Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championships: The Usos VS The Brawling Brutes (Sheamus and Butch)
SmackDown started with the Usos defending their tag team championships against the Brawling Brutes’ Sheamus and Butch. This was a pretty competitive contest were all four men got in their offense. Sheamus has been on a role for about 3 years now and Butch has such a unique style in the ring. When it comes to the Usos, they are operating on a whole different level right now and they do such a good job at making everyone else look better. The ending saw Solo Sikoa take Ridge Holland out on the outside before the Usos hit the 1D onto Butch to retain their championships. It’s also worth mentioning that Sami Zayn held Sheamus’ leg meaning he couldn’t get into the ring to break up the pinfall. A solid start to the show.
Grade: B
LA Knight wants justice, Legado Del Fantasma VS The Viking Raiders
Kurt Angle was walking backstage and alongside him was fellow Olympic Gold Medallist Gable Steveson. Braun Strowman wished Angle a happy birthday before he told Steveson that he could get these hands once he was done learning at the PC. I don’t want to see that match. LA Knight then came out and showed different clips from when he was being attacked. He then highlighted the fact that there was a man in a mask standing in the background which he believed to be Bray Wyatt. Uncle Howdy then came on the screen and said some eerie stuff before Mr. Knight went to the back looking for Wyatt. This was alright, it furthered their story a bit and there is more to come later.
Grade: C+
We cut to a parking lot promo from earlier on in the night featuring Legado Del Fantasma. Before Santos could really say anything, the camera quickly panned to the background where Ronda Rousey and Shayna Baszler were attacking Shotzi’s arm. We then came back to live pictures to see Kayla Braxton interviewing Rousey and Baszler who said Shotzi slipped. Liv Morgan and Tegan Nox both came up to them and after a bit of back and forth talking, a match between the two teams was announced. We then got a match between Legado Del Fantasma and the Viking Raiders, sort of. The Raiders were on top for most of this short match whilst Zelina Vega was on commentary. The most memorable part of this was Wade Barrett complementing how Vega smelt. After a few minutes, Hit Row’s music hit and Ashante “Thee” Adonis and Top Dolla attacked the two teams with some chairs. B-Fab also got a bit of offense on Valhalla (FKA Sarah Logan) before she threw her into Zelina Vega. Even though this wasn’t the greatest segment, the idea was good. We now have 3 teams that can all showcase what they’ve got and eventually, the team that comes out on top should get a shot at the Usos. Also, all 3 teams have a female in their group too so you can even do a triple threat match between the women. Or even a nine-person tag team match. If executed a bit better, this good be a really good part of Friday Night SmackDown.
Grade: C
Intercontinental Championship Contract Signing, Imperium VS Ricochet and the New Day
LA Knight was walking backstage looking for Bray Wyatt. He walked into a room, the lights turned off and when he turned around, the man with the mask was in there. Nobody’s seen the megastar since! Kurt Angle was backstage in his birthday party and his guests were Madcap Moss, Emma and Shinsuke Nakamura. All of a sudden, Jason Jordan walked in with a “number 1 Dad card”. I don’t know if this was brilliant or awful. Ricochet then came out as it was now time for him to sign the contract with Gunther for next weeks Intercontinental Championship match. The New Day quickly came out to makes sure that Imperium didn’t jump the One and Only and after everything was signed, we got ourselves a six-man tag team match. This was a solid encounter, all six men are excellent. Ricochet was positioned to look like a genuine threat to Gunther’s reign whilst the Ring General’s chops are in contention for the most simple, yet most ridiculous moves. The New Day are an amazing tag team and they did a good job showcasing why you should watch them in their match with Pretty Deadly on NXT Deadline and Imperium’s Ludwig Kaiser and Giovanni Vinci are not just great in-ring wrestlers, the way they act makes them feel like stars. In the end, Kofi Kingston hit the trouble in paradise onto Kaiser before Ricochet hit his shooting star press to get the win. Is Ricochet going to beat Gunther next week? Definetly not. Will the mix of Ricochet’s pure talent and the Chicago crowd getting behind him make people think that he could win at different moments in next weeks match? It’s entirely possible.
Grade: B
Building feuds, Ronda Rousey and Shayna Baszler VS Tegan Nox and Liv Morgan
We cut back to Kurt Angle’s birthday party and the Alpha Academy showed up. Chad Gable insisted that they were on the list but they weren’t and when the Street Profits walked in because they were on the list, Master Gable was not happy. The Bloodline were then celebrating backstage before Jey Uso spoke to Sami about cutting his hair and beard. I’m wondering if Sami’s cutting it for charity so this was a way of getting it included in the storyline. Either way, it will be weird to see Sami without long hair if he shows up with a new look next week. Rey Mysterio was sitting in the trainers room before Karrion Kross and Scarlett came up to him. Quite peacefully, Kross sat down and told Mysterio a story about Scarlett’s upbringing before he made it clear that he was going to end Rey’s career. This looks like a pretty decent way to get Karrion Kross back into the win column.
Grade: C+
It was then time for our last match of the night as the SmackDown Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey teamed up with her best friend Shayna Baszler to take on the team of Liv Morgan and Tegan Nox. Before this match, we got a video package showcasing the struggles and the setbacks Tegan has had to go through. They showed two of her career threating knee-injuries, she’s had a third one as well. This was an alright match but one that Rousey and Baszler dominated for most parts. That’s not particually a bad thing but it would have been nice to have seen some more offense from the returning Nox and the over babyface Morgan. Anyway, Raquel Rodriguez came out still wearing her awesome looking arm brace and officials had to stop her from getting into physical contact with Rousey. Whilst the Champ and the referee was distracted, Nox rolled in, hit the Shiniest Wizard onto Baszler which meant Morgan was able to pick up the win. Story wise, this was alright. Rousey and Rodriguez is clearly the feud WWE wants to do and also, Morgan and Nox’s win means they have a shot at Damage Control next week. That’s cool but I would have preferred a longer told story, particually given the history between Tegan Nox and Dakota Kai.
Grade: C+
Kurt Angle’s Birthday Celebration
After a quick video showcasing Lacey Evans training, it was time for Kurt Angle’s birthday bash. Alpha Academy quickly came out and said that for once, they agreed with the crowd. They agreed that Kurt Angle sucks. After some more comedic lines from Gable, Kurt Angle left but from nowhere, Gable Steveson came in on a milk truck and this allowed the Gold Medallists to throw milk into the Alpha Academy’s faces. Overall, this wasn’t very good at all. The Alpha Academy are great, Gable and Otis are genuinely really funny. However, the whole milk thing wasn’t needed to be repeated. 1, because it was never going to be as good. 2, because it’s pretty disgusting. Also, Gable Steveson has no character what so ever, he should really join up with his brother and practice his craft on NXT. Let’s hope they never do this again.