WWE SmackDown Results, Winners, Live Grades, Reaction and Highlights After SNME 41
Welcome to Bleacher Report's live coverage for WWE SmackDown on November 7.
We are just six days removed from Saturday Night's Main Event, and things look a bit different for WWE after the show.
Raw has its new men's world champion with CM Punk after he defeated Jey Uso on Saturday, but Cody Rhodes was able to hold onto his belt by defeating Drew McIntyre.
The American Nightmare addressed what's next for him after another successful title defense, but that's not all. SmackDown has a new women's world champion after Jade Cargill turned in a dominant performance against Tiffany Stratton last weekend.
Charlotte Flair was in action against Nia Jax this week, and we began to see more build for Survivor Series WarGames on November 29. The two-ring cage match has become a yearly staple for WWE, so it will be interesting to see who makes up the teams this year.
Let's take a look at everything that happened on Friday's episode of SmackDown.
Cody Rhodes Kicks Off the Show
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After a quick recap of SNME, Rhodes came out to open the show looking pumped. He was smiling and shaking hands with everyone, and even took a moment to autograph a sign for someone.
The American Nightmare was soon confronted by his former AEW rival, Aleister Black. They didn't beat around the bush and agreed to a singles match later in the show.
This was a brief intro segment compared to the average opening promo from a main event star. Rhodes took less than 10 minutes from the moment he appeared until the moment the segment ended. It didn't overstay its welcome and immediately helped set up his next feud.
After that was over, Ilja Dragunov made his way out to put his United States Championship on the line in another open challenge.
Grade: B
Ilja Dragunov vs. Johnny Gargano
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Last time in action: Dragunov defeated Nathan Frazer (SD, Oct. 31), Gargano defeated Axiom (Main Event, Sept. 26)
It looked like Tommaso Ciampa would be the challenger, but it ended up being Johnny Gargano instead. The DIY partners distracted the champion so Johnny Wrestling could get the advantage.
It took them no time at to turn this into a competitive match with a brisk pace and some hard-hitting action. Both men are versatile performers who are great at many things in the ring, so they quickly developed chemistry.
This was the first time these two have ever even been in the same ring. They haven't even been in the same Battle Royal or multi-man match, so this was a rare treat to see two guys who have built such great reputations having their first encounter.
After putting up a good fight, Gargano fell to The Mad Russian's finisher. This was an outstanding way to get the action started on the show. Putting Dragunov in this position has yielded nothing but positive results. He is stealing the show on a weekly basis.
Result: Dragunov defeated Gargano
Grade: A-
Notable Moments and Observations
Charlotte Flair vs. Nia Jax
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Last time in action: Flair and Bliss beat Bayley and Valkyria (Raw, Oct. 27), Jax lost to Bliss (SD, Oct. 31)
After the break, Cargill made her first appearance on SmackDown as the WWE women's champion. She was all business as she marched to the ring without her usual showmanship for the crowd.
She literally picked up the mic, said less than 10 words, and walked away. She put the roster on notice by saying she is "That b---h." This was as short and sweet as it gets, which has its plusses and minuses. It didn't allow her to show much, but it also made it clear that she didn't need to.
As Charlotte Flair and Alexa Bliss made their way out, Cargill made sure to hold the belt up in their faces and talk a little trash. Bliss had to talk Flair out of going back to fight her on the stage.
The history between these two women goes back years, including one incident when they were clearly shooting on each other in the ring, but that is the past. This time, they were working together to make this feel like a physical fight without taking it too far.
There may have been moments when things didn't look perfect, but the physicality they brought made up for it. As Flair seemed to have the upper hand, Lash Legend shocked Bliss by attacking her from the crowd.
The distraction allowed Jax to hit Flair with her finisher for the win. it looks like Jax and Legend may be a new duo on SmackDown, which means we have a new NXT call-up to keep an eye on, too.
Result: Jax defeated Flair
Grade: B
Notable Moments and Observations
Giulia vs. Chelsea Green
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Last time in action: Giulia and Kiana James lost to Stephanie Vaquer and Tiffany Stratton (SD, Oct. 10), Chelsea Green and Ethan Page defeated Mr. Iguana and La Hiedra (AAA, Nov. 2)
We saw the men's U.S. title on the line in the opening bout, and the third match saw the women take center stage as Giulia put her United States Championship on the line against the newly crowned AAA mixed tag champ, Chelsea Green.
