Smackdown
July 11th, 2002 (taped July 8th)
Boardwalk Hall
Atlantic City, New Jersey
 
Dark Matches:
 
1. Rob Conway defeated an unknown.
2. Rey Mysterio Jr. defeated Funaki.
 
7/13 Velocity taping:
 
1. Randy Orton pins Albert.
2. Val Venis defeated Test by disqualification.
3. Billy Kidman pins Chavo Guerrero Jr.
4. Tajiri pins Shannon Moore.
 
Actual Show:
 
We see the opening video for Smackdown.
 
Your hosts are Michael Cole and Tazz.
 
1. “Hollywood” Hulk Hogan and Edge defeat Billy and Chuck (w/ Rico) when Hogan pins Billy at 6:17 to retain the WWE Tag Team Championships.
 
Analysis: We kick off this edition of Smackdown with our first title match of the night. Edge and Hogan defeated Billy and Chuck the previous week to win the tag titles and now Billy and Chuck get their rematch here. Edge and Hogan get a big pop from the crowd while Billy and Chuck had solid heat as heels. Edge starts off the match with Chuck and they lock up with Chuck getting a knee in as he pounds on him until Edge hits a flying forearm, and he pounds on Chuck who ducks a shot and Edge hits a spin kick as he sends Billy into a shot from Hogan. Edge throws Billy over the top to the floor and pounds on Chuck who reverses a whip as Billy gets in the ring and hits a tilt-a-whirl powerslam on Edge, and Chuck rams the shoulder into Edge’s ribs repeatedly in the corner and pounds on him as he stomps on him repeatedly. Edge tries to battle back only for Chuck to rake the eyes and he hits a belly-to-belly suplex for a two count as Billy tags in and kicks at Edge, and he knocks Edge down and stomps on him repeatedly as Chuck gets a shot in from the floor and tags in. He hits a slam on Edge and drops an elbow on him for a two count as he sends him to the outside and Billy holds him up, and Rico hits a spin kick on Edge and Billy throws him back into the ring as Chuck gets a two count and knocks Edge down. He hooks a submission on Edge who fights to his feet and breaks the hold only for Chuck to catch him with a back elbow, and he pounds on Edge who gets a kick in and he hits the Edgecution on Chuck though Chuck keeps Edge from tagging and tags Billy. Edge catches him in a modified facebuster and Hogan gets the hot tag as he fires up on Billy and hits a clothesline before pounding on Chuck, and he hits the big boot on Chuck as he pounds on Billy and hits another big boot only for Rico to grab Hogan’s boot from the floor. Hogan pulls him onto the apron and Edge hits the spear which knocks him to the floor as Billy gets a kick in and hits the Fameasser for a two count, and Hogan hulks up and no-sells Billy’s shots as he pounds on him and hits the big boot with Edge hitting the spear on Chuck as Hogan hits the legdrop which gets the three and they retain the titles. The match itself was decent as both teams worked hard and put on a decent tag match. Edge and Hogan continue to look good as a team while Billy and Chuck were hitting their peak by this point, and they still had good chemistry as Edge and Hogan get a solid title defense. The crowd was into the match and popped for Edge and Hogan when they won. Edge and Hogan retain the titles over Billy and Chuck as both teams move on. Grade: 2
 
We see the Undertaker in the parking lot as John Cena walks up to him and says that he knows Taker is waiting for Rock, and Taker says that Rock is a punk and he will show him what he does to punks like him as Cena says it’s an honor to be Taker’s partner against Angle and Jericho. Taker says that he needs to go back to Vince and say that he doesn’t give a damn about this tag match tonight, and he says that all he cares about is kicking Rock’s ass and Cena needs to leave before he gets his ass kicked as well.
 
Commercial break
 
We see a shot of Atlantic City.
 
We see footage from earlier today of Torrie Wilson’s photo shoot on the beach which was interrupted by Molly Holly.
 
We see the Undertaker being confronted by several agents who tell him that Vince is on his way and Taker is doing the wrong thing as Taker says he’s doing the right thing, but then a limo pulls up and Taker opens the door only for Chris Jericho and Kurt Angle to step out. Angle says that Taker is holding his championship and he says that he made Taker tap out last week as Taker says he pinned Angle, and Angle says tapping out supersedes a pin and Taker says he’s still the champion as Jericho says they should change his name to “Under-tapper”. Taker gets a shot in on Jericho and brawls with Angle as the agents try to break it up with Vince McMahon coming over as well to help, and the agents push Angle and Jericho away as Vince says Taker will get Rock in the arena tonight.
 
