WWE Smackdown
February 25, 2011
Sacramento, CA
Report by: Mike Tedesco of Wrestleview.com
“Yes, sir, we promised you a great main event…” The WWE video leads us into the show.
A recap is shown from the 600th episode of Smackdown last week. Edge won the opening 12-man tag team match for his team and then was promptly fired by Vickie Guerrero for “attacking” Teddy Long. Later in the night, Vickie Guerrero was having a World Heavyweight Championship Coronation for Dolph Ziggler that was stopped when Teddy Long made his return. Vickie admitted that it was Ziggler that attacked Long. Edge was then rehired and won back his World Heavyweight Title from Ziggler. Teddy Long immediately fired Ziggler after the match concluded. Edge then sang him off with a classic song.
General Manager Teddy Long is shown backstage. Due to Vickie Guerrero’s complicit actions involving Dolph Ziggler’s attack on him, he has every right to fire her but he’s decided to let her fight for her job. Tonight there will be a mixed tag team match. Vickie Guerrero will team with Drew McIntyre to take on Kelly Kelly and World Champion Edge. If Vickie’s team loses then she’ll be fired tonight. Long smiles to end the segment.
The Smackdown video plays and we’re brought into the arena to hear Rey Mysterio’s music. Josh Mathews, Michael Cole, and Booker T welcome us to the show and talk about Teddy Long’s huge announcement for the main event.
Rey Mysterio vs. Kane
They circle the ring and Mysterio tries to get on the offensive but Kane quickly kicks and clubs him down. Kane hits a snapmare and a low dropkick to the face for a two count. Kane hits his infamous uppercut and sends him into the ropes. Mysterio kicks Kane in the face and goes into the ropes but Kane catches him. Kane gets him on his shoulder, drives him into the turnbuckle, and hits a powerslam for a near fall. Kane applies a body scissor but Mysterio soon gets out with punches. Mysterio goes into the ropes and Kane catches him with a nice tilt-a-whirl backbreaker for a near fall.
Kane sends Mysterio into the corner and he runs into a boot. Mysterio slides out of another backbreaker attempt and dropkicks him into position. Kane rolls out of the ring before Mysterio hits the 619. Mysterio hits a baseball slide and goes to the apron. Kane ducks a seated senton attempt and big boots him down at ringside!
-Commercial Break-
We come back from the break to see Kane hit a backbreaker. Kane holds him on his knee and continues to stretch him out. Mysterio punches and gets out. Mysterio goes into the ropes and runs right into a sidewalk slam for a near fall. Kane drops a pair of elbows and gets another near fall. Kane applies a bear hug and Mysterio appears to be fading away. Mysterio head-butts out and starts kicking Kane’s legs. Mysterio goes into the ropes and runs into another bear hug. Kane doesn’t hold it on for too long as he drives Mysterio into the turnbuckle. Kane puts him on the top rope and uppercuts him. Mysterio punches him off the second rope and hits a seated senton.
Mysterio dropkicks Kane in the knee and kicks him in the head for a near fall. Mysterio goes to the top rope and jumps right into a nasty uppercut for another near fall. Kane can’t believe it. Kane goes to the top rope now and Mysterio avoids the flying lariat. Mysterio runs into a goozle but Mysterio dropkicks out of it. Mysterio dropkicks him into position and hits the 619! Mysterio goes for a top rope seated senton but Kane holds him. Mysterio slides down and rolls Kane up for the win.
Winner by Pinfall: Rey Mysterio
Match Rating: * 3/4
Rey Mysterio quickly rolls out of the ring. Kane looks stunned in the ring. Neither man can believe the match ended this way.
All of a sudden “The American Dream” Dusty Rhodes’s music hits and the Dream makes his way to the ring! Mysterio can’t believe it and smiles as the Dream makes his way to the ring. I love Dusty’s music. Dusty hugs Mysterio in the ring and we go to commercial.
-Commercial Break-
We come back to see Dusty with a microphone. Yes! Rhodes says Mysterio has been a friend to the family for a long time and a personal friend of his. Rhodes says he’s disappointed in his son “Dashing” Cody Rhodes and personally apologizes to Mysterio for his actions. Rhodes calls his son out to apologize to Rey Mysterio.
“Dashing” Cody Rhodes makes his way to the ring with no music and a plastic facemask on. Cody gets in the ring and asks why his dad is doing this. Cody says he had an announcement for the WWE regarding his future but this wasn’t what he’s talking about. Besides, everyone is staring at him and Dusty wants him to apologize to the man who did this to his face. Because of Mysterio, he didn’t have a Royal Rumble or an Elimination Chamber.