All Ego was in the crowd to support his tag team partner as she took on The Beautiful Madness. At first, it looked like this might be an easy defense for the champion. She came close to winning within the first minute with a huge knee to the face.
However, this went a way few probably expected. Alba Fyre ended up taking out James at ringside, which allowed Green to surprise Giulia with a rollup to get the upset win and become the new U.S. champ.
The match itself was short and had very little to it, but the fact that the result was so unexpected is what made it stand out. Giulia won't come out of this looking great, but Green being a double champion in AAA and WWE will raise her profile even further.
Result: Green defeated Giulia
Grade: C
Notable Moments and Observations
Rey Fenix vs. Talla Tonga
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Last time in action: MFT defeated Fenix and Shinsuke Nakamura (SD, Oct. 24)
As Solo Sikoa and his crew were heading to the ring for Rey Fenix could take on Talla Tonga, the Motor City Machine Guns and Nakamura attacked the other members of MFT to help even the odds for the masked man.
Fenix got the upper hand over his giant opponent, but it only lasted until the big man was able to regain his footing. He propelled Fenix into the air and slammed him down to stall his momentum.
This turned into the exact kind of match you would expect. Tonga used his immense size to dominate the high-flyer whenever he got his hands on him, and Fenix used his speed and agility to stay out of his grasp as much as possible.
Tonga was able to get the win with a big chokeslam, which made Sikoa a happy man. They were going to keep the attack going, but Sami Zayn ran down with a chair to make the save.
Result: Tonga defeated Fenix
Grade: B-
Notable Moments and Observations
- Asuka was shown blowing mist at Flair and Bliss while they were in the medical room backstage.
- Fenix almost moves in slow motion when he does a springboard, but in a cool way, not in a way that makes it look sluggish.
Cody Rhodes vs. Aleister Black
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Last time in action: Rhodes defeated McIntyre (SNME), Black lost to Dragunov (SD, Oct. 24)
The main event of this week's show was the match booked in the opening segment between Black and Rhodes. Zelina Vega accompanied her husband to the ring.
If you watched the feud these two had in AEW, then you know Black holds one more victory than Rhodes in their history. In their first encounter, Black squashed Rhodes in less than five minutes.
These two know each other well and how to work together to put on a good show, so they didn't try to ease into this. They went from 0-60 immediately and started making this a hard-fought battle.
Unfortunately for Black, this match did not end with a clean win. McIntyre came out of nowhere and hit the referee with a Claymore. Rhodes pounced on him, but then Black started helping McIntyre.
Damian Priest ran to the ring and started fighting Drew and Aleister. The show ended with Nick Aldis suspending McIntyre.
Result: No Contest
Grade: B
Notable Moments and Observations
- It will be interesting to see if Brandi Rhodes shows up to combat Vega during this feud.
- The delayed vertical suplex spot looked great.
- The double kick spot could have looked better. Black's foot barely even connected, so it looked like Rhodes fell for almost no reason.
The Final Word
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Friday's show was a bit of a mixed bag, but it was definitely more good than bad, and that is not something that can be said about every show, so it's a win.
Green vs. Giulia was the only match that felt too short, but it was almost by design. The fact that it had a dirty finish made the short time a little easier to accept, and having Green now holding two belts is going to lead to a lot of fun.
Cargill giving such a short promo was an interesting choice, but it might be the best route to take. She does not need to talk for a long time about her motivations, so having her give a quick declaration left its mark.
Dragunov once again managed to steal the show with his open challenge against Gargano. His reign has gotten off to a strong start and shows no signs of slowing down.
Legend making what appears to be her official move to the main roster is great for her and the women's tag team division since she and Jax appear to be a new tag chasing Flair and Bliss for the belts.
Rhodes and Black were having a great match before they were rudely interrupted, so hopefully they get to run it back soon.
Grade: B
.jpg?w=600 "Live Grades for SmackDown 🔡")
