WWE SmackDown Live REVIEW: Full Results, Grades & Highlights for 01/23/18

WWE Smackdown Live

INTRO: We’re live from Washington, D.C., which is no longer under a government shutdown. Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn open the show to commemorate the occasion.

OPENING SEGMENT: Owens called himself and Zayn the future of WWE, not a “parade of retirees” like you saw on Raw Monday night. Zayn pranced around as he and Owens proclaimed each other future WWE Co-Champions. Owens said the Yep movement was about staring in the face of tyranny and persevering, no matter the odds. He claimed that AJ Styles has no chance to beat them both at the Royal Rumble.

Styles walked onto the entrance ramp to tell his challengers, “Nope.” He said “Nope” to Zayn and Owens beating him, hurting him, or taking his title. Styles told Zayn and Owens they’re facing a phenomenal champion, and he’d do anything to keep the title from them. Zayn mocked Styles’ “macho, tough guy act” with some dorky moves that brought to mind the Bluth family’s chicken dances on Arrested Development. Owens said it made sense that Styles was so ignorant, as ignorance is the official language of Washington, D.C. No argument there. Acting extra cartoonish, the Canadians said that AJ’s mouth just got him in trouble again. Styles asked what they were talking about. Zayn and Owens shouted, “Footage!”

We watched video of Styles sitting mid-ring with Renee Young two weeks ago, telling her he’d fight both Zayn and Owens in the same night. Owens asked Styles if he’d weasel out of that promise, or fight them both in back-to-back singles matches tonight. As Styles pondered this decision, general manager Daniel Bryan joined the discussion. He praised Zayn and Owens before claiming he had the utmost faith in Styles … until AJ cut him off.

Styles told Bryan to stop advocating for him, openly wondering if he is “in bed with these two dirtbags.” If Zayn and Owens think they can beat him in back-to-back matches, we’d find out tonight. But he vowed to not only beat his foes, but to hurt them.

Backstage, Daniel Bryan and Shane McMahon conversed. Shane debated the wisdom of putting the WWE champion in two matches tonight five days before the Royal Rumble. Bryan asked if McMahon was questioning whether Styles could win those matches. Shane clarified that it wasn’t the ability of Styles that he questioned, then left.

Jey Uso vs. Chad Gable

Guessing the guy who didn’t get charged for DWI this month is getting the duke here. Gable went for a leg takedown, which Uso blocked to start the match. He blocked a second attempt, too, but Gable threw him down anyway and took control. Gable used another amateur wrestling takedown to ground Uso, who eventually made the ropes to break the hold. Gable applied an arm bar, then whipped Uso toward the opposite turnbuckles. Jey put on the brakes with a baseball slide, then got taken down again. Gable went for a back mount and hit Uso across the face with a forearm.

Uso made it to his feet and ran circularly until Gable lost his grip and tumbled to the outside. Gable dove back inside the ring, where he met a right hand and promptly spilled to the arena floor yet again. He held his mouth in pain as we went to commercial.

Gable executed a Northern Lights suplex for a two-count as we returned. He followed up by attempting a top-rope moonsault. Uso moved and Gable landed on his feet. Uso sidestepped a running Gable, who went through the ropes but caught himself on the apron. He then caught an Uso boot and spun his opponent around. Jey used that momentum to clock Gable with an enziguri, sending him crashing to the concrete on his face. Uso called for a high-flying move. He sprinted toward Gable, who jumped up to forearm him in the face from outside. Gable slid back into the ring to capitalize on that move, and got hip-tossed clean over the top rope.

While Shelton Benjamin and Jimmy Uso jawed at each other, Jey dove through the ropes to deck Gable. Great move that looked much better than those hands-first “patty cake” dives to the outside performed by most of his colleagues. Uso threw Gable into the ring and went up top for a splash. Gable moved, but Uso landed on his feet and delivered a Samoan Drop.

Uce called out to the crowd for his running hip-block. But Gable blocked the move and grabbed Uso from behind to go for his rolling German suplex. Uso countered that attempt and went for a superkick, which Gable ducked before landing his own somersault kick. He followed up quickly with the rolling German suplex, holding the move for the pinfall.

