The April 9th, 2019 episode of WWE SmackDown aired live from the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY. It was the first episode of SmackDown following WWE WrestleMania 35. Here are 7 takeaways from this week’s show:
The Bar & McIntyre Challenged New Day
New Day kicked off this week’s episode with a championship celebration. The crowd chanted “you deserve it!” as Kofi Kingston stood in the ring with the WWE Championship. Big E referred to Kingston as an A+ player and the crowd broke out in an “A+!”.
Xavier Woods brought up Big E’s split last night and the crowd chanted “one more time!”. Big E did another split and the crowd erupted. Woods stated that they are here tonight to celebrate the career of Kofi Kingston. Xavier said it was like meeting one of his heroes when he first met Kofi.
Big E added that the bond that New Day shares is something special because they came together to reshape culture and history, and that is what Kofi did at WrestleMania. Kofi said that this wasn’t supposed to happen but here we are. He gave a special shout out to his family and pointed to them in the crowd. Kofi added that his family has supported him unconditionally since day one and he loves them so much.
The Bar once again interrupted the fun and came down to the entrance ramp to a chorus of boos. Sheamus and Cesaro claimed that they saved the main event last night and the crowd chanted “shut the f*ck up!”. The Bar challenged them to a 6-man tag match later tonight. Sheamus and Cesaro said they made friends with Drew McIntyre last night on RAW and he will be their partner later tonight.
Braun Strowman Confronted Samoa Joe
R-Truth and Carmella came down to the ring but were quickly interrupted by United States Champion Samoa Joe. Joe went after R-Truth and applied the Coquina Clutch in the middle of the ring. Joe threw R-Truth out of the ring and grabbed a microphone.
Joe boasted about destroying Rey Mysterio in an under a minute at WrestleMania. Joe claimed that he may defeat the next challenger in under a minute. Braun Strowman ran down to the ring and attacked Joe. Strowman hit Joe with a Splash in the corner and went for another one but Joe locked in the Coquina Clutch.
Strowman broke the hold and tried to hit him with the Running Powerslam but Joe was able to escape. Joe then retreated up the entrance ramp as Strowman paced around the ring.
I’m all for Braun Strowman coming over to SmackDown. If there is anyone in need of a fresh start in WWE, it is Braun Strowman. Drew McIntyre appeared earlier on the show could also use a fresh start on SmackDown. It seems like they will always come up short on a show that features Roman Reigns, so they might as well switch brands and actually be given a chance to succeed.
Paige Is Bringing An Impressive Tag Team To SmackDown
Women’s Tag Team Champions The IIconics claimed that they defied all odds by capturing the titles at WrestleMania. They claimed that they will defend their titles against any team. Peyton and Billie claimed that they found the best team in Brooklyn and revealed their opponents as The Brooklyn Belles.
Peyton Royce and Billie Kay dominated the jobbers as Paige was shown watching the match from backstage. The IIconics won the match with ease and retained their Women’s Tag Team Championships.
Paige was then interviewed backstage after the match. She brought up the SuperStar Shake-Up and stated that she was going to be bringing an impressive tag team of her own next week.
Shane McMahon Continued To Torture Greg Hamilton
SmackDown Commissioner Shane McMahon stood in the ring next to the Best in the World trophy and said that it has been an amazing night on SmackDown so far. Shane was sporting a black eye from his Falls Count Anywhere match against The Miz at WrestleMania.
Shane claimed that everyone tuned into WrestleMania to see him defeat The Miz. He added that The Miz in his rear view mirror and said that The Miz isn’t here tonight because he is attending to his father.
McMahon claimed that Mr. Miz gave him the black eye and the crowd broke out in a “you deserve it!”. Shane claimed that he proved that he was the best in the world at WrestleMania and the crowd responded with a “CM Punk!” chant.
Shane brought ring announcer Greg Hamilton into the ring and complained about him not being enthusiastic with his introduction. Hamilton claimed that he was threatened by some WWE fans to not call Shane the best in the world. Shane grabbed Greg by his tie and demanded that he introduce him as the best in the world.
Hamilton obliged and Shane still complained that it wasn’t good enough. Shane dragged Hamilton out of the ring by his tie and said that he had one more opportunity to get it right. Hamilton finally got it right in Shane’s eyes and told Greg nice job. Shane then danced on the entrance ramp as Greg sulked his way back down towards the ring.
