WWE Smackdown review
August 20, 2015
Taped 8/18/15 in Green Bay, Wisc.
Aired on SyFy
By Greg Parks, PWTorch Columnist (Twitter: @gregmparks)


- WWE Open.

- Smackdown Open.

- Following the requisite fireworks, the announcers immediately hyped the big-time eight-man tag main event, featuring Randy Orton & Roman Reigns & Cesaro & Dean Ambrose taking on Sheamus & Kevin Owens & Bray Wyatt & Luke Harper.

1 – RYBACK vs. THE BIG SHOW

When Ryback entered the ring, they showed the finish of his match against The Miz on Raw, as well as the post-match. The first high-impact move of the match was Show putting Ryback on his keister following a clothesline. After a bodyslam, Show kept Ryback grounded until the crowd got Ryback back into it. Ryback took Show off his feet with a jumping tackle. Ryback slammed Show, but Show speared him on a Meat Hook clothesline attempt. The fight went to the outside. Ryback clotheslined Show into the barricade connected to the timekeeper’s area. Of course, the barricade collapsed. And it wasn’t like they charged into it – Show just kind of backed into it. Regardless , it was enough for a double count-out.

WINNER: Double count-out, at 4:12. Interesting results here and on Raw; normally, the booking leading up to a Triple-Threat secondary title match at a PPV would see the champion lose at least one of those non-title matches leading up to it. Good to see them somewhat protecting Ryback.

- The announcers were shown on-camera reacting to that finish.

- Tonight, a Triple Threat Divas Match with Becky Lynch taking on Sasha Banks and Brie Bella.

- Also tonight, we’ll see clips of what happened with Brock Lesnar and Undertaker on Raw.

- Backstage, The New Day again dunked a foam basketball on a portable basket above a backstage worker and laughed at him. A six-being tag match against Los Matadores and El Torito is next.

[Commercial Break]

2 – LOS MATADORES & EL TORITO vs. THE NEW DAY

Los Matadores were hot out of the gate against Kofi Kingston. Kofi was pulled out of harm’s way by Big E., but El Torito kicked at Big E. from inside the ring. They went to break with Los Matadores dominating the first 1:38.

[Commercial Break]

Back at 5:34 with Xavier Woods in control. Big E. tagged in and gave Fernando Snake Eyes in the corner, except Fernando went head-first into a kick from Kofi. Kofi missed a splash in the corner, and Torito got the tag. He took Woods down with a headscissors and a flying headbutt. He gored Big E. in the mid-section, then kicked him out of the ring. Roll-up by Torito, but Kofi broke up the pin. Big E. tagged in and he delivered a back-breaker to Torito. Big splash by Big E. Tom Phillips compared it to the anvil squashing the roadrunner. Woods tagged in and made the pin.

WINNERS: The New Day, at 9:09. I’m thankful Tom Phillips could actually differentiate between Los Matadores; that makes recapping the match a lot easier, and that’s something Michael Cole usually doesn’t do.

Kofi gave Woods a bouquet of flowers after the match for getting the win. Replays of the finish were shown.

- Jerry Lawler plugged the eight-man tag main event.

- Next, Dolph Ziggler’s return to Smackdown.

[Commercial Break]

- Dolph Ziggler and Lana came to the ring. Ziggler said it feels good to be back. He tracked how he was put on the shelf and what he went through while injured. He said the worst was sitting at home, helpless, as Summer put Lana in the Accolade. When Ziggler asked Lana if she was okay, she told him they needed to “crush those bastards.” Ziggler said it was hot that Lana wanted revenge. Ziggler said Lana kicked the phony right off of Summer. Lana said she likes Ziggler because he makes her laugh and because he fights for what he believes in. Ziggler said Lana has a pretty good sense of humor, too. He said Lana is a bona-fide bad ass. Lana said Rusev can have her wannabe while he gets the real thing. They kissed as Rusev’s picture unfurled on a banner above the ring. Rusev and Summer Rae came out to the stage. Just in time, as I think that promo from Ziggler and Lana gave me diabetes.

Rusev said he’ll show Ziggler what real pain is when he crushes his throat again at Summerslam. He described what else he’d do, and said Ziggler will beg him for mercy while in the Accolade. He said his Summer will put Lana in the Accolade too. He said they’ll be in the move, face-to-face, and Ziggler will feel Lana’s agony. Rusev said he’d crush Ziggler once and for all. Ziggler interrupted and said he’ll kick Rusev’s teeth down his throat and steal his girlfriend – the real one. Ziggler’s music played as the two couples exchanged angry glances.

