WWE Smackdown Results
April 4, 2014
Washington, D.C./New Orleans, Louisiana
Results by: Mike Tedesco of Wrestleview.com
For anyone attending WrestleMania XXX, I will be in Section 141, Row 30. Come by and say hi!
“Then. Now. Forever.” The WWE video leads us into the show.
The Smackdown video plays, and we’re brought into the arena. Michael Cole and JBL welcome us to the final show before WrestleMania XXX.
Dolph Ziggler vs. Titus O’Neil
Charles Robinson, my favorite referee of all time, is the official for this match. Ziggler ducks a lock up attempt and applies a waistlock. O’Neil quickly powers him off. They circle the ring, and Ziggler goes for a takedown, but O’Neil fights him off again. Ziggler punches him down to a knee and hits the ropes, but O’Neil comes right back with a flapjack. O’Neil stomps him and punches away at him. O’Neil hits a body slam before dropping a leg for a two count. O’Neil pulls the hair and applies a chin lock. O’Neil rips at his nose as he applies the hold. Ziggler fights up and punches him, but O’Neil counters into a modified rib breaker. O’Neil taunts the crowd. O’Neil then charges Ziggler in the corner, but Ziggler gets his boots up.
Ziggler pulls himself up on the ropes. Ziggler ducks a clothesline and takes him down. Ziggler punches away at him. O’Neil gets to his feet and goes to the corner. Ziggler jumps up to the second rope and punches away at him. Ziggler then hits him with a neckbreaker. Ziggler goes for a famouser, but O’Neil pushes him off. Ziggler ducks a big boot and goes for the famouser, but O’Neil apparently avoids it. Some major miscommunication begins between the two. They finally go into the ropes, and O’Neil takes him down with a big boot. O’Neil picks up a near fall. O’Neil picks him up by the hair and taunts the crowd a bit. O’Neil hits some rib breakers, but Ziggler eventually pops out and hits the Zig-Zag for the win.
Winner by Pinfall: Dolph Ziggler
Match Rating: *
A graphic airs that shows all of the participants in the 30-man André the Giant Memorial Battle Royal, and it takes place this Sunday at WrestleMania XXX.
Hulk Hogan will be on Smackdown for the first time in over a decade later tonight. Coming up next, we’ll check in with Jerry “The King” Lawler and Renee Young at WrestleMania Axxess.
-Commercial Break-
WrestleMania XXX is just two short days away.
We’re now at WrestleMania Axxess. Jerry “The King” Lawler and Renee Young welcome us back. They show Jimmy Hart on the Legends’ House set, the Scooby-Doo van, Undertaker’s graveyard, and an entrance ramp where you can do your own entrance. Lawler and Renee then talk about the Undertaker’s WrestleMania Streak and if it will continue.
Video Package: The Undertaker vs. Brock Lesnar
We’ll take a look back at Daniel Bryan’s attack on Triple H from this past Monday’s RAW.
-Commercial Break-
We get an aerial shot of the Mercedes Benz Superdome in New Orleans, the site of WrestleMania XXX.
They show footage of children playing in the Slam City exhibit at WrestleMania Axxess. They then begin to plug the WWE Network. There will be a legends panel on the network after the conclusion of Smackdown.
Footage is shown of Michael Cole interviewing Stephanie McMahon in a WWE.com exclusive interview. She puts over WrestleMania XXX and talks about Daniel Bryan. She talks about how Bryan put people in danger a few weeks ago with the “Occupy RAW Movement.” McMahon states that Bryan is setting the wrong example. Cole asserts that this has been going on since before the YES Movement, and she states that he is simply a B+ player. Cole asked if she would admit that she was wrong is Bryan pulls out a miracle on Sunday. McMahon says that Triple H will destroy him at WrestleMania XXX. She feels sorry for everyone who will have their hopes and dreams dashed to pieces at WrestleMania XXX. Her husband will demolish Daniel Bryan and go on to become the new WWE World Heavyweight Champion.
They show the André the Giant life size statue at WrestleMania Axxess. They show some other WrestleMania memorabilia.
-Commercial Break-
We see more footage of the Legend’ House set. Jimmy Hart and Howard Finkel are there. You get to sit with them and chat for a few minutes. There is also a Fruity Pebbles foam pit.
Video Package: John Cena vs. Bray Wyatt
Hulk Hogan will be on Smackdown later on tonight.
