WWE SmackDown Live results (Sept. 20, 2016): John Cena vs. Dean Ambrose

WWE SmackDown comes waltzing back into our lives tonight (Sept. 20, 2016) from the Legacy Arena in Birmingham, Alabama featuring all the latest build to the upcoming No Mercy pay-per-view (PPV) scheduled for next month in Sacramento, California.

Advertised for tonight: The Miz defends the Intercontinental title against Dolph Ziggler, John Cena takes on Dean Ambrose, and more!

Come right back here at 8 p.m. ET when the SmackDown live blog kicks off once the show starts on USA. It will be below this line here. (REMINDER: NO GIFS OR PICS ARE ALLOWED IN THE COMMENTS SECTION. OFFENDERS WILL BE BANNED.)

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WWE SMACKDOWN RESULTS AND LIVE BLOG FOR SEPT. 20

An unforeseen future nestled somewhere in time; unsuspecting victims no warnings, no signs. Judgment day the second coming arrives, but tonight I'm just here to liveblog a wrestling show, folks.

Show opens with a hype video for tonight's headline matches, Dean Ambrose vs. John Cena and Dolph Ziggler vs. the Miz for the Intercontinental Championship.

Then into the ring with Daniel Bryan and a table set up, so we must be having the contract signing for Alexa Bliss vs. Becky Lynch up first. He says that in less than three weeks' time, the SmackDown Women's Championship will be defended for the very first time at No Mercy, so tonight we're having the first ever SmackDown Live contract signing. They're going to keep things civil, which gets boos that Bryan smacks down (heh), because it's a new era and that's just how it's going to be. He then introduces Becky and she makes her entrance.

Bryan reiterates his line about keeping things civil and Becky agrees, saying she's got her thick skin on. Bryan introduces Alexa and we get a quick recap of last week's #1 contender's five-way match while she makes her way to the ring. She says she thought Becky just had the hide of a rhino (Rhyno?) and recommends moisturizer. Becky says that's the difference between them, while Alexa prepares for a pageant, Becky prepares for a fight. Alexa says she can't stand to see the title on Becky because she's not befitting the role of a champion.

She says Becky's role in life is to be the woman that succeeds and then fails miserably before going back to being the lovable superstar that never quite gets it. Becky knows that, and Alexa knows that, and Alexa goes on to say that Becky was born to be a loser. Becky says she's right, she wasn't born to be a champion, she was born to live in a small house by the side of the road and do a job she hates and barely make ends meet, but Becky watched too much TV growing up and she learned that she could do whatever she wants and she decided to be a champion.

Becky poured her heart and her soul into winning the title, so she may not have been born to be champion, but she fought to be a champion. Alexa fakes like it was inspirational and then says that Becky is destined for second place because she was born to be champion and at No Mercy she's going to expose Becky for what she is, a one-hit wonder.

Alexa grabs the contract and goes to sign it but instead throws it in Becky's face! She picks it up, signs, and then dumps the table on Becky and goes to leave but Becky runs up the ramp and blindsides her! Alexa runs off and Becky heads back into the ring to sign the contract herself and reclaim her title belt.

Cut backstage to the Usos walking backstage getting ready for their match against American Alpha, who are then also shown walking, and commentary promises it's next before sending us to break with a house ad for Clash of Champions.

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Back from commercial and Daniel Bryan's walking backstage when he's stopped by Miz and Maryse. He asks Miz what it is and Miz has a problem. It's not about his new contract, but it is about his title defense tonight. Bryan says no problem, we can cancel the match, cancel the contract, no big deal. Miz was too busy bashing him on Twitter to read his contract, as it turns out, and the terms of his contract included this title defense. Go ahead and cancel it, Bryan says, but it'll make it hard for him to "do what [Bryan] can't do anymore", won't it? Miz stomps off in a huff.

Entrances for the tag match. Usos get a recap during their entrance and then Alpha get a promo where Gable says he's still standing and Jordan says it became personal when the Usos took Gable out. Chad says they're gonna become the champions and says the thing.

American Alpha (Chad Gable & Jason Jordan) vs. the Usos (Jimmy & Jey Uso) (SmackDown Tag Team Championship #1 Contender's Match)

Gable and Jimmy start, Gable immediately takes him down and starts pounding. Big back suplex right into giving as good as he gave to Jimmy's leg before tagging Jordan in. Handstand knee drop to the leg and he works the hold more as we cut to Slater and Rhyno watching backstage. Tag to Gable, rolling leg snap to Jimmy, stereo dropkicks to Jey!

