Smackdown: Christmas from Baghdad
December 25th, 2003 (taped December 20th)
Camp Victory
Baghdad, Iraq
 
Note: This is the debut edition of the Tribute to the Troops which would become a yearly tradition and would include them performing at a base in the Middle East.
 
Actual Show:
 
Specialist Marilynn Anderson performs the National Anthem.
 
Your hosts are Michael Cole and Tazz:
 
Vince McMahon comes down to the ring and says that on behalf of WWE and his fellow Americans, they have come here on this special day to say thank you for allowing them the privilege of performing for them and the sacrifice of their service. He says that they thank them for protecting their great nation and for defending her freedoms as well as having the courage to fight for what they believe in, and he thanks them for kicking ass and capturing Sadaam as he says the holiday season is the embodiment of celebration. He says that even though those here can’t be with their loved ones back home, they wanted to bring a slice of Americana to them today which is WWE and he says to let the celebration begin. Just then, Santa Claus comes down the aisle as Vince introduces him and says that he’s a bit out of shape as someone should help him out, and Santa gets in the ring as Vince says that Santa’s belly is a whopper and the reason he’s here is to give him his Christmas present. Santa shakes his head no and Vince says the gifts in the bag must be for someone else as Santa nods in agreement, and Vince asks if they’re for the troops and Santa agrees as Vince tells him to give them out and Santa gets out of the ring. He heads through the crowd and gives out T-shirts as Vince narrates it and reminds him to leave something for himself, and Santa starts to head up the ramp though Vince stops him and says he forgot something as Santa comes back to the ring. Vince asks about his present and Santa motions he doesn’t have one as Vince says that’s not good and he wants an explanation, and he says that Santa never stopped at his house when he was a kid and he tells Santa to get his fat ass out of the ring. Santa offers a handshake and Vince says he won’t shake it since he didn’t get a present as he nails Santa from behind, and Vince says that’s what happens when you disrespect as “Santa” reveals himself to be Steve Austin. Vince says he’ll kick anyone’s ass if something like that happens only to turn around as Austin flips him off and gets a kick in before hitting the Stunner, and he holds a beer bash before grabbing the mike and he says that his voice might be a bit hoarse from singing Christmas carols. He says that they probably don’t want to hear him sing and he’s going to hold off on that as he’ll just go to the back and drink some more beer, and he says that on his behalf it’s been a pleasure to hang out with them and they’ve always supported the armed forces as they appreciate the sacrifices and are behind them 120%. He says that Sadaam Hussein can take their middle fingers and shove them straight up his ass as that’s the bottom line because he said so.
 
We see highlights from earlier in the week of the Superstars receiving a safety briefing.
 
Commercial break
 
We see footage of the soldiers setting up the ring.
 