-Commercial Break-
Lawler and Renee talk about how you cannot underestimate the WWE World Heavyweight Champion Randy Orton heading into WrestleMania XXX.
Booker T had a sit-down interview with Randy Orton earlier this week. Booker T asks Orton about becoming the WWE World Heavyweight Champion. Orton talks about how great it felt and how it is his time. Booker asks about the triple threat match at WrestleMania XXX. Orton says he has a more dense history with Triple H, but he knows him more than Daniel Bryan. Triple H is a great competitor, but he’s taken after Vince McMahon in the sense that he is a ruthless businessman who will do whatever it takes. Orton says at WrestleMania XXX, Triple H won’t be his boss. He’ll just be another body in the ring. Booker then asks what he thinks about Daniel Bryan. Orton says the YES Movement is a fad. Orton says it’s funny to watch someone struggle to the top after it all came so easily to him. Orton says both Triple H and Bryan won’t be 100% heading into the main event. Orton then talks about how Batista was a friend, but when he left in 2010, you can’t get those years back. Back in the day, Batista would have been an opponent for him. Now, not so much. Booker asks for a prediction, and Orton says he will be the last man standing.
Coming up next, we’ll see Los Matadores take on The Real Americans. We’ll also see Daniel Bryan’s attack on Triple H from this past Monday’s RAW.
-Commercial Break-
Michael Cole talks about the two-hour WrestleMania Pre-Show. On that show, we’ll see the WWE Tag Team Championships defended. The Usos will defend their titles against Rybaxel, The Real Americans, and Los Matadores.
The Real Americans vs. Los Matadores
Jack Swagger will start the match against Fernando. They lock up, and Swagger powers him to the corner. Swagger knees away at him a bunch of times before being backed away. Fernando punches back at him and sends him to the opposite corner. Swagger puts him on the apron, and Fernando punches him away. Swagger avoids a springboard attack, but he misses a clothesline. Fernando then hits a head-scissor takeover. Cesaro is tagged in, and he tries to suplex Fernando, but he rolls through. Fernando hits a dropkick and a pair of arm drags. Fernando applies an arm bar, and Cesaro counters back with a body slam. Cesaro goes for a “We the people” taunt, but Fernando counters into another head-scissor takeover. Diego is tagged in, and he hits a slingshot head-scissor takeover. Diego taunts the fans, but they boo him. There are a lot of Cesaro fans. Zeb Colter then shouts some instructions from ringside before slapping Cesaro in the face! Cesaro gets fired up, and Swagger keeps him back from Colter.
Cesaro then charges at Fernando and dropkicks him. Cesaro uppercuts him a number of times in the corner before hitting a deadlift gutwrench suplex. Cesaro then taunts the fans again with a “We the people” taunt.
-Commercial Break-
We come back from the break to see Diego punching out of a headlock from Cesaro. Swagger tags in, and Diego hits a double DDT on both Swagger and Cesaro. El Torito gets fired up at ringside. Swagger pulls Diego away from his corner and stomps away at him. Swagger slams him down and tags Cesaro in. They hit Diego with a double suplex. Cesaro then drops an elbow for a near fall. Cesaro gets him to his feet and uppercuts him. Swagger is tagged in, and he catapults Cesaro into Diego. Cesaro then shoves Diego into a clothesline from Swagger for a near fall. Swagger yanks Diego away from his corner and applies a front face-lock. Diego fights up to his feet and punches, but Swagger shoves him into the ropes. Diego holds on, and Swagger runs into his boots. Cesaro tries to illegally prevent Diego from making a tag, and Diego fights him off by pulling down the top rope.
Swagger grabs Diego by the ankle, and Diego kicks him away. Cesaro then yanks Fernando off the apron before Diego can tag him. Swagger clotheslines him in the corner and hits a belly-to-belly side suplex for a near fall. Swagger talks some trash and hits the Swagger Bomb. Cesaro then tags in, and he leapfrogs Swagger to hit a double stomp to the chest for a near fall. Cesaro covers again for another near fall. Diego fights both men off with elbows. Swagger is tagged in, and Diego kicks him in the face. Diego then gives Cesaro a back body drop over the top rope, and he pulls the top rope down for Swagger. Fernando gets the crowd into it.
