After last week’s impromptu match, WWE Champion Cody Rhodes and Drew McIntyre will both be in the building for tonight’s SmackDown from Tempe, Arizona.
McIntyre won last week’s title match by DQ after he hit Rhodes with the title belt. With their rematch at November 1’s Saturday Night’s Main Event now official, both men will advance their storyline tonight.
In a non-title match, WWE Women’s Champion Tiffany Stratton will look to return to her winning ways when she takes on Kiana James. The business associate to Women’s U.S. Champion Giulia found herself in this match after having some choice words for Stratton last Friday.
Ilja Dragunov became the new United States Champion last week by defeating Sami Zayn in an open challenge. Dragunov has vowed to continue the open challenge series and make his first title defense tonight.
A grudge match between Fraxiom and DIY was originally made for tonight but isn’t listed on the official WWE.com preview for the show. We’ll see if that bout is still on.
Join us for live coverage starting at 8 p.m. Eastern.
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– Over a live shot of the Mullett Arena in Tempe, AZ, we were taken to a recap of last week’s chaos with Cody Rhodes, Drew McIntyre and an injured Jacob Fatu.
– After the recap, Rhodes was shown arriving backstage as Jimmy Uso welcomed him. Jimmy thanked Rhodes for sticking up for Fatu last week.
Cody Rhodes opens SmackDown
The Undisputed WWE Champion headed out to the ring to address the challenge of Drew McIntyre at Saturday Night’s Main Event next week.
”So, Tempe, Arizona, what do you wanna talk about?” asked Rhodes before he turned attention to what he did to McIntyre last week, something he described as being “uncharacteristic of him”.
Before Rhodes could continue, Drew McIntyre himself interrupted and remained incredulous that the crowd would cheer for Rhodes over him. McIntyre ranted about the crowd cheering for Rhodes no matter what he did, even with the title belt strike last week. McIntyre said that this had now become about him finishing the story, and he’d do it next week.
McIntyre again deflected blame for the Jacob Fatu attack, trying to insinuate Jimmy Uso as the culprit. Rhodes angrily interrupted and challlenged the Scotsman to a fight. As McIntyre and Rhodes got ready for a fight, Jimmy Uso leapt from the barricade and went on the attack. Security poured in to break up the skirmish but not before Uso got in a dive between the ropes on McIntyre.
With order being attempted to be restored, Solo Sikoa and The M.F.T.s made their way to the ring for our opening contest, which was coming up next.
A wild and chaotic opening buoyed by Jimmy Uso’s anger-filled attack on McIntyre, which will undoubtedly set up our main event for tonight.
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– Backstage, McIntyre yelled at Nick Aldis to do something, but Jimmy Uso again attacked as security stopped the chaos once more.
The MFTs (JC Mateo & Tama Tonga) (w/ Solo Sikoa & Rey Fenix)
Nakamura and Tama started off this match. Tama went on the attack against Nakamura with a series of strikes, but he found himself downed by a knee to the gut. Fenix and Mateo tagged in and had their turn of the action.
Fenix launched himself from the rope with an elevated armdrag as Nakamura entered the match with a tag. The two showed impressive teamwork in the corner at Mateo’s expense, which forced the M.F.T.s to retreat to ringside as we took a commercial break.
Our match returned as Tama stopped Fenix’s atrempts to reach his corner with a fierce lariat. Mateo re-entered the match and slammed Fenix with a bomb as the M.F.T.s continued the momentum. Fenix created some needed separation with an enzuigiri as Nakamura got the hot tag.
Nakamura atrempted to lift Mateo, but to no avail. Mateo answered with a twisting back suplex that kept Nakamura grounded. As Tama tagged in, Fenix made his presence known with a springboard on Tama. He followed that up with the Goodbye, Amigo tightrope kick. Things broke down further, which led to Fenix leaping onto Tama and Mateo on the outside.
As Fenix tried to go up top, Solo Sikoa created a distraction, as Talla Tonga chokeslammed Fenix onto the apron. This weakened Fenix for Tama’s Hidden Blade-style running elbow for the three and the win for the M.F.T.s
Match Result: The M.F.T.s def. Rey Fenix & Shinsuke Nakamura via pinfall
Not a bad first outing for the “Bloodline with a new hat”. A decent tag opener for sure.
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– Backstage, Jimmy Uso spoke with Nick Aldis and through all this, we learned that our main event tonight would be Jimmy taking on Drew McIntyre in a No Disqualification match.
