SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
HITS
Daniel Bryan vs. Luke Harper: The return of Team Hell No! Kane returned to Smackdown to come to the aid of his former tag team partner. Bryan defeated Harper via disqualification following an Erik Rowan run-in. The show ended with Paige announcing that the Bludgeon Brothers will defend their Smackdown Tag Team Titles against Team Hell No at Extreme Rules. As for the match, good, solid wrestling match. A David vs. Goliath type indeed. I can’t praise Harper enough as he went toe-to-toe with one of the best all-around wrestlers of this generation and looked good doing it.
Rusev vs. Xavier Woods: I enjoyed this opening matchup. Woods is a guy who can be counted on each time he is given any sort of ring time. He can “go.” He bumped all around for Rusev, who is still insanely over with the live crowds and succumbed to the camel clutch (“The Accolade”). There was solid back-and-forth for a while until Woods began selling for the “heel” Rusev. The number one contender for A.J. Styles’s WWE Championship took over near the end and looked very strong in this contest.
Becky Lynch vs Sonya Deville: Tremendous women’s matchup. Lynch has been on a hot streak in terms of in-ring performances. If you need further proof just listen to the crowds during entrance and matches. Deville, on the other hand, gets better and better each week. She’s a legit bada** who can go in the squared circle. She’s probably one of the most athletic women on the WWE roster. However, Deville came up short against Lynch tapping out to the armbar.
MISSES
James Ellsworth: I don’t know what it is, but WWE tries hard to make Ellsworth look like a complete fool. His whole promo and interaction with Paige was completely unwarranted and unnecessary. Nonetheless, Paige announced that next week Ellsworth will have a “match” against Asuka.
Jeff Hardy & The Usos vs. Sanity: It started out as Eric Young vs. Hardy for the U.S. Title. Then the Usos showed up to take down the other two-thirds of Sanity. Naturally, we have ourselves an impromptu six-man tag team match. Decent match that lacked a spark. Originally it was Hardy vs. Young. That part wasn’t great either as the pair botched a few spots. This wasn’t a terrible match but left a lot to be desired.
FINAL THOUGHTS…
Smackdown week after week it outshines Raw. Another great show with minimal misses or pitfalls. And that’s without A.J. Styles and Shinsuke Nakamura.
NOW CHECK OUT LAST WEEK’S COLUMN: WWE SMACKDOWN HITS & MISSES 6/19: Jeff Hardy’s promo, Sanity-Usos angle, Rusev’s big win, Bludgeon Brothers vs. Gallows & Anderson, Carmella, Lynch vs. Kaye
“WWE tries hard to make Ellsworth look like a complete fool”
Um, yes? His entire role in the company is to be this comedic goofball who vaults between unbelievable highs (pinning Styles, women’s MITB, helping Carmella beat Asuka) and comeuppances like this one.
He’s not there to get over as a badass.