WWE Smackdown
January 2, 2009
East Rutherford, NJ
Report by: Mike Tedesco of WrestleView.com
Hello everyone and welcome to the first WWE recap of 2009. I hope you all had a fun and healthy New Year. As you all probably know I attended this and next week??’s Smackdown so be sure to check out Mike??’s Thoughts for some stories from the event. So without further adieu???
???Yes, sir, we promised you a great main event?????? The WWE video leads us into the show.
We open up 2009 with an all new Smackdown video showcasing the WWE Champion Jeff Hardy a little more. We then go to inside the IZOD Center where the crowd (including me!) is treated to a tremendous pyrotechnics display. I see me and Marianna in the crowd holding up her nice Jeff Hardy sign! Tonight??’s Main Event will be WWE Champion Jeff Hardy and his brother ECW Champion Matt Hardy facing Edge and Big Show!
Justin Roberts is in the ring and he introduces Smackdown??’s General Manager Vickie Guerrero. Vickie comes out smiling and waving to a chorus of boos from the Jersey crowd. JR and Tazz wish us a Happy New Year and welcome us to Smackdown during this.
Vickie gets in the ring and happily wishes us a Happy New Year which causes the audience to boo even more! She says that 2008 was really great (was it?) but 2009 will be really fun!
Speaking of the New Year, the Road to WrestleMania kicks off at the Royal Rumble. Vickie then states that in the Main Event of the Royal Rumble Jeff Hardy will defend his WWE Championship against her husband Edge! The crowd is not happy. Vickie then mentions that everyone is looking forward to the 30 man Royal Rumble Match. She says that the Smackdown superstars competing in the Royal Rumble will be announced later tonight! She then once again wishes us a Happy New Year and goes to leave the ring but is interrupted by Triple H??’s music, which gets a big pop!
Triple H gets into the ring smiling at Vickie and wishes her a Happy New Year. He says he knows this is her favorite holiday of the year because once again it??’s time for the Royal Rumble. He says he??’s excited and that??’s why he can???t wait to hear her say that his name is at the top of the list of Smackdown superstars in the Royal Rumble. Vickie says he???ll have to wait until later in the night like everyone else. Triple H says his problem is he??’s always been impatient, much like the crowd. He asks her if she really wants to wait because if the crowd doesn???t get what they want they tend to get a little unruly! He says they might start to follow her all around the town, to the hotel, to the Baskin Robbins, to the Blimpies, to the hot dog stand outside and they won???t let her rest because they???ll just keep chanting Triple H and then the crowd starts the chant! Triple H says that??’s the nice chant because if they really get going they???ll have a two word chant ??? SUCK IT!
Vickie says all she knows is if he keeps this up he won???t be in the Rumble! Triple H says that??’s a problem because if he??’s not entered into the Rumble then a Smackdown guy probably won???t win it and if a Smackdown guy doesn???t win it she???ll be seen as a weak General Manager. If that happens then chances are she???ll be fired and fall into obscurity! If that happens then nobody, and he means nobody, would buy this ??? Triple H now pulls out the official Vickie Guerrero action figure!
Vickie is beaming as he puts it next to her face and says it??’s very realistic. It??’s got the same vacant look on her face that says ???I???m in over my head,??? it??’s got the same designer clothes bought at the big girl??’s shop, and the same child bearing hips! Vickie then freaks out and says he??’s in the Rumble! Triple H thanks her and says that??’s all he wanted. Vickie says if that??’s all he has to say then she suggests he leave the ring right now!
Triple H goes to leave but says there is one little thing. He says it??’s embarrassing and he hates to admit it but earlier today he was playing with her doll. One thing led to another and the clothes came off and that??’s when he noticed it! He takes the clothes off the doll and shows that it??’s very busty and very slim! He says he noticed some things got much smaller and some things got much larger! However no matter how he looks at it her action figure is hot! Before he knew it he got carried away and went on the internet looking for ???information??? and that??’s when he found the nude photos!
Vickie then sheepishly says she never took nude photos! Triple H asks if she??’s sure because they???re out there on eBay! Vickie looks shocked and Triple H asks if she really didn???t know about it because he thought she was selling them! He said if he were her he???d get to the back because the auction ends in five minutes. He wishes her luck because he put a lot of money on them but he keeps getting outbid by someone named ???ChavoG2009!??? Vickie then runs out of the ring and Triple H mocks her by making her action figure say ???Excuse me!??? Thus ends this very interesting and funny segment!
Backstage The Great Khali is having a photo session with Finlay, Hornswoggle, and Ranjin Singh! Hornswoggle is going crazy. They???ll be teaming up next!
:::Commercial Break:::
An Umaga return promo plays. I can???t wait for him to come back to Smackdown!
