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WWE SmackDown comes waltzing back into our lives tonight (Aug. 14, 2020) with a show at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. There won’t be any real fans in attendance, but we will see Braun Strowman confront Bray Wyatt, an interview with Alexa Bliss, Big E vs. John Morrison, and more!
Come right back here at 8 p.m. ET when the SmackDown live blog kicks off once the show starts on Fox. 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 AUG. 14
Well, I know a thing about contrition because I got enough to spare, and I’ll be granting your permission, ‘cause you haven’t got a prayer. Well I said hey, hey hallelujah, I’m gonna be liveblogging this here pro wrestling show for you, folks.
The show opens with a recap of the last two weeks of Retribution business.
Commentary informs us that extra security has been posted around the building to avoid another incident.
Big E makes his entrance, puts his ring jacket over Corey Graves’ head, and gets an inset promo where he reminds us he’s a former NXT and Intercontinental Champion.
John Morrison also gets an inset promo, talking about how New Day are injury prone and he’s gonna send E home to eat.
Retribution surround the ring and beat E and Morrison down before they can have their wrestle, running off and leaving the Miz to run down and check on his buddy as we go to break.
Back from commercial, we see Morrison and E regrouping backstage with a bunch of the roster.
King Baron Corbin rolls up and says they’re under attack and they need direction. Big gets in his face and says this is their house, and he’ll be damned if he lets the Foot Clan roll up in their business, and he will not be defeated. So later tonight, he’s gonna go beat John Morrison up in that ring. Now is the time to stand and fight!
Sheamus rolls up to facetiously congratulate him on making such an inspirational speech. He says Retribution can smell the fear on Big E and they wouldn’t dare interfere with one of his matches, because if they have any sense at all, they’ll be afraid of him. E says if Sheamus had any sense, he’d realize that he wasn’t alone, and Big leaves with Lucha House Party and Drew Gulak.
Bayley and Sasha Banks are in the ring to cut a promo.
Bayley says Retribution actually want to hear what they have to say so the crowd should follow suit. After what happened on Raw, Sasha says we know she has to wrestle Asuka at SummerSlam, and they’ll have to defend the tag titles at Payback, but they’re not worried about that. Tonight is about Bayley and Bayley only.
Bayley says not even a McMahon can hold them down, and as for the lucky idiot that gets to face her at SummerSlam, we’ll find that out next, but first, they’re gonna add another one to their list of accomplishments and ring announce this battle royal, which they do, quipping about each of our entrants in turn.
Billie Kay, Peyton Royce, Tegan Nox, Shotzi Blackheart, and Lacey Evans are introduced without incident, but when Asuka is announced, Banks and Bayley try to jump her but she runs them off and the rest of our participants make their entrance to send us to break.
WWE SmackDown Women’s Championship #1 Contender’s Battle Royal
Chaos in the early going, it’s a battle royal, Ruby Riott is eliminated first. Billie Kay out second, then Peyton Royce, then Liv Morgan and the two teams brawl on the floor! Nikki Cross and Dana Brooke slide under the ropes and brawl in the ring skirt, more chaos, Tamina throwing punches and playing immovable object, eliminating Cross.
Bianca Belair on Snuka, trading strikes, spearing her in the middle of the ring and following it up with a Glam Slam that eliminates Tamina! Naomi and Lacey Evans turning the heat up, but the Woman’s Right takes Naomi off the apron! Shotzi Blackheart takes Evans out in turn! Shayna Baszler chokes the Ballsy Badass out and hangs her up on the apron, where Lacey yanks her to the floor to eliminate her!
Nox and Belair jockeying for position, Bianca gets her up but Tegan rolls her through and into the second rope before low-bridging her for the elimination! Final four, Nox on Baszler and Asuka, big sentons in the corner on both women! Sitout gourdbuster plants the Empress but Shayna Karelin lifts her to the apron wherea still active Dana Brooke eliminates her!
