The SmackDown main event scene has been on fire recently, with no less than a half dozen future Hall of Famers all setting their sights on the WWE’s top prize. Throw in three title changes over the summer, and plenty of intrigue surrounds the WWE Championship as we head into the fall.
At the center of much of that intrigue has been the Last Real Good Guy, Sami Zayn. After becoming WWE Champion for the first time at Night of Champions at the end of June, Zayn famously lost the title just 9 days later
when CM Punk magically appeared on an episode of Raw in Chicago. Sami became the low-key main character of SmackDown for the rest of the summer, as his quest to win back the WWE Championship became the main story on Friday nights.
With former World Champions circling him like sharks, the two people whose breath Sami feels most on the back of his neck right now are CM Punk and Kevin Owens. With a deeply personal rivalry brewing between those two, the WWE Champion has been trying to remind them that he is the one who holds the cards, and he is the one who actually matters.
With less than 24 hours until they step into a Money in the Bank Ladder match against each other, CM Punk and Kevin Owens got to get some things off their chest when they met in the ring tonight. Keep reading to hear how that and all of the rest of the action went down on tonight’s Money in the Bank go-home edition of SmackDown!
Sami Zayn spits some truth
CM Punk made his way to the ring to open tonight’s action, joining three ladders set up inside. Punk started by climbing three-quarters of the way up one ladder, then ran down the field for tomorrow night’s ladder match, giving props to four of his opponents. When Punk remembered that one of his current most heated rivals was the sixth participant in the match, he told the crowd that he doesn’t sweat KO, which, of course, prompted Owens to head down to the ring.
Owens made his way to the ring and climbed his own ladder to reach CM Punk’s eye level. Both men made their case for why they’d leave Nawlins tomorrow with the big green briefcase, but seemed more focused on how they’d cost each other the match. Owens laid out his plan to win the ladder match and cash in on Sami Zayn, but calling the WWE Champion a bitch finally got Sami to join the fray.
Sami came out and stood on a third ladder, a few rungs shorter than the ones KO and Punk were on. Zayn spit a ton of truth and made a convincing case for why the other two are pretty much the same person. He told Owens and Punk they’d both walk out tomorrow night empty-handed, then dropped the mic by vowing to still be WWE Champion.
Later, Sami Zayn caught up with Johnny Gargano and Candice LeRae. Johnny Wrestling wondered why Sami didn’t help him advance in last week’s chaotic Money in the Bank qualifier, and Sami said Nick Aldis warned him not to get involved. That was pretty clearly some first-class manipulation, and while Johnny seemed to buy what Zayn was selling, Candice didn’t seem completely convinced.
As the trio discussed their next move, Bron Breakker walked in. Bron didn’t need to say much to make his presence felt, only saying that he would see Sami soon. For Zayn, all that meant was that another shark was added to the shiver.
Reaction: Every week it seems like the number of contenders targeting Sami Zayn increases, and yet, the WWE Champ continues to play chess while everyone else is playing checkers. Sami’s message to KO and Punk seemed to lean closer to spoiler than to prediction, as their mutual hatred will almost certainly end up costing them both their shot at a guaranteed title shot tomorrow night. To Sami’s credit, he’s not just shying away from all the commotion to protect his title reign. He’s actually trying to scream into a megaphone to get everyone to respect him and realize that beating him for the title is not as easy as everyone is making it seem. If anything, I’m more convinced every week that this title reign for Zayn could end up being one of the more exciting and interesting ones we’ve seen in the last several years.
The Vision gets bouncy with cero miedo, and whoops that Trick
With several Raw superstars set to appear on tonight’s show, SmackDown opened with Raw GM Adam Pearce pissed that his talent was booked without his permission. As he tried to get an explanation from his blue-brand counterpart, United States Champion Trick Williams walked in with Lil’ Yachty in tow, looking to get a piece of the Gingerbread Man. (Yep, we’re still doing that.) Bron Breakker interrupted, pissed that Aldis disrupted his strict Money in the Bank training schedule by bringing him to SmackDown. With Survivor Series looming, some ‘brand supremacy’ undertones led to Adam Pearce signing Bron vs. Trick for tonight’s main event, with Nick Aldis sarcastically making it ‘official’.
The match between these two former NXT rivals got off to a quick start (possibly because the show was running out of time towards the end). Breakker and Trick both moved fast, hitting signature spots in rapid succession. As Bron worked his way up to nearly 23 miles per hour running the ropes, Trick avoided the Spear and hit Breakker with a flying knee. Before the United States Champ could follow up and capitalize, Austin Theory arrived on the scene, and the ref called for the bell. Maxxine and Logan Paul showed up too, and as The Vision laid into Trick, Je’Von Evans and Penta both came down for the save, but when the big Auss-zilla arrived on the scene, that damn numbers game was just too much. Bronson flattened Penta on the floor, then stomped a mudhole in Je’Von in the ring, allowing Breakker and Theory to regroup. The show abruptly went off the air right after Trick took a Spear from Breakker and a Tsunami from Bronson.
