Coverage

Mitchell’s WWE SmackDown Results & Report! (4/30/21)

A golden Friday night!

Published

3 years ago

April 30, 2021

Steven Mitchell

Is this the last SmackDown for Daniel Bryan?

Roman Reigns is giving Daniel Bryan one last chance at the WWE Universal Championship. But if the Goat doesn’t win it this time, he is BANISHED from SmackDown!

OFFICIAL RESULTS

Six Person Tag: Bianca Belair & The Street Profits VS Bayley & The Dirty Dawgs; Belair & the Profits win.
Nia Jax & Shayna Baszler w/ Reginald VS Natalya & Tamina; Natalya & Tamina win.
WWE Intercontinental Championship: Apollo Crews w/ Commander Azeez VS Big E; Big E wins by disqualification, Crews retains the title.
WWE Universal Championship: Roman Reigns w/ Paul Heyman VS Daniel Bryan; Reigns wins and retains the title, Bryan must leave SmackDown.

PLAY BY PLAY

Bianca Belair is here!

The strongest, the fastest, the roughest, the toughest and the newest SmackDown Women’s Champion is opening the show and has the fans fired up on their ThunderDome screens. “Ladies and gentlemen! As the EST of WWE, and your SmackDown Women’s Champion, it is my pleasure to welcome you to the coolEST, the dopEST, the hottEST show on Fox, Friday Night SmackDown!” And now, put your hands together for- The Dirty Dawgs? Dolph Ziggler says they need to kick the night off right! Robert Roode says the SmackDown Tag Team Champions will take it from here! They are the best at what they do, and that’s- get interrupted by the Street Profits!

Montez Ford & Angelo Dawkins walk out and they know this is SmackDown, but did the Dirty Dawgs just interrupt THE main event of WrestleMania? They most definitely did, fam. But you know what that means, right? It means BAYLEY interrupts the Profits! Bayley doesn’t care who’s the champion or the main event, she gets in the ring and in Bianca’s face to snatch her mic away! Bayley laughs at the looks on everyone’s faces, and then Bianca SLAPS her! Bayley tackles Bianca, the Dawgs and the Profits start brawling! We’re about to have a Six Person Tag, but it’s chaos as SmackDown goes to break!

Next week, SmackDown goes back in time!

Fox is putting on a #ThrowbackWeek so WWE is getting in on the act! What will Friday Night SmackDown look like after traveling back over 30 years?!

Six Person Tag: Bianca Belair & The Street Profits VS Bayley & The Dirty Dawgs!

SmackDown returns and Bianca is throwing hands on Bayley! Bayley hits back, they trade shots, and Bianca ROCKS Bayley! Bianca then catches Bayley for chicken wings but Bayley fights with elbows. Bayley stomps Bianca’s foot, but Bianca scoops! Bayley slips out, shoves and CLOBBERS Bianca! Bayley talks smack but slides into a ghost pin! TWO, and Bianca CLOBBERS Bayley! Bianca says kiss this, then runs and handsprings. Bayley deflects the dropkick to then drop elbows and fists! Cover, ONE! Bayley gets Bianca up, whips her to a corner, but Bianca goes up and over and comes back to dropkick Bayley down! Bianca kips up and dares Bayley to come back, but Bayley tags Ziggler.

Ziggler and Bianca circle, but this is still a Mixed Six so Dawkins POUNCES Ziggler! Tag to Ford, the Profits whip and dropkick Ziggler down! Then Roode runs in, for a DOUBLE FLAPJACK! Dawkins clotheslines himself and Roode out, Bianca intercepts Bayley, and Ford builds speed! Ford FLIES and takes out the Dawgs! Bianca coaches her husband on and he gets Ziggler in the ring. But Bayley RAMS Bianca into steel steps! Ford is concerned for his wife and turns around into a SUPERKICK from Ziggler! Ziggler hurries after Ford but Ford falls out of the ring! Ziggler fetches Ford, gets him up and in, and stalks him to the corner.

Tag to Roode, the Dawgs double whip Ford to a corner, then Ziggler whips for Roode to whip him, BIG corner splash! Feed to Roode for a GLORIOUS URENAGE! Cover, TWO!! Ford survives but Roode drops elbows and stomps Ford down. Roode taunts Ford’s corner, then puts Ford on ropes to choke and go after the eyes! The ref counts, Roode backs off, but Bayley gets a cheap shot in! Roode stomps Ford at the ropes, then tags in Ziggler. The Dawgs double suplex, Ziggler covers, TWO! Ford is still in this but Ziggler smothers him with a sleeper hold! Ford endures, crawls around, and Dawkins coaches him while fans rally.

Ford gets up, arm-drags Ziggler away, but staggers to an open corner to get another SPLASH! Ziggler gets cocky and takes aim, but Ford SUPERKICKS first! Both men are down and while Bayley panics, Bianca is fired up! Fans rally on their screens as both men crawl to get past each other. Hot tags to Roode and Dawkins! Dawkins ROCKS Roode, ducks and dodges to hit a FLYING ELBOW! Ziggler returns to get an EXPLODER! Dawkins hits the CYCLONE on Roode, then hits the BULLDOG! Double underhooks for the CASH OUT! Cover, Ziggler breaks it! Bianca gets in and stalks Ziggler, to fireman’s carry him! Ziggler flails but Bianca tosses him to DECK Bayley!

Bianca gets Bayley up, torture rack for the KISS OF DEATH! Dawkins runs at Roode but Roode BOOTS him! Roode runs to O’Conner roll, with tights! Bianca gives Roode a WHIPLASH! The ANOINTING from Dawkins, tag to Ford, springboard FROM THE HEAVENS!! Cover, Bianca & The Profits win!

Winners: Bianca Belair & The Street Profits, by pinfall

It’s takeback season, but you best bet Bianca won’t let Bayley get the gold at Backlash! Will the Profits be up and get the tag titles back from Ziggler & Roode?

Backstage interview with Daniel Bryan!

Tonight, he gambles being banned from SmackDown in order to get the WWE Universal Championship. How does that weigh on his mind? Bryan is at peace, but maybe Roman is worried. It’s Roman’s title on the line. But this is what Bryan has always wanted: a fair fight 1v1 with Roman. Bryan tapped Roman out before, he’ll do it again. And if Bryan wins and gets to put the belt on the line, he’ll face someone who has waited far, far, FAR too long in Cesaro. Will Bryan win it all when it’s all on the line?

SmackDown superstars speak on tonight’s huge main event!

Seth Rollins laughs and says, “Isn’t that sweet? Little Daniel Bryan thinks he’s gonna beat Roman Reigns, and give his buddy, Cesaro, first crack at the Universal Championship.” Rollins’ prediction is very simple. Or, well, he does have history with Roman Reigns, but his prediction for the match IS that Bryan win sin one of the biggest upsets of all time. And as far as Cesaro goes, he won’t get a crack at the title because he won’t make it past next week! That is a challenge from Rollins to the Swiss Cyborg! Is Cesaro ready to take another swing?

Nia Jax, Shayna Baszler, and Reginald, arrive backstage.

Megan walks over and brings up that they’re facing- They know who they’re facing, Megan! Oh, then how do they feel about Tamina & Natalya getting wins over them in singles matches? What does she not get about the words “singles competition?” These two are the WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions, and if you don’t know the difference, you’re going to see what it means. Nia is sick of the disrespect- Natty jumps Shayna and throws her into pipes, then Tamina does the same to Nia! Their match is NEXT!

Nia Jax & Shayna Baszler w/ Reginald VS Natalya & Tamina!

The Irresistible Force and Queen of Spades were about to say they are fed up with the disrespect from the would-be contenders on Raw and SmackDown, but there’s little “would-be” when it comes to the Queen of Harts and Daughter of Superfly! Will Natty & Tamina make it clear who’s coming for the belts next?

