This week’s episode of Smackdown kicked off with Shane McMahon and Daniel Bryan watching the end of last week’s Smackdown where Harper and Styles eliminated each other at the same time. From the video, it was clear that Styles was eliminated first but Shane agreed that the referee’s decision was final. AJ Styles showed up and started cracking jokes at Harper’s expense. Styles was unaware that Harper was right behind him. Styles eventually released Harper was there and walked away. Harper then got right in Shane McMahon’s face and thanked him for no reason and walked away.
Miz TV w/ John Cena
John Cena joined The Miz and Maryse in the middle of the ring. The Miz demanded that Cena’s microphone be cut off. The Miz then went on a rant about Cena being manipulative towards the upper management in the WWE. The Miz claimed to work 10x as hard as Cena but Cena gets all the publicity and opportunities. The crowd broke out in a “Cena” chant and The Miz scolded the crowd for rudely interrupting him. The Miz boasted about defeating John Cena at Wrestlemania years ago and said that Cena was jealous of him. The Miz then called Cena hypocrite for going to Hollywood after all the things he said to The Rock.
The crowd started chanting “you sold out!” at Cena. The Miz said that Cena was not “Super Cena” anymore and is now “Barely Decent Cena”. Dueling “lets go Cena” and “Cena sucks” chants broke out in the crowd. The Miz said that it was infuriating that Cena was gifted a WWE Championship shot at the Royal Rumble. Miz then said that even though he tied Flair’s record, Flair is still the greatest of all time. The Miz said that Cena has held him back his entire career and that is why he threw him out of the ring last week in the Battle Royal after he was eliminated.
Cena said that it was ridiculous for The Miz to think that Cena has influence over WWE management. Cena said the proof that he doesn’t is that right before Wrestlemania he is standing in the ring with The Miz instead of The Undertaker. Cena then said that The Miz stole Chris Jericho’s personality, Ric Flair’s Figure Four, Daniel Bryan’s offense and personality. Cena then said that The Miz is now stealing everything AJ Styles said about him in the last six months.
Cena tried to leave but Maryse stopped him. Maryse said that Cena wishes he was half the man that The Miz is. Maryse called Cena a “control ego maniac freak” and insinuated that Cena has a tiny package. Maryse then slapped Cena in the face as The Miz laughed. Cena grabbed the microphone and said that Maryse just made the biggest mistake of her life. Nikki Bella then sprinted to the ring and The Miz and Maryse retreated. Nikki Bella grabbed a microphone and called Maryse a bitch. Cena and Nikki then kissed in the ring as The Miz and Maryse angrily looked on from the crowd.
2-out-of- 3 Falls Match: Mickie James vs Becky Lynch
Becky controlled the first couple minutes of the match. Smackdown went to a commercial break after Becky knocked Mickie out of the ring. When Smackdown returned, Mickie was in control of the match and slammed Becky’s head into the second turnbuckle. Mickie planted Becky with a DDT for the first pinfall.
Mickie continued the beatdown of Lynch and climbed to the top rope. Mickie jumped off but Becky moved out of the way and rolled Mickie up for the second pinfall. Becky then planted Mickie with a Suplex and both Superstars were on the mat. Alexa Bliss then came down to the ring and distracted the referee as Becky was going for another pinfall. Becky got frustrated and started to yell at the referee. Mickie tried to attack Becky from behind but Lynch got out of the way and Mickie accidentally knocked Alexa Bliss of the ring apron. Lynch then applied the Dis-Arm-Her to win the match.
Winner: Becky Lynch
Luke Harper had a backstage promo and said that he has made peace with his demons. Harper claimed that he can now see what true evil is and said that he is not afraid of Bray Wyatt. Harper said that when he wins tonight, Bray Wyatt will be the one who is afraid.
Bray Wyatt then had a promo of his own. Bray Wyatt stated that he will not be alone because he has his brother, Randy Orton. Wyatt claimed that Orton is going to make Wrestlemania a kingdom of his own.
Alexa Bliss was interviewed backstage and bragged about becoming the first ever two time Smackdown Women’s Champion. Bliss’s promo was done in the form of an award’s speech and Alexa Bliss thanked herself and Naomi for having terrible knees. Natalya interrupted and said that she was coming after Bliss’s title.
#1 Contender Match: AJ Styles vs Luke Harper
Harper leveled Styles with a Dropkick to start off the match and AJ looked shocked. Styles then rolled out of the ring to gather himself. Harper followed him and Styles rolled back in the ring. Styles tried to hit Harper with an Elbow Drop as he was getting in the ring but Harper avoided it. Harper then dragged AJ out of the ring and threw him into the barricade, the steel steps and the announce table before finally rolling him back in the ring. Styles once again rolled out of the ring and Harper followed him. Styles kicked Harper in the leg on the ring apron and then connected with a Pele Kick that sent Harper down on the ring apron.
