Smackdown
April 17th, 2003 (taped April 15th)
Norfolk Scope
Norfolk, Virginia
 
Dark Matches:
 
1. Brad Hunter and Navajo Warrior defeat two unknowns.
2. Dawn Marie defeats Alexis Laree.
 
4/19 Velocity taping:
 
1. Team Angle defeat Los Chihuahuas.
2. Bill DeMott pins Pat Cusick.
3. Crash Holly (w/ Shannon Moore) pins Funaki.
4. Rhyno pins Chris Kanyon.
 
Actual Show:
 
We see the opening video for Smackdown.
 
Your hosts are Michael Cole and Tazz.
 
1. The Big Show and A-Train defeat Rey Mysterio and Tajiri when A-Train pins Tajiri at 6:10.
 
Analysis: We kick off this edition of Smackdown with a very interesting tag match. Show and A-Train were still going as a team and look to get a win here over the makeshift team of Mysterio and Tajiri. Mysterio and Tajiri get a good pop from the crowd while Show and A-Train were pretty hot as heels. Mysterio starts off the match with A-Train and pounds on him until A-Train knocks him down and rams him into the buckle, and he whips Mysterio into the other corner and Mysterio leaps over him as A-Train presses him up only for Mysterio to land on his feet. Mysterio hits a low dropkick on A-Train and tags Tajiri who hits a dropkick to A-Train’s back for a one count, and Mysterio tags in and they pound and stomp on A-Train who shoves them away though both men nip up. They hit a pair of dropkicks to A-Train’s knees and then hit another pair of low dropkicks as they stomp on him, and A-Train runs through a double clothesline attempt and hits one of his own only for Mysterio to catch him with a jawbreaker. He hits a dropkick to the back and sends A-Train into the ropes only for Show to hit a big boot on Mysterio from the apron, and A-Train stomps on Mysterio and tags Show who pounds on Mysterio and hoists him up in a choke as he tosses him into the corner. He hits a hiptoss out of the corner and steps on him as he stomps on Mysterio in the corner and whips him hard into the other corner, and A-Train tags in and hits a pair of backbreakers on Mysterio as he stomps on him and whips him hard into the corner. He hoists Mysterio onto his back in a submission and Show gets a shot in from the apron as A-Train hits a modified backbreaker for a two count, and he puts Mysterio on the top rope only for Mysterio to hit a series of back elbows though A-Train puts him on his shoulder. Mysterio spins around into a DDT on A-Train and Tajiri gets the hot tag as he ducks a shot and kicks at A-Train repeatedly, and A-Train reverses a whip and Tajiri avoids the pump kick as he hits the handspring elbow and pounds on him in the corner. A-Train reverses a whip into the other corner only to miss a charge and Tajiri hits a springboard dropkick for a two count, and Tajiri ducks a shot and hits a superkick on A-Train as he dropkicks Show in the knee and knocks him to the floor. He kicks A-Train in the head for a two count as Show breaks it up and Mysterio pounds on him until Show presses him up, and he slams him to the mat and holds Tajiri up as A-Train hits the pump kick which gets the three and he wins the match for his team. The match itself was decent as Mysterio and Tajiri got a few shots in, but they put Show and A-Train over fairly easily in 6 minutes. The crowd was into the match and Mysterio and Tajiri, but are not happy when Show and A-Train win. Show and A-Train get the win over Mysterio and Tajiri though this issue isn’t over yet. Grade: 2
 
After the match, A-Train grabs Tajiri and hoists him up for the Derailer only for Tajiri to spray the green mist in his face, and Show gets in the ring and hits a clothesline on Tajiri as he throws him to the outside and A-Train rolls outside. Show goes outside as well and checks on A-Train until Mysterio hits a 619 around the post on Show which knocks him down, and Mysterio and Tajiri head to the back as Show is left stewing.
 
Commercial break
 
We see footage from during the break of Big Show ranting about what Rey Mysterio did to him.
 