The teams sort out, Tamina starts with Nia and the two rush each other! Tamina sends Nia into buckles then SUPERKICKS her in the back! Nia is in the drop zone and Tamina climbs! Shayna rushes over but Tamina DECKS her! Tamina is up top, for the SUPERFLY!! ONTO KNEES! Nia tags Shayna and drags Tamina up, they combine for a KNEE SIDEWALK SLAM! Cover, TWO! Tamina gets up, Shayna kicks her back down! Shayna drags Tamina up to CLUB her down and rain down fists! Shayna drags Tamina back up, Tamina shoves her away but Shayna ROCKS her! Tag to Nia, Shayna KNEES Tamina then Nia SPLASHES! Cover, TWO! Tamina isn’t giving up just yet!

Nia drags Tamina up by her hair to throw her back down. Nia vents about being attacked from behind, and then stands on Tamina’s head at the ropes. Nia lets off as the ref counts, and she drags Tamina back up. Tamina throws forearms and ROCKS Nia! Tamina shoves and scoops but falls over! Nia makes it a cover, TWO! Nia drags Tamina back up, talks trash, and then tags Shayna. Tamina fights both champs off, throwing big elbows and forearms! Shayna gest around, spins Tamina and goes after the arm with a double wristlock! But Tamina scoops and SLAMS Shayna down! Both women crawl, but Nia isn’t there! Hot tag to Natty!

Natty dodges Shayna’s knee, scoops her, but Shayna slips out! Natty arm-drags to a DISCUS! Cover, TWO! Reggie checks on Nia, Natty gets Shayna up tow hip., Shayna reverses but Natty gets around to GERMAN SUPLEX! Cover, TWO! Natty gets the legs, steps through, but Shayna kicks her away! Shayna ROCKS Natty and fires off strikes! Shayna runs, Nia tags in, Shayna KNEES and Nia drops an elbow! Cover, TWO!! Natty scrambles away in a hurry, dodges Nia and Nia POSTS herself! Tag to Tamina and she BOOTS Nia down! Tamina climbs again, Reggie gets involved but Tamina SWATS him! Natty gets Reggie but Shayna gets Natty!

Shayna throws Natty over the desk! Shayna gets up but Tamina swipes at her! Nia HEADBUTTS Tamina, then tags Shayna in! Shayna hurries up top, gets Tamina’s arm, but Tamina resists the superplex! Tamina turns things around to HEADBUTT Shayna! Shayna is in the drop zone, Tamina stands and SUPERFLY! Cover, Tamina & Natty win!!

Winners: Natalya & Tamina, by pinfall

They’ve pinned the champions!! The titles weren’t on the line tonight, and that is the only thing that saves Nia & Shayna! Will the dominant champions be dominant no more?

More superstars share their predictions for tonight’s main event!

WWE Hall of Famer Booker T predicts that in Roman VS Bryan for the title is Roman Reigns. Can you did that, SUCKAAA?!

The King of Strong Style, Shinsuke Nakamura, says that Daniel Bryan will win! But if Roman does beat Bryan, well, he’s escaped Nakamura once. The King will be waiting.

Backstage interview with Rey & Dominik Mysterio!

The father and son of Lucha have been on quite the roll, will a tag title opportunity be in their future? Dom says it is very exciting! When he was younger, he thought Rey was a superhero! He’s a two-time world champion and four-time tag team champion. There’s no one Dom would rather fight for those tag titles with than Rey. Rey says his accomplishments are great, but nothing would be better than this chance to make history as the first-ever father-son tag team champions in the WWE! That’s legendary!

Aleister Black shares another chapter of his story.

“You look at me, you judge me, and you make assumptions. Because this is the true nature of man. And I’ve always lived in this reality.” Chapter 2: Reality. “In high school, people like school littered the halls. You were so unaware, lost in the concept of successive adoration that you had been fed. The date to the prom, the right college, the three bedroom house with a white picket fence, building your life on a foundation of lies! Imagine thinking any of that is real! Imagine falling for that trap!” Father never fed Aleister those dreams. Aleister was given the truth. “And the truth is, there is something horribly wrong with all of that, and all of you.”

Aleister takes a few breaths before he says he could help us, and give us “the keys to escape,” but he won’t. He slams the book shut. Will he slam this reality of lies shut on all of us?

Backstage interview with Big E!

Ever since losing the Intercontinental Championship at WrestleMania, Megan is sure he’s changed his strategy. Oh, Megan. Big E’s been all around the world, and all around the world, it’s the same song! “What will you do in your rematch with Apollo Crews?! How will you ever overcome the oh-so-formidable Commander Azeez!?” Apollo and Big E have been around and around and around, but tonight it all stops! Tonight, Big E gets his baby back! He’ll sit his baby in the passenger seat, buckle her in, close the door and head north because tonight, Big E becomes the THREE-TIME Intercontinental Champion! And you’ve got to feel that!!

WWE teams up with Make A Wish once more!

Word Wish Day is coming, so donate and help someone’s wish come true at wish.org/wwe!

More superstars give their main event predictions!

Xavier Woods says “people like Roman, who had the keys to the kingdom handed to them the moment they walked in the door” have no idea about the struggle. But a guy like Bryan, who has been and is still fighting, gets that complete. That means 1v1, Bryan wins. Kofi Kingston adds that Roman VS Bryan, normally Kofi goes for Bryan because no one overcomes odds more than Bryan. But Roman has his Right Hand Man, Jey Uso, who has been a wingman since day one. Kofi goes with Roman.

WWE Intercontinental Championship: Apollo Crews w/ Commander Azeez VS Big E!

Time and time again, the rising star failed to take this title from the Powerhouse of Positivity. But once Apollo stopped rising and simply stood as his true self, he got this title at WrestleMania. But will this big match be even bigger than the Grandest Stage of Them All inside the ThunderDome?

SmackDown returns as Apollo makes his entrance, with Big E waiting right on the apron. Introductions are made, the belt is raised, and one way or another, this battle for this battle ends!

The two tie up right at the bell, they go around the ring, and Big E puts Apollo in a corner, but Apollo turns it around. Apollo lets off, the two go again, and Apollo waistlocks. Big E throws Apollo off and Apollo gets right up, but Big E swivels at him. They go again, Big E waistlocks but Apollo switches. Big E pries free to throw Apollo again! Big E rushes in but Apollo headlocks. Big E powers out, things speed up, and Big E hurdles to catch Apollo to a cobra twist! Big E clamps a claw into the ribs, and Apollo endures as Big E CLUBS him in the side again and again! Big E shoves Apollo to ropes then CLOBBERS him on the return! Cover, TWO!

Apollo heads for ropes but Big E goes out to drag him to the apron by his chin! Big E has Apollo on the edge and CLUBS away on his chest! The ref counts, Big E gets in but goes right back to the apron. Big E aims, APRON SPLASH! Apollo rolls in but Big E hurries to cover, TWO! Big E stalks Apollo, whips him but Apollo reverses to lift and FLAPJACK HOTSHOT! Big E staggers about, Apollo LARIATS him down! Apollo drags Big E to the apron now, for a DRAPING SUPLEX to the floor! Azeez helps Apollo stand back up as SmackDown goes to break.

SmackDown returns again and Apollo CLUBS Big E down then hammers away with fists! Apollo drags Big E up, whips him to a corner, but Big E reverses. Big E runs but into a boot! Apollo goes up, leaps, but into Big E’s OVERHEAD suplex! And another! Big E sees Apollo coming, side steps and runs, but Apollo sends him to the apron. Apollo ENZIGURIS Big E to the floor, then goes to the apron to MOONSAULT! Direct hit and down goes Big E! The ref starts a ring count, Apollo gets Big E up and in, then goes to a corner. Apollo climbs, leaps, but Big E avoids the splash! Big E gets Apollo for the Belly2Belly! Big E runs to BIG SPLASH! Cover, TWO!