- The announcers talked about John Cena’s return to Raw, and Seth Rollins’ mission for Summerslam. They showed part of Rollins’ promo prior to the contract signing. They also showed part of Cena’s promo. A graphic was then shown for Cena vs. Rollins at Summerslam.

- Next, Neville is in action.

[Commercial Break]

- Live this Sunday, ESPN Sportscenter will be covering Summerslam with former WWE announcer Jonathan Coachman.

3 – BO DALLAS vs. NEVILLE

No entrance for Bo. Oh gosh, they’ve added a green hood and outfit on Stephen Amell in the Summerslam match graphic. Dallas took the early advantage, and registered a two-count off of a short-arm clothesline. Springboard cross-body by Neville, but Dallas rolled through for a two-count. Enziguiri by Neville, who then set Dallas up for the Red Arrow. He connected and picked up the victory.

WINNER: Neville, at 1:53. Not even what I’d call a showcase match for Neville; more of a chance for the announcers to put over his Summerslam match story.

The Red Arrow was replayed twice. As Neville celebrated, Stardust appeared on the Titan Tron. He gave Neville a Cosmic Conundrum, then solved it himself. King Barrett was there as well, with his new outfit. Barrett said red and green turns black and blue on Sunday. He said there are no second takes in our universe, and Amell will learn that the hard way.

- Team Bella was walking backstage. We’ll hear from them before Brie’s Triple Threat Match, and it’s next.

[Commercial Break]

- Team Bella came to the ring. They showed the finish of Sasha Banks vs. Nikki Bella on Raw. After a graphic was shown for the Summerslam Divas match, Alicia Fox introduced Nikki Bella as someone who, in 26 days, would become the longest-reigning Divas Champion ever. Brie also said Nikki was the best twin sister in the world. Nikki said she’s fearless, but she has doubts. She said all of Team Bella has had to up their game since the Divas Revolution began. Nikki said Sasha put up one heck of a fight on Monday. And one day, Sasha will make such an amazing Divas champion. But that day is not today. Nikki called her win a “fluke.” She said she has proved to be the most dominant Divas champion in WWE history. She said that makes her the most powerful woman in sports entertainment worldwide. I half-expected Stephanie McMahon to interrupt at that point to put Nikki in her place. The Bellas talked about Sunday until Naomi’s music interrupted and Team BAD came out.

They walked to the ring as Naomi said Nikki can quit the insincere speech. She told them not to bother preparing a victory speech for Summerslam. Sasha then said, as Team BAD entered the ring, that she made Nikki tap out on Monday and that Team Bella will crash and burn on Sunday. Brie said Sasha doesn’t intimidate them. In fact, while she calls herself the boss, Brie said she could think of another word that describes Sasha and begins with “B.” Sasha said Brie has just been riding Daniel Bryan’s coattails. She said the only time Brie will be saying “Yes!” is when the ref asks her if she quits. Brie and Sasha were about to come to blows when Becky Lynch’s music played, signaling the arrival of PCB.

Becky and Charlotte came out, with Paige busy with her Tough Enough duties. Lynch said both Sasha and Brie are in for a lass kicking. The match then began. Whew, that was a pretty rough segment.

4 – BRIE BELLA vs. SASHA BANKS vs. BECKY LYNCH – TRIPLE-THREAT MATCH

Thirty seconds into the match, they went to break.

[Commercial Break]

The show returned at 4:03 of the match with Brie delivering kicks to the chest of Banks, a la her husband. Brie delivered a running knee to the face of both Lynch and Banks under the guise of “Brie Mode.” Lynch cleaned house with clotheslines and a dropkick. Overhead suplex, a T-Bone version, by Becky for two. Sasha was bumped off the apron and Brie rolled Becky up for the pinfall.

WINNER: Brie, at 7:23. This was another match which the commercial break ate up most of the time. Not a real strong match from what I saw.