Michael Cole interviews Brock Lesnar, who says that he was feeling the pain after his match at WrestleMania as he landed on his head and was knocked out, and he says that he’s lucky to be standing here right now and last November, he lost the WWE Title and it took 5 months before he got another shot. He says that Kurt Angle did everything to keep the title from him and he knew he had to bring it at WM because Angle would bring it, and he says that Angle kicked out of 2 F-5’s which hurt and he knew he had to do something out of the ordinary. He says that he suffered a concussion though he would do it all over again if he had to because he left WM the WWE Champion, and he says that he knows Angle is watching from home after having neck surgery and Angle took him to another level at WM. He says that he has respect for Angle as John Cena comes down to the ring and says that Lesnar is talking about having respect for everyone else except him, and he says that Lesnar disrespects the people and he’s been lying to them as he talking about his WM match. He says that he watched the footage and there’s no way Lesnar suffered a concussion because he doesn’t have a brain, and he says that WM is over and Lesnar needs to focus on him as Lesnar considers him a one-hit wonder. He says that there’s a change in the air and there’s a new one-hit wonder which is Lesnar because at Backlash, Lesnar will find out that he is bigger than him and the WWE Title as Chris Benoit comes down to the ring. He says that Cena’s problem is that he ignores the obvious and he’s talking about respect which he doesn’t know what it means, and he says that before Cena can think about facing Lesnar at Backlash, he needs to worry about beating him tonight. He says that no one is bigger than the title and the title deserves respect even if you don’t respect the champion, and Lesnar asks if Benoit is saying he doesn’t respect him and Benoit says he didn’t say that unless Lesnar is saying he doesn’t respect him. Cena says they need to show him some respect and Lesnar says that they can agree that whoever wins tonight will earn respect, and he offers a handshake to Cena who reluctantly accepts it and then he does the same to Benoit who accepts it only for Cena to nail Benoit and he heads to the back.
 
Commercial break
 
We see a vignette for Mr. America.
 
2. Eddie Guerrero (w/ Chavo Guerrero) pins Jamie Noble (w/ Nidia) with the Frog Splash at 2:56.
 
Analysis: Our next match on the card is a pretty interesting matchup. Eddie was preparing for his tag title shot at Backlash and looks to get a win here over Noble, who was floating in the midcard and looks to get back on track here. Eddie gets a good pop from the crowd while Noble had decent heat as a heel, and Team Angle come out on the stage and run down Los Guerreros while mocking them. Noble wastes no time and attacks Eddie from behind to start the match as he pounds on him in the corner, and he stomps on him repeatedly and pounds on him as he rams the shoulder into the ribs repeatedly in the corner and continues to pound on him. Eddie gets a kick in and pounds on Noble who counters a whip and he hits a swinging neckbreaker on Eddie as he hits a slam and legdrop for a two count, and he whips Eddie hard into the corner and they trade blows with Eddie taking control as he knocks Noble down. He continues to pound on Noble and hits a suplex for a two count as he whips him into the corner only for Noble to catch him with a back elbow, and Eddie catches him in a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker for a two count and Noble counters a whip as he slides under Eddie and hits a modified suplex for a two count. He looks for a double underhook only for Eddie to trip him up and he slingshots Noble into the post as he hits a back suplex, and he goes up top only for Nidia to grab at his leg and Chavo pulls her down to the floor as Noble goes up top. Eddie shoves Noble to the mat and sets himself on the top rope as he hits the Frog Splash which gets the three and he wins the match. The match itself was decent as both men worked hard and put on a basic match. Eddie was hitting his groove by this point and Noble was hitting his groove as well, and they had good chemistry as Eddie gets the clean win. The crowd was into the match and popped for Eddie when he won. Eddie gets the win over Noble and both men move on. Grade: 1.5
 
After the match, Eddie takes the mike and says that they respect Team Angle as they are All-Americans and are great athletes, and he says that they practice taking each other down and there’s a rumor that they go down on each other all the time. Chavo says that they give a new meaning to the phrase “You Suck” as Team Angle run down to the ring and they brawl with Los Guerreros clearing Team Angle from the ring.
 
Commercial break
 
We see an ad for Backlash.
 
We see a vignette for Rene Dupree and Sylvan Grenier.
 
We see highlights from Smackdown last week.
 
We see footage from earlier today of Nathan Jones attacking the F.B.I. backstage.
 