Reaction: I thought this was a pretty strong way to finish off the show. Showcasing two-thirds of the Money in the Bank field, plus the man who goes toe-to-toe with Oba Femi tomorrow, makes a lot of sense as the show-closing angle. An appearance from the Ruler would’ve blown the top off the arena and taken the ending up another notch, but I still thought it was solid. The reverse momentum rule of go-home shows seems to make my Money in the Bank pick look good, but we’ll see. There are truly several ways they could go with that match tomorrow, and I’m looking forward to it more than I have in a few years.
Alexa pinch-hits for Charlotte, wins tag team gold
The reigning WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions, Fallon Henley and Lainey Reid of Fatal Influence, were scheduled to defend their titles tonight against the odd-couple pairing of Charlotte Flair and Tatum Paxley. The circumstances surrounding the match were altered dramatically when Jade Cargill, Michin, and B-Fab launched a brutal backstage attack on Charlotte, leaving the Queen unable to compete. GM Aldis suggested postponing the match, but Charlotte insisted that Alexa take her place and team with Tatum, refusing to let Jade and her crew ruin this opportunity for Charlexley. Alexa reluctantly agreed, and Aldis announced that Jade, her baddies, and Jacy Jayne were all banned from ringside for the title match.
The action in the tag team match was expectedly solid, with Henley and Reid controlling much of the action early on. After being isolated on the wrong side of town, Tatum broke through and made it back to her corner, sending Alexa Bliss and her five feet of fury in with a hot tag. Fatal Influence turned the tide back in their favor momentarily, but got caught with their hands in the cookie jar when Lainey tried to give Fallon extra leverage on her pin attempt. The ref caught the shenanigans and stopped the count, allowing Alexa to lay Lainey out with a Sister Abigail on the floor and Tatum to hit a Cemetery Drive on Fallon in the ring. Just like that, we’ve got new WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions!
Reaction: This result felt telegraphed a bit when Charlotte went down injured, but it was still a pleasant surprise. Tatum’s character work has been a lot of fun since she arrived on SmackDown, and a title run with Alexa could be a fun change of pace for the division. The obvious progression here makes me think this will spark jealousy or resentment from Charlotte, but I, for one, hope they find a way to avoid going down that road in a straight line. I’d hate the work Flair has done to restore her image to be all for naught by pulling off a knee-jerk heel turn here. There’s a ton more character development to pursue if they take a less conventional route with this.
Orton gets a night off, Cody crashes out
We took a unique path to Cody Rhodes asking the Lafayette crowd what they wanted to talk about tonight. We saw a clip from earlier in the day of The Miz and Kit Wilson talking to Nick Aldis. Just as the Awesome One launched into a rant about nobody wishing him a happy 46th birthday or celebrating his 20-year anniversary with the company, the SmackDown GM caught Randy Orton out of the corner of his eye and left Miz mid-sentence. Aldis admonished Orton for his actions last week when he got involved in Cody’s Money in the Bank Qualifier. To keep things from devolving tonight, with a big PLE less than 24 hours away, Aldis took Randy’s suggestion to turn around and head home.
Back to live action, Miz and Kit Wilson came into the arena through the crowd as Cole and Graves discussed the Cody/Randy drama. The former WWE Champion and his protégé got into the ring, and just as Kit called the Lafayette faithful toxic and prepared to lead the live crowd in a rendition of ‘Happy Birthday’, we were reminded that wrestling has more than one royal family. Cody Rhodes made his way to the ring without saying anything, much to Miz’s chagrin. When Cody finally got in, he took out both Miz and Kit and hijacked the microphone for himself.
Cody was dressed more like a gym teacher than a James Bond cosplayer tonight, which meant he was going to cut a fiery promo and ask for a fight. As Miz and Kit scrambled to the back, GM Aldis came out and gave Rhodes the bad news that Randy wasn’t even in the arena, then asked him to join him in his office to discuss how they could make a match with the Legend Killer a reality. Cody said he’d prefer to stay in his office, the ring, and told his boss that he’s not going to stop until he kills the legend of Randy Orton. Rhodes went on that fiery tirade I mentioned earlier and asked Aldis to set up a face-to-face between him and Randy. They later made that confrontation official for next week’s show.
Reaction: I’ve been enjoying the story Cody and Randy are telling, but I can’t help that my first thought is that I wish they had done this prior to WrestleMania. Either way, the intensity is picking up, and the eventual blowoff between these two could be a show-stealer… whenever it happens. The whispers of Cody Rhodes turning heel will undoubtedly continue, but I think you can make the Cody character interesting while keeping him a babyface. Randy Orton is at the point in his career where he could kick a puppy and not get booed, so the focus should be on tapping into their storied history rather than their alignment.
