WWE Friday Night SmackDown Results
August 14, 2020
Orlando, Florida (WWE Performance Center)
Commentary: Michael Cole and Corey Graves
Results by: Roy Nemer of Wrestleview.com
WWE SmackDown kicks off with clips of the lights going out and the technical difficulties which occurred the past few weeks. It cuts to last week’s show where a number of people dressed in black attacked the Performance Center.
We cut to the Performance Center where Corey Graves and Michael Cole mention that the WWE have taken precautions this week and they have hired extra security.
Big E vs. John Morrison
During their respective entrances, each superstar had cut a previously recorded promo backstage.
Just as the bell is about to ring, the lights flicker on and off as a female dressed in black enters the ring. The ring is surrounded by several of them as Michael Cole and Corey Graves are chased to the back. Big E and Morrison try fighting them off but there appears to be about 12 of them all dressed in black.
They beat up on Big E and Morrison and leave the ring. Out comes Miz to check on Morrison.
-Commercial Break-
Big E and Morisson are backstage with several WWE superstars. Miz says he was on the phone with Maryse and he should have been there. Miz points the finger to Big E saying it wouldn’t have happened had he not sent out the tweet. In comes King Corbin who says they are under attack and need leadership. He says he is the king as Big E tells him to shut up. He says this is their house and he may be bruised but he’s not beaten. He is not defeated. He will go back out in that ring and he will beat John Morrison and he will show Retribution his power. Now is the time to stand and fight. The superstars rally around him.
In comes Sheamus who says what a speech! He has never heard a desperate cry for help sound so inspirational. He says no Kofi, no Woods, Big E is alone and vulnerable and scared. And that’s why Retribution attacked him in the first place. When he is in there beating up on Shorty G like he owes him money, they won’t dare show their faces because they know he’s not afraid of them. Big E says if Sheamus had any sense, he would realize he’s not alone.
Bayley and Sasha Banks are in the ring as more security surrounds the ring and barricade. Bayley says it’s time to get the show on the road. And it’s the trible brand battle royal. Because they know better than to interrupt them. Sasha says she has to face Asuka at Summerslam just like they found out that they will have to defend their WWE tag team titles at Payback. But tonight is about Bayley.
The fans boo them as Bayley says they suck. She says Stephanie McMahon tried to rain on their parade but when you hold all the gold, not even a McMahon can hold them down. And as for the lucky idiot who will get to face her at Summerslam, we are about to find out. And after they have taken everyone’s job and done better than them as they tell Cole and Graves that they suck. They say they will take up ring announcing as they kick Craig out.
They introduce The IIconics to the ring. Up next is Tegan Nox. After that is Shotzi Blackheart. Lacey Evans is up next for the match. Out comes Asuka who runs down to the ring and goes after Bayley and Sasha taking them both out. The rest of the female competitors come down to the ring.
-Commercial Break-
Triple Brand Battle Royal to determine Bayley’s SummerSlam challenger
The bell rings and we are under way. Ruby Riot is eliminated. The IIconics are eliminated. Liv Morgan is eliminated. The two teams fight on the outside of the ring.
Nikki Cross and Dana Brooke fight on the outside of the ring as Nikki gets back in. Nikki Cross is eliminated by Tamina.
Tamina is eliminated by Bianca Belair.
Naomi eliminated by Lacey Evans.
Lacey Evans eliminated by Blackheart.
Blackheart is eliminated by Lacey Evans.
Bianca Belair is eliminated.
Shayna Baszler gets Knox over the top rope as Dana Brooke eliminated Knox.
Dana Brooke is still in it as she gets back in the ring. Dana Brooke is eliminated.
Final two are shayna and Asuka and Asuka goes over the top rope but lands on the ring apron. Bayla tries to eliminate Asuka but Asuka kicks her away. Asuka kicks Sasha and Bayley down. Shayna knocks Asuka down but Asuka lands on Sasha and Bayley and is not eliminated.
Asuka gets back on the ring apron and eliminates Shayna.
