WWE Smackdown
February 27, 2009
Portland, OR
Report by: Mike Tedesco of WrestleView.com
?Yes, sir, we promised you a great main event?? The WWE video leads us into the show.
The Smackdown video plays and we?re brought into the arena with a great pyro display! We?re in Portland, Oregon and Jim Ross and Tazz welcome us to the show! Tonight we?ll see ?Brother vs. Brother? as Jeff Hardy will take on his ?black hearted brother? Matt Hardy! Also we?ll see Undertaker take on Vladimir Kozlov in a possible prelude to WrestleMania 25!
John Cena’s music hits and this Portland crowd goes crazy! JR mentions that Smackdown is delivering the goods this week ? it always does, JR! As Cena comes out we see a replay from last Monday where Vickie was the interim General Manager of Raw and didn?t grant John Cena his World Heavyweight Championship rematch. Cena then told her he was going to follow her everywhere she goes until she grants him that rematch. So here he is on Smackdown!
John Cena tells us not to adjust our TV sets ? he’s fired up! We?ve got some special stuff planned for tonight ? it’s a special night, according to Cena! He is here, the crowd is there, we?re here watching at home (or reading on your computer), and THIS IS SMACKDOWN! Hell yeah, Cena! I?m a fan now!
Cena says he knows what a lot of us are thinking ? he hasn?t been on Smackdown in two years. He says that some things have changed but it’s pretty much the same. Smackdown still has the same great fans! Tazz and Michael Cole are still calling the action! He then mentions that ?Cole? has put on some weight and says the cowboy hat is ?very Village People!? We?ve changed to My Network and he didn?t even realize he had a network! There’s also been a change with the World Heavyweight Championship.
Cena gets serious now and says for the past few weeks the World Heavyweight Championship has been held by a coward and that’s why he’s here tonight. He says to Edge that he told him if he tried to hide he would find him. So here’s Cena on Edge’s show, in the middle of his ring, and he wants a rematch for the World Heavyweight Championship and he wants it tonight! He will not leave until he gets an answer! The crowd loves it!
Edge’s music hits and he makes his way out to the stage holding the World Heavyweight Championship. Edge says he can?t believe Cena actually showed. He says he’s sick of Cena dogging him. He asks if Cena wants a rematch and Cena nods yes! Edge says, ?Then let’s do it!?
The crowd is excited but HOLD ON ? it’s Vickie Guerrero, Smackdown’s General Manager. As we can see, her husband is a warrior ? he never backs down from a challenge so it’s her duty to inform us that the World Heavyweight Champion will not be competing tonight!
Cena doesn?t look so surprised in the ring. The crowd is chanting for Cena and he says he figured something like this would happen. They?re not going to have a match but since this is a special appearance by him on Smackdown, he did promise to get his hands on Edge and he’s not going to let the people down!
Cena goes through the ropes for Edge but Vickie keeps saying stop? and he does! The crowd chants that she sucks! She excuses herself and says since Edge isn?t competing tonight, Cena will be! If he wants to face her husband so badly then she wants to see how he does in a match against this man ? the Big Show!
Big Show stands next to Vickie and Edge with a smug look on his face! It’s going to be Big Show vs. John Cena on Smackdown!
Coming up after the commercial break we?ll see Carlito and Primo put their WWE Tag Team Championships on the line against Miz and Morrison!
-Commercial Break-
A video of Gail Kim working out shows! She’s coming to Smackdown!
As Carlito and Primo come out, we see a replay of the unfortunate Valentine’s Day date with Miz and Morrison and the Bella Twins. It ended with a disguised Carlito and Primo accidentally throwing pie in the face of the Bella Twins!
WWE Tag Team Championship Match
Carlito & Primo (c) vs. Miz & Morrison
If Miz and Morrison win the WWE Tag Team Titles tonight then they?ll be Undisputed Tag Team Champions!