Hawkins and Ryder are already in the ring. I can???t express to you the vast indifference the live crowd gave them on their way out to the ring during the break.
Hawkins & Ryder vs. Finlay & The Great Khali
After Finlay and Hornswoggle made their entrance Hornswoggle went under the ring.
The Great Khali will be starting the match out for his team against Curt Hawkins. Can you say ???mismatch???? JR is calling Ranjin Singh ???The Sultan of Sideburns??? and is calling the overall tag team ???Corned Beef and Curry.??? Not only is he a Hall of Fame announcer ??? he??’s a marketing genius.
The bell rings and the first match of 2009 is underway! Hawkins circles around Khali trying to decide which course of action is best to take and then runs up to him, hitting him with a forearm to the chest. This doesn???t faze Khali one bit. Hawkins then goes for a kick but Khali catches his leg and throws him back! Ryder then slaps Khali on the back from the apron so Khali brings him in over the top rope! Khali then takes Hawkins and Ryder and clunks their heads together! Finlay now distracts the referee as Hornswoggle runs in and does the same thing! Khali takes Hawkins and bounces his head off the top turnbuckle. He then tags in Finlay!
Khali holds Hawkins in the corner while Finlay hits a nasty forearm to the chest. Finlay brings him out to the middle of the ring and hits a European Uppercut! He then stomps on both of Hawkins??? hands and hits a nice body slam! Finlay then goes into the ropes and hits a painful looking seated senton. Finlay covers for a two count. Finlay now hits another European Uppercut and then picks him up for a stiff short-arm clothesline! Finlay goes to bounce Hawkins??? head off the turnbuckle but Hawkins reverses it on him! Finlay now rolls to the outside.
Hawkins goes to do a baseball slide but Finlay pulls the apron over him and pounds him with some forearms! I love that move! Finlay rolls him in the ring and KILLS Ryder with a clothesline on the outside when he goes to interfere! Hawkins is now able to hit his baseball slide on Finlay.
Hawkins gets Finlay in the ring and hits some stomps on him. He drives Finlay into his corner where Zach Ryder makes the tag. Ryder hits a running forearm to Finlay in the corner. What a double team move??? These guys seriously need some new material. Finlay slaps Ryder in the chest but Ryder is able to keep control with a snapmare and a chin lock. Finlay eventually fights up as Khali is getting the crowd into it. Ryder hits a knee to the midsection and sends Finlay into the corner. He charges but Finlay is able to get a boot in his face! Ryder keeps the momentum but driving him back into the corner and hitting a big forearm to the face. Ryder now sends Finlay into the corner but Finlay stops short and turns while Ryder is running and they clunk heads!
Finlay now is able to get to Khali and make the tag! Ryder tries to intercept him before he gets in the ring but Khali just pushes him away! Khali then gets in the ring and punches Ryder down. Khali hits a clothesline and sends Ryder into the corner. Hawkins tries to interfere but Khali back elbows him down! Khali then whips Hawkins into his partner in the corner and then hits the Brain Chop on him! Khali then takes Zach Ryder and hits the Punjabi Plunge on him, pinning him with one foot!
Winners by Pinfall: Finlay & The Great Khali
Match Rating: **
This was a fun match. Hornswoggle now runs in and starts assaulting Ryder! Finlay then body slams his son on top of him! Finlay now hits the Celtic Cross on Curt Hawkins and Hornswoggle hits the Tadpole Splash on him! Happy New Year Hawkins and Ryder! Hornswoggle now do-si-do??’s with everyone, including The Great Khali which was pretty humorous!
Our Main Event will be Jeff and Matt Hardy vs. Edge and Big Show. JR questions how Edge and Big Show will coexist with two different agendas.
:::Commercial Break:::
We now get an aerial shot of New York City. I guess that??’s better than East Rutherford where all you???d see is Giant??’s Stadium, the IZOD Center, and Medieval Times.
Eve Torres will now interview former Diva??’s Champion Michelle McCool. Eve says that last week she not only lost her championship but also her cool. We now get a look back at the not so McCool ending of the Diva??’s Championship match last week. Maryse wins the title after McCool was sidetracked yelling at Maria. McCool then attacks Maria after the match saying she cost her the championship. McCool sent Maria shoulder first into the ring post for those of you who missed it.
Eve then says she thought McCool and Maria were friends. McCool says they were friends and she thought her and Eve were friends! McCool then uses the classic heel line ???What about me???? What about her life? What about Michelle McCool? What about what she deserves? She says Maria is jealous and she intentionally cost her the championship last week. Eve tries to interject but McCool cuts her off saying she got exactly what she deserved!
Eve asks her what if she??’s wrong. McCool asks what if she is ??? is it any of Eve??’s business? Eve says they were friends and to mend this all she has to do is apologize to Maria. McCool says ???There you go thinking again??? and tells Eve to stick to what she does best and pushes her microphone towards her. McCool then walks off.