We see Torrie Wilson warming up in her dressing room as Sable comes in and says that she was impressed with Wilson’s Playboy, and she says that seeing her in the shower last week made her realize that there is no comparison to the real thing. She says that she was hoping Wilson could help her with her zipper which she thinks is stuck though she says she can get it herself, and she unzips her outfit and takes it partially off revealing her chest to Wilson as she says that she needs somewhere to change. Wilson says she can change wherever she likes and she has a match as she leaves and Sable turns around while covering up her breasts and asks if it was something she said.
 
Commercial break
 
We see a shot outside the Norfolk Scope.
 
It’s time for another edition of Piper’s Pit as Roddy Piper comes down to the ring and says that he wants to get down to business, and he says that he hears the people chanting his name and he respects them as there is a new generation of fans that are cowards. He says that people are starting to get free watching him doing what he wants and he will make this simple, and he says that for those that don’t know about what happened with Snuka, he shows the footage from May 1984 of himself hitting Jimmy Snuka with a coconut. He says that was 20 years ago and he’s been taking on all comers as he is back to take on the rest though he is also here to make friends, and he says that Rikishi is a tough kid as we see footage from last week on Smackdown and Piper says that was his new friend. He says that he’s been looking for the next wrestler that has everything he has and he has found him as he brings out Sean O’Haire who comes down to the ring, and Piper says he needed someone to watch his back and was tough enough to take on the world by his side. O’Haire says that they had fun last week and he’s here for one reason as Piper is a legend in the business and he’s honored to stand by his side, and he says that this is business as for 25 years, Piper has been on top because he’s a winner and he is unpredictable as he wants to learn from the only mind that is more evil than him. He says that he's not telling Piper anything he doesn’t already know and Piper says he has found his evil, but then “Superfly” Jimmy Snuka comes down to the ring as Piper hides behind O’Haire and asks how Snuka is. He says that he agrees with the fans and Snuka looks great though this is a surprise as Snuka says they have a problem, and Piper tells O’Haire he has this covered and he wants to show him how evil he can be as he says he has a problem as well as he takes his jacket off. He says that his problem is Snuka because he doesn’t need anything and he is the greatest wrestler of all time, and he says that he will be the first one to raise his hand and be the bigger man as he will offer his hand in friendship and kindness. He says they need to bury the hatchet and offers a handshake though Snuka doesn’t accept it as Piper says he doesn’t want trouble, but he goes for a shot though Snuka blocks it and pounds on Piper as he knocks him down only for O’Haire to kick him to the mat. Just then, Rikishi comes down to the ring and O’Haire pounds on him as Rikishi battles back and knocks him down, and he whips O’Haire into the corner and splashes him as Piper grabs a chair only for Rikishi to turn his attention to him. Piper begs off and O’Haire hits a superkick to the back of Rikishi’s head as he and Piper head to the back while Rikishi checks on Snuka, and he takes the mike and says that at Backlash, O’Haire will learn the hard way as his ass belongs to him and if Piper wants to disrespect Snuka, he can get a piece of him.
 
Commercial break
 
We see footage from last week of Torrie Wilson doing a Playboy autograph signing in New York City.
 
3. Torrie Wilson pins Nidia (w/ Jamie Noble) with a tornado DDT at 2:08.
 
Special Guest Referee: Sable
 
Analysis: Our next match on the card is a pretty basic matchup. Wilson was being followed by Sable for the last two weeks and looks to get a win here over Nidia, who was floating along with Noble and looks to get a win here. Wilson gets a good pop from the crowd while Nidia had decent heat as a heel, and then Sable comes out to be the surprise guest referee and she gets a good pop from the crowd. Nidia wastes no time and nails Wilson to start the match as she hits a Northern lights suplex for a one count, and she hits a short clothesline on Wilson for a two count and rams her into the buckle as she rams her shoulder into Wilson’s back repeatedly. She pounds on Wilson in the corner and whips her into the other corner as she catches her on a leap and sends her over the top, but Wilson lands on the apron and gets a shot in as she rams Nidia into the buckle and goes up top before hitting a crossbody for a two count. Nidia catches her with a jawbreaker only for Wilson to hit a clothesline and she pounds on Nidia as she hits a sloppy backdrop, and she hits a low dropkick for a two count and whips Nidia into the corner as Nidia blocks a monkey flip by putting Wilson on the top rope. Wilson gets a shot in and hits a tornado DDT on Nidia as Noble tries to get in the ring and Sable hits a baseball slide that knocks him to the floor, and Wilson gets the three and wins the match. The match itself was nothing much as both women did what they could and put on a basic match with Sable staying neutral until the end. The crowd was into the match and popped for Wilson when she won. Wilson gets the win over Nidia and both women move on. Grade: 1
 
Commercial break
 
4. Matt Hardy (w/ Shannon Moore) pins Brian Kendrick with the Twist of Fate at 3:08 to retain the WWE Cruiserweight Championship.
 
