wrestling / TV Reports
Winfree’s WWE Smackdown Review 4.03.26
Image Credit: WWE
Loading...Alright everyone, it’s Friday and so it’s time for WWE Smackdown. It’s also Good Friday if you’re following along with Holy Week. Last week Smackdown turned in one of the worst episodes they’ve done in months, a poor affair overall including an opening 60 minutes that’s among the worst continuous 60 minutes of WWE TV in years. Though things aren’t looking up on paper, because believe it or not we have 0 matches announced. None, nada, zip, zilch, nothing to fill 3 hours of airtime. Well Randy Orton will be here so he’ll take his sweet time doing things. Of note Randy did say he’s meeting his mystery caller tonight, so there’s that I guess. WWE champion Cody Rhodes will have something to say to Randy I’m sure after their wild but far too extended brawl last week. Jacob Fatu and Drew McIntyre are set for an unsanctioned bout at Mania so they’ll do something. Women’s champion Jade Cargill has B-Fab and Michin for flunkies now, so Rhea Ripley will probably kill one of them en route to her title shot. Last week Sami Zayn won the US title and will defend it at Mania against Trick Williams, Trick has some random collection of letters as his special guest tonight so something will come up between those two. But it’s looking like Ilja Dragunov and Carmelo Hayes might miss WrestleMania since they’ve got nothing to do, Ilja especially now that Gunther is subbing in for the still injured Bron Breakker in the Seth Rollins and Paul Heyman feud. Damian Priest and R-Truth still need challengers for their tag team belts, the Wyatt Sicks and Solo Sikoa’s Monumental Failure Team are still feuding while Shinsuke Nakamura shows up once ever three weeks or so to say something to Tama Tonga. We know the women’s tag team title scene is set for a 4-way at Mania but they’ll probably have those teams do something tonight, they’ve got a full 3 hours to fill. Miz still needs to get rid of Danhausen’s curse, Aleister Black and Zelina are trying to taunt Matt Cardona, Giulia and Tiffany Stratton are still circling each other despite Giulia beating Tiffany last week, and still no sign of the Street Profits anywhere. Last week was very bad, WrestleMania is coming up soon though and Smackdown needs to get things in gear tonight. So let’s get to the action.
Joe Tessitore and Wade Barrett welcome us to St. Louis, Missouri. You know, Randy Orton’s home town so expect even more cheers for the brutal heel. We get announcements of Rhea Ripley vs. Michin and Charlotte Flair and Alexa Bliss vs. Bayley and Lyra Valkyria. I’m sure the Irresistible Forces wont interfere in a third consecutive tag team match right? Right?!
We get a partial recap of RAW from MSG earlier this week. Stephanie McMahon showed up to talk to Cody Rhodes about his match with Randy. No one asked for Stephanie to be involved in this but here she is anyway.
After that here’s Randy Orton to a massive pop. Randy takes his sweet time but gets a mic eventually and soaks in a loud “Randy” chant because nothing says evil heel like tons of adulation. He asks the crowd what they want to talk about then says this is his home town, he was raised here and still calls it home, and the next time he’s in this arena he’s going to be a 15 time WWE champion. But make no mistake about it, he’s not doing this for the fans he’s doing this for himself, which gets a big pop, and his real home with his family who are in the front row here. He’s going to walk out of Las Vegas with the title and Cody Rhodes is leaving Mania 42 empty handed. That also gets a big pop. Cody gave Randy his blessing to do this, this isn’t personal between them as Cody said he could do all of this to be the best version of himself. Well he saw the voices talking to Cody recently, he brings up Stephanie telling Cody the truth about not being able to beat Randy. The voices Cody hears tell him that he’s not a killer while what Randy has woken up can’t be put back to sleep. That brings out WWE champion Cody Rhodes suited and booted. Cody removes his suit jacket and tie then they get to brawling with Cody getting the better of things to large amounts of boos. Some stomps from Cody but here’s Pat McAfee to take Cody to dick kick city. Yeah, sure, Pat will get heat for Randy in some universe but not this one. Pat stomps on Cody for a bit then Randy gets a chair and hands Pat a