Posted on 10/03/126 by Bob Magee
– The show opened with a recap of last week’s men’s Money in
the Bank triple threat qualifier match, which CM Punk won.
After that, the usual backstage arrivals featuring Cody
Rhodes, Kevin Owens, Johnny Gargano were shown. It was right
then into our opening bout after all that.
Women’s Money in the Bank Qualifier: Tiffany Stratton vs.
Tatum Paxley vs. Candice LeRae
LeRae threw her shirt at Stratton to start as she then got a
double DDT with Paxley along for the ride. LeRae then
slammed Paxley onto the apron. Stratton fought back and hit
an elbow attack into the corner on LeRae. Spinebuster only
got a two-count for Stratton. Hip attack to a stunned LeRae
by Stratton was further punctuated by a Paxley kick from the
outside. We then got an exchange of pin attempts from all
three women that couldn’t get the three. Snap suplex by
Paxley on Stratton followed by the running attack.
Jawbreaker by Paxley left Stratton rattled as she then
dropkicked her foe out of the ring. From the apron, Paxley
delivered a moonsault from the appron as we took our first
commercial break of the evening at 8:08pm.
Back from the break with all three women getting back to
their feet. Paxley got a two-for-one takedown on both
Stratton and LeRae. German by Paxley on LeRae. Stratton
stepped back into the ring and got the handspring Stunner on
both Paxley and LeRae. Stratton up top and connected with
the Swanton Bomb on LeRae, but Paxley immediately took her
down with the spinning wheel kick for a very close two-
count. Everyone left recovering in the ring once again as
LeRae got Stratton with a cannonball while hitting a
facebuster on Paxley. Rolling senton countered into a
Cemetary Drive by Paxley, but LeRae threw her out and looked
to steal the win. The cover, but Paxley recovered in time to
break up the count.
On the top turnbuckle, Paxley and LeRae fought it out with
the former getting the best of her foe. 450 by Paxley on
LeRae, but that left her open for Stratton’s Prettiest
Moonsault Ever for the three and the win to fill out the
women’s Money in the Bank lineup.
Tiffany Stratton def. Candice LeRae & Tatum Paxley via
pinfall
Entertaining opener to start and it was fun seeing Candice
LeRae in action for the first time since February when she
lost to Jordynne Grace (who has been absent for a while
herself). Good stuff.
**********
– Chelsea Green was being interviewed when Nikki Bella
interrupted to mock her. Paige showed up and said she was
going to challenge Nikki to a match in two weeks in
Sacramento. Before Paige left, she slapped Nikki in the
face. In the background of this cabin-like setting was
Danhausen searching somebody with a light.
– WWE Main Event’s move to Rumble was advertised, and we’ll
just leave it that.
Rey Fenix & Fraxiom (Axiom & Nathan Frazer) vs. Ricky Saints
& The War Raiders (Erik & Ivar)
This tag match was built through web-exclusive clips from
the past couple of weeks.
Frazer and Ivar got the match going . Frazer dodged Erik
initially, but the shoulder tackle left him down and out.
Tag to Ivar as the Raiders went to work on Frazer with
stereo clubbing blows. The Raiders kept the advantage on
Frazer with Saints finally tagging in and getting a shot in.
Frazer acrobatically avoided Erik in the corner and tagged
in Axiom as things began to quicken. Suicide dives from
Fraxiom to the War Raiders at ringside to leave them
rattled. Saints got deposited out of the ring as Fenix
tagged in and didn’t get quite all of his springboard dive
to the outside, not making the landing on the Raiders and
Saints, instead apparently having clipped his leg on the
rope and landing on the apron instead. We took a break here.
Back from commercial with Axiom and Saints fighting in the
ring. Saints tripped up Axiom after an Erik distraction.
Saints ripped at Axiom’s mask and clubbed him in the back of
the head. Axiom sprang to his feet and hit Saints with an
enzuigiri. Erik tagged in, which left Axiom unable to
capitalize on the kick to Saints. Axiom battled out of
Erik’s front facelock and hit him with a dropkick. With both
men down, Saints tagged in and took Frazer out of the
corner. Meanwhile, Axiom still tagged in Fenix, who was none
the worse for wear after that spill earlier. Handspring
cutter by Fenix on Saints, followed by the spinning kick on
Erik. He then got the Goodbye, Amigo kick on Erik before
dropping him with a DVD. Ivar, left stunned in the corner
got hit with the superkick by Fenix. Off the top rope, frog
splash by Fenix. One, two…. Erik broke up the count. Things
quickened with all six men in the ring. Fraxiom took out
Erik, as Axiom hit him with the moonsault while Frazer was
being choked out. On the top rope, Ivar was left stunned as
Fenix looked for a hurricanrana. Blind tag by Saints and
that led to the Rochambeau for the pin and win.
Ricky Saints & The War Raiders def. Rey Fenix & Fraxiom via
pinfall
This was a good tag match even with the messup from the
start. Things like that happen. Of course, it’s pretty much
a cliche now that “challenger pins the champion in a tag
match”, and that was in full effect here. Still, a nice
match regardless.