Analysis: Our next match on the card is our lone title match of the night. Matt has been rolling as Cruiserweight Champion and faces a tough challenge here in Kendrick, who has been having issues with Matt for the last few weeks and looks to become champion. Kendrick gets a good pop from the crowd while Matt was red hot as a heel. The two men square off to start with Kendrick hooking a rollup for a two count and he ducks a shot as he hooks a backslide for a two count, and Moore trips Kendrick up from the floor and Matt gets a shot in as Kendrick ducks a shot and hits a suicide dive onto Moore on the floor. He hotshots Matt on the top rope and goes up top only to miss a missile dropkick and Matt hits a sleeper neckbreaker for a two count, and he hoists Kendrick onto his shoulder and hits Snake Eyes as he hits a clothesline on Kendrick for a two count. He hits a snapmare and hooks a full nelson on Kendrick who fights to his feet and breaks the hold as Matt reverses a whip into the corner, but Kendrick catches him with a boot to the face and goes up top though Matt gets a shot in and looks for a Razor’s Edge. Kendrick uses the ropes to flip out of the hold and Matt ducks a shot as he hooks the full nelson back on, but Kendrick escapes with a modified tornado DDT for a two count and he pounds on Matt who counters a whip and Kendrick gets a kick in. He looks for Sliced Bread #2 though Matt shoves him off and Kendrick hits a side dropkick as he hits a standing enzurgiri for a two count, and he hits a modified facebuster on Matt and goes up top as he drops an elbow on Matt for a two count. He looks for Sliced Bread #2 again though Matt escapes and gets a kick in as he hits the Twist of Fate which gets the three and he retains the title. The match itself was decent as both men worked hard and put on a basic title match. Matt was hitting his stride by this point while Kendrick was getting into a groove, and they had good chemistry as Matt gets a clean title defense. The crowd was into the match and Kendrick, but are not happy when Matt wins. Matt retains the title over Kendrick and both men move on. Grade: 1.5
 
We see the F.B.I. in their dressing room as they say their going to do their thing and take Nathan Jones out.
 
Commercial break
 
We see an ad for WWE Divas: Desert Heat on VHS and DVD.
 
We see footage from two weeks ago of the APA visiting the troops in Washington D.C.
 
5. Nathan Jones defeats Nunzio by disqualification at :38.
 
Analysis: Our last match before the main event is a pretty interesting matchup. Jones has been having issues with the F.B.I. over the last few weeks and looks to end it here against Nunzio. Jones gets a decent pop from the crowd while Nunzio had decent heat as a heel. Nunzio wastes no time and attacks Jones on the apron to start the match until Jones shoves him away and Nunzio hits a running kneelift, and he continues to pound on Jones who no-sells his shots and he shoves him away as he gets in the ring. Nunzio begs off and Jones hits a spin kick as he rams the knee into Nunzio’s back and Nunzio ducks two shots, and Jones hoists Nunzio up in a choke and slams him to the mat as the F.B.I. run down to the ring which draws the DQ and Jones wins the match. The match itself was nothing much as Jones dominated until the F.B.I. got involved. The crowd was into the match and Jones, but are not happy with the ending. Jones gets the win over Nunzio by DQ and this issue isn’t over yet. Grade: DUD
 
After the match, Jones hits a gutwrench suplex on Johnny Stamboli as Chuck Palumbo gets a shot in only for Jones to knock him down, and Nunzio nails Jones from behind and Jones chases him to the outside where Palumbo hits the Jungle Kick on Jones. Stamboli hits a running knee to Jones and hotshots him on the barricade as he grabs the steps and they place Jones’ foot on the steps, and Stamboli drops the steps on Jones’ leg and they head to the back as officials check on Jones.
 
We see an ad for Backlash.
 
Commercial break
 
We see a vignette for Mr. America.
 
