Post by hbkid718 on Dec 22, 2023 22:39:23 GMT -5
Here are my Smackdown Thoughts & Facts & Stats:
I thought I would have all of my records done today so I can post them along with my Smackdown Thoughts, but I didn't finish them as I fell asleep after work. I did update all of the pages on my site with all of the results, including next week's NXT. I will try to finish everything tomorrow & post them, but if I can't, then I will post it after NXT on Tuesday, since the rest of the week will be Best of 2023 shows. I apologize for all of my delays this year. I will try to do better in 2024.
Good opening segment with AJ Styles, LA Knight, & Randy Orton. I love how they are making the 1st week of 2024 special with PPV-quality matches. The Triple Threat to determine Roman Reigns' Royal Rumble opponent will be awesome.
Of course, they do the matches out of order after I updated my site with all of the results. The 8-Woman Tag was the 3rd match on the show. Escobar VS Lashley was taped first.
Bianca Belair, Michin, Shotzi, & Zelina Vega VS Damage CTRL was fun. I like Isla Dawn & Alba Fyre getting involved. There were so many different cool things. FACTS: This was the 1st ever Holiday Havoc Match, Bianca Belair, Shotzi, Asuka, Bayley, Kairi Sane, & IYO SKY's 1st 8-Woman Tag since Survivor Series on 11/25. This was Michin's 1st 8-Woman Tag since she, Dakota Kai, Tegan Nox, & Rhea Ripley lost to Sasha Banks, Dana Brooke, Carmella, & Nikki Cross on Smackdown on 11/15/19. This was Zelina Vega's 1st 8-Woman Tag since she, Shayna Baszler, Carmella, & Natalya lost to Sasha Banks, Liv Morgan, Naomi, & Rhea Ripley on Raw on 3/28/22. This was Michin's 1st win since she defeated Tamina on Main Event on 3/2 & Zelina Vega's 1st win since she defeatd IYO SKY on Smackdown on 8/4.
Wow, Roman Reigns wants Nick Aldis.
was incredible. I would love to see more matches with them. #Smackdown #DBWL
FACTS: This was the 1st time since 7/18 & 7/21 that the North American Championship was defended on both NXT & Smackdown, but Dragon Lee is the 1st Champion to defend on both shows, as Dominik Mysterio won the title on 7/18 & defended it on 7/21. If Butch would have won, he would have been the 2nd 1st-time Champion in a row, the 1st to be a former NXT UK Champion, & the 5th to be a former NXT Tag Team Champion after Adam Cole, Johnny Gargano, Wes Lee, & Roderick Strong & 1st since Wes Lee. This was Dragon Lee's 3rd North American Title Defense, so if he would have lost, he would have been the 1st since Cameron Grimes who lost to Carmelo Hayes at In Your House on 6/4/22 to lose in his 3rd Defense. As of Smackdown, Dragon Lee's North American Championship Reign has lasted 13 Days, so if he would have lost, it would have been the 3rd Shortest Reign of All-Time after Trick Williams (9/30/23-10/3/23, 3 Days) & Solo Sikoa (9/13/22-9/20/22, 7 Days).
Again, they're switching the order. They are doing Escobar VS Lashley after this match.
Interesting conversation with Nick Aldis & Roman Reigns.
Kevin Owens VS Carmelo Hayes was excellent. I wanted Hayes to win because I think Hayes VS Logan Paul would be amazing, but with what happened a few weeks ago, it's obvious, they're doing KO VS Paul. Nice show of respect. FACTS: This was the 1st time that Kevin Owens wrestled 3 1-on-1 matches in a row since he defeated Baron Corbin (1/9 RAW), Sami Zayn by DQ (1/13 Smackdown), & wrestled Solo Sikoa to a NC (1/27 Smackdown). It was the 1st time he wrestled another former NXT Champion since he defeated Sami Zayn by DQ on Smackdown on 1/13. This was the 1st match between former NXT Champions on Smackdown since Shinsuke Nakamura VS Karrion Kross on 5/5.
Uh oh, problems in The OC.
Awesome, my Alma Mater St. John's Red Storm getting a mention on Smackdown as they will be playing in Primetime tomorrow on Fox. Another weird promo by Karrion Kross & Scarlett.
Santos Escobar VS Bobby Lashley was OK but the finish was bad. Wow. Humberto Carrillo & Angel Garza are back. They're with Escobar. I wanted them as part of The LWO a long time ago. I guess they're done in NXT. FACTS: This was the 1st time that Santos Escobar wrestled 2 1-on-1 Matches back-to-back on Smackdown since he defeated Austin Theory & Rey Mysterio on 7/21 & 7/28. This was the 1st time that Bobby Lashley wrestled a Mexican wrestler since he defeated Humberto Carrillo on Raw on 5/11/20 & 1st time on Smackdown in his Career.