Quick Hits
- The 6 competitors in tomorrow’s Women’s Money in the Bank Ladder match met tonight for a trios match, with Sol, Roxanne!, and Lola from Raw facing Jacy, Tiffany, and Lash from SmackDown. As expected, both teams struggled to get on the same page before the opening bell even rang. Roxanne Perez and Tiffany Stratton were the odd ones out, while Sol Ruca & Lola Vice and Jacy Jayne & Lash Legend stayed cohesive on their respective teams. The match really devolved when Roxanne tagged herself in just as Lola finished back-to-back running hip attacks that would make Booker T. short-circuit. A series of blind tags turned the match into a spot fest, giving all 6 ladies a chance to shine. In the end, Lash Legend pinned Sol Ruca after shoving Lola into the path of a Sol Snatcher and hitting a Lash Extension. The winning team celebrated briefly after the match, but the segment closed with Lash attacking her erstwhile partners and standing tall alone in the ring!
- We went backstage right after the trios match, where WWE Women’s Champion Chelsea Green shared her thoughts on the Money in the Bank briefcase being back in play. The champ could barely tell Cathy Kelley she’s pulling for her bestie, Tiffy, to win before Nikki Bella walked up. Nikki spewed a series of insults, calling Chelsea a ‘bootleg Nikki Bella’ and saying it’s time for the WWE Women’s Championship to upgrade to the real thing. Nikki will have her rematch with Paige on next week’s show, but makes it clear she’s got her sights set on Chelsea’s title after that.
- The WWE Tag Team Champions, MFT, graduated from the digital exclusives tonight, beating the War Raiders in tag team action, but the match was not without controversy. Partway through the match, Bakusai sauntered down the ramp and almost immediately drew Tama and Talla’s attention. Kyoki, whom the announce team called a ‘loose cannon’, hopped onto the apron and got involved physically. Amid the commotion, Haku nailed Erik in the throat with his walking stick, and moments later, the Tongans hit My Brother’s Keeper to pick up the win. A brawl between all three teams broke out after the match, with Bakusai standing tall
- Finn Balor made his weekly pitch to Nick Aldis for a match with Gunther. The SmackDown GM revealed that the Ring General had also requested a match, but not with Finn… with Danhausen, who just happened to be in the room. That match never got off the ground, as Gunther attacked the Very Evil, Very Nice one before the bell. He unleashed a vicious assault on Danhausen, but Finn eventually saved him. Balor came down and got the better of Gunther, sending the big Austrian running back through the crowd. Finn did a dumb babyface thing, letting his guard down as he checked on Danhausen, and almost immediately got pulled back out of the ring. One big powerbomb onto the announce table later, and the rivalry between Finn and Gunther was effectively cranked up a notch.
- An angry Damian Priest lashed out at Cathy Kelley backstage when she asked where things stood between him and R-Truth. Feeling a little sensitive, Damian noticed Fraxiom talking a few feet away and decided to pick a fight with the former NXT Tag Team champs. After begging Nathan Frazer what he thought of him, Priest charged at both men, knocked them to the ground, and threw them around until R-Truth rushed in and attacked the former World Champion. Referees and officials were needed to pull the amigos-turned-rivals apart. Priest and Truth will go one-on-one next Friday night.
Final Thoughts
I felt this was a pretty strong go-home show for Money in the Bank, after Monday’s Raw fell a little short. Mileage will vary on the brand split, but tonight’s show proved that if they truly make the two main roster brands separate entities, bringing both rosters together for shows like tonight can add energy and excitement. Heading into tomorrow night’s PLE, I’m not at all sure who will be grabbing the briefcases, and that is a great place for WWE to be right before a show considered one of their ‘Big 5’. An Oba Femi appearance at the end would have been a great cherry on top of what I thought was a pretty fun night of wrestling.
Grade: A-
Star of the Night: Sami Zayn
The WWE Champion remains S-tier on the microphone, and although KO and Punk will get much of the attention tomorrow, Sami made a definitive statement in their segment tonight.
Match Results
- Lash Legend, Tiffany Stratton & Jacy Jayne def. Lola Vice, Sol Ruca & Roxanne Perez
- MFT def. War Raiders
- Gunther vs. Danhausen never got started
- Alexa Bliss & Tatum Paxley def. Fatal Influence to become NEW WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions
- Trick Williams def. Bron Breakker via disqualification
Now it’s your turn, Cagesiders! Who ya got grabbing the briefcases tomorrow night? Be sure to check out our staff picks here and here, and hop on to Cageside tomorrow to see who we think will win the rest of the matches at Money in the Bank!