Back in the ring, Styles continued to beatdown Harper and focused his attack on Harper’s knee. Harper battled back and knocked Styles to the mat with a couple of right hands. Harper then hit a Senton and followed it up with a boot to the face for a two count. Harper knocked AJ out of the ring and hit him with a Suicide Dive. The action returned to the ring and Harper planted Styles with a Suplex as Smackdown went to a commercial break.
When Smackdown returned, Harper was still in control of the match. Styles connected with a Phenomenal Forearm and went for the pin. Harper got his foot on the rope but the referee didn’t notice it and counted to three. Shane McMahon then came down to the ring and restarted the match because Harper’s foot was on the rope.
Styles got knocked out of the ring by Harper and Styles got right in Shane McMahon’s face. Harper then tried to kick Styles but AJ got out of the way and Harper kicked Shane McMahon. Back in the ring, AJ Styles hit a 450 Splash for the victory.
Winner & #1 Contender To The WWE Championship: AJ Styles
Carmella and James Ellsworth started poking fun at Cena and Nikki Bella backstage. This led to Cena and Nikki challenging Carmella and Ellsworth to a match next week on Smackdown.
Daniel Bryan tried to congratulate AJ Styles backstage and shake his hand but Styles just walked away.
Dean Ambrose vs Curt Hawkins
Ambrose hit a Dirty Deeds right away and grabbed a microphone. Dean called out Baron Corbin and said that he wanted a fight. Corbin appeared on the titantron and said that he’s not fighting tonight. Corbin called Ambrose a deer standing in the middle of the road and Corbin said that he was going to run Ambrose over. Ambrose told Corbin to not start something that he can’t finished and said that he and Corbin were far from finished.
Chairs Match: Apollo Crews vs Dolph Ziggler
Crews attacked Ziggler from behind before the match started. Smackdown went to a commercial break with Ziggler on the floor ringside. When Smackdown returned, Crews kicked Ziggler while he was holding a chair and followed it up by hitting Ziggler win a Moonsault. Ziggler battled back and went for a Superkick but Crews reversed it into a Belly to Back Suplex on top of a chair. Ziggler then tripped up Crews and he fell neck-first into a chair. Ziggler then slammed Crews groin-first into a chair and pinned him for the victory.
Winner: Dolph Ziggler
Bray Wyatt came down to the ring to address AJ Styles becoming the #1 contender. Bray Wyatt stated that it didn’t matter if Harper or Styles won because they are both mortal. Randy Orton was then shown on the titantron from the “kingdom”. Orton was next to a constantly rocking chair and admitted that he was no longer in the Wyatt Family. Orton then revealed that Sister Abigail was buried beneath the chair. Orton then said that after he burns Wyatt’s temple down, he will be the master and Bray will be the servant. Orton stated that he was coming after Wyatt’s title at Wrestlemania. Orton then burned the temple down that held Sister Abigail’s soul as Bray Wyatt lost it in the ring.
Reaction: This week’s episode was very good. I thought the Miz TV segment was excellent. The Miz did a great job of berating John Cena in the beginning of the promo. I thought Cena was the best part of this segment. Yes, Cena is not the best wrestler ever but he has an amazing ability to sell a match and make everything he is involved in feel important. I could have cared less about The Miz, Maryse, John Cena and Nikki Bella storyline before this promo. Now, I cannot wait to see how this storyline develops heading into Wrestlemania.
The timing of the Styles and Harper match made me think that something odd was going to happen at the end of the show. The #1 contender match happened at the beginning of the second hour of Smackdown. That match was solid and I will continue to say that Harper is so underrated in the WWE. I don’t ever see him headlining a Wrestlemania but I do think he can offer more than being the silent guy in a tag team. His backstage promos have been solid and his work in the ring is really impressive. I hope the WWE has something planned for him. Baron Corbin and The Miz are currently in a feud and I’m guessing that will lead to an Intercontinental Championship match at Wrestlemania. If Corbin wins, I wouldn’t mind seeing him enter a feud with Luke Harper. Corbin is going to be a major star in the WWE and I think working with Harper will help him get there.
The chairs match between Dolph Ziggler and Apollo Crews was interesting on multiple levels for me. First of all, David Otunga said before the match that Apollo Crews was so intense backstage that he could barely put a sentence together. Whether that was a jab at Crews being horrific at promos, I have no idea but that is what popped into my mind. Crews also lost the match in very embarrassing fashion.
I enjoyed the Bray Wyatt and Randy Orton segment to end the show. It was completely crazy, but I’m fine with that. Now that Orton has announced that he intends to fight Wyatt at Wrestlemania, I’m sure Styles will be informed that he will not get his Wrestlemania main event. There have been rumors that AJ Styles will face Shane McMahon at Wrestlemania. They were barking at each other tonight. If Shane winds up taking the Wrestlemania main event away from Styles, that will likely lead to them having a match at Wrestlemania. Who knows, maybe Styles might even want to jump from Smackdown to Raw.
What did you think of this week’s episode of Smackdown? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