Commercial break
 
We see the Undertaker walking down the hallway and he goes into the dressing room where he confronts John Cena about where he was when he needed him and Cena says Taker told him to leave, and Taker says he got jumped by Angle and Jericho as he wants to know if Cena will have his back and Cena confirms he will as Taker tells him to get it together or he won’t last long.
 
2. Molly Holly pins Torrie Wilson with a rollup at 2:20 to retain the WWE Women’s Championship.
 
Analysis: Our next match on the card is our second and final title match of the night. Molly has been rolling as Women’s Champion and faces a unique challenge here in Wilson, who was cruising on Smackdown and looks to become champion. Wilson gets a good pop from the crowd while Molly had solid heat as a heel. Molly shoves Wilson back to start the match and Wilson slaps Molly in the face as she hits a pair of slams and kicks her to the outside, and Wilson goes outside as well and rams Molly into the apron as she throws her back into the ring only for Molly to get a kick in and she pounds on Wilson. Wilson catches her ducking with a kick only for Molly to hit a drop toehold that sends Wilson throat first into the bottom rope, and she stomps on Wilson and hits a backbreaker only to miss an elbow as Wilson trips Molly up and slingshots her into the corner. She hits a swinging neckbreaker on Molly for a two count and Molly escapes a hold as she gets a knee in and hits a Northern lights suplex for a two count, and she stomps on Wilson repeatedly and whips her into the corner only for Wilson to block the handspring elbow with a kick to the back. She throws Molly into the corner and stomps on her repeatedly as she pounds on her only for Molly to come out with a powerbomb, and then she hooks a modified rollup on Wilson which gets the three and she retains the title. The match itself was nothing much as both women worked hard for the short amount of time they got and put on a basic title match. The crowd was into the match and Wilson, but are not happy when Molly wins. Molly retains the title over Wilson and both women move on. Grade: 1
 
We see the Rock arrive to the arena.
 
Commercial break
 
3. Rev. D-Von and Bautista defeat Randy Orton and Mark Henry when Bautista pins Henry at 4:12.
 
Analysis: Our next match on the card is our second tag match of the night. Orton has faced D-Von and Bautista for two straight weeks with different partners only to lose each time, and now he comes here with Henry to face D-Von and Bautista. Orton and Henry get a decent pop from the crowd while D-Von and Bautista had decent heat as heels. Orton starts off the match with D-Von and Bautista distracts Orton as D-Von gets a shot in and pounds on Orton, and Orton hits a flying clothesline on D-Von as he hits a second clothesline and a dropkick before getting a shot in on Bautista. He pounds on D-Von in the corner until Bautista hotshots him on the top rope and D-Von sends him into the post as Orton falls over the top to the floor, and D-Von goes outside and throws Orton back into the ring as Bautista tags in and kicks at Orton before ramming him into the buckle. He chokes him with his boot in the corner and pounds on him as he hits a powerslam only to miss an elbow and Orton catches him with a boot to the face, but Bautista catches a second boot and pounds on Orton as he whips him into the other corner only to miss a charge as he rams his shoulder into the post. Henry gets the hot tag and hits a pair of clotheslines on D-Von as he hits a backdrop and he knocks Bautista down, and he hits a powerslam on D-Von and kicks at Bautista as Orton comes in and they clothesline Bautista over the top to the floor. Orton goes up top as Henry splashes D-Von in the corner and Orton hits a crossbody on D-Von before Henry hits a headbutt, and he pounds on D-Von as Bautista gets a blind tag and D-Von ducks a shot before he and Bautista hit a double tackle on Henry. Henry hits a double clothesline on both men and knocks D-Von down only for Bautista to hoist him onto his shoulders and he hits a rolling senton for a two count, and Henry catches Bautista with a big boot only for Bautista to hit the spinebuster which gets the three and he wins the match for his team. The match itself was decent as both teams worked hard and put on a basic tag match. D-Von and Bautista were gelling well as a team while Orton and Henry looked decent as a team, and they had decent chemistry as D-Von and Bautista get the win over Orton and Henry. The crowd was into the match and Orton and Henry, but are not happy when D-Von and Bautista win. D-Von and Bautista get the win over Orton and Henry as both teams move on. Grade: 1.5
 
We see Edge and Hulk Hogan in their dressing room as Edge says they’re going gambling tonight and this is a dream come true for him, and Hogan says that what’s cool was last week when everyone was cheering for them as the Rock comes up behind him. Hogan says it reminded him of WrestleMania and the electricity felt as everyone chanted his name until he notices Rock behind him, and Rock says that WrestleMania was electrifying though he asks which one he was talking about and he congratulates them on becoming tag champions. Rock tells Edge to only have American money when they go gambling and he says he’s going to go to the ring and do his thing, and he leaves as Hogan says that he could’ve beaten Rock at WM with Rock coming back in and mocks Hogan before leaving as Edge says “Mr. Nanny” smoked “The Scorpion King”.
 
