WWE SmackDown Live comes waltzing back into our lives tonight (Sept. 11, 2018) from the Cajundome in Lafayette, Louisiana, featuring the go home show to the upcoming Hell in a Cell pay-per-view (PPV) scheduled for this Sunday night in San Antonio, Texas.
Advertised for tonight: The finals of the tag team tournament, Brie Bella vs. Maryse, R-Truth vs. Andrade Almas, 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.)
WWE SMACKDOWN RESULTS AND LIVE BLOG FOR SEPT. 11
Empty spaces, what are we living for? Abandoned places, I guess we know the score. On and on, does anybody know what we are looking for? Another hero, another mindless crime, behind the curtain in the pantomime. Hold the line, does anybody want to take it anymore? Show must go on, and I’m here to liveblog it for you, folks.
The show opens with a moment of silence and an eleven bell salute in memory of September 11, 2001.
Jeff Hardy makes his entrance and gets o the mic, talking about how we all face our demons and he’s overcome his, but on Sunday, he faces his most venomous demon. A serpent that he’ll confront in his own paradise, Hell in a Cell. He says Randy Orton doesn’t know what it’s like to fight somebody that’s cast out their own demons, and additionally he’s a daredevil and he has no fear.
He’s going to beat Randy Orton until he fades away and classifies himself as obsolete, but first he has to cleanse a demon of his recent past, Shinsuke Nakamura, and after that he’s going straight to hell, enjoy the show!
Jeff Hardy vs. Shinsuke Nakamura
Nakamura bails immediately, stalling. Circling, Hardy gets a jawbreaker and a baseball slide, double axehandle off the apron, throwing Shinsuke into the barricade after! Lining him up, charging, off the steps with a Stinger splash against the barricade as we go to break!
Back from commercial, Hardy fights out of a rear chinlock, back elbows and clubbing overhand strikes, going corner to corner and smashing Nakamura’s face into the turnbuckles. Jawbreaker countered with a knee, big right hand, stomp to the back of the head and Shinsuke grabs an inverted side headlock until Jeff breaks out with elbows. Knees to keep him down, smashing his ribs in and chest kicks follow.
Hardy fires up, clubbing blows, a knee, whip reversed into a knee, roundhouse misses but the reverse finds its target! The King of Strong Style charges in but Jeff has a neckbreaker drop for him! Gourdbuster counters a suplex, Shinsuke charges into a back elbow... WHISPER IN THE WIND! Headed up top, Nakamura cuts him off with a kick to set him up for the corner knee!
Running thrust kick knocks the Charismatic Enigma to the floor and we go to break.
Back from commercial, punches get Hardy a whip, Manhattan Drop to the double leg drop to the basement dropkick, only two! Clutching his ribs, out of the corner, Nakamura sidesteps the charge and kicks him in the neck before stomping his head in! Sliding knee in the corner, Shinsuke lies in wait... and gets rolled up for one! Ducking kicks... TWIST OF FATE!
Headed up top... RANDY ORTON ATTACKS FROM BEHIND! Referee Charles Robinson calls it...
Jeff Hardy wins by disqualification.
Orton puts Hardy’s head into the steel steps over and over before setting him in the ring and retrieving a steel chair from ringside. Back in the ring, stalking after Jeff, he cracks it across his shoulders and thrusts it into his ribs. Waffling him across the back, Randy strips his jacket off and poses before going to that special place. Waiting... RKO DENIED!
Twist of Fate blocked, sidestep, Hardy’s got the chair and he’s wailing on the Viper! Twist of Fate connects... SWANTON BOMB!
Commentary hypes up our main event of Brie Bella vs. Maryse and we go backstage for an interview with Miz and Maryse.
Miz objects to being introduced first since Maryse has the spotlight tonight. Maryse says it took Daniel Bryan three years to come back and it only took her five months after giving birth, so yeah, she thinks she’s ready and she’s gonna make her husband proud and show her daughter how good she is at punching Brie in the face. Miz scoffs at Bryan and Bella being called the Yes! Couple, saying they’re more like the “Sure.” Couple.
Bryan just wants to pick berries and save the environment and if he thinks he can intimidate Maryse she’ll slap the taste out of his mouth and that will be... Awesome.
Commentary hypes up Charlotte Flair vs. Sonya Deville as well as an appearance from AJ Styles and we go to break.
Back from commercial we toss to footage of AJ Styles taped earlier in an empty arena.
He says Samoa Joe knows his biggest weakness is his temper and the quickest way to provoke his temper is to involve his family. He brought his wife and daughter in, and figure if he attacks his heart he can mess with his head and get the advantage, and maybe he’s right, but after twenty years of friendship, he knows a lot about Samoa Joe, too.
