The Smackdown! Report (8/25/05): Benoit, Batista, and Rey vs. JBL, OJ, and Eddie
Submitted by Chad Matthews on Thursday, August 25, 2005 at 10:17 PM EST







Well, ladies and gentlemen, it’s good to be back …for the first time since December 2004, welcome to Chad Matthews’s Smackdown Report. In case you’re new or just don’t remember me, I was the SD guy for a little over 6 months last year…I’m pumped to be back since we’ll finally get a fresh main-event feud, a US Champion who actually has some ability, and two great talents in Eddie and Rey freed up to start some new stuff. Onto the show…

The Smackdown! Report (8/25/05)

The show opened with highlights from Smackdown’s portion of the Summerslam card. Just for the record, Orton defeated Taker, Rey beat Eddie, Batista topped JBL, and Benoit made Jordan tap in about 20 seconds.

Match 1: Randy Orton (w/ Cowboy Bob Orton) vs. Hardcore Holly
-(CMV1 note- Cowboy Bob introduced his son, but not before talking up Randy’s “killing” of the Deadman’s legendary career). Holly tried to get his offense going early on with a chop in the corner, but Randy ducked out of the way. A “Randy sucks” chant broke out. Hardcore tried for a back elbow, too, but again Orton ducked out of the way. Ole’ Sparkplug then tried for the Alabama Slam, but Orton AGAIN managed to move out of the way. Eventually, Holly and Orton began trading side headlock takedowns. Holly was the first to get anything going, as he caught Orton’s leapfrog attempt and went for the Alabama Slam for the second time. However, Orton countered into a roll-up. Holly countered, too, and locked in an STF. Orton managed to escape and crawl outside to the apron, but Holly suplexed him back into the ring. Hardcore then tried to pick up the pace, but Orton caught him with a dropkick. Randy proceeded to put Holly up on the top turnbuckle, but Hardcore knocked him down to the mat. Holly took a risk, but it didn’t pan out, as RKO got his leg extended and drilled Hardcore in the chops. Randy continued to dominate for a minute, but Holly caught fire and made his babyface comeback with a full-nelson slam and a top rope clothesline for a couple of near falls. He then went for the Alabama Slam for a third time, but Randy countered and went for the RKO. Holly countered, though, and hit a dropkick. Hardcore tried to continue his roll, but Cowboy Bob tripped him up as he was running near the ropes. As Holly turned around, Orton dropped him with the RKO for the win at 10:33. (CMV1 rating- **) (CMV1 note- solid action throughout resulting in a pretty good little opening match-up. It got the necessary time and made Hardcore look like a strong competitor, as well as putting over Bob Orton as a thorn in the side of any of Randy’s opponents).

Backstage, Smackdown General Manager Theodore R. Long walked into his office only to find a UPN (or shall I say, a “network”) representative named Palmer Cannon waiting for him. Cannon introduced himself and the two got into a chat about SD’s move to Friday nights, which Long said would occur on September 9th. Long said that from then on, SD would be known as Friday Night Smackdown. The network representative then suggested, as if it were some sort of special treat, that they run Batista vs. JBL in a Summerslam rematch on the very first edition of Friday Night SD (FNSD). His intent was to keep SD “the flagship program of the network,” and TRL agreed with him that JBL vs. Batista was a good idea. (CMV1 note- two points to make and then I’ll shut up: 1) Batista vs. JBL is not a treat, it’s an eyesore and 2) this UPN representative guy could be a good idea. A friend of mine recently suggested they recreate the Cyrus character from ECW’s national TV show in order to capitalize on the Muhammed Hassan nonsense…Cannon could be just that).

Cole and Tazz hyped tonight’s main-event, a 6-man tag team match featuring Batista, Benoit, and Mysterio against JBL, OJ, and Eddie Guerrero.

In the ring for the Peep Show, Christian talked trash about the Mexicools after footage aired of them attacking him and wrecking his set last week. Captain Charisma then introduced his guests for tonight’s edition of the Peep Show, whom he referred to as the “first couple of SD”: Booker T and his wife, Sharmell. Christian called Book a huge star, and said that huge stars get asked tough questions. He asked if the two were still on speaking terms after the events of last week. Book played dumb, but Christian reminded him via video footage of Book and Sharmell’s argument following their tag match against MNM last week. The Captain said that Book was in contention for the Ike Turner-Tommy Lee award for best husband after letting his wife get beat down by Melina. Although he was insulting with that comment, he got more insulting by insinuating that Booker’s accomplishments in the WWE have been few and far between. Sharmell actually backed Christian up on that. Book questioned each of them, saying he kicked Christian’s ass at the Bash…and beat the hell out of Kurt Angle for laying his hands on Sharmell. Sharmell said Christian made a good point, though, and that Booker should start remembering who he really was. Book started to say he was a 5-time WCW Champion, but at that point, the Mexicools showed up. Christian immediately went after them, and a brawl ensued. Booker eventually got Christian’s back, and helped him clear the ring of the MCs.