Apollo survives, Azeez is relieved, but Big E fires up with the clap. Fans clap along, Apollo gets up and ROCKS Big E first! Big E elbows back, but runs into a BOOT! Cover, TWO!! Big E survives and Apollo is furious! Azeez coaches Apollo and Apollo rains down more fists. Apollo KICKS Big E to a corner, then runs in to SPLASH! Apollo whips Big E corner to corner, runs in but into the Urenag-E!! Cover, TWO!! Big E works to stay calm as Apollo rolls away. Apollo is on the apron, Big E runs but into a knee! Apollo drags Big E out to join him now, fireman’s carries and APRON DEATH VALLEY DRIVERS!!

Apollo shoves Big E in, climbs up top again, and hits the FROG SPLASH! Cover, TWO!?! Apollo just gets Big E up but Big E slips out of the slam to roll up! TWO and Big E scoops, for the BIG ENDING!! Cover, but Azeez drags Big E out!! Azeez POSTS Big E!!

Winner: Big E, by disqualification; Apollo Crews is still WWE Intercontinental Champion

But here comes KEVIN OWENS! Kevin goes after Azeez after everything from last week! Apollo gets up, Azeez feeds Kevin to a LARIAT! Azeez gets Kevin back up, but Big E CLOBBERS Azeez! Big E runs Apollo off and so he and Kevin fire off on Azeez! Azeez HEADBUTTS Big E down! Azeez runs but into Kevin’s BOOT! Sami Zayn with a HELLUVA KICK outta nowhere?! Sami tells Azeez to get Big E, and Apollo agrees! Azeez stomps Big E, Sami kicks Kevin out of the ring, and Azeez throws Big E out of the ring. But then Sami has the Intercontinental Championship in his hands. Sami says it isn’t what it looks like, he was just fetching it for Apollo.

Apollo takes the belt back, Sami says they’re cool. Sami raises Apollo’s hand in victory to assure Azeez this is all good. Azeez still gives him a NIGERIAN NAIL!! Sami gasps and sputters, the only allies Apollo and Azeez need are each other! Will all the challengers for this championship learn to beware the steel?

More superstars give their predictions!

The Miz says “There is no one more powerful, more influential, than the Universal Champion, Roman Reigns, on SmackDown, and I don’t think anyone on that entire roster can take Roman Reigns down. And Daniel Bryan definitely will not.” The A-Lister is a bit biased, though, but will his side of the poll be proven right?

Cesaro says first, of course he’ll take Rollins up on his challenge. It’s Cesaro, so he’ll do it! And as far as Roman VS Bryan, Bryan will win the title, and then Cesaro will win it off Bryan at #WrestleManiaBacklash!

Kayla Braxton calls on Paul Heyman.

Heyman exits Roman’s private room and is annoyed to see it’s Kayla. The Special Counsel will give his thoughts- or rather, spoilers, on tonight’s main event, after the break.

SmackDown returns, Roman sits in his private room with 100% focus. After a recap package of Bryan goading Roman on and Roman making the challenge that gave us tonight’s main event, we return to Kayla and Heyman. She asks him that, given how close Bryan came- “DaNiEl BrYaN~, DaNiEl BrYaN~, DaNiEl BrYaN~!” Heyman is so sick of hearing that name, “Daniel Bryan.” Bryan should never have entered the sports entertainment industry, but did he? Yes~, yes~, yes~! Did he have a hall of fame worthy career? Yes~, yes~, yes~. And did he always defy the odds? Yes, yes, yes.

Was he the ultimate underdog? Yes, yes, yes… Did he set “the peewee leagues” on fire with his passion? Yes, yes, yes… And did Bryan graduate to the big stage of NXT, SmackDown and Raw? Yes, yes, yes…! And did he achieve the ultimate by becoming THE champion in the WWE in the main event of WrestleMania? Yes, yes, yes! And did he again become the miracle kid, defy all the odds, turn back all the surgeries and get back after what was a career-ending injury for one of the greatest comebacks ever? Yes! Yes! Yes! And does everyone watching at home believe Bryan will beat Roman? YES! YES! YES!

Do they think he’ll unseat the Tribal Chief? YES! Do they think Bryan will then be Head of the Table? YES! Does the entire WWE Universe think this is Bryan’s night to solidify his legacy as the one to beat Roman? YES YES YES YES YES!! And will he!? NO!!! Bryan will NOT beat Roman, he will NOT survive the onslaught, and he will NOT be on SmackDown every again! No, no, no…!

There’s one more round of superstar predictions!

Baron Corbin says, “Who wins tonight? Well I don’t like either one of them one bit.” But at least if Roman wins, Bryan packs his bags and goes home for good.

WWE Universal Championship: Roman Reigns w/ Paul Heyman VS Daniel Bryan!

Superstars have made their predictions, the Special Counsel has shared his “spoiler,” and we all know what is on the line! Either Bryan proves he is The Goat and adds the Universal Championship to his already legendary list of accolades, or he is defeated and removed from the SmackDown roster. Can Bryan pull off another YEStleMania level miracle on a Friday night in the ThunderDome?

SmackDown returns and Roman makes his entrance with an epic new rock opera theme. The introductions are made, the title is raised, and for the Yes Movement, it all comes down to this!

Bryan SHOTGUNS Roman at the bell! And fires off YES Kicks in the corner! Roman shoves Bryan away then DECKS him with an uppercut! Roman snarls as he drags Bryan up and grinds him with a headlock. Bryan fights back, powers out but Roman runs him over. Things speed up, Bryan leaps and fires off hands! Bryan gets Roman down and the omoplata, but Roman scrambles to avoid the hold! Bryan lets off to then WRECK Roman with a dropkick! Bryan is on the apron and he leaps for a FLYING KNEE! Roman is down and Bryan is fired up as SmackDown goes to break!

SmackDown returns again and Bryan drives knees into Roman’s arm! Roman can only endure as Bryan drops knees on the hammerlock’d arm, then KICKS him! Roman gets up but Bryan bumps him off buckles. Bryan fires off more YES Kicks from all sides, then runs corner to corner to DROPKICK! Bryan keeps going, another DROPKICK! Bryan wants a third but Roman CLOBBERS him with a lariat! Roman seethes as he sees Bryan down. Cover, TWO! Roman stomps Bryan while he’s down, then drags him up to headbutt him back down! Roman paces, drags Bryan back up and snap suplexes! Cover, TWO! Roman grows annoyed but Bryan is again proving his toughness.

Roman sits Bryan up to wrap on a chinlock. Roman grinds Bryan down but fans rally for him on their screens. Bryan endures, fights his way up, and Roman shifts to a cravat. Bryan throws body shots but Roman knees Bryan down! Roman looms over Bryan in a corner, stands him up and ROCKS him with a right hand! Roman whips Bryan corner to corner, Bryan goes up and over and builds speed to duck and dodge, only for Roman to CLOBBER him again! Cover, TWO! Roman is annoyed again but the fans haven’t given up. Roman DECKS Bryan, but Bryan sits up. Roman DECKS Bryan again, but again Bryan gets up!

Roman watches Bryan stand, and Bryan throws a EuroUpper! And another! And another! Roman shoves Bryan to a corner, runs in but Bryan drop toeholds him into buckles! Roman checks his face, Bryan KICKS him! And KICKS, and hoists Roman up top! Bryan climbs up to join Roman, and SUPER- NO! Roman blocks the steiner and drags Bryan back up, for a SUPER POWERBOMB!! Cover, TWO!! Roman is shocked that Bryan survives, but SmackDown goes to break!

SmackDown returns again and Roman fires off point-blank lariats on Bryan against the apron! Then Roman RAMS Bryan into barriers and puts him back in the ring. Cover, TWO! Roman is again annoyed with Bryan but Bryan’s tougher than that! Roman scuffs Bryan and toys with him. Roman drags Bryan up to KNEE him to a corner! Bryan gets up but Roman gives him knee after knee! The ref counts, Roman lets off and gets in the ref’s face! Fans boo Roman but Roman drags Bryan up to the top rope. Roman climbs up now, stands on the very top, but Bryan slips out to trip Roman up!