1. The APA defeat the World’s Greatest Tag Team when Bradshaw pins Charlie Haas at 4:38.
 
Analysis: We kick off this special edition of Smackdown with our lone tag match of the night. These two teams were looking to get back in the tag title picture and face off here to build momentum. The APA get a big pop from the crowd while the World’s Greatest Tag Team had solid heat as heels. Faarooq starts off the match with Benjamin and they lock up with Benjamin backing Faarooq into the corner and gets a kick in before pounding on him, and he whips Faarooq into the other corner and Faarooq catches him with a back elbow as he goes up to the middle rope and hits a flying tackle for a two count. Bradshaw tags in and pounds on Benjamin as he rams him into the buckle and rams his knee into the ribs, and he continues to pound on Benjamin who rakes the eyes and Haas tags in only for Bradshaw to nail him coming in. He whips Haas into the corner and hits a snapmare as he nails Haas in the back for a two count and hoists him up in a torture rack, and he hits the big boot on Benjamin and a powerslam on Haas for a two count as Faarooq tags in and pounds on Haas. Haas escapes a Dominator attempt and shoves him off as Benjamin gets a shot in from the apron and Haas hits a clothesline, and Benjamin comes in and stomps on Faarooq as he pounds on him on the mat for a two count and stomps on him. Haas tags in and they hit a double suplex on Faarooq for a two count as Haas drives a knee into his back and hooks a submission on, and he pounds on Faarooq and hits a slam only for Faarooq to catch him in a backdrop and Bradshaw gets the hot tag. He knocks Haas down and hits a back elbow as he hits a big boot on Benjamin and splashes Haas in the corner, and he knocks Benjamin down and gets a kick in on Haas as he hits a DDT for a two count with Benjamin breaking it up. Faarooq comes in and they hit a double tackle that knocks Benjamin to the outside as Haas goes up top, but Bradshaw nails him first and goes up himself as he hits the fallaway slam off the middle rope on Haas. Benjamin gets in the ring and hits a superkick on Bradshaw as Faarooq gets in the ring and hits a powerslam on Benjamin, and Haas knocks Faarooq to the outside and pounds on Bradshaw as he whips him into the corner. Bradshaw avoids a charge and hits the Clothesline from Hell on Haas 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. Both teams were hitting their stride by this point and still had good chemistry as the APA get the clean win. The crowd was into the match and popped for the APA when they won. The APA get the win over the World’s Greatest Tag Team as both teams move on. Grade: 1.5
 
We see Steve Austin and Chris Benoit backstage as Austin asks if he’s ready and Benoit confirms he is, and he says that there are 5,000 troops ready for the match between him and Eddie Guerrero as Benoit says he has something for Eddie and Austin says they know why they are here.
 
We see Rikishi warming up backstage.
 
We hear comments from Sgt. James Robert Duke about being separated from his family.
 
Commercial break
 
We hear comments from various troops sending Christmas wishes to their families back home.
 
We see a shot of downtown Baghdad.
 
We see Torrie Wilson preparing for the Santa’s Little Helper contest.
 
2. Rikishi pins Rhyno with a Samoan drop at 2:28.
 
Analysis: Our next match on the card is a pretty basic matchup. Rikishi was cruising in the tag division with Scotty 2 Hotty and looks to get a win here over Rhyno, who’s been floating in the midcard and looks to get back on track here. Rikishi gets a good pop from the crowd while Rhyno had decent heat as a heel. The two men have a staredown to start and Rhyno shoves Rikishi back as Rikishi shoves him to the mat and they lock up with Rhyno hooking a headlock, and Rikishi whips him off and neither man goes down when they collide as Rikishi ducks a shot and hits a clothesline on Rhyno. He whips Rhyno into the corner only for Rhyno to block a belly-to-belly suplex with a headbutt and he pounds on Rikishi, and he attempts a sunset flip and avoids a sitdown splash as he stomps on Rikishi and whips him into the corner. He rams the shoulder into the ribs twice and pounds on Rikishi who catches him with a superkick and he drags him to the corner, and he goes up to the middle rope only for Rhyno to block the Banzai Drop by getting his knees to the groin. He sets up for the Gore only for Rikishi to avoid it and Rhyno hits the corner as Rikishi hits a Samoan drop which gets the three and he wins the match. The match itself was decent as both men worked hard for the time they got and put on a basic match. Rikishi was starting to slow down by this point while Rhyno was hitting his stride, and they had decent chemistry as Rikishi gets the clean win. The crowd was into the match and popped for Rikishi when he won. Rikishi gets the win over Rhyno and both men move on. Grade: 1
 
After the match, Rhyno tries to regroup in the corner and Rikishi gives him the Stinkface as Rhyno heads to the back, and Rikishi brings two soldiers into the ring and they dance for the crowd.
 
We see highlights of the Superstars arriving in Iraq and meeting the soldiers.
 
Commercial break
 
We see highlights of the Superstars flying in Black Hawk helicopters across Iraq and visiting Camp Anaconda.
 
John Cena comes down to the ring and cuts a freestyle rap about facing the Big Show tonight while praising the soldiers.
 