Commercial break
 
JVC Extreme Blast of the Night: The Rock being drafted to Smackdown on the 3/25 RAW
 
The Rock comes down to the ring and says that he has finally come back to Atlantic City as he says that he is back on his show, and he says that it’s time to get down to business as at Vengeance, it will be him getting a shot at the Undisputed Title and if the Undertaker thinks he has a problem with him, he has no idea what kind of problem he has. He says that if Taker has something to say to him, he can just bring it as Kurt Angle comes down to the ring and says that Rock being away so long messed up his sense of reality, and he says that the reality is that Taker isn’t the one to worry about at Vengeance as it is him. He says that Rock has been successful and doesn’t know if he’s been watching but he’s been on a roll as he made Hulk Hogan tap out at King of the ring, and he says last week he made Taker tap out even louder and at Vengeance, it will be his pleasure to make Rock tap out as well and he’ll make Busta Rhymes tap out as well. He asks what he thinks about that and Rock asks who in the blue hell he is as he reminds him of someone though he can’t place it, and he says that he looks like Angle and dresses like him though there’s something different about him as Angle says that he’s the next Undisputed Champion. Rock says that he’s figured out what’s different as he says he noticed Angle’s haircut and they have all the stars tonight as he, Busta Rhymes, and Dr. Evil are here, and Angle says that’s real cute and Rock is yesterday’s news as he thinks he’s cool and popular though he is the No. 1 man around here. He says that Smackdown is his show now and the fans last week were supporting him on the Fourth of July, and he says that Rock thinks he’s so great because he won a Teen Choice Award though teens love him and want his autograph. He asks what is autograph goes for and Rock says $1 million to mock Angle and Angle says that he’s had enough, and he says that Rock hasn’t grown up at all and is like a child though he’s lucky he has a match tonight. He says that next week, he wants Rock in a match and he knows Rock can sing though he will make Rock tap, and Rock says that it's on and everyone here came here to see him whoop Angle’s ass tonight as Angle says that they’re going to have to wait. Rock pounds on him and Angle reverses a whip as Rock hits a clothesline and he hooks the Ankle Lock on with Angle tapping out, but then the Undertaker runs down to the ring and knocks Rock down as he grabs Angle by the throat and hits the chokeslam before grabbing Rock by the throat and he hits another chokeslam.
 
Commercial break
 
We see highlights from Smackdown last week.
 
4. Rikishi pins Test (w/ Lance Storm and Christian) with a Samoan drop at 1:57.
 
Analysis: Our next match on the card is a pretty interesting matchup. Test cost Rikishi his match against Storm last week and now Rikishi comes here looking for revenge. Rikishi gets a good pop from the crowd while Test had solid heat as a heel. Rikishi wastes no time and attacks Test on the outside to start the match as he rams him into the steps twice and throws him into the ring, and Test catches him with a clothesline and pounds on him in the corner as he whips him into the other corner and splashes him. Test ducks a shot and attempts a sunset flip only for Rikishi to hit a sitdown splash and then he hits a belly-to-belly suplex on Test, and he splashes Test in the corner as Christian gets on the apron and distracts the ref while Storm gets in the ring. Rikishi hits a superkick on Storm and Test gets a kick in as he hits the pump handle powerslam for a two count, and Rikishi avoids the big boot and hits a superkick on Test as Christian gets on the apron again only for Rikishi to knock him to the floor. He goes up to the middle rope only for Test to get his knees up on a Banzai Drop attempt though Rikishi catches him in a Samoan drop which gets the three and he wins the match. The match itself was nothing much as both men did what they could for the 2 minutes they got and put on a basic match. The crowd was into the match and popped for Rikishi when he won. Rikishi gets the win over Test though this issue isn’t over yet. Grade: 1
 
After the match, Storm and Christian get in the ring and attack Rikishi who battles back until Test hits the big boot and they pound on him, but then Edge runs down to the ring and hits the spear on Christian as Hulk Hogan also runs down to the ring and they pound on Storm and Test. Hogan hits the big boot on Storm and then he hits the big boot on Test as he and Edge hit a double big boot on Christian and they check on Rikishi.
 