Fans fire up as Bryan climbs up behind Roman. Bryan stands Roman up for a SUPER BACK SUPLEX!! Both men are down and the ThunderDome is thunderous! Bryan crawls his way over to Roman, pushes him to a cover, TWO!! Roman is still in this and Heyman is relieved. Bryan drags Roman back up, and throws a EuroUpper! Then a YES KICK! And another! And another! And another! Bryan fires from all sides, aims but the buzzsaw misses! SAMOAN DROP! Cover, TWO! Bryan goes to a corner but so does Roman. Roman locks and loads, runs in but into a KICK! Bryan KICKS the legs out, then aims and PENALTY KICKS the arm!

Roman writhes, Bryan is after that golden hand! Arm wrench to ELBOW BREAKER! Roman CLUBS Bryan, but Bryan dumps Roman out of the ring! Bryan builds speed and DIVES! But into Roman’s arms for an OVERHEAD Belly2Belly! The ring count climbs as Roman aims at Bryan. Roman runs in and SPEARS through the barriers as Bryan dodges! Both men are down and out as SmackDown goes to one more break!

SmackDown returns yet again, and Bryan is up top! Heyman is freaking out as Bryan leaps for the DIVING HEADBUTT!! Cover, TWO!! Roman survives but Bryan is not deterred! Bryan aims from a corner and powers up with the Yes Fingers! Fans join in, Bryan runs but into a SUPERMAN PUNCH! Cover, TWO!! Roman is beside himself as Bryan survives, but he grits his teeth as he goes to a corner. Bryan stands, Roman aims, but he runs into a cradle takedown!! TWO!!! Bryan dodges the clothesline and runs in, KNEE PLUS!! Cover, ROPEBREAK!!! Roman saves himself by just mere inches! Bryan is stunned, but he gets Roman’s arms, for DANIELSON STOMPS!

Heyman winces with every stomp to Roman’s head and shoulders! Bryan drags Roman around to the omoplata, and then the YES LOCK!! Roman endures, Bryan pulls him back, but Roman makes it a cover! TWO, and Roman returns to SPEAR!! Cover, TWO?!?! Bryan survives and Roman is in disbelief! “This is Awesome!” and far from over! Roman slowly sits up, Bryan slowly follows, and Roman drags Bryan up into the facelock. Roman wants the Guillotine, and drags Bryan down into body scissors! Bryan pushes up with his legs to avoid the scissors and then pops out of the hold! ARMBAR!! Roman shifts around, Bryan gets another omoplata!

Heyman is panicking again as Bryan shifts around, to the YES LOCK!! Roman endures again, the hands blind him for only a moment, and Roman sees ropes! Roman claws his way over, reaches out, but Bryan gets that arm to shift Roman around! YES LOCK AGAIN!! Roman is stuck in the center of the ring!! Roman fights to get free from underneath! Roman starts to ground ‘n’ pound Bryan with big forearms and elbows! Roman high stacks to get the dead lift for a POWERBOMB! Roman glares, and throws even more forearms down on Bryan now! He lets off to get Bryan back up, for another POWERBOMB!!

Roman backs off for just a moment, but gets Bryan back up, into the facelock! Bryan fights off the Guillotine?! Bryan still has power, but Roman shifts to a GUILLOTINE with the left!! Bryan is stuck in the body scissors now! Bryan flails, reaches, but he’s fading! Roman squeezes tighter, Bryan is OUT!! Roman wins!!

Winner: Roman Reigns, by submission (still WWE Universal Champion)

The Tribal Chief just squeezed the life out of Bryan’s hopes and dreams! No cheating, no controversy, no questioning it, Roman won and defended his title on his show! But wait, Roman isn’t done with Bryan here! Roman brings two chairs into the ring! Roman is copying Edge, but here comes CESARO! The Swiss Superman BLASTS Roman with a EuroUpper! Cesaro saves Bryan rom a fate worse than losing, and then CLOBBERS Roman with more EuroUppers! The ref tries to stop Cesaro but he puts Roman back in the ring, only for JEY USO to attack! Jey stayed away the whole main event but now he SUPERKICKS Cesaro!!

Jey puts Cesaro in the ring and ties him up in the ropes! Jey makes Cesaro watch as Roman sets Bryan up, and hits a CON-CHAIR-TO!!! Roman glares at Cesaro and tells him that this will be HIS fate, too! Will the Tribal Chief continue to reign with an iron fist?

My Thoughts:

This was an awesome episode! Though, they clearly tried to get as much done in the first hour so they could devote the second hour to the title matches. The Six Person Tag was a pretty good opening segment, with there being so many interruptions that of course a brawl broke out. The Faces win to get big momentum towards Backlash, and while Bianca will surely get through Bayley to put her first defense under her belt, I still feel like Profits VS Dawgs is up in the air. Having Bianca and the Profits all holding gold would be a big moment and mean big things for SmackDown, but even with the PPV called WrestleMania Backlash this year, it’s still Backlash. How many big moments have happened on Backlash?

Natty & Tamina getting the jump on Nia & Shayna before the match was a great way of taking the fight to them, and I’m rather surprised Natty & Tamina won tonight. They’ll definitely get the title match at Backlash, maybe be part of it with Naomi & Lana joining in as Raw’s representatives, but there’s a lot that still needs to happen to make it seem like Tamina & Natty are getting the belts. Rey & Dom had a decent promo to keep their tag title chase in our minds, but that was about all it did. Aleister’s second chapter was stronger than the first, because the title at least fit what was going on. Maybe last chapter should’ve been titled “monster,” not “dragon.”

The Intercontinental Championship match was awesome, but I should’ve figured Champion’s Advantage would be how Apollo retains here. Kevin going after Azeez and then Sami going after Kevin made sense, and for a second I thought Sami was going to join Apollo, but it also makes sense that they’d knock him down, too. I’m hoping Backlash gives us a Fatal 4 Way, get all these guys involved and have a way for the challengers to take out Azeez together. I won’t expect Kevin or Sami to win the title in the Fatal 4, but maybe if those two get on the same page again, they can enter the tag division and finally win belts together.

The prediction promos were all pretty good, but it was Heyman’s that was the best. The set up of “Yes Yes Yes” into the “No No No” was a given, but he had a masterful way of building it up. Roman VS Bryan was an awesome match, I just wish SmackDown would’ve brought back picture in picture so we could’ve gotten even more of it. I did not think Roman would win cleanly, but that was the only way things would end between him and Bryan. Cesaro coming to the rescue only to be made to watch what happened next was good stuff, and I am sure Cesaro will take out all his anger on Rollins in their rematch.

If WWE is insisting on Roman VS Cesaro at Backlash, fine, but it seems a waste of Cesaro’s big moment when he finally wins a top title. At the same time, that moment could make Backlash something we’ll actually care about, so maybe WWE will surprise us in a good way. As for Bryan, maybe after some time off, we see him return to television on Raw and see what he can do over there. Their ratings could use it, really.

My Score: 8.7/10

Let us know what you think on social media @ChairshotMedia and always remember to use the hashtag #UseYourHead!

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Coverage

Mitchell’s WWE SmackDown Results & Report! (4/19/24)

Prepare for Backlash!

Published

3 hours ago

April 19, 2024

Steven Mitchell

Did you know that challenger in French is still “challenger?”

In a WrestleMania rematch, AJ Styles takes on LA Knight in a #1 contender’s match, to challenge WWE Champion Cody Rhodes at Backlash in France!

OFFICIAL RESULTS

Undisputed WWE Championship #1 Contender’s match: AJ Styles VS LA Knight; Styles wins and will challenge Cody Rhodes for the title at Backlash.
SmackDown/WWE Tag Team Championships #1 Contenders Fatal 4 Way: The Street Profits VS New Catch Republic VS The Authors of Pain VS Legado Del Fantasma; The Profits win and will challenge A-Town Down Under for the titles.
Carlito w/ Zelina Vega VS Santos Escobar w/ Elektra Lopez; wins.
WWE Women’s Championship: Bayley VS Naomi; wins and

PLAY BY PLAY

Undisputed WWE Championship #1 Contender’s match: AJ Styles VS LA Knight!