Result: Chad Gable pinned Jey Uso with the rolling German suplex pinning combination.

Grade: B-

Backstage, Renee Young interviewed Shinsuke Nakamura. She asked Nakamura how he thought he’d outlast 29 other wrestlers. He told her it was simple: everyone he saw would eat a knee to the face. Someone off-camera kept yelling, “Hype!” That person was Baron Corbin, who transitioned to yelling “Hype!” on-camera. Corbin told Nakamura that the Artist was all-show, no-go. He asked Nakamura what he’d ever done. Nakamura said it wasn’t what he had done, it’s what he would do at the Royal Rumble. He challenged Corbin to rumble tonight.

Tye Dillinger cut his own backstage video, declaring that he’s officially entering this year’s Rumble match.

Naomi vs. Liv Morgan

Sarah Logan and Ruby Riott accompanied their squad member at ringside. A tie-up led to a Morgan pie-face in the corner. That mockery led to Naomi double-booting Morgan and rapping her with a slide-and-slap. Naomi went for the cover, then for a jackknife pinning combination. Morgan bridged to her feet and lowered Naomi for a backslide, which came closer to a three-count than may have been intended. With their arms entwined, both competitors rose to their feet again. Naomi missed a clothesline when Morgan performed the Matrix counter. Morgan had her kick blocked, then ducked three consecutive roundhouse kicks. Naomi feigned a fourth kick, then blasted Morgan when she ducked her head.

Morgan crawled to the corner. She begged off, then grabbed Naomi and pulled her into the turnbuckle. Morgan springboarded off the middle rope, then drove her boots into Naomi’s back with a vicious double-stomp. Liv hooked both of Naomi’s legs and got a two-count. Morgan hooked Naomi’s arms around her own face for a submission maneuver. As she did, Natalya, Lana, and Carmella strode to ringside. Naomi twisted Morgan to the mat to break the hold, but Morgan came back quickly with a clothesline.

Naomi tried to create space by venturing out to the ring apron. When Morgan accosted her, Naomi cracked her opponent with a roundhouse kick. She used the top rope to slingshot herself over Morgan with a sunset flip for the win. Despite an anticlimactic finish, this was Morgan’s best match since her call-up to the main roster.

Result: Naomi pinned Liv Morgan with a sunset flip.

Grade: B-

After the match, Riott and Logan ambushed Naomi. Becky Lynch evened the odds until Natalya leveled her with a discus clothesline. The rest of the Rumble participants entered the ring and brawled, aiming to eject their competitors over the top rope. Lynch and Naomi cleared the ring. As Asuka did to her fellow faces on Raw, Lynch attacked her “friend” and threw Naomi over the top. Naomi landed on the apron and asked Lynch, “Really?” As she moved to reenter the ring, Charlotte Flair walked out. Flair exclaimed that she loved what she was seeing. The SmackDown women’s champion wished good luck to everyone, but “especially the winner”, as she held up her title belt.

Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Baron Corbin

Corbin’s entrance facts included the misstatement that he “won the Money in the Bank ladder match earlier this year”. Eh, we could all use a proofreader. Corey Graves pointed out that Corbin won the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal on his first night as a main roster wrestler. Corbin tied up Nakamura and powered him into the corner. He provided a relatively clean break and trash-talked Nakamura. The two men traded counters center-ring, with Nakamura cartwheeling and applying a hammerlock to Corbin. The Lone Wolf made it to the ropes, where Nakamura did his head-rest taunt, then exhorted Corbin to bring it.

An angry Corbin charged into a Nakamura knee. Shinsuke snap-mared Corbin and dropped a knee across his face. Nakamura stepped into Good Vibrations in the corner. Corbin bailed to ringside, where Nakamura peppered him with strikes. Corbin halted his offense by slamming Nakamura’s face into the ring apron. Nakamura used that bump to roll back into the ring and again issue a “Come ooon!” invitation to his opponent. A ticked-off Corbin just walked toward the locker room instead.

Not content with a cheap win, Nakamura left the ring and went after Corbin. The Lone Wolf stunned him with a shot to the throat, then rammed Nakamura into the unprotected part of the bottom turnbuckle. We went to break with Nakamura wishing he just took the countout victory.