Brooke with a handspring back elbow, Baszler catches her into the Kirifuda Clutch, puts her on the apron, Asuka eliminates Dana with a hip attack! Queen of Spades and Empress circling, whip into the corner, Baszler with a sliding kick that nearly ends it but Asuka hits the Uraken! Still on the apron, Bayley and Sasha try to take her out but she knocks ‘em down!
SHAYNA KNOCKS ASUKA OFF THE APRON BUT SHE LANDS ON BAYLEY AND SASHA AND IS NOT ELIMINATED! Back on the apron, Kirifuda Clutch attempt but Asuka throws her off...
Asuka wins, last eliminating Shayna Baszler to become #1 contender to the WWE SmackDown Women’s Championship.
Post-match, Asuka celebrates while Bayley and Sasha stand around dejected.
We get a recap of Sonya Deville attacking Mandy Rose to send us to break.
Back from commercial, we see Bayley and Sasha Banks bickering backstage.
Sasha just about manages to talk Bayley back into confidence over her title defense when Asuka blindsides her! Pat Buck rolls up with some referees to try and restore order.
Mandy Rose appears backstage dressed in camo to address Sonya Deville.
She says part of what Sonya said about her is true but people have been saying she’s just a pretty face her entire life, and to be honest it hurts. She talks about her trials and tribulations to get where she is and says Sonya should know how hard she works, but it turns out she’s just a reminder to herself, and she thanks Deville for reminder her that she’s more than a pretty face.
So she’s challenging Sonya to a hair vs. hair match at SummerSlam!
Sheamus rolls up on some security and tells them to take it easy, because he’s taking over, and we go to break.
Back from commercial, Nikki Cross is recovering from her match when she spots Alexa Bliss and rushes over to hug her.
She apologizes for shoving her a couple weeks ago and Bliss says she’s fine and not to worry about her. Cross wants to take her somewhere but she’s staying here because she needs answers from Braun Strowman.
Chad Gable vs. Sheamus
Gable with forearms, a go-behind, Sheamus backs him into the corner and hammers him with back elbows until referee Jessika Carr calls for the break. Putting Chad on the apron, the Beats of the Bodhran ensue and Gable collapses to the floor. Back inside, off the ropes, basement dropkick, stepover toehold knee drops set up a bodyscissors into crossface strikes.
Irish Curse, Celtic Warrior off the ropes for a series of knee drops, drawing Chad up for a crossface of his own. Gable firing back with chops, Sheamus cuts him off, scoop lift, float out, rolling Koppu kick connects! Chad up top, missile dropkick, slow to capitalize, cover gets two. Ankle lock applied, jackknife pin after Sheamus breaks free but it’s only a nearfall.
White Noise, no cover, the Celtic Warrior calling for it...
Sheamus wins by pinfall with the Brogue Kick.
AJ Styles is shown backstage yelling at Chris “Joseph ‘Abyss’ Park” Parks over something or other, which is fun and also sends us to break.
Back from commercial, AJ Styles makes his entrance, with Chris Parks walking in step behind him.
They get in the ring and there’s some kind of display board covered up in the ring.
AJ says there’s a lot going on in WWE but they have more pressing matters than hooligans tearing up the ring, like who gets to face him for the Intercontinental Championship. It shouldn’t matter, but because of Daniel Bryan, he has to be a fighting champion. He wants to just hang out and enjoy his reign and stream on Twitch, but everybody always throws out suggestions for who he should defend the title against, with all these statistical reasons as to why.
But then it dawned on him, when he watches sports, HE looks at statistics, and he’s a handsome stud of a nerd himself, because HE cares about statistics. But if you’re gonna do statistics, he’s hired the Phenomenal Intercontinental Statistic System, or PISS. He admits the name needs some work but he peels the top line of the board off, and it’s him.