After fighting their way through Triple Threats, the Phenomenal One and the Mega Star meet again, YEAH! It’s a WrestleMania Rematch, the winner moving on to Backlash, YEAH! Will AJ Styles avenge his loss at the biggest WrestleMania ever? Or will everyone from here to France know whose game it is?

The bell rings and the two step to each other. The fans in Pittsburgh “YEAH! YEAH! YEAH!” and Knight lets Styles know it. Styles snarls, they tie up, and they go around. Knight puts Styles in a corner, the ref counts, but Knight lets off slowly. Styles kicks low! The fans boo but Styles headlocks. Knight pulls hair, throws body shots, then headlocks in return. Styles pushes Knight to ropes, powers up and out, then hurdles, drops and DROP- NO, Knight avoids the dropkick to BOOT, and LARIAT! Knight then TOSSES Styles out of the ring, storms out after him, and brings him to commentary. Knight SMACKS Styles off the desk! And again! And again!

The fans chant “YEAH! YEAH! YEAH!” with every SMACK, then Knight tops it off with one last SMACK! Knight drags Styles up and into the ring, storms in, but Styles KICKS Knight in the ropes! Styles reels Knight in, but Knight back drops Styles up and out! Styles flounders on the floor, Knight runs to WRECK him with a dropkick! Styles hits desk again and Steel City is loving “L! A! KNIGHT, YEAH!” as SmackDown goes to break.

SmackDown returns and Styles soaks up the heat as he taunts Knight. Styles brings Knight up, but Knight fires haymakers! “YEAH! YEAH! YEAH!” Knight backs Styles down, whips, but Styles ducks ‘n dodges! Knight ducks ‘n’ dodges, then DOUBLE CROSSBODIES collide! Both men are down and the fans fire up. Both men slowly sit up, crawl around, and then stand. Styles fires a shot, but Knight gives it back! The haymakers go back and forth, “YEAH! BOO! YEAH!” Styles staggers but he still ROCKS Knight! Knight ROCKS Styles again and again, but Styles throat chops! Styles fires off the Phenomenal Blitz, but Knight ducks the lariat!

Knight JABS, JABS, JABS, and DECKS Styles! Knight stomps a mudhole in at the corner, “YEAH!” Knight then runs corner to corner to KNEE Styles down! The fans fire up, Knight puts Styles up, and Knight ROCKS Styles. Knight climbs, but Styles ROCKS him back! Knight staggers away, but returns to spring right up! SUPER DUPER PLEX! Cover, TWO!! Styles survives that crash but both men are down again. The fans rally as Knight rises, and he brings Styles around. Knight reels Styles in, suplexes, but Styles slips free! Styles goes to a corner, ELBOWS Knight away, then goes up to QUEBRADA DDT! Cover, TWO!

The fans fire up as Knight stays in this and Styles starts losing his cool. The fans rally for Knight but Styles looms over him. Styles brings Knight up and in, but Knight RAMS him into a corner! Knight then scoops Styles, but Styles slips free to roll up, TWO!! Knight escapes, swings, but Styles dodges to PELE! Knight ends up in a corner, Styles runs in, but Knight puts Styles on the apron! Styles ROCKS Knight, springboards, but Knight gets under! Styles comes back, into a scoop and POWERSLAM! Then JUMP ELBOW DROP! The fans fire up with with Knight as he storms around. Styles rises, Knight winds up, B F- NO, Styles bails out!

The fans boo but Knight storms over. Knight drags Styles up but Styles HOTSHOTS him! And pokes him in the eyes! Then ROCKS him! And springboards, to PHENOMENAL FOREARM!! Cover, Styles wins!

Winner: AJ Styles, by pinfall (NEW #1 Contender to the Undisputed WWE Championship)

Styles bent the rules, but a win is a win! He will get his shot at the American Nightmare in Lyon, France, will this year’s Backlash be phenomenal?

The Bloodline arrives backstage.

The car pulls up, Solo Sikoa steps out in a suit, and Paul Heyman is there to greet him. Nice threads, Solo. Tama Tonga walks over and Solo says meet the newest member of The Bloodline, Solo’s MFT. The Wise Man is stunned. But Solo cuts him off to ask if Kevin Owens is here. Heyman hesitates and Solo asks again, is Kevin here? If he is, he’s probably already in the locker room. Then take them to him. Heyman obeys and leads on. There have already been changes to the chain of command, is there about to be a change to the landscape of SmackDown, too?

Nick Aldis is in the ring.

In a familiar scene to Monday Night Raw, there is a podium with something under a satin sheet. The SmackDown General Manager welcomes to Pittsburgh the Chief Content Officer, Paul “Triple H” Levesque! The fans fire up as The Game makes his way to the ring! HHH joins Aldis in the ring, gets a mic, looks around at the crowd as he revels in the cheers, then says, “On the heels of the biggest, most epic, history making, record breaking, epic, unbelievable WrestleMania of all time, we are here tonight, sold out, 15 thousand strong, Pittsburgh, PA! So let me say, welcome to SmackDown!” The fans cheer that!

HHH wants to take a moment to say that he thinks Adam Pearce and Nick Aldis are both doing great jobs at leading their respective brands into the future. Thank you to both of them. And when we talk about the future, we have to talk about the history made coming into the future. So when history is made, HHH wants it to be represented here befitting of those that make it. So Aldis, if we could, let us bring the… champions out here. Aldis says without further ado, the NEW SmackDown Tag Team Champions, Austin Theory & Grayson Waller. The fans boo as A-Town Down Under make their way, blue belts in hand.

Theory & Waller join Aldis and HHH in the ring, mics already in hand, and they soak up the heat from Steel City. Waller says this is huge. Monday, we saw the second place champions get new belts. And now A-Town Down Under will be presented new titles! Theory says speaking of truth, didn’t Truth think HHH was a magician? Well, who knows what magic trick HHH has to make these guys look better than they already do, but hey, give it a try. HHH says congratulations on becoming tag team champions, so he will show them what they will wear going forward. From now on, they will be the WWE Tag Team Champions.

Reveal! In the style of the Attitude Era and Ruthless Aggression Era belts, the solid gold shines. HHH offers a handshake, but Waller leaves him hanging to shake Theory’s hand! Aldis makes it clear to them. They ever pop off and disrespect HHH like that, here’s a real magic trick: A-Clown Down Under will disappear, permanently! The fans like the sound of that! Aldis snatches the blue belts away since they won’t need them, and speaking of disappearing, there’s a chance one of the following four teams will make their title reign disappear. That #1 contenders match starts right now! The fans fire up, but which team defies the odds to get some golden tickets to France?

Backstage interview with Naomi.

Kayla Braxton is with The Glow and says last week, she beat Tiffany Stratton to get this title opportunity tonight. Will the friendship with Bayley get in the way of this match? Naomi says no, of course not. Bayley’s her sister, and she needed help against Damage CTRL, so Naomi was more than happy to help. But in no way will friendship get in the way of this opportunity. It has been over two YEARS since Naomi’s last WWE singles championship match, and there is nothing that will get in the way of making the most of this moment. Now last week, Tiffy Time felt the glow, so that same energy keeps going tonight.

Naomi is also looking forward to next week’s WWE Draft, where she will walk in the NEW WWE Women’s Champion. Naomi is ready, but will she be able to best Bayley in Bayley’s first title defense?

WWE Tag Team Championships #1 Contenders Fatal 4 Way: The Street Profits VS New Catch Republic VS The Authors of Pain VS Legado Del Fantasma!