OK promo by Butch & attack by Pretty Deadly. I guess Sheamus will be back at New Year's Revolution since I don't think Butch will be teaming with Ridge.
I will watch the 2 specials on Peacock probably Friday when I come home from work instead of live on Thursday in 2 weeks.
Wow. Smackdown New Year's Revolution will be an awesome way to start 2024. Owens VS Escobar, Michin VS SKY, & Knight VS Orton VS Paul. Good comments by Logan Paul
Damn, AJ Styles VS Solo Sikoa was great until the stupid DQ finish. I'm surprised that Roman Reigns came out instead of sending Jimmy Uso to do his dirty work. Then, Jimmy comes out after Randy Orton & finally LA Knight. Fun brawl to end 2023. FACTS: This was AJ Styles' 1st match since he lost to Finn Balor on 9/15. This was Solo Sikoa's 1st 1-on-1 Match since he defeated John Cena at Crown Jewel on 11/4 & 1st on Smackdown since he lost to LA Knight on 10/13. This was the 2nd 1-on-1 Match between them after Smackdown on 9/1, which was won by Sikoa, so they each won 1 match. This was the 600th Singles Match on TV & PPV in WWE & NXT in 2023.
FACTS: Smackdown ends 2023 with 216 Matches. The only wrestler that wrestled on the 1st Smackdown of 2023 to wrestle on the last is Santos Escobar. SD on 1/6 saw: Escobar def Kofi Kingston, Karrion Kross & Scarlett defeated Emma & Madcap Moss, Charlotte Flair defeated Sonya Deville, Ricochet defeated Top Dolla, & The Usos defeated Drew McIntyre & Sheamus. Both shows had a Gimmick Match (Mixed Tag on 1/6, Holiday Havoc on 12/22 & both shows featured an NXT Wrestler (Kofi Kingston was NXT Tag Champ on 1/6 & Carmelo Hayes on 12/22.)
Here are my Smackdown Match Rankings:
1) Dragon Lee VS Butch
2) Kevin Owens VS Carmelo Hayes
3) Bianca Belair, Michin, Shotzi, & Zelina Vega VS Damage CTRL
4) AJ Styles VS Solo Sikoa
5) Santos Escobar VS Bobby Lashley
Here are my Level Up Thoughts & Facts & Stats:
Axiom VS Damon Kemp was a great match. So many cool moves & even though they have different styles, they have great chemistry & mesh well together. FACTS: This was Axiom's 1st Level Up since he defeated Riley Osbourne on 10/27. This wia Damon Kemp's 1st Level Up since he defeated Dante Chen on 8/11. This was the 2nd 1-on-1 Match between them after NXT on 2/14, which was also won by Axiom.
Funny promo by Javier Bernal & Mr. Stone.
Roxanne Perez VS Brinley Reece was pretty solid. Reece was good in only her 3rd match. FACTS: This was Roxanne Perez's 1st Level Up of 2023 & her 1st Level Up since she defeated Sloane Jacobs on 4/15/22, which was her in-ring NXT debut. This was Brinley Reece's 1st Level Up since 12/1.
Funny promo by Javier Bernal. I love Von Wagner as Santa Claus. Von Wagner has gone from one of my least favorite wrestlers on the roster to one of my favorites.
Von Wagner VS Javier Bernal was a fun match. I love how much Wagner's personality has changed in 2023. FACTS: This was Von Wagner's 1st Level Up since 12/1. This was Javier Bernal's 2nd week in a row on Level Up. This was the 2nd 1-on-1 Match between them after NXT on 7/25, which was also won by Wagner.
Level Up ends 2023 with 140 Matches. No one that wrestled on the 1st Level Up of 2023 wrestled on the final. Level Up on 1/6 saw: Elektra Lopez & Amari Miller def Dani Palmer & Sol Ruca, Xyon Quinn def Tank Ledger, & Malik Blade & Edris Enofe def Myles Borne & Tavion Heights.
Here are my Level Up Match Rankings:
1) Axiom VS Damon Kemp
2) Von Wagner VS Javier Bernal
3) Roxanne Perez VS Brinley Reece
What a fun Smackdown. For a taped show, the matches were all excellent & it wasn't a throwaway show. Everything had a purpose to set up New Year's Revolution & the Royal Rumble. Level Up was fun too.
Ends Smackdown & Level Up Thoughts, Facts & Stats. For more visit darrenswinloss.wordpress.com, which has already been updated with all of the results of the week (even though Smackdown is out of order).
I won't be doing any Facts & Stats for Raw on Christmas Night since it's a Best of 2023, so I will be back with more for the Final Show of 2023, NXT on Tuesday. Good Night.
