:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/72354342/20230605_SD_Usos_FC_fri__fba168c6be55a4217bc70044f16a5333.0.jpg)
WWE Friday Night SmackDown comes waltzing back into our lives tonight (June 9, 2023) with a live show emanating from Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines, Iowa, featuring all the latest build to the upcoming Money in the Bank Premium Live Event scheduled for early next month in London.
Advertised for tonight: Jey Uso must decide to either remain loyal to his twin brother Jimmy, or acknowledge Roman Reigns as his Tribal Chief.
Tonight’s show also features four Money in the Bank qualifying matches. This includes Michin vs. Bayley, Shotzi vs. IYO SKY, Santos Escobar vs. Mustafa Ali, and BUTCH vs. Baron Corbin.
Come right back here at 8 pm ET when the SmackDown live blog kicks off once the show starts on FOX. It will be below this line here. (Note: Links to illegal streams are prohibited. Pics and GIFs are allowed.)
WWE SMACKDOWN RESULTS AND LIVE BLOG FOR JUNE 9
A sad return to the eagle-shaped mirror, I’m the kind of mannequin that cheats and opens its eyes to the ladies of the spread, but right now I’m here to liveblog this here pro wrestling show for you folks.
The show opens with a recap of last week’s celebration for Roman Reigns reaching 1000 days as champion.
Solo Sikoa and Paul Heyman are in the ring and Heyman gets on the mic.
Before Paul can begin, Jey Uso makes his entrance.
Jey call Solo out for stabbing his big brother in the back and that he doesn’t know if he can forgive him for that, but he’ll let them say what they have to say.
Heyman has Solo takes a step back as he talks to Jey and says he’s got it all wrong and he’s opening his heart up to him. Standing this close, when Jimmy kicked Roman Reigns, did he ask Jey? Was he in on that? No. Jimmy pulled the trigger for both of them, and that’s how he’s always been as the older brother, the firstborn.
But the fact is that the Tribal Chief wants to groom Jey, as his right hand man, to be the next Tribal Chief. That’s his destiny, his fate, who he’s going to be, and it was never going to Jimmy and he’s known that since day one and resented him for it ever since.
Tonight Jey has a chance to bring gold back to the Bloodline, but not the tag titles, because Jimmy made sure there’s no more tag team known as the Usos. No, tonight the Right Hand Man and successor to the Tribal Chief has a United States Championship tonight...
...but he has to give Paul an answer now. Jey accepts the title match but is hesitant to shake Heyman’s hand and leans against the ropes for a moment while considering his options, before telling Paul E he’ll get back to him.
Santos Escobar makes his entrance flanked by Rey Mysterio and we go to break.
Mustafa Ali vs. Santos Escobar (Money in the Bank Qualifying Match)
LA Knight is on commentary for this one.
Escobar and Ali jawing, Mustafa throws the first punch, into the corner trading shots, off the ropes, big shoulder block from Santos! Tijeras, overhand chop from the floor, trading forearms, whip, hop up the steps, enzuigiri from the apron from Escobar, jockeying for position over a suplex, another kick and a Frankensteiner puts Ali onto the floor!
On the other side, Santos lands a suicide dive and Mustafa goes hard into the barricade! Plancha follows it up and we go to break!
Back from commercial, jockeying for position in the turnbuckles, Escobar knocks Ali down but he lands on his feet and counters a diving axhandle with a dropkick! Back inside, Mustafa off the top, 450 nobody home, roll through but Santos puts him into the turnbuckles!
Poison Frankensteiner... NOPE! Corner knees connect, fireman’s carry, Ali slips out, O’Connor roll for two, springboard tornado DDT... SO CLOSE! Up in the turnbuckles again, Escobar fireman’s carry, Mustafa fighting with elbows but he powers through...
Santos Escobar wins by pinfall with an avalanche Phantom Driver, qualifying for the Money in the Bank Ladder Match.
Post-match, the rest of the Latino World Order celebrate with Santos Escobar.
Sami Zayn walks up to Jey Uso backstage.
He has something he’s wanted to tell him since they were in the Bloodline together. Those were some of the best times in his life and in another world they might still be doing it, but that can’t happen because of one man, and he doesn’t even mean Roman Reigns, he’s talking about the Tribal Chief.
The Tribal Chief is the one with Paul’s voice in his head, the one with the paranoia, the one that pushes too hard. Sami tried to do the best for the family, but the Tribal Chief always had to test him, push him harder, push him against his brother.
Jey has a big choice here, and if he wants to stick with Roman and be the next Tribal Chief, he gets it, and he hopes he wins the United States Championship and proves the competitor he can be, he just wants him to consider the consequences, consider the end of the Usos, and listen to his heart, not what’s put in his ear.
And so we go to break.
Back from commercial, Alba Fyre and Isla Dawn are introduced for an in-ring interview.
Before they can get a word in, Ronda Rousey and Shayna Baszler interrupt.