SmackDown returns as Legado makes their entrance, followed by Akam & Rezar with the Final Testament. Waller & Theory are on commentary, Waller admitting he wants any team but AOP, and Theory saying these teams are fortunate to have real superstars leading their division. In this form of Fatal 4 Way, only two teams are active, so the Big Strong Boi, Tyler Bate, starts against Montez Ford. They circle, tie up, and Ford headlocks. Bate powers up to pry at the hold but Ford clamps on tighter. Bate powers up and out, drops, but Ford leaps over! The fans cheer, things keep moving, Bate feints high to drop low!

Bate shows knuckle lock, Ford obliges, but Bate wrenches, baits and double pump handles to FLIP Ford! Cover, TWO! Ford gets up to sweep and cover, TWO! Bate steps over, La Magistrol, TWO! Ford gets up, dropkicks cancel out, and both men kip up! The fans fire up and the two reset. But then Humberto Carrillo sneaks a tag, before he DECKS Bate with a sucker punch! Ford dodges Humberto but Angel Garza holds the ropes open! Ford tumbles out, Garza tags in, and Humberto sits Ford up. Garza runs in to KNEE Ford down! The fans boo, Garza drags Ford to a cover, TWO! Garza back suplexes, Ford lands out!

Ford tags Dawkins and he dodges Garza to FLYING ELBOW! Garza tags out to Akam, but then the Bruiserweight, Pete Dunne, tags in off Dawkins! Rezar tags, Dunne runs up but Akam LARIATS him down! Rezar DECKS Dawkins, then the AOP start clearing the corners! But Ford goes up to leap, but into an URENAGE! The fans boo but the AOP roar and soak up the heat. Waller’s worst case scenario might end up reality, but SmackDown goes to break.

SmackDown returns and the fans rally as Ford endures a facelock. Ford fights up, pries at the hold, but Rezar shoves him to ELBOW him down! Rezar talks trash, Waller taunts the Steelers players sitting in the front row that they don’t really know what championships are, and then Rezar sucker punches Dawkins down! Rezar stands Ford up, Canadian Racks and bends him! Ford endures, the fans rally, but Rezar thrashes Ford around! Ford kicks and flails, he gets free, hot tag to Dunne! Bate sneaks a tag, Dunne GAMANGIRIS Akam and then NCR fire off on Rezar! The fans fire up, Humberto runs in, but Dunne dodges to SNAP GERMAN!

Bate & Dunne STOMP Humberto’s hands! Then BASEMENT DROPKICK! Garza runs up, but into the REBOUNDER GERMAN COMBO!! The fans fire up with NCR, but Rezar runs up! He grabs Dunne, but Bate says Bop up, BANG! Bate fireman’s carries Rezar?! But Rezar ELBOWS right free! Dunne GAMANGIRIS, Ford SUPERKICKS, and Dawkins ENZIGIRIS! Rezar wobbles, and everyone helps Bate gets Rezar up! BIG STRONG AIRPLANE SPINE! But then Legado CLOBBER Bate and Rezar! They BOOT Dunne, whip the Profits but the Profits reverse to TOSS Legado out! Ellering coaches Rezar while the Profits regroup.

Bate gets up, Dawkins ROCKS him! Dawkins brings Bate to the very top, but Dunne CLUBS Dawkins! NCR mug Dawkins but Ford joins in! They brawl, but AOP add on! Humberto finds Rezar to tag in, before the DOUBLE TOWER OF DOOM!! Bate’s the only one left up top, so Legado mug him! They double trophy lift Bate, to DOUBLE ROCKET LAUNCH him onto everyone!! Humberto then finds Bate, sunset flips and rewinds, Garza jumps, MISSILE DROPKICK DOOMSDAY! Cover, DUNNE BREAKS IT! “This is Awesome!” as all eight men are down around ringside, and Waller says this is gonna be easy pickings for A-Town Down Under now.

Dunne grabs Garza, Bate has Humberto, STEREO ANKLE LOCKS!! Grapevine for Garza! But Humberto BOOTS Bate onto Dunne! Legado is free, Ellering has AOP regroup, and SmackDown goes to break.

SmackDown returns again and Rezar CLUBS Dawkins down. Rezar soaks up heat, taunts the other teams, then CLUBS Dawkins again. Rezar brings Dawkins up again, but Dawkins fires off body shots! Rezar KNEES low, reels Dawkins in, talks more trash, and lifts Dawkins up, to POWERBOMB! But then Dunne runs up to ROCK Rezar! Akam gets in to scoop Dunne and SLAM him on Dawkins! Cover, TWO! Rezar looks to Ellering and he coaches AOP. Rezar HAMMERS Dawkins, Akam tags, and AOP get NCR up! The fans boo but NCR RANA free to send AOP into each other! Ford jumps in, as does Garza.

All the teams realize, they gotta do something about AOP. So they all mug AOP! The fans fire up as AOP tumble out, but now who strikes first? Dunne runs up but Garza SUPERKICKS him first! Bate waistlocks Garza and Ford winds up, but Garza ducks so the BACKHAND hits Bate! Garza SUPERKICKS Ford, but Dawkins DECKS Garza! Humberto springboards to FLYING CHUCK! Cover, TWO!! Theory says if A-Town Down Under were in this match, he’d knock everyone out and Waller could just sneak in to cover. Humberto and Dawkins rise and go to corners. Humberto runs up, but Dawkins POUNCES him away!

Dawkins gets Humberto up, Ford returns and tags in! Dawkins Electric Chair Lifts Humberto and Ford climbs! The stars are out for the BLOCKBUSTER DOOMSDAY! Cover, DUNNE BREAKS IT! Another save from the Bruiserweight and Ford is frustrated. Dunne drags Dawkins up to CHOP, but Dawkins ROCKS him! Dawkins whips Dunne out of the ring, but Dunne grabs the arm! And he pulls off the glove so he can SNAP fingers! The fans fire up, but Ford ENZIGIRIS Dunne down! Ford brings Humberto up, Humberto JAWBREAKERS! Bate tags in off Ford, BOOTS Garza, then runs up, but into a POP-UP! But Bate RANAS Humberto!!

Bate then DUMPS Garza out, goes to the apron, and Dunne lines up targets. Bate and Dunne climb, Ford runs in, NCR DOUBLE ARIHARA MOONSAULT while Ford FLIES over the corner post!! Down goes Legado and AOP!! The fans are losing their minds as Bate hurries to get Humberto up. Bate puts Humberto in, reels him in, underhooks, but Humberto fights it! Humberto back drops but Bate lands on his feet! Humberto cradles, TWO! Humberto LARIATS Bate, tag to Garza! Legado gets Bate up, feed to the POP-UP KICK!! #FTY! Humberto then DIVES to take out Dunne! Garza goes up the ropes to LIONSAULT!!

But Ford flies in FROM THE HEAVENS!! The fans are thunderous as everyone is down again! Bate flounders, Dawkins tags in! Dawkins whips Legado, Ford joins in, THE REVELATION!! Cover, PROFITS WIN!

Winners: The Street Profits, by pinfall (NEW #1 Contenders to the WWE Tag Team Championships)

Waller & Theory are relieved it isn’t AOP, but they still look a bit annoyed that it is Ford & Dawkins. The Profits are Triple Crown Tag Team Champions from Raw to SmackDown to NXT, but will they soon add the WWE Tag Team Championships to make it a grand slam?

Backstage interview with Bayley.

Byron Saxton is with The Role Model, and brings up the emotional moment from Monday Night Raw where Rhea Ripley had to relinquish her title. But let us focus on Bayley’s title, as she defends it for the first time against Naomi. Where is her head at ahead of the main event? Bayley says after seeing Rhea vacate the Women’s World Championship on Raw, Bayley appreciates her reign more. She is focused, and she has realized she’s THE Women’s Champion in WWE right now, something she does not take for granted. Because we all know that with the WWE Draft, things are bound to change.

And as excited as Bayley is to face her friend, Naomi, one thing that won’t change is her as THE WWE Women’s Champion. Bayley is just as confident at Naomi, so something’s gotta give! Will The Role Model #FeelTheGlow? Or will she still be shining with gold after tonight?

