After a good Monday Night Raw, we move onto SMackdown!, continuing the path to Money In The Bank on June 19th. Tonight, The Club will explain their actions against John Cena from Raw while Becky Lynch will take on Women’s Champion Charlotte! What more will happen? Read on to find out!

Thursday Night Smackdown! TV Report for June 2nd, 2016 – “Who is ‘Money?’”

Introduction Segment: Video Promo and Welcoming

John Cena’s return and beat-down by The Club on Raw is aired, then the regular Smackdown! video plays and the pyro goes off in the arena; Mauro Ranallo greets us!

Segment #2: Arena Promo

Tag-Team Champions The New Day dance to the ring. They are not pleased with The Vaudevillians interrupting their Dance-Off with Shane and Stephanie McMahon. Kofi Kingston, Big E., and Xavier Woods also talk about The Club, but are soon interrupted by Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson.

The Club berate New Day, and say they will be Tag-Team Champs one day. New Day retort and make fun of The Club’s name; Gallows and Anderson look for trouble, but Kofi challenges them to meet in the ring. A.J. Styles now joins, and proclaims it “our day. The WWE belongs to The Club.” Woods restates that they are the champions, but Styles calls Kofi “a joke.”

Kingston recalls his accomplishments of title-reigns, while A.J. took the same amount of time to get to WWE. A.J. challenges Kofi back, and Kingston accepts!

Later tonight, Kevin Owens and Alberto Del Rio will wrestle Dean Ambrose and Sami Zayn; and up next, Becky Lynch is wrestling Women’s Champion Charlotte!

Commercials.

It is made official – Kofi Kingston is going to wrestle A.J. Styles!

Match #1: Single – Becky Lynch VS. Women’s Champion Charlotte (Non-Title)

An elbow/collar tie-up begins and both struggle for an advantage. Becky armdrags Charlotte as she came at her, but Charlotte yanks Lynch from the middle turnbuckle. She kicks a few times in the corner, but Becky battles back with punches and hits Dana off the apron too!

Ads.

Becky continues her momentum with clotheslines, and then a running forearm in the corner. She brings her out with an Exploder Suplex for a near-fall. Charlotte chops and leaps with a neckbreaker, then chops some more. Lynch hits back again, but is caught with a roll-up for two! Becky catches Charlotte in a sunset-flip then an armbreaker. Charlotte powerbombs out of it and almost gets this!

Charlotte ascends the top turnbuckle for a moonsault, but Becky rolls and Charlotte lands on her feet. Lynch manages to clamp on the Disarmer, but Brooke interferes, causing a dq.

Winner via Disqualification: Becky Lynch

Post-match, Dana and Charlotte keep attacking until Natalya charges out and makes the save! They all brawl, and then Charlotte and Brooke retreat.

Segment #3: Backstage Promo

Rene Young interviews Dean Ambrose and Sami Zayn about their tag main-event tonight; Sami says they are on the same page, even though Dean and he will be opponents at Money In The Bank. Kevin Owens and Alberto Del Rio walk up and insult them and tell them they “won’t make it to Money In The Bank.”

Commercials.

Match #2: Tag-Team – The Dudley Boyz (Bubba-Ray and D-Von) VS. The Golden Truth (Goldust and R-Truth)

(Note: Breezango – Tyler Breeze and Fandango – are watching at ringside.)

Goldust and Truth control Bubba-Ray for the first bit, and Goldust gets some momentum until Breezango jump on the apron. Truth tries to get rid of them, but D-Von ducks and Goldust bumps R to the floor; D-Von rolls Goldust for the 1 – 2 – 3!

Winners via Pinfall: The Dudleyz

Post-match, Breezango taunt The Golden Truth.

Ads.

Segment #4: Video Promo

A recap of Dolph Ziggler and Baron Corbin’s rivalry is shown; Rene Young asks Baron outside the arena why he won’t be there tonight. Corbin blames the fans for being happy with Dolph actions on Raw – where he kicked Baron in the groin right away in their match. He threatens Ziggler about a “pummelling” and then walks away.

Dean Ambrose and Sami Zayn make their entrances to face Kevin Owens and Alberto Del Rio, next!

Commercials.

Match #3: Tag-Team – Dean Ambrose and Sami Zayn VS. Alberto Del Rio and Kevin Owens

Sami and Kevin start out, with Owens aggressive early until Zayn comes back with a headscissors! Del Rio is tagged in, and Sami brings him to his and Ambrose’s corner, and then switches with Dean. “The Lunatic Fringe” kicks Alberto in the corner but is overtaken soon, and makes the tag to Sami. Del Rio reverses a suplex and lands a backstabber on Zayn; Owens is in and both he and Alberto go back-and-forth for a bit on Sami.

Dean is tagged and dives onto Alberto forward-first to the floor, but Owens chucks Ambrose into the corner of the barricade.

Ads.

Del Rio and Kevin continue to govern on Dean until Sami rockets over the top rope with a Swanton-Plancha! Ambrose counters a kick by Alberto and brings him to the canvas with a swinging neckbreaker, but can’t tag as Sami was knocked from the apron. Del Rio tries a running-enziguri, but Dean ducks and he hits Owens! Sami is tagged and runs into Alberto with the Helluva Kick and covers to receive the victory!