mic then whacks Cody with the chair. Pat brings up the local sports teams for something approximating heat, Nick Aldis and officials walk down as Pat keeps yapping. Next Pat says a month ago he was asked about returning to WWE and he felt the business had passed him by, he thought the current product was absolute shit. Randy called him up and said the business has gone in a direction that no one likes. He brings up lapsed fans and incites a “what” chant then brings up the attitude era fans and how those fans launched WWE then got forgotten. Now Pat has to watch two 5’5 guys in Iron Matches for weeks straight with no rhyme or reason, and yet we’ve got Randy right here. He insults Unreal and brings up that Randy is still here. Mania tickets are still available when Randy is around. And fresh off the worst rated episode of Smackdown of all time, no lies told, has a puppet of a champion representing everything those fans hate. Randy has continued beating Cody this time, and Pat is the one telling Randy to kill everything. It’s not just for the 15th world title, it’s because the business Cody is leading is terrible and Randy is going to save the fucking business. I cannot stress enough that this will not generate heat, honest heels are a rare breed and there’s a fine line you have to tread that I’m not sure Pat can walk. Randy and Pate leave to cheers and a loud “Randy” chant. Our camera follows Randy and Pat back through gorilla while officials help Cody who is absolutely showered in boos while we head to break. I’m fine with Pat in a general sense but if people think the current product is weak then a heel saying it’s weak isn’t going to get boos.
We come back to a recap of what just happened, in case you missed it. We find Randy and Pat walking in the back celebrating a successful mission. They get into Pat’s truck and head out, no sign of people in the back of the truck so the Pat Riders are still assembling I guess.
Commentary take issue with what Pat said about the state of WWE, thus losing themselves even more credibility.
Rhea Ripley heads to the ring for our first match. She’s followed by Michin along with B-Fab.
Match #1: Rhea Ripley vs. Michin w/ B-Fab
Almost 30 minutes before our first match, I’m a little more generous with this timing because opening segments don’t always need to be matches but this still pushed it. Ripley goes right at Michin and floors her with a thrust kick. Corner work from Ripley then a Fall Away slam. Jade Cargill shows up walking down the ramp and Ripley hits another Fall Away slam on Michin. Michin cares not for selling and hits a German suplex then lays in mounted strikes as we go picture in picture. I’ve got Netflix going though so I should still have you.
Some stomps from Michin, Ripley fights back but gets dropped with a clothesline. Ripley gets tossed out of the ring and B-Fab gets a cheap shot off. Michin gets Ripley back in the ring then locks up a Bow and Arrow for a bit. Some corner work now from Michin then a back slap because she’s a jerk. A few body blows from Ripley but she runs into a dropkick as we come back to broadcast. Michin with some kicks then she jumps for a guillotine choke to no pop, then Ripley counters into a suplex. Both women trade punches as they stand, brawling favors Ripley and she stars laying in clotheslines then a thrust kick and a back suplex to face buster. They trade headbutts then Ripley with an awkward Razor’s Edge followed by a Shining Wizard for a near fall. Michin avoids a Riptide then lands a head kick. Ripley avoids a corner cannonball senton then lands a head kick of her own then she tries an Electric Chair but Michin counters with a Poisoned Rana and Eat Defeat but only for a near fall. Michin then powerbombs Ripley once, tries another but Ripley with a back body drop to counter. Prism Trap from Ripley and Michin taps.
OFFICIAL RESULT: Rhea Ripley won in 9:14
Rating: 2 stars
Thoughts: Some nice moves, I get that they’re trying to elevate Michin a bit but Ripley might have been a hair too giving this close to a big match. It also didn’t really have material for 9 minutes.
Post match B-Fab attacks but Ripley just headbutts her down. Michin then hits a chop block and all three women attack Ripley for the third week in a row. This is getting tedious. Before Jade can hit Jaded here’s Iyo Sky to save her friend and she easily handles Michin and B-Fab then hugs Ripley.