I thought I would have all of my records done today so I can post them along with my Smackdown Thoughts, but I didn't finish them as I fell asleep after work. I did update all of the pages on my site with all of the results, including next week's NXT. I will try to finish everything tomorrow & post them, but if I can't, then I will post it after NXT on Tuesday, since the rest of the week will be Best of 2023 shows. I apologize for all of my delays this year. I will try to do better in 2024.
Good opening segment with AJ Styles, LA Knight, & Randy Orton. I love how they are making the 1st week of 2024 special with PPV-quality matches. The Triple Threat to determine Roman Reigns' Royal Rumble opponent will be awesome.
Of course, they do the matches out of order after I updated my site with all of the results. The 8-Woman Tag was the 3rd match on the show. Escobar VS Lashley was taped first.
Bianca Belair, Michin, Shotzi, & Zelina Vega VS Damage CTRL was fun. I like Isla Dawn & Alba Fyre getting involved. There were so many different cool things. FACTS: This was the 1st ever Holiday Havoc Match, Bianca Belair, Shotzi, Asuka, Bayley, Kairi Sane, & IYO SKY's 1st 8-Woman Tag since Survivor Series on 11/25. This was Michin's 1st 8-Woman Tag since she, Dakota Kai, Tegan Nox, & Rhea Ripley lost to Sasha Banks, Dana Brooke, Carmella, & Nikki Cross on Smackdown on 11/15/19. This was Zelina Vega's 1st 8-Woman Tag since she, Shayna Baszler, Carmella, & Natalya lost to Sasha Banks, Liv Morgan, Naomi, & Rhea Ripley on Raw on 3/28/22. This was Michin's 1st win since she defeated Tamina on Main Event on 3/2 & Zelina Vega's 1st win since she defeatd IYO SKY on Smackdown on 8/4.
Wow, Roman Reigns wants Nick Aldis.
was incredible. I would love to see more matches with them. #Smackdown #DBWL
FACTS: This was the 1st time since 7/18 & 7/21 that the North American Championship was defended on both NXT & Smackdown, but Dragon Lee is the 1st Champion to defend on both shows, as Dominik Mysterio won the title on 7/18 & defended it on 7/21. If Butch would have won, he would have been the 2nd 1st-time Champion in a row, the 1st to be a former NXT UK Champion, & the 5th to be a former NXT Tag Team Champion after Adam Cole, Johnny Gargano, Wes Lee, & Roderick Strong & 1st since Wes Lee. This was Dragon Lee's 3rd North American Title Defense, so if he would have lost, he would have been the 1st since Cameron Grimes who lost to Carmelo Hayes at In Your House on 6/4/22 to lose in his 3rd Defense. As of Smackdown, Dragon Lee's North American Championship Reign has lasted 13 Days, so if he would have lost, it would have been the 3rd Shortest Reign of All-Time after Trick Williams (9/30/23-10/3/23, 3 Days) & Solo Sikoa (9/13/22-9/20/22, 7 Days).
Again, they're switching the order. They are doing Escobar VS Lashley after this match.
Interesting conversation with Nick Aldis & Roman Reigns.
Kevin Owens VS Carmelo Hayes was excellent. I wanted Hayes to win because I think Hayes VS Logan Paul would be amazing, but with what happened a few weeks ago, it's obvious, they're doing KO VS Paul. Nice show of respect. FACTS: This was the 1st time that Kevin Owens wrestled 3 1-on-1 matches in a row since he defeated Baron Corbin (1/9 RAW), Sami Zayn by DQ (1/13 Smackdown), & wrestled Solo Sikoa to a NC (1/27 Smackdown). It was the 1st time he wrestled another former NXT Champion since he defeated Sami Zayn by DQ on Smackdown on 1/13. This was the 1st match between former NXT Champions on Smackdown since Shinsuke Nakamura VS Karrion Kross on 5/5.
Uh oh, problems in The OC.
Awesome, my Alma Mater St. John's Red Storm getting a mention on Smackdown as they will be playing in Primetime tomorrow on Fox. Another weird promo by Karrion Kross & Scarlett.
Santos Escobar VS Bobby Lashley was OK but the finish was bad. Wow. Humberto Carrillo & Angel Garza are back. They're with Escobar. I wanted them as part of The LWO a long time ago. I guess they're done in NXT. FACTS: This was the 1st time that Santos Escobar wrestled 2 1-on-1 Matches back-to-back on Smackdown since he defeated Austin Theory & Rey Mysterio on 7/21 & 7/28. This was the 1st time that Bobby Lashley wrestled a Mexican wrestler since he defeated Humberto Carrillo on Raw on 5/11/20 & 1st time on Smackdown in his Career.
