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MILWAUKEE, WI – Nine days before WWE Battleground, The King of Kings cleared the way for the sadistic Randy Orton to massacre The Miz, The Showoff challenged Dean Ambrose for the United States Championship and Bray Wyatt competed on SmackDown for the first-time-ever.
WWE COO Triple H opened SmackDown by justifying his decisions over the past month, calling all claims of favoritism and unfairness on his and Stephanie McMahon’s part “utterly ridiculous.” Citing Monday’s 11-on-3 Handicap Elimination Match as a prime example, The Game once again made the case that his actions are in the interest of what’s “best for business.”
Photos of The Game's plan | Triple H sits down with Michael Cole
The Miz, however, didn’t agree, as The Awesome One arrived on Friday night’s best show still fuming over a Big Show KO Punch ordered by Stephanie McMahon on Raw.
Triple H claimed that Stephanie felt remorse for her actions, and in the spirit of being “fair and impartial,” made a showdown for later in the night, pitting the retribution-seeking Miz against the Superstar who brutally beat him in front of family and friends two weeks ago on Raw … Randy Orton!
With his title rematch against RVD at WWE Battleground looming, World Heavyweight Champion Alberto Del Rio ultimately overcame R-Truth with a vicious mule kick on SmackDown.
But a “W” wasn’t enough for the titleholder, as Del Rio snapped in his dreaded Cross Armbreaker after the bell, prompting RVD to sprint to the ring to save The Rapping Superstar. Brandishing a chair, Van Dam hit a running skateboard of Extreme retribution on the Mexican Champion!
RVD's sick skateboard! | Extreme match photos
RVD may have gotten some payback for Del Rio’s Raw attack, but who will come out on top at WWE Battleground on Sunday, Oct. 6?
Battleground Hardcore Rules Match is deemed “best for business”
By decree of COO Triple H and SmackDown General Manager Vickie Guerrero, the World Title Match between RVD and Alberto Del Rio at WWE Battleground will be contested under Battleground Hardcore Rules.
After Zeb Colter banned the phrase “We the People” to be uttered by anyone besides The Real Americans, Antonio Cesaro & Jack Swagger set out to dismantle The Prime Time Players on the blue brand.
Despite a valiant effort by Titus O’Neil & Darren Young, The Real Americans did just that, scoring the Friday night win – thanks in part to an unbelievable giant swing by Cesaro on Titus that left “The Real Deal” completely dizzy for the remainder of the contest.
But it was The Patriot Lock administered to Darren Young after some tag-in confusion that gave The Real Americans the submission victory.
Flanked by Luke Harper and Erick Rowan, the enigmatic Bray Wyatt competed in his first-ever SmackDown match, systematically tearing apart Zack Ryder before planting Long Island Iced-Z with the terrifyingly effective Sister Abigail.
With the United States Title on the line, Dolph Ziggler engaged champion Dean Ambrose on Friday night’s best show.
For a brief moment, the presence of the rest of The Shield made it seem like Ambrose would once again have the numbers advantage. Showing off his smarts, though, Ziggler brought RVD and Kofi Kingston with him to the ring in an effort to neutralize WWE Tag Team Champions Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns at ringside.
When the match broke down into free-for-all madness, resulting in a No Contest ruling, Triple H reemerged to put an end to the “anarchy” and to make official a Six-Man Tag Team Match pitting Ziggler, Kofi & RVD against The Shield!
All-out action was the name of the game on SmackDown, as a Triple H-ordered Six-Man Tag Team Match lit up the blue brand. Though they had the support of the WWE Universe in attendance, Ziggler, RVD & Kofi just could not overcome the flurried offensive assault launched by The Shield.
The Shield retains gold at Night of Champions
After a fast-paced, back-and-forth melee in the final moments of the showdown, a Seth Rollins kick to the head allowed Dean Ambrose to pick up the pieces and cover Kofi Kingston for the pinfall.
Big Show told Renee Young he’s a “pariah”
A miserable World’s Largest Athlete told Renee Young that the position he’s been forced into by COO Triple H and Stephanie McMahon has made him an emotional “wreck” and a “pariah” in the locker room.
There would be no sympathy from Triple H, however, as The Game pretended to cry as he brushed Big Show’s concerns under the rug while keeping the giant under his boot.
After officially enlisting Tamina to her cause, Divas Champion AJ Lee continued to back up her promise to defeat every “Total Divas” cast member, adding Cameron to the list as she defeated the Funkadactyl on SmackDown.
