WWE Friday Night SmackDown 04 07 2023

WWE Friday Night SmackDown Results
April 7, 2023
Moda Center in Portland, Oregon.
Commentary: Michael Cole and Wade Barrett
Results by: Roy Nemer of Wrestleview.com

WWE SmackDown kicks off with a tribute graphic of the late great Butch Miller.

We cut to highlights of WWE WrestleMania.

The Brawling Brutes vs. Imperium

The bell rings and we are under way. Vinci and Butch start the match. Vinci with several take downs and an arm bar which is reversed by Butch. A clothesline by Butch followed by a right hand in the corner. Holland is tagged in and right hands by Ridge. Vinci to the ropes but a cross body by Vinci and Kaiser is tagged in. Kaiser with kicks and a back elbow. He goes for the cover but Holland kicks out. He grabs Holland but Holland with an elbow and Butch is tagged back in. They double team Kaiser and Butch with an arm bar but Kaiser breaks it and tags Vinci back into the match. Butch with a kick to the face. With the referee distracted, Butch is on the top rope as Kaiser and Vinci double team Butch. Vinci goes for the cover but Butch kicks out.

-Commercial Break-

Back from commercial, Gunther with a kick onto Butch in the ring. Gunther cheap shots Sheamus off the ring apron and applies a head lock on Butch but Butch twists Gunther’s fingers and Vinci is tagged in. A kick to the back of the head by Butch and Holland is tagged in, as is Kaiser. Holland with a clothesline followed by an overhead throw.

Holland with an Alabama slam. He goes for the cover but Kaiser kicks out. Holland goes for a splash in the corner but Kaiser moves out of the way and Gunther is tagged in. Imperium triple teams Holland. Gunther with a chop onto Holland and Gunther big boots Sheamus off the ring apron. Gunther with a running drop kick followed by a powerbomb onto Holland. He goes for the cover but Butch breaks it up. Gunther throws Butch to the outside of the ring. Gunther with the Boston crap on Holland in the middle of the ring and Sheamus is back on the ring apron as Holland makes the tag. Sheamus with a clothesline and a running powerslam. Gunther on the ring apron and Sheamus with the 10 Beats of the Bodhrán. Sheamus goes for the Brogue Kick but Gunther moves out of the way and a German suplex by Gunther. Gunther goes for a power bomb but Sheamus reverses it and hits him with the White Noise. He goes for the cover but Gunther kicks out. Vinci is tagged in. Kaiser, Vinci, Holland and Butch are in the ring as Kaiser, Holland and Butch fight to the outside. Sheamus with the Brogue Kick onto Vinci. He goes for the cover and gets the pin.

Winners: The Brawling Brutes

-Commercial Break-

Kayla Braxton is backstage with Paul Heyman and Solo Sikoa. The fans boo Heyman as he tells every one they don’t boo the name Paul Heyman. She asks if he knows why Brock Lesnar did what he did. Heyman asks her why this night is different from all other nights. That is because he will pass over her question and talk about something far more relevant, like the Tribal Chief, Roman Reigns.

Heyman says The Bloodline main evented both nights of WrestleMania, all thanks to Roman Reigns. He mentions that he is now approaching 1000 days as champion. In comes Jey Uso as he and Heyman hug. He tells Heyman he hasn’t seen Jimmy all night and if they know where he is. Heyman tells Jey that his brother is not there tonight. Roman wanted him to stay at home and watch as Jey takes out Sami Zayn all by himself. To cement his legacy on the island of relevancy as he solves the Zayn problems. Jey looks at them and walks away. Heyman looks at Solo and tells him that Jey solves the Zayn problem tonight or Solo will solve the Zayn problem later tonight.

-Commercial Break-

Ricochet vs. Ivar

The bell rings and we are under way. Right hands by Ricochet followed by a head scissor take down. Ivar onto the ring apron. Ricochet jumps off the top rope and kicks Ivar down to the outside. Ricochet goes for a suicide dive but Ivar catches him and throws him into the ring apron. Ivar with a running cross body and Ivar throws him back into the ring. Ivar with elbows to the face as he places Ricochet on the top rope. Ricochet with a kick to the face. Ricochet goes for a sunset flip but Ivar overpowers him and goes for a suplex. Ricochet lands on his feet and a knee to the face. Ricochet runs to the ropes and Ivar with a knee onto Ricochet. Ivar jumps off the second rope but Ricochet with a drop kick. Ricochet tries to lift Ivar on his shoulders but he can’t and a spinning kick by Ivar. He goes for the cover but Ricochet kicks out. Ivar climbs the top rope and Ricochet with a right hand. Ricochet on the ring apron as he jumps onto the top rope and lands a hurricanrana. Ricochet climbs the top rope and he lands the shooting star press. He goes for the cover and gets the pin.