Backstage Edge is freaking out with Vickie Guerrero. Edge says it??’s so embarrassing having naked pictures of his wife on eBay. Big Show then says that he saw the pictures and they weren???t that bad! Vickie then runs off and Edge gets up saying that??’s his wife Show is talking about! Big Show then stands up and asks if he means the wife he hides behind ??? the wife that he gets to fight all his battles for him. Show says Edge is right ??? he should be embarrassed. Edge then says embarrassing is being knocked out by a flyweight at WrestleMania! Edge tells Big Show to knock out Jeff Hardy, go on to win the Royal Rumble, and go on to face him for the WWE Championship at WrestleMania!
Jesse and Festus??? music now hits and they make their way out to the ring. They???ll be in action next.
:::Commercial Break:::
Did you know that WWE is watched by more than 15 million people every week in the US? How generic ??? they mention that every few weeks. I hate that stuff.
Jesse and Festus are still in the ring. Jesse is talking to Festus but I don???t think he??’s listening. They???ll be facing The Brian Kendrick and Ezekiel Jackson.
Jesse & Festus vs. The Brian Kendrick & Ezekiel Jackson
The bell rings and Festus goes crazy, hitting The Brian Kendrick with a haymaker, knocking him down! He then hits Ezekiel with one and then The Kendrick with another! Festus goes to whip Ezekiel into the ropes but Ezekiel reverses it, sending Festus into them instead. Festus then knocks the big man down with a diving shoulder tackle! Festus now picks The Kendrick up by his hair and throws him into his corner. Festus hits an uppercut, a body slam, and then tags in Jesse!
Jesse comes in and Festus body slams him on top of The Kendrick! Jesse covers for a two count. Jesse bounces The Kendrick??’s head off the top turnbuckle and hits a stomp in the corner. Jesse hits a snapmare and locks on a variation of the chickenwing. The Kendrick takes his time getting up but eventually does, stomping on Jesse??’s feet when he does. He then elbows him in the midsection, goes into the ropes, and gets taken out with a back elbow from Jesse! Jesse covers for a near fall! Jesse bounces The Kendrick??’s head off the top turnbuckle and tags in Festus.
Festus comes in and Jesse Irish whips The Kendrick into his fist! Festus now gets the crowd into it and hits the Flying Biscuit! Festus goes to the corner and charges The Kendrick who is across the ring in the corner but The Kendrick gets a boot in his face. The Kendrick goes to the second rope and flies off getting caught by Festus who then drops him after apparently blowing out a knee or tearing his hamstring! The Kendrick now kicks Festus viciously a few times in the knee before being pushed off into Ezekiel Jackson! Bad move, Festus!
Ezekiel comes in and hits a chop block on Festus! Ezekiel grabs Festus??? leg and kicks him in the back of the knee a bunch of times before dropping an elbow on the joint. Ezekiel drops another elbow and wrenches his knee. Festus tries to fight out of it but can???t. Ezekiel then drags Festus to his corner and tags in The Kendrick.
The Kendrick jumps off the top rope with a stomp on Festus??? knee! The Kendrick hits a kick to the knee then a dropkick to the kneecap, sending Festus down. The Kendrick hits a kick and Festus shoves him off. The Kendrick does the same thing and Festus shoves him into the ropes, hitting a flapjack on him when he comes back! Festus then limps over to Jesse and makes the tag!
Jesse comes in and knocks The Kendrick down. Jesse then hits Ezekiel on the apron but doesn???t knock him off. Ezekiel tries to enter but is intercepted by the referee. Jesse hits an inverted atomic drop, goes into the ropes, and knocks The Kendrick down with a running forearm. Jesse whips him into the corner and hits a corner clothesline. Jesse sends him into the other corner and hits the clothesline again. Jesse hits The Kendrick with some more strikes in the corner before bringing him out to the center of the ring and hitting the Perry Saturn Moss Covered Family Credenza (Swinging Fisherman??’s Suplex). I figure any mention of Perry Saturn is worth it.
Anyway, Jesse covers for a one count as it was broken up by Ezekiel. Festus comes in for the save with some big punches but when he goes for a big boot Ezekiel moves and Festus??? bum knee is hung up on the top rope! Ezekiel then dumps him over the top rope. The Kendrick brings Jesse throat first onto the second rope. The Kendrick goes for The Kendrick but Jesse pushes him off into his corner where The Kendrick makes the blind tag to Ezekiel. I don???t know how blind it was as the referee clearly said ???Tag??? however the announcers played it off as if Jesse didn???t know when he hit a backdrop driver on The Kendrick. Ezekiel then surprises Jesse with the Standing Uranage and pins him for the win.