Corbin was still beating up Nakamura when we returned. He grounded Nakamura with a submission hold that Nakamura broke by stomping Corbin’s foot and punching him in the midsection. Nakamura broke through with a knee to the gut and a hard forearm to Corbin’s skull. He knocked Corbin down with a flying boot off the ropes. Yelling out, Nakamura laced into Corbin with big kicks. When Corbin caught Nakamura’s left leg on his fourth kick attempt, Shinsuke simply kicked him with his right leg.

With Corbin reeling in the corner, Nakamura drove a running knee into his chest. He lifted Corbin horizontally onto the top rope for a knee lift, getting a two-count. Nakamura attempted a reverse exploder, which definitely wasn’t happening. Corbin elbowed his way out of that predicament and went for a suplex. Nakamura blocked that move and executed a facebuster. He went for the Kinshasa, but Corbin instead corralled Nakamura for the Deep Six, getting a near-fall.

With both men hurt, Nakamura booted Corbin in the corner. Nakamura went to the middle turnbuckle and dove toward Corbin, who dodged the move by dipping under the bottom rope and running around the turnbuckle back into the ring. He clotheslined Nakamura nearly inside-out for another near-fall. Corbin picked up Nakamura for the End of Days. Nakamura flipped out of the move while clutching onto Corbin’s right arm, snaring him in a cross-armbreaker.

Unable to make the ropes, Corbin succeeding in turning his body towards Shinsuke and forcing Nakamura’s shoulders down for a two-count. With the submission hold broken, Corbin ducked a roundhouse kick but not the follow-up wheel kick. Nakamura lined up a Kinshasa, then ran directly into a RKO outta nowhere. Corbin tried to clothesline Orton after the match. Orton ducked and planted him with an RKO in plain sight.

Result: Shinsuke Nakamura defeated Baron Corbin via disqualification after Randy Orton interfered.

Grade: B

The announce team discussed the Raw 25 show as the production crew showed news clips covering the event.

The New Day announced that they were entering the Royal Rumble match. Roode followed them to the ring, playing to the D.C. crowd and announcing his goal of becoming the greatest U.S. champion ever.

U.S. Champion Bobby Roode and The New Day vs. Jinder Mahal and Rusev Day

We joined this match in-progress. Big E gripped Kofi Kingston in a big bear hug. Kingston headbutted his way free, but Rusev halted his offense with a knee and rammed Kofi with a running shoulder-block against the turnbuckles. He missed his second attempt at that move, and Kofi neutralized him with a Chris Jericho-style running bulldog. Bobby Roode and Aiden English tagged in, with Roode then tagging English with three clotheslines. Roode executed a neckbreaker, then cut off an interfering Jinder Mahal, knocking the Maharaja to the floor.

Roode booted English in the heel corner and scored with a blockbuster off the middle rope. He motioned for the Glorious DDT, then forwent that move to spinebuster an interfering Mahal. As the referee ushered out Mahal, Rusev bashed Roode with a roundhouse kick. English quickly schoolboyed Roode for a near-fall. Kingston took out Rusev with a springboard top-rope chop. With the Bulgarian Brute recovering outside the ring, Kingston leapt over the top rope to crush Rusev and Mahal with a trust fall.

Back inside the ring, Xavier Woods made the blind tag when English attempted an O’Connor Roll on Roode. Woods landed an enziguri kick on English, who stumbled into a Roode spinebuster. Woods finished the match with his top-rope-walk elbow drop for the win.

Result: Bobby Roode and The New Day beat Jinder Mahal and Rusev Day when Xavier Woods pinned Aiden English following a top-rope-walk elbow drop.

Grade: C

Styles was introduced first for his back-to-back matches. Owens and Zayn then made their joint entrance. McMahon interrupted them before they made it to ringside. He announced that he’d fire either Owens or Zayn if one of them got involved with the other man’s match.