The referee calls for the bell and this WWE Tag Team Championship match has officially started. Primo is in against Miz and they lock up. Primo almost immediately gets a headlock on Miz and Miz almost immediately pushes him off. They lock up again and push each other against the ropes a few times until the referee makes them break up. As the referee admonishes them, Miz hits Primo with a quick kick to the midsection and hits a headlock takedown, keeping the headlock on the mat. Primo soon gets to his feet and rolls Miz off! Primo then gets a headlock on but Miz goes for the hair and backs him into the ropes. Miz pushes Primo into the ropes and gets taken down by a shoulder block! Primo goes back into the ropes and hits the same move! Primo goes into the ropes again, ducks a clothesline from Miz, and springboards off the second rope with a twisting cross-body for a one count! They both get up quickly and Miz goes for a clothesline which Primo ducks and counters with a Russian Leg Sweep, covering Miz for another one count! Primo bounces Miz? head off his turnbuckle and tags in his older brother Carlito!
Primo whips Miz into the ropes, leapfrogs him, and Carlito hits him with a dropkick! Carlito covers and gets a one count. Carlito hits a left hand, whips Miz into the corner, and charges but Miz gets a boot in his face! Miz bounces Carlito off his top turnbuckle and tags in the ?Shaman of Sexy? John Morrison!
They strike Carlito a few times before Miz leaves the ring. Morrison takes him to the middle and hits a nice European Uppercut which staggers Carlito! Morrison whips Carlito into the ropes but lowers his head and eats a kick in the face! Carlito covers for a quick one count. Carlito bounces Morrison’s head off his turnbuckle and thrusts a shoulder into his midsection a few times before tagging in Primo!
Primo comes in and Carlito shoves his shoulder into Morrison’s midsection! Primo covers for a one count. Primo locks on a seated chin lock. Morrison gets to his feet, elbowing and punching out. Morrison sends Primo hard into the corner and charges but Primo gets the back of his elbow in Morrison’s face! Primo then quickly gets on Morrison’s shoulders, spins around and takes him down with a hurricanrana but this only gets him another one count! Primo gets a front face lock on Morrison and tags in Carlito!
They whip Morrison into the ropes and hit him with a double back elbow! Primo hits a leg-drop for good measure and Carlito covers for another one count! Carlito now locks on a seated chin lock and the crowd starts whistling! Why? Because the Bella Twins are making their way out to the ring!
Carlito bounces Morrison’s head off the top turnbuckle and looks over to see them. Morrison uses the distraction to knee him in the midsection and bounce his head off the top turnbuckle. Morrison hits a right hand and whips Carlito hard into the opposite corner. Morrison looks over to the Bella Twins and Carlito hits a running club to the back, sending Morrison rolling out of the ring, almost at the Bella Twins? feet! Miz charges and Carlito sends him sailing over the top rope right by Morrison! Primo fakes a vault which scares them but he lands on the apron and ducks as his older brother, Carlito, flips over the top rope with a senton on Miz and Morrison!! The Bella Twins look impressed as we go to commercial!!
-Commercial Break-
We come back from the break to see Carlito gets a chin lock on Morrison but he’s against the ropes so the referee calls him off. Carlito hits a left hand and tags in Primo!
Carlito whips Morrison into the ropes and hits a drop-toe-hold as Primo comes off the ropes with a diving head-butt to the spine! Primo gets the first two count of the match! Primo picks Morrison up but he forearms him HARD in the midsection and sends him into his corner so hard that Primo does the old Ric Flair/Shawn Michaels roll up the turnbuckle! Like Flair he lands on the apron and forearms Miz off! Primo hits a shoulder to the midsection through the second and third ropes and goes to the top rope for a springboard maneuver but Morrison ducks and springboards off the second rope hitting Primo with that roundhouse kick, which sends him out of the ring!
Morrison distracts the referee as Miz assaults Primo with kicks before putting him back in the ring! Morrison drags Primo to the center of the ring and gets a near fall! Morrison grounds and pounds Primo before locking on a front face lock and tagging in the Miz!