Winners by Pinfall: The Brian Kendrick & Ezekiel Jackson
Match Rating: * ??
Ezekiel has to wake up The Kendrick who didn???t even know they won it. JR questions if these two could be the next Tag Team Champions.
Still to come tonight ??? The Hardys vs. Edge and Big Show.
:::Commercial Break:::
Vladimir Kozlov is making his way to the ring. In the ring is Charles Robinson who I have a really nice story about in Mike??’s Thoughts. He??’s a hell of a guy.
Vladimir Kozlov vs. Hurricane Helms
The bell rings and there??’s a nice USA chant going on in the crowd. Hurricane is able to hit a quick kick to Kozlov but it doesn???t faze him. Hurricane goes for another but it??’s pushed away by the Moscow Mauler. Helms then gets around him and gets a waist lock but Kozlov turns and punches him twice hard in the abdomen before hitting a very nice Judo throw. Kozlov then locks on a key lock. Kozlov is very intense and is doing a great job of making this look extra painful.
Hurricane tries to fight up but Kozlov gets a knee in his midsection and sends him into the corner. Kozlov charges and Hurricane hits an uppercut! Hurricane hits Kozlov with three punches and goes for something but Kozlov just underhooks both arm and hits some head-butts to the chest. Kozlov then push kicks him down. Owned!
Kozlov picks him up and throws him into the corner. Kozlov hits some shoulder thrusts and is forced to back up by my favorite referee in the whole world Charles Robinson. Kozlov then kicks Hurricane in the chest. Kozlov hits a Sianagi Throw and puts the key lock on again. Hurricane fights up again and hits some knees to the midsection but Kozlov responds with one of his own and a forearm to the face, dazing Hurricane. Kozlov powers Hurricane onto his shoulders and dumps him across the top rope in the corner. Kozlov then kicks him in the chest and hits a fallaway slam!
Kozlov sends Hurricane into the ropes for the Battering Ram Head-Butt but Hurricane kicks him in the face instead! Hurricane hits a kick to the leg and then a dropkick, sending Kozlov down to a knee. Hurricane then goes for the Shining Wizard but gets murdered by a Battering Ram Head-Butt. Kozlov then hits his Chokeslam/Spinebuster combo and pins him for the easy win.
Winner by Pinfall: Vladimir Kozlov
Match Rating: *
Coming up next the Royal Rumble Match Participants from Friday Night Smackdown will be announced!
:::Commercial Break:::
We get another shot of New York City and Tazz mentions Eric Mangini isn???t here but JR is here in the ring. Thank God. Now if the Jets could only persuade Favre to retire and stay retired we might have a chance next season!
JR says in four weeks one of the most eagerly anticipated Pay Per Views of the year will be here ??? the 22nd Royal Rumble! In the Rumble thirty superstars from Raw, Smackdown, and ECW and the last man not going over the top rope will win the match and earn a Championship opportunity at WrestleMania 25 in Houston, Texas. JR says it is his honor to announce some of the Smackdown superstars participating in the Royal Rumble Match.
First man announced is the former Rumble winner Triple H! The largest athlete in the world will also be involved ??? The Big Show! Vladimir Kozlov will also be entered in as well as the United States Champion Shelton Benjamin. JR is going on but is cut off by Shelton Benjamin!
Benjamin gets in the ring and in JR??’s face. He asks what??’s wrong with JR. He says he??’s not supposed to introduce him as just a participant in the Royal Rumble. He should be announcing him as the odds on favorite to win the 2009 Royal Rumble. Benjamin then says with that little oversight in mind, unless JR wants to be the first man over the top rope, he suggests he leave now! JR does.
Benjamin holds up his United States Championship and tells everyone to take a good look at it. He??’s been the United States Champion for six months and still going strong. In 2009 he plans on realizing his ultimate goal of main eventing and leaving WrestleMania with the WWE Championship. There??’s a reason why he??’s called the Gold Standard ??? one is he??’s no joke. Two is because everyone else??’s abilities are compared against his and there is no one in the Royal Rumble that can compare with him. He doesn???t care if it??’s Randy Orton, Chris Jericho, Fit Finlay, or R-Truth. When it comes to comparison there is absolutely no one.
Benjamin continues on but a mysterious voice hits the loud speakers and says ???I think you forgot someone!??? A gong hits and the lights go out! When they come back on Undertaker is in the ring behind Benjamin!! Undertaker grabs him by the throat and hits a thunderous Chokeslam on the Gold Standard!! Undertaker hits his signature pose as the blue lights come on. That was an awesome moment live.
:::Commercial Break:::
A stupid Kizarny promo airs. I love the part where they show him getting his fingers trapped in a bear trap. It makes him look like a complete idiot, which he is. I have nothing but horrible things to say about him since watching his debut live. You???ll see later and in my thoughts. Kizarny says to ???Get ready for the show.??? Yeah, right.
