WWE Smackdown house show report
December 2, 2011
Chattanooga, Tenn.
Report by Cody Cosgrove, PWTorch reader

To me, the biggest thing on the show was Booker T returning to the ring against Cody Rhodes. The show opened with an appearance by Smackdown GM Teddy Long, who got a nice pop. He asked everybody how their Thanksgiving was and explained how he likes to come to live events during the holidays, and has a special gift for us. He announced the main events of the evening: a street fight between Wade Barrett and Sheamus, an Intercontinental Title match between Cody Rhodes and, "putting on his boots for the first time in two years," Booker T, and a main event steel cage match between Mark Henry and Randy Orton for the World Hvt. Title.

(1) Ted DiBiase beat Jinder Mahal. Ted's music hit and he got a good reaction from the crowd. I wasn't expecting him, so it was a pleasant surprise. Jinder came out to a sea of boos and had the heat going all match. Chants of "USA" kept popping up throughout the match, which had some decent back and forth action. DiBiase countered a full nelson attempt to hit Dream Street and secure the win. Cody Rhodes attacked Ted after the match.

(2) Tyson Kidd beat a jobber (Damien Sandow from FCW). Kidd came out to cheers, which was a shock to me, but I haven't kept up with him much. Sandow came out in a robe and had an awesome beard, but had a weird reaction because no one knew who he was. When he de-robed, he was wearing pink tights that were too tight and that got some laughs from the crowd. He got heat for the rest of the match. The match had some funny moments, but both guys really impressed me with their ring skills. Good match that Kidd won with a roll-up pin.

(3) Justin Gabriel beat Heath Slater. Neither guy got a huge pop, but both got decent reactions. The match was your typical Slater-Gabriel match ending with a 450 splash that Gabriel did by flipping over the ropes from the apron, which got a good pop. Cody Rhodes attacked Gabriel after the match.

Rhodes then got in the ring and started talking about how is Smackdown, and that he was going to keep attacking people all night. After he left, Hornswoggle came out to basically get attacked by Rhodes.

(4) Daniel Bryan beat Hunico via submission. I was really hoping to see Bryan tonight and I got my wish. He got a great pop and had a lot of fan support all match long. The match was really good, lots of back and forth. Bryan won with the LeBell Lock.

(5) Booker T beat IC champion Cody Rhodes via DQ; Rhodes retained the IC Title. Booker T got a huge pop when he came to the ring. Rhodes was backing away after Booker got in the ring, so Booker picked up the mic and said that it was time for action and said it was going to be on like neckbone (got to love the Booker T-isms). The match started after that and Rhodes ran around a little bit and left the ring multiple times. He attacked Booker as soon as Booker turned his back. Booker reversed it in the corner and did his usual Booker T strikes. Booker T really didn't do much more until close to the end of the match. He sold everything well, and still moved pretty good. Near the end, Booker missed the Scissors Kick and had the Book End reversed. After getting beat up some more, he actually hit the kick, then Rhodes rolled out of the ring, grabbed his title belt, and hit Booker with it. Booker won via DQ.

After the match, Booker beat up on Cody a little bit and looked pretty good. Then, Hornswoggle came out and did a spin-a-roonie with Booker.

[Intermission]

(6) Alicia Fox & A.J. beat Natalya & Rosa Mendes. I was getting popcorn at the start of this match, but I came back at about the middle of it. From what I saw, the in-ring action was pretty good. Alicia Fox pinned Rosa after a nice flip kick.

(7) Sheamus beat Wade Barrett in a Street Fight. Wade came out to loud boos. One little thing I noticed was that his trunks didn't have the logo he has been wearing on TV recently. Sheamus got a huge pop and was really nice to the fans. The match started slowly and had a lot of in-ring action for a street fight. When they did move out of the ring, they managed to take it backstage for a brief moment before Sheamus dragged Barrett back to the ring. Kendo sticks and chairs were used. Sheamus won by countering Wasteland, then landing the Brogue Kick.

There was a brief intermission to set up the cage for the main event. World Hvt. champion Mark Henry came out first. His ankle was wrapped like it was on Smackdown and he was still favoring it. From where I was sitting, I could actually hear a few cheers for Henry. When Orton came out, the place went absolutely crazy. Biggest pop of the night by far.

(8) World Hvt. champion Mark Henry beat Randy Orton in a steel cage match to retain the World Title. The match was a pretty standard match, nothing too exciting until the end. Orton worked the ankle some, and Henry favored it throughout the match. Things got interesting when Randy hit the RKO on Henry. Wade Barrett then rushed the ring and stopped Randy from escaping and Henry walked right out to win the match.

Post-match, Henry went back into the ring, shook Barrett's hand, and they began to attack Orton. Sheamus then ran into the ring to help Orton. Henry left after getting attacked, then Orton hit the RKO on Barrett to end the night on a good note.

This was my first house show and only my second live WWE event. WrestleMania was the first, so this was a big change. I really enjoyed the show, overall. Interesting note: there were a lot of kids and families, but we still got a good "We Want Ryder" chant going.

[Torch art credit Joe Borzotta (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