It’s our last SmackDown in a Nutshell before the big show on Saturday, and we are going from Atlanta to Nashville for SummerSlam!
That’s right ladies and gentlemen. All eyes are on WWE as they are going from Atlanta to Nashville over the next couple days.
Tonight, the blue brand is rocking Atlanta. But, once that final match ends, the entire crew is going to pack up and head from Atlanta to Nashville for SummerSlam.
And there is indeed a lot to be excited for.
If big brawls are your thing, we should get that out of Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns.
Their Last Man Standing match is billed as the last clash of these two titans.
And of course, the youngest Mr. Money In The Bank is lurking.
We know we won’t yet get Rollins and Riddle, sadly. But, we’ve got fun from Miz and Logan Paul, if that piques your interest.
And let’s not forget a couple women’s championship bouts. All while fans wonder…will Bayley be in Music City?
Plus, with the big changes in WWE leadership…will Paul Levesque look to make any bigger than expected moves?
It’s one last show, for all the final hype, before the crew heads from Atlanta to Nashville.
With that said, it is time for…
SmackDown In A Nutshell: From Atlanta To Nashville For SummerSlam!
Let’s crack open this Nutshell and get into it!
Best Match of the night:
Zero doubt about this one, and it likely could have been the main event (maybe should have been but they had reasons).
The Donnybrook.
Now, at the beginning, some of the props seemed a bit too crazy-the bar, the barrels and such.
But they were not an impediment.
Sheamus and Drew rocked the house tonight, and with all the interference and whatnot, it did not detract from the match at all.
In many cases, I despise the idea of a triple threat match, but by the end of this one…
I was thinking…you know, put these two in that title match in Cardiff.
Worst match of the night:
This was more of a “by default” scenario.
Aliyah versus Shotzi.
The match was OK, and it flowed into our women’s tag match that gave us some Liv-Ronda hype.
But, as OK was it’s ceiling…good enough, if you will…it was the least good match tonight.
Star of the Night
Drew McIntyre, with a strong honorable mention to Sheamus.
The pair was given basically the first quarter of SmackDown for their Donnybrook.
And, the pair delivered. They earned the “this is awesome” chants that they got.
In the end, Drew won and officially landed the #1 contender spot for Clash at the Castle.
Was an enjoyable match, lots of emotion at the end too. And, to close the show with a hint at a possible Clash matchup?
It was a good night for Drew.
Spot of the Night:
For me, I would go with the Uso super kick on Jeff Jarrett.
Especially for how strongly Jarrett sold it.
Jobber of the Night:
On one hand, I figured I would go with Ridge Holland and Butch.
After all, they took some abuse from Drew McIntyre, for no reason other than to help build Drew up some more.
And then we have…Theory.
WWE, even under new creative leadership, is testing how much that briefcase shields it’s holder from losses and beatings.
Tonight, Theory gave Drew a receipt…but then he got ANOTHER beating from Brock Lesnar.
And, for good measure, as Theory was scurrying up the ramp…a Claymore from Drew.
Holy Sh** Moment of the Night:
While he’s now gone…Vince certainly felt that Theory was his next John Cena.
And, during this segment…I couldn’t help but see the resemblance.
After being sent to Suplex City by @BrockLesnar, @_Theory1 gets hit with a CLAYMORE from @DMcIntyreWWE!
Are we looking into the future? #SmackDown pic.twitter.com/xaEVAYDsPs
— WWE (@WWE) July 30, 2022
Specifically, it reminded me of when Cena was taken to Suplex City several SummerSlams back…
Botch of the night:
While he earned his star tonight…when Drew had the biggest shillelagh in the ring, aiming for Sheamus, you could see him barely make contact, or pull up and barely hit him.
Non-moves wise…Ronda cut a really bad promo.
She’s always been hit or miss on the mic, and largely miss. Any time I can recall, I feel she screams “I need someone to manage me”.
I can’t help but think her in a group with fellow Superstars with an MMA background-Sonya Deville and Shayna Baszler-could be interesting.
And, of the three, Sonya is strong on the mic.
LOL Moment of the night:
In the midst of what I thought was a not great promo, Rousey did have one shot at a fan that was solid.
“Shut up your mom failed you”.
Noteworthy Moment:
Well, we endured a lot of chatter that Max Dupri was done on SmackDown.
Some were worried he’d be gone. Others were hoping someone would bring him back as LA Knight.
However, after a one week absence…Max Dupri was back.
And…check it. The Fiend was back!
Overall lowlights:
Honestly…very little.
Like sitting here after a two hour show, I don’t hate any of it.
OK, fine, the one gripe? Max Dupri is back, so I don’t (yet) get to see LA Knight.
Overall highlights:
From top to bottom, and pretty much all stops in between, this was a strong show.
Strong for a regular SmackDown, and strong for a go-home show as well.
Call it a morale boost from the leadership change.
Maybe it’s a reflection of some adjustments that Hunter and company made for this one, now that they’ve had a whole week to get into it.
Perhaps this is Hunter doing his thing, letting the writers write, and not blowing scripts up several times just before going on air?
Whatever it is, it was another good show, and gives me a lot of hope for SummerSlam.
After the final bell:
Well, as I post this, I am sure the crew is hustling off from Atlanta to Nashville for SummerSlam…and they can do so with a smile.
The Atlanta crowd was hot, they were into the show from the opening bout.
SummerSlam might not end up being an all-time great show…but maybe it does.
There’s a lot more intrigue for it now than there was say, eight days ago.
Here’s hoping for a strong show in Nashville!
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