Winner: Ricochet

We cut backstage to Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn. They talk about winning the tag title match and Owens says Zayn has a big opportunity tonight against Jey. A chance to put The Bloodline stuff behind them. They won the titles and he can settle what there is to settle and they are done with them. Zayn says something about all of this feels off. What Owens is saying is true but he can’t shake the feeling that he has to talk to Jey. Owens asks him about what and Zayn tells him he doesn’t know about what. They won the titles at WrestleMania and The Bloodline are crumbling but he feels a sense of obligation. Owens tells him it won’t make Jey want to talk to him. He says he knows he cannot talk Zayn out of this but it’s a bad idea and he shouldn’t do it. Zayn tells him he has to and it will be fine.

-Commercial BReak-

Raquel Rodriguez and Liv Morgan vs. Shotzi and Natalya

The bell rings and we are under way. Raquel and Natalya start the match. A shoulder tackle by Raquel and she throws Natalya to the ropes. Shotzi is tagged in as Natalya with a head scissor take down throws Raquel to the outside of the ring. Shotzi with a suicide dive onto the outside. She throws Raquel back into the ring. Shotzi with a knee to the face. She goes for a hurricanrana but Raquel Catches her and Liv is tagged in. They double team Shotzi. Liv with a DDT. She goes for the cover but Natalya breaks it up. Natalya drags Shotzi to the corner and she is tagged in. Liv rolls Natalya up but Natalya kicks out. Natalya with a release German suplex followed by a clothesline. She goes for the cover but Raquel breaks it up. Shotzi with a cross body onto Raquel. Shotzi is tagged in and they double team Liv. Natalya runs to the ropes but Raquel knocks her to the outside. Liv with a DDT followed by the Oblivion. She goes for the cover and gets the pin.

Winners: Raquel Rodriguez and Liv Morgan

Xavier Woods and Madcap are backstage playing WWE 2K23. In comes LA Knight to a pop. He says they are all playing games. He talks about how there was WrestleMania without LA Knight but Woods was there for playing video games. Woods tells him he is complaining a lot. Woods challenges him to a match. LA Knight grabs the Playstation controller and tells him this isn’t a video game as he breaks the controller and throws it to the floor.

-Commercial Break-

WWE Hall of Famer Triple H makes his way down to the ring to a pop. The fans chant “Triple H” as he says that will never get old. He says they have already been there for a while but he welcomes everyone to SmackDown. And there is nothing in the world like WrestleMania. The greatest athletes from around the world come to make history at a place where hearts are broken and dreams are fulfilled. And this year WrestleMania 39 exceeded all expectations.

Triple H talks about the record number of fans from around the world were there for the event breaking every single WWE record. From viewership to attendance, to a gross of 21.6 million, to sales, sponsorships, merchandise. If there is a record, they broke it. Including on digital, almost a billion views this week. But WrestleMania is behind them and now they look to the future and that is why he is out there to talk about the future. He asks them if they are ready as the fans cheer.

He tells them that in just a few weeks, it is once again time for the WWE draft. A night that changes the future and destiny of every WWE superstar. And this year the draft will be bigger than it has ever been before with every single superstar eligible for the draft. And he promises that when it is all set and done, this year’s draft will truly change the game.

And talking about changing the game, Triple H introduces someone who is doing just that. The new WWE SmackDown Women’s champion, Rhea Ripley.

Out come The Judgment Day and Triple H shakes all of their hands as he heads to the back.

Rhea says April 1, 2023 will go down in history as the night that sports entertainment changed forever. Because Rhea Ripley did the impossible. She destroyed and dethroned 14 time women’s champion Charlotte Flair. And it is time that everyone rises for mommy. She tells them to rise for the biggest star, the most feared woman in the locker room and the biggest champion in all of WWE.

Balor gets on the microphone and says Edge had to resort to splitting his head open to get a win. But even though he has 14 staples in his head, Edge is nowhere to be seen and Finn is still standing. Dominik starts to talk as the fans boo him.

He says at WrestleMania, he decided… But the fans keep booing him. He decided not to show aggression to his dad. The fans continue to boo as he says he has all night. The fans chant “You suck” as he says a father who hits his son sucks. And he held back At WrestleMania, he couldn’t hurt his dad. But he can’t say the same for his dad because when he stood in front of him, he could see the anger in his eyes. Dominik asks in Spanish what kind of father hits his son with a belt in front of millions of people. But he understands where the lines are drawn and as far as he is concerned, he and the rest of the family can go to hell. Dominik tells him he can take Bad Bunny with him.

We see clips of Bad Bunny at WrestleMania and on Raw where Damian Priest slammed him through a table. We cut back to the ring and Damian tells Bad Bunny in Spanish that he is his friend but Dominik is his brother. He tells him that he hopes he can find it in his heart to forgive him because he forgives Bad Bunny for making him do what he did to him.