Number two, with Joseph Park’s assistance... is no one! Nobody has earned the right to fight him, but here’s the truth— if you work really, really, really hard, then one day you can make it on this board to face him for the Intercontinental Championship.
Enter Jeff Hardy.
He says he respects the hell out of AJ Styles, but he didn’t get a fair shake in the Intercontinental Championship tournament, and it could have been him against AJ in the finals. But it wasn’t, it’s over, moving on, that title is very special to him. It was his first singles title, many moons ago, and he stood on his own feet then, just as he does now after conquering his demons once more.
He knows his self-worth and what he’s accomplished, and that AJ Styles vs. Jeff Hardy sounds mega cool. AJ Says nobody can question that Jeff deserves to be on the board, so if he’s asking if he wants to fight him in this ring for the title... Hell no! Absolutely not, he hasn’t earned the right to be on the board!
He gets it, he knows what Jeff has been through, but this ain’t no pity party. HARDY ATTACKS HIM AND LAYS HIM OUT WITH THE TWIST OF FATE! Jeff writes his name on the whiteboard and leaves.
Commentary hypes the rest of the show up.
Cut backstage to the Artist Collective hanging out and admiring themselves.
Cesaro talks up Shinsuke Nakamura’s match against Gran Metalik tonight and mocks Lucha House Party as the luchadores sneak up behind them and make off with the titles.
The heels give chase and we go to break.
Back from commercial, AJ Styles and Joseph Park are walking the PISS board backstage while AJ fumes.
An interview rolls up and Styles says Jeff doesn’t respect him or the title, so he’s gonna show everyone what happens when you mess with AJ Styles. He tries ineffectually to wipe the board clean, and it turns out that Park brought a permanent marker.
Gran Metalik vs. Shinsuke Nakamura
Nakamura closing with kicks, forearms in the corner, knee drop across his throat gets a nearfall. Whip across, Metalik ducks a lariat, snapmare into a rear chinlock, duck another lariat, tijeras sends Shinsuke to the floor, off the ropes for a dive but Nakamura cuts him off with a kick that gets a two count!
Laying kicks in, whip across, boots up, Gran with a shoulder thrust that sets up a springboard crossbody but Nakamura rolls through! One-handed bulldog from the luchador, whip reversed, springboard back elbow... NOPE! Reverse exploder, Metalik lands on his feet, hits a solebutt, pops up into the turnbuckles but Cesaro runs interference and Shinsuke cuts him off with a knee for two!
Reverse exploder hits on the second try, he’s fired up and calling for it—
KALISTO IS BACK!
He and Cesaro get into it on the ramp, Lince Dorado helps him double-team him with a satellite DDT! Metalik up top...
Gran Metalik wins by pinfall with the Gran Naniwa ropewalk elbow drop.
Commentary shills for the WWE Network.
We see Alexa Bliss getting mic’d up for an interview to send us to break.
Back from commercial, Matt Riddle is interviewed backstage.
He says nobody likes a bounty on their head, and he’s a pretty laid-back guy, so it’s annoying to keep his head on a swivel, but it’s cool because he came here to compete and he wants to compete. On the other hand, King Corbin walks around calling himself a king but as far as he can tell, he’s just a royal pain.
He’s been trying to get a match with him but he doesn’t know what to do.
Enter Chad Gable.
He wants to explain himself, he got caught up in the King’s Ransom because he has a family and that money would go a long way, but that doesn’t justify what he did, and he’s embarrassed that he tried to hurt Matt and he wants to apologie face-to-face. Riddle gives him a fist bump and says it’s all good, and if he wants to go, he just needs a heads-up because he’s down for a fight.
CORBIN BLINDSIDES RIDDLE WITH THE SCEPTER TO THE BACK OF THE HEAD! He tells Riddle this is his kingdom and thanks Chad for his help.
Alexa Bliss is interviewed backstage.
