WWF Smackdown
March 28th, 2002
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
March 28th, 2002
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Our commentators welcome us to tonight’s show and promote the big match on the show that has already been announced, Hulk Hogan, Kane and The Rock in six-man action against the New World Order (Kevin Nash, Scott Hall and X Pac).
A graphic appears on the bottom of the screen showing all the wrestlers who were picked by Smackdown as part of the draft lottery after Raw went off the air. I won’t bother recapping this or listing them as I’ve provided a complete draft results post previously.
Match One
Booker T vs. Diamond Dallas Page
DDP is one of the talents that was picked to wrestle on Smackdown as per the draft lottery. It’s crazy to think a little over a year ago, these two were main eventing PPV’s for WCW compared to where they are now. These two in 2002 have got a good match in them, they showed it in the tag match on Raw, and they showed it again here but unfortunately this match only got approx. three minutes of time. DDP knocks Booker from the ring, only to turn and be face to face with Brock Lesnar. Brock murders DDP just like he has everybody else he’s put his hands on so far, as Heyman cheers him on from the outside. This obviously means the match gets thrown out, and it never really got a chance to advance to another level. **1/4
Booker T vs. Diamond Dallas Page
DDP is one of the talents that was picked to wrestle on Smackdown as per the draft lottery. It’s crazy to think a little over a year ago, these two were main eventing PPV’s for WCW compared to where they are now. These two in 2002 have got a good match in them, they showed it in the tag match on Raw, and they showed it again here but unfortunately this match only got approx. three minutes of time. DDP knocks Booker from the ring, only to turn and be face to face with Brock Lesnar. Brock murders DDP just like he has everybody else he’s put his hands on so far, as Heyman cheers him on from the outside. This obviously means the match gets thrown out, and it never really got a chance to advance to another level. **1/4
Now it’s time for some Kurt Angle in ring promo time. The fans hit Angle with that “you suck” chant, and he tells the fans that they should show appreciation towards him considering he broke his damn neck in the Olympics to win a gold medal. He says these fans are almost as pathetic as what happened on Raw, when Stephanie McMahon was forced out of the WWF by Triple H. He talks about how great Stephanie was and demands a moment of silence. Instead of silence, the fans boo and Angle cracks and tells them they are all heartless. Vince McMahon comes out to join Angle in the ring. Vince runs down Triple H and says he blames Triple H for all the bad things Stephanie ever did, because he was a bad influence. Vince says Triple H drugged Stephanie, married her and then embarrassed her. He says Triple H is a real son of a bitch. Vince admits that he’s glad Triple H is still champion, because Triple H on both shows means Vince can make his life a living hell. WWF Undisputed Champion Triple H comes to the stage and promises to make Vince’s life a living hell as well. Triple H then shows clips of him nailing the Spinebuster to Stephanie on Raw. This infuriates Vince and after some back and forth with Angle, he books Triple H vs. Angle and Vince in a Handicap match tonight. Ric Flair comes out onto the stage and decides to make the match a tag team match. Flair says this isn’t Vince’s show until next week so Flair will partner with Triple H tonight. Angle’s over the top nature of sucking up to Stephanie and the moment of silence was the highlight. After this, turned into a solid enough segment which gets us another match signed for tonight.
The Dudley Boyz are getting ready for their WWF Tag Team Championship shot in the back and talk about how if they don’t win tonight, it’s over for them as a team. We know they’ve already been split by the draft, so I like the idea of them having a title shot tonight. Just adds some drama to what would otherwise probably be a throw away match.
Match Two
WWF Tag Team Championship Match
Billy and Chuck (c) w/Rico vs. The Dudley Boyz
I think I’ve said enough times by now that inside the ring, Billy and Chuck are not a good team. That hasn’t magically changed overnight unfortunately. They are not good and even despite recently being paired with The Hardyz, and now The Dudleyz (two great teams), they still haven’t been able to put on a really good match. With that being said, this probably is one of their better matches since becoming tag champs. Rico interferes throughout here, and when The Dudleyz nail the 3D, Rico distracts the referee. D’Von leaves the ring and chases after Rico, and all the chaos leaves Bubba alone, and he falls victim to the Fameasser from Billy for the pin. Better from the tag champs, but still not good. **1/4
WWF Tag Team Championship Match
Billy and Chuck (c) w/Rico vs. The Dudley Boyz
I think I’ve said enough times by now that inside the ring, Billy and Chuck are not a good team. That hasn’t magically changed overnight unfortunately. They are not good and even despite recently being paired with The Hardyz, and now The Dudleyz (two great teams), they still haven’t been able to put on a really good match. With that being said, this probably is one of their better matches since becoming tag champs. Rico interferes throughout here, and when The Dudleyz nail the 3D, Rico distracts the referee. D’Von leaves the ring and chases after Rico, and all the chaos leaves Bubba alone, and he falls victim to the Fameasser from Billy for the pin. Better from the tag champs, but still not good. **1/4
After the match, The Dudleyz have one last stand as D’Von comes back and they give a 3D to Chuck. They then give Billy a 3D through a table. Bubba and D’Von embrace in a nice moment as they have their last appearance as a team. The match wasn’t great but cool to see The Dudleyz get one last table spot and come out on top on their last night together.