In the back Matt Cardona talks with Aleister Black and Zelina, Black says Cardona should have listened to them last week. Zelina chimes in but Cardona says he and Black can fight tonight. Black says Cardona must be a fan of making bad decisions.
Solo Sikoa and his island boys talk. Solo wont let the lantern out of his sight and wants someone from the family to handle Uncle Howdy. Tama Tonga asks why they’re fighting for the lantern. That has been nothing but trouble for all of them. Solo has a better idea, and sends Tama to fight for the lantern. Tama says he’ll handle Howdy but he’s going alone. Solo warns him not to mess this up. Oh, if only there were some kind of investment into the drama that might have landed but no one cares so it’s just kind of boring. That sends us to break.
Post break we find Ripley and Iyo in the back, Cathy comes over to ask about Iyo showing up. Ripley says Jade can’t do things on her own, Jade has followers while Ripley has a friend. Iyo chimes in saying she’ll always have Ripley’s back. Man that heel turn is going to hurt some people quite a bit when it happens.
Back to the ring where Uncle Howdy got the jobbers entrance and he waits for Tama. Here’s Tama, hey he got his own music instead of Solo’s so that’s something.
Match #2: Tama Tonga vs. Uncle Howdy
Howdy avoids an attack and corners Tama, Tama avoids a Mandible Claw but Howdy retains control and kicks away at Tama. Uppercuts from Tama now to take over then a few headbutts for good measure. Howdy is stuck between the ropes and Tama yanks him upward to guillotine him across the top rope and we head to break.
Howdy powders, Tama follows and attacks him on the floor. Tama rams the hand of Howdy into the ring steps then stomps on it. Some more ringside brawling as Tama retains control. They head back into the ring and Tama with some more punches then a sliding clothesline. Some more control work from Tama including a corner dropkick. The dreaded nerve hold from Tama as we rejoin the broadcast. That goes on for a while until Howdy fights back with a jawbreaker then his own corner work. Right hand from Howdy but that hurt him so Tama then clotheslines him down. Corner stomps from Tama but he jumps into a Mandible Claw, Tama fades but Solo does a Paul Heyman impression and waddles down with the lantern to distract Howdy. Tama attacks from behind then Solo tries a cheap shot but the ref catches and Tama yells at Solo to get back as he doesn’t need the help. They bicker then Howdy hits Sister Abigail to win.
OFFICIAL RESULT: Uncle Howdy won in 7:15
Rating: 2 stars
Thoughts: Tama’s control stuff remains a little slow, but really this feud is just a waste of time overall at this point. That said Tama doing stuff that Solo can’t is potentially interesting depending on what direction they want to take this. The fact that they’ve spent months and months on this though to still have such little actual investment isn’t a good thing.
Post match Solo and Tama bicker. Tama goes to take the lantern and says they don’t need it. Tama gest he lantern and puts it down so Howdy can get it back, then Tama stops Solo from going after Howdy.
In the back a disheveled Miz and Kit Wilson complain about the Danhausen curse. They find R-Truth, Truth says new Judgement Day is full though. Miz says Truth hasn’t earned anything and tries to talk to him but Truth just accepts his challenge so they can have a tag team title match later. Wilson is surprised at that but they’ve got a title shot.
After this break we’ll hear from new US champion Sami Zayn.
Post break we get a Jacob Fatu video. He says him and Drew, one on one at WrestleMania. Unsanctioned is just fine. Fatu talks about his life to this point, this isn’t about who’s wrong or right, it’s just about survival. Every decision Fatu has made, every day he was locked up brought him right here to this moment. In this match there’s no rules, no one to stop him or break up the fight, and no one to tell him what he can or can’t do to Drew’s punk ass. At Mania Drew is in Fatu’s world, let’s see if you can make it out. Yadda mean?