**********
– Cody Rhodes was interviewed about his Money in the Bank
triple threat match later tonight. Rhodes said that he was
going out there to defeat Kevin Owens and Johnny Gargano to
punch his way to Money in the Bank. Trick Williams
interrupted and said that Rhodes’ American Nightmare story
was over and it was time for a new story. Williams said he
was going to climb the ladder and “beat the frosting off the
gingerbread man” to become the new WWE World Champion.
Rhodes appeared to be entertained by Trick’s spiel there.
– A clip of the President’s Fitness Council holding an event
yesterday was shown, featuring Cody Rhodes and the American
Nightmare, among other guests, like the Secretary of
Education.
– We got a vignette from Damian Priest, as he talked about
New York being the foundation of the champion. He said that
he lost his way by putting others’ needs ahead of his own.
Priest warned R-Truth that if he came looking for trouble,
he’d put him down. Priest said that he came back to New York
City to remind himself that he was a bad man and a violent
man, which is what we’d see from now on.
– Tatum Paxley was upset about her loss earlier as Alexa
Bliss mentioned that there was no reason to be upset as one
opportunity will open. That opportunity came in the form of
Charlotte Flair talking with Nick Aldis to have her and
Paxley in a match with Fatal Influence for a future Women’s
Tag Title shot at stake. Paxley wanted a hug from Charlotte,
but got her hat instead.
Let’s Hear from Sami Zayn
Sami Zayn said that he heard the noise from Denver before he
asked how many of the fans came to ride or die with “The
Last Real Good Guy”. The fans booed him mercilessly, which
Zayn said was a little bit disappointing.
Zayn discussed how no other WWE Champion in history had the
journey that he had, and that after years of years of people
asking him to be champ, he did it not only once, but twice.
And this was the reaction he was going to get? Zayn said
that he was still plagued with a sense of injustice, in the
form of inequality. According to Zayn, that meant not
getting enough respect as other champions did. Zayn talked
about how all these “vultures” were so sure that it was a
foregone conclusion that they’d beat him. Zayn pointed out
that he was a survivor who overcame and found a way. Don’t
believe him? Ask CM Punk, Kevin Owens, or Cody Rhodes. He’d
find a way. And that meant it was time for him to get
respect that he was owed.
Just then, Je’von Evans interrupted Zayn’s diatribe. Evans
was one of six folks in the men’s Money in the Bank match.
Evans said that he didn’t mean to interrupt him, which Zayn
disagreed with. Evans pointed out that Zayn was crashing out
and getting red like an Angry Bird as he asked him if he was
okay. Zayn tried to interject, but Evans wouldn’t have it.
Evans asked what if his time wasn’t in the future, but his
time was right now. What if it didn’t take Evans twenty
years to get the WWE Championship like Zayn. Evans called
his shot at the title Zayn held. If Evans became the
youngest Money in the Bank winner, maybe he’d just roll into
SmackDown and beat the snot out of Zayn’s ass to become the
new WWE Champion.
We got another interruption with Penta making his way down
to the ring. Penta said if Evans wanted the MITB contrat,
Evans would have to beat him, which was not gonna happen.
Penta turned his attention to Zayn. He noted that he didn’t
care if it was Zayn or Roman Reigns, he was going to cash in
to become the World Champion. It must be a party on a Friday
because we got another guest in the form of U.S. Champion
Trick Williams.
Williams said that he couldn’t notice that there was a lot
of talk about respect. He respected Evans and Penta, but
there was only one problem: Tonight was Friday Night
SmackDown and there’s only one man who holds down the brand
to get the job done, and that was Trick Williams himself.
Zayn was next as Williams talked down to him next. Williams
said that there was only one man in the ring that looked,
smelled, and talked like Money in the Bank, and that’s
because Trick Williams was money. And nobody knew that more
than Sami Zayn.
Zayn shouted back and said that nobody could do what he did,
and that there was three people here, with two losers. He
asked Penta, Zayn, and Williams what would happen when the
losses piled up and the crowd reactions weren’t as the used
to be. Zayn boasted about surviving being pinned by mouse
traps at WrestleMania like him. Zayn kept talking his peace
and said that nobody deserved to stand in the same ring as
the champion.
As Zayn left the ring, Finn Balor came out and stared down
Zayn. He told him that briefcase or not, he’d be coming for
the title. Zayn challenged Balor to do something and earn
the title shot. Balor struck Zayn down before Gunther
entered the fray and laid Balor out. Zayn was next to be
beaten down by Gunther.
This was a fine segment. The world title situation with Zayn
being a wanted man and not helping his case by constanttly
trashtalking everyone is a highlight every week.
**********
– Gunther was walking backstage when Danhausen ran into him,
Gunther angrily threw Danhausen into a cargo box before
walking off.
Giulia vs. Blake Monroe
Right into the “hockey fight” between Giuilia and Blake to
start, with the latter hitting the headlock takedown
followed by more shots to the face. Blake turned it around
and stomped at Giulia in the corner before she put her on
the top rope for a hurricanrana. Blake with the dropkick
only got a two. Giulia responded with a kick to the back,
followed by a dropkick that sent her opponent out of the
ring. At ringside, Blake pushed Giuilia into the apron
before she hit her with a massive knee strike to take us
into the commercial break.