Winner: Number 1 contender for the SmackDown Women’s championship, Asuka
-Commercial Break-
Bayley and Sasha are backstage arguing about Asuka winning. Bayley says her title isn’t on the line Monday and at SummerSlam she will have something important to fight for. Sasha looks at her slightly confused. In comes Asuka who attacks Bayley from behind and beats them both up as WWE officials break it up.
Mandy says she has heard it her entire life. She’s just a model, she’s just a pretty face and that hurts. Mandy tells Sonya the way she got into the WWE didn’t fall into her lap. Sonya should know how hard she has worked. Sonya has reminded her that she is more than just a pretty face. Mandy challenges Sonya to a Hair vs. Hair match at Summerslam. She tells Sonya it will get ugly.
Security are standing backstage and in comes Sheamus. He tells them to call it a day and leave as Retribution won’t show up on his watch.
-Commercial Break-
Nikki Cross is backstage and she runs to Alexa Bliss and hugs her. She apologizes for pushing her down a few weeks ago. Bliss says she is fine and not to worry about her. Nikki mentions The Fiend but Alexa says she will stay where she’s at because she needs to get some answers from Braun.
Sheamus vs. Shorty G
The bell rings and we are under way. Gables goes right after Sheamus but Sheamus with back elbows. He throws Gable onto the ring apron and beats up on Gable as Gable falls to the outside. Sheamus throws Gable back in.
Sheamus with an uppercut as he sends Gable to the ropes but a drop kick onto the knee by Gable. He works on the left leg of Sheamus and he gets a body scissors on Sheamus and right and left hands by Gable. Shorty G runs to the ropes but Sheamus knocks him down. Irish Curse back breaker by Sheamus as he continues to beat up on Gable.
Shorty G tries to fight back and lands an overhead kick. Gable climbs the top rope and hits him with a drop kick. He goes for the cover but Sheamus kicks out. Gable gets the ankle lock on Sheamus but Sheamus pushes him away. Gable with the jackknife pin but Sheamus kicks out. The White Noise by Sheamus onto Gable and the Brogue Kick. He goes for the cover and gets the pin.
Winner: Sheamus
-Commercial Break-
AJ Styles is in the ring with former Impact star Christopher Joseph Parks (Abyss). There’s also a white board which is covered. AJ says there’s a lot going on and no one cares about these hooligans. He asks who is going to face the phenomenal AJ Styles for the Intercontinental championship? It shouldn’t matter but he is a fighting champion. He beat Riddle, Gulak, Metalik. He says he wants to enjoy being the champion. He wants to sit at home, going on his Twitch stream and enjoy his moment. But so many people like to throw out statistics.
Styles says what do you know about statistics? And then it dawned on him. That when he watches baseball, he is looking at batting average. Football, at 40s. He is looking at statistics. Then he realized that he is a handsome stud of a nerd himself because he cares about statistics. It’s as easy as this. If you’re going to go by statistics, he came up with the Phenomnenal Intercontinental Statistical System. PISS.
AJ calls it a working progress. It doesn’t mean he will just hand out… He doesn’t hand out anything. You will have to earn it on merit alone. And going on statistics, let’s see who is number one. He reveals the white board and it says number one: AJ Styles.
Styles says let’s see who is on the board. He reveals the rest of the board and it’s empty. He says no one has earned the right to be in the ring with the Pheonimal AJ Styles. No one earned it. But the truth is if you work hard, real hard, really, really, really hard, then one day you can make it on the board and you could face AJ Styles.
Jeff Hardy’s music hits and out comes Jeff. Hardy says he has a ton of respect for Styles but he didn’t get his fair chance during the tournament. he was robbed on the opportunity and it could have been them in the final. But it wasn’t. And that title is very special for him. It was the first title he won on his own many moons ago. He was standing on his own two feet back then just like he is now.
