We are live from the Royal Farms Arena in Baltimore, MD, and Smackdown General Manager Paige makes her way to the ring.
Paige welcomes everyone to Smackdown. She says we saw the first co-branded pay per view and she says it was a smashing success. We witnessed the first singles victory from the returning Daniel Bryan. She mentions Carmella’s victory over Charlotte Flair. She also mentions the WWE Title situation.
Paige says their match was on its way to becoming an instant classic until they got into a low blow confrontation that neither man could recover from. Paige says she did not see that happening when she made the No Disqualification stipulation. We will hear from both men tonight.
Paige mentions that there will be two ladder matches at Money in the Bank. One for the men and one for the women. Paige says she needs the best that Smackdown has to offer so they can bring the briefcase back to this brand. There will be qualifying matches starting… NOW.
Jeff Hardy vs. The Miz in a Money in the Bank Qualifying Match
They lock up and Hardy with a side head lock and shoulder tackle. They lock up again and Miz with a waist lock. Hardy with a standing switch. Miz with a wrist lock. Hardy with a shoulder tackle and near fall. Miz rolls to the floor and Hardy follows. Jeff with Poetry in Motion off the ring steps. Hardy rolls Miz back into the ring and he goes up top but Miz goes to the opposite side of the ring.
We go to commercial.
We are back and Hardy with arm drags into an arm bar. Miz with an arm drag but Hardy rolls through with an arm bar. Miz with punches. Hardy with a kick and he goes for a sit out jaw breaker but Miz with a knee and he gets a near fall. Miz with a knee to the back and a reverse chin lock. Hardy with elbows and Miz goes for Reality Check and hits it. Miz gets a near fall. Miz stretches Hardy and Hardy with elbows. Miz lands on his feet on a belly-to-back suplex attempt. Hardy with elbows but Miz sends Hardy to the floor. Miz misses a baseball slide through the ropes. Miz crotches Hardy on the ringside barrier.
Miz misses clotheslines when Hardy ducks. Hardy with a head butt and clothesline off the ringside barrier. They return to the ring and Hardy with punches and a kick. Hardy with a running forearm and reverse atomic drop. Hardy with a leg drop to the midsection followed by a drop kick for a near fall. Hardy with a kick and Miz avoids the Twist of Fate. Miz goes for a backslide but Hardy blocks it. Hardy gets to his feet and he kicks Miz and hits a Twist of Fate. Hardy goes up top for the Swanton and Miz rolls to the apron. Hardy misses a shoulder and Miz with a kick and neck breaker in the ropes.
Miz pulls Hardy to the floor and the referee checks on Jeff. Hardy gets back into the ring before the ten count but Miz still wants to be declared the winner. Miz with a kick and he gets a near fall. Miz with a running boot to the head and he hits a second boot for a near fall. Miz misses a running boot when Jeff ducks and Jeff gets a near fall with a rolup. Miz with an Awesome Clothesline followed by a double sledge from the turnbuckles.
Miz sets for the Skull Crushing Finale but Jeff escapes. Miz goes for the figure four leg lock but Hardy with an inside cradle for a near fall. Miz with a sleeper. Hardy with a jawbreaker to escape the hold. Miz and Jeff exchange punches as they get back to their feet. Hardy with a side Russian leg sweep and then he hits a leg drop to get a near fall. Miz with a sleeper but Jeff runs Miz into the turnbuckles. Jeff with an elbow and he hits Whisper in the Wind for a near fall.
Miz avoids the Twist of Fate and Miz is sent to the apron. Hardy with a leg sweep and a baseball slide to send Miz to the floor. Hardy with a slingshot pescado onto Miz. Hardy sends Miz back into the ring and then he goes up top for the Swanton but Miz crotches him. Miz with a punch and he sets for a superplex. Hardy blocks it and he punches Miz and hits a sunset flip power bomb for a near fall.
Miz kicks Hardy when Hardy goes for a hesitation kick. Miz blocks a Twist of Fate and Jeff avoids a Skull Crushing Finale. Hardy with a rollup for a near fall. Hardy with a mule kick and hesitation kick in the corner. Hardy with a Twist of Fate and then he goes up top. Jeff hits the Swanton but Miz with a crucifix for the three count.
Winner: Miz (qualifies for Money in the Bank)
After the match, Miz goes right to the floor and sits up against the barrier to recover. Hardy sits up in the corner and looks disappointed as we go to replays. Miz stands tall at ringside as his music plays and the referee raises his arm.
