Laredo, Texas
After being accused by World Heavyweight Champion Kane of being responsible for The Undertaker’s demise, number one contender Rey Mysterio looks to clear his name as well as taking on Drew McIntyre in tonight’s main event. Elsewhere, there’s Intercontinental Championship action and Kofi Kingston goes crazy as Friday Night Smackdown comes from Laredo Texas.
Here’s what went down.
Drew McIntyre confronts Rey Mysterio
In tonight's opening promo, Rey Mysterio recalled the events of last week's show, when Kane not only accused Mysterio of attacking The Undertaker, but also chokeslammed him into the Gulf of Mexico.Tonight, Mysterio refuted such accusations, though claimed he did know who was responsible for the attack on The Phenom. Yet before he could reveal just who that was, Drew McIntyre arrived on the scene.
The Scotsman antagonized Mysterio and eventually goaded him into a match for later on in the show. Mysterio was fairly boring here, but McIntyre continues to impress.
Matt Hardy vs. 'Dashing' Cody Rhodes
Matt Hardy and Cody Rhodes clashed in an entertaining opening contest. The crowds were firmly behind established veteran Hardy, but sadly for him, the power of the WWE Universe wasn't enough to overcome Rhodes, who dominated the latter part of the match before picking up a convincing win with the Cross Rhodes.Your winner: Matt Hardy
Following a trailer for John Cena's new film, Legendary (which looks rubbish), a vignette aired in which newcomer Alberto Del Rio called everybody mentally constipated. Honestly, there was probably more chance of the Kizarny gimmick getting over with the crowd than this segment.
Michelle McCool gives up her title.
Well, sort of. Backstage in Teddy Long's office, the Smackdown General Manager insisted that there could only be one women's title belt on the Friday night show. Despite arguing against the ruling, Michelle McCool eventually surrendered her strap to Long, only to reveal that the one remaining belt could split in half. Thus, both girls could keep half the belt, despite there still only being one of them.Intercontinental Championship: Kofi Kingston defends against Dolph Ziggler
Prior to the bout, the challenger's girlfriend, Vickie Guerrero gave her man a warm introduction, accompanying him to the ring and cheering on Dolph Ziggler as he controlled the early moments of the match.Kofi fought back, and the two went back and forth in a solid championship match. The end came when Kofi struck his foe with Trouble in Paradise, only for Vickie Guerrero to enter the ring and distract the referee. This gave Ziggler enough time to recover, hit the Zig Zag and pick up the win.
Your winner and NEW Intercontinental Champion: Dolph Ziggler
However, Ziggler's celebration was short-lived, as Kofi went loco in the post-match, destroying the new champion, and the announce table, in the process.
CM Punk rallies the troops
After boasting about the Straight Edge Society's attack on The Big Show last week, leader CM Punk cut an intense promo on his charges, motivating them ahead of their upcoming six man tag.CM Punk, Luke Gallows and Joseph Mercury vs. MVP, JTG and Chris Masters
The six battled in a short, forgettable contest with a rather predictable ending; a SES victory which came courtesy of a Luke Gallows boot to the face of MVP.Your Winners: CM Punk, Luke Gallows and Joseph Mercury
After another of 'Dashing' Cody Rhodes' grooming tips (this one on the joys of combing one's eyebrows), cameras cut to Kane in the back.
The World Heavyweight Champion hovered around an open casket, vowing to defeat Rey Mysterio when the two clash at Summerslam.
Main event: Rey Mysterio vs. Drew McIntyreÂ
The angry Scotsman and the flying masked man went back and forth in a very good main event, trading the advantage several times before Mysterio earned himself an other predictable victory.Your winner: Rey Mysterio
After the match, Kane arrived on the scene with his casket in tow and tried to drop Mysterio inside it. Instead, Rey legged it to the stop of the stage, took to the microphone and accused The Big Red Machine of being responsible for taking out The Undertaker.
Visibly shaken, a troubled Kane then chanted 'I love my brother' over and over as Friday Night Smackdown faded to close.
Final Thoughts:Â
A good show overall, though it didn't really feel like anything special. The Intercontinental Championship bout was the highlight of the night, especially when coupled with Kofi's post-match beatdown of newly-crowned champion Dolph Ziggler. I know Kingston is popular as hell, but I can't help but feel that if they did ever decide to turn him, Kingston would make a fantastic heel.
Punk's verbal dressing-down of his Straight Edge Society members was an underrated segment of the show. I haven't heard, or read, many people giving it a lot of thought, but personally I thought it was fantastic.
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