The March 21, 2014 Edition of Smackdown is a Professional wrestling television show of the WWE's Smackdown brand, which took place on March 18, 2014 at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas.
Summary[]
The latest stop on The Road to WrestleMania saw John Cena's continued struggle against the intimidation of The Wyatt Family, a pre-Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal free-for-all and a WWE Tag Team Title No. 1 Contender's Match that transformed into an all-out assault on The Hounds of Justice.
In SmackDown's opening segment, rather than responding to The Shield attacking him – both one week ago and on Monday's Raw – Director of Operations Kane focused on WWE COO Triple H's brutal Raw assault of Daniel Bryan. Referring to the onslaught as the end of the “Yes!” Movement, the WWE executive said The Beard deserved what he got. Then Kane put the blame squarely on the shoulders of the WWE Universe for feeding Bryan's ego and reaffirmed that no one is bigger than The Authority.
Kane then read a written statement from The Game, who expressed regret about being forced to take matters into his own hands in response to Bryan's lack of respect and discipline. The message also shared his hope that the WWE Universe would understand that there must be respect for Authority.
Moments after Summer Rae climbed onto the ring apron to help turn the tide of Fandango's singles match against Fernando, El Torito opted to charge after the dancing beauty - perhaps realizing she was wearing a red dress! The chaos this created allowed Fernando enough of a distraction to roll up Fandango for the quick three-count.
In a hard-fought showdown between two participants of the historic Andre the Giant Memorial 30-Man Over-The-Top Battle Royal at WrestleMania, a determined Dolph Ziggler pulled off another huge victory, besting Damien Sandow with the Famouser.
In a furious Fatal 4-Way tag team showdown ordered by The Authority, Dean Ambrose & Seth Rollins, The Real Americans, Ryback & Curtis Axel and 3MB battled to determine the No. 1 contenders to face WWE Tag Team Champions The Usos.
However, before a winner could be determined, Director of Operations Kane, and then The New Age Outlaws, shocked the WWE Universe by suddenly attacking The Shield. The other participating teams quickly joined the onslaught on The Hounds of Justice, who ended up getting systematically taken apart by the overwhelming numbers.
Later, it become clear that Kane had in fact planned the entire thing, as he awarded tag team title matches to both RybAxel and The Real Americans as a reward for their involvement, while putting 3MB into the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal. As for the New Age Outlaws, as they joined Kane in celebration in his office, one couldn't help but remember that both the Director of Operations and Road Dogg & Billy Gunn share a common association with The Authority.
After throwing his own hat in the ring for the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal, The Miz welcomed special guest Big Show, the “odds-on favorite” to win that Show of Shows contest. He also invited surprise guests Titus O’Neil, Kofi Kingston, Alberto Del Rio, Big E, Cody Rhodes, Mark Henry, Goldust and Sheamus.
With every Superstar in the ring amped up to compete in the historical Battle Royal in honor of The Eighth Wonder of the World on The Grandest Stage of Them All, The Awesome One proposed that they prove their worth by taking out the giant standing right in front of them.
This lit the fuse on an unofficial, impromptu SmackDown Battle Royal between the present combatants, with Miz watching outside the ring. When it came down to Big Show and Sheamus, however, Miz tried to throw them both out. The World's Largest Athlete overcame his trickery, dispatching on both The Celtic Warrior and The Awesome One to be the last man standing.
After Intercontinental Champion Big E accidently rammed his shoulder into the steel ring post, Alberto Del Rio clocked him with a furious kick, picking up a huge non-title win on the reigning titleholder.
Emma learns the hard way not to sneak up on the Milan Miracle.
Joining the SmackDown announce team, Divas Champion AJ Lee explained that she and Tamina Snuka had resolved their differences following their Raw spat this past Monday.
Inside the ring, a sudden dispute between unlikely partners Summer Rae & Natalya allowed Brie Bella to hit the “Total Divas” rivals with a double dropkick off the ropes, before finishing Nattie with the Bella Buster for the three-count.
With his creepy WrestleMania adversary, Bray Wyatt, lurking nearby in the shadows, John Cena took on an ultra-competitive Luke Harper in a knockdown, drag-out SmackDown main event.
Moments after the Cenation leader overcame his opponent with an Attitude Adjustment in a truly hard-fought showdown, The Eater of Worlds and Eric Rowan stormed the ring. However, choosing the smart move of waiting for The Grandest Stage of Them All, Cena ducked out of the ring and escaped the numbers advantage from “The New Face of Fear.”
Results[]
- Numbers in parentheses indicate the length of the match.
- (c) refers to the champion(s) heading into the match.
- Fernando (w/ Diego & El Torito) defeated Fandango (w/ Summer Rae) (4:00)
- Dolph Ziggler defeated Damien Sandow (5:59)
- The Shield (Dean Ambrose & Seth Rollins) (w/ Roman Reigns) vs 3MB (Drew McIntyre & Jinder Mahal) (w/ Heath Slater) vs RybAxel (Curtis Axel & Ryback) vs The Real Americans (Cesaro & Jack Swagger) (w/ Zeb Colter) ended in No Contest in a WWE Tag Team Title #1 Contendership Four Way Match (12:28)
- Alberto Del Rio defeated Big E (2:55)
- The Bella Twins (Brie Bella & Nikki Bella) defeated Natalya & Summer Rae (2:28)
- John Cena defeated Luke Harper (5:50)
Other on-screen talent[]
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Image Gallery[]
Kane addressed the Raw slaughter of Daniel Bryan[]
Fernando v Fandango[]
Dolph Ziggler v Damien Sandow[]
The Shield v 3MB v RybAxel v The Real Americans[]
"Miz TV with guest the Big Show[]
Alberto Del Rio v Big E[]
The Bella Twins v Natalya & Summer Rae[]
John Cena v Luke Harper[]