Tiffany Stratton vs. Kiana James (w/ Giulia)
Stratton wrenched James’s arm to start us off, as the two got into a bit of a stalemate afterwards, owing to both women’s gymnastics backgrounds. Stratton connected with consecutive armdrags on James before she again went after the arm with a submission. James attempted to fight back with a forearm strike, but she found herself taken down by a dropkick. A running hip strike against a stunned James across the middle ropes sent her to the outside. Stratton continued the punishment with a right hand strike. Giulia provided a distraction by stepping up to Stratton, which allowed James to throw the WWE Women’s Champion into the barricade, as we took a break in the action.
We returned to our match as James flattened Stratton with a running big boot to the face, but couldn’t put her foe away. James punched at Stratton, who responded with a jawbreaker that took her and Giulia’s business manager down out. Both women struggled to get up as they then battered away at one another with strikes to one another. Stratton got the better of James and nailed the handspring elbow into the corner, followed by her signature Alabama Slam. Stratton connected with the Rolling Senton, but couldn’t capitalize with the Prettiest Moonsault Ever.
James responded with a Falcon Arrow but again only got a near-fall in the process. In the corner, James placed Stratton on the top rope, but couldn’t get the Superplex as she was shoved aside to the canvas. Stratton soared with a Swanton Bomb, as she followed that up with the Prettiest Moonsault Ever for the victory.
After the match, Stratton’s victory was cut short as Giulia attacked with the Arrivederci Knee. Before Giulia could dole out more damage, Jade Cargill ran in and sent Giulia scurrying with a pump kick. As Giulia and James backed off, Cargill offered a hand to Stratton, who accepted the help of her former foe. However, that seemed to be an all-too-fleeting moment as Cargill abruptly smashed Stratton with a clothesline. The embittered Cargill refused to let up with her attack on Stratton, throwing her around at ringside into the steel steps and ring post.
With Stratton unable to defend herself, Cargill stomped away on her behind the announce table as referees and officials led by Jamie Noble tried and failed to stop the assault. As Stratton’s leg was planted along one of the steel steps, Cargill stomped on it before she walked off.
Match Result: Tiffany Stratton def. Kiana James via pinfall
A good match, but the real story was Jade Cargill’s heel turn, which was much needed for her as she was feeling kind of stale as a face. Could be what’s needed to refresh SmackDown’s flagging women’s division.
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– Sami Zayn congratulated Ilja Dragunov on his U.S. Title victory last week, as he passed on the U.S. Championship Open Challenge onto the new champion. In Zayn’s mind, Dragunov was the right guy to carry on the legacy of these Open Challenges as he hyped up the champ.
– Jade Cargill was asked about her actions as she said that this world does not reward patience and she was ready to take what was hers: the WWE Women’s Championship.
U.S. Title Open Challenge: Ilja Dragunov (c) vs. Aleister Black (w/ Zelina Vega)
Before the match, Dragunov addressed the crowd, stating that he missed the fans after being out for so long. He thought he’d never see the light at the end of the tunnel, but he said that he’d never give up. Dragunov declared that he’d defend the title with all his obsession and proudly continue the U.S. Open Challenge. “Tonight, pain shall entertain you,” Dragunov said.
Black and Dragunov locked up to begin the match before the challenger attempted to take control with his fierce kicks. Black countered the Constantin Special with a kick before Zelina Vega threw Dragunov into the barricade with a hurricanrana. Black absolutely pasted Dragunov with a running kick to the face from the apron to send us to the break.
We returned from commercial with Black and Dragunov exchanging fierce blows, as the U.S. Champ connected with an enzuigiri. Dragunov followed that with a running strike to the corner on a stunned Black. Dragunov then threw Black around with repeated German suplexes followers by a unique rotating suplex for the near-fall.
As Dragunov headed to the top rope, Vega created a distraction, which allowed Black to stop Dragunov’s attack. From the top, a Black Meteora stunned Dragunov. Suplex attempt was turned into a rollup by Dragunov for the two. Black once again drove a knee to the back of Dragunov, but couldn’t get the three. Black failed to connect with some sort of springboard attack, as Dragunov struck with the Constantin Special and this match went to a second break in the action.
The match returned with Dragunov taking off from the top rope with a dropkick on a prone Black. He then flew from the top with a sentin for a two. Dragunov had Black targeted for the Torpedo Moscow, but was met with a knee to the face. One, two… not quite!
Black had Dragunov in his sights for the Black Mass, but he missed and fell victim to a Torpedo Moscow instead. Dragunov got up and attempted to finish this off with an H-Bomb, but Zelina Vega pulled at his leg. This earned Vega an ejection from the match. At that moment, Damian Priest marched down to the ring, with eyes on revenge on Black. Priest removed his sunglasses to reveal a burn mark as Black was distracted long enough for a Torpedo Moscow from Dragunov and the the three.
