. Super Crazy gets a few punches in and whips The Kendrick into the corner and charges but The Kendrick smartly moves out of the way and Crazy eats some turnbuckle. The Kendrick now hits a nice dropkick for another close two count. The Kendrick now has Super Crazy in a half Camel Clutch half Dragon Sleeper. Neat combo. The Kendrick now hits some crossfaces and locks in a Camel Clutch. Some people in Atlanta are willing Super Crazy on and he gets out of the clutch but The Kendrick kicks him in the face. The Kendrick now sizes up Crazy from the corner and hits a stiff kick to Super Crazy’s face but only gets a two count. What’s the point of kicking someone in the face and making it sound stiff if they can easily get out of the pinfall attempt? This is where WWE can look fake. If you’re going to kick a guy in the temple he should be out. That makes The Kendrick look so weak.
The Brian Kendrick hits a snapmare followed by a stiff kick to the back. The Kendrick now locks in a form of the Dragon Sleeper. Super Crazy is back in this thing and comes back with some punches and kicks. He whips The Kendrick into the corner and runs into a back elbow. Super Crazy stumbles out to the middle of the ring and The Kendrick runs into a tilt a whirl backbreaker! The Kendrick gets to the ropes and the referee stops SC from hitting him. The Kendrick comes around the ref and hits a forearm to the face. The Kendrick whips Super Crazy but he reverses and whips The Kendrick and The Kendrick comes off the ropes into a flapjack face breaker, a form of the X-Factor for you Attitude Era fans tuning in. Super Crazy hits a standing moonsault for a close two count! Super Crazy body slams The Kendrick and goes towards the ropes for his trademark Moonsaults but Ezekiel stares him down and The Kendrick comes from behind and knocks him down. The Kendrick hits The Kendrick (Sliced Bread #2) for the pin.
Winner by Pinfall: The Brian Kendrick
Match Rating: ¾ *
Ezekiel gets in the ring with The Kendrick’s retro 80’s jacket and Ezekiel Jackson picks up Super Crazy and gets him on his shoulders in that Torture Rack and then dumps him off. The Kendrick does a weird kind of dance out of the ring. Nice.
Backstage Chavo is talking with Vickie and there’s a knock at the door. It’s Edge and Chavo greets him with a hug. Edge sits next to Vickie and says hi and that he knew one day but she cuts him off saying he’s made her miserable. Chavo pleads with her that now is not the time. Edge says that he knew once everything was said and done but she cuts him off again saying Edge has no idea how he made her feel. Chavo pleads again. Edge says that they’ll get past this as they can’t let what happened to the others happen to them. Edge says they can’t let the Undertaker do that to them. Edge says as the head of the family he can’t let that happen. Edge says they need to do this his way and asks Vickie if she’ll do this his way. Chavo is bobbing his head and Vickie quietly says yes and Edge asks her to say it again loudly and she does. Edge leaves and Chavo wheels Vickie out of the room.
:::Commercial Break:::
Back from the break Edge’s music hits and he’s making his way to the ring with Chavo Guerrero and his wife Vickie Edge. They all look nervous and are looking over their shoulders. They’re looking for the Undertaker. Edge grabs two steel chairs and a microphone and gives a chair to Chavo.
Edge calls for the Undertaker to come on out. Edge says if Undertaker wants to take out members of his family he should come out with his supernatural powers and strike him down with this lightening. Edge says make the lights flicker. Nothing happens.
Edge says that’s what he thought because they’re ready for the Undertaker. Edge asks Chavo to give him the chair and Chavo does. Chavo wheels Vickie to the corner as Edge continues to call for the Undertaker.
Edge then puts one chair down and when Chavo goes to pick it up Edge hits Chavo over the back with his chair!! Vickie is in the corner screaming. Edge takes Chavo’s head and slams it into the chair on the ground. Edge is now smiling evilly at Vickie. This is going to be good!!
Chavo’s laying motionless face first on that steel chair and Edge picks up another chair and you know what’s coming now!! Vickie screams no but Edge doesn’t listen as he delivers a devastating Con-Chair-To to Chavo Guerrero!!!