Like he has a family, but AJ won’t mess with them because he’s got integrity. Joe’s strength is running his mouth, is intimidation, is being a real piece of sh-- garbage. But all of those strengths will be his weakness, because when that bell rings, no one has the upper hand on AJ Styles, and at Hell in a Cell, the talking stops, the intimidation ends, and Samoa got a reminder of what happens when you talk about his family at SummerSlam.
Last week he got another taste, and in five days, he’ll show Joe how Phenomenal he really is, because this is the House That AJ Styles Built, and it’s not for rent or for sale.
Commentary then tosses to a recap of last week’s Becky Lynch / Charlotte Flair interview.
Charlotte is interviewed backstage. She says she asked Paige for competition because she thrives on it, and she’s naturally competitive, but unlike Becky she doesn’t just talk about it, she goes out every night and does it, and if there’s one person she’ll bet on, it’s her and Lynch will learn it’s way easier to talk the talk than walk the walk, and she hopes she’s watching tonight.
Flair makes her entrance, her match against Sonya Deville will begin after the break.
Back from commercial, we get some hype for the announced card for Hell in a Cell and a video package about the Braun Strowman / Roman Reigns feud.
Charlotte Flair vs. Sonya Deville
Circling, Deville shoots low once, twice, Flair blocks, on the third she gets a front chancery, reversed, reversed, gator roll from the champion, and Sonya gets control back. Float over to reverse, into a side headlock, thrown aside and Deville picks her legs coming back in, pin made, bridging escape, Charlotte looking for a backslide but it gets reversed into an awkward neckbreaker.
Into the corner, snapmare out, off the ropes, sliding lariat... NOPE! Rolling into a pin, no good, Deville laying a punch in, whip reversed, rolling sunset flip denied and Flair drops a knee across the back of her neck! Off the ropes, Mandy Rose with the distraction but Charlotte keeps her wits about her and drops Sonya with a big boot as we go to break.
Back from commercial, Deville has a Cobra Twist locked on and is pounding Flair’s ribs with punches, but the champion manages to get out of it, off the ropes, sunset flip denied but the back suplex lands true! Sonya clobbering her with forearms, Charlotte returns with chops, backing her into the corner and provoking a warning from referee Danilo Anfibio.
STO backbreaker / reverse STO combination, the Queen heads up top and perches... KNEES UP ON THE MOONSAULT! Charging in, spinning spinebuster... NOPE! Knee lifts to follow, whip reversed but Deville breaks her grip and locks a triangle choke on! Flair with the deadlift counter and she puts her neck into the ropes before turning and completing the powerbomb!
Figure four applied, bridging back...
Charlotte Flair wins by submission with the Figure Eight.
Charlotte slaps hands with the front row as she leaves, holding the title high on the ramp before taking a selfie with some fans... AND A WOMAN IN THE CROWD ATTACKS HER BEFORE TAKING HER WIG OFF... IT’S BECKY LYNCH! She hops the barricade and lays Flair out with kicks! DIS-ARM-HER IS LOCKED ON! Referees pull her off after a moment.
We cut to a Samoa Joe video where he’s going to tell us a bedtime story with a hero and a villain and a happy ending. It’s called Night Night, AJ, and it’s, naturally, about AJ Styles and the house that he built, telling of how he defended it and came to believe he was ten feet tall and forgot his family until Samoa Joe showed up. AJ’s family was frightened and distraught and, per Joe’s story, prayed for Styles to learn his lesson, and Joe’s solution was to become their new dad.
The story goes on to predict that Samoa will choke AJ out with the Coquina Clutch and reduce him to the size of a mouse.
We see Daniel Bryan and Brie Bella getting ready backstage and commentary hypes up our SmackDown Tag Team Championship #1 contender’s match to send us to break.
Back from commercial, Becky Lynch runs into an interview backstage.
She waves off the interview and says she said she was going to break Charlotte’s arm, and she will, after she takes her title back.
We see that New Day have once again joined the commentary desk. They toss to Kramer Kingsman backstage looking to interview the Bar in footage that absolutely wasn’t taped earlier.
He surveys the Bar in their natural habitat and wonders if they’re going to make like spoiled milk and ruin everybody’s fun, and they walk off before he can actually head over and talk to them.
We get entrances for the tag team #1 contender’s match but go to break before the action commences.
The Bar (Cesaro & Sheamus) vs. Rusev Day (Aiden English & Rusev) (WWE SmackDown Tag Team Championship #1 Contender’s Match)
Rusev with a front chancery in on Sheamus, the Celtic Warrior backs him in the ropes for the break but Rusev clears Cesaro from the apron! Sheamus with a lariat, only good for one, arm wringer into a tag, Cesaro clobbers him with an uppercut, body slam, fired up, reverse chinlock applied and he wrenches it in. Tag back to Sheamus, he locks the chinlock on himself but Rusev throws him off and English gets the tag.