Jimmy gets some separation with a back drop to the apron and goes after Chad's leg. Jey hangs him up leg-first on the ropes as Jimmy distracts the ref and then Jimmy follows up with a dropkick to the injured knee that sends us to break.

Back from commercial and Jey's got Gable leglocked while Jimmy's the legal man and drops a leg across his throat. Jimmy wrenches in a kneeling leglock and Gable fights out kicking with the free leg as a clip plays from commercial of Gable being suplexed into the ropes. Tag to Jey but Gable levels him with a back elbow before he can get in. Jimmy rushes in and gets back dropped to the outside, Gabe crawling for the tag but Jey cuts him off for a second.

Jordan in, he tosses Jey and hits the overhead belly-to-belly on both Usos before taking the straps down. Spears in the corner, half-nelson exploder on Jey! Jordan sets Jey up top, looking for the belly-to-belly off the second but Jey fights out. A second attempt and Jey out with headbutts, tag to Jimmy, superkick, Jimmy off the top with the splash but Gable breaks up the pin! Jey chucks Gable out of the ring like a sack of flour and Gable lands on the bum knee.

Jey runs into the capture suplex from Jordan, who then runs into a superkick from Jimmy but has enough in the tank to run off the ropes with a huge lariat of his own to lay Jimmy out! Gable crawling to his feet for the tag but his knee gives out and Jordan refuses to put his friend in danger. Jimmy thinking Samoan drop, Jordan reverses to a sunset flip and eats a superkick. Tag to Jey, he chop blocks Gable off the apron, stereo superkicks...

The Usos win by pinfall with a diving splash from Jey Uso on Jason Jordan.

The Usos will be facing Beauty and the Man-Beast at No Mercy! They celebrate up the ramp while Alpha look on with contempt.

Backstage with Slater and Rhyno, they say they beat them before, they can beat them again. They vow to get the WWE Universe really behind them, and Slater tries out an Uso-esque "When I say Rhy, you say no!" chant, but Rhyno isn't having it.

The Usos roll up and interrupt their cake party, saying they got lucky at Backlash because they cheated and the Usos wrestled twice anyway. Jimmy threatens Rhyno's crackers and offers an ultimatum-- either hand over the tag titles right now or they take Slater's legs out and send him and his 26 kids back to the mudhole they crawled out of. Rhyno gets between them and his buddy and the segment ends.

Commentary puts over Randy Orton vs. Erick Rowan for later in the night and sends us to commercial.

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Back from break with a Hispanic Heritage video for Roberto Clemente.

Then over to the commentary desk where Jack Swagger has joined them. Apollo Crews makes his entrance as a recap of Corbin's attack and Swagger's SmackDown debut plays.

Apollo Crews vs. Baron Corbin

Corbin starts with a shove and eats right hands from Crews. Apollo ducks a lariat and lands a dropkick before following with a Samoan drop. Corbin bails and Crews follows, laying forearms in and ramming Corbin into the barricade, saying he owes him for this as referee Dan Engler makes his count. Big enzuigiri and Apollo sends Corbin back in the ring but only gets two for it.

Trading rights, Apollo loses and Corbin dropkicks him out of the ring and follows. Forearms to Apollo's right ear, over and over with his head on the barricade. Corbin sends him back in the ring and pushes him into the ringpost, laying pressure on with his feet and then hitting another dropkick.

Baron Corbin wins by pinfall with End of Days.

Corbin immediately heads outside to confront Swagger but it doesn't get physical.

Backstage with Dean Ambrose, taping his fists and getting limbered up for his match tonight before JBL talks about the Intercontinental Championship match and sends us to break with a house ad for Talking Smack.

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Back from commercial and commentary puts over Rami Malek's Emmy win and we get Curt Hawkins dropping more facts, but in different voices this time. Love you, Curt, you're my man, we share an exact birthday, but we need to get a match over here.

Backstage with Naomi and Nikki. Naomi says she feels great because it's glow time, and the glow is about confidence, being yourself and shining through adversity and says Nikki definitely has the glow. Natalya, on the other hand, her glow petered out long ago, and now it's just sad. Naomi claims to have the antidote for the poison inside her.