Hardy says he knows his self worth and as a member of the WWE Universe, AJ Styles vs. Jeff Hardy sounds mega cool. He says man to man, he is asking for an Intercontinental title match. Styles says statistics aside, he respect Jeff, he always has. He has known him for a very long time, he’s always been good to him, he admires everything he has been through. He won’t lie, there’s a lot of people who would like to see them together. He says Jeff was part of the best tag team in WWE history.
Styles says he deserves to be on that board and if he is asking if he wants to face Jeff Hardy in this ring for the Intercontinental championship, he says hell no. Styles laughs. He says he hasn’t earned the right to be on the board. He knows what Jeff has been through but this isn’t no pity party. Hardy knocks AJ down and hits him with the Twist of Fate as AJ falls to the outside.
Hardy grabs a marker and writes his name on the board.
Cesaro tells Nakamura how great they are and Nakamura has Metalik tonight. Behind them are the Lucha House Party who steal their tag team titles. Cesasro and Nakamura chase them.
-Commercial Break-
Kayla is backstage with AJ Styles and asks him about Hardy. AJ says Jeff assaulted him, he doesn’t respect the Intercontinental champion. He says Jeff wants a piece of him, he’s going to get it. He will show him what happens when you mess with AJ Styles. You get erased. AJ tries to erase Jeff’s name from the white board but it’s written with a permanent marker.
Gran Metalik with Dorado vs. Shinsuke Nakamura with Cesaro
Lucha House Party come down to the ring with the SmackDown tag team championships. The bell rings and we are under way. Nakamura goes after Metalik right away. He beats on him in the corner as the referee breaks it up. A snapmare take down by Nakamura followed by a knee to the face. He goes for the cover but Metalik kicks out. He is sent to the ropes but Metalik reverses it and a snap mare by Metalik.
A hurricanrana by Metalik takes Nakamura to the outside. Metalik goes for a suicide dive but Nakamura catches him with a kick to the face. Nakamrua gets back in the ring and goes for the cover but Metalik kicks out. Nakamura sends Metalik to the corner and gets him on the ring apron. Metalik with a shoulder block nd a cross body off the top rope. A kick to the face by Metalik followed by a modified bulldog.
Metalik sends Nakamura to the ropes and Metalik with a spring board back elbow. He goes for the cover but Nakamura kicks out. Metalik with a kick to the body, he jumps onto the second ropes but Cesaro distracts him. The referee gets Cesaro down, Metalik jumps but Nakamura with a kick to the body. He goes for the cover but Metalik kicks out. Nakamura with the exploder. He goes for the Kinshasa as the Lucha House Party’s music hits and Kalisto comes out. He and Dorado double team Cesaro on the outside of the ring.
Nakamura is taken down with a kick. Metalik flies off the top rope and lands an elbow drop. He goes for the cover and gets the pin.
Winner: Gran Metalik
-Commercial Break-
Kayla is backstage with Matt Riddle. She mentions Baron Corbin. Riddle says no one likes a bounty on their head. And he’s a laid back guy but it’s kind of annoying. But he has all these guys coming at him but it’s cool. He’s on SmackDown to bro down and throw down. He wants to compete. But Corbin walks around calling himself a king but as far as he can tell, he’s just a royal pain. He has called him out, tried to fight him and cost him his match last week.
In comes Gable who says he has to explain himself. he got too caught up and he has a family and the money can go a long way. He says he’s embarrassed and that’s why he is here to apologize. He says he is sorry. The two fist pump as Riddle says he gets it but if he ever wants to go, to give him a heads up. In comes Corbin who attacks him from behind. He says this is his kingdom. He thanks Gable for his help.
Alexa Bliss says she has been better. When asked about her history with Strowman. She says when you first meet Braun he could be intimidating but she got to know the man behind the monster. We see clips of the two of them as a tag team. She says Braun is awesome, a good man, funny. Protective, compassionate. They get along so well. They can be fun and they became best friends.