We returned from the commercial with Giulia building up
momentum with the running forearm into the corner, On the
middle rope, Giulia sent Blake flying across the ring with a
shotgun dropkick. Knee caught by Blake for the near-fall
stacked pin. Blake then got the slingblade on Giulia as she
then hit her with the back suplex. Gotch Neutralizer from
Blake countered into a Giulia backdrop instead. Blake hit
Giulia with a headbutt that had no effect. Arrrivederci knee
hits the target on the button. Giulia then stomped Blake for
a near-fall.
Giulla dragged Blake to a superplex position, but she got
dropped face-first on the ring post instead. The cover, and
the victory after that.
Blake Monroe def. Giulia via pinfall
Kind of an odd ending to what was otherwise a decent debut
match for Blake Monroe. It’s odd here in the sense that it
just makes Blake look more lucky than actually showing her
to be good enough to win matches on her own accord. This
finish is basically like in a WWE 2K MyCareer cutscene where
your created wrestler is scripted to lose and it’s done in
the weirdest way possible.
That said…. footage taken after the match where Giulia was
being helped to the back seemed to indicate that she
might’ve gotten legitimately knocked out, which would
explain the sudden ending. In which case, we wish the best
for Giulia and that she’s not too seriously hurt.
**********
– We got a recap of the 946/Bloodline saga on Raw from these
past two weeks, which ended with Jacob Fatu getting ran over
by Jaida Parker (which was censored on Netflix, funnily
enough)
– Backstage, Johnny Gargano was getting ready for the triple
threat match when Sami Zayn tried to gas him up, which
worked.
Next Week on SmackDown:
CM Punk returns
WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship: Fatal Influence (Fallon
Henley & Lainey Reid) (c) vs. Charlotte Flair & Tatum Paxley
Men’s Money in the Bank Qualifier: Kevin Owens vs. Cody
Rhodes vs. Johnny Gargano
Owens entered to the ring wearing a black “BEN” armband in
tribute to the late, great Benjamin “PAC” Satterley.
Rhodes attacked Owens to start the match as the two long-
time rivals battled it out. Knee to the gut by Rhodes as he
then rolled up Gargano for a pin attempt. Backslide pin from
Rhodes on Owens failed to get a two-count. Owens responded
by clobbering Rhodes with forearms in the corner. Gargano
was thrown out of the ring by Owens, who kept his focus on
Rhodes. Gargano recovered and connected with the slingshot
spear on Rhodes, followed by the suicide dive to Owens at
ringside as we took a break.
Our main event returned with Owens introducing the Slim Jim-
branded tables into the proceedings as he then threw Gargano
into the steel steps. Candice LeRae saved Gargano from being
sent through the table, which allowed him to take advantage
against Owens. In the ring, Rhodes caught Gargano with a
snap powerslam, followed by a Disaster Kick. Rhodes blasted
Owens with the Bionic Elbow, but he got caught in the
Gargano Escape. Owens broke it up and tried for a Stunner,
but he couldn’t connect. Owens did get Gargano with a PAC-
style rebounding German Suplex. Rhodes threw Gargano into
Owens and looked for Cross Rhodes. That was countered as
LeRae held Rhodes in place. Rhodes avoided Gargano’s kick,
as Johnny nearly hit LeRae. Rhodes sent Gargano into LeRae,
who came crashing down on the table, but barely broke it.
Rhodes then punched out Gargano to cause the table to break
fully. Owens and Rhodes had a double down moment as we took
our final break of the evening.
Back from break with Owens driving Gargano from the top rope
with a superplex. The cover, but Gargano managed to just
kick out at 2.999999. Gargano was still down on the mat with
Owens heading up top. Rhodes entered the ring and looked for
a superplex, but Gargano recovered and got into the mix.
Gargano planted Rhodes with a sunset flip powerbomb as Owens
then hit the Swanton on his hated foe for good measure.
Superkick by Gargano on Owens, as he then went for a pin on
Rhodes. The cover, but no three.
All three men got to their feet just as Rhodes hit Gargano
with the super Cody Cutter. Owens crushed Rhodes with a
superkick as he then hit a stunner on Gargano. Cover, but
Rhodes got in the way of the referee to break up the count.
Owens, ever the frustrated Canadian, took out his anger on
Rhodes with an exchange of strikes. Big slap by Owens, but
the Stunner was countered. Cross Rhodes… the cover, but
Randy Orton pulled the referee out of the ring! The brawl
between Orton and Rhodes spilled out at ringside. Orton was
on his knees with Rhodes looking to punt him, but Gargano
intercepted him with a suicide dive. One Final Beat DDT on
Owens by Gargano… one, two…. NO! Gargano sized up Owens, but
he got hit with a superkick. Pop-up Powerbomb! Cover, but
Rhodes couldn’t break up the pin thanks to Randy Orton! And
just like the Chicago Cubs’ postseason hopes, Cody was left
waiting for another shot as Kevin Owens filled out the final
men’s Money in the Bank spot.
Kevin Owens def. Johnny Gargano & Cody Rhodes via pinfall