SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
The following report was originally published ten years ago on PWTorch.com…
KELLERS SMACKDOWN REPORT
APRIL 25, 2009
TAPED IN LONDON, ENGLAND
AIRED ON MY NETWORK TV
[Q1]
-After the Smackdown open, Jim Ross spoke first and hyped Big Show vs. Undertaker “perhaps for the final time” due to Show moving to Raw. Grisham hyped the tag match main event of Batista & Shane McMahon vs. Cody Rhodes & Ted DiBiase.
-Edge came to the ring and said he will stop at nothing to get what he wants, but Cena won’t seem to stop. He keeps getting back up, an unshakeable resolve. He said despite beating him time after time, including for World Titles, and slapping his father across the face, he still came back. He said finally on Monday night that all changed. They showed a clip of Edge slamming Cena in the side of the head with a chair on Raw, then Edge standing over him as he counted to ten. He said Cena’s resolve makes him almost want to respect him, but rather he despises him with every fiber of his being. He said he has nothing left so if he doesn’t beat him on Sunday, he has nothing. He said his wife can’t help and he has no friends. He said he’s a desperate man. He said this three year long war has to end because it’s shortened both of their careers. He said in the end he will walk away as champion and he will be the last man standing. He stood center-ring with the lights out except for a spotlight on him and said he has no friends and Vickie can’t help him on Sunday. He stumbled over a couple lines, but it was a good promo in making the match at Backlash feel like the final chapter one way or another. Ross said it’s as if Edge has an empty soul that can only be fulfilled if he wins the World Title.
-They showed Ross and Grisham on camera. They showed a clip of Matt Hardy’s latest attack on Jeff Hardy, then plugged the tag match up next.
[Commercial Brea]
[Q2]
1 — MATT HARDY & KANE vs. JEFF HARDY & C.M. PUNK
Ross said the draft results take effect on Monday after Backlash, which is why we see Matt Hardy on Smackdown tonight. Punk had to hold Jeff back from going after Matt before the bell. Matt and Jeff began the match, but Matt immediately tagged out to Kane. A minute in, though, Jeff tagged in against Matt and went aggressively at him. He slidekicked Matt and then dove onto him over the top rope at ringside as they cut to an early break.
[Commercial Break]
Kane helped beat down Jeff and then Matt gladly tagged in against him. Matt tagged in Kane at 7:00 and he scored a near fall after a vertical suplex. After Matt tagged back in, Jeff made a comeback at 9:00 with a Whisper in the Wind. When Kane interfered, Punk knocked him out of the ring. As Jeff continued on offense, Ross called him a “risk-taking junkie.” As Jeff set up a Twist of Fate, Matt escaped and shoved Jeff into Kane on the ring apron. Matt then schoolboyed Jeff for the win.
WINNERS: Matt & Kane in 10:00.
STAR RATING: **1/4 — Good tag match with the focus on the intensity between Jeff and Matt.
[Q3]
[Commercial Break]
-They showed the crowd as Grisham threw to a video package on the Triple H/McMahons vs. Legacy feud.
-The Big Show’s ring intro took place.
[Commercial Break]
-An ad plugged MVP vs. Dolph Ziggler next week for the U.S. Title. Nice to see them planning ahead like that.
-Before Undertaker’s ring intro, Show cut a brief promo saying tonight he’s going to put out Undertaker’s lights with his KO punch.
[Q4]
2 — THE BIG SHOW vs. UNDERTAKER
Big Show took early control, but then Taker ducked a charge and fired back with a big boot, sending Show tumbling to the floor.
[Commercial Break]
Taker gave Show the guillotine legdrop, which tend to be the move he does after commercial breaks these days. After several minutes of Show on offense, Taker teased a comeback with a chokeslam. Show fended that off and hit his own chokeslam leading to a two count. Grisham said Show is so big he could be mistaken for a double-decker bus in the U.K. Not to go out on a limb, but I doubt that. Grisham is closer to Gorilla Monsoon than any other WWE announcer. Taker went on full offense including the top rope walk. Show caught Taker with his big right as he leaped off the top rope. Show waited for Taker to struggle to his feet using the ropes and set up his KO punch finisher. Once Taker stood, Show punched him from behind to the back of his head. The ref called for the bell, stopping the match when Taker couldn’t move.
WINNER: Show in 16:00.
STAR RATING: *1/2 — Methodical and plodding, but fine.
[Q5]
-Ross said it was the right call to stop the Taker-Show match. Taker staggered to his feet and wanted to keep fighting, but lost his balance. Show waved goodbye, but then turned back to take a cheap shot. Taker got in a final shot and sent Show to the floor.