Nikki talks about Carmella, saying she's tough and she wants to make a name for herself but this is not the Nikki Bella of a year ago she's facing. Nikki looks at every match as her last, and says Nikki Bella is rebooted, but Carmella's nothing but a bootleg.

Renee Young backstage with Dolph Ziggler now, asking how tonight will be different. Dolph admits that things always feel different but it turns out the same. He hasn't been winning lately, but it's SmackDown Live and anything could happen. He calls Miz a bunch of names but says despite all that you gotta call him champion. Miz is desperately clinging to that title, but Dolph is desperate too. He wasn't supposed to be World Heavyweight Champion, but he did it. The only way to prove to himself how good he is is to shut Miz up once and for all. Winning is the only thing left for him, so hit his music.

Dolph makes his entrance and Miz follows after, but we go to commercial with a house ad for WWE 2K17 before the match actually begins.

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Back from break with the introductions for the match.

Dolph Ziggler vs. the Miz (c) (Intercontinental Championship)

Feeling out to start, Dolph picks a leg and looks for a pin before switching to a sleeper. Miz gets tied up in the ropes and they shove each other. Waistlock takedown into a pin and Miz bails. Dolph follows, Miz slides back in the ring and looks for an elbow drop but Miz dodges and Dolph grabs the sleeper again, only for Miz to bail again. Ziggler ducks a lariat on the outside and returns one of his own before sending Miz back in the ring. Maryse yells at him and Miz hits a trio of dropkicks to send Dolph back outside!

Miz outside, sends Dolph into the barricade and then back in the ring. Miz up top, waiting for Dolph to stand before he lays him back out with a diving double axehandle. Signaling for Skull Crushing Finale but Dolph fights out and fires off a superkick. Miz catches the foot, Dolph looks for the big DDT but Miz blocks, tossing him to the mat. Miz mockingly does the YES! finger before laying Bryan's kicks in to a kneeling Dolph's chest. Dolph catches the knockout kick and takes Miz to the mat, raining punches down.

Miz breaks free and shoots Dolph shoulder-first into the post before a running kick and a cover for two. Miz with the standing surfboard now, puts the knee to the back. Dolph reverses and stomps Miz in the foot to break free. Ziggler ducks a lariat, comes back with running clotheslines, a Stinger Splash, thinking neckbreaker but Miz sends him into the ringpost again. Miz with the Daniel Bryan corner dropkicks into his own corner clothesline before heading up top again, another axehandle but Dolph counters with a dropkick right to the face!

Back to their feet, Dolph stomps the knee, looks for the Fameasser but Miz picks him up into a powerbomb clutch, Dolph escapes. Skull Crushing Finale attempt, Dolph slips out and hits the big DDT for a nearfall. Dolph tuning up the band, but Miz ducks the superkick. Cactus Clothesline sends both men outside and we go to break.

Back from commercial and Dolph is looking for a superplex but Miz blocks with punches and lands a sunset flip into the slingshot powerbomb I love so much. Miz going for the legs now, knees to the thighs, spinning toehold but Ziggler counters into the sleeper before Miz can get the figure four! Big boot from Miz gets two. Dolph counters Skull Crushing Finale into a victory roll pin and follows with the Fameasser but Miz kicks out both times!

Dolph looking for a Zig Zag but Miz throws him off. European uppercut and Miz begs referee Jason Ayers while Maryse gets the spray again, but Ayers catches her and throws her out! Dolph with an O'Connor Roll, Miz reverses. Zig Zag hits but Dolph can't seal the deal! Miz crawls to the timekeeper and demands his title, he's leaving. Dolph runs out after him and clobbers him, throwing him into the steel steps before sending him back inside.

Ayers is distracted getting rid of the title belt and Miz has the spray!

The Miz wins by pinfall with Skull Crushing Finale to retain his Intercontinental Championship.

Miz celebrates with his title on the floor while Dolph stews in the corner.

Commentary puts Cena/Ambrose over and we cut to Randy Orton walking backstage, because his match is up next. Off to commercial with another house ad for Clash of Champions.

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Back from break and Mauro puts WWE's fight against pediatric cancer over.

Rowan's sheep mask is painted up like a clown now, I feel compelled to mention.