Bliss says romantically, maybe there could have been something. She’s asked if that’s why The Fiend had her as a target. Bliss says she doesn’t know but that’s a question to The Fiend. She’s asked about behind in The Fiend’s presence. She says it is scary, terrifying. And also compelling and once you interact with him, it’s like you can feel his presence. Last week Strowman made strong comments where he said he doesn’t give a damn about Alexa. We see a clip of Strowman’s promo from last week.
Alexa is asked how that made her feel. She pauses as the camera cuts.
-Commercial Break-
Sonya says she s surprised by Mandy’s challenge. She thought about it and she thinks Mandy is going to look great bald. She tells Mandy she may say she is sick of people saying the same things about her her entire life. But maybe the reason why people say that is because it’s true. She is going to make sure that Mandy knows it’s true because she is going to destroy her once and for all. Challenge accepted. Sonya against Mandy, hair vs. hair at Summerslam.
Big E vs. John Morrison
The Miz is at ringside doing commentary. The bell rings and we are under way. A head lock by Big E in the middle of the ring as Morrison sends him to the ropes. Big E with a shoulder block takes Morrison down. A few kicks by Morrison on Big E’s taped left leg. Morrison runs to the ropes but Big E with a back elbow.
Both men back up and a waist lock by Morrison but Big E throws him around. Morrison gets on the ring apron and a kick to the face onto Big E. He jumps off the top rope but Big E pushes him to the outside in mid air. Morrison gets back in the ring but a clothesline by Big E. He grabs Morrison and places him on the ring apron. Big E with right hands as he gets on the ring apron. Big E with the big splash.
Big E goes after Morrison who is down on the outside. Miz gets in the way to distract Big E as Morrison goes after Big E’s left leg from behind. Morrison gets Big E back in the ring as he goes after the left leg. Morrison goes for the cover but Big E kicks out.
Otis walks down to the ring with his Money in the Bank briefcase. The lights flicker on and off.
-Commercial Break-
Back from commercial, the match is still on and several WWE superstars surround the ring. The lights flicker on and off again. Retribution are seen backstage chasing Kayla Braxton and beating up on WWE officials.
Back in the ring, Morrison goes for the cover but Big E kicks out. WWE officials are telling the superstars around the ring that Retribution are backstage. The superstars run to the back. The superstars head to the back and see the carnage backstage.
In the ring, Morrison has Big E on the second rope but Big E with right hands as he pushes Morrison down. Big E slams Morrison down. He goes for the cover but Morrison kicks out. Big E picks Morrison up but Morrison lands on his feet and goes after Big E’s left leg. Morrison goes for a kick, Big E ducks, he grabs Morrison and gets the Stretch Buckle Submission as Morrison taps.
Winner: Big E
Sheamus runs down and hits Big E with the Brogue Kick.
Out comes a head shaven Braun Strowman as Sheamus walks away.
-Commercial Break-
Strowman says they say you’ll never see it coming at Summerslam. He told Fiend that when he came out of that swamp, that he was going to be the most evil son of a bitch that anyone on earth has ever laid eyes on. He calls out The Fiend as he tells him he will rip him limb from limb.
Out comes Alexa Bliss to the ring. She says she owes it to their friendship to have a conversation. Braun asks about what as Alexa says about him. This is not the Braun she knows, especially last week when he says he doesn’t gve a damn about her. They have been friends for years. Strowman says she used him as a pawn and she tried to turn him into something he is not. he says he doesn’t give a damn about her, he’s not a clown.
Bliss asks what is gonig on. Strowman says everyone that comes in contact with The Fiend changes, including her. He tells her to get out fo his ring. He wants The Fiend. Alexa tells him to becareful for what he wishes for. And if she can’t talk some sense into him, she will have to slap some sense into him. She tells him to look at her.
Alexa slaps him several times as she tells him to wake up. Braun lifts her up over his head as the lights start to go out. He throws Alexa in the air but the lights go out. The lights turn red as Alexa is down hurt in the ring with The Fiend standing next to her and Strowman no where to be seen.
Strowman is shown on the titantron laughing as is The Fiend who is in the ring. He looks down at Alexa as the camera cuts.