411’s WWE Smackdown Report 01.21.11

Welcome to the WWE Smackdown Report!

I will be tracking the win/loss record of every Smackdown superstar throughout the year. Here are the guidelines:

– These records only reflect matches that have taken place on Smackdown or Pay-Per-View.
– Matches that end or have ended in a No Contest are not counted.
– In the case of Tag Team matches, each member of the losing team gets a Loss and each member of the winning team gets a Win.
– In the case of multi-man matches, every participant besides the winner gets a Loss.
– Some wrestlers will have a third number in their record. This number represents matches that have ended in a Draw.

No Green Day or pyro this week.

After a video recapping the formation of the Next Nexus last week, we go straight to the ring for a promo by said group. They come out to Wade Barrett’s “End of Days.” It gives Barrett great pleasure to announce that Big Show will not be here this evening. Instead, he will take this opportunity to introduce his group to the Smackdown audience. He is Wade Barrett, and has revolutionized Nexus for the past six months. Since then, he has come to notice the error of his ways- Nexus should have been about the entire group, not just Barrett. That is what this group is all about- The Core. Ezekiel Jackson is up next. For weeks, Teddy Long has been promoting his arrival, but he is extremely proud to be a member of the Core. Heath Slater is up next. He is the one man rock band, baby! We haven’t seen anything yet. Finally, Justin Gabriel- He is from Cape Town, South Africa, but will now call Smackdown his home. Barrett wants us to mark his words- the Nexus will pale in comparison to what the Core will accomplish…

Teddy Long is out for some interrupting. He recognizes that sometimes things happen that he will not like. However, before they come out and start making grand plans, they have to realize he is the GM. If they plan on playing outside the rules, they are going to have a problem. Barrett wonders where this hostility is coming from. They respect Long as an authority figure- they want to assist him. Very shortly, all four of them are going to compete in the Royal Rumble, representing Smackdown. Long will go down in history as the GM of Smackdown when the Core was formed. Long isn’t buying what Barrett is selling. Long is not an anonymous GM. He saw what the Nexus did on Raw- that will not happen on Smackdown. If they try the same nonsense they tried last week with Show, it will be the last time. Jackson is disappointed that Long didn’t welcome them with an open mind. If they play by the rules, Long has no problem. They can either like Smackdown, or they can leave it. Holla, holla.

As soon as Long retreats to the back, Alberto Del Rio’s music hits and he pulls up in a Bentley. He knows the Core is new here on Smackdown, so he will introduce himself. And he does. The Core is welcome on Smackdown, but they have to know one thing- this is his show. He will win the Rumble.

Match One: R-Truth (1-0) vs. Alberto Del Rio (1-1)
Lock-up to start and Del Rio backs Truth into the corner. He gets some strikes in and throws him into the opposite corner. He charges, but Truth meets him with a clothesline. Outside Truth slaps him and sends him into the ring post. Back inside, Del Rio drops an elbow but misses. Truth covers for two and applies an armbar. Meanwhile, in the back, WWE officials are in a panic over a knocked out Teddy Long. Was that Michael Tarver? Back to the ring, Del Rio fights out of the armbar but gets sent to the corner. Truth hits a splash and perches him on the top rope. He brings Del Rio back down with a rana and knocks him out of the ring as we go to commercial.

Back from break, Del Rio is in control. He runs into a boot in the corner but quickly recovers and slams Truth off the middle rope. Cover gets one. Del Rio drops some knees on Truth’s arm and hits a snapmare. He applies a chinlock. Truth elbows his way out but gets dropped with a drop toe hold. Cover gets one. In the back, Long is being loaded onto a stretcher. A worried Vickie Guerrero looks on. Back to the ring, Del Rio misses a clothesline and goes down to a forearm smash. Truth follows up with a sitout facebuster for two. He tries for a suplex but Del Rio floats over and sends him into the corner. Enzuigiri connects for two. Michael Cole informs us that Long is suffering from severe trauma to the back of the head. Truth powers Del Rio into the corner then drops him with a hiptoss. He gets distracted by Ricardo Rodriguez and Del Rio takes advantage by snapping his head across the top rope. Back in, Del Rio locks in the Cross Armbreaker for the win.
Winner: Alberto Del Rio in 10:00
Rating: ** (Basic, formulaic, standard, ordinary, etc. Nothing special, but another good win for Del Rio heading into the Rumble.)

In the back, Teddy Long is loaded into an ambulance. Michael Cole shouts, “Get him out of here! Get him out of here!”

In the locker rooms, Vickie Guerrero and Dolph Ziggler meet the Core. Wade Barrett is just there to talk. They all ensure her that they had nothing to do with Teddy Long. Vickie reminds us that Ziggler will be facing World Champion Edge at the Royal Rumble. Tonight, a member of the Core will face Edge. She expects them to live up to their reputation…AKA, fuck Edge up.

Royal Rumble stats! Interesting fact not mentioned: In 1994, the Royal Rumble match lasted an astounding 13 hours.

Later tonight, Rey Mysterio vs. Cody Rhodes.