Post-match, an irate Priest attacked Black as he got two chairs and cleared away the commentary table as he looked to dish out some ultimate damage. Zelina Vega leapt onto Priest’s back and scratched at the burnt eye, which allowed Black to escape a most grisly fate.
Match Result: Ilja Dragunov def. Aleister Black via pinfall to retain the United States Championship
A fantastic Open Challenge match. I’m glad Dragunov is continuing it. However, I’m not too hot on the Aleister Black vs. Damian Priest feud continuing longer than it needs to.
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– Carmelo Hayes was interviewed about his attack on The Miz last week. Hayes said that everyone was expecting him to say he was happy to attack the Miz, but he wasn’t going to do that because revenge was a double-edged sword. Hayes noted that he was ready to get his career back on track with thanks to the support of the people and he owes it to get back to being “HIM”. Kit Wilson interrupted and trashed Hayes for being a proponent of “toxic masculinity”, and found himself set for a match against Hayes on next week’s SmackDown.
– Ilja Dragunov met with Fraxiom and said that the Open Challenge would continue. #DIY taunted Fraxiom, who called Gargano and Ciampa a scared duo. Tama Tonga then appeared and mocked Fraxiom as he did his signature “yeah yeah yeah” taunt.
– Nia Jax appeared to question Charlotte Flair and Alexa Bliss’s friendship, which led to a match between Bliss and Jax to be made for next week.
No Disqualification Match: Jimmy Uso vs. Drew McIntyre
Things got going right away as Uso and McIntyre brawled at ringside for a bit before the action spilled into the ring. McIntyre pummeled Uso in the corner with strikes, before he found himself lit up with chops to the chest. McIntyre struck Uso with a hard kick to the chest, as he then continued the punishment with a clubbing blow to the back. Uso fought back and clotheslined McIntyre to the outside. He then followed this up with an attempted suicide dive that was met with a forearm from the surly Scotsman.
At ringside, Uso slammed McIntyre’s face across the steel steps, which sent McIntyre retreating into the crowd. Uso followed suit and the fight continued into the stands. McIntyre attempted a DDT onto the floor, but got countered into a suplex by Uso. McIntyre was thrown back over the barricade into the ringside area afterwards. Uso obliged the crowd’s demand for tables by pulling one out from underneath the ring, which was suitable enough for our final commercial break of the evening.
We returned to SmackDown’s main ewvent with McIntyre lifting Uso onto his shoulders, but instead getting blasted with a kick to the head. Outside the ring, Uso tightrope walked across the barricade in the hopes of nailing a splash, but he got caught by McIntyre, who threw him for a belly to belly suplex onto the floor.
McIntyre grabbed a steel chair from the timekeepers area and immediately struck Uso in the ribs before whacking his foe across the back with it. McIntyre unfolded the chair and smashed Uso’s face on the seated portion. He set Uso up for a Claymore, but a drop toehold instead sent the Scotsman face first onto the chair. Uso fired himself up and hit a Whisper in the Wind onto McIntyre for the two-count.
Uso grabbed the chair and went to town on the fallen McIntyre with repeated strikes before he set up the Slim Jim-branded table. As Uso tried to grab at McIntyre, he was caught by surprise with a Future Shock DDT for yet another near-fall. McIntyre tried to go for another Claymore, but he was intercepted with a Samoan Drop onto the table that broke it on impact. Uso tried to go up top for an Uso Splash, but McIntyre threw a chair in his face to counter it. This allowed McIntyre to finish things off with a Claymore Kick for the pin and win in our main event.
After the match, McIntyre placed Uso’s neck across a chair and pressed on it, which led to officials running down in the hopes of breaking it up. Just then, Cody Rhodes ran down and mixed it up with McIntyre, as he thrw him over the timekeeper’s area. McIntyre recovered and took out Rhodes with a Claymore as the Levesque & Fitting producer credits signalled the end of the show.
Match Result: Drew McIntyre defeated Jimmy Uso via pinfall
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Standard SmackDown main event followed by standard post-match shenanigans to top of a moderately good show. This Rhodes/McIntyre feud is at least a hot one, but I’m feeling a bit cold on it, if we’re being honest.
Other than that, tonight’s show had some decent-to-great in-ring action that buoyed everything else, and I dare say that SmackDown has been better than above-average as of late. Ilja Dragunov’s U.S. Title Open Challenge and a needed heel turn for Jade Cargill were the standouts of tonight’s show, in my view.