She says she’s been better and talks about her history with Braun Strowman, how he’s initially intimidating but she got to know him and became best friends. Asked directly, she says maybe they could have grown to be more than friends, but she doesn’t want to speculate if that’s why the Fiend attacked her. She says it’s scary and compelling to be in his presence, and once you’ve interacted with him it’s like you can feel his presence.
She doesn’t want to talk about how Braun’s promo last week made her feel, and we go to break.
Back from commercial, Sonya Deville cuts a promo backstage wherein she accepts the hair vs. hair match and says she thinks Mandy will look great bald.
Big E vs. John Morrison
Circling, collar and elbow, into the ropes and Morrison tries to break dirty but E dodges the legsweep. Side headlock, Big wrenching it in to the New Day rhythm, shot off, shoulder block. Feint kick, knee to the face, John taking charge, off the ropes, drop down, leapfrog, elbow strike puts Morrison into the ropes!
Go-behind, E shrugs him off, kick from the apron, Morrison springboards but Big shoves him to the floor! John with a forearm from the apron, E off the ropes, big lariat takes him down! Dragging him to the apron for clubbing blows to the chest, and the Big Splash connects! Miz tries talking his man back into it from commentary as E breaks the count.
Morrison stumbling away, Miz tries to trip Big up and that’s enough opening for John to chop block him in the bad knee! Back inside, knee drop across the bad knee hung up in the ropes, cover for two. Otis comes to ringside to yell at the A-Lister for talking trash on him at commentary, the lights flicker and we go to break.
Back from commercial, the locker room has emptied to surround the ring in case Retribution attacks. Morrison has a front chancery on E in the ring as the lights flicker again and we cut backstage to see Retribution wreaking havoc. They slam referee Drake Wuertz into a table and follow it up with a slam for Dan Engler as well!
They barricade some poor person in the bathroom and continue breaking stuff as the camera cuts back to the action in the ring. Morrison with an enzuigiri, springboard roundhouse, cover for two! Referee Jessika Carr comes down to ringside to funnel the roster backstage to fight Retribution!
Big E goes for the corner Rock Bottom, John fights out of it, kick to the knees as we go backstage again with the roster trying to help with Retribution nowhere to be seen. Back to the match, jockeying for position, wrist clutch leg kicks, Morrison off the ropes, sliding knee ducked and Big gets the standing Stretch Muffler... IT’S OVER!
Big E wins by submission with the standing Stretch Muffler.
Post-match, Sheamus Brogue Kicks E on the ramp!
(RRROOOAAARRR!)
Braun Strowman makes his entrance to send us to break.
Back from commercial, Braun Strowman (who is bald now, for reasons) gets on the mic.
He says the Fiend knows exactly what he’s gonna get at SummerSlam, because he’s the most evil son of a bitch that anyone on this earth has ever laid eyes on, and he calls the Fiend out to face his fears so he can literally murder him and eat his entrails.
Enter Alexa Bliss.
She says at the risk of making him angrier, she thinks they need to have a conversation. He asks about what, and she says this is about him, he’s not the Braun she knows, and last week he said he doesn’t give a damn about her? She doesn’t believe that, they’ve been friends for years. Strowman says she used him as a pawn and he meant what he said last week.
She’s confused, and he says he’ll spell it out— everyone who comes in contact with the Fiend changes, including her, so he wants her to get out of the ring so he can have the Fiend. Bliss relents and tells him to be careful what he wishes for, and if she can’t talk some sense into him, she’ll slap some sense into him, and she demands he look at her when she’s talking to him.
He slowly turns and she slaps him across the face! He smiles, she slaps him a bunch more and tells him to wake up, but he scoops her up into a military press! He’s still holding her up as the lights go down (Fiend-style, not Retribution-style), and he drops her vigorously right as the last lights go out!
Red lights come up, and Alexa is gasping in the middle of the ring as the Fiend stands over her.
Braun appears on the tron laughing.
That’s the show, folks.