Backstage:
Sheamus is backstage eating Lucky Charms out of the bag. Cesaro asks him why he’s doing that. Sheamus says it’s the only thing that will make him feel better after losing to Xavier Woods last week. Cesaro thought he had him. Sheamus says he would have won if it wasn’t for Kofi Kingston and Big E. Cesaro says he tried to help but pretty much says he could have defeated Woods. Sheamus proposes Cesaro vs. Woods tonight. Cesaro says that’s a great idea because no one will disrespect The Bar twice in a row. Cesaro opens his gear bag and it’s full of pancakes. Sheamus laughs at him. Sheamus opens his bag and it’s also full of pancakes. They get mad and flip out to end the segment.
– Still to come, Rusev vs. Daniel Bryan and Charlotte Flair vs. Peyton Royce in MITB qualifying matches. Back to commercial.
– We are back with a Sanity video package.
Backstage:
We see Nakamura’s locker room and Renee Young tries to get some comments. Nakamura emerges and she mentions that Nakamura has not been cleared to wrestle. She asks if this is over between him and AJ. Nakamura says No… speak English. He says he forgot how to speak English. Renee asks Nakamura if there is anything that he would like to say to AJ. Nakamura says AJ is nuts and so is he. They are not finished.
– We take a look at footage from the Smackdown Women’s Title Match.
Backstage:
The announcers give us a look back at Carmella’s win over Charlotte Flair at Backlash. We cut to a backstage video recorded by Carmella. The SmackDown Women’s Champion brags on beating Flair and says it’s now time to party but not in a boring city like Baltimore. Carmella says she’s going to London to throw a Royal Mellabration next Tuesday. She says to forget the Royal Wedding and Prince Harry can stop blowing her phone up because the Royal Family is not invited. She says WWE Hall of Famer Ric Flair is also not invited and asks if we knew that he had a daughter, that her name if Charlotte Flair and that Carmella beat her. She laughs some more to end the segment.
MITB Qualifying Match: Charlotte Flair vs. Peyton Royce
We go to the ring and out comes Charlotte Flair for the next Money In the Bank qualifying match. Back to commercial.
Back from the break and we get pre-recorded backstage videos from Tye Dillinger and Naomi with comments on Money In the Bank.
We go to the ring and Flair is standing under the briefcase. Billie Kay and Peyton Royce are out next with mics. They apologize for Flair’s loss at Backlash but say she’s still an inspiration. They tell a story of a boy in Australia who had a stutter until he laughed for an hour at Flair’s facial expression following the loss, fell off the couch and his stutter was cured. The IIconics continue mocking Flair and the look on her face after she lost to Carmella. Billie says the MITB contract belongs to the future and Peyton says the future is IIconic. Flair tells Peyton to bring it and she makes her way into the ring.
They lock up and Charlotte backs Peyton into the corner and gives a clean break. Peyton misses a forearm and Charlotte with a few waist lock take downs. Peyton with an elbow to the head and Charlotte blocks a kick and chops Peyton. Charlotte with a fallaway slam.
Charlotte sends Peyton to the floor as we go to commercial.
Peyton with elbows to the collarbone and then she applies a reverse chin lock. Peyton with a knee to the midsection but Charlotte with a kick and neck breaker. Charlotte with forearms to Peyton as she blocks shots from Peyton. Peyton with a knee but Charlotte with an Irish whip and chops. Charlotte struts and then she chops Peyton again. Charlotte misses a boot but Peyton misses a spinning back heel kick. Charlotte with a belly-to-back suplex. Peyton goes to the floor and Charlotte with a pescado that hits Billie. Peyton with a neck breaker on the floor.
They return to the ring and Peyton gets a near fall. Charlotte pushes Peyton away and connects with an elbow. Billie drops Charlotte on the ropes when Peyton distracts the referee. Peyton gets a near fall. Charlotte with a rollup for a near fall. Peyton misses a spin kick in the corner. Charlotte with a boot to Peyton. Charlotte goes up top for a moosault and lands on Peyton’s knees. Peyton with an inside cradle for a near fall. Peyton with a knee for a near fall.
Peyton sets for a suplex but Charlotte escapes and hits a spear for a near fall. Charlotte goes for the figure four but Peyton with a rollup. Charlotte with a rollup and then she applies the figure four and bridges to force Peyton to tap out.