We find Sami Zayn walking in the back to some boos. Sami finds Aldis and they talk a bit, and Aldis says Sami made a spot for himself at Mania. Before Sami can head to the ring we hear the very over music of Trick Williams and he’s got his little guest with him. That’s, um, apparently Lil Yachty? That’s not a person I was even aware existed. Wait, Yachty is a grammy award winning nominee according to the announcer. That sounds very incorrect. Trick gets a mic for himself and one for Yachty and they play with the crowd a bit who do love Trick’s chant. Trick is here to celebrate his first Mania match, and if we’re bringing out Jelly Roll and Pat McAfee he needed to bring out Yachty. Yachty puts Trick over and Trick says he and Yachty go back and he wants Yachty by his side at Mania. Trick says he’ll do anything to get the US title and he wont take any more lip off a gingerbread man. More ginger references follow. Trick then steals Sami’s pyro, that brings out Sami to some boos. Sami has a mic and talks to the ring, saying Trick is a little ahead of himself, he’s got everything down except the title, and Sami doesn’t have the presentation but he has it between the ropes. At Mania there’s going to be tens of thousands of people watching as all the fur coats and rappers can’t save save Trick from Sami. At Mania Sami will humble Trick. The crowd is definitely on Trick’s side in all this. Trick thinks Sami is upset, but Sami failed to mention that the only reason he got the title was because of Trick. And the only reason Sami’s going to Manis is because of Trick. This brings out Carmelo Hayes the former US champion. Hayes has a mic of his own and says he can’t just sit back and watch all this. He brings up the history he has with Trick, and he promises him a receipt. But as for Sami, the way he won the belt doesn’t sit right with anyone. Hayes carried Smackdown on his back for months, all for Sami to swoop in and take it. So he wants a rematch for the belt, the crowd want Hayes and give a respectable “We want Melo” chant. Sami considers that as Hayes tells Sami to give him a rematch. Ultimately Sami says he thinks the world of Hayes and agrees that he carried Smackdown for weeks on end and he would never take anything away from him. Hayes issued an open challenge and lost, and Sami is sorry his Mania match came at the expense of Hayes and if Hayes wants a rematch Sami can give it to him after Mania. Trick mocks Sami’s lack of integrity and double standards, Sami kind of agrees and the truth is that if Trick didn’t get involved he might have lost. That same thing has happened to Sami countless times, and he admits it’s a bit hypocritical and he doesn’t feel good about this. Hayes tells him to just do the right thing then. Sami contemplates the Mania sign while Hayes rallies the crowd, ultimately Sami says Hayes can get his rematch tonight but it’s the last time he wants to hear about this. Those terms are amenable to Hayes who heats out. Trick makes a remark to Sami clotheslines him out of the ring. That took probably a bit too long overall but Hayes did need to try and insert himself because otherwise he’d be dead in the water.
In the back Solo asks why Tama gave the lantern back to the Wyatts. Tama says he had to do that, now it’s done. That stupid lantern was just a complication. Real business is in titles not props and he wants to get back to real business. Solo agrees, once they finish the Wyatts they’ll get back to business. Everyone seems OK with that.
Aleister Black heads to the ring along with Zelina, he’ll take on Matt Cardona after this break.
We come back to Sami vs. Hayes for the US title being made official.
Back to the ring here comes Matt Cardona.
Match #3: Aleister Black w/ Zelina vs. Matt Cardona
30 minutes between matches, way over the acceptable line for this point in a show. Low single leg from Black then he tries to get the arm of Cardona but Cardona escapes. Arm drag from Cardona but his left arm is still hurt from the last couple of weeks. Knee from Black, Cardona tries to fight back but Black with an arm yank to take over. Bit of a double wrist lock from Black then into a top wrist lock but Cardona fights free and clotheslines Black out of the ring. Cardona then hits a sliding baseball slide to the floor. Some ringside brawling from Cardona then they head back into the ring, Cardona gets distracted by Zelina and Black with a leg sweep as Cardona is on the apron and he face plants to send us to break.