Match Two: Layla (0-0) vs. Beth Phoenix (1-0)
Lock-up to start and Phoenix powers Layla into the corner. Layla kicks her way out and tries for a dropkick but Phoenix catches her legs and we get an airplane spin. Cover gets two. Phoenix lifts her on her shoulders but Layla pushes herself off and drops her with an armbreaker off the middle rope. Cover gets two and Layla applies an arm vice. Phoenix powers her way out, lifting and dropping Layla. Back up, Phoenix drops Layla with some clotheslines and a slingshot suplex. Cover gets two. Phoenix charges at the corner but runs into a back elbow. Layla tries to lock in a standing armbar but Phoenix stops it and hits the Glam Slam for the win.
Winner: Beth Phoenix in 4:00
Rating: *1/2 (Phoenix has now defeated both members of Lay-Cool in back-to-back weeks, singlehandedly. Natalya, time to step up your game.)

In the back, Rey Mysterio makes his way to the ring.

Remember the Stand Up for WWE thing? It won an award.

Match Three: Rey Mysterio (1-1) vs. Cody Rhodes (0-2)
Rhodes grabs a single leg at the start and backs Mysterio into the corner. Back in the middle, Rhodes drops Mysterio with a clothesline but goes down to a rana. He runs into a boot on a charge. He charges again and takes out Mysterio leg. He exposes the knee brace and stomps away before wrapping the knee around the bottom rope. Back in the middle of the ring, he drops another knee on Mysterio’s knee. I want to point something out here: 1) Mysterio has a brace on his knee, 2) Rhodes wears no kneepads. Who does that knee drop hurt more? Apparently Mysterio, because Rhodes is able to lock in a leglock for some time. Back up, Mysterio floats over in the corner but is nailed with a boot to the midsection and sent sliding to the outside. Rhodes tries for a baseball slide but Mysterio ducks it and drop toe holds him into the steel steps. Mysterio sends Rhodes back inside and heads to the top. He comes down with a seated senton for two. Mysterio ducks a clothesline and connects with a springboard slash for two. He kicks Rhodes in the chest but falls to a side Russian legsweep. Rhodes covers for two. He gets a sunset flip but Mysterio rolls thru and connects with a dropkick to the head. He sets him up for a 619 and it connects. A splash off the top ends it.
Winner: Rey Mysterio in 4:00
Rating: *3/4 (Cole complains that Mysterio used the knee brace as a weapon on the 619. At least they halfway addressed it, but on second look, it was more of a kneepad than a knee brace. As for the match, it was surprisingly short. With the leg work at the beginning, I thought we were in for a more competitive match.)

In the back, Todd Grisham has the latest on Teddy Long. Before he can tell us, Alex Riley interrupts. The Miz is also here. After what he did to Randy Orton on Monday, he is here to share it with us all on Smackdown.
In the back, Cody Rhodes is with a trainer. The trainer tells him it’s broken. I’m assuming the nose. Rhodes is not happy.

Match Four: Amateur Wrestling Challenge- Jack Swagger (0-1) vs. Kofi Kingston (3-0)
2 points for a takedown; 1 point for a reversal; 1 point for an escape; 2 point for putting the opponent on his back for two seconds; no strikes; no gauging; no slamming of the head on the mat. Whoever scores the first pinfall or has the most points at the end of three minutes wins. Swagger gets a double leg takedown for 2 points at the bell. Kingston gets a point as well, I’m guessing for an “escape”? Swagger presses Kingston against the ropes and backs away. He takes Kingston down again and puts in a front facelock for 2 more points. He transitions into a waistlock and stands up. Kingston gets another point for an escape. 4-2 Swagger. They lock-up and Swagger gets another takedown for 2 points. He covers for two. Kingston gets a point for escape. 6-3 Swagger even though Kingston has done nothing but get up after a takedown. Kingston tries for a single-leg but Swagger avoids it and stalls for time. In the mean time, the score changes to 8-4, awarding Swagger 2 points for that cover from before and Kingston another escape. Swagger gets another takedown for 2 points and he paintbrushes the back of Kingston’s head. Kingston gets a point for escape to bring it to 10-5. Kingston pulls out a takedown of his own then pins Swagger on his back to bring it to 10-9 just as the time expires.
Winner: Jack Swagger 10-9 in 3:00
Rating: N/A (A Swagger feud would not be complete without something like this. Actually, it could be complete without it, but this is as far as they can stretch their imaginations.)

Post-match, Kofi Kingston has another one of his temper tantrums and unloads on Jack Swagger. Trouble in Paradise connects followed by a crossbody off the top rope.

We get a recap of the Cutting Edge from last week, ending with Edge being ZigZagged into the steel steps. Later tonight, Edge vs. a member of the Core.

At ringside, Josh Matthews informs us that last week, Smackdown was the most watched SyFy show in five years.

