WWE Smackdown TV taping report
May 22, 2012
Wilkes-Barre, Pa.
Report by Timothy Grammes, PWTorch reader
WWE Smackdown TV taping report
May 22, 2012
Wilkes-Barre, Pa.
Report by Timothy Grammes, PWTorch reader

To start, the Mohegan Sun Arena is fairly full compared to WWE's last trip here about six months ago. The camera side of the arena isn't taped off, thought it seems to be the only part of the arena that isn't full.

Cue the seemingly unnecessary Wrestlemania XXVIII recap. It makes you wonder if they're selling DVDs at the merch tent. It did serve a purpose to get the crowd invested in the upcoming event, as one particular youngster seated in front of me emphatically cheered his favorite moments.

Also, a disclaimer. If you have never attended a WWE event, and you happen to be a combat veteran of either Iraq, Afghanistan, or both...there will be pyro. The pyro is louder than you think it is based on what you see on TV. It will give you a jump and raise your pucker factor a bit. I just found it funny that WWE does such great things with the National Guard, but has things blowing up unexpectedly throughout the course of the evening. It was...unsettling to say the least.

The action starts with Dean Ambrose (Jon Moxley) coming out and cutting an amazing promo. He tells the audience they will all feel what it's like to basically hit rock bottom, and how ugly things can get.

Dark Match: Dean Ambrose beat a local talent. Fairly standard opener, with Ambrose acting like the Joker from "Dark Knight" or if Brian Pillman was cast in the role throughout the entire match. Ambrose just has this way about him that makes him insanely entertaining to watch. Ambrose wins in four minutes with the Raven Effect DDT. Someone call this kid up and put him on TV. WWE needs some Moxley.

NXT SPOILERS

William Regal and Josh Mathews come out to a pretty good pop. The majority of the audience seems well-educated on who Regal is and his accomplishments; the bloke next to me started clapping and cheering the second his music hit.

Jinder Mahal comes out to mild heat. Mahal-Derrick Bateman is set to kick off the show.

(1) Jinder Mahal beat Derrick Bateman. The chants of "USA" take hold about one second after the bell, and die down quickly afterwards. After a short feeling-out process, Bateman grabs the momentum with a running kneelift. A suplex and nearfall later, it's Mahal who leads the dance with a kneelift of his own. It's Mahal now with the knees after dropping Bateman with an STO by the ropes. Reverse chinlock, and "USA" starts again. Apparently, Bateman needed to be reminded where he was. Bateman counters a back-body drop and gets a nearfall. A hot spot later, Bateman hits a flapjack and scores another nearfall. Bateman hits a Stinger Splash and goes to the top. Dropkick from the top, another nearfall. Mahal quickly capitalizes on a break in the action and secures the Camel Clutch. Bateman taps shortly afterwards, and Mahal leads off with a win.

Up next, Percy Watson takes on Heath Slater. I bet you won't guess what happens.

(2) Percy Watson beat Heath Slater. The actions starts off slow, with Slater pulling off a few heel-ish moves I'm sure he learned by watching a Ric Flair DVD from 1992. He remains in control of the action for the next four minutes, scoring a few nearfalls and eventually starts to slow things down in the middle of the ring with a reverse chinlock. Watson comes back, scoring a nearfall of his own, but misses a splash in the corner. Watson then lands a huge flapjack after putting Slater on his shoulders. It's good for the win.

Intermission showcases the new Clash of the Champions DVD. It's a shame the youngsters don't know half of the wrestlers on there.

Up Next: Alicia Fox takes on Maxine. Alicia makes her way out to the ring, walking like her father doesn't care about her anymore. Maxine takes a more deliberate approach. The bell sounds, and they're underway.

(3) Maxine beat Alicia Fox. Staring for ten seconds. Collar and hair tie-up in the corner. Two times. Thesz press, Cat fight. Botch botch botch. Chops to the abdomen in the corner by Maxine. The clear loser of this match is Alicia's roots, as 90 percent of Maxine's offense is hair-based. Streaks of bronzer and make-up cake the canvas. Anytime Fox wants to hit a hot spot and end this that would be great. The first botch signifies the oncoming offense from Fox. Maxine eventually ends this with a Dragon Sleeper.

Up next: a tag match between Drew McIntyre and Johnny Curtis vs. Ezekiel Jackson and Great Khali. If anything, I'll get to hear Khali's music. Drew Mac gets a great pop. This makes me smile.

(4) Great Khali & Ezekiel Jackson beat Drew McIntyre & Johnny Curtis. Typical giants vs. not-so-giant tag match. Zeke carries most of the match for his team, as Khali is a non-factor for the majority of it. Lots of tags between Curtis and Drew with some old-school isolation of Zeke, which is nice to see from the heel team. Predictably, Khali eventually gets the hot tag and starts clearing house. Khali wins with a powerbomb.