Winner: Charlotte Flair (Entered in Money in the Bank Match)
After the match, Flair looks up at the briefcase as her music hits. The referee raises her arm and we go to replays.
Backstage:
We get a look at Daniel Bryan vs. Big Cass from Backlash. Dasha Fuentes is backstage with Bryan now, asking about tonight’s MITB qualifier with Rusev. Bryan says the stakes are high tonight and they will fight. Bryan says Cass did attack him at Backlash but he did it because Bryan made Cass tap out. Bryan recalls cashing in on Big Show in Baltimore a few years back to become champion. He has a history of defying expectations and tonight will be no different. He will fight, he will find a way and he will prove that the bigger they are, the harder they come down. Bryan thanks Dasha and goes back to warming up.
– Still to come, Cesaro vs. Xavier Woods. Back to commercial.
– Back from the break and we get backstage videos recorded by Shelton Benjamin and Asuka with comments on Money In the Bank.
Xavier Woods vs. Cesaro
We go to the ring and out first comes The New Day – Xavier Woods with Kofi Kingston and Big E. The Bar is out next – Cesaro with Sheamus.
The bell rings and they lock up to trade holds. Cesaro takes Woods down first and talks some trash. Fans chant “we want pancakes” as Big E and Kofi start tossing them into the crowd. Cesaro goes after Woods and they lock up. Cesaro drops Woods with a shoulder off the ropes. Cesaro wastes some time and they run the ropes again. Cesaro catches Woods in mid-air but Woods counters. They run again and Woods takes Cesaro down with a scissors. Woods takes Cesaro to the corner and works him over now.
Cesaro goes for a cheap shot against the ropes but it’s blocked. Woods fights back but gets dropped from behind as he puts on the brakes to avoid running into the referee. Cesaro with a gutwrench suplex. Cesaro stands tall as we go back to commercial.
Back from the break and Woods fights out of a hold. Woods makes a comeback with offense, including a few kicks. Woods drops Cesaro for a 2 count as Sheamus looks on worried. Fans rally for The New Day now. Cesaro drops Woods over the middle rope but Woods comes right back with a counter. Woods runs the ropes and they trade counters before Woods drives Cesaro face-first into the mat for a 2 count.
Sheamus gets on the apron and yells at the referee. Cesaro tries to take advantage of the distraction but Kofi is there to provide an assist. More back and forth. Woods with a Shining Wizard as Sheamus argue with the official. Sheamus gets on the apron but Big E throws pancakes at him. Woods goes to the top now. Sheamus jumps off the apron but Big E moves out of the way. Kofi ends up leaping off the apron to drop Sheamus on the floor. Woods leaps from the top but Cesaro catches him in mid-air with a big uppercut for the pin.
Winner: Cesaro
After the match, The Bar celebrates as their music hits. Sheamus picks Cesaro up to celebrate as Kofi and Big E check on Woods in the ring. We go to replays and come back to Woods recovering in the ring as The Bar looks on from the stage.
Backstage:
Renee Young is backstage with the WWE Champion AJ Styles, who is also not cleared due to the Backlash match with Shinsuke Nakamura. Renee says Nakamura already said he’s not done with AJ. AJ cuts her off and admits he stooped to Nakamura’s level but he doesn’t want to fight like that, but he will if he has to and especially if the title is on the line. AJ agrees they are not done and says he doesn’t care why or where it is, if Nakamura has the guts to step back into the ring with him, AJ will finish him. Nakamura may be the king of low blows but this is the house that AJ built. AJ walks off.
– Mandy Rose and Sonya Deville are shown walking backstage as is Becky Lynch. We go to commercial.
– Back from the break and we see several action figures of SmackDown tag teams laying around. SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Bludgeon Brothers appear, wanting people to come play with them and their toys. They are waiting. Harper and Rowan end the segment by swinging their mallets at the figures.
Becky Lynch vs. Mandy Rose
We go to the ring and out first comes Becky Lynch. We see Mandy Rose and Sonya Deville backstage talking about how this is a new start, Paige was right last week, and they both can be in Money In the Bank. Paige appears and asks if Deville thinks she’s going to the ring, reminding them that Absolution is dead. They say Paige isn’t their mom and while Paige abandoned them for this cushy office job, they will never abandon each other. Paige bans Deville from ringside and walks off. They aren’t happy but Rose heads to the ring as Becky waits.
