Saturday 1 October 2011

Smackdown: 30/09/2011



In the end, Hell will catch up with you ...

A great opening pop from the crowd at The Scottrade Center in St Louis, Missouri tonight. Well aleast from what WWE TV are showing me! but that’s for another day. I expect tonight’s main focus will be on the title match for the World Hvt. Championship at this Sunday’s Hell In A Cell PPV. HHH is also slated for an appearance in keeping with his co-brand appearances of late. I wonder if Orton’s meg-o-botch from last week against Cody Rhodes will go unpunished?

Booker T leads us off with an opening interview with none other than the world’s strongest man Mark Henry. In keeping with his current gimmick Henry looks as though he will rip the heads off anyone that comes near him or his title. Orton will have a tough time on Sunday if he hopes to defeat Henry. In the past it would be safe to assume he will retain his title having just gained it 2 weeks prior but with the way WWE have been dishing out titles of late nothing is a certainty. Are you reading this Mr Cena? A strong opening in ring promo nonetheless that re-enforces one of this Sundays main events and a match that will no doubt deliver.

Mark Henry vs The Great Khali
We kick things off with a match that was scheduled for last Mondays RAW before Khali got squashed, nice RAW recap too. Also nice to see a little more fight this week from Khali, albiet in slow motion. Kahli has come out swinging, could the unthinkable happen … 1 .. 2. Suddenly its the worlds strongest slam and its all over … the end result, similar outcome with Henry now attacking Khali post match with a chair in similar fashion to the way Big Show and Kane were written off TV over the last couple of months. I guess the Punjabi Playboy will be taking a break for awhile …. Be sure to take Jinder Mahal with you too please.

Swagger (with Vicki & Ziggler) vs Evan Bourne (with Kofi)
A solid match, I think a full tag match would have been better booked to give Vicki's stable more symmetry. A few minutes into the match Vicki's on the apron to distract the referee which gets Ziggler involved to chin slap Bourne off the ropes. Still Bourne gets up to carry on to climb up for air bourne but once again Vicki is involved knocking Bourne off the corner post. Swagger is in for his patent ankle lock to win with Bourne tapping out. Im loving this new stable of Vicki's …. would have been nice to see Mason Ryan tonight though. A short match but see some solid feuds in future for this new paring.

Heath Slater vs Sin Cara (the good one I think)
Seems the crowd is really popping for Sin Cara, still am I the only one that has a soft spot Slater? More high flying moves from Cara, 2 blinks and 1 Swonton Bomb later the bell has rung … what just happened? Post match and Sin Cara number two makes an appearance on the Titantron, this time in black! I guess that answers my original question anyway. And thats its folks, we have our fifth match for HIAC.

Looks like creative have finally found something for Otunga to do … moonlight for Pee Wee in his absence.
The Divas are up next, Kelly Kelly vs Natalya (with Beth Phoenix). Sorry Beth, I think Kelly Kelly has had a more than a few fluke wins. Natty is at her destructive best ….. hang on, wrap up 1, 2, 3 Kelly Kelly wins!! where did that come from?! But here comes Beth and the Glam Slam … good night Kelly Kelly. Natalya has Kelly Kelly in that new complex submission move now. Not sure if we have a name yet but looks great.

We are back from the break with Cody on the mic. He raises the point of no punishment for Orton but it seems we are still going ahead with another IC title match, this time with Sheamus. Is this a conspiracy?
… and here comes Sheamus and the match is underway … under protest. Just put the bag on Booker.

Cody Rhodes vs Sheamus
Its all Sheamus with a strong start for the Celtic Warrior. Sheamus is full of steam tonight, Cody is really hurting. This is turning into a real solid match, a real solid fight. Cody is showing resistance but ultimately makes little headway. After a strong counter Sheamus has Rhodes set up for the Celtic Cross until Christian enters to give Rhodes the win due to interference. Seems Christian still believes he deserves “one more match” …. keep dreaming.

We are back from the break Woo Woo Woo, you know it!!
Zack Ryder vs JTG
I didnt think JTG was still with the company? Early on JTG is off to an aggressive start until Ryder connects with a Rough Rider, another quick match but still had a few high spots. This was probably booked to build Ryder's momentum towards a mid card title, just not sure if it should come at a jobbers expense.
A quick HITC promo and some Randy Orton back stage goodness with Matt Striker and its time for tonights main event.

Randy Orton vs. Christian
Despite last weeks actions by Orton the crowd is still firmly behind The Viper. The bell rings and its a tight start for two of Smackdown's top tier talent. This is your classic swinging match, each hitting some high spots until Orton finally gains the upper hand to set up the RKO. Christian runs from the ring but Orton doesnt take long to scoop Christian back up. The match ends with a double count out which brings out Cody Rhodes and its an Orton beat down. Sheamus and Mark Henry decide they want some of the action and Henry sees fit to hit Orton with a Worlds Strongest Slam. Henry grabs a steel chair to finish him off but Orton's playing possum and hits the RKO to send the crowd home happy.

Final thoughts. Was a pretty good night and what I would expect from a Smackdown episode as we lead into a PPV weekend. I was surprised we didnt see more of HHH despite being in the building. Looking to Sunday I still believe Mark Henry's match with Orton will be the stand out match at HITC from an otherwise uninspiring match card. It will be interesting to see though how the Sin Cara vs Sin Cara match will play out too.

Thanks for reading, till next time

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