Tuesday Night Smackdown! Live Television Report for February 28, 2017

Introduction: Office Promo

Commissioner Shane McMahon and General Manager Daniel Bryan are watching the conclusion to last week’s Battle Royale between A.J. Styles and Luke Harper. Despite the video CLEARLY showing A.J. hitting the floor first, they still believe in the “draw.” A.J. walks in and tries to convince them that he did win and he should be going straight to WrestleMania to wrestle WWE Champion Bray Wyatt. Daniel and Shane tell him that he will still be wrestling Luke tonight to determine who meets Bray at WrestleMania. A.J. makes fun of Luke, even when Harper walks up behind him. Bryan and McMahon egg Styles on until A.J. turns around to a glaring Luke. He walks away and Harper says “thank you” to Smackdown! Live’s men in charge.

The regular Smackdown! Live video plays.

Arena Promo

The Miz and Maryse strut to the ring for an edition of MizTV. They don’t waste time, bringing out their guest, John Cena. The host berates and insinuates he has too much influence backstage while Miz works “ten-times” harder “to become ‘the other guy.’” He accuses John of not letting him be anything else, and reverts back to WrestleMania XXVII, where he beat Cena for to retain the WWE Championship, but then lost it to John a couple of weeks later. He reminds Cena of when he (Cena) took on The Rock in 2012 and 2013 because John was mad The Rock left WWE for movies and television, while Cena stayed and worked every day for wrestling. Miz then turns it around, saying John did the exact same thing a couple of years later, while Miz was the one who is still here every week. Miz became really mad when Cena won the WWE Championship at Royal Rumble this year for a record-tying 16th time (World Championships, which includes both the WWE Champion and World Heavyweight Championship), and then took Miz out of the WWE Championship Elimination Chamber Match and another chance at the main-event of WrestleMania.

John retorts that everything Miz just said is the same stuff that most have been saying for a long while. He discredits Miz’s claims, and says that “you cannot fake ‘heart.’” The crowd starts to chant “let’s go Cena/Cena sucks.” Cena says that reaction is genuine because they know who he is while he questions who Miz is. John blames Miz on complaining too much and thinking that he is held down, all the while copying already-made Superstars when he first broke in. He warns him, “next time we talk, don’t bring a knife to a gunfight. Because, you’re not The Undertaker, but if you press me again, you a ‘dead man.’”

Maryse gets in John’s face, insulting him. She slaps him, but John says she just did wrong majorly. Nikki Bella marches out, but Maryse and Miz hightail it.

Later tonight, WWE Champion Bray Wyatt will have an “invocation” and up next, Mickie James takes on Becky Lynch in a Two-Out-Of-Three Falls Match.

Commercials.

Match #1: Single – Becky Lynch VS. Mickie James

(Stipulation: Two-Out-Of-Three Falls Rules)

They lockup and trade waistlocks. Mickie turns a side headlock into a cradle for one, and then clamps on a wristlock and shoulder-blocks. She avoids a springboard-kick from Lynch but not a baseball-slide dropkick!

Commercials.

Mickie is in control, rubbing Becky’s face into the canvas. She knees her in the back of Lynch’s neck, and then clutches her with a half-nelson crossface. (Thanks, Mauro!) Becky works her way out and hits a couple of clotheslines, and then a dropkick (thanks again, Mauro!), and then her running-forearm in the corner. James flatlines Becky into the corner, and then plants her with her Leaping-DDT, pinning her for the first-fall!

Winner of Fall #1 via Pinfall: Mickie James

Commercials.

Mickie is still dominating for a bit until she misses her diving double-knee-press from the top turnbuckle! Lynch rolls her up for the 1 – 2 – 3!

Winner of Fall #2 via Pinfall: Becky Lynch

They both end up laid-out on the mat and Women’s Champion Alexa Bliss walks down. She distracts the referee as Becky had an advantage, but is knocked down inadvertently by Mickie. Lynch reverses a roll-through into her Disarmer, forcing Mickie to give-up!

Winner of Fall #3 and The Match via Submission: Becky Lynch

Video Promo

Luke Harper is in a darkened room with only a light shining. “I’ve always been fighting. A constant battle in my mind with the demons inside. But I’ve made peace with them now. And now ‘they’ help me. Because I have new eyes, and I can see what true evil is. Bray Wyatt, I am not afraid of you. and when I win tonight, and earn my chance to face you at WrestleMania, you Bray Wyatt, you are going to be very afraid of me.”

The screen turns into Bray’s video. The WWE Champion is in a darkened room with smoke. “May the best man win Harper. ‘cause I have a message for him. A matter of fact, the whole world will want to hear what I have to say to him tonight. Of course, it won’t just be me. It will be me and my brother, my blood, Randy Orton. The man who supplicated himself to me. The man who will go on to make WrestleMania into his very own kingdom. Glory be to me, the holder of the ‘holy grail’ (WWE Championship), the ‘god’ you know as Bray Wyatt.”

Commercials.

Backstage Promo

Women’s Champion Alexa Bliss is interviewed about her actions in Mickie James’ and Becky Lynch’s match. Alexa puts down the interviewer, saying she doesn’t want to talk about them, but should be talking about her being a two-time Women’s Champion. The interviewer obliges and Bliss treats this like an acceptance speech until Natalya walks up and dismisses Dasha.

Natalya foreshadows a match between the two for the Women’s Championship.