Edge now rolls up his sleeves and looks towards his wife. Edge is slowly walking up to Vickie and he’s shaking his head calmly. He pulls Vickie’s chair out of the corner and lets her look at Chavo. He now picks the chair up threatening to tip it over and he lets it go and the crowd in Atlanta boos! Edge then turns around and tips the chair over and Vickie falls to the ground and Edge has completed his face turn in my eyes!
Edge then throws the chair away, does that crazy thing with his hair and grabs the mic. Edge stalks up to her and gets right in her face as she screams in fear. Edge asks her what the matter is. Edge asks if it’s finally dawning on her that the person she needs to worry about isn’t the Undertaker. Edge screams that she put him in Hell in a Cell with ‘Taker as some form of punishment! He’s right in her face. Edge says that Mick Foley was right. Edge starts scratching at his face and says that this is the Edge that needs to step into Hell in a Cell with the Undertaker! Edge says if the Undertaker wants to pull him down then he’s going to pull the Undertaker down to Hell with him! Edge says he’s going to take the entire La Familia with him!! Edge then gets right into Vickie’s ear and says he’s going to take her down to Hell with him!! Vickie is crying as Smackdown goes off the air.Quick Match Results
Natalya*, Maryse & Victoria defeated Michelle McCool, Cherry & Maria*
Hawkins & Ryder* defeated Jimmy Wang Yang & Shannon Moore* (non-title)
Jeff Hardy defeated Shelton Benjamin via DQ (non-title)
Triple H vs. The Great Khali was a No Contest in an Indian Broken Glass Arm Wrestling Match
Vladimir Kozlov defeated Jesse
The Brian Kendrick defeated Super Crazy
Bump of the Night: Chavo Guerrero taking the Con-Chair-To
Match of the Night: Jeff Hardy vs. Shelton Benjamin ** ¾
Mike’s Thoughts
You’re not a true wrestling fan if you ditched Smackdown for the Olympics! You can smell the pollution through the TV.
Man, I got to tell you, the Divas of Smackdown, compared to RAW and especially in ECW, are some of the best in the business. Does ECW even have any Divas?! Aw, too soon? Your move, Dave haha.
The final segment tonight was awesome! Edge is really making this character something /*. He really looks like he snapped and he sold Hell in a Cell more as if it needed more selling. Edge truly is one of the greats in the business today. Hall of Famer guaranteed barring some unforeseen circumstance. I’m so psyched for his match at Summerslam.
JR and Tazz were great together tonight. Mick Foley pretty much confirmed that he won’t be coming back but who knows? Maybe Tazz will be a staple on Smackdown again. Todd Grisham is good with Matt Striker so Tazz can come over to Smackdown. I like the pairing. I think we heard them together before at a Royal Rumble.
In my opinion, releasing Shannon Moore was a poor choice. He and Jimmy Wang Yang, even though they were unjustly buried, they were still a legitimate and good tag team. The division needs teams and they were a great team. Release dead weight like Kevin Thorn, not people who can actually work.
The Khali/Triple H segment tonight was as good as could be expected. You’re really limited on what you can do with Khali but I’ll admit it is an intriguing match. It’s going to stink and probably end in a DQ but it’s still intriguing.
If Mr. Kennedy for some reason reads this recap, I wish you a speedy recovery! Please come back soon. Also, Umaga, please get well soon. You’re the man.
Jeff Hardy is going to be awesome for the second half of this year into Wrestlemania. His match against MVP at Summerslam is something I’m really looking forward to. Their feud has been terrific so far and Jeff Hardy is really on his game, as is MVP. I can’t wait for this one either.
Smackdown was good this week and really furthered some storylines heading into the second biggest show of the year. Let’s see – the first hour of Smackdown was awesome and the second hour really lacked until the final segment. How should I rate Smackdown this week?
Final Smackdown Rating: **
Thanks to all those who wrote to me last week. Please E-Mail me with questions, comments or feedback. Please include for me how you feel about Edge’s new edge and the rest of the Summerslam card. Also let me know what you thought about what I said when recapping The Brian Kendrick’s match. I respond to everyone’s e-mails so don’t think you’ll send and not hear a response!
E-Mail – MikeyT817@hotmail.com
Thanks for reading!