- Roman Reigns and Dean Ambrose cut a promo to the camera backstage. Both men gave the impression that they’ll have fun beating up and torturing Wyatt and Harper on Sunday. Randy Orton walked into the camera frame and said tonight, there won’t be any RKO’s out of nowhere tonight – in other words, Sheamus will see it coming. Cesaro then came in and said all he wants to do is beat Kevin Owens at Summerslam. Ambrose said they’re all saying the same thing – the beating their opponents will get tonight is just a taste of what they’ll all get at Summerslam.

- Back to Raw next, where we’ll see a “classic confrontation” between Lesnar and Undertaker.

[Commercial Break]

- The exterior of the Resch Center on a rainy evening in Green Bay was shown.

- The announcers talked about Lesnar vs. Undertaker, and Phillips threw it to Lesnar’s Homecoming on Raw.

- Entrances for the main event began. Randy Orton was out first, followed by Roman Reigns. They went to break after those two came out.

[Commercial Break]

- Phillips thanked Demi Lovato for providing the theme song to Summerslam, “Cool for the Summer.”

- According to USAToday, Jon Stewart will be the guest host for Summerslam.

- Cesaro had made his entrance during the break. Dean Ambrose got a full entrance to round out the babyface squad.

5 – RANDY ORTON & ROMAN REIGNS & CESARO & DEAN AMBROSE vs. SHEAMUS & KEVIN OWENS & LUKE HARPER & BRAY WYATT

Orton and Sheamus started it off and Orton almost surprised Sheamus with an RKO before any other move was hit. Sheamus fled to ringside and clutched the MITB briefcase as they cut to break forty seconds after the bell rang to start the bout.

[Commercial Break]

Back at 4:51 of the match. The teams seemed to be in a standoff, with Owens requesting a piece of Cesaro rather than Orton. Cesaro did tag in and he lifted Owens up for a vertical suplex. Owens scampered to his corner to tag in Harper. Ambrose tagged in for the good guys. Low clothesline followed by an elbowdrop. Reigns tagged in and delivered a running boot to a seated Harper. Reigns almost took Wyatt’s head off with a clothesline. Soon after, Cesaro came in and gave a few European uppercuts to Harper. Cesaro Swing was set up, but Owens interrupted. The distraction allowed Harper to take over. Sheamus and Owens worked together to keep Cesaro down. Owens showed off a little bit, getting Cesaro down for a two-count. Another ad break at 9:34 of the match.

[Commercial Break]

Back at 12:55 with the heels still in control of Cesaro. Irish Curse back-breaker by Sheamus. Cesaro finally made the tag to Reigns at 15:15. Reigns took down Sheamus, then Harper, then Owens. When he went after Wyatt, Sheamus reappeared to roll him up for a two-count. Sheamus readied for the Brogue Kick, but he felt the need to knock Orton off the apron first. That led to Reigns getting to his feet and delivering the Superman punch. Ambrose and Harper then both tagged in. The match began to break down after Owens broke up a pin attempt by Ambrose. Everybody got to hit their moves until Ambrose pinned Harper with Dirty Deeds.

WINNERS: Cesaro, Reigns, Orton, and Ambrose, at 19:31.

After the match, the finishing sequence was replayed. The babyfaces stood as victors while the heels struggled to catch their breath at ringside. Phillips made one last push for Summerslam as the show ended.


Did you watch Thursday’s Smackdown episode? Send your 0-10 score & Reax to pwtorch@gmail.com for our TV Reax feature.

Greg Parks has been covering WWE Smackdown for PWTorch.com since January of 2007. He is the host of “Moonlighting with Greg Parks,” a PWTorch VIP-exclusive audio show posted each weekend. Follow him on Twitter @gregmparks for live Tweeting during Raw, Impact, and PPVs, as well as other bits of wisdom. Comments, questions and feedback are welcome, and can be sent to g_man9784@yahoo.com.

We suggest these recent related articles...

PARKS'S WWE SMACKDOWN REPORT 10/1: Ongoing "virtual time" coverage of Thursday show, including Kevin Owens vs. Ryback in an Intercontinental Title Match

PARKS'S WWE SMACKDOWN REPORT 9/24: Ongoing "virtual time" coverage of Thursday show, including Kevin Owens & Rusev vs. Dolph Ziggler & Ryback

PARKS'S WWE SMACKDOWN REPORT 9/17: Ongoing coverage of the Thursday night show, including Seth Rollins & Sheamus vs. Dean Ambrose & Roman Reigns