OK promo by Butch & attack by Pretty Deadly. I guess Sheamus will be back at New Year's Revolution since I don't think Butch will be teaming with Ridge.
I will watch the 2 specials on Peacock probably Friday when I come home from work instead of live on Thursday in 2 weeks.
Wow. Smackdown New Year's Revolution will be an awesome way to start 2024. Owens VS Escobar, Michin VS SKY, & Knight VS Orton VS Paul. Good comments by Logan Paul
Damn, AJ Styles VS Solo Sikoa was great until the stupid DQ finish. I'm surprised that Roman Reigns came out instead of sending Jimmy Uso to do his dirty work. Then, Jimmy comes out after Randy Orton & finally LA Knight. Fun brawl to end 2023. FACTS: This was AJ Styles' 1st match since he lost to Finn Balor on 9/15. This was Solo Sikoa's 1st 1-on-1 Match since he defeated John Cena at Crown Jewel on 11/4 & 1st on Smackdown since he lost to LA Knight on 10/13. This was the 2nd 1-on-1 Match between them after Smackdown on 9/1, which was won by Sikoa, so they each won 1 match. This was the 600th Singles Match on TV & PPV in WWE & NXT in 2023.
FACTS: Smackdown ends 2023 with 216 Matches. The only wrestler that wrestled on the 1st Smackdown of 2023 to wrestle on the last is Santos Escobar. SD on 1/6 saw: Escobar def Kofi Kingston, Karrion Kross & Scarlett defeated Emma & Madcap Moss, Charlotte Flair defeated Sonya Deville, Ricochet defeated Top Dolla, & The Usos defeated Drew McIntyre & Sheamus. Both shows had a Gimmick Match (Mixed Tag on 1/6, Holiday Havoc on 12/22 & both shows featured an NXT Wrestler (Kofi Kingston was NXT Tag Champ on 1/6 & Carmelo Hayes on 12/22.)
Here are my Smackdown Match Rankings:
1) Dragon Lee VS Butch
2) Kevin Owens VS Carmelo Hayes
3) Bianca Belair, Michin, Shotzi, & Zelina Vega VS Damage CTRL
4) AJ Styles VS Solo Sikoa
5) Santos Escobar VS Bobby Lashley
Here are my Level Up Thoughts & Facts & Stats:
Axiom VS Damon Kemp was a great match. So many cool moves & even though they have different styles, they have great chemistry & mesh well together. FACTS: This was Axiom's 1st Level Up since he defeated Riley Osbourne on 10/27. This wia Damon Kemp's 1st Level Up since he defeated Dante Chen on 8/11. This was the 2nd 1-on-1 Match between them after NXT on 2/14, which was also won by Axiom.
Funny promo by Javier Bernal & Mr. Stone.
Roxanne Perez VS Brinley Reece was pretty solid. Reece was good in only her 3rd match. FACTS: This was Roxanne Perez's 1st Level Up of 2023 & her 1st Level Up since she defeated Sloane Jacobs on 4/15/22, which was her in-ring NXT debut. This was Brinley Reece's 1st Level Up since 12/1.
Funny promo by Javier Bernal. I love Von Wagner as Santa Claus. Von Wagner has gone from one of my least favorite wrestlers on the roster to one of my favorites.
Von Wagner VS Javier Bernal was a fun match. I love how much Wagner's personality has changed in 2023. FACTS: This was Von Wagner's 1st Level Up since 12/1. This was Javier Bernal's 2nd week in a row on Level Up. This was the 2nd 1-on-1 Match between them after NXT on 7/25, which was also won by Wagner.
Level Up ends 2023 with 140 Matches. No one that wrestled on the 1st Level Up of 2023 wrestled on the final. Level Up on 1/6 saw: Elektra Lopez & Amari Miller def Dani Palmer & Sol Ruca, Xyon Quinn def Tank Ledger, & Malik Blade & Edris Enofe def Myles Borne & Tavion Heights.
Here are my Level Up Match Rankings:
1) Axiom VS Damon Kemp
2) Von Wagner VS Javier Bernal
3) Roxanne Perez VS Brinley Reece
What a fun Smackdown. For a taped show, the matches were all excellent & it wasn't a throwaway show. Everything had a purpose to set up New Year's Revolution & the Royal Rumble. Level Up was fun too.
Ends Smackdown & Level Up Thoughts, Facts & Stats. For more visit darrenswinloss.wordpress.com, which has already been updated with all of the results of the week (even though Smackdown is out of order).
I won't be doing any Facts & Stats for Raw on Christmas Night since it's a Best of 2023, so I will be back with more for the Final Show of 2023, NXT on Tuesday. Good Night.