Black takes over with kicks to the arm on the floor, then he uppercuts the bad arm before ramming Cardona around the ringside area. The bad arm of Cardona gets rammed into the ring post before they head back into the ring. Black misses a flying nothing but lands a kick then a snap suplex. Some corner arm work from Black, Cardona is able to counter with a throw out of the ring. Black avoids a Sunset Flip and lands a penalty kick for a 2 count. Cardona tries to fight back but Black with a Kimura roll then he holds the Kimura position as we rejoin the broadcast. Cardona fights back with a boot then hits a spinebuster. Facebuster from Cardona then some corner work, but he misses a flying nothing then finally tries a Tiger Driver but Black counters and tries a suplex only for Cardona to land on his feet and hit a neckbreaker. Corner boot from Cardona gets a 2 count. Black counters a Rough Rider with a modified Snake Eyes then kicks Cardona and puts him up top. Avalanche gordbuster from Cardona then a dropkick and a Tiger Driver for a 2 count. Cardona tries another boot but Black avoids and lands a knee then hits a Brainbuster for a 2 count, but he floats into an arm attack. They trade strikes on the feet, striking favors Black of course but Cardona is game until he eats a Black Mass and Black gets the pin.
OFFICIAL RESULT: Aleister Black won in 9:45
Rating: 2.5 stars
Thoughts: Decent match but kind of just by the numbers and with very little in terms of stakes. Cardona’s arm selling is quite good and Black remains a very good wrestler but he’s without direction and that’s increasingly a problem.
In the back Cathy talks with Bayley and Lyra Valkyria, Bayley mentions losing her Mania match last year but she’s built a career off of fighting with her back against the wall. Lyra doesn’t think much of Charlotte and Bliss’s friendship, and that Mania is about making things up to Bayley and justifying their whole miserable year.
We head to break with the promise of another RAW recap on the other side.
Post break we get a recap of RAW, specifically the Oba Femi and Brock Lesnar stuff.
In the back Truth talks with Candice LeRae and Johnny Gargano, Candice hypes up Johnny for his NXT match tomorrow. Truth loves that. Johnny leaves and Damian Priest comes over to talk with Truth. Priest wants to know why Miz and Wilson, Truth says because Asuka cursed them. Priest tries to explain that Danhausen and Asuka are different people then just gives up trying to understand and says something bad will happen to Miz and Wilson. Bless Truth, the man is a gem.
After this break we’ll get the women’s tag team match.
Drew McIntyre video, he had his moment and it was Shakespearean, but Fatu stole it from him. Fatu wont change and Drew thinks Fatu might be the worst of his family. Next week he’s going to prove Faut is guilt and show the whole world who Fatu really is. Not as good as Fatu’s video.
Back to the ring and here come the teams for our next match.
Match #4 – Tag Team Match: Alexa Bliss and Charlotte Flair vs. Bayley and Lyra Valkyria
All four women brawl to start and Charlotte settles into working Lyra. Lyra with a takedown then mounted punches, Charlotte fights back with a kick but Lyra comes off the ropes with a wheel kick. Enziguri from Lyra then Bliss tags in and Charlotte hits the Lethal Combination into the corner then Bliss follows up with a leaping tornado DDT. That sends us to break.
Bliss retains control and corners Lyra then tags in Charlotte. Corner stomps from Charlotte then she tags in Bliss who lays in a few chops. Chin lock from Bliss, Lyra tries to fight back but gets slammed down by the hair. Oh, forgot to mention earlier but Bliss and Charlotte are in the heel corner. Some more control work from Bliss then she tags in Charlotte who lands a chop. Another chop from Charlotte then she cheap shots Bayley to get a little heat. Bliss tags back in and stomps away at Lyra briefly before Charlotte tags back in. Charlotte with some head scissors flips while audibly talking with Lyra as we rejoin the broadcast. Bliss tags in and attacks the body of Lyra. Lyra tries to tag out but Bliss with an STO then double knee drop but Lyra avoids a cannonball senton. Charlotte tags in and stops Lyra tagging out, Lyra struggles then Charlotte chops her down. Lyra fights out of the corner with a cross body and finally makes the hot tag. Bayley gets to run wild on Charlotte including a knee strike and a bunch of corner strikes. Sunset Bomb into the corner from Bayley and Charlotte has to use the ropes to avoid a pin. Bayley goes up top but Charlotte meets her up there and they trade strikes while fighting for position. Ultimately Lyra comes over and helps Charlotte get shoved down. Lyra then snaps down Bliss on the apron as Bayley hits her elbow drop for a 2 count. Lyra tags in and they hit the Samoan Drop and Blockbuster combination for a near fall. Charlotte shoves Lyra away, Lyra jumps off the second rope but Charlotte catches and trips her then locks in a Figure 8 leading to Bayley saving the match. Bayley then gets dropkicked by Bliss. Bliss tags in and leaps at Lyra but Lyra catches her an hoists her up but Bliss avoids Nightwing then tries her finish but everyone trades counters. Charlotte and Bliss then hit the stereo Natural Selection spot to get the win.