Paul Heyman talks with Solo Sikoa.

The Wise Man apologizes that they haven’t found Kevin Owens, but he has to be here somewhere. Just look at the time. They will find him, somewhere. Solo stops listening and heads to gorilla. Heyman follows after, but Solo gives him a look. Heyman says he isn’t trying to upset Solo. Please believe him. The last person on this planet Heyman wants to piss off is Solo. But respectfully, Solo is making decisions that are not his to make, yet. One day, these will all be Solo’s decisions. But not now, not here! These are decisions that can only be made by one man. Solo asks Heyman if he’s done talking. Heyman asks if MFT is coming with Solo.

Solo just gives a thumbs up, with that taped thumb. The music hits and Solo makes his entrance, Heyman still following all the way into the ring. What does the Enforcer have planned? We’ll find out, after the break.

SmackDown returns and Heyman has the mic to give his usual introduction. And he doesn’t know if there is a list of the most brilliant backstage maneuvering politicians int he history of the WWE, but if there were, Heyman would have to think that he personally is in the top… Well, permit Heyman, with Solo’s permission, to explain what’s going on right now within The Bloodline, “the premier act in the history of WWE.” The fans chant, “We Want Roman!” but Solo shrugs that off. Heyman assures us that as The Wise Man for… Heyman gets emotional, so Solo just snatches the mic! The fans boo but Solo paces.

Solo tries to talk but the fans boo. Solo says last week, he had to lose a brother! He had to! It was in order for him to find a new one! His MFT, Tama Tonga! And with that, a bloodied Kevin Owens is tossed out, by the Good Bad Guy! Tama shoves Kevin down the ramp, stalks behind him, and referees rush out to stop him from doing anything further! Kevin can’t even sit up, but Tama steps over him to go to the ring. The fans boo as Tama joins Solo in the ring while the refs help Kevin to his feet and to the back. Tama raises his finger to the sky, because he acknowledges Solo! Heyman has no choice but to go along, but wait! Kevin is heading back down the ramp!?

The fans fire up as Kevin shows his grit and defiance! He drags Tama out to fire off hands!! The fans cheer but then Solo whips Kevin into steel steps! Solo drags Kevin back up, puts him in the ring, but now security rushes in! Tama storms in after Kevin but Kevin TACKLES Tama! The security gets Kevin away from Tama, but Solo SAMOAN SPIKES Kevin down!! The fans boo but then Tama SPLASHES Kevin! Tama rains down fists on that bloody wound, then he DECKS guard after guard! Producers try but Tama is a madman! Tama shoves everyone away so he can slip out of the ring, to grab a chair!!

The fans boo as Tama storms back in, but now Aldis steps up! Aldis warns The Bloodline here, and Solo has Tama stand down. Solo takes the chair from Tama to show they’re done here. The fans chant “YOU SUCK! YOU SUCK!” but the damage is done. Solo & Tama are a dangerous duo, will nothing and no one stop them from taking over SmackDown?

Heyman goes to the parking lot.

He’s in shock, but Aldis finds him and pulls him along. Was Heyman aware of this? Aldis shows Heyman the aftermath of one car T-boning another! And in case Heyman can’t guess, the struck car was Kevin’s. The attacking car was Tama’s! Heyman says this wasn’t authorized! No, Heyman, Aldis is speaking now. He gets this is a conflict within The Bloodline, but on his show, things are settle din the ring. Next week is the Draft, a lot of eyeballs on it, and a lot top brass are gonna be here. So Aldis will not tolerate this behavior. So make sure The Bloodline understands. Because, Heyman, if you don’t, the repercussions will be equally savage.

Aldis brings Heyman in close to tell him losing isn’t the only thing that has consequences. Will the Wise Man be able to rein in such an unruly force as Solo and Tama?

Carlito w/ Zelina Vega VS Santos Escobar w/ Elektra Lopez!

The LWO still doesn’t believe Legado’s claims that they had nothing to do with Dragon Lee going down before WrestleMania, so they’re going to get to the bottom of this one themselves! Will Caribbean Cool make the Emperor of Lucha confess his crimes? Or will Santos prove he was right all along?

The bell rings and the two talk trash. Then they start throwing hands! Carlito backs Santos down but Santos gets around to whisper something in Carlito’s ear. Carlito ELBOWS Santos away, runs up and hits a THESZ PRESS! Carlito then bumps Santos off buckles, fires hands, then has him in another corner. Carlito whips corner to corner, runs up, but Santos BOOTS him! Santos runs up, but into a SPINEBUSTER! Cover, TWO! Vega coaches Carlito to stay on Santos and he brings Santos up. Carlito ROCKS Santos, whips, but Santos KICKS him! Santos runs, but into a DROPKICK! Carlito kips up and the fans fire up!

Santos is on the outside, the ref won’t let Carlito go after him, but then Carlito WRECKS Santos with a dropkick! Carlito loads up to PLANCHA! Direct hit on Santos and Carlito hoists Vega up to celebrate! The fans cheer the LWO on as SmackDown goes to break.

Let us know what you think on social media @ChairshotMedia and always remember to use the hashtag #UseYourHead!

Coverage

Andrew’s TNA iMPACT! Results & Match Ratings: 4.18.2024

Motor City Machine Guns either go out on their backs, or head to Rebellion as champs! Lets see how they finish their current run in TNA!

Published

1 day ago

April 18, 2024

Andrew Balaz

No burying the lead here! The Main Event is The System versus Motor City Machine Guns, and it’s the Go Home episode before Rebellion! So we’re guaranteed a damn good tag match, and we should get either new wrinkles, or ways to keep the storylines cooking going into the Pay-per-View.

With all the rumors and innuendo about the Guns being on their way out, I think we all assume that MCMG is losing, but my inner fanboy is still excited.

Part Three: Acceptance @TheJonGresham #TNAiMPACT pic.twitter.com/NE9FPzCCz2

— TNA Wrestling (@ThisIsTNA) April 19, 2024

Ratings:

Little Guido w/New FBI vs Hammerstone: Hammerstone wins via Torture Rack – SQUASH
LSG vs Joe Hendry: Hendry wins via Standing Ovation – SQUASH
Mustafa Ali & GYV vs Cody Deaner, Jake Something & Rhyno: Ali wins via 450 Splash – ** 3/4
Rosemary w/Havok vs Jody Threat w/Dani Luna: Rosemary wins via Spear – ***
Motor City Machine Guns (Chris Sabin & Alex Shelley) vs The System (Eddie Edwards & Brian Myers) w/Alisha Edwards: System wins via Roster Cut + Knee Party – *** 1/4

Results:

So we kick off the match with Josh coming out to commentary again to watch Hammerstone’s match. They really need a new way to try and keep heat without reusing the same tired gimmick of “ring side seat” to a Squash match.

Little Guido w/New FBI vs Hammerstone

Guido tries to shoot the half, but Hammerstone shrugs him off, lifts him like a child and runs him into a corner, few short shots and then just tosses him across the ring. Hammer gets a little distracted talking smack to Josh and eats a foot, but then tosses Guido with the ole Sack of Shit move and keeps working over Guido.

Hammer shoves Clayton, and provokes him to push him back right in front of the referee. She ejects them, Guido tries to take advantage but when he goes for the pinfall Hammer kicks out immediately and presses Guido out of thing through the ropes. Continues to dog walk Guido, puts the head gear on the ECW Original and then Torture Racks him while staring directly at Josh, and of course picks up the submission victory.

.@XiaBrookside and @Ashamae_Sebera face off NEXT WEEK on #TNAiMPACT! pic.twitter.com/Q0S3wSRpeu

— TNA Wrestling (@ThisIsTNA) April 19, 2024

LSG vs Joe Hendry

Hendry cuts a little promo, mentioning the Fat Uncle Phil joke…something about shopping at the TOP Dollar Store. Solid mic work.

