Sorry, late again today but the recap is on. SmackDown Live!
We start the show with Charlotte confronting Bayley, but Sasha Banks makes her way out. Sensing an attack, Charlotte attacks Bayley but swiftly falls to a double team. The two take her out with a chair as the crowd chants ‘One more time’ and that’s a pretty easy to predict response there. Just like Becky last year, turning heel and particularly attacking Charlotte is a very babyface move. Afterwards Bayley’s same old innocent music hits which is pretty funny.
King Of The Ring Quarterfinals: Ali vs. Elias
Elias does look enormous in there with Ali, gotta say. Big chant for ‘Ali’ to start with as he reverses a wristlock. Elias tries a fallaway slam but Ali escapes, goes for a chop but actually hurts his hand on his chest? I dunno if he’s that monstrous. Reverse enziguri takes him to the floor, goes for a Suicide Dive but Elias catches him, shoves him into the apron and then suplex tosses him across the ramp. Throws him facefirst into the point of the barricade, looking brutal. Biel throw to the outside, he flies across the floor. Military press takes Ali into the crowd!
I’m actually shocked how effective a powerhouse Elias is looking in there. I mean Ali can just kinda do that for people, he’s a big bumper and all, but it’s quite believable. Commercial break, in the inset Ali gets back in the ring but struggles to get the advantage back. Elias throws him to the corner, bounces off into a pop-up, just lets him hit the mat. Ali tries to fight back, hits the ropes, gets turned inside out with a clothesline. Elias hooks in a headlock, Ali puts up a valiant effort trying to escape with hip tosses but Elias just keeps rolling through and holding on.
Elias throws Ali to the ropes, counter dropkick! Slowly builds momentum with elbows and chops. Ali whipped to the corner, but avoids the charge, gets the usual WWE head kick from the apron. Rolls into the ring for his X-Factor variation, for a 2 count! Suicide dive, to the back which sends Elias chest first into the barricade! He favors his arm afterwards though. Ali takes his time getting up too though, up top, Elias cuts him off with a chop and tries for a superplex but Ali knocks him to the canvas. Top rope 450 to the exposed arm of Elias! Elias tries to whip him away but Ali gets him with a headscissor into a crossface! Crowd reacts big as Elias struggles for a bit, but he manages to make it to the ropes.
Elias gets Ali into Electric Chair position, spins him around for the sitout powerbomb. Ali kicks out – but gets locked right into a Stretch Muffler! But Ali makes it the bottom rope. The two find themselves on opposing sides of the apron, they both climb up top from the outside. Elias shoves Ali, who backflips and lands on his feet, but limps off the landing! Elias goes off the top rope, but Ali counters with a superkick to a huge pop and a chant of ‘Ali’! Ali goes up top on one leg… 450 but Elias rolls out of the way! Grabs his feet, Ali kicks and struggles his way to his feet, Elias ducks an enziguri then drops a knee on Ali’s bum leg! Drift Away, that’s it.
Winner: Elias
Wow. That was by far the best Elias match I’ve ever seen. And it’s pretty much all due to Ali. I knew he was amazing, more than most as I followed him on 205 pretty religiously but man. I didn’t know he was at the level of having a TV match with Elias at that level. Made him look like an utter killer. Just tremendous.
Backstage we see Samoa Joe is in the building. He says he’s scouting out his potential opponents, as he’s confident he’ll win the Semi-Final triple threat in MSG and advance to the final.
We see Aleister Black backstage. After an awkward pause he says that if the mountain isn’t gonna come to him, he’s gonna come to the mountain. He’s going to go down to the ring and see if there’s anyone man enough to pick a fight with him. This was much shorter than his usual promo and also much more effective. These things are probably related.
Alexa Bliss & Nikki Cross vs. Fire & Desire
This is non-title, probably? Wasn’t announced as a title match so I generally assume. Nikki with a bulldog out of the corner early. Catches a huge forearm from Rose as she bickers with Deville on the apron. Deville tagged in, they isolate her in their corner. Quick tags and stomps and such. But Nikki gets them both to the floor, crossbody off the top rope to the floor wipes them both out! Commercial break.