They hit a double snapshot off the top rope and Miz covers Primo for a two and a half count! Miz pulls Primo’s head back by his hair and hits a vicious crossface! Miz hits him with a few more vicious crossfaces as the Bella Twins look on concerned. Miz gets a modified Camel Clutch and locks it on but Primo eventually gets to his feet and elbow out. He goes for Carlito but Miz pulls him back for a short arm clothesline but Primo ducks and rolls him up for a quick two count! Miz immediately pounces on Primo to stop him from getting to Carlito. Miz pulls him up by his hair and bounces his head off the top turnbuckle. Miz hits some stomps and a European Uppercut in the corner before the referee makes him back away. Miz backs up and charges, hitting that neat corner clothesline of his! Miz gets a count of two for that. Miz gets the chin lock on and the Bella Twins look intrigued with this match. Miz has it locked on for a while but Primo eventually gets up and tries to elbow out but Miz hits a right hand and whips him into his corner. He charges and Primo gives him the back of his elbow! He then gives one to Morrison for good measure! Primo gives a left hand to Miz and elbows Morrison down on the apron! He continues with the left hands until Miz accidentally pushes Primo into Morrison, knocking him off the apron, and when Primo comes back they clunk heads, knocking them both out!
The referee is counting them down and both men make tags! Carlito comes in and hits a bunch of lefts on Morrison! Carlito whips him into the ropes and hits a HIGH back body-drop! Morrison gets up and Carlito clotheslines him down! Morrison gets back up and charges so Carlito hits him with a sit-out spinebuster! Carlito covers for a two count! Carlito hits Morrison with a kick to the midsection, goes into the ropes, and hits a Million Dollar Knee-Lift, then dropkicks Miz off the apron!
Morrison hits Carlito from behind and goes for a back suplex but Carlito flips out of it, lands on his feet, and goes for a back suplex of his own but Morrison AMAZINGLY twists his body and kicks Carlito in the head! Morrison falls on top of him for a two and a half count!!
Morrison swings at Primo, who ducks. Primo tries to enter and the referee stops him. Carlito kicks Morrison in the gut but has a whip reversed on him. Carlito goes for a springboard back elbow but Miz pulled him down on the top rope for a snapshot!
Primo has seen enough and hits a suicide dive on Miz! Morrison now goes for the Moonlight Drive but Carlito reverses it into the Back Stabber and covers him to retain the WWE Tag Team Championships!
Winners & STILL WWE Tag Team Champions: Carlito & Primo
Match Rating: ** ?
Primo and Carlito celebrate with the Tag Team Championships! They then go outside and walk away arm in arm with the Bella Twins! The crowd loves it but I think it’s worth noting that one of the Bella Twins looks back at Miz and Morrison almost sadly like she wants to be with them.
JR talks about the next Hall of Fame inductee ? Ricky ?The Dragon? Steamboat! Seriously, if you aspire to be a professional wrestler, and are serious about it, you?d be a complete fool to not check out the Ric Flair vs. Ricky Steamboat matches at the Chi-Town Rumble, Clash of the Champions, and Wrestle War all from 1989. They?re what wrestling is all about. Ricky Steamboat is one of my favorite wrestlers to watch because every match was a story. He was an unbelievable worker and, in my opinion, should have been in the Hall of Fame years ago. His old nemeses ?Nature Boy? Ric Flair will be inducting him!
Coming up next is Undertaker vs. Vladimir Kozlov!!
-Commercial Break-
WrestleMania 25 is only 37 days away!!
Our Main Event tonight will be John Cena vs. Big Show!
We get the Raw Recall right now. It wasn?t a bad Raw ? the most interesting stuff has been the Jericho thing but you won?t see that covered in these recaps. No, instead we get the Randy Orton stuff that wasn?t really that great in retrospect. It was really silly. Think about it ? how many opportunities did Triple H have to kill Randy Orton? Why didn?t he take the shots when he had the chance? He waits for him to run away before throwing his sledgehammer into the mirror? Whatever! Oh well. I guess they thought that was the right thing for this ? I mean you really can?t do it many other ways considering how the storyline has gone so far. What are they going to do for the next few weeks until WrestleMania then?
Vladimir Kozlov, who will go to Raw on Monday to face Shawn Michaels, is coming to the ring. He’s going to face his possible WrestleMania opponent, Undertaker, NEXT!!
-Commercial Break-
Just for Men Hair Gel presents the WWE Rewind which is the ending of the JBL vs. Shawn Michaels match from Raw. HBK kicked JBL’s head off and then Kozlov slammed HBK into oblivion! Smackdown dominates!