6. John Cena pins Chris Benoit with a rollup at 12:30.
 
Note: This is the finals of the WWE Championship Number One Contender Tournament
 
Analysis: After a fairly quick and interesting night of wrestling, we come to our main event. Both men had tough roads to get through the tournament and now they face off here to see who will get the title shot at Backlash. Benoit gets a good pop from the crowd while Cena was pretty hot as a heel. The two men lock up to start with Cena backing Benoit into the corner and Benoit hits an armdrag on Cena, and they lock up again with Benoit hooking a headlock and he knocks Cena down as he hits a snapmare and works on the arm. Cena escapes by going behind Benoit who turns it around himself and he trips Cena up as he works the leg before going back to the headlock, and Cena fights to his feet and backs Benoit into the corner as Benoit pounds on him and rams him into the buckle. He pounds on Cena and goes behind him though Cena grabs the ref to block a German suplex and he hits a low blow on Benoit for a two count, and he hooks a submission on Benoit who fights to his feet and escapes the hold with an armdrag though Cena stomps on him. He drops an elbow on Benoit for a two count and goes back to the submission as Benoit fights to his feet and breaks the hold, and he pounds on Cena and ducks a shot as Cena blocks a German suplex with a rollup for a two count and Benoit takes Cena to the mat. Cena quickly grabs the rope to block the Crossface and rolls outside to regroup as Benoit hits a suicide dive onto Cena on the floor, and he throws Cena back into the ring and gets a pair of two counts as he hooks a submission on the arm. Cena fights to his feet and Benoit backs him into the corner as he rams the knee into his ribs repeatedly, and he whips Cena into the other corner and Cena catches him with a boot to the face as he hotshots Benoit on the top rope twice. He hits the Throwback on Benoit for a two count and hooks a submission on as he transitions into a front facelock, and Benoit escapes by tripping Cena up and he pounds on him only for Cena to hit a drop toehold that sends Benoit into the middle buckle. Benoit rolls out to the apron and Cena rams the knee into his head repeatedly as he pounds on him and goes up to the middle rope, and he hits a legdrop to the back of Benoit’s head and Benoit falls to the floor as Cena goes outside and throws Benoit back into the ring for a two count. He hooks another submission on Benoit who fights to his feet and he escapes the hold with a back suplex, and he fires up on Cena and knocks him down as he hits a snap suplex for a two count and Cena counters a whip with a kick. He whips Benoit into the corner and hoists him up for a back suplex before hitting a spinout powerbomb for a two count, and he chokes Benoit on the mat and rams him into the buckle as he whips him into the other corner only for Benoit to get a shot in. He hits a German suplex on Cena and goes up top only to miss the diving headbutt as Cena hooks a rollup for a two count, and Benoit takes Cena to the mat and hooks the Crossface on as Cena manages to reach the ropes to force a break. Benoit stomps on him repeatedly and pounds on his back as Cena grabs the ropes to block the German suplex and hits a pair of back elbows, and he prevents Benoit from taking him to the mat and hoists him onto his shoulders as Benoit tries to escape with a sunset flip though Cena sits on him which gets the three and he wins the match. The match itself was good as both men worked hard and put on a solid match. Benoit was hitting his stride by this point while Cena was getting into a groove, and they had good chemistry as Cena gets a surprise clean win though Benoit still looked strong in losing. The crowd was into the match and Benoit, but are not happy when Cena wins. Cena gets the shocking win over Benoit and earns the title match at Backlash as both teams move on. Grade: 3
 
After the match, Cena heads to the back and celebrates as we go off the air.
 
Final Analysis: Overall, this edition of Smackdown was a pretty solid show as we continue the build to Backlash. WrestleMania was now pretty much in the rear view mirror and Backlash was on the horizon, and right now it’s looking like the Smackdown side is setting up a solid card even if RAW has the biggest match with Goldberg/Rock. We did have a title match as Matt still rules the Cruiserweight Division and Show, A-Train, Eddie, Wilson, Jones, and Cena get big wins, and in terms of the matches the main event was the best while the rest was pretty standard as the Backlash card has filled out more. 2003 has been an interesting year as Smackdown was still cooking and we will see if their side of Backlash ends up outclassing RAW. As for this show, it is a pretty solid show to continue the build to Backlash for the Smackdown side. Final Grade: B-