WWE Champion AJ Styles vs. Kevin Owens (non-title)

Styles ducked an Owens right and landed his own punches. Owens tried to fire back, but ran directly into a Styles dropkick. AJ resumed pummeling Owens in the corner. He Irish-whipped Owens into the turnbuckle, but missed a corner splash. Owens took advantage with a clothesline. He missed with a cannonball, however, and appeared to hurt his knee on impact. AJ targeted the knee with a kick, then rolled Owens into the Calf Crusher for the tap-out. That was remarkably fast.

Result: AJ Styles tapped out Kevin Owens with the Calf Crusher.

Grade: D+

Styles refused to break the hold after the bell rang. The referee finally pulled him off Owens, leaving AJ open for Zayn’s assault. Sami pelted a prone Styles with right hands. Owens sprawled to ringside, where Zayn checked his condition. He rolled back into the ring and pounded Styles with right hands in the corner. The referee pushed Zayn back as Owens tried vainly to limp to the back. After looking back at Owens, Zayn again attacked Styles, stomping him down in the adjacent corner. He pulled Styles to ringside by his hair, launching him wildly into the steel stairs. The referee tried to stop Zayn as we went to break.

WWE Champion AJ Styles vs. Sami Zayn (non-title)

The official finally started this match as we returned. Zayn immediately resumed beating on Styles with right hands. He stuck a boot in Styles’ throat, then clobbered him with a crossface forearm. An intense Zayn kept raining rights on Styles. He Irish-whipped Styles gut-first into the top turnbuckle, getting a one-count. Zayn chopped Styles as a gurney was brought to ringside for Owens. He whipped Styles into the ropes for a clothesline, this time gaining a two-count.

Zayn drove his knee into Styles’ spine as he applied a chinlock. Styles escaped and lambasted Zayn with a flurry of strikes. AJ scored with a running forearm to a seated Zayn, then hit a jumping clothesline against the turnbuckles. He threw Zayn over the top rope to the floor, where Sami landed next to Owens. AJ smashed Zayn with a Phenomenal Forearm, leaping from the ring to the arena floor. He tossed Zayn into the ring. Instead of pursuing his foe, Styles shot a sideways glance at the injured Owens and changed plans. He victimized Owens with a running kick, then continued to tear into his foe with right hands. Zayn used the distraction to wallop Styles with a running clothesline on the concrete. We took our final break.

Zayn maintained the advantage by methodically striking Styles when we returned. Sami went to a reverse-chinlock, which Styles broke with rights and lefts to the stomach. Zayn elbowed Styles in the mush and went to the middle rope. AJ caught him with a punch to the midsection, then delivered a hurricanrana off the turnbuckle. Both competitors were slow to rise. They traded strikes, with Zayn getting the better of the exchange. When he bounded off the ropes, however, Zayn got caught in a fireman’s carry, which Styles turned into ushigoroshi for a two-count.

Styles signaled for the Styles Clash. Zayn dropped to a knee to counter the hold, then flipped forward onto his feet to elude Styles again. Zayn grabbed Styles’ hand and vaulted to the top rope, springing off with a tornado DDT. Ready to end the match, Zayn sprinted toward Styles with a Helluva Kick in mind. Styles met him with his own boot, then tried to moonsault onto his opponent. When Zayn moved, Styles landed on his feet and dropped Zayn with a Pele kick for a near-fall.

With both men nearly spent, Zayn countered Styles’ go-behind and slammed him with a Michinoku Driver for a two-count. Owens lounged on the gurney outside the ring. Zayn staggered to the corner and slapped Styles, then perched him on the top turnbuckle. Styles slipped out and tripped up Zayn, sending Sami face-first into the turnbuckle. He landed a sidekick and went for the Styles Clash. Zayn squirmed free and sought sanctuary outside the ring. AJ attempted another Phenomenal Forearm to the floor. When Zayn tried to sidestep the maneuver, Styles caught himself on the apron and downed Zayn with a sliding knee to the head.

After tossing Zayn into the ring, Styles again turned his attention to Owens, tipping over KO’s gurney. Owens writhed in pain while clutching his left knee. Styles reentered the ring, only to receive a Helluva Kick from a recovered Zayn. As Styles wobbled out of the corner, Sami delivered a Blue Thunder Bomb for the win.

Result: Sami Zayn pinned AJ Styles with a Blue Thunder Bomb.

Grade: A-

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