In The APA’s office, Bradshaw and Faarooq talk about how much it sucks to get pulled apart like this because Ric Flair and Vince McMahon can’t get along. They say that they will forever be brothers, and they are going to enjoy their last night on the same show together. They see Tajiri and Torrie Wilson walking passed their office and call them over. They tell them to spread the word of a party with a lot of beer. They send Tajiri to get more party people whilst Torrie can stay and play strip poker. Harmless, fun APA segment.
Lilian Garcia interviews Matt Hardy and Lita in the back, and they talk about how happy they are that they have both been drafted too Raw. An annoyed Chris Jericho interrupts and he’s mad because he’s not on both shows because he’s no longer the WWF Undisputed Champion. Jericho won’t be happy until he’s champion once again. Matt laughs and calls Jericho a has been, before he and Lita leave. This annoys Jericho even more, so he attacks Matt from behind, bumping him into Lita in the process. Jericho then leaves as Matt gets up and is pissed. All characters here have motivations that make sense, and their stories linked well to create this dynamic. Good stuff.
Hulk Hogan is in the locker room in the back when The Rock comes in. Hogan talks about their other tag team partner being Kane, and how Kane is bigger and badder than anybody else Hogan has ever been in the ring with. The Rock tries to ease Hogan’s concerns, telling him that Kane is an ass kicker and can be trusted. Kane shows up and asks Rock if he’s ready, and when Rock tries to respond, Kane hits him with the “it doesn’t matter if you’re ready”. Kane asks what the NWO are going to do when all of them run wild on the NWO. There is also a part here where he calls his fans Kaneanights. This segment was a lot of fun. Hypes the big-time match, but also lets Kane be hilarious and steal the show. Amazing.
Match Three
Hulk Hogan, Kane and The Rock vs. The Outsiders and X Pac
Much like the tag match on Raw involving the NWO and Hogan and Rock, this isn’t groundbreaking stuff, but it’s a completely passable wrestling match. Again, for a match involving the names here, it didn’t really get treated that well, only going a little over five minutes. With that being said, The Rock had his usual awesome babyface fire, and his interactions with X Pac were really crips throughout. Pretty early on, Hogan gets the Big Boot and Leg Drop on Scott Hall, but Kevin Nash makes the save. All hell breaks loose, and Hall and Nash put on a solid performance once they get in control, until Kane gets the hot tag. Kane’s big run at the end here is really great. He cleans house and eventually counters X Pac’s Bronco Buster into a Chokeslam for the win. I’m completely torn on the booking here. Kane getting the pin here shows how he’ll still be a threat to the NWO once Rock and Hogan are gone. However, the NWO have barely won a single match, so it’s getting hard to continue to see them as a big deal when they lose every match. Match was okayish **1/4
Match Four
Chris Jericho vs. Matt Hardy w/Lita
They only get a few minutes again here, but they fill the few minutes with some pretty good action at least. Towards the end of the match, Jericho went for the Walls Of Jericho, but Lita jumped on the apron. By escaping the submission, Matt accidentally kicks Jericho stumbling into Lita, which knocks her off the apron. Matt goes for the Twist Of Fate, but with the referee checking on Lita, Jericho gets a low blow, followed by the Walls Of Jericho for the win. I will say the last month of booking of Jericho’s title reign and since he lost the title has been bad for his character, so it was nice to see Jericho back on the positive side of things here. Give these guys 8 minutes or so and they’re probably having an awesome match. This one was just okay due to time. **1/4
Hulk Hogan, Kane and The Rock vs. The Outsiders and X Pac
