Friday Night Smackdown – Sept 1st 2023: 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 this week’s episode!
Match #1: Grayson Waller & Austin Theory def. Rey Mysterio & Santos Escobar
The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
United States Champion Rey Mysterio and Santos Escobar came up just short of a tag team win as Grayson Waller and Austin Theory snuck out of Smackdown with major momentum. Waller and Theory looked like a well-oiled machine early on, but that faded after an inadvertent shot from Waller knocked Theory to the outside. Mysterio found himself in the crosshairs of a cheap shot from his Payback opponent Theory, but Escobar sacrificed himself and absorbed the blow, only for Waller to sneak in and hit his Rolling Stunner to pick up the win.
My Score: 2.5 out of 5
Match #2: Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn def. The LWO
The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
The Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champions Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn prove they’re ready for their matchup at Payback against The Judgment Day as they soundly defeated Joaquin Wilde and Cruz Del Toro of the LWO. Owens and Zayn looked as good as ever as their tandem offense stopped Wilde and Del Toro in their tracks and the champions punctuated the victory with a Pop Up Powerbomb and a Helluva Kick.
My Score: 1.5 out of 5
Match #3: Shotzi def. Bayley
The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
The energetic Shotzi picked up one of the biggest victories in her WWE career as she knocked off Bayley with some help from Charlotte Flair. Shotzi arrived in style with her TCB tank and proceeded to pound on Bayley, much to the delight of the WWE Universe. After Damage CTRL tried to interfere, The Queen made her way to ringside and neutralized WWE Women’s Champion IYO SKY and even decked Bayley, allowing Shotzi to hit a suplex/DDT combo to earn the victory.
My Score: 1.5 out of 5
Match #4: Solo Sikoa def. AJ Styles
The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
In the main event of SmackDown, Solo Sikoa defeated AJ Styles but not without some help from his brother, Jimmy Uso. Sikoa dominated the early parts of the matchup, tossing Styles around the ring and even sending him ribs-first into the steel ring post and smashing his face onto the announce table. “The Wise Man” Paul Heyman even made his way down to ringside, but it turned out to be Jimmy Uso that sprang into action, knocking Styles off the top rope, and allowing Sikoa to hit the Samoan Spike for the win.
My Score: 3 out of 5
Final Verdict: 2.5/5
I’ve said it about WWE shows before and I’ll say it again, this is NOT how you do a go-home show. Weak storytelling, and far too many promos to try and get the current crop of stories over in time for the blow-offs at Payback the next night. It was only really the main event that had any impact, even Cena’s over-long “return to WWE” promo fell flat for me – feeling more like he was begging the fans to accept him back into the fold more than anything else.
