Here are my Smackdown Thoughts & Facts & Stats:
It's going to be a fun night with Kevin Owens on commentary. Congrats again to Carmella & Corey Graves on their new son. Carmella is an amazing woman for enduring 60 hours of labor.
Good opening segment. I like the dissension in the LWO with Carlito & Santos Escobar with everyone else stuck in the middle.
Carlito VS Bobby Lashley was a great match. I liked everything about it and then what happened afterwards with Rey Mysterio & Santos Escobar. I like Escobar turning heel. FACT: This was Carlito's 1st 1-on-1 Match since he wrestled Primo to a No Contest on Superstars on 5/6/10 & 1st on Smackdown since he defeated Brian Kendrick on 12/26/08. This was Bobby Lashley's 1st Smackdown since he defeated Rey Mysterio on 10/6. This was the 1st ever 1-on-1 Match between them on TV in WWE.
Wow. Santos Escobar said Rey Mysterio had it coming. Even Kevin Owens is shocked about that.
Solid segment with Damage CTRL & Kairi Sane & Bianca Belair, Charlotte Flair, & Asuka to set-up the 6-Woman Tag later, which will be fun. It was a good explanation on who brought Kairi back. But what happened to Charlotte & Shotzi going after the Women's Tag Titles?
Great video. Thank you to all of our veterans for their service.
Dragon Lee VS Cedric Alexander was incredible. So much action & it was only 1 segment. I would have loved to see 2 segments of them. It might be my favorite match of the week. FACT: This was both Lee & Alexander's 1st Smackdown since their last match against each other on 10/27.
Great LA Knight promo. And people say his career is over & he's "buried" since he lost to Roman Reigns. People that think that should stop watching wrestling & read a dictionary. Grayson Waller was great too.
LA Knight VS Grayson Waller was an awesome match. Kevin Owens was hilarious on commentary especially with the Telestrator. I want him on commentary every week. FACT: This was the 1st time that LA Knight is not wrestling a member of The Bloodline since he defeated The Miz on Smackdown on 9/15. This was Grayson Waller's 1st 1-on-1 Match since he lost to Rey Mysterio on Smackdown on 8/25. This was the 4th 1-on-1 Match between them after NXT on 10/19/21 (won by Knight), 2/22/22 (won by Waller), & 3/8/22 (won by Waller), so Knight won 1 & Waller won 2.
Love the random Smackdown Flashback with John Cena's debut to bookend his match with Solo Sikoa at Crown Jewel, which might be his last match. I don't think it will be. But, kudos to Cena for wrestling the last month with injured arms that required surgery.
Kevin Owens has been hilarious tonight. It sucks that he attacked Austin Theory & Grayson Waller, even though he was provoked. Now, he's suspended according to Nick Aldis.
Good Jimmy Uso interview. I don't mind another match between him & LA Knight next week.
Asuka, Bianca Belair, & Charlotte Flair VS Bayley, Kairi Sane, & IYO SKY was excellent. I was not expecting Asuka to turn. I love Shotzi trying to help. I guess we got a Women's War Games Match, but who will be Bianca, Charlotte, & Shotzi's partner FACT: This was Asuka's 1st 6-Woman Tag since she, Carmella, & Nikki Cross defeated Liv Morgan, Natalya, & Raquel Rodriguez on Raw on 2/13 & 1st on Smackdown since she, Alexa Bliss, & Liv Morgan defeated Lacey Evans, Raquel Rodriguez, & Shotzi on 7/1/22. This was Bianca Belair's 1st 6-Woman Tag since she, Liv Morgan, & Raquel Rodriguez defeated Damage CTRL on Raw on 4/24 & 1st on Smackdown since she, Natalya, & Tamina lost to Bayley, Nia Jax, & Shayna Baszler on 5/21/21. This was Charlotte Flair's 1st 6-Woman Tag since she, Natalya, & Tamina defeated Dana Brooke, Rhea Ripley, & Mandy Rose on Raw on 6/28/21 & 1st on Smackdown since she, Asuka, & Becky Lynch defeated Carmella & The Iiconics on 5/1/18. This was the 1st time that Asuka, Belair, & Flair teamed up in a 6-Woman Tag Team Match. This was Bayley & IYO SKY's 1st 6-Woman Tag since they & Dakota Kai lost to Bianca Belair, Liv Morgan, & Raquel Rodriguez on Raw on 4/24 & 1st on Smackdown since they defeated Roxanne Perez, Raquel Rodriguez, & Shotzi on 10/14/22, & the 1st time they teamed with someone other than Dakota. This was Kairi Sane's 1st WWE match since she defeated Bayley on Raw on 7/20/20, her 1st Smackdown match since she & Asuka lost to Alexa Bliss & Nikki Cross on 4/10/20, & only her 2nd 6-Woman Tag Match in her Career & 1st since she, Bianca Belair, & Io Shirai defeated Shayna Baszler, Jessamyn Duke, & Marina Shafir on NXT on 2/6/19.
Here are my Smackdown Match Rankings:
1) Dragon Lee VS Cedric Alexander
2) LA Knight VS Grayson Waller
3) Asuka, Bianca Belair, & Charlotte Flair VS Bayley, Kairi Sane, & IYO SKY
4) Carlito VS Bobby Lashley
Here are my Level Up Thoughts & Facts & Stats:
Gigi Dolin VS Stevie Turner was pretty good. FACT:
This was Gigi Dolin's Level Up debut. This was Stevie Turner's 1st Level Up & match since she defeated Valentina Feroz on 9/1.
Solid interview with Tyson Dupont & Tyriek Igwe.
Tyson Dupont & Tyriek Igwe VS Gallus was a fun match. This was Dupont & Igwe's best match of their career so far. They really shined against Gallus. FACT: This will be Tyson Dupont & Tyriek Igwe's 1st Level Up match & match overall since they lost to Javier Bernal & Luca Cruisifino on 10/6. This will be Mark Coffey & Wolfgang's Level Up debut.
Here are my Level Up Rankings:
1) Tyson Dupont & Tyriek Igwe VS Gallus
2) Gigi Dolin VS Stevie Turner
Overall, a fun Smackdown with 4 excellent matches & an incredible closing angle. I can't wait for Survivor Series. Level Up was great as usual.