Michelle McCool??’s music hits and she makes her way to the ring. She gets in and grabs a mic. She says earlier tonight a friend brought something to her attention. She says she??’s been thinking about it a lot and she??’s right ??? she owes Maria an apology. Maria can???t be here tonight and she knows that??’s because of her. She says she doesn???t know where Maria is or where she??’s at but she asks her to accept her apology. She says she??’s sorry.
McCool then says there??’s someone else that she needs to apologize to who may have been offended by her. She then asks Eve Torres to join her in the ring. Eve??’s music hits and she makes her way to the ring.
McCool says she feels horrible about how she??’s been acting lately and what she did to Maria last week she took out on her earlier and that??’s just not cool. She then says sorry and asks to be forgiven. The weak Eve says ???Of course??? and they embrace in the ring.
Eve then leaves and goes outside waving to the fans when she??’s hit from behind by Michelle McCool! McCool sends her chest first into the barricade. Luckily she??’s well padded in that area. McCool then puts her fingers in her mouth and starts ripping at her face! McCool takes her heels off and hits some weak looking stomps to her. I don???t get it ??? if she??’s a heel why would she take her heels off? I would think they would inflict even more pain.
Anyway, McCool is pulling her hair apart and then kicks Eve in the face as she cries. McCool then kicks her in the shoulder and bounces her head off the apron. McCool grounds and pounds her before doing the hair thing again. Eve is crying as McCool kicks her in the ribs. McCool then sends her shoulder first into the ring post and walks away looking nuts and unremorseful.
Backstage Vickie Guerrero is talking to Chavo Guerrero. She says he??’s on to something but she can???t believe the pictures are out there. She then says she can???t believe those pictures are out there and asks if he??’s seen them. Chavo goes on the defensive and says he hasn???t. He said he first heard about it when Triple H brought it up.
Triple H then comes in and Chavo gets in his face holding his chest, selling the sledgehammer attack from last week. Chavo says ???Triple H??? and Triple H says ???Gopher???. Chavo says if his chest didn???t hurt he???d ??? and he??’s cut off by Vickie. She asks Triple H if he thinks he can insult people wherever and whenever he wants. She demands an apology from him. He says he??’s not the one with nude photos online so he has no reason to be sorry!
Vickie then tells him he???ll be wrestling three times next week in a Tables Match, a Handicap Match, and a Last Man Standing Match! She says she??’s going to call it and Chavo says ???Triple Jeopardy!??? Vickie tells him to shut up and says ???Triple Jeopardy!??? The live crowd laughed but for some reason they edited in boos instead.
:::Commercial Break:::
MVP is in the ring. He looks completely dejected. He says whoever it is he??’s going to wrestle just bring him out and get this over with already. MVP is not a happy guy. I wouldn???t be either if I had to wrestle Kizarny, the idiot, who comes out to humungous indifference. They piped in fake cheers in the beginning but they couldn???t hold it forever. The silence is deafening.
MVP vs. Kizarny
The bell rings and Kizarny rushes towards MVP but instead of hitting him he just slides around him. Kizarny then approaches MVP all strange like. MVP goes for a back elbow but Kizarny puts his hands up. He then goes for a backslide pin but only gets a one count. I think Kizarny was supposed to hook the back elbow to immediately flow into the backslide pin but he??’s too inept for that. At this point in the live crowd I???m already not impressed.
The crowd is chanting for MVP as Kizarny hits two arm drags, a body slam, and a leg drop that missed by a mile. Kizarny then low dropkicks MVP out of the ring. Kizarny then hits a suicide dive on MVP. On the commentary Tazz is building Kizarny up as having a high threshold of pain. This guy is no Mick Foley. Kizarny kicks MVP in the ribs and puts him back in the ring.
Kizarny covers for a two count. Kizarny hits a stomp to the midsection and goes to the second rope. Kizarny hits a HORRIBLE crossbody for a two count. He hits some strange stomp and runs towards MVP who gets a shoulder in his midsection! MVP then throws him out of the ring!
MVP drops Kizarny face first on the barricade and bounces his head off the apron. MVP puts him back in the ring and covers for a two count! MVP hits some punches and drops an elbow on him. The crowd is happy with MVP. MVP gets a waist lock on him and we hear an MVP chant. After having it on for a while with Kizarny doing absolutely nothing to get the crowd into it we hear the BORING chants, from me included.
Kizarny gets to his feet and elbows out but gets a knee to the midsection from MVP! MVP hits a couple of knees to the midsection and shoves him down. MVP sends him into the ropes and hits a flapjack! He then drops a knee to the sternum and gets a two count! MVP locks on the waist lock again. Kizarny does zero to get the crowd into it. He elbows out, hits some punches, goes into the ropes, and is taken down by a HUGE overhead belly to belly suplex from MVP!
