The May 8th edition of WWE SmackDown aired frm the Performance Center in Orlando, FL. It was the final episode of SmackDown before WWE Money in the Bank this Sunday night.
SmackDown Results for May 8:
- Sonya Deville def. Mandy Rose
- The Miz, John Morrison & Forgotten Sons def. New Day & Lucha House Party
- Tamina & Lacey Evans def. Bayley & Sasha Banks
- King Corbin, Cesaro, Shinsuke Nakamura def. Daniel Bryan, Drew Gulak, Otis
In addition to the takeaways below, the hacker delivered another message during SmackDown.
Here are 5 takeaways from this week’s show:
Sonya Deville Stole A Victory
Mandy Rose battled Sonya Deville in the first match of the night. Before the match, Mandy told Otis to just focus on his MITB match when he asked what he could do to help. Dolph Ziggler asked Sonya to go easy on Mandy’s face during the match.
Match Recap: Mandy Rose went right after Sonya to start the match off and beat the hell out of her in the corner of the ring. Rose booted Mandy in her injured leg and slowed her down. Mandy battled back with a massive right hand and Deville rolled out of the ring to try and regroup.
Deville got back in the ring and took control. Sonya connected with a running knee to Mandy’s face for a near fall. Deville went back to work on Mandy’s leg and had a sinister grin on her face while doing so. Sonya shouted that Mandy is embarrassing herself right now as she locked in a submission hold in the middle of the ring.
Sonya started ripping off Mandy’s eyelashes as Sonya vowed to make Mandy ugly. Rose escaped but collapsed to the canvas as Deville booted her in the leg once again. Mandy connected with a Clothesline and followed it up with a knee to the face that sent Sonya out of the ring.
Mandy chased after her and bounced Sonya’s face off the steel steps. Rose sent Sonya over the announce table as Cole and Graves hopped out of the way. Mandy dragged Sonya back into the ring and shouted at Deville to get up. Deville rolled up Mandy and used her tights for leverage to steal the win.
Jeff Hardy Sent A Message To Sheamus
Jeff Hardy made his return and joined Renee Young in the ring for an interview. Jeff noted that he can still all the fans voices chanting his name and asked them to stick with him because he knows he has one more good run in him.
Sheamus was shown backstage mocking Jeff and Hardy called him out to the ring. Sheamus came to the entrance and claimed that nobody cares about Jeff Hardy anymore.
Sheamus stated that the fans loved the high-flying maniac that was Jeff Hardy, but they are tired of him now. He added that the fans are tired of the suspensions, releases, and the chances he has wasted.
Jeff said that Sheamus was a hater but Sheamus claimed that he wasn’t and he used to respect Hardy. Sheamus referred to Hardy as SmackDown’s weakest flame and marched to the ring.
Hardy hit Sheamus with Whisper in the Wind and followed it up with a Twist of Fate. Jeff climbed to the top rope and hit Sheamus with a Swanton Bomb before posing in the corner to end the segment.
Strowman & Wyatt Met Face-To-Face
Universal Champion Braun Strowman had a Face to Face on this week’s episode of SmackDown. Strowman will defend his title against Wyatt at Money in the Bank this Sunday night.
Strowman stated that he debuted in the Wyatt Family but Bray did not create him. Braun added that Wyatt was threatened by him then and is even more threatened by him now. The Universal Champion then challenged Bray to come down to the ring and he made his way down the entrance ramp as the Firefly Fun House theme played.
Bray asked for an apology but Strowman said he didn’t owe Wyatt anything. Strowman added that Wyatt is going to be the one that is sorry this Sunday. Bray told Braun that he needs to come home so that he can show him how to special. Wyatt told Strowman that he just needed to remove that burden (the Universal Championship) so he can show Braun the way.
Braun claimed that Bray doesn’t know him and how he thinks. Strowman vowed to end this at Money in the Bank. Wyatt laughed and said that their journey is just beginning. Wyatt brought out a sheep’s mask and asked Strowman to try it on. The puppets showed up on the screen and all of them asked Braun to come back home.
Strowman said that he is home and he has the Universal Championship. Braun vowed to retain this Sunday and leave Wyatt stuck playing with his puppets. Strowman exited the ring as Bray said that he tried over and over.
