WWE Friday Night SmackDown Recap: 5 Best Moments of the Night

The weekend kicked off in proper fashion last night, with an action-packed WWE Friday Night SmackDown!

Bleacher Report is here to break down the top five moments of the night, and there were plenty of moments to sort through!

This episode featured the fallout from WWE Night of Champions, where Mark Henry stripped Randy Orton of his World Heavyweight Championship.  For the first time in Henry's 15-year career, he holds one of the two major WWE titles.

Cody Rhodes successfully defended the Intercontinental Championship against Ted DiBiase in a match that has been largely overlooked by both the fans and WWE.

From Cody Rhodes barely bleeding thanks to the magic of television to Sheamus eating a raw potato, let's analyze the top five moments from last night.

Christian's Constant Begging for "One More Match" Comes Back to Bite Him

After Triple H followed John Laurinaitis in addressing the SmackDown Superstars in the ring, Christian took the time to interrupt Triple H and ask for "one more match."

Christian was careful in the wording of his request, asking for a title match after Hell in a Cell, where he was sure that Randy Orton would take the World Heavyweight Championship from Mark Henry.

This led to Triple H making a lumberjack title match between Christian and Mark Henry for the main event of SmackDown.  

The segment ended with Mark Henry staring Christian out of the ring and up the ramp.

Justin Gabriel Looks Impressive in Defeat Against Wade Barrett

In a match where most fans would expect Justin Gabriel to job like no tomorrow, he actually looked very competitive against Wade Barrett.

Competitive isn't even the word really; he was in control of the match up to the point that he was hit with a hail mary Wasteland.

Justin is growing on me, and I hope he sticks around on the midcard. His in-ring talent is great, but I do need to hear him on the mic to gauge how that particular skill is developing before I'm totally sold.

The Sin Cara Feud Is Slowly Developing, Daniel Bryan Still Can't Win

In what was a decent match, the "real" Sin Cara took on Daniel Bryan.

Daniel Bryan hasn't be winning often as of late.  Fans of his are feeling the effects, but stay strong!  I've said it before, and I'll say it again: better to job now than to look dominant and ready for the title too early before Wrestlemania.  Just have some patience; there's no need to fast-track Bryan. Embrace the slow build.

Sin Cara botched a little, as usual, but he's still exciting to watch, and the live fans adore him.

Unfortunately for the real Sin Cara, he wasn't able to actually get his first win since returning, as the fake Sin Cara knocked him off the top rope and stole the victory right at the finish.

There's a rumor these two are supposed to go at it at Hell in a Cell. How do you feel about the eventual Sin Cara vs. Sin Cara match?  Time to debut new gear for the heel version?

The Usos Have a Good Showing Against Tag Team Champions Air Boom

If the IWC didn't tune out of SmackDown after Daniel Bryan's loss, they'd notice that The Usos got some serious play in the tag team division in their match against current champions Air Boom.

Of course, Air Boom came out on top, but judging from The Usos' performance, they deserve some more air time, and could be serious contenders in the "booming" tag team division.

The Usos seem to have a hard time connecting with their Samoan gimmick. Anyone else think it's time for a little repackaging?

Randy Orton's Beating of Cody Rhodes Proves He Should Be a Heel

If we weren't living in the PG era, then Cody Rhodes, Randy Orton may have had one of the most graphic, thrilling heel turns in recent memory.

A rematch of their Champion vs. Champion match saw Rhodes utilize his mask to try and get the win over Orton, but all he accomplished was awakening the viper.

Orton ripped the mask off of Rhodes and beat him senseless with it, getting himself disqualified.  He then threw Rhodes from the ring and blasted him with the ring bell.

That started the waterworks, and no, we're not talking about tears.

Rhodes was bleeding like a stuck pig, and Orton looked absolutely invigorated by it.  We didn't get to see much of the blood because the cameras were focusing on Orton's face, but thankfully Orton can tell a story with his features, even if it may be a bit comical at times.

Rhodes got back into the match with the ringside physician's towel on his head, and ate an RKO on the table, which didn't break.

Orton slowly left the ringside area, menacingly walking up the ramp.

If this were another time, and maybe even regardless of Rhodes being a heel himself, this could have been an epic heel turn.  Orton was born for the role of heel, and I eagerly await his turn.