The Smackdown Low-down for 5/22/09

Pre-Show Thoughts/Events:

Edge starts the show in ring and says he is the face of Smackdown after Jeff, CM Punk and Chris Jericho all lost their matches at Judgement Day. (The Fans are chanting for Hardy) Teddy Long comes out and says they will have a rematch at Extreme Rules. Jeff comes out and asks the crowd what type of match they want. It is announced that Jeff will fight Edge tonight, the winner chooses the match stipulation.

Ricky Ortiz cuts a heel promo, bagging out the hosting city's sport teams.

(Commercial Break)

Shelton Benjamin, Charlie Haas & Ricky Ortiz vs. John Morrison & Cryme Tyme:

Benjamin comes in and kicks JTG before shoving him into a neutral corner, laying in some stiff rights. JTG comes back with some punches and stuns Benjamin. JTG goes to make the tag but Benjamin quickly cuts him off and holds his leg. Benjamin tries to pull JTG over to his corner and JTG kicks him off, unfortunately to Benjamin’s corner, and Benjamin makes the tag to Charlie Haas, who runs in and cuts JTG off before he makes a tag. JTG just grazes the hand and Morrison is legally tagged in. Morrison punches Haas and comes with a clothesline and more right hands. Morrison ducks a clothesline and hits a dropsault. Haas reverses a whip into the ropes and Morrison hits him with a back heel kick. Morrison goes into the ropes and hits a running kick ot the face, which is broken up at two by Ortiz and Benjamin. Shad comes in to even things up but they whip him into the ropes. Shad breaks through a double clothesline and clotheslines Ortiz down – Benjamin ducks it. JTG hits a cross-body and he and Benjamin go over the top rope. Shad assaults Ortiz on the outside. Inside the ring, Haas clubs Morrison and goes for a German Suplex but Morrison back flips out and lands on his feet! Haas charges and Morrison stun guns him on the top rope. Morrison then hits Starship Pain for the big win.

Winners by Pinfall: John Morrison & Cryme Tyme

Match Rating: ******* 7/10

Melina is backstage and says she went through the competition on RAW and it is now time to see what Smackdown Has. Alicia comes up to her and says Michelle wants you to warm the title up for her. Melina hits Alicia.

(Commercial Break)

#1 Contender’s Match for the Women’s Championship - Michelle McCool vs. Gail Kim:

McCool goes into the ropes, slides under the ropes, and pulls Gail Kim hard out of the ring. McCool pulls her onto the apron and Kim counters by snapping McCool’s arm off the top rope. Kim comes back with some forearms but the crowd doesn’t care. McCool then dropkicks her in the knee. McCool runs into a kick and Kim hits her with a step-up enzuigiri. Kim now hits her with a cross arm neckbreaker for a near fall. Kim gets on the apron to go to the top rope but Alicia Fox grabs her ankle. Kim pulls her head first into the ring post and goes to the top rope, only for McCool to kick her legs on, hanging her in a reverse Tree of Woe. McCool has her in position and just takes her off the corner for the Faith Breaker and becomes the #1 Contender.

Winner by Pinfall: Michelle McCool

Match Rating: ***** 5/10

Rey Mysterio is interviewed and says he wants to move on form Jericho and wants to give younger guys a chance. He says he wants to bring prestige back to the Intercontinental Championship. He continues on saying he wants to become a great champion, and talks about the history of the mask.

(Commercial Break)

Chris Jericho vs. CM Punk:

Punk ducks an enzuigiri and rolls Jericho up with a beautiful Magisterial Cradle for a near fall. Punk hits a spin kick to the midsection and a knee to the face before whipping Jericho into the ropes and hitting a back heel kick. Jericho is up in the corner so Punk charges for a high knee but Jericho floors him with a dropkick for a two count. Jericho kicks Punk lightly in the head a few times before whipping him into the corner and going for a bulldog but Punk places him in the corner hard. Punk then hits a high knee to the back of Jericho’s head. Punk sets Jericho up for a GTS but Jericho slides off and goes into the ropes only for CM Punk to twist him back into GTS position. Jericho rolls off and goes for Walls of Jericho but Punk rolls him up, like last night, for a near fall. Jericho kicks out and gets Punk in a nice Walls of Jericho! Punk struggles and gets to the ropes, breaking the hold. Jericho charges into GTS position and Punk connects with it! Jericho rolls out of the ring and Umaga runs up to the apron and hits Punk with a belt, causing the disqualification!

Winner by Disqualification: CM Punk

Match Rating: ****** 6/10

Ricky Ortiz is backstage with Maria, he says he is going to rally up. Jeff Hardy comes up and Maria Ditches Ortiz. She says he did a good job at Judgement Day, they then talk about Extreme Rules. Ortiz says Maria is looking for love in all the wrong places. He then gives her a rally towel.