Vladimir Kozlov vs. Undertaker
Charles Robinson calls for the bell and both men cautiously approach one another. They lock up and Kozlov immediately gets Undertaker in a side headlock! Kozlov has it locked in tight until Undertaker whips him off but Kozlov takes him down with a shoulder block! Kozlov raises his arms in the air but the celebration is too soon as Undertaker pops right back up!
They lock up and Kozlov quickly gets Taker in another rough side headlock! Undertaker puts him into the ropes and whips him off but again is taken down by a shoulder block from Kozlov! Kozlov again raises his arms but Undertaker is quickly up again!
They cautiously circle the ring until Kozlov gets fed up, screams, and runs right into Undertaker’s big boot! Undertaker looks out to the crowd and they approve! Undertaker then goes into the ropes for an elbow-drop but Kozlov moves out of the way! Undertaker pops up quickly and Kozlov clotheslines him over the top rope and celebrates but doesn?t realize Undertaker landed on his feet! Kozlov looks a bit frustrated as we go to commercial.
-Commercial Break-
We come back from the break to see Kozlov half-way out on the apron and Undertaker deliver an apron leg-drop across his throat! During the break Kozlov threw Undertaker hard into the barricade and a little while later Undertaker bounced his face off the ring post!
Both men slowly get up in the ring. Undertaker charges Kozlov in the corner and eats a back elbow. Kozlov goes into the ropes and Undertaker counters with a big clothesline! Undertaker covers and gets a two count! Undertaker goes for Devil’s Gate but Kozlov delivers a bunch of head-butts to Undertaker’s sternum, stopping him!
Kozlov waits for Undertaker to get up and clotheslines him down! Kozlov peppers Undertaker with some stiff shots and knees him into the corner. Kozlov delivers some shoulder thrusts until Charles Robinson backs him away. Kozlov approaches and Undertaker throws him by his throat into the corner and gives him some big strikes! Undertaker whips him into the corner and charges but Kozlov charges out and hits a clothesline! Kozlov covers for a two count! Kozlov has Undertaker in a grounded side headlock. Kozlov has it locked on tight but Undertaker eventually gets to his knees but Kozlov had it locked on too tight. Eventually Undertaker gets to his feet and hits a back suplex, breaking the headlock!
Both men are being counted down. They get up at four and stagger each other exchanging right hands! Kozlov hits a kick to the midsection and whips Undertaker into the ropes but lowers his head and gets a DDT! Undertaker covers for a two count! Kozlov gets up in the corner and Undertaker hits a corner clothesline! Taker whips him to the opposite corner and hits it again! Undertaker whips him again to the opposite corner, hits Snake Eyes and the big boot combo! Undertaker hits a leg-drop and covers for a two and a half count!
Undertaker signals for the Chokeslam but Kozlov hits a Battering Ram Head-Butt, sending Undertaker into the ropes, and Undertaker hits him with a big boot! Undertaker covers for a two count! Undertaker is going for Old School but Kozlov powerslams him off the top rope and pins him!!!
Winner by Pinfall: Vladimir Kozlov
Match Rating: ** ?
Undertaker looks on angrily as Kozlov does his best to do a smug smile but he just looks like a fool. Kozlov now goes to Raw on Monday to face Shawn Michaels for the right to face the Undertaker at WrestleMania!
Coming up next is Matt Hardy vs. Jeff Hardy! Brother vs. Brother! Somehow, considering the placement on this card, I don?t see this happening tonight. Don?t let that stop you from reading on, though!
-Commercial Break-
Did you know that last month over 100 million photos of WWE Divas were viewed on WWE.com? Wait? I did the ECW recap on Tuesday and instead of Divas it was ringside action. Someone is pulling my leg! Come on, WWE!
Matt Hardy comes to the ring ready for this match. Jeff Hardy comes out in jeans and a flannel shirt. Not quite dressed to compete. Matt looks confused.
Jeff gets a microphone and says Matt has always been there for him and he thinks they?ve always helped each other out. Jeff says he hopes he gets over this crazy phase of his and realizes he’s done nothing to deserve this. Jeff says he’s not going to fight him ? not tonight, not ever because whether Matt likes it or not, he is his brother!