Sheamus clocks English with a knee, tag made, uppercut, quick tag back to Sheamus and they put boots to the thespian. Another quick tag, reverse chinlock applied and we go to break.
Back from commercial, Sheamus has a Canadian backbreaker rack in on English, who fights out with punches. Jawbreaker for separation, Aiden sidesteps a charge and the Celtic Warrior takes the post hard! Rusev rises back into position... TAGS MADE! Bulgarian Lion in hot, hip attack into the Shinjiro Ohtani spinning wheel kick, he’s fired up and tuning up the band... Machka Kick sidestepped but Rusev gets an Alarm Clock knee in... NOPE!
Stomp to the back... THE ACCOLADE IS ON! Sheamus makes the save with a lariat! Rusev dumps him to the floor, charges in and gets caught by an uppercut! Tag to Sheamus, double-team implant DDT... ONLY TWO! Drawing him up, smashing him into the corner, Rusev fights them off, rolling schoolboy pin for two, but Sheamus hits a tilt-a-whirl powerslam... NOT ENOUGH!
Celtic Warrior tunes up the band... AIDEN TAKES THE BROGUE KICK FOR RUSEV! HE SLIPS OVER AS SHEAMUS DUMPS ENGLISH AND HITS THE MACHKA KICK... IT’S OVER!
Rusev Day win by pinfall with a Machka Kick from Rusev on Sheamus to become #1 contenders to the WWE SmackDown Tag Team Championship.
Rusev Day celebrate their victory and jaw at New Day.
Commentary toss to a video package on Alexa Bliss vs. Ronda Rousey before shilling for the WWE Network abit.
Carmella and R-Truth make their entrance together to send us to break.
Back from commercial in time for entrances.
Andrade “Cien” Almas vs. R-Truth
Circling, Almas in with a front kick, a forearm, chops in the corner but Truth explodes back at him with a forearm. Off the ropes, Ron snaps a Frankensteiner off, right hand in the corner, whip reversed, up and over, cartwheel and Andrade hits a handspring kick! Knee lift follows, front chancery applied, transitioning into a suplex but Truth blocks and hits the sitout gourdbuster!
Palm strike connects, leg lariat, the splits, Ron fired up, Stinger splash, off the ropes, Almas ducks the scissors kick and goes tranquilo in the ropes! Zelina Vega joins him on the apron and Carmella yanks her to the floor! Andrade with an O’Connor roll, handful of tights...
Andrade “Cien” Almas wins by pinfall with an O’Connor roll and a handful of tights.
We go backstage for an interview with Asuka. Naomi rolls up before she can answer questions to ask why she came out to help. Asuka says the Iconic Duo are mean and she can’t understand their accents. Naomi says she likes Asuka’s attitude and she definitely feels the glow, to which Asuka thinks she told her to go. Naomi corrects her, Asuka’s into it, and then Naomi suggests they go get some teriyaki together.
Brie Bella and Daniel Bryan make their entrance to send us to break ahead of the main event.
Back from commercial in time for the remainder of our entrances.
Brie Bella vs. Maryse
Brie right in and Maryse bails into Miz’s loving arms for a breather and a kiss. Back in, again as soon as Bella closes Maryse gets in the ropes and stalls. Bailing again, Brie charges before getting on the mic to call Maryse a coward. That gets her hot and she goes to return but runs right away and this time Miz gets on the mic and takes offense to being called cowards.
He tells Brie she doesn’t deserve to be in the same ring his wife, a two-time Divas Champion and one of the longest-reigning at that. Five months after giving birth she came back, and he says neither Bella nor this city deserve the match tonight, and they’re calling it off. They’ll see them at Hell in a Cell, and the It Couple walk off arm-in-arm. Brie slips out of the ring and physically drags Maryse back to the ring!
Smashing her face into the apron a few times, tossing her back inside, Yes! Fingers, Miz up on the apron but Bryan backs him off! Maryse lands a kick in the confusion... NOPE! Waving her fist around, Maryse tries for the big build to the punch but Brie takes her down into the Yes! Lock! MIZ YANKS HER OUT OF THE RING! Referee Charles Robinson has no choice but to call it...
Brie Bella wins by disqualification.
Bryan is right on Miz, punching mad and trying to cave his skull in but the A-Lister manages to throw him out of the ring and into his wife! The American Dragon checks on her for a moment until Miz attacks from behind and puts him into the steel steps! Maryse heads over and starts laying punches into Bella before smashing her face into the apron a few times!
Tossing her in the ring, but Brie has enough time to recover, Lou Thesz Press into mounted punches! Miz hits the ring to play peacemaker and Maryse has enough time to attack Brie again! French Kiss denied, more punches, and Bryan’s back to lay chest kicks in on Miz in the corner! The American Dragon and his wife take turns punching Miz and then dump him to the floor!
Yes! Fingers to celebrate, they stand tall together as the It Couple scurries away.
That’s the show, folks.