MVP goes to pick him up but Kizarny counters with a lame jawbreaker. MVP gets up and charges for the Drive By Kick but Kizarny took him down with a low dropkick to the knee. You can???t see it on TV but from where I was sitting he didn???t even touch him. Kizarny then hit some really dumb move that didn???t look threatening or tough at all as JR and Tazz continue to be underwhelmed on commentary, as does the Jersey crowd. Kizarny then bounces MVP??’s head off all three turnbuckles in the corner and stomps on his chest. The crowd is really turning on the match at this point and they didn???t even edit that out of the broadcast.
Kizarny drags MVP out to the middle of the ring and lays on his legs for the pin. MVP easily gets his shoulders up at two because they weren???t covered at all. What the hell kind of cover is that? I get they???re trying to make him unique (Keyword: trying) but does being unique mean trying your hardest not to get a win? This guy sizucks!
Kizarny goes for something but MVP gets a thrust to the throat! The crowd is now chanting for MVP as he goes for his Playmaker but Kizarny counters it and hits a Double Arm DDT and rolls through to cover him for the win. They piped in fake cheers. This match blizowed!!
Winner by Pinfall: Kizarny
Match Rating: NO STARS
MVP sits dejected in the ring, not selling Kizarny??’s finisher and rightfully so!
Mr. Kennedy??’s music hits and he comes out smiling. He stands at the top of the stage and says MVP just got whooped or ???wiz-ooped???. Kennedy tells him to not worry and let that roll off his back. He tells him to smile and laugh and get Behind Enemy Lines: Columbia which comes out January 6th. This message has been brought in part, no in full, by MISTER KENNEDY! He let the crowd say KENNEDY!
Coming up next is our Main Event featuring Matt and Jeff Hardy taking on Edge and Big Show.
:::Commercial Break:::
We get another shot of New York City and our Main Event gets built up again. They then promote Triple H??’s ???Triple Jeopardy???. He???ll compete in a Tables Match, a Handicap Match, and a Last Man Standing Match! The opponents will be determined by the General Manager! Also next week it will be Carlito and Primo defending their Tag Team Championships against The Brian Kendrick and Ezekiel Jackson!
Edge??’s music now hits and it??’s Main Event time! Edge gets in the ring and is booed by everyone except my friend Lisa. Edge says naked pictures or not we will respect his wife and we???ll also respect him! The crowd boos and he says we???ll have to because after the Royal Rumble he???ll be the WWE Champion for the SEVENTH time! He says instead of respecting him we???ll probably just blame him because we blame him for everything. Just last year we saw a poor defenseless lonely woman and we thought he was taking advantage of her however lo and behold he??’s still in love with Vickie Guerrero! They???re still married and he??’s still the love of her life! More recently we blamed him for taking Jeff Hardy out of the Survivor Series! Never mind the fact that Jeff Hardy is a SCREWUP! Edge says to point the blame at him. Edge says when this embarrassing and juvenile period of WWE history known as Jeff Hardy as WWE Champion ends then BLAME HIM!
:::Commercial Break:::
Edge is in the ring ready for the Main Event. Big Show is out next and he comes out smiling. Big Show patted Edge on the back half-heartedly. Matt Hardy now makes his entrance to a big pop from the crowd. He??’s followed by his brother, the WWE Champion, Jeff Hardy, who comes out to one of the biggest pops of the night!
Edge & Big Show vs. Matt Hardy & Jeff Hardy
Jeff Hardy??’s face is painted completely red with some other interesting designs on it. The Hardy brothers clunk their World Championship belts together!
The bell rings and it???ll be Edge and Matt Hardy starting the match out for their teams. They stall before locking up. They try to push one another back but it??’s a stalemate. Matt Hardy then hits an arm drag on Edge! Edge rolls frantically to the corner and stares down Matt Hardy.
They lock up again and Edge gets Matt in the corner. The referee forces the clean break but at the last second Edge goes for a wild punch! Matt ducks it and takes Edge down with another arm drag! Edge quickly gets to the corner again! The crowd is chanting for the Hardys!
They lock up for a third time and this time Matt Hardy twists the left arm of Edge. Hardy gets a hammerlock on Edge but Edge is able to get out of it and counter with a hammerlock of his own! Edge gets a side headlock and Matt counters out of it with a nice back suplex! Matt makes the tag to his brother Jeff!
The Hardy Boys whip Edge into the ropes and hit a double back elbow to his face. They then hit the Spin Cycle which consists of Matt dropping a fist and Jeff summersaulting on Edge??’s chest! They then double dropkick Big Show??’s legs, sending him off the apron! Edge now charges them and they back body drop him over the top rope onto Big Show who catches him and gently places him down! They regroup as we go to our final commercial!