Rose comes out with her own theme and we get the bell. Back and forth to start the match. Rose nails a dropkick and stalks Becky some. Rose floors Becky again for a quick pin attempt. Rose keeps Becky grounded now and ragdolls her some on the mat. Becky tries to fight up and out but Rose slams her back to the mat and talks some trash.
Becky gets up and fights back, unloading on Rose with strikes. Becky with an uppercut. Becky goes for the Disarm Her but Rose escapes. Becky nails the Bexploder suplex. Becky with a big right hand in the corner. Rose counters the springboard kick and ends up rolling Becky up for the surprise win.
Winner: Mandy Rose
After the match, Rose hits the floor and stands tall as we go to replays. Rose heads to the back as Becky looks on.
– We get a look back at Daniel Bryan cashing in his MITB contract at WWE TLC in 2011, defeating Big Show to become World Heavyweight Champion.
MITB Qualifying Match: Daniel Bryan vs. Rusev
We go to the ring for tonight’s main event and out comes Daniel Bryan to a big pop and the “yes!” chant. Bryan hits the corner as we go to commercial.
Back from the break and announced for next week’s SmackDown in London is the debut of Andrade “Cien” Almas & Zelina Vega, Carmella’s Royal Mellabration and a MITB qualifier with The New Day vs. The Bar. The winning team will get to select one member to be in the ladder match. Back to the ring and out comes Aiden English to sing & rap the introduction for Rusev.
Rusev hits the ring as Bryan looks on. The bell rings as we see the briefcase hanging high. They lock up for a test of strength and trade holds as fans do dueling chants for both. Rusev drops Bryan with a shoulder. They run the ropes and Bryan takes Rusev down by his leg. The dueling chants are still going on. Bryan tries to get the surfboard submission but stomps on Rusev’s knees. Bryan with more offense, backing Rusev into the corner with kicks. Rusev counters a move and slams Bryan. Rusev keeps Bryan down with kicks.
Rusev charges but Bryan pulls the top rope down and Rusev lands out on the floor. Bryan runs the ropes and nails a suicide dive but Rusev catches him and launches him over the announce table. Bryan is down as we go to commercial.
Back from the break and Rusev remains in control. Rusev works Bryan over in the corner and the referee warns him. Rusev whips Bryan into the corner but Bryan counters and lands on his feet. Bryan runs the ropes and takes Rusev down with a knee. Fans try to rally for Bryan now as he waits for Rusev to get up in the corner. Bryan with a pair of corner dropkicks. Bryan kicks Rusev and takes him to the top for the hurricanrana, nailing it.
Bryan gets hyped up as he waits in the corner now. Bryan with the “yes!” kicks while Rusev is on his knees. Rusev ducks a kick and goes to set up The Accolade. Rusev catches a crossbody but Bryan ends up rolling him up for a 2 count. Rusev with a huge kick to the neck for a close 2 count as English looks on. Fans do dueling chants again as Rusev stands tall and calls for the finish. Rusev stomps on Bryan’s back and goes for The Accolade but his wrist gives out again due to Bryan working on it earlier. Bryan counters The Accolade and rolls Rusev into the Yes Lock. Rusev grabs the bottom rope and breaks the hold. They get up and trade shots but Bryan unloads with kicks. Rusev stuns Bryan with a kick. Rusev launches Bryan over his head but Bryan lands on his feet. Bryan stuns Rusev with a kick and brings him down face-first. Bryan leads the “yes!” chant again but English pulls Rusev out to safety.
Bryan charges and kicks both of them through the ropes. Bryan leaps from the apron and takes Rusev down on the floor with double knees. Bryan brings it back into the ring and goes to the top for a missile dropkick. Bryan clutches his ribs but still kips up as fans pop. Bryan waits in the corner as the “yes!” chant starts back up. Bryan charges but Rusev lifts him in the air and drops his ribs onto a knee. Rusev with the Machka Kick for the pin and the MITB spot.
Winner: Rusev
After the match, English enters the ring to celebrate with Rusev as the music hits. Bryan is still down on the mat as we go to replays. Rusev and English head up the ramp and talk some trash back at the ring. Bryan lays on the apron and looks disappointed. Rusev Day looks back at the ring and laughs at Bryan as he sits up. We see the Money In the Bank briefcase hanging high in the background as Bryan holds his ribs on the apron. SmackDown goes off the air.
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