Tamina proved she’s more than capable of being AJ’s “protector,” leveling Naomi with a vicious clothesline at ringside, moments before AJ connected with a shining wizard on Cameron inside the ring.
Following his devious Monday night sneak attack on former prodigal son, CM Punk, the diabolical Paul Heyman vowed that, at WWE Battleground, it would be more of the same for The Second City Saint when he faces off against Ryback.
With The Great Khali and Hornswoggle at his side, Santino Marella took on one-third of 3MB, Heath Slater.
After The Punjabi Playboy helped thwart Jinder Mahal’s attempt to “charm” the Cobra with a flute, Santino struck with his signature move, leaving Slater to stare up at the Friday night lights and getting Santino back to his winning ways after a Raw loss to Fandango.
The Rhodes family has officially accepted Triple H’s invitation and will appear on this Monday’s Raw.
Via social media, The Rhodes clan accepted Triple H’s invitation to Raw next week, issued during the COO’s WWE.com Exclusive interview earlier in the week. What awaits Cody, Goldust and WWE Hall of Famer Dusty Rhodes on Monday night? Find out at 8/7 CT on USA Network!
It was a tale of two matches in SmackDown’s main event, as The Miz battled — and defeated — Randy Orton by disqualification when The Viper ignored the referee’s order to disengage from his opponent after The Miz noticeably exacerbated a previous injury ( suffered initially at the hands of Orton on Raw two weeks prior).
But, claiming Orton purposefully sought out the disqualification, an emerging Triple H ordered the bout be restarted, this time as a No Disqualification Match that could only end via pinfall or submission.
Witness The Viper's merciless strike | Sadistic photos
The sadistic side of WWE’s Apex Predator was then unleashed with a twisted smile, as The Viper used everything at his disposal to viciously dismantle his wounded prey. The WWE Universe was left to look on as Orton decimated a helpless Miz, nailing his defenseless opponent with a ring-shaking RKO before finally covering him for the victory.
MILWAUKEE, WI – Nine days before WWE Battleground, The King of Kings cleared the way for the sadistic Randy Orton to massacre The Miz, The Showoff challenged Dean Ambrose for the United States Championship and Bray Wyatt competed on SmackDown for the first-time-ever.
WWE COO Triple H opened SmackDown by justifying his...
Photos of The Game's plan | Triple H sits down with Michael Cole
The Miz, however, didn’t agree, as The Awesome One arrived on Friday night’s best show still fuming over a Big Show KO Punch ordered by Stephanie McMahon on Raw.
Triple H claimed that Stephanie felt remorse for her actions, and in the spirit of being “fair and impartial,” made a showdown for later in the night, pitting the retribution-seeking Miz against the Superstar who brutally beat him in front of family and friends two weeks ago on Raw … Randy Orton!
Following his devious Monday night sneak attack on former prodigal son, CM Punk, the diabolical Paul Heyman vowed that, at WWE Battleground, it would be more of the same for The Second City Saint when he faces off against Ryback.
With The Great Khali and Hornswoggle at his side, Santino Marella took on one-third of 3MB, Heath Slater.
After The Punjabi Playboy helped thwart Jinder Mahal’s attempt to “charm” the Cobra with a flute, Santino struck with his signature move, leaving Slater to stare up at the Friday night lights and getting Santino back to his winning ways after a Raw loss to Fandango.
The Rhodes family has officially accepted Triple H’s invitation and will appear on this Monday’s Raw.
Via social media, The Rhodes clan accepted Triple H’s invitation to Raw next week, issued during the COO’s WWE.com Exclusive interview earlier in the week. What awaits Cody, Goldust and WWE Hall of Famer Dusty Rhodes on Monday night? Find out at 8/7 CT on USA Network!
It was a tale of two matches in SmackDown’s main event, as The Miz battled — and defeated — Randy Orton by disqualification when The Viper ignored the referee’s order to disengage from his opponent after The Miz noticeably exacerbated a previous injury ( suffered initially at the hands of Orton on Raw two weeks prior).
But, claiming Orton purposefully sought out the disqualification, an emerging Triple H ordered the bout be restarted, this time as a No Disqualification Match that could only end via pinfall or submission.
Witness The Viper's merciless strike | Sadistic photos
The sadistic side of WWE’s Apex Predator was then unleashed with a twisted smile, as The Viper used everything at his disposal to viciously dismantle his wounded prey. The WWE Universe was left to look on as Orton decimated a helpless Miz, nailing his defenseless opponent with a ring-shaking RKO before finally covering him for the victory.