Superstars SPOILERS

(1) Antonio Cesaro beat Tyson Kidd. Any time you get these two together in a match, you can expect a seamless and professional outcome. I tell my girlfriend that this should be in the Top 3 matches of the evening, and she agrees with me before the bell even sounds! What can I say, the lady knows her 'rasslin. Lots of offense from Kidd early, consisting of a lot of aerial maneuvers. Eventually, Tyson draws from the proverbial well one too many times and gets tossed into the air by Cesaro, who greets his return to the canvas with a European Uppercut. (As Cole would say, if he could, it was vintage Claudio.) A few seconds later, Cesaro hits a modified Styles Clash and ends the evening for Mr. Kidd.

Smackdown SPOILERS

- The show started with Eve coming out to address the audience. To summarize, she said that Mr. Laurinaitis was on an international business trip and would not be appearing for the show. Cue massive cheers. She then said that she would be in charge of the evening's format. Cue massive boos. She mentions naming the #1 contender for the World Heavyweight Championship.

Alberto Del Rio's music hits. He is sans mid-life crisis-mobile for now, and starts sucking up to Eve during his stroll to the ring. The schmoozing continues and Randy Orton's music hits the speakers. It is at this point that I am painfully reminded that there are members of the audience that do not have an Adam's Apple. After the banshee wails subside, Randall tries to flex the muscle of “People Power” by asking the WWE Universe who should be granted a title shot at No Way Out. I consider myself lucky that the resounding screeches of the females around me drowned out my auditory awareness towards what happened next, because Kane's pyro hit. Not what I expected at all. Kane grabbed a microphone and joined the trio in the ring and cut a promo that he believes “The Devil's Favorite Demon” deserves a title shot at No Way Out. His argument platform? Why, tonight is episode #666 of Smackdown! Surely he's a shoe-in. Predictably, this sets up the main event of the evening, which is a triple threat match between Kane, Randy Orton, and Alberto Del Rio.

(1) IC champion Christian beat Hunico in a non-title match. This was a pretty good way to kick off Smackdown, as Christian's ankle injury prevented him from appearing when WWE was last in Wilkes-Barre back in November. Hunico cut a promo on the way to the ring. Remember those “USA” chants from NXT I had mentioned? They started again. I didn't have the heart to tell those around me that Christian is Canadian. I wonder if this is how Damien Sandow feels on a daily basis. As far as the match goes, it was okay. Christian and Hunico played it relatively safe, which is fine by me considering Christian's recent return off injury. I'll take a “good” match with no botches than a match that tries to impress and looks sloppy. Christian hits the Killswitch by the corner and ascends up to the top rope. As I looked on bewildered, Christian jumps off the top and nails Hunico with a frog splash! It's good for the win.

Post-Match: Cody Rhodes's music hits and he comes out to do a short little promo about losing the IC belt. He mentions that for the entirety of his tenure as IC champion he wiped the “dust off that title” to restore it to its former glory. He goes on to mention a few legends who held the title, with Randy Savage getting the biggest reaction. The stage is set for an apparent re-match at No Way Out. Truthfully, I'm just glad to see Christian hold a title for longer than two days.

(2) Darren Young & Titus O'Neil beat The Usos. Apparently, WWE has decided to get rid of quite possibly the coolest entrance ever with The Usos, as they entered the ring sans Samoan War Dance. I feel horrible that I don't know the actual name of it, but you guys get the idea. It was easily the highlight of their last visit here. On the topic of their last visit here, The Usos kicked off NXT back in November. This time, they're in a Tag Match on Smackdown with other NXT alums. More importantly, it looked like The Usos deserved the bump. They definitely flow a lot better as a team now than they did back then. Decent offense between both teams, but it's Titus O'Neil that gets the win for his team.

Everybody hold on to your seats, RYBACK IS NEXT. I'm excited because the Titantron told me to be. Cue another advertisement for the Clash of the Champions DVD. During this time, I notice two wrestlers emerge from the back and sneakily make their way to the ring with referee in tow. Yes, it's going to be another one of those Ryback matches. See also: All Ryback matches. Stomp to the chest, pick someone up on his shoulders, march around the ring, Samoan Drop, cover, and yell “Feed me more” into the camera. If they would pit Ryback and Brodus Clay together on PPV, I'm pretty sure the universe would implode. The actual universe, not the WWE Universe. Anyway, it's time for the match.

(3) Ryback (shockingly) beat two jobbers. Okay, I was harsh on ol' Skip back there. This match was actually entertaining. First, I didn't have to contend with a math lesson...I had to contend with two people who didn't know how to pronounce the name of my town. That's okay, most of the audience thought Christian was American because he wasn't stereotyped as a member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Most of the match was typical Ryback fare. However, the finish was pretty impressive. He managed to hoist both of his opponents onto his shoulders for his marching band routine and deliver a two-man Samoan Drop. I can only imagine what Booker was saying on commentary. I bet you he's on his Fave Five for that.