Rey’s music hits and out comes Rey Mysterio with the LWO.

-Commercial Break-

Rey Mysterio and Santos Escobar vs. Dominik Mysterio and Damian Priest

The bell rings and we are under way. Rey and Dominik start the match. Dominik tags Damian in and Damian with right hands. He stomps on Rey in the corner. Dominik is tagged in and they double team Rey. Dominik with kicks and he slams Rey into the corner. A snap suplex by Dominik as he goes for the cover but Rey kicks out. Dominik runs towards Rey but Rey with a kick to the face and Santos is tagged in and he hits Dominik with a knee to the face. Santos knocks Damian off the ring apron. Santos on the top rope and a cross body. A back breaker by Santos. In comes Damian and Rey as Rey throws Damian to the outside of the ring. Rey and Santos with double suicide dives to the outside of the ring.

-Commercial Break-

Back from commercial, Damian slams Santos face first onto the mat. He goes for the cover but Santos kicks out. Dominik is tagged back into the ring. A back drop by Santos and Rey is tagged in. Rey with with a right hand on Dominik and he knocks Damian off the ring apron. A head scissor take down onto Dominik. Rey runs to the ropes but Dominik with a Michinoku driver. He goes for the cover but Rey kicks out. Dominik with a sun set flip but Rey with a drop kick. Rey with a springboard moon sault off the second rope. He goes for the cover but Dominik kicks out. Rey gets Dominik on the second rope. He goes for the 619 but Rhea moves Dominik out of the way. Zelina with a hurricanrana off the ring apron onto Rhea. Zelina backs away as Rhea chases her. Damian to the outside by Rey and Rey throws Dominik to the second rope. He hits him with the 619. Santos lifts Dominik on his shoulders. Priest knocks Rey to the outside and hits Santos with the South of Heaven. He goes for the cover and gets the pin.

Winners: The Judgment Day

We cut to Zayn who is backstage looking for Jey Uso.

-Commercial Break-

It is announced that Shinsuke Nakamura will return to SmackDown next week.

Jey Uso is backstage and in comes Zayn. He tells Jey that maybe Kevin was right, he doesn’t want to talk. But he wants to tell Jey that there is a way out of this for him. Everything he said was going to happen, happened. They took the titles from them and now The Bloodline is crumbling. Jimmy isn’t there, Roman isn’t talking to him, Heyman is lying to him. Zayn tells him he can beat some sense into him if he wants to but that is not how it is supposed to be.

We hear sounds of people fighting. Zayn runs and WWE equipment is on Kevin’s knee with WWE officials yelling at Solo Sikoa to leave. Owens is holding his knee as Jey looks at Zayn and walks away.

-Commercial Break-

Kayla asks Zayn backstage about Kevin Owens. Zayn says Owens is in the medical room and Owens was right that The Bloodline are more dangerous. But they are a problem and he will solve it now.

Jey Uso vs. Sami Zayn

The bell rings and we are under way. A head lock by Jey as he throws Zayn to the ropes and knocks him down with a shoulder tackle. Jey runs to the ropes and Zayn with a double forearm. Right hands by Zayn and he clotheslines Jey over the top rope and to the outside of the ring. Zayn is about to run to the ropes and he stops as he sees Solo Sikoa.

-Commercial Break-

Back from commercial, Zayn with a superplex off the top rope. Right hands by Zayn as he climbs the top rope. Zayn jumps but Jey hits him with a super kick. He goes for the cover but Zayn kicks out. Jey walks up to Zayn but Zayn with the exploder into the corner. Zayn goes for the Helluva Kick but Jey moves out of the way. He rolls Zayn up but Zayn kicks out. Zayn with the Blue Thunder Bomb. He goes for the cover but Jey kicks out. Zayn climbs the top rope but Jey with a kick to the side of the head. Jey climbs the top rope and he hits Zayn with ah headbutt and Zayn falls onto the ring apron. Jey distracts the referee and Solo hits Zayn with the Samoan Spike. Jey throws Zayn to the ropes and hits him with a kick. He goes for the cover and gets the pin.

Winner: Jey Uso

Solo gets in the ring after the match and helps Jey up. Solo with headbutts and right hands onto Jey. Solo is about to hit Zayn with a Samoan Spike but Jey pulls him by the arm and tells him that is enough. The fans chant “Jey” as he super kicks Zayn and laughs. He tells Solo to get a chair. Matt Riddle’s music hits and out comes Riddle to the ring. A kick to the side of the head onto Jey and he hits Solo with a knee to the face. A knee to the face onto Jey and he goes to the outside of the ring. Solo gets back in the ring and Riddle with right hands and Solo to the outside.