Match Five: Drew McIntyre (0-2) vs. Trent Barreta (1-0)
Last week, Barreta upset McIntyre in their match. That led to him being attacked by McIntyre in the back- something that upset Kelly Kelly very much. She doesn’t like violence. Barreta side steps a McIntyre right but quickly goes down to some clubs. McIntyre continues with a nice overhead suplex and some mounted punches. He gets in a clothesline in the corner and hits a snap suplex for two. McIntyre tries for a back body drop but Barreta escapes it with a dropkick. Barreta retreats to the apron and attacks McIntyre’s chest with kicks. He tries for a springboard seated senton but McIntyre catches him with a powerbomb on the way down. Nice! Cover gets two. McIntyre perches Barreta on the top rope but Barreta kicks him away. McIntyre springs to life and brings Barreta to the mat with a superplex for the win.
Winner: Drew McIntyre in 2:00
Rating: *1/2 (For a two-minute match, that was pretty great. They managed to fit in a bunch of good stuff, but as I suspected, Barreta’s win last week was more about McIntyre than a push for the DudeBuster.)

Post-match, Drew McIntyre attacks Trent Barreta. He is about to give him the Future Shock DDT when Kelly Kelly walks down the ramp. She looks after Barreta, disgusted with McIntyre.

Later tonight, Edge vs. ???

I came to play! Miz makes his way to the ring with Alex Riley. He gets a standing ovation from Michael Cole. The crowd boos. Tell Miz how you really feel. There is a popular saying- awesome is, as awesome does. It means, being awesome is about doing awesome. On Raw, Miz did awesome on Randy Orton. We get a video on Miz attacking Orton and sending him crashing into the barricade. Let the evidence show that he is the Miz, and he is…

Edge doesn’t let him finish. He is the Miz, and he is done. Edge is sick of these Raw rejects coming to Smackdown, thinking they run the place. Miz forgot to mention that the Orton beat-down was after his match with Dolph Ziggler. Miz assures Edge that it was nothing compared to what he has planned for him on Monday. Edge has a lot to deal with tonight, so why doesn’t Miz do him and everyone else a favor and get out of his ring. Miz does just that, but Riley stays and gets Speared. Miz takes off his jacket, rolls up his sleeves and gets up on the apron…then backs down.

After a break, the Core comes out. Core is spelled “Corre” on the TitanTron, so now I can’t help but think of them as “Corey.” Before we find out which member is going to take on Edge, Vickie Guerrero comes out. Excuse her! She is here to introduce to us a special guest commentator for this match- Art Donovan! Nah, it’s Dolph Ziggler. And the opponent is…Justin Gabriel.

Match Six: Edge (1-0) vs. Justin Gabriel (0-0)
Lock-up to start and Edge wrenches the arm. Gabriel elbows out but goes down to the kick to the gut. Edge clubs the back and forcefully sends him into the turnbuckle. He kicks at the midsection, ducks a roundhouse kick and hits with the Edge-o-matic for two. Gabriel connects with a few kicks and presses Edge face against the middle turnbuckle. He delivers a forearm shot and a back kick into the corner. Edge fights back with rights but runs into an elbow on a charge. Gabriel gets his feet up on Edge’s shoulders but ends up being sent to the apron. Edge delivers a big boot sending him to the outside as we go to commercial.

Back from break, Gabriel stomps on Edge and covers for two. He covers again for two more. A side Russian legsweep sets up a modified Koji clutch. Edge fights out and tries for a clothesline but Gabriel ducks it and drops him with an inverted legsweep. Gabriel heads to the top for a 450 Splash but Edge moves out of the way. Instead, Gabriel comes down with a crossbody and takes a dropkick to the midsection on the way down. Both men are down but are up by eight and Edge drops Gabriel with a flapjack. Gabriel moves to the apron and tries for a kick but Edge catches it and snaps the back of his head off the top rope, sending him to the outside. Edge follows and tosses him back in. edge climbs to the top but Gabriel regroups and kicks him in the head. He tries to bring him down with a superplex but Edge knocks him off and comes down with a crossbody. He covers for two and gets that look in his eyes. He kneels in the corner and calls for a Spear. He charges and knocks Wade Barrett off the apron. He does the same to Heath Slater but eats a clothesline from Ezekiel Jackson behind the ref’s back. Gabriel covers for the win.
Winner: Justin Gabriel in 10:00
Rating: **1/2 (Not great and a little plodding. I expected a lot better, but fine for a TV match to establish the Corre.)

Post-match, the Corre attacks Edge and they all hit their finishers. Justin Gabriel finishes it with the “sternum crushing” 450 Splash and they walk out to their music. It’s growing on me.

Dolph Ziggler steps in and places his boot on the prone body of the World Champion to end the show.

(Much like last week, the in-ring action wasn’t anything to go out of your way to see, but the storyline development was solid. I like where they are going with the Corre. Their back and forth with Teddy Long was interesting; there is a good dynamic between the two. One thing though- Heath Slater is so damn goofy. His voice, his hair, his style- it’s all very goofy and irritating. Why don’t we Darren Young him? That would be great. Other than that, the “who took out Long” thing should be fun for the next few weeks.)