(4) U.S. champion Santino beat Ricardo Rodriguez in a non-title match. Nothing special here. I'm convinced the only reason this match was on the card was because Brodus wasn't here tonight and they needed a comedy match for the youngsters. This is okaywith me, as I am fully aware I'm not the only fan in attendance and everyone deserves to be catered to here and there. The young members of the CeNation had no idea who Jon Moxley was, so I'll let them have this. The finish came by way of Santino acting like he was going to crawl under the ring to the other side, prompting Ricardo to run to the other side of the ring to intercept him. But, wouldn't you know it, that sneaky Santino double-backed and crept up behind Ricardo, with the COBRA READY TO STRIKE! He tapped on Ricardo's shoulder to get his attention once, being waved off by an un-witting Rodriguez. He attempts it a second time with the same result. As I am reminded of every single Loony Tunes episode featuring Elmer Fudd and Bugs Bunny, Ricardo finally turns around and Santino delivers The Cobra.

Out next is Sheamus, and he begins to cut a promo on his actions from Raw involving running through Big Johnny. He goes on about apologizing, acting like he's The Fonz trying to say “I'm Sorry” for a minute before saying “He apologizes that Mr. Laurinaitis is an arse." The crowd erupts in a chorus of joy. Unfortunately, an ear-splitting “EXCUSE ME!” is heard as Vickie Gurrerro emerges from backstage. Jeez, you would think that the entire audience had personal heat with the woman. The boos were deafening. Vickie is INSTANT heel credibility at this point. I couldn't even hear that Jack Swagger was going to be competing that very moment, I had to see the Titantron.

(5) World Hvt. champion Sheamus beat Jack Swagger in a non-title match. Pretty good match form these two! I've always loved to see Swagger perform, and Sheamus deserves a lot of credit. He is a much more complete performer than he was just a year ago. The entire match was controlled by Swagger for the most part, focusing on Sheamus's ankle and leg. To Sheamus's credit, he sold the effects very well. So well to the point I thought he might have taken a bad spill over the ropes. Both men kept the pace going and never really let a lull in the action take place for more than a few seconds, and Sheamus eventually hit the Brogue Kick for the win.

(6) Damien Sandow beat Yoshi Tatsu. Poor Yoshi. Damien did his usual intellectual savior speech (again, to people who chanted “USA, USA, USA” in a match between Christian and Hunico. I'm sorry, I can't let that go) and they're underway. I don't know how many PWTorch readers are MMA fans, but it looked like Sandow is a product of the old Chute Boxe academy with the knees he was giving Yoshi. A Russian leg-sweep saw Sandow roll over his shoulders and gracefully pose by the ropes before setting up his finisher (I assume) by crossing Yoshi's arms under his chin and delivering a neckbreaker. It's good for the cover and Sandow celebrates post-match with a cartwheel, which must have been important because it got a replay.

Big Show then came out and addressed his actions from Over The Limit and, by extension, Raw. Unfortunately, this was the time I needed to take an intermission myself so I missed the majority of this. However, I came back (cheesesteak in hand) to hear Big Show say he's done caring about everyone else. Then, Kane's pyro hit, again, unexpectedly. It was time for the main event.

Kane made his way to the ring as I frantically tried to ensure that the entirety of my cheesesteak and chips did not go flying into Little Jimmy's face three sections away. I then heard cheering and loud “Yes!” chants. No...it couldn't be...could it...Yes! (no pun intended). Apparently, the actions of C.M. Punk on Raw did not sit well with Daniel Bryan. So, what does he do? He, logically, takes a steel chair and ambushes Kane before he sets off another round of pyro in the ring. I'm actually relieved, I couldn't handle many more loud and unexpected bangs that evening. I gaze up, and Bryan is really laying into Kane with a chair. This has been going on for about 15 seconds. Finally, officials pour out of the backstage area and restrain Bryan and take him back. The crowd loves it. Del Rio and Orton make their way out shortly afterwards. Del Rio is sporting a very, very nice automobile that I am ashamed I couldn't make out from where I was sitting. For some reason, I thought of me almost letting my cheesesteak fly and wondered what would happen if a disgruntled fan threw soda, beer, or greasy concession stand food at these beautiful machines. I'm a pro wrestling fan from the Tri-State area, I've seen worse things thrown believe me.

(7) Alberto Del Rio beat Randy Orton and Kane in a three-way #1 contender match. The match kicks off and is decent enough, the first thing I notice is that it really is every man for himself here and Orton and Del Rio didn't predictably team up on Kane. After a few minutes, Bryan made his presence known by running down the ramp with the chair in tow. Kane went to pursue, and Bryan high-tailed it back. Kane turns around to focus on the task at hand while Bryan again makes his way down to the ring, distracting Kane once more. This time, it was all that it took as Rando Orton hit the RKO on Kane and went for the cover. Just as the referee was about to count to three, though, Del Rio comes out of nowhere and boots Orton in the side of the head, covering Kane and getting the win. Your winner and new number 1 contender is Alberto Del Rio.

We suggest these recent related articles...

WWE NEWS: Superstars SPOILERS - Results from Chicago Raw

WWE NETWORK: Monday, Oct. 12 Schedule - Raw pre-show, Sting DVD preview

WWE NEWS: Lana & Rusev reportedly engaged - follow the interesting 2015 timeline