Much like the tag match on Raw involving the NWO and Hogan and Rock, this isn’t groundbreaking stuff, but it’s a completely passable wrestling match. Again, for a match involving the names here, it didn’t really get treated that well, only going a little over five minutes. With that being said, The Rock had his usual awesome babyface fire, and his interactions with X Pac were really crips throughout. Pretty early on, Hogan gets the Big Boot and Leg Drop on Scott Hall, but Kevin Nash makes the save. All hell breaks loose, and Hall and Nash put on a solid performance once they get in control, until Kane gets the hot tag. Kane’s big run at the end here is really great. He cleans house and eventually counters X Pac’s Bronco Buster into a Chokeslam for the win. I’m completely torn on the booking here. Kane getting the pin here shows how he’ll still be a threat to the NWO once Rock and Hogan are gone. However, the NWO have barely won a single match, so it’s getting hard to continue to see them as a big deal when they lose every match. Match was okayish **1/4
Match Four
Chris Jericho vs. Matt Hardy w/Lita
They only get a few minutes again here, but they fill the few minutes with some pretty good action at least. Towards the end of the match, Jericho went for the Walls Of Jericho, but Lita jumped on the apron. By escaping the submission, Matt accidentally kicks Jericho stumbling into Lita, which knocks her off the apron. Matt goes for the Twist Of Fate, but with the referee checking on Lita, Jericho gets a low blow, followed by the Walls Of Jericho for the win. I will say the last month of booking of Jericho’s title reign and since he lost the title has been bad for his character, so it was nice to see Jericho back on the positive side of things here. Give these guys 8 minutes or so and they’re probably having an awesome match. This one was just okay due to time. **1/4
After the match, Jericho isn’t finished as he puts the Walls Of Jericho on Lita outside the ring. Typical heel move from Jericho. I like it.
We head back to The APA office where it looks like the party is underway, with a whole heap of mid carders hanging around smoking cigars, drinking beers and playing poker. They all reminisce together about some of their favourite moments over the years. Tajiri wins the round of poker, so Torrie has to take off an item of clothing, but she takes off this weird chain thing that’s over her stomach. Everybody seems disappointed when Christian realises, he was only one card of a royal flush and throws a temper tantrum for losing a round of poker. Another fun segment here. The Torrie strip tease was fine, but Christian throwing the temper tantrum, when everybody else didn’t care if they lost because they get to see Torrie is great. Shows how self-centred his character is.
Match Five
WWF Intercontinental Championship Match
Rob Van Dam © vs. Test
The action was fine here and shows that these two can actually mesh quite well together, but I just think the story they tried to tell here was meh. It also doesn’t help that this was yet another match that barely gets any time. Anyway, Test breaks the rules throughout the match, and it gets to a point where he is repeatedly arguing with Earl Hebner. Test would bully and push and shove the ref, until Earl pushes Test right into a Roll Up from Van Dam. RVD gets the win with a flash pin from a clear fast count from the annoyed referee. I guess if this leads somewhere it’s a necessary evil, but not big on referee’s being match deciders like this. Without the referee shenanigans taking up so much time, these two probably could have had a much better match. **
WWF Intercontinental Championship Match
Rob Van Dam © vs. Test
The action was fine here and shows that these two can actually mesh quite well together, but I just think the story they tried to tell here was meh. It also doesn’t help that this was yet another match that barely gets any time. Anyway, Test breaks the rules throughout the match, and it gets to a point where he is repeatedly arguing with Earl Hebner. Test would bully and push and shove the ref, until Earl pushes Test right into a Roll Up from Van Dam. RVD gets the win with a flash pin from a clear fast count from the annoyed referee. I guess if this leads somewhere it’s a necessary evil, but not big on referee’s being match deciders like this. Without the referee shenanigans taking up so much time, these two probably could have had a much better match. **
The Coach interviews Raven backstage and asks about him being handpicked to win and take the WWF Hardcore Championship back to Raw. Raven says which show he competed on is less important than what he wrestles for. The WWF Hardcore Championship is his first objective. Maven’s success would cause his downfall. Maven will feel the “Raven effect”. Simple segment here. Feel like this was more about reintroducing Raven to the crowd than anything else.