OFFICIAL RESULT: Charlotte Flair and Alexa Bliss won in 10:30
Rating: 2.5 stars
Thoughts: Solid effort, these four work pretty well together but there’s the looming issue of Lash and Jax that just kind of prevent too much investment in these matches.
Post match Lash Legend and Nia Jax show up to make everything worse. The champs, predictably, get to run wild and kill audience interest in anything being done. This week it’s Bayley who gets the Death Sentence. Speaking of tedious there’s this feud.
In the back Miz and Wilson get hyped up for their title match. Danhausen shows up with a jar of human teeth and offers to accompany them to the ring but Wilson declines. Danhausen kind of ignores him and offers to uncurse them, Wilson is interested by Miz isn’t and Danhausen disappears so they’re still cursed.
Back to the ring Damian Priest and R-Truth head to the ring for that match after this break.
Post break here come Miz and Wilson.
Match #4 – Tag Team Title Match: Damian Priest and R-Truth vs. Miz and Kit Wilson
Quick attack from Wilson to attack Truth. Miz tags in and attacks Truth but Truth fires up with the 5 Moves of Doom from Ron Cena, but Miz kicks him to block a 5 Knuckle Shuffle then Wilson with a cheap shot. On the floor Wilson with a running uppercut to floor Truth as we head to break again. Odd layout.
Miz rams Truth into the apron then they both head back into the ring. Wilson tags in and Truth takes a double clothesline in the corner. Front headlock from Wilson then an uppercut. Some elbow drops from Wilson then Miz gets a cheap shot in. Boot from Wilson then Miz tags back in and they do the old Wishbone Split. Chin lock from Miz as we rejoin the broadcast. Truth fights out of a neutral corner then hits an arm drag and tags in Priest. Priest gets to run wild with his usual offense including a lifting Flatliner to Miz. Miz then gets Old School Punishment then the rebound lariat and Wilson has to save the match. Tornado kick to Wilson then Truth tags in. Priest wipes out Wilson, then Truth and Miz get the double clothesline spot and both men are down. As they’re down here comes very nice and very evil Danhausen. Danhausen marches to the ring and wants a tag from Miz, Miz sees him and refuses as the ref tells Danhausen he’s not legal. Miz tries to eject Danhausen, Truth sees Danhausen and tags him in because Truth is awesome. Danhausen and Miz trade words, Danhausen then curses Miz but Miz pulls the ref in front of it. The lights go out and Danhausen runs up the ramp. Back in the ring Wilson takes an Attitude Adjustment but Miz hits Truth with a Skull Crushing Finale but the refs right arm cramps up because he’s cursed. Priest tags in while Miz yells at the ref, Priest then kills Miz with South of Heaven and the ref makes the count with his left hand.
OFFICIAL RESULT: R-Truth and Damian Priest retained the titles in 9:36
Rating: 2.5 stars
Thoughts: Pretty fun encounter when it was all said and done. Nothing ground breaking here but the chemistry was solid and Danhausen having some fun with this kind of position is a perfectly acceptable use of him.