(Commercial Break)

Dolph Ziggler vs. R-Truth:

The bell rings and they lock up with Ziggler quickly getting a headlock on. R-Truth whips him off but gets shoulder blocked down. Ziggler goes over and under and then over R-Truth and gets hip tossed down. Ziggler gets up in the corner and snap shots R-Truth off the top rope. Ziggler hammers R-Truth before hitting a reverse takedown for a one count. Ziggler locks on a modified chin lock, which R-Truth fights up from. R-Truth hammers out but Ziggler cuts him off with a knee. Ziggler whips R-Truth into the corner and charges but R-Truth moves. R-Truth hits a right hand, ducks a clothesline and hits a back elbow. R-Truth continues with a clothesline and a back heel kick. R-Truth whips him into the ropes but lowers his head and eats a boot. Ziggler goes into the ropes and gets flap-jacked. R-Truth hits a bicycle kick to the face for a near fall. R-Truth goes to the second rope and gets ripped off by Ziggler. Ziggler hits his finisher, which is a reverse Pay Dirt, for the win.

Winner by Pinfall: Dolph Ziggler

Match Rating: **** 4/10

Eve Vs Layla is announced for next week.

Chris Jericho Vs Rey Mysterio in a No Holds Barred Match is announced for Extreme Rules.

Jeff Hardy vs. Edge:

Hardy ducks a clothesline and hits an inverted atomic drop. Hardy then goes for a double leg drop to the groin but Edge pushes him away, and Hardy hits the back of his head. I’ve never seen anyone counter that before. Edge covers for a near fall. Edge picks Hardy up and hits a nice neckbreaker for a close near fall. Edge punches Hardy in the skull a bunch of times and goes to the second rope. Edge comes off and Hardy dropkicks him out of the air. Hardy then baseball slides Edge out of the ring. Hardy springboards over the top rope with a plancha. Hardy puts Edge back in the ring and body slams him. Hardy gets to the second rope and hits a Hardy Leg Drop for a near fall. Haven’t seen him do that in a while. Jeff Hardy now signals for a Twist of Fate but Edge pushes him off into the corner. Edge goes for the Spear but Hardy counters with a sunset flip for a nice near fall. Hardy now goes for a Twist of Fate but Edge counters with a backslide pin for a near fall. Edge goes for the Edgecution but Hardy twists out and hits the Twist of Fate. Hardy struggles to the top rope and Edge cuts him off. Edge goes up top for a top rope Edgecution, much like Judgment Day, but Hardy punches him off. Hardy hits a beautiful Swanton Bomb for the huge win.

Winner by Pinfall: Jeff Hardy

Match Rating: ******* 7/10

Charles Robinson raises Jeff Hardy’s arm and he looks like he’s been through a war. We see replays of all the big head shots Hardy took in this match but he still came out on top. Todd Grisham gets in the ring and congratulates him on a fantastic win. Grisham now asks what type of match we’ll see in New Orleans at Extreme Rules. Hardy says at Extreme Rules he will not be painting, cleaning gutters, or changing bulbs but what he will be doing is climbing a LADDER to become the World Heavyweight Champion! It’s official – at Extreme Rules it’ll be Jeff Hardy vs. Edge in a Ladder Match for the World Heavyweight Championship! Edge clutches his championship as Smackdown ends!

What's Final Thoughts on tonights edition of Smackdown:

We had a tremendous Main Event tonight. Anytime Jeff Hardy and Edge lock up in the ring you know it’s going to be a great match. The match was fantastic and they did a good job of creating drama with Jeff Hardy’s alleged concussion. I really like that this is going to be a Ladder Match (did they really have any other option?) and the fact that they’re building up that their ten-year rivalry started at No Mercy 1999 with the first ever Tag Team Ladder Match. Really great stuff and makes me nostalgic for that great period in wrestling. This period isn’t looking too bad now, though, with all the new budding stars. Extreme Rules should be good. We had another great match from Chris Jericho and CM Punk. They really click together in the ring. Jericho’s character is so good and so dislikeable that it’s so much fun to watch. CM Punk has really grown on me and has been having killer matches as of late. This was just as good as last night’s Superstars match but I gave it a quarter of a star less because of the disqualification finish. John Morrison and Cryme Tyme had a great match against Benjamin, Haas, and Ricky Ortiz. I’m glad they’re going the heel route with him. It’s so much better because he’s another guy who’s just dislikeable. John Morrison and Cryme Tyme proved their worth, as did Shelton Benjamin, but I want to talk about Charlie Haas, who has gone from a joke to a formidable wrestler again. I would’ve rather Ortiz did the job than Haas because Haas has been looking real strong. I hope they do something good with him and he doesn’t just stay in Shelton Benjamin’s shadow. The Diva’s had another less than stellar match in my view. I’m going to take a bold stance – they should just stop letting the women wrestle. Every single one of them can’t wrestle well. Everything looks sloppy, unbelievable, and it’s embarrassing to watch. Where are all the Trish Stratus’s and Lita’s at? If they can’t have women that perform at their level then don’t even bother – it’s embarrassing and a waste of time. Maybe some people won’t agree with that but that’s how I feel. I’m really in to Dolph Ziggler’s little feud with Great Khali. I love the scumbag heel that runs away from the face. It’s great and he plays the role well. I’m looking forward to seeing what they do with him in the future.

Final Smackdown Rating: ******|* 6.5/10