I’m really enjoying Shane McMahon as a heel and am getting a kick out of him being a complete jackass to Greg Hamilton. I’m alright with the feud between Shane and The Miz continuing for a bit longer as well. They had a great match at WrestleMania and wouldn’t mind seeing another one in the near future.
Lars Sullivan Attacked The Hardy Boyz After They Won The Titles
The Usos defended their SmackDown Tag Team Championships against The Hardy Boyz tonight on SmackDown. The Hardy’s controlled the match early and isolated Jimmy Uso in the corner of the ring. Jimmy connected with a Samoan Drop and tagged Jey in. Jey threw Matt out of the ring and Jimmy connected with a cheap shot while the referee wasn’t paying attention. Jey launched Matt into the barricade before rolling him back inside.
Jeff tagged in and connected with a Dropkick for a near fall. Jimmy tagged in and went for a Moonsault but Jeff got out of the way. Jeff then hit Whisper in the Wind off the top rope for a two count. Matt tagged in as Jeff hit Poetry in Motion in the corner of the ring. Matt connected with Side Effect on Jimmy for a near fall.
Jimmy dodged the Twist of Fate and hit Matt with a Superkick. Jeff tagged in and walked into a Superkick from Jimmy. Jey tagged in and hit Jeff with a Splash off the top rope but Hardy somehow kicked out at two. The Usos went for a double Splash but Jeff got out of the way. Matt tagged in and hit Jey with the Twist of Fate. Jeff tagged in and hit the Swanton Bomb for the pinfall victory. The Hardy Boyz are the new SmackDown Tag Team Champions.
After the match, Lars Sullivan rushed the ring and shoved Matt and Jeff across the ring. Sullivan launched Matt to the outside and planted Jeff with the Freak Accident. Lars then hit Matt with a Powerslam and followed it up with a Flying Headbutt onto Matt off the top rope.
I am so sick of the tag team titles on both brands switching hands so often. The only way this makes any sense at all is if The Usos are going to the horrific RAW tag team division next week during the Superstar Shake-Up. I would have liked to see The Usos have a feud with an up and coming team and give that team the titles at a PPV. Instead, The Hardy Boyz randomly won the titles and I honestly don’t care. I wouldn’t be surprised if they lost the titles within a month and this was just a cheap pop for the crowd. Will The Usos inexplicably get an automatic rematch like The Revival did last night?
Lacey Evans Leveled Becky Lynch With The Woman’s Right
RAW & SmackDown Women’s Champion Becky Lynch came down to the ring as the crowd sang her theme. Becky said the crowd had the voices of angels and they responded with a “Becky!” chant. Lynch boasted about her victory in the main event of WrestleMania to become “Becky 2 Belts”.
Lynch rolled footage of Lacey Evans interrupting her promo last night on RAW. Becky said that the punch from Evans quickly reminded her that she has two giant targets on her back. Lynch welcomed all challengers to step up to The Man because she wants to make this the most talked about run in all of WWE.
Becky vowed to willingly sleep with one eye open for the rest of her career to hold onto the titles. Lynch added that whoever tries to take the titles away from her will meet a “red-headed devil”. Becky dropped the mic and raised the titles on the entrance ramp. Lacey Evans once again hit Becky with the Woman’s Right and Lynch collapsed and tumbled down the entrance ramp. Becky stumbled to her feet as Lacey made her way backstage.
New Day Picked Up The Win
New Day battled The Bar and Drew McIntyre in the main event of SmackDown. Before the match, Sami Zayn’s music hit and the crowd sang along. Zayn came down to the entrance ramp and told the crowd that they weren’t worth it before heading backstage.
New Day controlled the match early and Big E planted Cesaro with three Belly to Belly Suplexes in a row. Sheamus tagged in and hit the double White Noise with Cesaro on Big E for a two count. Sheamus hit Woods with a Backbreaker and then geared up in the corner of the ring.
Sheamus went for the Brogue Kick but Big E countered with a Clothesline. Kofi tagged in and connected with a Splash off the top rope onto Sheamus. Kingston booted Cesaro off the apron and then leaped onto him outside the ring. Back in the ring, Kofi hit Sheamus with Trouble in Paradise for the pinfall victory. After the match, Kingston brought his family into the ring to celebrate as SmackDown went off the air.
Tom Phillips said that the Superstar Shake-Up is next week and to expect the unexpected. I sure hope that next week’s shows are interesting because both the RAW and SmackDown after WrestleMania sucked.
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