When we get back, Deville and Rose are back to isolating Nikki in the ring. Nikki escapes a lift from Rose and avoids a high knee to tag in Alexa. She gets rolling and just clobbers Deville, but Rose runs in to take her out. She attempts an Angel’s Wings or something similar on Nikki but Nikki escaped and crossbodied her to the outside. Bliss in the ring, counters with a DDT. Goes up top but finds herslef distracted by Rose and Cross brawling on the floor. Goes for Twisted Bliss, but Deville gets the knees up. Tag to Rose, they hit a combination High Knee/Chop Block for the win.
Winners: Fire & Desire
Commentary implies this might earn them a tag title match at Clash of Champions. Wasn’t bad for being so brief, though having Alexa be distracted that wholly seemed a bit silly.
Chad Gable has an exercise cable backstage when Samoa Joe comes up to him. He mocks him for his size like everyone else. He says he knows he’s heard all the jokes all his life, but when he looks into his eyes, he knows they still hurt. Joe accuses him of being mentally weak and walks away laughing.
Randy Orton makes his way out and he’s thunderously popular in this town. He says Clash of Champions is two weeks away which means in two weeks, everyone will have a new champ. He calls Kofi a fraud and says he’s never been on his level. He says the best part of last week was the sweet sound of Kofi Kingston’s skull bouncing off the floor. He brags about destroying the New Day, destroying the power of positivity and shows a video of the assaults from Orton and the Revival over the last few weeks.
Orton says no more games or traps, no more waiting until Clash of Champions. He challenges Kofi to come out and face him like a man. And of course the New Day music hits… but Kofi gets dragged out, brutalized by The Revival. They take him slowly to the ring… Kofi tries his best to fight back, actually tosses Dawson to the barrier and starts pummeling Dash, but Orton goes out to lay him out with a clothesline. They take him to the ring and Orton gets a mic to yell ‘Stupid!’ as he takes his time stomping him time and time again. They pick up Revival as Orton stares him in the eye and threatens to destroy him with the RK- but Kofi cuts him off with a kick. He tries to brawl with Orton but the Revival are ganging up on him. Shatter Machine/RKO finishes off his attempts to fight back. Revival and Orton pose in the corner once more.
Video recap for the Reigns situation again, and they announce Roman Reigns vs. Erick Rowan for Clash of Champions. My main takeaway is that he got his first name back and that’s nice.
As we get geared up for our next Quarterfinal, Zelina gets on the mic and hilariously notes that, as a fellow vertically challenged superstar, she respect Gable’s knack for overcoming the odds. She says she actually would pick Gable to win the whole tournament, if not for Andrade being a part of it. But there’s no shame in losing to the future King Andrade.
King Of The Ring Quarterfinals: Andrade vs. Chad Gable
Gable gets a waistlock and slams him down hard to start, catches a sharp elbow, nice sunset flip out of the corner. Andrade looks for a powerbomb but Gable escapes with an armdrag. Monkey flip out of the corner! People seem to be getting behind Gable now too. Gable tries for another monkey flip, but Andrade dumps him to the floor. Commercial break but we stick with the inset. I appreciate doing that with KOTR matches in particular since they have a fair bit at stake. Gable dragged back in the ring, Andrade gets him with a basement dropkick to the back of the head. Headlock follows. Gets him in the corner for chops. Gable lands on his feet off a back supelx, Andrade charges in and Gable tries to counter with an overhead belly to belly into the corner but it’s taken sloppily and Andrade seems pained favoring his neck now.
Seems to be alright though as he keeps trading with Gable as we come back. Gable ducks a clothesline, gets a back kick. Rolling Liger Kick to the back of the head followed by a rolling neckbreaker! Wristclutch Chickenwing Suplex, bridge for 2! Andrade kicks him away, goes up top, Gable stops him with a palm thrust. Climbs up, but Andrade has him caught upside down, double foot stomp off the top rope! Pulls him in for a cover but Gable kicks out. Wheelbarrow countered into a victory roll, but Andrade kicks out and hooks him for a snap suplex, rolls through for a second, but on the third Gable hooks him for a repeated German Suplex spot instead! But Andrade escapes on the third as well and nails his third snap suplex. Andrade goes up top, Gable rolls out of the way of the moonsault, but Andrade lands on his feet and goes for a standing variation as he tends to – but Gable gets the knees up! Goes up top for a moonsault of his own, it’s a beauty and he nails it, cover for nearfall!