Match 2: WWE Tag Team Champion Heidenreich (w/ Animal) vs. Johnny Nitro (w/ Melina and Mercury)
-(CMV1 note- Jillian Hall introduced Nitro to the ring). The finish saw Mercury slam Heidi with a chair, causing Heidenreich to pick up the DQ victory over Nitro at 2:45. (CMV1 rating- Ľ *) (CMV1 note- pardon my bias, but I’m not a fan of Heidi becoming part of the LOD). After the match, Nitro drilled Animal with a missile dropkick off the top rope.

The RAW Rebound aired highlighting Jericho vs. Cena in a “You’re Fired” match, which saw Y2J lose and get canned.

Backstage, Josh Matthews (no relation) interviewed Chris Benoit about his Summerslam match with Orlando Jordan. He said he beat OJ faster than he could make a cup of coffee. They proceeded to split the screens and play the video clip of Benoit vs. Jordan from Sunday night while the Rabid Wolverine (and new US Champ) made and drank some coffee.

Further backstage, JBL verbally berated Orlando for losing the last title left in the Cabinet...in 25 ˝ seconds. Layfield whined and bitched about his aches and pains and said that he needed OJ to help him get through their match later on in the night. OJ made some excuses about why he lost so quickly, but Bradshaw ignored them and told him to just be ready.

Match 3: Booker T and Christian (w/ Sharmell) vs. Super Crazy and Psicosis (w/ Juventud)
-(CMV1 note- Cole and Tazz played the footage from the Peep Show earlier in the night, where Book and Christian brawled with the Mexicools). Book and Christian wasted no time in going after the Mexicools. Christian hit an early powerslam for a near fall. He then hit a modified fall-away slam and tagged in Book. Booker got in some offense for a short time and tagged Christian back in. Psicosis proceeded to reverse a body slam attempt and send Captain Charisma shoulder first into the ring post. The Mexicools took control with some fast-paced, CW style offense. Crazy tried to put him away with a top rope moonsault, but Christian moved and eventually got the tag to Booker T. The Bookerman cleaned house and hit some of his signature spots. Sharmell and Christian then got into a heated argument on the outside that prompted Captain Charisma to leave the ringside area. Booker got distracted by it, leaving himself open for a double team attack from the Mexicools. The finish came when Psicosis pinned Book after he and Crazy hit a double back suplex at 5:39. (CMV1 rating- * ˝ ) (CMV1 note- decent match, but nothing special. I like what they are doing with Christian right now, as it’s a step up from him just being a jobber for the top faces. At this point, he’s becoming a tweener…fighting the Mexicools, yet still in the thick of things with Booker T. Also intriguing right now is the storyline of Sharmell acting somewhat pseudo-heel over the last couple of weeks. Should be interesting to see where all this leads…and I hope it leads to something good for Christian, because he’s got to be feeling pretty crappy about his situation on SD).

Backstage, Josh Matthews (no relation) interviewed Randy and Bob Orton about what he called Randy’s controversial victory over Taker at Summerslam. The Ortons signed a copy of Taker’s new DVD and said they’d put it up for auction on wwe.com with the proceeds going to the Undertaker’s retirement fund...because the legend of the undertaker is dead. (CMV1 note- rumor has it that these two will face Taker at No Mercy in a handicap match, which I have no problem with. Taker and Orton’s matches against each other have been quite entertaining in my eyes…and Orton looked very good this past Sunday…it seemed as if he’d been studying some tapes of old school workers while he was away with his injury).

Further backstage, Palmer Cannon again approached TRL (Teddy Long for those that don’t remember). He said that he was thoroughly enjoying tonight’s broadcast, citing the Ortons bragging about ending the Undertaker’s career as great material. Cannon said they needed more Orton on the program. Long said that Cannon would have to excuse him, because he had a major announcement to make.

TRL then came out and announced a Lingerie match between his two newest Divas, Stacy Kiebler and Christy Hemme. However, the network representative came out and prevented it from taking place, calling it unacceptable and not what the demographic they are reaching out to would want to see. (CMV1 note- good call, friend of mine…very similar to ECW’s Cyrus from what I know).

Match 4: Ken Kennedy vs. Funaki
-(CMV1 note- for those of you that don’t watch Velocity, I hope you enjoy Ken Kennedy as much as I have the last two weeks. If you care to read about him a little more, just go to the Velocity results and check out my reviews…Anyhow, the guy has shown promise on the mic and in the ring…hopefully, he delivers right now and doesn’t make me take this out before posting it on the main-page. Prior to the match, Kennedy did his own version of the ring introductions, calling Tony Chimel unacceptable and sickening…he called himself Mr. Kennedy). Kennedy mocked Funaki’s size in the early going, but SD’s number one announcer took control from there. Funaki got in some armdrags and went for crossbody, but Mr. Kennedy ducked out of the way, causing Funaki to go flying out of the ring. Kennedy told the fans at ringside to move back, as if he was going to do something special, but he then smiled and just threw Funaki back into the ring. The finish came when Kennedy defeated Funaki with an awesome rolling Senton splash off the second rope with Funaki on his shoulders at 2:59. (CMV1 rating- *) (CMV1 note- that finishing move, which needs a name, is incredible, but he’ll only be able to do against smaller opponents, I assume. Kennedy is impressive, in my opinion, and is good at getting heat. If you need proof, look no further than that little tease he did with the people at ringside). After the match, Kennedy did his own announcement of the winner.