:::Commercial Break:::
We come back from the break to see Edge punching Jeff Hardy down to the mat. Edge then illegally puts Jeff??’s throat over the second rope and pushes down. He breaks the hold at the referee??’s three count. During the break Jeff Hardy had an Irish whip reversed on him and the Big Show pulled him down from the apron.
Back in live action Edge hits a stomp on Jeff Hardy. Edge hits another punch and goes to bounce Jeff??’s head off the top turnbuckle but Jeff blocks it and hits Whisper in the Wind!! Jeff covers for a two count!! Jeff tags in his brother Matt.
Matt comes in and hits a hard punch to Edge. He hits a body slam and climbs to the top rope, missing a moonsault! Edge pulls himself up and tags in the powerful Big Show!
Big Show throws Matt into the corner and slaps his chest hard! Big Show head-butts him and hits another slap to the chest! I wasn???t too far away from the ring but I could hear that from my seats. OUCH! Big Show hits a nice suplex and an elbow drop for a two count. Matt goes to tag his brother but Big Show drags him away by the seat of his pants and throws him into his corner where he tags in Edge.
Edge hits a punch to Hardy and throws him down and out of his corner. Edge taunts the crowd and hits some more punches to Matt. Edge illegally chokes Matt on the ropes and then hits a crossbody into Matt Hardy, still prone on those ropes. He gets a two and a half count for that! Edge now locks in a grounded abdominal stretch! Jeff is on the apron doing everything he can to get the crowd into it and succeeds! Matt gets up and elbows out! He goes into the ropes and gets taken down by Edge with the Kitchen Sink! Edge tags in Big Show!
Big Show picks Matt up and elbows his shoulder. He then wraps Matt??’s arm around the top rope and tugs hard at it! Big Show then wrenches Matt??’s arm and lifts him high up in the air before dumping him to the mat! Big Show puts him in his corner and slaps his chest HARD! Big Show then hits some hard body shots and tags in Edge.
Big Show head-butts Matt Hardy down and Edge covers for a two and a half count! Matt Hardy goes for the tag but Edge gets a front face lock on him, keeping him controlled. Edge controls him more with a body scissors and tries to pin him shoulders but can???t. Jeff Hardy is on the apron going nuts to get the tag! Matt Hardy gets to his feet and lifts Edge up, moving closer to his brother! He back body drops Edge off but Edge still hangs on! Matt and Jeff are centimeters away from making the tag but Edge pulls him down for a pin and a two count! Matt quickly pops up and Edge quickly clotheslines him down! Edge covers for a two count!
Edge now has Matt Hardy in a hammerlock on the ground. Jeff Hardy is going crazy trying to get the crowd into it. The crowd is chanting for the Hardys and Matt is able to get up and punch out of the move! Matt goes into the ropes and gets taken down with a big boot!
At this point Big Show now gets off the apron and walks to the back! Edge can???t believe what??’s going on! Matt Hardy now hits a right hand and goes for another but it??’s blocked by Edge who goes for the Edgecution but Matt twists out of that and goes for the Twist of Fate but Edge counters that into an Edge-U-Cater for a CLOSE two and a half count!!
Edge is now frustrated and lines Matt up for a Spear. Edge goes for it and gets a kick in the face from Matt Hardy! Edge charges and gets hit with the Side Effect! Matt Hardy rolls over to his brother and makes the tag!!
Jeff Hardy comes in like a house on fire and forearms him down! He goes into the ropes and repeats the move! He hits an inverted atomic drop and hits a double leg drop to the groin! Jeff hits a low dropkick and covers for a two and a half count!
Jeff tags Matt in and they double whip Edge into the corner! They hit Poetry in Motion on Edge! Matt then clotheslines Edge in the corner and connects with a bulldog! Matt Hardy hits Edge with a Twist of Fate and tags in Jeff Hardy who hits a Swanton Bomb!!! Jeff pins Edge to win this terrific match!!!
Winners by Pinfall: Matt Hardy & Jeff Hardy
Match Rating: ***
The Hardy Boys raise up their Championship Belts as the New Jersey crowd cheers them on to end this New Year??’s edition of Smackdown!
Quick Match Results
Finlay & The Great Khali* def. Hawkins & Ryder*
The Brian Kendrick & Ezekiel Jackson* def. Jesse* & Festus
Vladimir Kozlov def. Hurricane Helms
Kizarny def. MVP
Jeff Hardy* & Matt Hardy def. Edge* & Big Show
Bump of the Night: Finlay clotheslining Ryder on the outside!
Match of the Night: The Hardys def. Edge & Big Show ***
Mike??’s Thoughts
What a show this was! If you thought it was good on TV I assure you it was even better live (save for that Kizarny match)! Smackdown kicked things off for 2009 in a huge way in my home state of New Jersey! I have lots of notes on the event as well as opinions, of course!