Crowd is big into Gable now, truly a lovely sight. But Andrade counters a charge into a hip toss to the corner, tries for a meteora, Gable escapes and hits a Doug Williams style roll-through German Suplex, bridge but Zelina distracts the ref! Gable gets up to argue, Andrade recovers, spinning elbow to the face! Goes for the Hammerlock DDT, but Gable counters, bundles him up for the shock win!
Winner: Chad Gable
Some awesome TV matches tonight, great to see so many midcarders getting over on SmackDown. Little-by-little, by just having really good matches. It’s wonderful.
Aleister out now. We’ll see who answers his open challenge up next. We come back from commercial to find that it was in fact Shelton Benjamin
Aleister Black vs. Shelton Benjamin
Early start, Black almost takes Shelton’s head off with an immediate Black Mass but Benjamin manages to evade it. Still gets hit with a pumping knee soon after though. But a short chase outside sees Black on the apron, gets a huge leaping knee from Shelton back which takes him to the floor! In the ring, Shelton lays in knees, but Black kicks his way into the advantage. Ducks a Dragon Whip and nails Black Mass! That’s it.
Winner: Aleister Black
This has been a real good crowd, they were into Aleister too and I Imagine more will be next after a match like that. Just a lightning quick fight, very well done finish.
Backstage Sami Zayn trying to psyche up Shinsuke. He’s hopping around, animated, whilst Nak just stands there calmly. It’s fun.
Another part of backstage sees the Singh Brothers, Grand Metalik and the B-Team attack Drake Maverick. He escapes the chaos for a short time, but eventually Bo Dallas rolls Drake up for the win and the title.
Out Shinsuke comes along with Sami. Sami takes up the mic midway through the entrance, saying that he knows people want to sing along with the music but tonight isn’t about him. Sami again claims that Nak is your Intercontinental Champion to a round of boos. He gets the jobber in the ring’s name wrong and says for all intents and purposes, tonight his name is the Miz and we’ll see what he’ll end up doing to the Miz at Clash of Champions.
Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Not-The-Miz
Nakamura pummels the enhancement talent as Sami endlessly taunts him and the Miz on the microphone. Running knee to the gut as the guy’s on the top rope, Sami’s cackling like a mad man. Kinsasha and that’s it.
Winner: Shinsuke Nakamura, obviously
As they leave, the 24/7 Club make their way to the ring. Axel is protecting Bo from Metalik, but Maverick gets a roll-up on Bo to get the title back. He evades the B-Team, though he trips over Bo as he runs back up the ramp. But on the stage, R-Truth reveals himself, having been hiding under the KOTR cape. He sneaks up on Maverick and you guessed it – rolls him up for another title change. Fun one.
Backstage, Daniel Bryan is WALKING~! Face-to-face with Roman is next.
Bryan comes out and yep this crowd loves him too. Bryan says it finally looks like we have a group of people who believe him. Because he knows how it looks to everyone else to see video footage of Rowan attacking Roman Reigns. People think he’s guilty by association. He’s said this entire time he had nothing to do with it. There’s a lot of people who may not like Daniel Bryan or his opinions but what nobody can say about Daniel Bryan is that he is a liar. The crowd chants “He Hates Liars” and Bryan acknowledges that they’re right. So he demands an apology from Roman Reigns.
Roman comes out… but Rowan jumps him from behind as he makes his way out. Tosses him into the steps. Back Suplex position, tosses him into the apron. Bryan goes out to try and stop Rowan but Rowan tosses him aside. Rowan powerbombs Reigns into the ringpost! Takes him into the ring, Iron Clawslam! Rowan gets on the mic and makes it clear Bryan has nothing to do with this. He addresses Bryan and says nobody can control him, he’s nobodies’ puppet! He dares him to come into the ring and slap him in the face again. Bryan doesn’t do it though and Rowan goes on to tell Roman he’s proud of what he’s done. But he’s most proud of the pain he’s gonna feel at Clash of Champions. He then picks him up and tosses him to the outside. Takes up a set of steps, charges and slams them into Reigns’ face! Clears the announce table, but Bryan comes in to stop him! He yells “What are you doing? I’m your friend!” Rowan doesn’t listen. Bryan slaps him… so Rowan Iron Clawslams him through the table instead! Rowan howls that no one tells him what to do – never again!
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