Post match Cody Rhodes shows up and kills Wilson with a Cross Rhodes. Mic time for Cody and he brings up Randy talking with Pat McAfee. Cody admits to being surprised but says it’s like the third man in the NWO being Disco Inferno instead of Hulk Hogan. He calls Pat Logan Paul without muscles and a grifter, then warns Pat that he’s got a receipt coming. Well Pat and everyone representing him can kiss his ass. He knows who he’s talking to, and if they want to fire him it didn’t work out for them last time. This was supposed to be simple between Cody and Randy, now even Stephanie is out here saying he should go to a dark place. Well Cody at this point isn’t sure he even knows how to be that guy anymore. He brings up that WWE actually isn’t in a bad place right now, he hasn’t just wrestled John Cena, Roman Reigns, and the Rock at Mania they were also wrestling him. Cody admits to hearing the voices in his head finally, but you really don’t want to hear what they have to say. Hm, I appreciate Cody’s fire but going from “I don’t mind telling the Pat office people to suck it” to “actually business is good on a spreadsheet” really resonates the way you’d want a fired up babyface to. Cody heads out and we head to break.
Post break we get another RAW recap, this time about Roman Reigns and CM Punk. That’s our third RAW recap tonight, frankly I’m more than sick of them.
After that we get commentary running down the Mania card.
Back to the ring here’s Sami Zayn to some heat for our main event and we head to break again.
Post break we find Trick Williams dancing on the announce table, ugh. Carmelo Hayes heads down after that and it’s main event time.
Match #5 – US Title Match: (c) Sami Zayn vs. Carmelo Hayes
Circling to start then a tie up, Sami corners Hayes but we get a clean break. Another tie up, they trade arm wringers then Hayes hits the ropes, Sami then stalls him out but runs into a dropkick. Some corner work from Hayes then Sami turns things around and lands chops then the 10 punch gets to 4 before Hayes turns things around with his own 10 punch that gets way up to like 13 before Sami collapses. Sami cuts off a running Hayes with a clothesline for a 2 count. Some arm work from Sami and we’ve got a “Sami sucks” chant as Hayes hits a springboard clothesline. Hayes ties up Sami in the ropes and hits an enziguri then a fade away springboard leg drop for a 1 count. Sami powders, so Hayes with a dive onto him but Hayes comes up favoring his left leg as we go picture in picture.
Hayes is limping around a bit as he sends Sami back into the ring. Corner chops from Hayes but Sami cuts him off with kicks then stomps on the mat. Another chop from Sami. Hayes tries some pin attempts but Sami is a step ahead and fires some punches from the back. Sami up to the second rope and hits a tornado DDT for a 2 count. Corner chops from Sami but Hayes just eggs him on then fires back with elbows. Some more corner work from Sami as we rejoin the broadcast. Hayes fights back with strikes then a Dirty Diana for a 2 count. Sami blocks a First 48 then tries the corner Exploder Suplex but Hayes counters into a Victory Roll for a 2 count. Sami then hits the corner Exploder suplex, he lines up a Helluva kick to boos but he runs into a superkick from Hayes. Hayes goes up top and hits a Frog Splash but the damage to his knee he can’t cover in time so Sami counters his bad pin into a crucifix pin for a 2 count. Hayes blocks a Blue Thunder Bomb and hits a First 48. Next Hayes up top but Sami avoids Nothing But Net and the left leg of Hayes gives out on the landing. The ref checks on Hayes in a corner, Sami just hits a Helluva Kick to Hayes anyway to retain.
OFFICIAL RESULT: Sami Zayn retained the title in 11:03
Rating: 3 stars
Thoughts: Not even close to the best thing these two have done together, but Hayes’ leg selling was solid enough for a guy who still had to do all the acrobatics. Trick not getting involved was a nice call and Sami leaning more selfish is fine setting up him and Trick for the predictable double turn at Mania.
Post match Sami celebrates but Yachty and Trick get in the ring to talk. Yachty talks about their match then Trick with a cheap shot to Sami but he still got cheered. Trick Shot to Sami and Trick gets to stand tall with the US title as the episode ends.
