wrestling / Columns
Wrestling’s 4Rs: The Right, Wrong and Ridiculous of WWE Smackdown
Loading...How the 4Rs of wRestling Work!
Here is a quick explanation of the 4R’s. The column will run TWO-THREE times a week. We will group our feelings on the shows in various categories: The Right, the wRong and the Ridiculous. The Right is stuff that worked very well: a great promo, a great match and so on. PuRgatoRy is a section between the right and wrong. It shows equal traits from both sides that cannot be ignored and needs discussed. It is not a bad place per say, as things can get remedied or go the wrong way the very next week. The wRong is what it sounds like: bad matches, bad or boring promos and so on. The Ridiculous is stuff that had no right on TV: Stupid angles and so on. And there is always a possibility of a 5th R, which is as bad as they come. This column is supposed to be analytical, and at the right time very critical of the shows, it was the whole reason it was created. This is not a “mark” column, nor a “smark” column, our goal is to analyze the show from many different fronts, reward the good and call out the bad. We will not apologize for our opinions, they are as they are, whether positive or negative.
SMACKDOWN 7.25.17
WWE US Championship- AJ Styles © d. Kevin Owens [***1/2]
Aiden English d. Sami Zayn [NR]
Becky Lynch & Naomi d. Natalya & Carmella [*]
Rusev d. Chad Gable [***]
Shinsuke Nakamura d. John Cena [***1/2]
THE Right:
WWE US Championship – AJ Styles © vs. Kevin Owens: Owens evaded the dropkick at the start of the match and he drilled Styles with a clothesline on the floor. Styles came back with his signature dropkick and he took control, getting a few near falls on the challenger. Styles caught Owens with the slingshot forearm on the floor and he charged at Owens but Owens pressed him onto the barricade before hitting the cannonball into the barricade. Styles fought back, connecting with the fireman’s carry back breaker for a near fall. Owens caught Styles with a super kick for a near fall of his own and Styles rolled him into the Calf Crusher. Owens made an escape but Styles eventually locked it back in so Owens fought his way to the ropes to break. Owens threw two super kicks and went to hit Styles but missed and nailed the ref. Owens went with the Pop-Up Powerbomb but Styles countered into a Wheelbarrow Roll-up for the win even though his shoulder was clearly up. Owens freaked out after the match as the ref got medical attention. Well the Battleground finish makes more sense with this finish tonight, as two ref mistakes sets up Shane as the ref in their final encounter at SummerSlam. The match here was pretty good, they got plenty of time and had a really fun, action packed match that just never kicked into the final gear to make it really great. The finish won’t be for everyone but at least its’ continuity and it is a good excuse to make Shane McMahon the special ref in their next bout, so it served to set up the bigger picture while giving us something worthwhile in the ring.
Rusev vs. Chad Gable: Gable attacked the leg of Rusev to start but Rusev threw a knee and hit a dead lift northern lights suplex for a near fall. Gable came back with rolling belly to belly suplexes and then hit a German suplex for another near fall. Gable went up and hit a moonsault for another big near fall. Rusev drilled Gable with a high kick and he went for the Accolade but Gable escaped and grabbed the Ankle Lock. Rusev powered out and he destroyed Gable with a super kick. He locked in the Accolade and Gable tapped. After the match, Rusev claimed no one could beat him and that he wanted competition for SummerSlam. Randy Orton came out and Rusev kept blocking Orton’s entry into the ring. Orton finally made his way and accepted Rusev’s challenge at SummerSlam before laying him out with an RKO. This was a sweet little match that probably blew away everyone’s expectations. Between this and Styles match from a few weeks ago, Gable has proven he can more than hang with the big names on the Smackdown Roster and hopefully this was the eye opener for the creative team to finally give him a strong single’s push. He and Rusev had great chemistry with the mix of physical striking and beautiful array of suplexes and I would love to see a long program between them down the line. I’m fine with the Rusev/Orton setup, it finally gives Orton an opponent he can have good matches with after the terrible runs he’s had with Wyatt & Mahal and hopefully Rusev can get a big win over him at SummerSlam to give him some momentum.
John Cena vs. Shinsuke Nakamura: They felt each other out to start and Nakamura caught Cena with an enzuigiri. Nakamura delivered Good Vibrations but Cena powered into the belly to belly suplex for a near fall. Nakamura threw a series of kicks and knees to Cena but Cena answered back with his signature offense. He went for the Five Knuckle Shuffle but Nakamura trapped the arm and grabbed the Triangle Choke. Cena began to fire out so Nakamura hit the Gordbuster and attempted the Kinsasha but Cena countered into the STF. Nakamura escaped and went for the Kinsasha again but Cena caught him with the AA for a big near fall. Cena hit a second one and went to roll Nakamura into the third but Nakamura countered with the inverted exploder suplex that dropped Cena on his head. Nakamura hit the Kinsasha for the victory to become #1 Contender for the WWE Championship. Great main event that gave you a taste of the type of classic these two can and hopefully will have with more time and a bigger atmosphere. The crowd was rocking in the final few minutes and I wished that energy was consistent with the entire match as this did come off as the major dream match it was billed as. Thankfully Cena wasn’t hurt being dropped on his head and that visual helped with the idea of how impactful the Kinsasha is as a finish, they did a great job of cementing Nakamura as the top contender and kudos to Cena for putting Nakamura clean in a big spot like this.
puRgatoRy:
Natalya & Carmella vs. Becky Lynch & Naomi: I have to point out, Carmella’s “Free Ellsworth” T-Shirt is fantastic. Lynch controlled Natalya on the mat early and Naomi hit a big leg drop for a near fall. Naomi smacked around Carmella when she came in but Carmella took her down by the hair to come back. Naomi tried to make the take but Natalya caught her with a spine buster and then grabbed the Sharpshooter. Naomi fought her way to the ropes so Carmella made a blind tag and locked in the Code of Silence. Naomi countered into the Anaconda Vice and Carmella tapped as Lynch took out Natalya. This match wasn’t good at all but I liked the finish. Natalya clearly had Naomi in trouble with the Sharpshooter but Carmella’s ego cost them the match. It gave the champ a nice win while putting over the idea that she might be in trouble if she’s locked in the Sharpshooter again at SummerSlam.
THE wRong:
Sami Zayn vs. Aiden English: Zayn got the early advantage and worked the arm of English but English caught him with a roll-up for the win. After the match, Mike and Maria Kanellis declared that they both love each other and the fact Sami loss. This whole thing sucked. English’s singing was longer than the match and I have no idea what the end game was for having Zayn eat the surprise pin in about a minute. It’s a shame Zayn is with the bottom dwellers on the Smackdown roster and is now losing to them; it’s infuriating to watch on every level.
THE Ridiculous:
NOTHING