Matt quickly grabs the microphone and coldly says that he is not Jeff’s brother. As far as getting over things, it’s not quite that simple. He knows he’s used to everything being about Jeff and revolving around Jeff but this isn?t about Jeff ? it’s about him! He says for once it’s about Matt, about his needs, about what he needs to say. All of the fans make him sick ? physically sick ? when they cheer for Jeff! He’s also had to swallow the fact that his career has been mediocre while Jeff’s has skyrocketed to the top! He says he and Jeff have always known this ? between the two of them, Matt is the more talented Hardy! Matt says he blames Jeff and the fans that believe Jeff’s hype!
Matt tells Jeff to fight him and tries to goad him on. He implores Jeff but he says no! Matt then slaps him and calls him a coward! Jeff still won?t so Matt gives him a VICIOUS backhand! Ouch!! Jeff leaves the ring shaking his head and with his cheeks a different shade of red. Jeff gets the fans cheering for him before shaking his head at Matt and going to the back! The fans boo Matt to end this segment. Wow! Just wow! That was a great segment.
Still to come tonight is John Cena vs. Big Show!
-Commercial Break-
The WrestleMania flashback is WrestleManias IV and V. At WrestleMania IV, a rather dull one, it was a tournament for the WWF Championship. Pay Per View tournaments leave no room for really good matches and this is a prime example of that. At least OHH YEAH the Macho Man Randy Savage captured his first WWF Title that night and celebrated with his friend Hulk Hogan. Next year at WrestleMania V Randy Savage was heel and the Mega Powers exploded. That night Hulk Hogan defeated Randy Savage to win back the WWF Championship. Both these Manias took place in Atlantic City at the Trump Plaza. The first ten rows were all Donald Trump’s executive friends who could give two hoots about wrestling. Didn?t make for a fun background. I know I always get into a match more if I see people having a good time ? it’s contagious.
Montel Vontavious Porter is at the announcer’s table as a guest commentator. MVP mentions that Shelton Benjamin is wearing his championship!
Shelton Benjamin vs. Chavo Guerrero
This is a non-title match in case you were wondering.
The bell rings and they lock up with Benjamin immediately getting Guerrero in the corner and punching and kneeing him viciously! The referee makes him back away but he quickly returns with a kick to the midsection. Benjamin hits a short-arm clothesline and puts Guerrero on the second rope, punching him while looking at MVP! Benjamin chokes Guerrero with his boot in the corner and Benjamin goes to the opposite corner looking for his corner splash but Guerrero moves out of the way!
Chavo Guerrero hits a kick to the midsection and starts delivering the Three Amigos. Benjamin lands on his feet on the third amigo and sends Guerrero into the ropes but Guerrero counters with a head-scissors takedown! Guerrero goes to the top rope for a Frog Splash but Benjamin pops up and leaps to the top rope, hitting a HUGE superplex!! Guerrero rolls out of the ring!
Benjamin now stares down MVP at the announcer’s table. MVP was actually putting over his athleticism ? if only he knew he wouldn?t stare him down. MVP takes off the headset but Benjamin goes back to Guerrero. Benjamin gets Guerrero in a Powerbomb position and launches him into MVP!! Benjamin puts Guerrero back into the ring and stares at MVP a little more. All of a sudden Chavo Guerrero gets a Mexican cradle and upsets Shelton Benjamin!!
Winner by Pinfall: Chavo Guerrero
Match Rating: * ?
Shelton Benjamin can?t believe it and is on his knees staring down Chavo Guerrero. MVP sneaks in behind him and hits a Drive By!! MVP does his BALLIN? taunt then puts his designer sunglasses back on and leaves. He’s wearing his old clothes. I guess he’s making money again!
Still to come tonight is Big Show vs. John Cena! John Cena’s first Smackdown match in years!
-Commercial Break-
Because John Cena is on Smackdown we have to see a preview for his lame movie ?12 Rounds.? The premise kind of reminds me of the plot of ?Ricochet.? It’s with Denzel Washington and John Lithgow. It’s HILARIOUS! See it! Anyway, I think I?ve said enough about ?12 Rounds? in the past. I?ll just sum it up ? I?m not paying money to see it. I?ll use my Blockbuster free movie coupon for it when it comes out on DVD.
John Cena now makes his entrance and the place is unglued! I wonder why ? maybe it’s because he’s sticking to what he does best ? WRESTLING! Big Show then makes his entrance and we see Edge and Vickie watching it in their office.