LSG is a damn good local talent, he’s been seen in ROH and AEW in the past (perhaps others, but that’s what comes to mind immediately for me), but we all know this is an enhancement match. A few nice chain wrestling spots early, but Hendry uses his power to stop the smaller wrestler, Sack of Shit into Standing Ovation and the match is over quickly.

Mustafa Ali & GYV vs Cody Deaner, Jake Something & Rhyno

Well okay, having Deaner ask the crowd if they wanted a 3v2 or their third member…RHYNO…is pretty much a no brainer in Philly. But at least the gimmick isn’t quite as cringe as I expected.

Jake starts with Zack Gibson and throws him around. Jake goes for the tag and Deaner asks the crowd who Jake should tag, and the crowd picks Rhyno. Rhyno Whips Gibson into a corner, Drake actually softens the impact, allowing Gibson to fire back, tag out, but Rhyno levels both GYV members and then even knocks Ali off the apron. Rhyno tries to call to the crowd to tag in Deaner and that goes over like a fart in church. He tags him in anyway, and the crowd is kinda dead and doing whatever it wants after the obvious ECW chants when Rhyno tagged in.

GYV take a couple lumps but they of course start to work over Deaner and capture some momentum. Solid tandem work from GYV, they cut off Deaner from making a tag and goad Jake a little to cause the ref to block off the babyfaces so the heels can take a few shortcuts. Cody eventually makes the tag to Rhyno, hot tag, he tries to set up the Gore but the GYV manage to stop him in his tracks and hit an Enzuigiri to daze the Man Beast, he falls to his corner and Jake tags himself in. Jake literally runs them all over, tags in Cody and Launches him from the Top Rope into Zack Gibson. Ali makes the save and Jake tries to get his hands on Ali, but the GYV keep throwing themselves at him, literally. The triple team finally gets the best of Jake, they hit 3 Dives and then post Jake, so they gather around Cody like hyenas.

They forgot about Rhyno, he’s set up for a Gore, he Gores Drake, Gibson and Ali take out Rhyno, but then Cody starts to fight back. Ali stops Deaner’s offense with an Avalanche Sunset Bomb, then hits his 450 Splash. Jake barely misses being able to break up the pin.

.@TheEricYoung channels "The Sickness" as he prepares for FULL METAL MAYHEM with @FrankieKazarian at #Rebellion! #TNAiMPACT pic.twitter.com/tm1TqxZBLo

— TNA Wrestling (@ThisIsTNA) April 19, 2024

Rosemary w/Havok vs Jody Threat w/Dani Luna

Jody tries to start quickly with Shoulder Tackles, Lariats and Scoop Slams, and it does seem somewhat effective. Rosemary is having trouble finding offense against the intensity, but she keeps kicking out. Shotgun Dropkick finally gives Rosemary an opening, she goes into full mount and rains down strikes. Rosemary shoves Jody into a corner and Bites her in the corner. Jody tries to fight out, they go across and Rosemary catches her with the legs and puts her in the Upside Down. Splash in the corner from Rosemary, Exploder Suplex and Jody is eating a lot of offense.

Rosemary looks like she’s caught after she gets tripped up into the ropes and Jody goes for her Rope Knee into the German, but Rosemary dodges. Rosemary hits her own suplex and pulls out a beautiful Last Chancery! I haven’t seen her do that in a long time. Jody manages to fight to the ropes, Rosemary is a little slow to capitalize and eats a Pump Kick. Rosemary goes flying into the ropes, Jody hits the Double Knees into the German this time for 2, and they trade a few haymakers after that. Jody folds Rosemary with a low Lariat, Zombie rise spot a few times, Jody goes for a pinfall and Rosemary kicks out.

Havok jumps up on the apron, Dani meets her and they decide to step down, but the distraction was enough. Jody turns around and eats a Spear. Rosemary wins!

Motor City Machine Guns (Chris Sabin & Alex Shelley) vs The System (Eddie Edwards & Brian Myers) w/Alisha Edwards

Eddie and Shelley start off, and its a very simple slow start. Mostly an early stalemate, the typical Japanese style the TNA seem to love to employ. Starters tag out, but then Shelley with the blind tag, Sabin Baseball Slides out, picks Eddie’s ankle and sends his face bouncing off the apron, while Shelley sneaks up being Myers and they hit a tandem move before we cut to commercial. Off of the commercial it looks like Eddie and Myers regained control. But a nice Jawbreaker from Shelley sends Eddie falling back into the MCMG corner. Dragon Screws to both legs from Sabin and Shelley, and we get the Dragon Screw dissection spot for the Guns.

Myers gets sick of things, tries to get involved, but Simultaneous Figure Fours from the MCMG makes The System look silly. Alisha does the classic “push the rope forward” gimmick to assist Eddie in breaking the hold. She keeps chirping at Shelley until she finally grabs his foot. Shelley doesn’t take kindly, tries to grab her by the hair but she gets away, Shelley eats a strike and falls back to the ropes so Lish can just throttle him with the rope, Sabin walks over and acts like he’s going to PK her and the look of disgust on her face is hilarious, like “how dare he threaten to kick her”. Would I be mad is Masha decides to team with Lish and they win the Knockouts Tag titles? No, because the Knockouts Tags are trash. But I still prefer Lish as valet/manager.

Shelley starts fighting back after another commercial break, Eddie tries to cut him off, but Sabin clocks Eddie and Shelley manages to make the tag and Sabin comes in. Lights up both System members, Kick off Tornado DDT, into a Running Gamengiri. Eddie tries to counter but Shelley assists, tandem strikes, Double Baseball Slide into the classic MCMG spot 5 Hole Dive! Keeping up with the classics Shelley stacks the System members on each other and hit the Missile Dropkick/Flatliner spot. As the Guns are rolling, Sabin accidentally catches Sabin with his foot and The System take control! They hit their pieces of the System Overload spot, but Sabin kicks out. Roster Cut attempt from Myers, but Shelley is back. High Speed Dirt, Machine Gun Sandwich, but Lish grabs Shelley’s foot when they’re setting up Skull and Bones. Shelley gets dropped on the turnbuckle and thrown out, Sabin eats the Roster Cut followed up with Boston Knee Party and System retains!

Its a little weird to have had the two commercial cuts and the fact there’s still Nic Nemeth to follow. So it feels a little flat, I hope this wasn’t their swan song match, because it was nice to see some classic spots, but it was entirely too abbreviated.

Nemeth comes out, goes into the crowd and finds a kid with a kendo stick and borrows a beer from someone, so he does a bit of a Sandman tribute. Moose cuts off his promo basically immediately. He throws out the “can’t beat the system” line again, and Nic rolls with the punches well. Moose uses a few cute analogies about Nic having a failure laden past, but Nemeth bites back and its really damn good. He says he can see it in Moose’s eyes that he thinks he’s getting in the ring with Dolph Ziggler, but no, there is no more old Dolph Ziggler, just the new Nic Nemeth. And Moose’s cool seems to be slightly shaken after those words. Good promo.

Overall Score: 6.5/10

So this was okay, if it didn’t end as strongly as it did, I would’ve rated this much lower. Two squash matches in the beginning, reusing the Josh comes out to the announce table to watch trope is boring, hell even Clayton’s shove to Hammerstone was super lame looking. The Deaner match was luke warm at best, but things picked up around the Rosemary match.

Lets also not overlook the segments with ASH & Xia, Jonathan Gresham’s whole deal and EY having to return to the violence/sickness/world class maniac, whatever you want to call it, were all great building blocks. This definitely wasn’t what I would call a strong Go Home, but it didn’t hurt things for Rebellion. The whole injury of Cardona was addressed, which honestly sounded weird since Jordynne basically said she was expecting them to have a backup plan so she has a backup plan. I don’t really like how that video package came across.

But who knows, all I know is, this wasn’t an awful episode, it just wasn’t really strong either. Here’s to hoping Rebellion Saturday is still strong.

Let us know what you think on social media @ChairshotMedia and always remember to use the hashtag #UseYourHead!