Fernando and Cesaro are tagged in. Fernando hits a pair of running elbows before punching him. Cesaro reverses a whip, but Fernando slides between his legs and hits a hurricanrana. Fernando then hits a springboard back elbow for a near fall. Cesaro comes back with an uppercut. Fernando flips through a back suplex and flapjacks Cesaro into the turnbuckle. Fernando goes to the top rope, and he hits a flipping senton for a near fall. Swagger runs into the ring, and Diego back body drops him out of the ring. Cesaro then big boots Diego off the apron. Cesaro runs into Fernando’s knees. Cesaro then counters a turnbuckle attempt into a Cesaro Swing with ten revolutions. Cesaro then hits the Neutralizer for the win.
Winners by Pinfall: The Real Americans
Match Rating: * 3/4
Cesaro stands angrily in the ring with Swagger and Colter. Colter uneasily stands next to Cesaro, and they do the “We the people” taunt. Cesaro never takes his eyes off Colter.
-Commercial Break-
They show footage of the WrestleMania Superstore, which is stocked with tons of merchandise.
Renee and Lawler talk about The Shield vs. Kane and The New Age Outlaws. Lawler couldn’t believe that Kane and the NAO laid out The Shield a few weeks back.
A sit-down interview is aired with The Shield. They talk about their first WrestleMania last year and how it was a dream come true. Roman Reigns says capturing a huge win when they were the underdogs last year was huge. Dean Ambrose says they were nobodies last year, but now they’re the Yankees and the Lakers. Seth Rollins talks about how Kane and the NAO ambushed them, which is something that never happens to them. The Shield paid the price, but they didn’t get the job done. Ambrose says he was a fan of the NAO as a kid, and it’ll be great to send them out to pasture in New Orleans since it’s always warm there. Rollins says he doesn’t care about legacy. Anyone who stands in their way is done. Reigns says they bend, but they never break.
We’ll see an interview with Batista, next.
-Commercial Break-
They show footage of Triple H unveiling the Bruno Sammartino statue earlier tonight at WrestleMania Axxess. Bruno Sammartino was on hand to see the presentation. Sammartino seemed genuinely moved by the statue.
Booker T had a sit-down interview with Batista. Batista talks about how he wishes he came back at a better place than Dayton, Ohio. Batista then talks about sticking around just to spite the fans. Booker asks about the triple threat match, and he says he just doesn’t see any situation in which he would lose. Batista says he doesn’t see Triple H or Daniel Bryan as threats. Triple H needs to stay behind his desk, and Bryan is a flavor of the month. Batista says he will leave WrestleMania as the WWE World Heavyweight Champion.
Hulk Hogan will make his first appearance on Smackdown later on tonight.
-Commercial Break-
Lawler and Renee talk about the WWE Hall of Fame being aired exclusively on the WWE Network. Lawler talks about how great that night is. He is excited to hear the Ultimate Warrior’s speech.
Replay: They air the entire final segment of Monday Night RAW when Daniel Bryan attacked Triple H and got the better of both Batista and Randy Orton.
This will conclude the WrestleMania Axxess portion of tonight’s episode of Friday Night Smackdown. Hulk Hogan will appear in the ring, next.
-Commercial Break-
Hulk Hogan gives a final plug for WrestleMania XXX
Hulk Hogan makes his way to the ring to a tremendous reception from the Washington, D.C. crowd. Hogan stands in the ring and says, “Well let me tell you something, brother!” Hogan says it is great to be back on Smackdown in the nation’s capital. WrestleMania is just a few days away, and he is so pumped up about being the host that he feels like the WWE Champion. Hogan says he has a lot of great WrestleMania memories. Back at WrestleMania I, he tore down Madison Square Garden with Mr. T. Then he went one-on-one with the Great One at WrestleMania X8. Hogan says, “I’ll never forget about that dude, brother. I really jacked him up.” Hogan then talks about body slamming André the Giant at WrestleMania III. That’s why it’s so important for him to give the trophy at WrestleMania XXX this year.
Hogan says the trophy is spectacular. One of thirty superstars has a chance to link themselves with immortality. In closing, he has one question for all the maniacs: “Whatcha gonna do when Hulkamania, the André the Giant Memorial Battle Royal, and WrestleMania run wild on you?” Hogan poses for the fans before leaving the ring.
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Quick Match Results
Dolph Ziggler def. Titus O’Neil
The Real Americans def. Los Matadores
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