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WWE Friday Night SmackDown comes waltzing back into our lives tonight (Aug. 4, 2023) with a live show emanating from Wright State University’s Nutter Center in Dayton, Ohio, featuring the final build to tomorrow night’s SummerSlam Premium Live Event at Ford Field in Detroit, Michigan.
Advertised for tonight: LA Knight goes one-on-one with Sheamus one night before they each try to win the SummerSlam Battle Royal.
Also on the card: “The real Chief” Jey Uso will make an appearance as he prepares for Tribal Combat with Roman Reigns. We’ll also see Asuka, Bianca Belair, and Charlotte Flair one more time ahead of their triple threat match for the WWE women’s championship at SummerSlam.
Come right back here at 8 pm ET when the SmackDown live blog kicks off once the show starts on FOX. It will be below this line here. (Note: Links to illegal streams are prohibited. Pics and GIFs are allowed.)
WWE SMACKDOWN RESULTS AND LIVE BLOG FOR AUG. 4
Thunder shattered the dawn. Raging with fury, the king has come. The power of terror will reign. There is no mercy in pleading, but for me? I’m just here to liveblog this here pro wrestling show for you, folks.
The show opens with commentary informing us that Jey Uso vs. Solo Sikoa will be our main event tonight.
LA Knight makes his entrance and gets on the mic.and talks about the Slim Jim Battle Royal and says everybody in it is a bunch of stooges and he takes pride in calling a stooge a stooge. But hey, anybody can bring it home, even the Miz or that pasty goof Sheamus.
That crosseyed halfwit thinks he’s gonna walk down here, and don’t get him wrong, Sheamus has done it all many times over, but tonight he’s gonna add one more accomplishment— getting beaten by the one and only LA Knight, yeah!
LA Knight vs. Sheamus
Sheamus in with a hard knee, side headlock takeover, reversed with a headscissors, back to the headlock, off the ropes, shoulder block connects! Knight pulls himself up, circling, collar and elbow, Celtic Warrior with the headlock, another shoulder block, drop down, uppercut from LA!
Both men spill to the floor, Santos Escobar makes his way to ringside as do the Miz and Grayson Waller. Throwing Sheamus back inside, Karrion Kross and Scarlett Bordeaux join the crowd, Celtic Warrior wants the Beats of the Bodhran but he’s denied with elbows as AJ Styles and “Michin” Mia Yim come down as well.
Catching Knight on the apron, Sheamus hits White Noise on the edge of the ring and we go to break!
Back from commercial, Sheamus has Knight grounded, fishhooking his mouth, LA posts to his feet and breaks free with elbows! Off the ropes, float over, inverted DDT takes the Celtic Warrior off his feet! Off the ropes, a knee, LA fires back with a slam! Elbow drop follows, backbreaker rack, inverted Attitude Adjustment... NOT ENOUGH!
Irish Curse connects, Sheamus goes up top, fireman’s carry... AVALANCHE WHITE NOISE CAN’T KEEP KNIGHT DOWN! Alabama Slam into the cloverleaf, LA gets the ropes and kicks the Celtic Warrior away! Charging in, Sheamus with the boot up, skin the cat to get up top, Knight charges in and slips off the ropes, second try and both men crash to the floor!
Austin Theory runs in, a brawl breaks out amongst the battle royal competitors at ringside...
LA Knight wins by pinfall with BFT.
Post-match Grayson Waller and Karrion Kross yell at LA Knight and we go to break.
Back from commercial, Adam Pearce breaks up a fight between the OC and the Brawling Brutes and tells the two tag teams to go to the ring and fight there if they want.
A video package for Brock Lesnar vs. Cody Rhodes follows.
Brawling Brutes make their entrance and we go to break.
Back from commercial, we see Jey Uso walking backstage.
Brawling Brutes (Pete “BUTCH” Dunne & Ridge Holland) vs. Good Brothers (“Machine Gun” Karl Anderson & Luke Gallows)
Holland and Gallows to start, trading heavy blows, shoulder blocks, Anderson tags in and gets spun around in a butterfly hold! Dunne tags in, wishboning Machine Gun’s fingers, stomping the bicep! Wrists clutched, stomps to the face, falling back into a cross armbar and working the fingers some more!
Karl posts to his feet, into the corner, tag to Gallows, back suplex / neckbreaker combination... HOLLAND BREAKS IT UP! Anderson runs Ridge off, the Good Brothers pose, and we go to break.
Back from commercial, Anderson kicks Holland’s leg out from under him! Dunne tags in and goes to work on his arm, mat slam, sliding knee, Gallows in to break the cover up! Trading shots with Ridge, Holland back body drops him! Street Profits run in out of nowhere and clear the Brutes from the ring before putting boots to Anderson...
The match goes to a no-contest, presumably.
They beat the Good Brothers and Brawling Brutes down at length after before standing tall on the stage, where Bobby Lashley comes out to join them.
We get a Charlotte Flair video package of her on a yacht in the lap of luxury talking about how she’s gonna win the title for a 15th time.
And so we go to break.
Back from commercial, Paul Heyman is in the ring and gets on the mic.
He introduces himself and asks how it came to this and that this isn’t what Roman Reigns wanted. It’s the last thing he wanted, in fact, and says if you want to blame anyone, you can blame Jey Uso.
