WWE Smackdown live event
Pittsburgh, Pa.
Report by Dot Net Member Benjamin D. (a/k/a SignatureMove)

1. Ted DiBiase won a battle royal to earn an Intercontinental Title match. The other entrants were Daniel Bryan, Mark Henry, Sheamus, Wade Barrett, Jinder Mahal, Justin Gabriel, Heath Slater, Jimmy Uso, Jey Uso, Tyson Kidd and Trent Barreta. All twelve participants worked hard for a house show opening match.

Somewhat surprisingly, Daniel Bryan did not come to the ring with his Money in the Bank briefcase for this match. The final three were Ted DiBiase, Daniel Bryan and Mark Henry. Daniel Bryan pulled the ropes down as Mark Henry charged at him causing the elimination. Ted DiBiase caught Daniel Bryan off guard and eliminated him, winning the match and the title opportunity.

Tony Chimel introduced Kaitlyn as the special guest host of the event. Kaitlyn walked out and announced that she would pick four people to meet WWE superstars backstage. During this announcement, Tamina and Rosa Mendes interrupted Kaitlyn and taunted her. Shortly after, Tamina and Rosa were interrupted by Natalya's music as Natalya and AJ came to the ring. Natalya asked the crowd if they wanted to see a Diva's tag team match. Despite the protests of my friends and I, the match started.

2. Natalya and AJ defeated Tamina and Rosa Mendes. Good effort from all involved. AJ botched a move here and there, but it was still passable by Diva's match standards. Both heels worked on AJ for the majority of the match. Natalya won with the Sharpshooter after a hot tag from AJ.

3. Jinder Mahal (w/The Great Khali) defeated Tyson Kidd. My first thought was "It looks like Bret still has some pull backstage," as it was the second appearance by Tyson Kidd and the third Hart family appearance so far and we were only three matches in. Jinder Mahal dominated the match with Tyson Kidd getting some brief offense late. Jinder Mahal won with his full nelson slam. The Great Khali was there primarily as a special attraction.

After the match, Tyson Kidd was still recovering from the beat down and was receiving a fair amount of cheers when Wade Barrett came to the ring to continue destroying Tyson Kidd. Wade Barrett hit Wasteland on Tyson Kidd who was then helped out of the ring. Wade Barrett took the mic and cut a promo about how he didn't seek anyone's approval or respect.

Barrett then called out Sheamus for a match. Sheamus' music hit to a very good face pop as he began to walk determinedly to the ring. I found it interesting to note that Sheamus came out with his shirt on and, while walking to the ring, threw it to some fans in the crowd.

4. Sheamus defeated Wade Barrett. Sheamus and Wade put on what I thought was the third best match of the night (behind Orton vs. Christian and Mysterio vs. Miz respectively). Very good intensity from both men. Sheamus played to the crowd as a face on more than one occasion. He posed in the ring a few times for the fans and received cheers each time. It would certainly appear that they were testing Sheamus for a face run. If this crowd's reaction means anything, Sheamus should be able to get some good mileage out of it. Sheamus won with the Brogue Kick.

Tony Chimel announced that the next match would be a "Raw Challenge" match. The Miz's music hit and he received a good amount of heat with a few cheers mixed in. After posing on the ropes, The Miz requested the mic from Tony Chimel. The Miz began to talk about how after Monday he would be the new WWE champion and that he doesn't choke in the finals or in the big game like the Pittsburgh Steelers. This drew massive heat which was only made hotter by him bringing up the fact that he was from Cleveland.

The Miz then teased saying his catchphrase multiple times. Every time he would wind up to say it, he would stop and yell at a section of the crowd. After this, he would take the microphone, place it next to Tony Chimel or the referee's mouth and then back to him. The Miz would repeat this while the crowd would yell "Yay!" or "Boo!" depending on who the microphone was pointed at. The Miz stopped to say that the crowd were all puppets, but that he was the puppet master.

The Miz then began his catchphrase: "I'm the Miz and I'm…" when he was interrupted by Rey Mysterio's music. Rey took an extended amount of time to make sure all the fans at ringside got a chance to either touch heads with him if they were wearing a mask or to slap hands. During all of this, The Miz began loudly screaming back and forth with what appeared to be a fan's father in attendance.

