0 out of 6
Photo credit: WWE.com
WWE continued to build on its premium live event WrestleMania Backlash on Friday night’s SmackDown, with a show that spotlighted the brand’s top rivals and Superstars and included a Steel Cage match main event.
With nowhere to run or hide, Drew McIntyre finally got his hands on Sami Zayn, this time in a steel cage. Was The Scottish Warrior able to silence The Great Liberator before moving on to bigger and better things, or did Zayn find a way to steal a win and improve his shares on Friday night?
Did Charlotte Flair or Ronda Rousey tick the clock trying to gather momentum and braggart rights as they compete in the upcoming extravaganza and their I-Quit match for the SmackDown Women’s Championship?
Find out the answer to these questions and more with this recap of the April 29 episode.
2 out of 6
There was nowhere for Sami Zayn to run or hide on Friday night when Drew McIntyre finally got his hands on The Great Liberator in a steel cage at the head of the show.
Despite a start to the match bouncing around the square circle as The Scottish Warrior frustrated him for weeks, Zayn found control of the fight for a few moments. Then came a big superplex from the top rope, sparking a comeback for the WWE Champion and a win over Claymore.
The match was a lot of fun and played with the dichotomy of the performers. Zayn was cowardly early on and talked trash as he controlled the match. When McIntyre fired, he jabbed appropriately and ate the pin as expected.
McIntyre walked out with momentum on his side and the clear top contender for Roman Reigns and the Universal Championship. Whether that match will manifest amid a decided lack of feud for The Head of the Table’s entry into WrestleMania Backlash remains to be seen, but no one on the blue brand can reasonably attack him at this point.
Where that leaves Zayn and his direction forward is a mystery. Whatever it is, he turns out to be immensely entertaining and undeniably awesome while doing it.
Class
B
top moments
- Drew Gulak was the special guest timekeeper for the game.
- Zayn countered another jump into the side of the cage, quickly climbing onto it to escape.
- A gorgeous sunset flip powerbomb from Zayn turned the tide as he came into the break.
- The superplex at the top of the cage space will never stop being awesome.
3 out of 6
A vengeful madcap Moss retaliated for a sneak attack by Happy Corbin on last week’s show by interrupting Friday’s Happy Talk. He sent Corbin into the ring post and rushed to the ground before standing upright, fired with an intensity not previously seen in the jester.
It’s that intensity, and the facial expressions that go along with it, that make Moss a contender for breakout star of the year. If only he could get a name change now…
After a brief commercial break, Ricochet defended his Intercontinental Championship against Shanky, who was joined by former WWE Champion Jinder Mahal to the Square Circle.
Despite interference from The Modern-Day Maharaja, The One and Only continued in his recent role by stacking Shanky for the pinfall win. The match was what it was: a perfectly acceptable showdown between a massive heel and an underdog babyface. It’s a formula we’ve seen countless times in the world of professional wrestling, where the smaller man somehow manages to knock out the much larger opponent.
Shanky looked like a guy with potential, but one who wasn’t exactly ready to hang out with an otherworldly ricochet. More in-ring reps in meaningful matches will help him grow. A feud with his partner Mahal, who is teased after the bell, doesn’t necessarily suit him best at this point.
Class
C+ for happy talk; C for Ricochet vs. Shanky
top moments
- “…in a Dickies onesie!” exclaimed Pat McAfee as Moss attacked Corbin with a sledgehammer.
- Shanky literally hoisted Ricochet through the ring as he overpowered the champion.
- Ricochet sported massive red welts on his chest at one point, a testament to the offense he had to overcome to successfully defend his title.
- Shanky and Mahal drew disagreements after the match, hinting at a feud that absolutely no one asks about.
4 out of 6
After weeks of backstage promos and video packages, Raquel Rodriguez made her main roster debut in the ring by crushing Cat Cardonza (Leila Gray for indie fans) and finishing her off with her one-armed powerbomb.
The debut was good enough, but it told audiences little about who Rodriguez is. She smiled a lot, but there was no indication what her character is or why anyone should care. That has to change, or no size difference or advantage in power will help her make that all-important connection with the audience.
After a commercial break, Adam Pearce performed a contract signing between Raw Tag Team Champions RK-Bro and SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Usos.
Chaos ensued as WrestleMania Backlash opponents wasted little time brawling with each other, bringing undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns into the square circle. The distraction allowed the Usos to gain the upper hand over their rivals. Drew McIntyre parried and met Reigns to tease the most anticipated feud from the moment The Scottish Warrior arrived on Friday night.
