WWE SmackDown Results, Winners, Live Grades, Reaction, Highlights From May 1
Welcome to Bleacher Report's live coverage of WWE SmackDown on May 1.
Here's a look at what WWE advertised for Friday's show:
News also came out recently that the blue brand will be returning to a two-hour format this summer, but until then, it will continue as the three-hour show we have been getting in recent months.
Let's take a look at what happened on this week's episode.
The American Nightmare is Cleared
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SmackDown opened with a video showing how Jacob Fatu attacked Roman Reigns on Raw. When we went live in the arena, Cody Rhodes made his way to the ring.
He said he met with some medical staff before the show to find out if he has been medically cleared yet. He tried to tease the answer being a "No" before he revealed he had been cleared.
That is when Ricky Saints' entrance music hit, and SmackDown's newest star walked to the ring. He insulted the crowd a bit before focusing on the champion. He said Rhodes is barely hanging on and his title reigns have aged him 30 years.
Having a newcomer confront the WWE champion right out of the gate is definitely a great way to kickstart someone's run on the main roster, especially when those two men have shared history.
Rhodes agreed to have a match, but he didn't offer to put the title on the line. Surprisingly, this segment didn't go past the 10-minute mark. It felt like they said everything they needed to say without needing to fill time or rush.
Grade: B
Notable Moments and Observations
Charlotte Flair vs. Jacy Jayne
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Last time in action: Alexa Bliss and Charlotte Flair vs. Brie Bella and Paige ended in a no contest (SD, April 24), Jacy Jayne lost to Rhea Ripley (SD, April 24)
Rhea Ripley tried to offer her help to Charlotte Flair and Alexa Bliss, but The Queen turned her down before heading to the ring to take on Jacy Jayne.
Ripley offered to help because Lainey Reid and Fallon Henley were at ringside, putting Bliss and Flair at a disadvantage, and she wanted revenge for what happened last week.
Flair forced her to the corner during their initial lockup in an attempt to intimidate the newcomer, but Jayne didn't seem phased. A lot of how this match was structured was designed to show off their wrestling ability, and it worked.
Even with a few moments that didn't look as clean as they wanted, they looked good for two people who have never shared the ring outside of a single Royal Rumble.
After some shenanigans with everyone at ringside, Jayne nailed the Rolling Encore for the pin to get one of the biggest wins of her career. Fatal Influence attacked the former tag champs until Ripley came out to make the save.
Flair shook her hand to say thanks, but she didn't seem happy about needing the help.
Result: Jayne defeated Flair
Grade: B
Notable Moments and Observations
Damian Priest and R-Truth vs. Fraxiom
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Last time in action: Fraxiom lost to MCMG (SD, March 20), Damian Priest and R-Truth defeated MFTs (SD, April 24)
Damian Priest offered Axiom and Nathan Frazer a tag title shot backstage during a conversation with R-Truth, but Truth was upset because he was having a conversation with them about taxes, not title shots.
Truth and Axiom had a nice fast-paced exchange to get the action started. Truth quickly tagged out to Priest once he realized he was outmatched.
The high-flyers didn't seem to mind giving up a lot of size because they used their speed to keep the champions on defense throughout most of the match.
This was a fun back-and-forth contest that made Fraxiom look good, even in defeat. Priest finished Axiom off with a Razor's Edge for the win.
The MFTs made an appearance to attack both teams after it was over. Talla Tonga wiped out all four men as Solo Sikoa directed traffic.
Result: Priest and Truth defeated Fraxiom
Grade: B
Notable Moments and Observations
Two Bloodlines
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Sikoa gave a promo after the break about Fatu taking out his own family. This brought out The Usos to say they also have an issue with Fatu that needs to be settled.
Jey called The Tongan Death Grip that Fatu used sacred, and said it was over the line for him to use it on Roman Reigns.
Even though they all shared a common enemy, Talla still ended up taking out both Usos at Solo's command. Solo told them to tell Reigns he isn't their Tribal Chief and they are going to go after Fatu whether he liked it or not.
This segment was fine, but it would have been far more interesting if they formed a tenuous alliance against The Samoan Werewolf.
Grade: C+
Cody Rhodes vs. Ricky Saints
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Last time in action: Cody Rhodes defeated Randy Orton (WrestleMania 42), Ricky Saints lost to Shiloh Hill (NXT, April 28)
The next match was the one set up in the opening segment with Cody Rhodes and Ricky Saints.
The match got started during a commercial break following their entrances, but it was shown in picture-in-picture. They had a pretty standard exchange to start.
The American Nightmare started to build some momentum, but a swinging neckbreaker quickly turned things in Saints' favor.
However, a moment later, Rhodes recovered and hit the Cross Rhodes for the win. With the first chunk of this bout taking place during a commercial, it felt like we barely got to see them work. There just wasn't enough meat on the bone, especially for Saints' big debut.