Match 5: Eddie Guerrero, John “Bradshaw Layfield,” and Orlando Jordan vs. Rey Mysterio, World Heavyweight Champion Batista, and United States Champion Chris Benoit
-(CMV1 note- I hope they make at least some mention of how much Eddie and JBL are supposed to hate each other…Damn, the crowd popped huge when Batista came out). Benoit and OJ started things off. A “You tapped out” chant broke out. We then got a dreaded mid-match commercial break, but that is to be expected. Back from the break, Eddie was firmly in control of Mysterio, eventually catching him with a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker. Mysterio got back into the match with a wheelbarrow bulldog, allowing himself the opportunity to get the semi-hot tag to Batista. Meanwhile, JBL got tagged in and the two men who will meet each other in two weeks for the World title went toe-to-toe. Batista quickly took control, and the three faces took turns beating down the former champ. Benoit tagged in and continued the babyface offense, but soon ended up thrown into the ring-post on the outside. OJ then hit him with a strong right-hand and threw him back in the ring. JBL tagged in and hit a side-Russian leg sweep. Guerrero and OJ then went to work on Benoit’s back and mid-section with alternating abdominal stretches. A “Chris Benoit” chant rang out. The heels continued to dominate the US champ, with Eddie even scoring a near fall following a Hilo. JBL tagged back in and locked in a bear hug. Eventually, Benoit escaped and sent Bradshaw crashing face first to the mat with a drop-toe-hold, followed by an enziguiri. The Rabid Wolverine inched closer and closer to his corner and finally made the hot tag to the Animal. Batista went wild on the heels, knocking JBL and Eddie to the floor and hitting a spinebuster on OJ. Big Dave then attempted the Batista Bomb, but Guerrero attacked him. Benoit quickly made the save with a German suplex and an attempt at the Sharpshooter. However, JBL made the save for Eddie and attacked Benoit. The attack, though, was short-lived, as Rey Mysterio hit a springboard Seated Senton to keep Bradshaw’s attack at bay. Batista proceeded to clothesline the wrestling God out of the ring. Meanwhile, Mysterio drilled Jordan with the 619, which sent OJ right into a German suplex from Benoit. Rey and Chris both eyed Batista and did his signature thumbs up, thumbs down to signal the end. A smiling Batista then finished OJ off with the sit-out Powerbomb. Benoit, Mysterio, and Batista defeated Guerrero, JBL, and OJ at 16:17. (CMV1 rating- ** ˝ ) (CMV1 note- considering how banged up three of the competitors were, it was a solid effort. I hate to use the word formulaic, but that’s exactly what this was. However, it was perfectly acceptable TV main-event).



All in all…Pretty good show tonight with only one thing I didn’t particularly like…thus, I’ll give it the trusty 6.5/10 on the ratings scale. There was a fair amount of wrestling on tonight’s show, with both the opener and the main-event getting longer than 10-minutes of in-ring time, and both matches were pretty good to top it off….I like this Cannon character, as I think there’s some good heat to be had with a “network” representative…the Christian-Booker-Sharmell situation has me intrigued, because I’m partially in favor of a Christian face turn and Book heel turn…finally, I’d like to commend the WWE for building up SD’s move to Friday Nights as something so positive, despite it not being positive at all in my opinion. By putting a Summerslam World title rematch on the show, they are building it up to at least come across as must-see TV worth spending a Friday night viewing.


This week in Smackdown history…Rey Mysterio and Kurt Angle went one-on-one on the August 26th edition of SD in 2004. It was quite a match that saw each competitor counter the other’s finishing moves on several occasions. Rey nearly won when he countered the Angle Slam into a falling Reverse DDT, but Angle managed the last second kick-out. Kurt eventually pinned Mysterio with a roll-up. Also on that night, Billy Kidman defeated Chavo Guerrero in singles action with a Shooting Star Press. However, when he landed the gainer off the top rope, his left leg came crashing down with its full weight right across Guerrero’s face. Chavo was knocked out and ended up with a concussion that put him out of action for several weeks.


If you have any feedback for me, please email me at magicirish10@hotmail.com









Mickie James Looking the HOTTEST EVER!

• Quick Links -
  [Back to LOP] [News Archives] [Results] [Columns] [Forums]