Tamina Pinned The Champ
Sasha Banks & SmackDown Women’s Champion Bayley teamed up to face Lacey Evans & Tamina tonight on SmackDown. Bayley will defend her title against Tamina this Sunday at Money in the Bank.
Match Recap: Bayley tried to avoid Tamina early but Tamina caught her with a Body Slam. Tamina hit a Splash in the corner but got distracted by Banks. Bayley capitalized and tagged Sasha in. Bayley hit Tamina with a chop block and Banks followed it up with a big knee to the face.
When SmackDown returned from a break, Banks hit Lacey with a Dropkick and went for the cover but Evans kicked out at two. Bayley tagged in and continue to beat Evans down. Sasha hit Evans with a cheap shot while the referee wasn’t looking and tagged into the match.
Tamina tagged in but Banks knocked her out of the ring. Sasha went for a Crossbody off the apron but Tamina caught her and sent The Boss into the barricade. Back in the ring, Tamina leveled Bayley with a Clothesline and followed it up with a headbutt. Tamina hit a Splash in the corner before dragging her to the middle of the ring.
Tamina climbed to the top rope but Sasha distracted her on the apron. Tamina sent Banks to the floor and went for a Splash but Bayley got her knees up. Bayley hit the Bayley to Belly and stomped on her a couple of times.
The SmackDown Women’s champ climbed to the top rope and hit an Elbow Drop but Tamina kicked out at two. Lacey hit Banks with the Women’s Right outside the ring. Tamina hit Bayley with a Superkick and followed it up with a Samoan Drop for the pinfall victory.
Opinion: It would have been nice not to see the champ pinned two days before the PPV. I think it would be ridiculous if Tamina won the title at the PPV and I doubt it is going to happen. Tamina has spent her entire career losing and there has been no explanation as to why she is all the sudden this dominant force that everyone that has previously defeated her is afraid of.
Corbin Posed With The MITB Briefcase To Close The Show
Daniel Bryan, Drew Gulak, and Otis faced Cesaro, Shinsuke Nakamura, and King Corbin in the main event of this week’s SmackDown.
Match Recap: Gulak leveled Corbin with a Dropkick that sent him out of the ring. Cesaro tagged in and Gulak planted him with a Michinoku Driver for a near fall. Cesaro battled back after a Nakamura distraction and hit a Gutwrench Suplex for a two count.
Nakamura and Otis then tagged in and the big man hit a Clothesline. Otis knocked Cesaro & Corbin off the apron before slamming Shinsuke to the canvas. Otis followed it up with a Splash in the corner and then the Caterpillar Elbow as SmackDown went to a break.
When SmackDown returned, Corbin and Bryan were battling in the ring. Corbin had a Headlock applied but Daniel quickly broke free. Bryan hit Corbin with a Dropkick to the knee and tagged in Gulak. Cesaro tagged in as well and Gulak greeted him with several strikes in the corner of the ring.
King Corbin tagged in and Gulak hit him with a Flying Clothesline off the second rope for a two count. Cesaro and Nakamura sent Otis into the ring post. Bryan hit a knee to Cesaro’s face off the apron but turned around into a knee strike from Shinsuke. King Corbin then planted Drew Gulak with Deep Six for the pinfall victory.
After the match, a brawl broke out and spilled backstage. King Corbin was all alone on the entrance ramp and grabbed a ladder. Corbin slid the ladder in the ring and set it up under the MITB briefcase suspended above. Corbin climbed up the ladder but Daniel Bryan got back into the ring.
King Corbin sent him into the ladder and rolled him back outside. King Corbin once again climbed to the top of the ladder but Otis got in the ring this time. Otis sent Corbin to the corner of the ring and bashed him with ladder. Otis tried climbing the ladder but the rungs kept breaking under his weight.
Corbin threw Otis into the ring post as Daniel Bryan brought another ladder into the ring. Bryan hit Corbin with a Dragon Screw and climbed the ladder. Corbin shoved the ladder and Bryan fell into the ropes. King Corbin threw Bryan out of the ring and on top of Otis. King Corbin climbed the ladder, grabbed the briefcase and raised it to end the show.
Opinion: I’m not sure King Corbin posing with the briefcase is a good selling point for the Money in the Bank PPV this Sunday. Overall, this week’s episode of SmackDown was a letdown. It was good to see Jeff Hardy back and I thought Mandy Rose and Sonya Deville had a good match. The rest of the show didn’t do much to get me excited for Money in the Bank.