This segues into an explanation of Tribal Combat and the mechanics of how all that works and says Jey will never be Tribal Chief under any circumstances.
Enter Jey Uso.
He gets in the ring and confronts Heyman and says he’s right, tomorrow night Tribal Combat is happening and yeah he’s gonna light Roman up with all manner of weapons and bringing his passion and the spirit of his ancestors and culture tomorrow in order to beat Reigns and win the title and the Tribal Chiefdon.
Enter Solo Sikoa.
Jey tells him to chill, Paul talks a big game from behind Sikoa and Uso says no matter what happens he’s his brother and he can always forgive him and these mind games ain’t it. He says Solo is being told all the same things that were told to him, Heyman tries to mount a defense but stops when he sees the look on Sikoa’s face and calls for a private chat with the enforcer.
Solo tells him to get out now and Jey blasts his little brother with a superkick! Uso tells Heyman to tell his cousin he’ll see him tomorrow.
We get a recap of the build to our United States Championship match.
Kayla Braxton interviews Austin Theory in Gorilla.
Theory talks trash about Santos Escobar and says he hopes Rey Mysterio is watching, because hwne he retains his title next week, he’s gonna dedicate the match to Rey. But tonight, he’s gonna beat Cameron Grimes.
Austin makes his entrance and we go to break.
Austin Theory vs. Cameron Grimes
Feeling out, Santos Escobar comes down but referees keep him from coming to ringside and Grimes gets a nearfall off of Cave-In! Brawling, big slam from Cameron, another one off the crossbody powerslam! Up top, Austin cuts him off, single knee facebreaker...
Austin Theory wins by pinfall with A-Town Down.
Post-match, Santos Escobar comes back and lays Austin out with the Phantom Driver!
A hype reel for Asuka follows, focusing on how she’s beaten both Charlotte Flair and Bianca Belair.
The ring is set up for the Grayson Waller Effect and we go to break.
Back from commercial we get some hype for Kid Rock opening the show tomorrow, because that seems necessary in the year of our dark lady Satan 2023.
Grayson Waller is in the ring for the Grayson Waller Effect.
He says everyone is talking about him and introduces his guests tonight, Damage CTRL.
Bayley says she’s not giving us idiots any insight into IYO SKY’s strategy for Money in the Bank and gets spooked by mysterious laughter thinking it’s Shotzi Blackheart but Grayson reveals that he’s pranking her etc. Bayley talks big about not being scared—
Enter Shotzi Blackheart.
Bayley sends IYO out to intercept but nobody’s in the tank! A freshly-shorn Shotzi appears behind Bayley, who slowly turns around to face her, begging off immediately! Blackheart cracks her one and pulls a trimmer out of her fanny pack, chasing Bayley with it!
Zelina Vega is revealed as having been in the tank and we go to break!
IYO SKY vs. Zelina Vega
Match joined in progress, whip across, duck an elbow, double lariats, both women down and out! SKY to her feet first, Vega blocking lariats, throwing forearms, smashing her face into the turnbuckles! Mounted punches in the corner, big turning lariat... NOPE!
Whip reversed, Meteora off the top... SO CLOSE! Duck the Yoshi Tonic, IYO with a butterfly backbreaker, covner knees, Shotzi Blackheart appears fighting with Bayley over the trimmer on the stage and Bayley barely gets away! Zelina with a powerbomb...
Zelina Vega wins by pinfall with a Yoshi Tonic.
A hype reel for Bianca Belair follows.
Commentary hypes up the SummerSlam card.
Jey Uso makes his entrance and we go to break.
Jey Uso vs. Solo Sikoa
Jawing, circling, collar and elbow and Sikoa throws Uso aside! Jey with a go-behind, side headlock, to one knee, shot off, shoulder block! Solo with an overhead elbow, headbutt, choking Uso in the ropes! Drawing Jey up, off the ropes, big elbow and Jey rolls to the floor!
Sikoa follows after and smashes him into the announce desk, Uso recovers, suicide dive and we go to break!
Back from commercial, Sikoa in control with a trapezius claw, wearing his brother down. Uso to his feet, body blows, low bridge sends Solo flying, off the ropes but Sikoa cuts the dive off with a right hand! Back inside, Samoan Drop, fired up, off the ropes for another Samoan Drop!
Jey with punches from kneeling, Solo meets him with his own and sneds him sprawling into the corner! Fired up, Uso ducks the Ode to Rikishi and goes back to throwing punches! Whip reversed, float over the Samoan Drop, solebutt, big slicing right gets a lariat and Jey is down!
Rolling to the apron, Sikoa draws him up but gets hung over the top rope! Uso off the top with a crossbody... NOPE! Jey lines him up but runs into a spinning wheel kick! Sikoa hits Spinning Solo and calls for the spike but Uso has him scouted and ducks it! Superkick gets a superkick gets the spear!
Uso goes up top...
Jey Uso wins by pinfall with the diving splash.
Post-match, Solo lays Jey out and takes him to the floor, smashing him into the ringpost and grabbing a chair from the timekeeper’s area, but Jey superkicks him through the chair and wallops him with the steel a few times!
Jey stands tall on the announce desk.
That’s the show, folks.
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