We see Steve Austin meeting up with Eddie Guerrero backstage as they embrace and Eddie says he’s happy to see him, and he says that Austin is the baddest man in Baghdad and Austin asks if he brought one of his lowriders though Eddie says he didn’t. Austin says that he talked to Benoit earlier and Benoit told him he would lie, cheat, and steal to win tonight as Eddie says that’s his thing, and Eddie rants about Benoit as Austin enters the tent.
 
We hear comments from various soldiers sending Christmas wishes to their families back home.
 
Commercial break
 
We see highlights of the Superstars visiting Camp Anaconda.
 
3. Eddie Guerrero pins Chris Benoit with a sunset flip and using the ropes for leverage at 11:38.
 
Analysis: Our last match before the main event is a pretty big matchup. Benoit was looking to get back in the WWE Title picture and looks to get a win here over Eddie, who was still having his issues with Chavo though breaks from that to face Benoit. Both men get a big pop from the crowd and they are pretty split for the whole match. The two men lock up to start with Benoit backing Eddie into the corner only for Eddie to escape and they lock up again with Benoit hooking a headlock, and Eddie whips him off and Benoit knocks him down as they lock up with Eddie going behind Benoit while working the arm. He takes Benoit to the mat with a headlock and goes back to the arm as he hits a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker for a two count, and he pounds on Benoit in the corner and goes back to the headlock as Benoit whips him off and leaps over him before hitting a monkey flip. He knocks Eddie down twice and Eddie grabs the ref to stall as he rolls outside to regroup and puts a flak jacket on, and he returns to the ring though the ref forces him to take the jacket off and Eddie throws the jacket at Benoit as he hits a standing dropkick. He rams Benoit into the buckle and pounds on him in the corner as Benoit escapes a back suplex attempt and gets a kick in, and he attempts a back suplex only for both men to tumble over the top to the floor and Benoit recovers first as he throws Eddie back into the ring. He hooks a submission on Eddie who fights to his feet and tries to spin through only for Benoit to regain control, and Eddie fights to his feet again and gets a kick in as he breaks the hold by sending Benoit into the buckle. He goes up top only for Benoit to pound on him and he goes up himself as he puts Eddie on his shoulders, but Eddie slides off and hits a sunset flip powerbomb though nearly loses his grip for a two count and then he hits a pair of suplexes. Benoit blocks the third one by taking Eddie to the mat and he hooks the Crossface on as Eddie tries to roll through though Benoit keeps the hold on, and Eddie reaches the ropes to force a break and Benoit pounds on him as he rams him into the buckle and pounds on him in the corner. Eddie rakes the eyes and pounds on Benoit who reverses a whip and he hits a flapjack on Eddie as he hits a pair of German suplexes, but Eddie blocks the third one with a series of back elbows and whips him off as he hoists him onto his shoulder. Benoit slides off and hoists Eddie up as he hits a shoulderbreaker before going up top only to miss the diving headbutt, and Eddie goes up top only to miss the Frog Splash and they exchange momentum until Eddie hits a back elbow and Benoit escapes a suplex attempt. He gets a kick in and looks for a powerbomb though Eddie escapes with a sunset flip and uses the ropes 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. Both men were hitting their stride by this point and still had great chemistry though I’d say it was a bit of an upset with Eddie winning though Benoit isn’t hurt by the loss. The crowd was into the match and both men, and they popped for Eddie when he won. Eddie gets the win over Benoit and both men move on. Grade: 2.5
 
After the match, Eddie goes outside and puts on a helmet and flak jacket before returning to the ring, and Benoit confronts Eddie who offers a handshake and Benoit accepts it as they embrace.
 
We see highlights from earlier tonight.
 
We see footage of various troops sending Christmas wishes to their families back home.
 
Commercial break
 
We see footage of various troops sending Christmas wishes to their families back home.
 
We hear comments from the Superstars in regards to visiting the troops.
 
We see Sable preparing for the Santa’s Little Helper contest.
 
We see footage of various troops sending Christmas wishes to their families back home.
 
Commercial break
 
We see highlights of the Superstars receiving weapons training.
 