Match Six
WWF Hardcore Championship Match
Maven (c) vs. Raven
Nothing much to talk about here. They do typical boring WWF Hardcore stuff. It almost seems like they’re just killing time until Tommy Dreamer interferes. Tommy comes in and tries to get involved, but Maven actually manages to fight Dreamer off and send him out of the ring. Once it’s down to just the two of them, Raven lands the Raven Effect (Evenflow DDT) to get the win. Meandering clobbering and some weapon usage doesn’t warrant a good match from here. Hoping this new run means they’ll use Raven better, but really, I already know that won’t happen. *1/2
WWF Hardcore Championship Match
Maven (c) vs. Raven
Nothing much to talk about here. They do typical boring WWF Hardcore stuff. It almost seems like they’re just killing time until Tommy Dreamer interferes. Tommy comes in and tries to get involved, but Maven actually manages to fight Dreamer off and send him out of the ring. Once it’s down to just the two of them, Raven lands the Raven Effect (Evenflow DDT) to get the win. Meandering clobbering and some weapon usage doesn’t warrant a good match from here. Hoping this new run means they’ll use Raven better, but really, I already know that won’t happen. *1/2
In the backstage area, Vince McMahon is mad at Maven for losing the WWF Hardcore Championship, meaning Smackdown won’t see the title again. Vince does however admit that he’s confident he will be able to sign the free agent Stone Cold to Smackdown. Kurt Angle says he has it on good authority that Stone Cold will be on Raw next week to make his decision. Vince then decides that he means he will need to be at Raw next week to make sure Vince can present to Austin. Nice segment here to hype the importance of Austin in the end really.
Backstage, The APA party is still going until WWF European Champion William Regal walks in and says he told them that The APA will split up. Regal taunts them, telling them that they are out of business. Bradshaw says they are out of business, and now they’re out of beer so the party is over. Everybody scatters all over the place as The APA start a brawl and beat the hell out of Regal. At the end of the brawl, everybody is down or disappeared except for Bradshaw and Faarooq who say it was a good run. They then change the sign on The APA office door to read sorry we’re closed. APA were known for these segments more than anything, so similar to The Dudleyz situation earlier, I like that we got one last showcase of what the team is all about before the farewell for good.
Match Seven
Kurt Angle and Vince McMahon vs. Ric Flair and Triple H
I wasn’t sure what to expect with Vince McMahon involved as well as a low in confidence Flair, but this was surprisingly how fun or good it was. It looks like a strong main event on paper, and I think it delivered. To sell the impromptu nature of this match, Flair doesn’t have his wrestling gear and is competing in suit pants and gator shoes. Flair put on a terrific performance here, first in a sequence with Angle early on, before being the face in peril and expertly selling the leg that Angle and McMahon were working on. So the heat segment was good and Triple H brought the goods with some explosive, power moves making his hot tag good too. This is the best version of Triple H as a babyface. He shows up, stands on the apron, hits power moves once he gets the hot tag and then they finish things. Anyway, the finish here sees the referee get distracted with Kurt Angle and Triple H battling outside the ring, as Flair prepares to apply the Figure Four Leg Lock inside the ring. The Undertaker comes from nowhere and hits Flair with a Big Boot to the face, before dragging Vince on top for the cover. ‘Taker and Flair is clearly still going to be an issue on the brand split which is fine, and I liked the idea of Vince and Flair having one more match before their feud is essentially over. And I thought this match was good to. Main event is match of the night. **3/4
Kurt Angle and Vince McMahon vs. Ric Flair and Triple H
I wasn’t sure what to expect with Vince McMahon involved as well as a low in confidence Flair, but this was surprisingly how fun or good it was. It looks like a strong main event on paper, and I think it delivered. To sell the impromptu nature of this match, Flair doesn’t have his wrestling gear and is competing in suit pants and gator shoes. Flair put on a terrific performance here, first in a sequence with Angle early on, before being the face in peril and expertly selling the leg that Angle and McMahon were working on. So the heat segment was good and Triple H brought the goods with some explosive, power moves making his hot tag good too. This is the best version of Triple H as a babyface. He shows up, stands on the apron, hits power moves once he gets the hot tag and then they finish things. Anyway, the finish here sees the referee get distracted with Kurt Angle and Triple H battling outside the ring, as Flair prepares to apply the Figure Four Leg Lock inside the ring. The Undertaker comes from nowhere and hits Flair with a Big Boot to the face, before dragging Vince on top for the cover. ‘Taker and Flair is clearly still going to be an issue on the brand split which is fine, and I liked the idea of Vince and Flair having one more match before their feud is essentially over. And I thought this match was good to. Main event is match of the night. **3/4
A completely skippable show. Outside of the main event, not a lot of good in ring content, and whilst there were no bad segments, a lot of this show felt like holding pattern stuff. They’ll most likely go all out from next week with establishing new feuds when the draft results come into effect.