Dusty says somewhere along the line of Cody coming to WWE, there was some pride on the line. One of those things was WrestleMania. One of those things was being a champion. One of those things was a Hall of Fame ring. Somewhere Cody lost his focus when the divas voted him the most handsome man. Dusty says he’s lost his focus being “dashing”, doing commercials, and shows on SyFy. You have to make some choices – Hollywood or WWE. Meanwhile, while Cody was being “dashing”, The Miz eased on his spot and became WWE Champion. While he was being “dashing”, Edge came back from an injury after being fired, and became World Champion. Now he comes out to Rey Mysterio, a personal friend of the family, and accuses him of exposing his knee brace causing him to have facial surgery. Dusty says he needs to refocus and listen to him. No matter what, he loves Cody. Dusty says he has to take this time to make this right. Cody has to do what needs to be done and apologize to Rey Mysterio.
Cody says to Dusty that he’s sorry. To Mysterio, Cody says he should not have said the things he said. Cody apologizes to Mysterio and offers his hand to him. Mysterio shakes it. Dusty shakes Mysterio’s hand and hugs him as well. Dusty doesn’t let it go, though, and Cody hits Mysterio with the microphone! Cody stomps and punches away at Mysterio. Cody slides him out of the ring sternum first and bounces him off the steel steps. Cody sends him into the barricade and punches away at him. Cody drags Mysterio up the ramp and continues stomping him. Cody grinds Mysterio’s face on the steel grate and smashes his face on the ramp some more. Cody stands over Mysterio and taunts the crowd.
Cody’s “mirror” appears on the video wall and he smashes Mysterio’s face into it. Cody then rips Mysterio’s mask off! We don’t see his face and Cody walks away with the mask. Referees run out and cover Mysterio’s head with a towel.
-Commercial Break-
They show replays of “Dashing” Cody Rhodes’s vicious assault on Rey Mysterio. Rhodes ripped Mysterio’s mask off and walked off with it. Backstage, Dusty Rhodes hugs his son and says he’d do anything for him.
The divas are already in the ring set for a match.
Rosa Mendes vs. Layla w/ Michelle McCool
This is Rosa Mendes’s first match of the year. Michelle McCool is on commentary. Layla laughs at Rosa and slaps her. Rosa comes back with a Lou Thesz Press and bounces her off the mat. Layla comes back with some punches. Layla gets a head-scissor on but Rosa pushes her to the apron. Something happens and they both fall off the apron hard. Rosa bounces Layla off the apron and continues punching. Rosa sends her into the barricade. McCool gets in Rosa’s face and Layla pushes Rosa, who in turn falls into McCool. McCool attacks Rosa and the referee calls the DQ.
Winner by Disqualification: Rosa Mendes
Match Rating: 1/4 *
Layla is not happy and yells at McCool for costing her the match. McCool says she was taking care of the business that Layla can’t take care of. They stare at each other menacingly but they walk off arm in arm.
Our main event will be Edge and Kelly Kelly taking on Drew McIntyre and Vickie Guerrero. If Vickie’s team loses then she’s fired.
-Commercial Break-
Jack Swagger is already in the ring for his match. Kofi Kingston makes his way to the ring with his left arm taped up. Kingston is still feeling the attacks from Alberto Del Rio.
Jack Swagger vs. Kofi Kingston
They circle the ring and lock up. Swagger backs him to the corner and quickly works on the arm. Kingston comes back with forearms and goes into the ropes but Swagger takes him out with a shoulder block. Swagger sends him to the corner hard and shoulder blocks him down again for a near fall. Swagger begins stretching the injured arm out with a modified arm bar. Kingston kicks out of it and catches a charging Swagger with a boot. Kingston hits some punches and kicks him down in the corner.
Kingston hits a superman punch and the Boom Drop. Kingston splashes him in the corner and Swagger gets a quickly shot on the arm to stop the momentum. Swagger pulls his leg toward the post and smashes the ankle off it a few times. Kingston swats him away but misses a dropkick. Swagger applies the Ankle Lock and gets the submission.
Winner by Submission: Jack Swagger
Match Rating: 3/4 *
They show Vickie Guerrero knocking on Teddy Long’s door. Vickie says it’s unfair that she’s in a match with her career on the line. Vickie pleads him to talk to her but the door never opens. Vickie walks away frustrated.
John Cena’s response to The Rock is next.
-Commercial Break-
They show John Cena’s response to The Rock from Raw. I wish they had cut out the goofy stuff like he wasn’t taking it seriously before the rap.