Gunther showed up and choked out Rhodes after the match was over. He held up the WWE title, making his intentions clear. He is coming for the belt.
Result: Rhodes defeated Saints
Grade: C+
Notable Moments and Observations
Mizhausen
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Danhausen came out in his custom vehicle to toss some freebies to the crowd, but The Miz and Kit Wilson came out to spoil the fun. He said he came to the realization that the curse is real, and the only way he can break it is to be Danhausen's mentor.
This brought out Wilson to ask if The Miz has lost his mind. He said he wanted The Miz to continue to mentor him instead of Danhausen, but The Miz defended the decision because Danhausen has a connection with the fans.
Wilson recited a quick poem he wrote. He and Danhausen both wanted the handshake from Miz to signal his choice of mentee. The A-Lister went back and forth before grabbing Danhausen's hand and raising it.
As Danhausen was about to curse Wilson, The Miz attacked him from behind to spring their trap. They beat down the painted jokester and took him out with a Skull-Crushing Finale.
On paper, this segment sounds like it would be very dumb, but the three men in the ring pulled it off and had the crowd into it every step of the way. This was cheesy, but it was still fun.
Grade: B-
Angel vs. Royce Keys
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Last time in action: Angel lost, and Royce Keys won the Andre Battle Royal (SD, April 17)
Royce Keys had a singles match this week against Angel of Los Garzas. This was 100% a squash match designed to make Keys look as dominant as possible.
It was over in about a minute, with Keys not letting Angel get in a shred of offense. It was effective, but not exactly exciting. It will be fun when Keys finally gets to let loose against someone who can give him some competition.
Result: Keys defeated Angel
Grade: Incomplete
Notable Moments and Observations
The Gingerbread Man
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The gingerbread man costume was set up in the ring for Sami Zayn's promo. He came out shaking hands with people in the crowd and trying to act like nothing was wrong.
He compared the way the crowd has turned on him to when fans booed Bob Dylan for using an electric guitar. The fact that he was in Tulsa, OK, made the whole thing even funnier.
Sami kicked the empty costume and started beating it up to take out his frustrations with Trick Williams.
Williams showed up and drove Zayn away, but he didn't get a chance to speak. This whole segment felt off. It was designed to create heat for Zayn, but it fell pretty flat in its execution.
Grade: C-
Notable Moments and Observations
Paige and Brie Bella vs. Lash Legend and Nia Jax
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Last time in action: Paige and Brie Bella won a Fatal 4-Way (WrestleMania 42),
Lash Legend and Nia Jax were given a shot to regain the tag titles they lost at WrestleMania against Paige and Brie Bella.
Paige was immediately on defense against her more powerful opponents, and they did not let up on her. Bella tagged in and had control for a moment before Jax leveled her with a clothesline on the apron.
The babyfaces didn't have a chance to get in any offense until after a commercial break. Paige and Brie were able to work together to retain their titles in a match that was clunkier than it should have been, considering how experienced most of them are.
It never felt like they found their groove, and the couple of obvious miscommunications didn't help.
Result: Paige and Bella defeated Irresistible Forces
Grade: C
Notable Moments and Observations
The Usos vs. MFTs
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Last time in action: The Usos and LA Knight defeated The MFTs (Raw, April 13)
The main event of this week's show was a tag team match with Jimmy and Jey Uso taking on Solo Sikoa and Talla Tonga.
Jey and Talla started for their teams. The big man took a few shots before taking Uso out with one big clothesline.
It's gotten to the point that it feels like we have seen every possible combination of Bloodline and MFTs people fighting, so whenever one of these matches happens, it has a hard time gaining any traction.
Repetition is bound to happen in any promotion, but how you revisit each feud is what makes it something fans want to see again or not. Sadly, WWE has not made The Usos vs. MFTs feel like a big enough deal compared to what it used to be.
All four guys still worked hard to make the main event entertaining, but it was an uphill battle, especially on an episode with so few highlights.
The Usos didn't gain much momentum until the final few minutes, but even then, Tonga kept finding ways to overpower them. Fatu ended up causing the ref to throw out the match when he showed up and attacked Tonga.
He put Talla through the announce table with a Samoan Drop after sending Sikoa running. He didn't go after The Usos, but they clearly were not on the same side.
Result: No Contest
Grade: C+
Notable Moments and Observations
The Final Word
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This week's show got off to a good start with a strong promo segment from Rhodes and Saints, followed by a fun match between Jayne and Flair.
However, it seemed to go downhill from there. The tag match with Fraxiom, Truth and Priest was decent, but Rhodes vs. Saints fell short of the mark.
The stuff with Zayn, Williams and the gingerbread man has already overstayed its welcome, but if they focus more on the wrestling and less on silly costumes, they can get this feud back on track.
Backlash is less than two weeks away, but it didn't feel like there was much urgency applied to the buildup this week.
Grade: C+
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