-Commercial Break-
John Cena vs. Big Show
The bell rings and this rematch from WrestleMania XX (it’s not being billed that way ? I just said it because I was at the event) is ready to go! John Cena stays away from some rights and lefts from the Big Show. Big Show goes for a big right hand and Cena ducks it and sneaks in a right hand, which does nothing to the Big Show! Big Show backs Cena into the corner and hits some tough body shots! Big Show head-butts him down and hits another body shot in the corner as Edge and Vickie look on happily.
Big Show gets Cena in the corner and slaps his chest. That’s never fun. Big Show gets Cena in the corner and hits a stiff body shot. Big Show goes for his ?Shh? slap but Cena ducks it and hits some right hands! He’s pushed away by Big Show but he tenaciously comes back and hits a few punches before being pushed away again! Cena dodges Big Show’s Knock-Out Punch and STUNS Big Show with a right hand of his own! Cena hits a few more of those and goes for a diving shoulder tackle, but Big Show stays on his feet! Cena tries again and Big Show avalanches him down!
Big Show steps on Cena’s midsection and Cena writhes in pain ? the guy is 441 pounds! Would you like an elephant stepping on you? Big Show then head-butts Cena and Vladimir Kozlov calls gimmick infringement. Cena is out on his feet so Big Show head-butts him down for good measure! Big Show picks Cena up and head-butts him down again! Cena is selling it really well. Cena tries to come back with some right hands! He goes into the ropes and Big Show counters with a sidewalk slam! Cena crawls around but somehow gets his head between the second and third rope, prompting Big Show to push the rope down, choking him. An old variation of something similar to that cost Mick Foley an ear. I wonder if Foley regrets going to TNA yet.
Big Show hits Cena with some body shots as he’s wrapped up in the ropes. Big Show taunts Cena and elbows him in the back. Big Show tells him to go back to Raw and head-butts him down! Big Show chokes Cena in the corner and breaks the illegal hold at three. Big Show mouths off to the referee and then hits Cena with a hard Irish whip into the corner! Cena forces himself back up so Big Show hits another hard Irish whip into the opposite corner! Big Show is sauntering around the ring. Big Show then AGAIN whips Cena hard into the corner!
Cena is up in the corner so Big Show charges and eats Cena’s boots! Cena quickly jumps on Big Show’s back and locks on a Sleeper Hold! Big Show tries to back him into the corner hard to break the hold but it doesn?t work! Big Show soon goes down to one knee but eventually powers up and counters Cena’s sleeper hold with a sidewalk slam!! We?ll take our final commercial break of the night right here.
-Commercial Break-
We come back from the break to see Big Show hits a huge suplex on John Cena! Cena rolls around in pain and goes to the apron of the ring. Cena pulls himself up by the ropes so Big Show charges and shoulder blocks him off and into the Announcer’s Table!
Big Show goes to follow but the referee stops him so he goes around him. Big Show gets Cena on his shoulder and goes to drive him into the ring post but Cena slides off and breaks Show’s face on the ring post! Big Show gets back in the ring and Cena, thinking this is a good opportunity, goes for face buster but Big Show pushes him off and out of the ring with one hand!
The referee is counting Cena out so Big Show reaches over the top rope and picks him up by his head, putting him on the apron! Cena then breaks Big Show’s grip and snapshots him off the top rope! Cena quickly gets back in and charges but Big Show clotheslines him down and covers for a two and a half count!!
Big Show gets Cena in a hammerlock and sends him shoulder first into the corner. Big Show elbows the socket and elbows the bicep a few times. Big Show then locks on a shoulder nerve hold. I?ve never really bought that as a serious submission maneuver. Cena uses all his power to lift Big Show’s hand but Big Show stops him with a body shot!
Big Show now approaches Cena and goes for his Knock-Out Punch but Cena ducks it and hits a right hand! Big Show goes for it again but Cena again ducks it and goes for a body slam but Cena’s arm is too weak and Big Show falls on top of him! Cena has pinned himself and kicks out at two and a half!