Marianna and I got to the arena early so we didn???t have to wait on line and maybe we could meet some wrestlers before the show. We forgot that we???d be spending a few hours outside in the freezing cold weather so that was a drawback. This was her first show so she was really excited and made some signs ??? one for Jeff Hardy and one for our favorite referee Charles Robinson!
After talking with some WWE crew guys we went to wait for the doors to open at 5:45. We were waiting since 5:15 (one of the first on line) and when 5:45 rolled around they wouldn???t let us in! They waited until 6:15 and by that point a lynch mob was ready to take the guards out. Boo to the IZOD Center Security Guards especially to Event Staff 430. I hate you man.
When we got in the arena we saw we had really good seats. We got comfortable and then I spotted Charles Robinson at ringside doing something. I shouted over to him and he saw us holding up a sign so he came over the barricade to come talk with us. He??’s a hell of a nice guy! He even picked up my cell phone when I dropped it. He took a few pictures with us and we showed him the sign. He was really appreciative. I???m just glad he took the time to talk to us. He then went to the back shortly after. Later in the night during a commercial break he told Justin Roberts about our sign and he pointed over to me and Marianna. It was cool because I think half the arena looked our way. I???m still a complete mark after all these years.
The dark match was R-Truth vs. Ryan Braddock. This new look that we???ve been hearing about online for Ryan Braddock isn???t much of a look. They guy doesn???t have a good look to him at all. All they did was shorten his hair and put jeans on him. He doesn???t look like a star. Maybe there??’s something there but I just don???t see it. R-Truth sucks live too. If you think you can???t understand his raps on TV, try sitting in the live crowd. It??’s horrible. R-Truth of course won.
Now I???ll just start skipping over some things. They didn???t change anything from this show. It went off with out a hitch. No re-dos or botched moves. Just a botched match… Kizarny! Next week??’s event does have a redone spot so be sure to check out my thoughts then!
Jeff Hardy is awesome. I don???t know if I???ve said that before. Watching him team with his brother is even more awesome. They???re great together. I???m interested in Jeff Hardy vs. Edge at the Royal Rumble. Does Jeff have what it takes? Will he be screwed? It??’s an interesting matchup.
Was I right or was I right about Kizarny? That guy blizowed! Everything about the match was horrible. His moves were horrible, his music was horrible, and his psychology was horrible. Everything. I can???t say enough about this guy and none of it is good. Just a disastrous debut for an overhyped wrestler. Change the gimmick or just fire him all together. If you don???t like Edge then Kizarny is one more reason not to like him ??? he??’s friends with Edge. How do you think a talentless pig like him got a job? Edge is a tremendous wrestler ??? Kizarny??? not so much.
Quick question: What ever happened to Festus??? infatuation with Maria? That was dropped. I guess it was a Bruce Prichard storyline.
I like where they???re going with a potential Big Show and Edge feud. I guess they???re turning Big Show face soon. He walks out on Edge in the Main Event and they???re implying Big Show had relations with Vickie while Edge was away. It??’s interesting and I???d like to see it develop more.
It??’s a shame about Hurricane Helms. How does he go from a legitimate challenger for the United States Championship to a jobber in a span of a week? Come on, WWE. The guy went through over a year??’s worth of rehab on his neck and you can???t even keep his push going for a month? That??’s sad.
The MVP thing is starting to click. The Jersey crowd was really behind him in his match with Kizarny although I???m not sure they wanted us to be just yet. Regardless it??’s time for MVP to start stepping up again! He rules!
The Michelle McCool heel turn is OK but I just have trouble buying a Diva as being really bad especially someone like her. The live crowd wasn???t really that into it each time and they spent half the time saying WHAT during her promo. That was edited out. I???m not sure how they can go about a heel turn for her but this isn???t really working well. Maybe if there were other powerful Diva??’s on Smackdown that were good that could counter her heel-ish attitude it could work. Heel Trish would never have worked without face Lita. Turn Natalya face or Victoria or, better yet, both!
The Undertaker segment was amazing live. I wasn???t expecting him to be in the ring. Another complete mark out for me.
All in all it was a great episode of Smackdown. Of the two tapings this was the weakest but alone it is actually really good. Next week??’s will be even better so I suggest you all watch it. Would I steer you wrong ever?
Final Smackdown Rating: ***
As always I???d love to hear from all fans of the recap ??? those who loved it and even those who didn???t. Even if you just want to talk wrestling I???m game!
I???m playing around with the idea of doing Power Rankings much like Hunter Golden and Dave Stephens do. Any thoughts? Is it even worth it? You be the judge!
E-Mail ??? MikeyT817@hotmail.com
Thanks for reading!