Smackdown Articles - Page 8

When Liv Morgan declared her desire to wrestle Ronda Rousey in an Extreme Rules match at WWE’s conveniently named “Premium Live Event,” Extreme Rules, it was always going to be an uphill battle to retain her belt. Sure, Morgan has proven her hardcore credential somewhat in the leadup to the match, as her big-time spot […]

After being away from television for a few weeks due to ending up on the wrong side of a “Loser Leaves Town” match against the Tony D’Angelo Family on NXT, Legado del Fantasma returned to the WWE Universe in a big way when the trio of Santos Escobar, Cruz Del Toro, and Joaquin Wilde attacked […]

After enjoying a shared hatred for the Damage CTRL trio of Bayley, Dakota Kai, and IYO SKY, Raquel Rodriquez and Shotzi don’t-call-her-Blackheart finally shared the ring in a right proper match versus Xia Li and Sonya DeVille, Meghan Morant of SmackDown and the SmackDown LowDown asked the duo if they aimed to make a statement […]

After officially breaking through the cracks of his previous facade to reveal the leather jackets and Dr. Dre-style “West Coast Whistle” underneath, Max Dupri officially left Max Dupri in the past to give fans what they want: LA Knight, yeah. Taking part in a surprise segment that saw the “Namer of Dummies” lay out the […]

WWE’s title picture is in kind of a weird spot right now. As fans of the company already know, both of the promotion’s main roster brands, RAW and SmackDown, have a main title, an “undercard” title, and a tag team title, too, for good measure. Factor in the 24/7 Title, which has thankfully been placed […]

After months of anticipation, Karrion Kross and Drew McIntyre are finally scheduled to face off, in a strap match no less, within the WWE Universe. Finally, the timing will be right to see who the next-biggest star on SmackDown is behind Roman Reigns and who is the rightful challenger for the “Head of the Table’s” […]

Liv Morgan is WWE’s SmackDown Women’s Champion. Though she didn’t win the belt under the most prestigious of circumstances, as she opted to cash the Women’s Money in the Bank briefcase in on Ronda Rousey after her match with Natalya at Money in the Bank the “Premium Live Event” instead of surviving an all-out war […]

After fully embracing his role in the Maximum Male Models following the WWE exit of Vince McMahon, Maxi Dupri has seemingly quit his titular group due to the team’s lack of ambition and in-ring success. … yes, you read that correctly; after watching his sister, Maxxine Dupri, encourage her wards, ma.ce and man.soor, to go […]

WWE has a bit of a pest problem. Mind you, they don’t have ants, gnats, or even snakes; WWE has a bad case of white rabbits, little, pesky white rabbits who keep running across the screen and getting into mischief. Coming in the form of folks holding signs with QR codes attached, white rabbits have […]

A lot has changed about Shotzi Blackheart since she made the jump from NXT to SmackDown within the WWE Universe. For one thing, Shotzi is a Blackheart no more, as Vince McMahon opted to streamline her name like he had to oh so many other performers before. Then, in an even crueler twist of fate, […]

For a time, Ricochet was one of the best-kept secrets in WWE. While he would appear on television first on RAW and then on SmackDown following his elevation from NXT, Ricochet was a much more impressive feature of the house show circuit, where the well-traveled veteran performer would routinely put on incredible matches against the […]

For the second time in as many shows, Shotzi came to the aid of her fellow former NXT star Raquel Rodriquez while she attempted to best a member of WWE’s Damage CTRL, in a match that would routinely turn into a 3-on-1 affair. But why? Is Shotzi looking to join forces with Rodriquez? Could a […]

Since debuting an attempted viral marketing campaign to hint at something happening at 9:23 PM on the 9.23 edition of SmackDown, the WWE Universe has been on overdrive trying to figure out who – or what – the White Rabbit could be. Is it a reference to Karrion Kross, as he wrestled under the name […]

For weeks, Sami Zayn has been the WWE’s Honorary Uce, but that title, ironically enough, has been an honorary one. That’s right, though Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Jimmy Uso, Solo Sikoa, and even “The Wiseman” Paul Heyman have acknowledged Zayn’s stop as a reliable ally to The Bloodline, Roman Reigns has never actually acknowledged the […]

As rumors continue to swell that WWE could bring back even more of their formers stars following the returns of Johnny Gargano, Dakota Kai, Hit Row, Braun Strowman, and many, many others, one performer has consistently ranked number one on the majority of fans’ wish lists: Bray Wyatt. That’s right, despite being linked to seemingly […]

Karrion Kross never wanted to leave WWE. He left Impact on bad terms to pursue a chance to wrestle for the promotion, wrestled exactly one match in MLW before being offered his return contract, and fully embraced everything that comes with being a WWE superstar, from moving to Orlando to join NXT to forgo his […]

The Maximum Male Models are on a bit of a losing streak in WWE, having dropped both of their matches since making their on-screen debut as members of the SmackDown brand. The not-so-dynamic duo of ma.ce and man.soor have struggled against Hit Row in tag team action, performed equally poorly in a losing effort to […]

Once upon a time, when an NXT star would jump to the main roster, on even RAW or SmackDown, it was far from a guarantee that the WWE Universe would welcome their addition. No, not because they were too small, or because fans wouldn’t “believe them” as a professional wrestler as Vince McMahon would often […]

When news broke that Pat McAfee was going to be away from the WWE Universe for the entirety of the 2022 college football season to focus on his new gig with ESPN’s College GameDay, it left a massive hole at the SmackDown commentary desk. Sure, some dislike McAfee for his brashness or for his general […]