Vickie Guerrero sees Chavo backstage and she says everyone has turned their backs on her. Vickie asks for his help. Chavo says they’re family and family always sticks together. Chavo then stops her and says he remembers all the times he made him her lackey. Vickie didn’t help him out so payback is a… you know. Chavo walks off on her as she looks panicked.
-Commercial Break-
WrestleMania is 37 days away.
Tony Chimel says in this following match The Corre is banned from ringside. When Big Show comes out, he throws his shirt right in Michael Cole’s face.
Wade Barrett vs. Big Show
Big Show quickly gets Barrett in the corner and chops his chest hard. Big Show hits another chop and some body shots. Big Show sends him to the corner again and runs into a boot. Big Show charges and runs into another boot. Barrett applies a sleeper hold and Big Show is fading away. Big Show goes down to a knee and hits the ropes, causing a break. Barrett stomps away at Big Show as we go to commercial.
-Commercial Break-
We come back from the break to see Barrett punching away at Big Show who is down on the mat. During the commercial, Barrett kicked him in the face. Barrett gets a one count and Big Show starts coming back with some right hands. Big Show chops him down and sends him to the ropes. Barrett quickly dropkicks him in the knee and hits a short DDT for a near fall. Big Show’s power sends Barrett out of the ring. Barrett gets back in the ring and Big Show immediately sends him back over the top rope by his throat.
Big Show follows him outside and chops his chest. Big Show goes to drive him into the ring post but Barrett slides off and smashes him into the post. Big Show quickly stops Barrett from getting in the ring. Big Show quickly slides in and wins the match by count-out.
Winner by Count-Out: Big Show
Match Rating: 3/4 *
Big Show goes to Chokeslam Barrett at ringside and stops when the rest of The Corre shows up. They follow Big Show into the ring so he quickly runs out of the ring and grabs a chair. Big Show gets in and smashes it on Justin Gabriel’s back. The rest of The Corre gets out of the ring quickly.
The announcers hype up tonight’s main event that will see Vickie Guerrero’s career on the line. Coming up next we’ll see The Undertaker-Triple H confrontation.
-Commercial Break-
Miss USA Rima Fakih is announced as one of the competitors fighting for a spot on the WWE roster on Tough Enough!
The Undertaker-Triple H confrontation airs in a video package with some guy narrating it. I liked it a lot. WWE production always does a tremendous job with their videos. Sometimes it’s overlooked but this was tremendous.
Vickie Guerrero is walking backstage with Drew McIntyre. She looks really nervous.
-Commercial Break-
A commercial hypes up the return of The Undertaker to Smackdown next week!
Drew McIntyre and Vickie Guerrero are already in the ring. Vickie’s career is on the line here.
If Vickie Guerrero’s team loses, she’s FIRED
Drew McIntyre & Vickie Guerrero vs. Edge & Kelly Kelly
Edge and Drew McIntyre will start the match off. Edge looks excited about this. Kelly Kelly is tagged in so Vickie Guerrero will be starting this out instead. Vickie talks trash and pushes Kelly. Kelly blocks a kick and takes Vickie down, punching wildly. Vickie rolls to the apron and tags in McIntyre. Edge has to come in now. McIntyre yells at Kelly as she goes to the apron. Edge ducks a clothesline and punches away at McIntyre. Edge has a whip reversed into the corner but Edge is able to catch McIntyre with a Jack Brisco-style roll-up out of the corner for a two count. Edge taunts Vickie as he kicks McIntyre in the face. McIntyre quickly takes Edge down with a forearm smash for a two count.
McIntyre wildly punches away at Edge and stomps his face. McIntyre continues punching and stomping Edge until Scott Armstrong admonishes him. McIntyre applies a modified chin lock but Edge fights up. McIntyre takes him down by the hair and talks to Kelly again. McIntyre then turns into a flapjack. Vickie screams from across the ring at Kelly. Edge ducks another clothesline and hits a forearm smash. Edge hits a pair of clotheslines and a modified face buster for a near fall. Edge sends McIntyre to his corner but McIntyre sidesteps him. Edge is in Vickie’s face and she slaps him. Edge looks unhappy and turns into a big boot from McIntyre.
McIntyre goes for the Future Shock DDT and he looks longingly at Kelly. Edge takes that slight distraction to counter into an impaler DDT. Edge sets up for his Spear and the crowd can feel it. All of a sudden Vickie gets in the center of the ring and begs Edge not to hit the move. All of a sudden Kelly runs in the ring and Spears Vickie! Edge then Spears McIntyre for the win! Vickie Guerrero is fired!