Big Show now goes for the Vader Bomb (second rope slingshot splash) but Cena moves! Cena goes to the top rope and hits that leg-drop maneuver to the back of Big Show’s neck! Cena pops up and this Portland crowd knows what’s coming! YOU CAN?T SEE ME! Cena drops the fist and waits for Big Show to get up. He goes for the Attitude Adjuster but Big Show clubs his back! Big Show then hits his Alley-Op or Powerbomb face buster, whatever you like. Big Show now waits for Cena to get up and goes for the Showstopper but John Cena counters and hits the Attitude Adjust on the Big Show!!
Both men are down and World Heavyweight Champion Edge goes in the ring and quickly leaves! That was weird. Oh, this is why. The distraction allowed Big Show to punch John Cena in the face!! The Knock-Out Punch!! Big Show then hits the Showstopper and PINS John Cena on Smackdown!! Welcome back, Cena!!
Winner by Pinfall: Big Show
Match Rating: ** ?
Big Show leaves the ring and Edge gets in, talking trash to Cena who is knocked out. Edge tells him that the World Heavyweight Championship is his and Smackdown is his, as well! Edge holds the championship above his head as Smackdown ends.
Quick Match Results
Tag Titles: Carlito* & Primo def. Miz & Morrison* to RETAIN
Vladimir Kozlov def. Undertaker
Chavo Guerrero def. Shelton Benjamin (non-title)
Big Show def. John Cena
Bump of the Night: Carlito’s senton onto Miz & Morrison
Match of the Night: WWE Tag Team Championship ** ?
Mike’s Thoughts
Tonight’s Smackdown was awesome! The show was totally stacked with some tremendous WrestleMania build!
We started the show out in a big way tonight with John Cena making his first appearance in over two years. Normally I find John Cena to be a tad on the obnoxious side but tonight I thought he was really good. Even though we?ve seen Edge vs. John Cena a million times I?m still excited to see them hook up again, even if the whole basis for their meeting up is a little underwhelming. The No Way Out swerve was awesome ? seriously, who saw that coming? However they have yet to top that in this feud. I?m hoping things pick up with it over the next few weeks. Like I said, I?m excited, but I want to be at that point where I can?t wait for it at WrestleMania. I?m not there yet? for any match at WrestleMania, for that matter, except the Undertaker and Money in the Bank matches.
I have to give some props to John Cena, though. He had a pretty damn good match with Big Show tonight. Neither man is the most skilled technical worker in the biz but they both work amazingly well with their skill set. I still remember seeing them hook up at WrestleMania XX. Both have come a long way (duh). Cena sold really well tonight. I?m big on selling and realism.
More props goes to Undertaker. He had a great match with Vladimir Kozlov ? not something just anyone can do! Festus is now in a league with Undertaker as being the only two people to drag a good match out of the Moscow Mauler. I?m so excited to find out who will face Undertaker at WrestleMania. Even though Kozlov got the pin tonight which means we have no choice but for some Kozlov Mania interaction, I?d still like to see JUST Undertaker and HBK one on one. I don?t think I?m the only one who wants to see that either.
The Matt Hardy/Jeff Hardy ?match? was off the hook with intensity and emotion. Neither of them are the best promo cutters but they managed to make it feel real tonight. Matt Hardy is doing a really tremendous job as the heel and Jeff is doing a great job as being the brother trying to move on. They went this way in 1998 with Undertaker vs. Kane.
The Tag Team Championship match tonight was tremendous. I wish there were more tag teams but if I could watch a match between these guys once a week I?d be a happy guy. Or maybe a promo between the two teams. Either or. I?ll take it!
Here’s a wild idea ? since Raw isn?t having an Intercontinental Championship match (AGAIN!) why can?t Smackdown have a United States Championship match at WrestleMania? I know it would take Shelton Benjamin out of the MITB but it’s a necessary loss. The guy is so much more than a WrestleMania bump bunny. Let him prove his skills on the big stage with a guy who’s got some skill as well? like MVP!
All in all a tremendous Smackdown! The Smackdown portion of WrestleMania is going to be strong!
Final Smackdown Rating: ***
As always I?d love to hear some feedback from those who like the recap and those who don?t. How can it improve? Also, if you get a chance, check out the ECW recap this week. I took over for David Stephens who was sick on Tuesday. He?ll be back next week!
E-Mail ? MikeyT817@hotmail.com
Thanks for reading!