Pat McAfee has been a breath of fresh air since initially stepping his toe into the WWE Universe back in 2018. From his memorable run as a pre-show commentator for NXT TakeOvers, to his feud with Adam Cole that saw the ex-Indianapolis Colts punter take the ring for a surprisingly good match at WWE NXT […]

After being bullied up on by the heelish Shayna Baszler the for the better part of a month, Liv Morgan came into WWE’s Clash at the Castle with everything to lose and nothing but legacy points to gain. Facing off against a submission specialist who continued the work Ronda Rousey started at SummerSlam on her […]

Since their match on the first Smackdown of the month of August, Ricochet and Happy Corbin have wrestled on five occasions, four in singles competition and once in the Intercontinental Title Number One Contendership Fatal Five Way. Of those matches, Ricochet has won four of them, and Corbin has won none, with his efforts becoming […]

While Paul “Triple H” Levesque’s infinity gauntlet isn’t quite full yet, as Top Dolla of Hit Row suggests he still needs to find a mind stone, it’s undeniable that the WWE Universe is a whole lot fuller today than it was a week before SummerSlam. There have been the returns of Dakota Kai and IYO […]

With Toxic Attraction officially out of the tournament to decide the next Women’s Tag Team Champion due to an injury suffered in the ring by Gigi Dolin, WWE had to get creative to keep the show on track and the final match on schedule. But what would they do? Toxic Attraction were already called up […]

There was a time when WWE thought that Karrion Kross and his partner/valet/wife Scarlett were an expense too excessive to afford. Deemed on par with cutting out trips to the all-you-can-eat sushi bar the week rent is due, Nick Khan and company opted to release the duo from their contracts due to “budget cuts” in […]

Max Durpi is back in WWE after an alarmingly short absence, and his Maximum Male Models are thriving. They’ve gotten a sponsorship from PureLife Water that resulted in a commercial appearance during SummerSlam, had big-time photoshoots, and seemingly find themselves in a WWE Tag Team Division that is being taken seriously for the first time […]

Shawn Michaels is having a very good week in the WWE Universe. He was promoted to Vice President of Talent Development Creative, watched NXT put up a huge viewership number for their Heatwave television special, and has watched his post-in-ring profile get elevated considerably as a result. And yet, not one week into his new […]

As, well, basically every fan of professional wrestling surely knows, Friday nights at 8 pm is when WWE’s SmackDown airs on FOX… except during football season, which is when the process of preemption starts to rear their ugly heads and fans suddenly have to scramble for when and where to watch their favorite show. So […]

In the modern professional wrestling world, everyone sort of knows everyone. Sure, some performers are lifers in WWE, AEW, NJPW, or elsewhere, but there isn’t a performer on a major promotion who doesn’t know someone who is either signed to another company or wrestled for another company before their current landing spot. Because of this […]

When the WWE Universe said goodbye to Hit Row, it felt like a mistake. Initially called up to the main roster in October of 2021 as part of the WWE Draft after a very successful run in NXT capped off with a win by the group’s de facto leader, Isaiah “Swerve” Scott, winning the North […]

After being absent from television for the entire summer, the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship is officially back, and business is picking up for the brand-less belts. Initially secured at WrestleMania 38 by the dynamic duo of Sasha Banks and Naomi, the belts were officially vacated back in May, when, after the duo walked out […]

When Paul “Triple H” Levesque tweeted out “… and we’re just getting started” after the surprising returns/re-debuts of Bayley, Dakota Kai, and Io Shirai-turned-Iyo Sky, it felt like a pretty darn big deal to the WWE Universe. After years of the talent pipeline from the indies to The Fed going decidedly one way, with dozens […]

After tapping out during the penultimate match on WWE’s SummerSlam in the middle of a pin, Liv Morgan’s status as the SmackDown Women’s Champion has been one of the more contested topics across the WWE Universe. To some, Morgan won the match fair and square, as Ronda Rousey was pinned legally during her armbar attempt, […]

There was a time when it seemed like Sasha Banks and Naomi would never, ever, ever, ever, ever return to the WWE. They disliked the immediate plans to push the duo as singles performers in the lead-up to Money in the Bank, took issue with the creative direction of the company’s women’s tag team division – […]

Calling WWE‘s Michael Cole divisive might just be generous. Since taking over for Jim Ross back in 2008 as the lead voice of RAW and eventually becoming the lead commentator of WWE regardless of brand, fans have come to despise more than a few of Cole’s mannerisms, his lack of charisma, and for generally serving […]

Did you happen to notice that WWE’s Friday night edition of SmackDown looked sort of… different? Not worse necessarily; it was actually quite good if we’re being honest, just… different? Well, there’s a reason for that: There was a lot more wrestling on the show (read more about that here). Yes, you didn’t just imagine […]

It’s officially been a week since Vince McMahon retired from the WWE, and frankly, not much has changed. Sure, Madusa returned to NXT to help out Roxanne Perez, Brock Lesnar maybe almost quit, and Goldberg was reportedly called to almost take his place, but since then, other than the absence of the 24/7 Championship and […]

LA Knight is one of the most talented talkers in the WWE Universe. Though he’s never pulled an Eddie Kingston and cut a compelling promo on a cookie – at least not on camera – he got himself over in no time on NXT with his LA Knight persona, even if it’s a sort of […]

On an appearance on the Sports Illustrated Media podcast, Dave Meltzer of The Wrestling Observer gave the following response to a question about whether the retirement of Vince McMahon could inspire the WWE to bring back disgruntled Women’s Tag Team Champions Sasha Banks and Naomi, as dictated by Ian Carey. “It’s kind of up in […]