WWE Smackdown house show report
December 30, 2010
E. Rutherford, N.J.
Report by Mike Omansky, PWTorch reader

Estimated crowd at the Izod Center: 8,000-9,000 range. (Most upper level seats were empty; half of them were completely blocked off/covered.)

(1) Kofi Kingston won a 12-man battle royal to earn an Intercontinental Title shot later in the show. The final three were Kofi, Jack Swagger, and Drew McIntyre. The heels tried the double-team routine, but it backfired. Other participants: Ezekiel Jackson, Cody Rhodes, Trent Barreta, Chris Masters, JTG, Percy Watson, Chavo, Mason Ryan, and Tyler Recks. (*1/2)

(2) Divas champion Natalya & Beth Phoenix beat Layla & Naomi when Phoenix pinned Layla. Kelly Kelly, who appeared as "guest host" prior to the match, interfered briefly when Layla and Naomi were "cheating," but the match continued. Not much, and too long. (1/2*)

(3) Mason Ryan, the FCW champion, beat Chavo Guerrero. Side slam and a pin. Poor Chavo. (DUD)

(4) Cody Rhodes & Drew McIntyre beat Trent Barreta & JTG. Finish: McIntyre pinned Barreta after Rhodes tripped Barreta. JTG wrestled most of the match and tagged in Barreta, who did a few great moves, including a missile dropkick across the ring, and then lost. (*1/2)

(5) Rey Mysterio beat Alberto Del Rio. Mysterio won with a 619, splash, and pin in the second best match of the night. The crowd was very alive for this match. These two have a good chemistry, probably helped by their on-going matches. Pretty good heal heat for Del Rio; Rey hit the 619 in his third attempt in the match setting up the win. (**1/2)

(6) Chris Masters beat Jack Swagger in 2:00. Swagger attacked Masters before the bell, dominated, but slipped up and Masters rolled him up for the pin.

(7) Intercontinental champion Dolph Ziggler beat Kofi Kingston to retain the Intercontinental Title. Okay match. Some good moves by Kofi, but the crowd wasn’t overly excited. (*1/2)

(8) World Hvt. champion Edge beat Kane and C.M. Punk in a three-way steel cage match to retain the World Hvt. Title. Edge climbed over the top of the cage to win. First-rate match. Punk was excellent throughout. In one spot, Punk pulled Kane back inside to prevent him from crawling through the cage door, and dashed to pull Edge back in from climbing over the cage. Kane and Punk had a brief heel alliance, which was broken when Punk hit him from behind. Numerous near “escapes,” as all three took turns trying to climb. For the finish, all three were battling towards the top of the cage; Edge then knocked both back down and climbed over. (***)

Good show, overall. Next New York area shows: Smackdown TV taping on Tuesday, February 1 at Nassau Coliseum and a Raw house show on Saturday, March 19 at Madison Square Garden.

[Torch art credit Grant Gould (c) PWTorch.com]

We suggest these recent related articles...

SHOW RESULTS - 10/9 AAW in Berwyn, Ill.: Gargano challenges for AAW Hvt. Title, more title matches, big women's tag match, more

SHOW RESULTS - 10/3 NWA Smoky Mountain in Kingsport, Tenn.: NWA Hvt. Title match, Rob Conway, Kid Kash, Ricky Morton, more

LIVE REPORT - 10/4 TNA BFG PPV in North Carolina: Live notes on technical glitches, pre-Angle match announcement, Captain America Fan, more