The May 29th episode of WWE SmackDown aired from the Performance Center in Orlando. Jeff Hardy & Elias were both removed from the IC Title tournament after a hit & run segment to open tonight’s show.
SmackDown Results (5/29)
- Sheamus won a Battle Royal to get back in the IC Title Tournament
- Lacey Evans vs. Sonya Deville ended in a double countout
- Sasha Banks def. Alexa Bliss
- Shorty G def. Cesaro
- Daniel Bryan def. Sheamus to advance to the finals of the IC Title Tournament
In addition to the takeaways below, Kurt Angle officially announced that Matt Riddle was coming to SmackDown.
Here are 5 takeaways from this week’s show:
Someone Hit Elias With A Car
WWE SmackDown kicked off with a hit and run angle on Elias. The car belonged to Jeff Hardy and the person seen leaving the car was wearing a black shirt and pants. Kayla Braxton then interviewed Universal Champion Braun Strowman as a witness. Strowman stated that they need to catch the son of a bitch that did this because it was ridiculous.
The “police officers” were then shown grabbing Jeff Hardy out of the bushes. Hardy complained that his head was killing him as the officers said Jeff smelled like alcohol. Jeff stated that he had not been drinking and grabbed his head in pain. They then put handcuffs on Jeff Hardy as Jamie Noble tried to calm Jeff down.
Renee Young said that Jeff appeared to be drunk and the rental car was in his name. Hardy started freaking out as Elias was being loaded into the ambulance.
The superstars then argued backstage about who would replace Elias and Jeff Hardy in the tournament. AJ Styles demanded a free ride to the finals of the tournament and was given it. Daniel Bryan didn’t take the cowardly way about and it was announced that a Battle Royal will go down to determine Bryan’s opponent in the tournament tonight.
Opinion: I saw tons of people complaining about this angle because they are using Jeff Hardy’s substance abuse issues in the past and thought that was low. I couldn’t disagree more. I don’t need my wrestling storylines to be politically correct. I just want them to be entertaining and this has my interest. I cannot imagine getting offended by an obviously ridiculous wrestling angle.
Someone set Jeff up (likely Sheamus) and it will make for compelling television. The storyline isn’t going to end at Jeff Hardy being guilty of drunk driving. Any wrestling or WWE fan knows that. This is one of the only interesting storylines WWE has done in a while and people instantly bashed it.
I’ve always longed for the days of the Attitude Era and this reminded me of it. The only offensive thing in WWE has been their lack of creativity as of late but this certainly wasn’t an example of that.
Sheamus Won The Battle Royal To Get Back Into The IC Title Tournament
King Corbin dominated the Battle Royal early and eliminated three superstars including a returning Drew Gulak. Corbin then launched Ziggler over the top rope and turned around into a Superkick from Jey Uso. Corbin tumbled over the top rope and was eliminated as SmackDown went to a commercial break.
Shorty G eliminated Nakamura and Cesaro. Cesaro then got back into the ring and sent Shorty G over the top rope and somehow none of the referees caught it. The Battle Royal was down to Sheamus and Jey Uso. Sheamus hit the Brogue Kick and eliminated Jey to win the Battle Royal. Sheamus will face Daniel Bryan in the semifinals of the IC Title Tournament.
Bayley Helped Sasha Banks Defeat Alexa Bliss
New Day joined Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross for a Moment of Bliss. SmackDown Women’s Champion Bayley and Sasha Banks interrupted and joined them in the ring. Sasha was wearing a Hana armband to honor Hana Kimura.
Sasha threw her jacket on Alexa and Bliss got pissed off. Nikki calmed Alexa down and congratulated Bayley on her victory over Charlotte last week. Bayley claimed that she was the most dominant champion in SmackDown history and wondered why Alexa didn’t look impressed.
Bliss mocked Sasha Banks for being the only one without a championship in the ring. Bayley referred to Alexa as “Charlotte Jr.” and stated that Banks was the leader of the women’s division. Sasha added that they put the Women’s Tag Team Championships on the map and they wouldn’t even be here if it weren’t for them.
Banks said that they can take the titles back whenever they want. Bayley then made a match between Banks and Alexa Bliss and pissed Sasha off because she wasn’t in her wrestling gear. Bliss hit a Dropkick as SmackDown went to a break.
Match Recap: Sasha beat Alexa down to start things off as Nikki Cross and Bayley joined commentary. Cole asked why Bayley would volunteer Sasha for a match and Bayley avoided the question. Banks connected with a Meteora as Nikki Cross started up a “Lexi!” chant. Alexa climbed to the top rope and Bayley hopped on the apron. Nikki jumped on the apron and Bayley shoved her onto Alexa. Sasha hit Bliss with Double Knees and rolled her up for the pinfall victory. It was later announced that Bliss & Cross will defend the Women’s Tag Team Championships against Bayley & Banks next week.
Opinion: Nikki Cross on commentary screaming at Bayley made this match way more fun than it should have been. There are so few teams in the women’s tag team division that it makes sense for Banks and Bayley to enter a feud with the champs.
Shorty G Picked Up A Win
Shorty G confronted Cesaro after the Battle Royal and it led to a match later on SmackDown.
Match Recap: Shorty G went after Cesaro’s left leg to start off the match but Cesaro battled back with a massive Clothesline. Cesaro followed that up with an impressive Powerbomb and went for the cover but Shorty G kicked out at two. Shorty G dodged an uppercut and rolled up Cesaro for the pinfall victory.
Opinion: The announcers played this up as a massive victory for Shorty G tonight. I don’t really consider a roll-up win this monumental moment for Chad Gable. He’s a terrific in-ring talent that has been saddled with a terrible gimmick that will likely never work. Escaping with a win over Cesaro in a short match isn’t going to solve that problem.
Jeff Hardy Returned & Cost Sheamus The Match
Sheamus battled Daniel Bryan in the semifinals of the Intercontinental Championship Tournament. The winner of the match will go on to face AJ Styles in the finals.
Match Recap: Sheamus controlled the action early and taunted Bryan while doing so. Sheamus dominated through a commercial break and launched Bryan into the barricade when SmackDown returned. Back in the ring, Sheamus continued to beat Bryan down and boasted about defeating him in 18 seconds at WrestleMania.
Bryan fought back and went for a Crossbody but Sheamus caught him with an Irish Curse Backbreaker. Sheamus locked in a Texas Cloverleaf submission but Bryan reached the bottom rope to break the hold. Sheamus hit Bryan with White Noise and went for the cover but Bryan kicked out at two.
Daniel sent Sheamus with a Dropkick but Sheamus shrugged it off and clubbed Bryan to the canvas. Sheamus set up for the Brogue Kick but Jeff Hardy showed up on the entrance ramp. Bryan capitalized with a Running Knee for the pinfall victory. After the match, Jeff Hardy attacked Sheamus in the ring. Sheamus then retreated up the entrance ramp to close the show.
Opinion: I thought this week’s SmackDown was a very good show and the Hardy & Sheamus storyline was the best part of it. It will be interesting to see where this storyline goes in the coming weeks. It wasn’t explained at all how Jeff got out of jail so quickly but it doesn’t need to be because this is wrestling storyline. The hacker could have provided proof to the authorities that Hardy was framed or Jeff broke free. Either way, this is entertaining as hell and I’m looking forward to next week’s show.