Commercial break
 
We see an ad for Vengeance.
 
We see Vince McMahon and Stacy Keibler in Vince’s office as Keibler says it’s hot in here and he takes his jacket off as they tease undressing each other, but then Chris Jericho comes in and asks if Vince saw what just happened as Vince says he doesn’t need him talking about value for the PPV. He says that Edge is already booked to face Jericho at the PPV though if Jericho is willing to step aside, he’ll make it up to him and Edge and Hogan will defend the tag titles against Storm and Christian as Jericho says he’ll do it as long as Vince takes care of him and he leaves.
 
We see footage from earlier today of Jamie Noble, Nidia, and Tajiri enjoying the buffet at the Tropicana hotel.
 
Commercial break
 
We see a shot of the Atlantic City Boardwalk.
 
We see highlights from RAW 3 nights ago.
 
5. Billy Kidman and the Hurricane defeat Jamie Noble (w/ Nidia) and Tajiri when Kidman pins Noble at 3:06.
 
Analysis: Our last match before the main event is our third tag match of the night. These two teams faced off a few weeks ago with Kidman and Hurricane getting the win and now they face off in a rematch here. Kidman and Hurricane get a good pop from the crowd while Noble and Tajiri had decent heat as heels. Kidman starts off the match with Noble who gets a shot in on Hurricane and Kidman pounds on Noble who reverses a whip, and Kidman hits a hurricanrana and stomps on him as Noble reverses a whip and Hurricane makes a blind tag. Kidman ducks a shot and launches Noble into a powerbomb from Hurricane as he pounds on him and hits a fireman’s carry, and he hits a Shining Wizard on Noble for a two count as Tajiri breaks it up and Hurricane nails him from behind. Hurricane and Noble reverse a whip and Noble slides under him as he hits a modified suplex and tags Tajiri, and he kicks at Hurricane in the corner and puts him in the tree of woe as he hits a baseball slide and kicks at Hurricane repeatedly. Hurricane reverses a whip and blocks the handspring elbow with a superkick as Kidman gets the hot tag and hits a pair of dropkicks on both men, and he hits a clothesline on Noble and an enzurgiri on Tajiri as he hoists Noble onto his shoulders and hits a modified neckbreaker for a two count as Tajiri breaks it up. Kidman reverses a whip into the corner and blocks the Tarantula attempt by sending Tajiri over the top to the floor, and Noble knocks Kidman to the outside and attempts a suicide dive only for Kidman to avoid it as Noble hits Tajiri by mistake. Hurricane goes up top and hits a somersault senton onto both men on the floor as Kidman throws Noble back into the ring, and he goes up top only for Nidia to crotch him on the top rope as Noble nails Kidman and goes up himself. Kidman gets a shot in and hits a sitdown spinebuster off the top on Noble which gets the three and he wins the match for his team. The match itself was decent as both teams worked hard and put on another decent tag match. The crowd was into the match and popped for Kidman and Hurricane when they won. Kidman and Hurricane get the win over Noble and Tajiri as both teams move on. Grade: 1
 
Commercial break
 
Marc Lloyd interviews the Rock, who mistakes him for Jonathan Coachman saying that he shrank and got white as Lloyd tries to introduce himself, and Rock tells him to shut up and asks who in the blue hell he is as he looks off in the distance and asks who that is before shoving him away. He says that he is still here because as long as Taker and Angle are still in the building, he’s not going anywhere as Taker has been a great champion though the countdown is on and he did a little gambling earlier today. He says that he went to the biggest slot machine he could find and played it as it came up with three Brahma Bulls and at Vengeance, both Taker and Angle will be his and they can have their tag match tonight as he will be watching and waiting if you smell what he is cooking.
 
Commercial break
 
We see a vignette for the debut of Rey Mysterio.
 