Winners via Pinfall: Dean Ambrose and Sami Zayn

Post-match, Kevin is frustrated and pulls a ladder from under the ring. Cesaro, another participant in the Money In The Bank Ladder Match, runs out and knocks down Owens with a springboard tornado-elbow, all in a suit and sunglasses! He climbs the ladder and unlatches the briefcase, signalling that he will be the one to win!

Commercials.

Match #4: Single – United States Champion Rusev (with Lana) VS. Jack Swagger

It looks as this would be all Rusev, but Swagger makes a great effort! However, it doesn’t last as the U.S. Champ eventually locks on The Accolade, and “The All-American American” passes out!

Winner via Submission: United States Champion Rusev (with Lana)

Post-match, Rusev continues to hold it until Titus O’Neil sprints out and fends him away.

Ads.

Segment #5: Video Promo

Bob Backlund continues to encourage Darren Young, making him “great” by making him walk to the next city.

Segment #6: Video Promo

WWE World Heavyweight Champion Roman Reigns’ and Seth Rollins’ interaction on Raw is aired.

Match #5: Single – Tag-Team Champion/New Day partner Kofi Kingston (with Tag-Team Champions/New Day partners Xavier Woods and Big E.) VS. The Club member A.J. Styles (with The Club members Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson)

They lockup and trade side headlock-takedowns and headscissor-counters. A.J. armdrags Kofi a couple times. Kingston slides through Styles and hurricanranas him, then rapidly kicks in the corner. Both teams now enter and jaw at each other, with referee John Coan trying to hold them back.

Commercials.

It is still a singles bout, with Kofi leapfrogging A.J. a couple of times then hitting a jumping-twisting elbow! A.J. whips Kofi, but the Tag Champ slides down and trips A.J. Again, both teams face-off, which Styles capitalizes with by hurling Kingston into the ring post.

A.J. chops Kofi in the corner and then gives him a backbreaker. Kingston counters with a jawbreaker, but A.J. hits back with fast elbows and a clothesline! Kofi comes back with a monkey-flip form the corner and goes for the Trouble In Paradise spin-kick a bit later, but A.J. ducks. Styles goes for the Styles Clash, but Kingston gets out of it, and props A.J. on the top turnbuckle.

“The Phenomenal One” counters and is on the apron, but Xavier distracts by playing the trumpet; A.J. springboards, but Kofi ducks. On the outside, The Club and New Day go at it again, and this time Kofi gets involved, flipping over the top rope onto Gallows. He gets back in the ring, but is met with a Pele Kick by Styles, who then follows with the Styles Clash for the victory!

Winner via Pinfall: A.J. Styles (with The Club members Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson)

Post-match, The Club walk up the ramp as Big E. and Xavier hold up Kofi to close the show.

End of Smackdown!

Reporter’s Rumblings

This was a another decent week, but not a superb one. As average, some I liked, some I didn’t! Here’s the analysis:

Excellence: matches between New Day/Vaudevillians (Raw), Enzo/Cass and The Dudleyz, Six-Man Main-Event (Raw), Becky/Charlotte (Smackdown!), Ambrose/Sami/Owens/Del Rio (Smackdown!), Rusev/Swagger (Smackdown!), and Kofi/A.J. (Smackdown!)

Promos from New Day (Raw), Show/Crews (Raw), Enzo/Big Cass – as always!) (Raw), John Cena (Raw), Miz (Raw), Cesaro/Owens/Sami/Jericho/Dean/Del Rio (Raw and Smackdown! combs), and New Day/The Club (Smackdown!),

I loved the heel turn by A.J. on Raw; I actually didn’t see that coming, and it was a cool swerve. This feud with Cena and New Day VS. The Club is going to be fantastic. Same with the Money In The Bank match; all six have great chemistry both on the mike and in the ring, so their rivalry is solid as well!

Rollins/Roman are continuing to mesh well and Seth has picked up right where he left off before injury!

Nice to see Enzo back and hope he does well, both personally (physically) and in storyline!

Bogus: again, not caring about Golden Truth/Breezango feud; finish it at Money In The Bank and move on!

It’s a shame, but Natalya/Becky/Brooke/Charlotte feud is falling a bit for me, I think because of the shorter matches they have been given on the shows. Thankfully, Smackdown’s was a bit longer, but still, I’d like to see at least a good 20-minute bout between any of them.

Rusev/Swagger should’ve been saved for upcoming Monday’s Raw, as it is in Oklahoma; they had a great match, but I would’ve actually liked to see Swagger win the U.S. Title then for a “feel-good moment” in his career.

I’m really not sure on the Brand Extension. My biggest worry is constant trades/invasions again. No more of that; if they split the rosters, then they should remain on that show (except for all Champions, who should travel to both), for at least one year. In that calendar time, NO invasions/crossovers other than the Champions.

Until Raw, Be Excellent Wrestling-Online Fans!