WWE SmackDown Review – May 12, 2023
Quarter Final Match Of The World Heavyweight Title Tournament
AJ Styles vs. Edge vs. Rey Mysterio
AJ Styles & Rey Mysterio go after Edge then all 3 men then go back & forth rolling one another up before Edge fires off stomps on Styles. Mysterio catches Edge with an enziguri but Edge catapults Edge on Mysterio. Edge then plants Styles on top of Mysterio before hitting him with an Edge O Matic and whipping him into the corner.
He sends Mysterio crashing to the outside but Mysterio gets back in. Styles hits him with a tilt a whirl backbreaker then clotheslines Edge to the outside. Mysterio delivers a floating hurricanrana to Styles then delivers a kick to his head. Edge delivers a fallaway slam to Mysterio and sets up for a Spear on both Mysterio & Styles.
They catch Edge with double boots and Mysterio then executes a sunset flip. Styles & Mysterio remain standing in the ring and Styles looks to send Mysterio to the outside but Edge catches him and Styles delivers a baseball dropkick as we go to a break.
After the break Edge delivers a double Spear to Mysterio & Styles off the apron then gets Mysterio back in the ring and goes for a pin but Mysterio kicks out. Mysterio then delivers a step up enziguri to Styles but Styles manages to lock in the Calf Crusher.
Edge then locks in a Crossface on Mysterio but Styles catches Edge with a headbutt. Edge takes a few shots at Styles forcing him to relinquish the hold. Edge & Styles then go back and forth with right hands, but Mysterio delivers a hurricanrana to both men.
Mysterio sets up for the 619 but Edge & Styles both escape and take down Mysterio with a double dropkick then they then take down one another and once they get back to their feet, Edge sends Styles into the middle turnbuckle face first. He ascends to the top rope but Mysterio meets him up there.
Styles joins the fun and delivers a powerbomb to Mysterio then ascends to the middle rope and looks for a superplex. Mysterio pulls both men down before Styles sets up for a Phenomenal Forearm on Edge but Edge gets out of the way and lands in the ropes.
Mysterio sets up for the 619 on Edge but Edge catches Mysterio’s legs and locks in the Edgecator. Styles looks to break the hold but Edge locks one in on Styles instead. Styles escapes and then delivers Phenomenal Forearm to Edge for the win.
Winner: AJ Styles (Recommend)
We then head to a series of videos recapping the feud between The Bloodline & Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champions Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn.
Non Title Quarter Final Match Of The World Heavyweight Title Tournament
United States Champion Austin Theory vs. Bobby Lashley vs. Sheamus
Match starts off with Austin Theory hops out of the ring then Sheamus & Bobby Lashley follow him out there and beat him down. Sheamus tosses Theory back in the ring and Lashley delivers a shoulder to his midsection then follows it up with a swinging neckbreaker and Sheamus delivers a jumping knee to Theory. He then hits a jumping senton, and Lashley clotheslines him out of the ring.
Lashley & Sheamus are left in the ring and Lashley delivers a shoulder to Sheamus’ midsection and fires off back elbows. Sheamus delivers a bodyslam and knocks Lashley onto the apron then sets up for 10 Beats of the Bodhran but Theory sends Lashley crashing to the outside before Sheamus catches him with 10 Beats of the Bodhran & we go to a break.
After the break Lashley knocks Theory to the floor on the outside then gets him up on his shoulders and sends him colliding with the ring post. Lashley joins Sheamus in the ring and they stare one another down before going back & forth with right hands.
Lashley delivers a clothesline and charges at Sheamus in the corner but Sheamus manages to deliver the double boots and ascends to the top rope. He goes flying, but Lashley catches him and plants him with a back suplex then sets up for The Hurt Lock but Theory prevents him from cinching in the hold with a dropkick.
Lashley whips Theory into the corner but Theory gets his boot up and delivers a blockbuster then goes for a pin but Sheamus breaks the fall. The action spills to the outside, and Theory sends Lashley crashing into the ring steps. He gets back in the ring and looks to deliver a move to Sheamus but Sheamus hits him with an Irish Curse Backbreaker.
He then delivers a pair of back elbows and a pair of splashes in the corner, then gets Theory on his shoulders and ascends to the middle rope. He delivers White Noise and goes for a pin but Theory kicks out.
Sheamus sets up for Razor’s Edge but Theory rolls him up. Sheamus kicks out and delivers a kick to his face then calls for the Brogue Kick. Lashley catches him with a Spear before he can deliver it but Theory sends him into the ring post shoulder first and goes for the pin.
Sheamus kicks out and Theory looks for A Town Down but Lashley escapes and cinches in The Hurt Lock. Sheamus delivers a Brogue Kick to break the hold before Lashley dumps him to the outside and pins Theory for the win.
Winner: Bobby Lashley (He will face AJ Styles in the Semi Finals)
After the break we see Grayson Waller approaching Adam Pearce backstage. He says since he was drafted late to Smackdown during the Draft Pearce would be able to make it up to him by hosting the winner of the Semi Finals match later tonight on The Grayson Waller Effect. Pearce agrees to do so.
Before the match Baron Corbin grabs a mic and tells Cameron Grimes he’ll have him flat on his back in 2 minutes wishing that he was back in NXT.
Cameron Grimes vs. Baron Corbin
Cameron Grimes delivers the Cave In for the win.
Winner: Cameron Grimes
We then head to a video recapping what happened between Brock Lesnar & Cody Rhodes this past Monday on Raw.
Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns tells Knoxville to acknowledge him, then says greatness garners respect. He says regardless of reaction there is only one royal family. He says every man in the ring main evented both nights of WrestleMania 39. He says The Bloodline are the only ones who will main event The Showcase Of The Immortals and notes someone had to step up at Backlash in his absence. He says Solo Sikoa was the one to do so and while there was concern about whether he would sink or swim, he has managed to swim like a shark. He says Sikoa eliminates problems and says despite what Sikoa thinks Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champions Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn are no longer the problem. He says The Usos have become the problem.
Reigns walks over to The Usos and says they’d be wrong if they thought that they weren’t going to talk about their loss of the Undisputed Tag Team Titles at WrestleMania. He berates them for dedicating their title rematch to him and says he’s not even in a tag team. He says there are Hall Of Fame tag teams in their family and yet they dedicated the match to him. He says The Usos embarrassed and misrepresented himself, The Bloodline and their family. He tells them to apologize, and nothing should come out of their mouths unless it’s that.
Jimmy Uso starts to giggle and Reigns tells him that if he were him then he would apologize. He pushes Jimmy & Jimmy becomes angered. Reigns provokes him and asks him if he wants to do something about it. Jimmy looks to charge at him but Jey steps in between Reigns and Jimmy. He says they both apologize and asks for one more shot to bring back the Undisputed Tag Team Titles to The Bloodline. Reigns says the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Titles will come back to The Bloodline and calls for Paul Heyman to fill them in.
Heyman says Reigns has shown up with a game plan and has pulled every string to get an Undisputed WWE Tag Team Titles match for Reigns & Sikoa at Night Of Champions. The Usos become enraged and Reigns says he dedicates the victory to The Wild Samoans.
After the break we see a confrontation between an LWO & The Usos.
Women’s Tag Team Titles Match
Liv Morgan & Raquel Rodriguez (c) vs. Damage CTRL (Bayley & Dakota Kai)
Raquel Rodriguez whips Dakota Kai into the corner then she delivers a shoulder to her midsection then tags in Liv Morgan & Kai delivers a kick to Morgan’s head then Kai delivers a forearm to Morgan’s head then tags in Bayley & she delivers a clothesline to Morgan as we go to a break.
After the break Rodriguez tags in and delivers a series of clotheslines to Kai. She follows it up with a fallaway slam and a splash in the corner, then hits a 2nd fallaway slam and looks for the corkscrew elbow but Kai rolls out of the way and tags in Bayley. Rodriguez then delivers a double chokeslam to Damage CTRL.
Morgan tags in and dumps Kai to the outside then delivers a knee to Bayley’s face and sits her on the top rope. Kai makes the blind tag as Morgan & Bayley teeter on the top rope.
Bayley gets Morgan on her shoulders and Kai goes flying to level her. Bayley tags in and orders the referee to check on Kai allowing Iyo Sky to grab one of the Women’s Tag Team Titles but Rodriguez prevents her from using it and Bayley accidentally knocks her off the apron & Morgan rolls her up for the win.
Winners & Still Women’s Tag Team Champions: Liv Morgan & Raquel Rodriguez (STILL CHAMPIONS!!!!)
We head backstage and see Pretty Deadly approach Brawling Brutes with clipboards in hand. Sheamus tells Pretty Deadly which one of them is pretty and which one of them is deadly. Pretty Deadly then mock Butch & Ridge Holland.
Before the celebration can kick off Asuka’s music hits and she heads down to the ring. Asuka offers her hand to Raw Women’s Champion Bianca BelAir & she shakes it. Asuka then spits the blue mist in BelAir’s face before officials run down to check on BelAir.
After the break we see BelAir freaking out as she’s being checked on by medical officials.
Semi Final Match Of The World Heavyweight Title Tournament
AJ Styles vs. Bobby Lashley
AJ Styles delivers a series of chops but Bobby Lashley responds with a knee to his midsection then fires off several stomps and dumps Styles to the outside. He follows him then sends him into the apron spine first before getting him on his shoulders and sending him crashing into the ring post that takes us to a break.
After the break Styles delivers a kick to Lashley’s face and follows it up with a series of stomps to his knee. Lashley fires back with a back elbow, then rains down forearms and whips him into the corner. Styles manages to lock in the Calf Crusher but Lashley escapes. Styles then delivers a kick to the back of his knee and follows it up with a DDT.
He goes for a pin but Lashley kicks out. Styles then gets him up on his shoulders but is unable to do so and is caught with a flatliner by Lashley then he cinches in The Hurt Lock but Styles escapes.
The action spills to the outside where Styles delivers a kick to Lashley’s head. He tosses him back in the ring and sets up for the Phenomenal Forearm but Lashley gets him up on his shoulders before he can deliver it but Styles escapes before Lashley executes a running powerslam.
He sets up for a Spear but Styles slips out of the way and Lashley goes shoulder first into the ring post then delivers the Phenomenal Forearm for the win.
Winner: AJ Styles (He will face Seth Rollins in the Finals)
After the match The OC joins Styles to celebrate his victory to close out this week’s Smackdown.
Matches Of The Night
AJ Styles vs. Edge vs. Rey Mysterio- 8/10
Non Title Match – 7/10
Semi Final Match Of The World Heavyweight Title Match – 7/10
Next Week’s Smackdown
Tag Team Match
Latino World Order (Rey Mysterio & Santos Escobar) vs. The Usos (Jimmy & Jey)
Tag Team Match
Pretty Deadly (Kit Wilson & Elton Prince) vs. Brawling Brutes (Butch & Ridge Holland)
Finals
Seth Rollins vs. AJ Styles
Night Of Champions Card So Far (May 27th)
Finals Of The World Heavyweight Title Tournament
Seth Rollins vs. AJ Styles
Cody Rhodes vs. Brock Lesnar
Undisputed WWE Tag Team Titles Match
Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn (c) vs. The Bloodline (Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns & Solo Sikoa)