-Ross and Grisham plugged for the first time Gail Kim vs. Maryse was up next. It’d be nice if they’d give a little more prestige to the Diva’s Championship match by treating it as being somewhere close to the level of the two men’s matches they announced at the start of the show.
[Commercial Break]
-A clip aired of Kim beating Maryse last week in a non-title match.
3 — MARYSE vs. GAIL KIM – Divas Championshp Match
Grisham called this a momentous opportunity for Kim. He said if anyone doubted the international scope of WWE, there’s an Asian-American vs. a French-Canadian in the United Kingdom. I’m not sure that Gail Kim’s Asian lineage has anything to do with WWE being international any more than Grisham’s European lineage does. The announcers said this was Kim’s chance to keep the Diva’s Title on Smackdown before moving to Raw on Monday. Maryse dominated early. When Kim made a comeback, Maryse bailed out to ringside. Kim chased her down and threw her back into the ring. Maryse surprised Kim with her finisher, the French Kiss, for the win out of nowhere.
WINNER: Maryse in 3:00 to retain the title.
STAR RATING: * — Disappointingly short, but good while it lasted.
[Q6]
-They showed Jeff Hardy backstage with a twisting and turning camera angle in a metal staircase cellar like setting. He said words like extreme and intensity used to mean everything to him. He said he used to wake up knowing who he was and what he wanted to do. He said things have changed because Matt beat him at WrestleMania. He said his overconfidence headed into Sunday will kill him. He said on Sunday he will be as crazy as he’s ever been. He said when he moves to Raw on Monday, he’ll be known as the older brother who quit when it meant the most.
-They showed MPV heading toward the entrance set.
[Commercial Break]
-WWE Fact: Last Friday Smackdown was watched by more people than anything on CW or Fox.
-A clip aired of Sherry Shepherd from “The View” gushing about how sexy MVP is. She’s the one who wasn’t quite sure the Earth was round or flat because she never thought much about it. Apparently she thought globes were an abstract art piece of Earth wrapped around a ball. She said she wants to find out of he’s married or single because she’s available.
4 — MVP vs. CHAVO GUERRERO
Chavo had control early. MVP made a comeback and finished Chavo with his finisher
WINNER: MVP in 3:00.
STAR RATING: *
-Afterward, Dolph Ziggler walked out and congratulated MVP on a big victory. He said he hoped Sherry Shepherd was watching because it’ll be the last time she will see him leave a match as the U.S. Champion. He said after he beats him next week he’ll introduce himself to her.
[Q7]
[Commercial Break]
-They aired the full John Cena promo from WWE Superstars the night before.
-Ross and Grisham hyped the entire Backlash line-up.
-Batista’s ring intro took place.
[Commercial Break]
-The rest of the ring intros took place. A clip aired of Batista mistakenly knocked down Shane on Raw.
[Q8]
5 — BATISTA & SHANE MCMAHON vs. CODY RHODES & TED DIBIASE
Ross noted the history of Shane vs. Ted as a McMahon vs. DiBiase and all those family names entail. Shane dominated early, out-wrestling DiBiase. Grisham touted Shane as “bold and enegetic.” Ross said he’s “fearless.” Shane would have made a solid wrestler had he gone that route, but at 39 that’s not going to happen now and hopefully after Backlash he goes back to the executive role. If he keeps wrestling, I hope he splurges for some wrestling boots out of respect for the ring he’s in and the wrestlers he’s imitating, though. At 2:00 Shane outsmarted a double-team by the heels and ducked a clothesline, then Batista entered and knocked them out of the ring.
[Commercial Break]
Back from the break Shane was in control with an armdrag, then he tagged in Batista and they double-suplexed Cody. Cody dropkicked Shane from behind a minute later as Shane was mouthing off toward DiBiase on the ring apron. It took a distraction for full-time wrestler Cody to gain an advantage on Super-Shane-O-Mac. The heel duo tagged in and out against Shane. At 10:00 Shane came back with a DDT and then tried to hot-tag Batista after the dramatic desert crawl to the corner. Cody, though, tagged DiBiase in and he knocked Batista off the ring apron. Shane rolled up DiBiase from behind. When DiBiase powered out, he sent Shane into Batista. Batista re-entered, shoved Shane out of the way, gave Cody a spinebuster, and then Shane made the cover and scored the pin. Ross said he liked the energy and teamwork of Shane and Batista. Batista and Shane hugged mid-ring afterward and raised each other’s arms.
WINNER: Shane McMahon & Batista in 11:00.
STAR RATING: **
-A final video segment aired hyping Backlash.
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