Backstage Promo

Rene Young asks A.J. Styles about his match with Luke Harper to determine who faces WWE Champion Bray Wyatt at WrestleMania; he calls it “bogus” as he says that Harper’s feet touched first in the Battle Royal. A.J. is confident that it doesn’t matter though, as he will still defeat Luke and move on to ‘Mania for the WWE Championship.

Luke and A.J. make their entrances before the break.

Commercials.

Match #2: Single – Luke Harper VS. A.J. Styles

(Stipulation: Winner will wrestle WWE Champion Bray Wyatt at WrestleMania for the championship.)

Harper pushes Styles off of a lockup and places him on the top turnbuckle after blocking a kick. He avoids a few of A.J.’s leaps and hits a running-dropkick, and then throws him into the corner of the barricade and the steps. He follows A.J. through the ring but is kicked a couple of times. He kicks Luke’s back a few times and then punches. Harper appears to be gearing up, amid “let’s go Harper/A.J. Styles” calls. Luke is run into the corner but floats over and hits a forearm and a Tope Atomico, and then a boot! He then slingshots into the second rope, and then follows with a dive-through-the-ropes! Harper puts A.J. back in the ring and sets up for a sit-down-powerbomb, but Styles reverses into a hurricanrana! A.J. hits quick strikes but Luke counters into a half-nelson suplex for a near-fall!

Commercials.

Harper manages to sit-down powerbomb Styles! 1 – 2 – A.J. kicks out! He picks up Styles in a fireman’s carry but A.J. wiggles out. “The Phenomenal One” hits the “Phenomenal Forearm” and covers. The referee counts to three, even though Luke placed his foot on the bottom rope which would signal a break.

Winner and NEW #1 Contender to the WWE Championship: A.J. Styles

Post-match, Commissioner Shane walks out and changes the decision since Harper’s foot was on the ropes; he restarts the match!

Match #2: Single – Luke Harper VS. A.J. Styles

(Stipulation: Winner will wrestle WWE Champion Bray Wyatt at WrestleMania for the championship.)

A.J. goes for his Styles Clash but Harper reverses into a jackknife cover for two! Styles is thrown to the outside and starts to argue with Shane, but avoids Luke and McMahon is super-kicked! A.J. shoves Luke into the ring post, and then hit on the legs with a springboard 450 Splash! 1 – 2 – 3!

Winner via Pinfall and NEW #1 Contender for the WWE Championship: A.J. Styles

Backstage Promo

Rene Young asks Nikki Bella and John Cena about their confrontation with The Miz and Maryse; Carmella and James Ellsworth walk up, calling them “phonies.” Cena and Nikki challenge them to a mixed tag team match for next week’s Smackdown! Live.

Commercials.

Backstage Promo

A.J. is walking through the halls when GM Bryan walks up, offering his congratulations. Styles denies it, instead saying he will be at Bray’s “invocation” later tonight.

Match #3: Single – Curt Hawkins VS. Intercontinental Champion Dean Ambrose (Non-Title)

Dean drives Curt to the mat with a Dirty Deeds right away, before the bell rings!

Winner: No Contest due to no official atart

Post-match, Dean says he has learned many lessons, but gives one to Baron Corbin. “Messing with Dean Ambrose is a very, very bad idea.” He calls for Corbin to meet him in the ring right now! Baron meets him from the Titantron instead, and says he will not see Ambrose in the ring. They jab each other verbally back-and-forth for a bit, but don’t settle anything.

Commercials.

Match #4: Single – Dolph Ziggler VS. Apollo Crews

(Stipulation: Chairs Match – chairs are legal)

Apollo attacks right away but Dolph soon gets the upperhand after kicking Crews in the thigh and dropping him with a neckbreaker. 1 – Apollo kicks out! Crews reverses a whip and hits a dropkick, and then moonsaults off of the apron to the floor!

Commercials.

Ziggler seems in control but is dropped with a jawbreaker. Apollo follows with a kick and a leaping-clothesline! He picks up a chair, tosses it to Dolph, and hits an enziguri. He follows with a standing-moonsault and almost takes this! He runs into the ring post and is rolled-up, but kicks out even though Ziggler had his feet on the ropes! Crews slams Dolph onto a chair, Olympic-style!

He picks Dolph up again but Ziggler rakes the eye. He drops him throat-first on the chair, and then crotch-first onto the chair! Dolph covers to receive the victory!

Winner via Pinfall: Dolph Ziggler

Up next, WWE Champion Bray Wyatt will be invocated!

Commercials.

Arena Promo

WWE Champion Bray Wyatt saunters out and declares that it didn’t really matter if it was A.J. Styles or Luke Harper; “they are just mortals.” He threatens that A.J. will “feel the spirit of your master and natural force,” when they square-off at WrestleMania. Bray says he is from a deep, earth-like place, just like Randy Orton.

Randy appears on the Titantron, and is in Bray’s compound. He suddenly turns on Bray, saying “if you can’t beat them, join them, and then screw them!” He knows that “Sister Abigail” was “put to rest beneath my feet,” and picks up an axe-pick. “Your black heart is beating through your chest right now because you fear I might destroy what makes you tick.” He says he’s going to get ride of “Sister Abigail.” Randy starts showering the garage and Wyatt’s rocking chair with gasoline. “I’m coming for you Bray; I’m coming for your, I’m coming for your title; at WrestleMania.” As he continues to wet the compound with gas, Bray is visibly crying in the ring. “And now, I am going to burn the soul of ‘Sister Abigail’ to eternal damnation.” He lights a match and sets the compound up in flames. Bray goes ballistic ringside while Orton stares madly and seething into the screen to close the show.

End of Smackdown! Live.