Friday Night Smackdown – Nov 25th 2022: Results & Review
Welcome to this review of this past Friday’s episode of Friday Night Smackdown, right here on Nerdly. Let’s see what went down on the show!
Match #1: Smackdown World Cup Semifinal Match – Santos Escobar def. Butch
The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
When Sheamus and Ridge Holland charged backstage to help their WarGames partners Drew McIntyre and Kevin Owens in a brawl with The Bloodline, Santos Escobar used Legado del Fantasma interference to score the victory over Butch with the Phantom Driver. The win moved Escobar to the finals of the SmackDown World Cup Tournament. The winner of the tournament will secure an Intercontinental Title Match.
My Score: 2.5 out of 5
Match #2: The Viking Raiders def. Hit Row
The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
With the stunning Valhalla looking on, Erik & Ivar carried out a successful Raid when they overcame Top Dolla & Ashante “Thee” Adonis with Ragnarök.
My Score: 1.5 out of 5
Match #3: SmackDown World Cup Semifinal Match – Ricochet def. Braun Strowman
The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
Thanks to a distraction from Imperium, Ricochet rolled up Braun Strowman to score a high-stakes win against all odds. The victory moves The One and Only to the finals of the SmackDown World Cup Tournament against Santos Escobar. In the aftermath, Imperium launched a 3-on-1 attack against The Monster of All Monsters. Seeing this, The One and Only returned to the ring to join the fight and seemingly earned Strowman’s respect in the process.
My Score: 2 out of 5
Match #4: Ronda Rousey & Shayna Baszler def. Raquel Rodriguez & Shotzi
The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
After Ronda Rousey & Shayna Baszler injured her in a brutal attack backstage, Raquel Rodriguez powered through the pain to help Shotzi in their tag team matchup. Despite the heroics, however, Rousey locked Rodriguez in the Armbar and further damaged her injured limb. It remains to be seen what effect this will have on Shotzi in her SmackDown Women’s Title Match on Saturday against The Baddest Woman on the Planet.
My Score: 1.5 out of 5
Match #5: WarGames Advantage Match – Drew McIntyre & Sheamus def. The Usos
The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
Drew McIntyre dove over the top rope and took out everybody in sight. Sami Zayn picked up the Tag Team Title in an attempt to attack Sheamus with it and give The Bloodline the advantage at WarGames. Before he could, Kevin Owen intervened and threw The Honorary Uce into the ring. When the official saw this, he ejected The Master Strategist from ringside. As the referee was dealing with Sami, KO climbed in and hit Jey Uso with a Stunner. This paved the way for The Celtic Warrior to hit the Brogue Kick for the huge victory. With the win, McIntyre and Sheamus gained the advantage over The Bloodline at Survivor Series WarGames on Saturday.
My Score: 3.5 out of 5
News of the Night:
- Becky Lynch made her return and joined Team Bianca for WarGames.
Final Verdict: 2.5/5
A decidedly average episode of Smackdown, one that – apart from the promos and the main event – didn’t really feel like much of a go-home show for Survivor Series, or even a real build to it either! Some of the matches were, frankly, terrible and felt almost like “placeholders” for the show whilst we wait for the PPV to reset the WWE universe. Overall this was an eminently skippable episode of Smackdown.