Tony Chimel says it’s time for the Santa’s Little Helper contest and all the troops will be the judges as he brings out the contestants which are Torrie Wilson, Dawn Marie, and Sable, and Chimel runs down the rules of the contest and says Sable is first as she shows off her outfit and dances for the crowd. Marie is next and she dances for the crowd as she reveals sexy lingerie and Wilson is last as she strips off her outfit to reveal her lingerie, and Chimel polls the crowd who overwhelming pick Wilson and she is declared the winner only for Sable and Marie to attack her from behind. Wilson battles back on both of them and pulls Sable’s outfit off revealing her lingerie as she and Marie roll outside, and they head to the back as Wilson stands tall in the ring.
 
We see highlights of the Superstars visiting Baghdad and meeting the wounded troops.
 
Commercial break
 
We hear comments from Art Myers about the Superstars visiting the troops.
 
We see footage of various troops sending Christmas wishes to their families back home.
 
4. John Cena pins the Big Show with the F-U at 4:11.
 
Analysis: After a fairly quick and interesting night of wrestling, we come to our main event. These two men have been going at it for the last few weeks and now they face off here to settle their issues. Cena gets a big pop from the crowd while Show was pretty hot as a heel. Cena ducks a shot and fires up on Show to start the match as Show counters a whip and grabs Cena by the throat, and he hits the Chokeslam with Cena rolling outside to regroup and Show pulls him onto the apron. Cena hotshots Show on the top rope and returns to the ring only for Show to hit a clothesline and he backs Cena into the corner, and he pounds on Cena and tosses him to the mat as he hits a headbutt and Cena tries to battle back. Show gets a knee in and hits another headbutt on Cena as he tears at his face and hooks an abdominal stretch on, and Cena rakes the eyes to break the hold and he pounds on Show who hits a headbutt though Cena avoids the big boot and Show hits the ref by mistake. Show hits a sidewalk slam on Cena and grabs Cena’s chain which he wraps around his fist though Cena avoids the shot, and he hits a low blow on Show and grabs the chain which he wraps around his fist and he hits Show in the head with it. He revives the ref only to get a two count and Show grabs Cena by the throat though Cena escapes the Chokeslam, and he gets a kick in and hoists Show onto his shoulders and hits the F-U which gets the three and he wins the match. The match itself was decent as both men worked hard and put on a decent match. Both men were hitting their stride by this point and had good chemistry as Cena gets the win over the US Champion. The crowd was into the match and popped for Cena when he won. Cena gets the win over Show though this issue isn’t over yet. Grade: 2
 
After the match, Cena celebrates until Steve Austin comes down to the ring.
 
Commercial break
 
Cena and Austin have a staredown as Cena says he can’t see him and Austin flips him off as he gets a kick in and hits the Stunner on Cena, and Show gets to his feet and Austin flips him off as he gets a kick in and hits the Stunner on Show who doesn’t go down. Austin gets another kick in and hits a second Stunner as he takes the mike and says that he wants Santa’s Helpers to come back down to the ring, and the Divas comes down to the ring as he calls for all the Superstars to come down to the ring which they do. Austin says that Vince isn’t his favorite person in the world though he is the one who made this possible, and Show gets in Austin’s face as Austin gets a kick in and hits another Stunner before saying they want to thank the troops for what they do as they hold a beer bash and we go off the air.
 
Final Analysis: Overall, this special edition of Smackdown was a fun episode as this was all about providing entertainment for the troops. Obviously, there have always been shows like this to bring a little piece of home to those serving overseas, but this takes it to another level as the Superstars actually put on a show in an active warzone which could’ve gone wrong on so many levels though thankfully nothing of the sort happened. We had no title matches as the APA, Rikishi, Eddie, and Cena get big wins, and the matches were pretty standard as most of the show focused on the Superstars meeting the troops and visiting the camps as well as Baghdad. Again, this was more about bringing the troops some entertainment while being away from their families and we will see if this actually becomes a yearly thing for WWE. As for this show, it is a very good show and a great show of support to the troops for their sacrifice. Final Grade: A-