McIntyre cleared Reigns from the ring and stood tall to close the segment, which raised questions about the announced match between RK-Bro and Usos at WrestleMania Backlash and fueled intrigue for a fight between the Tribal Chief and McIntyre.
Could a huge six-man tag team match be on the horizon, an easy way out for a company that booked an ill-advised title unification match that doubles as incitement to a Reigns-McIntyre scheme? As we saw in a backstage segment, Paul Heyman strongly advised Adam Pearce to make it happen.
Class
C- for Rodriguez’ debut; B for signing the contract
top moments
- “This one, he’s nothing but a little bitch,” Randy Orton said of Jimmy Uso.
- McIntyre threw Reigns through the ring.
- “What does this mean for the tag team title unification match?” Michael Cole considered comments.
- “That took a long time!” exclaimed a heated McIntyre as he glared down at the tribal chief.
5 out of 6
With a showdown at the Women’s Tag Team Championships looming on the horizon, Naomi fought Shayna Baszler with their respective partners Sasha Banks and Natalya at ringside.
A sprint of a match was marked by back and forth between the champion and the queen of spades, culminating in the latter catching her aggressive opponent with a rollup to victory.
The result didn’t matter, however, as Baszler and Natalya let the champions down and cemented dominance ahead of their yet-to-be-announced title match. Given that Baszler and Natalya are a relatively new entity and not as old as the champions, it makes sense that WWE Creative would find it necessary to build up some heat. Based on the crowd reaction, it worked.
With Butch’s whereabouts still in question, Sheamus Ridge accompanied Holland to a match with New Day’s Xavier Woods, who was joined by Kofi Kingston. Holland dominated the action but it was his hubris that proved costly as Woods scored the win over the cocky young star with the Backwoods rollup.
Not to be outdone, Sheamus challenged Kingston to a match immediately afterwards. He scored the win in a match that shouldn’t have happened to end a segment that didn’t accomplish anything.
Why does WWE Creative feel the need to constantly topple Sheamus and Holland without letting them lose or look weak? They’re midcard heels that constantly get over babyfaces and never get their comeuppance. Getting Woods through a table erases any momentum he gained from beating Holland and booking the segment 50-50 makes the whole thing pointless.
This was the antithesis of the segment that preceded it.
Class
C+ for the women’s tag team segment; D- for the New Day Eastie Boys nonsense
top moments
- “Ring the bell, Drew. They stunk at everything else,” said Pat McAfee of Gulak at the timekeeper’s position.
- Natalya caught Naomi by surprise, but Banks cleared the Queen of Harts only to fall victim to a sharpshooter from The Queen of Harts.
- Baszler stomped on Naomi’s arm, leaving McAfee and Michael Cole at the commentary table in disgust.
- “I miss Big E,” McAfee said. “Damn yes,” replied Cole in a nice show of solidarity in support of the former WWE Champion, who is out of action and suffering from a neck injury.
6 out of 6
Bragging rights and momentum were at stake in Friday night’s finals, a “Beat the Clock I Quit” challenge that pitted “Rowdy” Ronda Rousey against Shotzi and SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair against Aliyah.
Rousey set the bar at 1:41 and ankle locked Shotzi to stop. The win made Rousey look like a dominant force but continued the inexplicable debasement of Shotzi, who really should be placed in a position to benefit the show rather than occasionally emerging from obscurity and taking a beating. She has too much of an advantage to waste the way she has.
Aliyah, on the other hand, showed courage when she beat the clock and refused to tap Flair’s eight. As a result, Rousey won the competition and boasted rights on her side attending the Premium Live Event on May 8th.
The whole ordeal was good enough for what it was, but like so much about the feud, none of it made fans care more or less about the vendetta that exists between champion and challenger. It was a segment that existed just to exist, or at most to continue the weekly humiliation of Drew Gulak.
The special timepiece was knocked down and left by Flair to end the show, begging the question: Why did WWE suddenly and so prominently put Gulak in the spotlight the way it is? Could it factor into the result at WrestleMania Backlash, or is this just to give Rousey and Flair a tackling dummy that isn’t the other?
All signs point to the latter, which is really unfortunate considering how talented he is as a professional wrestler.
Class
C
top moments
- Cole and McAfee reminded the audience of Aliyah’s historically shortest win ever against Natalya a few months ago to trump her success in timed games.
- Flair shot Gulak over the head with the timer’s bell to end the show.