6. The Undertaker and John Cena defeat Kurt Angle and Chris Jericho when Cena pins Jericho at 6:23.
 
Analysis: After a fairly quick and interesting night of wrestling, we come to our main event. Taker was attacked earlier tonight by Jericho and Angle though he got some revenge on Angle, and now they face off here in this match with Taker teaming with Cena. Taker and Cena get a good pop from the crowd while Angle and Jericho were red hot as heels. Taker starts off the match with Jericho and Angle avoids a shot as Jericho nails Taker from behind and pounds on him in the corner, and Taker reverses a whip into the other corner and Jericho catches him with a boot to the face only for Taker to hit a clothesline. He rams him into the buckle and pounds on him in the corner as he hits a headbutt and tags Cena who gets a shot in, and he pounds on Jericho who reverses a whip and Angle gets a shot in from the apron as Cena knocks him down. Jericho hits a back elbow on Cena and Angle comes in as they stomp on Cena repeatedly in the corner, and they whip Cena into the other corner only for Cena to avoid a charge from Angle who rams his shoulder into the post. Cena ducks a shot and gets a kick in as he hits a DDT on Jericho and a backdrop on Angle before sending Jericho over the top to the floor, and he rams the shoulder into Jericho’s ribs repeatedly in the corner and pounds on him as Jericho goes up top. Angle reverses a whip and Jericho hits a missile dropkick on Cena for a two count as Angle tags in and kicks at Cena, and he pounds on Cena and hits a suplex for a two count as he rams him into the buckle and pounds on him in the corner. Cena turns it around and pounds on Angle in the corner as Angle reverses a whip into the other corner and Cena catches him with a boot to the face, and Angle catches him in a belly-to-belly suplex and tags Jericho who pounds on Cena and rams him into the buckle. He stomps on Cena in the corner and hits a snapmare as he hits a dropkick to the back of the head and drags him to his corner, and Angle tags in and hits a back suplex on Cena as Jericho comes in and they stomp on Cena repeatedly. Angle hooks a front facelock on Cena who fights to his feet and breaks the hold only for Angle to get a knee in, and he pounds on Cena who reverses a whip and he hits a powerslam on Angle as Taker gets the hot tag. He fires up on Jericho and throws him into the corner as he knocks Angle down and splashes both men in the corners, and he hoists Jericho onto his shoulder and hits Snake Eyes as he grabs Angle by the throat only for both men to avoid a charge from Jericho who knocks down the ref by mistake. Taker kicks at Jericho and hits the big boot as he sets up for the Last Ride only for Angle to hit the Angle Slam on Taker, and he throws the ref back into the ring and Jericho gets a two count as Angle gets in the ring and they pound on Taker who hits a double clothesline on both men. Cena tags in and clotheslines Angle over the top to the floor as Jericho ducks a shot and Cena catches him in a spinebuster for a two count, and Jericho catches him with a boot to the face and hits the running bulldog only for Taker to get a shot in from the floor when Jericho attempts the Lionsault as Cena hooks a rollup which gets the three and he wins the match for his team. The match itself was good as both teams worked hard and put on a basic tag match. Taker and Cena looked decent as a team as did Angle and Jericho and they had good chemistry with Cena getting his first win since debuting two weeks ago. The crowd was into the match and popped for Taker and Cena when they won. Taker and Cena get the win over Angle and Jericho as both teams move on. Grade: 2
 
After the match, Jericho attacks Cena from behind as Taker rams Angle into the steps and Jericho kicks at Cena before hitting a sleeper slam, and he throws Cena over the top to the floor as Taker gets in the ring and he hits a big boot on Jericho which sends him out of the ring. Angle gets in the ring and hits a German suplex on Taker as he looks for the Ankle Lock only for Taker to send him to the mat, and Taker gets a kick in only for Angle to escape the Last Ride as he gets a kick in though Taker blocks a suplex and hooks a Dragon sleeper on Angle. Just then, the Rock runs down to the ring and pounds on Taker as both men counter a whip and Rock hits the Rock Bottom, but Angle nails Rock from behind and pounds on him as he stomps on him until Rock battles back and knocks him down before hitting the Rock Bottom and he stands tall as we go off the air.
 
Final Analysis: Overall, this edition of Smackdown was a pretty decent episode as we continue the build to Vengeance. With most of the show being built around the return of the Rock, it did feel like some of the other aspects had the risk of being forgotten, but we did see some good feuds continuing towards Vengeance. We did have two title matches as Edge, Hogan, and Molly retained their titles while D-Von, Bautista, Rikishi, Hurricane, Kidman, Taker, and Cena got big wins, and the matches were pretty basic for TV as again it was all about Rock’s return and building to the main event of Vengeance. 2002 has been an interesting year to this point as Smackdown as seen a bunch of new faces come in looking to make their mark, and things would get shaken up again next week right before Vengeance. As for this show, it is a pretty decent show continuing the build to Vengeance. Final Grade: C-