Later, when Rey's entrance was finished, The Miz went to another section of the audience and took a little girl's sign that said "Rey Mysterio When I Grow Up Will You Marry Me?" and mocked the sign and the little girl. The Miz took the girl's sign in the ring, tore it into three or four pieces and left it at ringside. My girlfriend noted that the girl at ringside was visibly upset and appeared to be crying. Rey went over to the fan and spoke with her for around 30 seconds.

5. Rey Mysterio defeated The Miz. I felt this was the best match of the night. Tons of action, little to no rest from either man and a lot of playing to the crowd. If WWE does end up going ahead with this match on Monday, then prepared to be very pleased by it. Rey Mysterio won with a 619 and a West Coast Pop.

After the match, Rey continued to meet with all of the fans at ringside and took some more time to console the the little girl who had her sign tore up by The Miz.

Tony Chimel reintroduced Kaitlyn who reminded the crowd about how she would choose four people to meet superstars backstage. Kaitlyn cruelly decided that this should be decided by a dance contest. Both Kaitlyn and a security member chose four people from the crowd, three young adults (one male, two female) and one younger boy.

The crowd booed all three of the older contestants and cheered the young fan. It appeared as though the dance contest didn't matter as all four audience members were taken backstage. In other words, the dance contest wasn't just a figurative waste of time, it was a literal waste of time as well.

Intermission

6. Mark Henry defeated Daniel Bryan. Daniel Bryan brought his Money in the Bank briefcase for this match. Mark Henry dominated Daniel Bryan for most of this match with Daniel Bryan getting only a few hope spots. At the very least, Daniel Bryan showed that he can work with opponents of different sizes. For his part, Mark Henry played to the crowd and drew good heat by yelling things like "I can do this all day!" and "It's too easy!" Mark Henry won with the World's Strongest Slam.

7. Ezekial Jackson defeated Ted DiBiase to retain the Intercontinental Championship. Ted DiBiase and Ezekial Jackson had a few decent moments brawling in and outside the ring. Fairly good work from both men. Ezekial Jackson won with three body slams and the Torture Rack.

Tony Chimel announced the final match and main event of the evening. First, Tony announced Bret Hart as the special ringside enforcer. Bret's music hit and he came out wearing a powder blue Sidney Crosby/Pittsburgh Penguins hockey jersey. I doubt he needed the extra help. By my estimation Bret's pop was tied with, if not, second only to Randy Orton's on the night.

Bret made his way into the ring, motioned to the crowd a few times and then took a seat at ringside. Christian was introduced as the challenger. Christian cut a good promo that was similar to The Miz's. He noted that unlike some other sports teams in the area, at least he was able to bring a championship to Pittsburgh. Orton's music interrupted followed by the loudest pop of the night.

8. Randy Orton defeated Christian by disqualification, so Christian retained the World Heavyweight Championship. Orton and Christian gave a very good effort in what seemed to be the longest match of the night (Rey/Miz being a close second). Orton and Christian showed again that they work very well together with a variety of brawling and high-flying spots. At one point, Christian yelled at Bret and shoved him. Bret shoved back twice as hard as Randy Orton got Christian back in the ring.

Later, Christian teased leaving and getting intentionally counted out when Bret, who was at that point standing at the end of the entrance aisle, stopped Christian from doing so. The end of the match came when Christian, who was very much on defense at the time, slapped the referee causing the disqualification. At this point, Orton lost it and began beating down Christian.

Orton lifted up the ring skirts to find chairs, a metal plate and a kendo stick which he all brought into the ring, Orton hit Christian with the chair, the kendo stick and finally, with an RKO. Both Randy Orton and Bret Hart spent as much time as they could shaking hands, signing autographs and meeting with the fans at ringside. After the match, Tony Chimel thanked the fans and said that WWE would be back in Pittsburgh in the near future.

Everyone I went with was very pleased with the event. Although it lacked newsworthy title changes or storyline progression (as most house shows do), we all agreed that it was well worth the money and time spent.

Biggest Pops:
1a. Randy Orton
1b. Bret Hart
2. Rey Mysterio
3. Sheamus

Most Heat:
1. The Miz
2. Christian
3. Wade Barrett

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