Welcome to the Smackdown Review for May 8, 2018. For both this and Raw, I will go over what the big talking points were, pick the match of the night, and look ahead to the next show
Talking Points
Regain the Crown
It might have been Carmella who took the the title from Charlotte, but Billie Kay and Peyton Royce played a big part. For the first match of the Women’s qualifying match for Money in the Bank, Charlotte had to contend with Kaya she fought Royce. Royce might not be in the same league with Charlotte, but she knows how to take and give a good bump. Kay was involved, but only slightly. In the end, Royce tapped out to the figure eight. It would be sweet if Charlotte won and got her title shot on Carmella the same way.
Rusev and the Underdog (A Rusev Day Tale)
Daniel Bryan and Rusev met in the main event to determine who would be entering Money in the Bank. This was not the story about size vs speed. Rather, both men targeted a specific body part and worked on that. For Rusev, it was a wrist that Bryan kept going after. Rusev returned the favor by going after Bryan’s ribs. This was an excellent showing by both men. Little touches as well, such as Rusev not being able to put on his submission move because of his wrist. It ended as Rusev pinned Bryan in the middle of the ring. Happy Rusev to all and to all a good night.
Pancakes Pt II
Sheamus might have lost to Xavier Woods, but Cesaro was out to prove it was just a fluke. Woods was just as good, if not better then his match last week. One was truly cool to see if how each men’s team tried to help their partner without getting physical. Sheamus was arguing with the referee, but was quite off guard when Big E threw pancakes at him and Kofi Kingston took a flying leap to down him. When Ceasro tried to use the ropes to help pin woods, Big E threw his legs off. Woods went for a diving elbow, but Ceasro caught him with a uppercut which looked like it actually got a piece. The New Day and the Bar meet next week with the winner having one of their members be entered into the Money in the Bank.
Match of the Night
Jeff Hardy vs The Miz (The Miz wins by pinfall)
I gave a lot of praise to Seth Rollins last night, and now it’s the Miz’s turn. Jeff Hardy and him had a true classic that opened the show. For the Miz, it’s the little things. He sells his opponents move not to much, but enough to tell the story. Hardy showed that you don’t need speed or high risk maneuvers to have a great match. This was about strength and who would be on top at the end. Credit goes to the Miz for being hit with a Swanton Bomb and reversing the pin to get the win.
Conclusion
AJ Styles and Shinsuke Nakamura are still not done with each other (My God, the injury from the chair on Styles’ cheek) Mandy Rose beat Becky Lynch and did so all by herself. Next week, WWE goes across the pond and Carmella is going to have another celebration. I wonder who might interrupt it?
