Rusev defeated Big E
Both men take shots at one another. Rusev kicks E into the corner and knocks him down with a massive punch. Big E catches a running splash and hits him with a running elbow. He explodes with a belly to belly suplex and then misses a big splash. Rusev hits a massive kick to his face. Rusev locks in the Accolade for the win.
It was hard hitting, fast and effective. Big E hit a few moves, but it was about the 4 moves of Rusev that told the story. I would have liked to see the match a little longer, but I understand the quick victory. Why not have Swagger come out and try to interfere? Why wouldn’t you have the two guys facing each other in less than two weeks ON THE SAME SCREEN?
Dean Ambrose defeated Randy Orton via Disqualification
First off, Ambrose chooses a Lumberjack Match for his match with Seth Rollins. AWFUL IDEA. Lumberjack matches are lame, boring and ruin the pacing of what could have been the best wrestling match of the night. I would have had a street fight or something where both men can really tap into their extreme side. Why would they not even put the briefcase on the line? Does WWE and Ambrose realize Lumberjacks are going to attack both of them? It is not like it will benefit any guy, unless Triple H is in charge of who the Lumberjacks actually are. That could be a little more interesting and trying to screw over Ambrose again.
Ambrose and Orton start off hot. Dean Ambrose hits a suplex, but Orton counters with punches and kicks to his body on the mat. Randy Orton focuses on the injured shoulder throughout the match, which is very smart and a great angle in this match. Ambrose goes for a suicide dive but Orton counters it and hits him in between the ropes. Orton throws Dean into the steel steps.Randy Orton sets him up for a hangman’s DDT but Ambrose backdrops him on the floor and hits a suicide dive into the barricade. Seth Rollins runs in and tries to interfere but Ambrose knocks him out of the way, then Ambrose hits Dirty Deeds and covers Orton but Rollins breaks it up. Both men attack Ambrose and leave him laying helpless.
Positives of Smackdown:
1. Ziggler vs. Rollins
2. Ambrose vs. Orton with Ambrose looking vulnerable for once. It will help his feud with Rollins head to another level in time. Ambrose, funny and insane, needs to be beaten down and defenseless.
Negatives of Smackdown:
1. No Roman Reigns, John Cena, Bray Wyatt, Chris Jericho (only a quick backstage segment)
2. Wasted segments with meaningless matches do nothing to sell SummerSlam, which is less than two weeks away.
3. Why wasn’t AJ Lee shown in Paige’s match?
4. Why wasn’t Swagger or Zeb shown in some facet since Rusev and Lana were in a match? Same goes with The Miz and Dolph Ziggler. Smackdown had very little importance in any way.
5. Do we still have tag team champions?
@JoshIsenberg4 on Twitter. Reaction, over.