Erick Rowan vs. Randy Orton

Orton ducks a clothesline and immediately looks for the RKO! Rowan hits a spinning World's Strongest Slam before firing grounded punches off and then elbow drops. Forearm sends Orton in the corner and Roman stomps the proverbial mudhole before tearing at Orton's face. Orton fights back with kicks of his own before going for right hands, but a kick and a headbutt from Rowan send him reeling before the big man hits a dropkick that sends Randy right outside.

Erick slams Randy face first into the steel steps a few times and sends him back in the ring, roaring at the crowd. Orton cuts him off as he tries to get back in the ring with a kick to the face and hits the rope-hung DDT. He's hearing voices, pounds the mat and...

Randy Orton wins by pinfall with the RKO.

Wyatt's graphic hits and when the lights come back up Orton's in the ring alone with Rowan's mask.

Cut to Wyatt in his smoky room as he claps and laughs. The Viper strikes again he says. The people love him, but he and Orton are born to the most unholy of matrimonies, til death do they part. The problem for Randy is that he's still just a man that can die at any given moment, but Bray is a god, and a god can never die.

Commentary says the women's tag is up next and sends us to commercial.

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Back from break just in time for Naomi's entrance and Carmella's advertised for Talking Smack tonight.

Carmella & Natalya vs. Naomi & Nikki Bella

Natalya and Nikki to start after Nattie forearms Naomi clean off the apron, Nikki going right for the TKO but Carmella runs in. Nattie with the Sharpshooter in and Carmella pulls Nikki out of the ring and starts slamming her into the barricade and stomping and pounding.

No finish is announced but commentary suggests that Naomi & Nikki Bella win by disqualification.

Naomi lays Nattie out and goes to tend to Nikki.

AJ Styles is backstage polishing his title. He defines rivalry and says neither Dean Ambrose nor John Cena constitute a rivalry for him, the Face That Runs the Place, the Champ That Runs the Camp, the WWE World Champion. He's superior in every way. The best part is that Cena and Ambrose are going to rip each other apart tonight while AJ gets to sit back, relax, and soak it in, because the champ is and will always be here.

Cena out with his towel, saying it's time to go to work and we go to commercial.

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Back from break and Cena's playing to the crowd waiting for Ambrose to come out.

Dean Ambrose vs. John Cena

Collar and elbow lockup, Dean switches to a side headlock, a wristlock, a hammerlock, back to the side headlock for a takeover. Cena to his feet, shoots Dean off but eats a shoulder block and huddles in the corner for a second. Cena with a waistlock, transitions to the side headlock and goes to a kneeling stance but Dean fights out with elbows, shoots Cena out and eats a shoulder block of his own.

Both men go for their finishers and dodge, so Cena hits a side headlock takeover and goes back to the mat. Ambrose to his feet, shoots Cena off, gets leveled by a shoulder block. Whip to the corner, Ambrose duck out and Cena goes shoulder-first into the ringpost and to the outside as we go to break for the last time.

Back from commercial and Ambrose is laying the punches and chops in. Headbutt, forearm, forearm, whip, drops Cena with a lariat. Step-up corner forearm into the running bulldog and Dean goes for Dirty Deeds but Cena picks the leg and reverses into the STF. Dean crawls towards the bottom rope and breaks the hold. Cena charges in, Ambrose dumps him to the outside and follows up with the suicide dive.

Dean sends Cena back in the ring and heads up top, diving crossbody but Cena catches him and rolls through for the Attitude Adjustment. Ambrose kicks out but of course, the AA is a volume game these days, it almost always takes more than one. Cena drags Dean to his feet for another but Ambrose pops out and hits Dirty Deeds. Not enough! Dean can barely get himself to his feet but he succeeds and they trade right hands.

Ambrose goes for the pendulum lariat, Cena catches him into the AA but Dean slips out and...

Dean Ambrose wins by pinfall with a sunset flip.

AJ Styles with the diving forearm to Cena out of nowhere! In the ring he hits a Pele kick on Ambrose to lay him out!

Daniel Bryan comes out and says that was phenomenal, but last week Shane McMahon promised Dean Ambrose a one-on-one rematch, and that match is gonna happen next week on SmackDown. AJ protests, saying it's gonna happen right now, but when he turns around to drag Dean's carcass up for a Styles Clash Dean is ready for him and hits Dirty Deeds!

Ambrose celebrates on the turnbuckle, we get some recaps of everything that just happened because the show is a good two-three minutes under time, and that's the show, folks.