Winners by Pinfall: Edge & Kelly Kelly
Match Rating: * 1/2
Vickie Guerrero is sitting at ringside with tears in her eyes. Edge and Kelly Kelly smile from the ring and wave goodbye to her.
All of a sudden Teddy Long’s music hits and he comes out to the stage dancing and laughing. Edge impersonates Teddy Long’s dance moves. Teddy Long will fire her next.
-Commercial Break-
Teddy Long and Edge are in the ring as Vickie Guerrero stands there crying. This is almost sad. Long goads the fans on to continue singing the “goodbye” song. Long asks if she has anything to say for herself. Vickie says she’s sorry and she’ll be the best employee ever. Vickie begs him to not fire her. Long simply says, “Vickie, YOU’RE FIRED!” The crowd cheers wildly and Edge laughs at her.
Vickie quickly goes outside and begs referee Scott Armstrong to reverse the finish. Armstrong says he can’t. Vickie runs up to Booker T and he simply laughs at her. Vickie runs up to Michael Cole and he says he’ll talk to Long about this. Vickie runs up to the cameraman and begs him to talk to the higher-ups backstage. Edge looks like he feels bad for her in the ring. Vickie gets in the ring with a microphone and flips out as the crowd boos her. Vickie says she and Edge have had great chemistry together. Her heart was always with him. He’s the champion and he can help her. Vickie begs him and latches on to his leg, screaming that she needs her job.
Edge takes the microphone and says he can help her get her job back… but instead he thinks he’d rather sing! “Na-na-na-na, na-na-na-na, hey-hey-hey, GOODBYE!” Vickie slowly leaves the ring and the crowd continues to sing Vickie Guerrero off. Vickie goes up the ramp and screams wildly.
All of a sudden, Alberto Del Rio runs in from the crowd and attacks Edge from behind! Del Rio punches away wildly at Edge and sends him into the ring post shoulder first. Del Rio applies the Cross Arm Breaker and rips at the arm! Scott Armstrong runs into the ring and forces Del Rio to break the hold. Del Rio smiles and walks off as Edge lays in the middle of the ring in pain. Del Rio winks and walks off.
Quick Match Results
Rey Mysterio def. Kane
Rosa Mendes def. Layla via DQ
Jack Swagger def. Kofi Kingston via Submission (non-title)
Big Show def. Wade Barrett via CO
Edge* & Kelly Kelly def. Drew McIntyre* & Vickie Guerrero; Vickie Guerrero is FIRED
Bump of the Night: Cody Rhodes’s beat down on Mysterio!
Match of the Night: Mysterio vs. Kane * 3/4
Mike’s Thoughts
This was an OK edition of Smackdown highlighted by one good segment and the firing of Vickie Guerrero.
I really enjoyed the return of “Dashing” Cody Rhodes tonight. I initially questioned why they had to have his dad, Dusty Rhodes, go out and try to get heat for him but I liked the decision at the end of the segment. It worked out really well. The promo by Dusty was good (they got Cody his edge back) and the beat down was excellent. The removal of Mysterio’s mask is a big deal as they usually only do that for the really big angles involving Mysterio. The last time I remember them doing this was against Chris Jericho and before that it was the angle with Eddie Guerrero. Really good stuff and I’m looking forward to their confrontation at WrestleMania.
The other segment of note was, of course, the firing of Vickie Guerrero. I know she’s a heel and all, but I felt the segment and the crying went on a little too long and ventured into the area of uncomfortable. In the end I kind of felt bad for her and I’m not sure that was the point of that.
The sneak attack by Del Rio was well done and definitely needed to happen. Now that Vickie is out of the way, Edge can put all of his focus on Del Rio. It’s time to start building for WrestleMania now. I was surprised, however, that there was ZERO mention of Christian and his return at Elimination Chamber. That was really strange.
The rest of the show was just OK. The matches weren’t classics by any stretch of the imagination and, except for the main event, were just there. I enjoyed the Kane-Mysterio match but I felt the roll-up ending was really weak. Mysterio isn’t big enough to pin Kane down with all his power and the finish came off looking fake, in my opinion.
I wonder what they’re doing with Kofi Kingston. Losing to Alberto Del Rio is one thing, but losing to Jack Swagger, who hasn’t been relevant in months, is another. By submission, no less. I get they were putting over the fact that Del Rio injured his arm so that’s enough to cost him the match, but by submission to the ankle lock? Not the smartest booking in my opinion.
Before I close this out, I’d like to post this video in honor of the Undertaker’s return to WWE on Monday:
OK, I only posted it because it’s funny as hell.
Final Rating: ** 1/2
E-Mail – MikeyT817@hotmail.com
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