Baszler wants some clarification, they want to call themselves the women’s tag team champions? How much do they know about the history of those titles? Shayna says she’s the reason those titles were even created, and those Shayna Baszler Commemorative Tag Team Championship are hers.
Rousey says she’s been crunching the numbers and they’re tearing through the division so fast they’re gonna need new challengers soon, and this division isn’t big enough for both of them and they want the titles. Isla and Alba accept the unification match and a brawl breaks out!
Isla and Alba slowly eke out the advantage and send the main roster champs packing!
A memorial video package for the late great Iron Sheik follows.
Damage CTRL make their entrance to send us to break.
Bayley vs. “Michin” Mia Yim (Money in the Bank Qualifying Match)
AJ Styles is on commentary for this one.
Bayley jawing at the announce desk, Yim dives on her, back inside, cover for two! Punches into the corner, whip reversed, up and over, duck a lariat, criss-cross into a tijeras and Mia is in control! Tornado DDT... NOPE! Yim boots her in the face, but Bayley is able to capitalize with a hairpull...
Bayley wins by pinfall with the Roseplant, qualifying for the Money in the Bank ladder match.
Post-match, Scarlett Bordeaux comes to ringside and blows red smoke into AJ’s face and Karrion Kross locks the Krossjacket in!
Bianca Belair talks with Adam Pearce and he begs her not to attack Asuka tonight because he has a lot on his plate. She scoffs, he says he gets it, she’s in line for a rematch already, so he just wants her to leave it be, for tonight only.
Belair says if she’s getting a rematch she can do him a solid and not get involved.
And so we go to break.
Back from commercial, we get a recap of Scarlett and Kross accosting AJ Styles.
AJ is backstage with the OC mad about being blinded but Mia reassures him they’ll get both Karrion and Scarlett.
Adam Pearce is in the ring with a pedestal and a new title belt for Raw Women’s Champion Asuka, who makes her entrance.
He takes the old WWE Raw Women’s Championship from her and puts a new WWE Women’s Championship around her waist. What this means for Rhea Ripley and her SmackDown Women’s Championship is left unaddressed.
Enter Charlotte Flair.
Pearce asks what she’s doing and says he thinks he knows and tells her she needs to get in line. Charlotte says she doesn’t wait in line, she made the line! She says it out loud and challenges Asuka to a title match, which leads to Asuka speaking Japanese before accepting in English!
Asuka spits the mist, Charlotte ducks and sends her packing!
We get a recap of our opening segment.
Paul Heyman rolls up on Jey Uso in the locker room and says he was slick and he got him with the cliffhanger, but the next thing he wants in his hand is his passport and his suit measurements. Uso asks if they’re going to a wedding, and Paul explains he’ll be flying to Money in the Bank on Roman’s private jet, and he needs his measurements next week for a triple celebration.
One, the Tribal Chief will be there live, and that’s always a celebration, two, the Right Hand Man will have a title celebration, and three, a public acknowledgement that Jey is being groomed as the next Tribal Chief. Uso says he loves it but pointedly doesn’t shake Heyman’s hand.
He says he doesn’t know why Heyman’s so happy, because if Jey is in the Bloodline, Paul will be out of the Bloodline.
Brawling Brutes make their entrance to send us to break.
Back from commercial, Adam Pearce is on the phone talking about Charlotte Flair’s challenge and schedules it for the go-home to Money in the Bank.
Bianca Belair rolls up and is upset about Flair jumping the line. Pearce apologizes, and she says when she gets hers back, it’ll be justified.
We see Carmelo Hayes and Trick Williams in the front row.
Baron Corbin cuts a short promo about how he’s gonna win this match.
Baron Corbin vs. Pete “Butch” Dunne (Money in the Bank Qualifying Match)
Dunne hot out the gates, kick and a tornado DDT, cover for two! Off the ropes, block Deep Six, enzuigiri sends Corbin to the apron and grabs a wristlock. Broken with elbows, but Pete wishbones his fingers! Baron with a lariat, Dunne catches him...
Pete “Butch” Dunne wins by pinfall with a legscissors cradle to qualify for the Money in the Bank ladder match.
Post-match, Hayes and Williams jump Corbin and referees and security pull them apart!
Shotzi Blackheart makes her entrance and we go to break.
Back from commercial, Pete Dunne is interviewed.
He says he’s coming home and he’s taking the briefcase, because every night the Brawling Brutes are back in the UK is fight night.
Baron Corbin rolls up to say it was unfair blah blah blah, and Cameron Grimes appears out of nowhere to wreck him with a forearm!
IYO SKY vs. Shotzi Blackheart (Money in the Bank Qualifying Match)
Bayley runs interference but Blackheart is able to stay in it with a knee and a suplex into the turnbuckles! SKY with the boot up, double stomp to the elbow off the second, arm wringer, uppercuts and elbows to the elbow, knucklelock and a armbreaker over the ropes!
Off the top, Shotzi ducks the senton, spin-out facebuster sets up a running knee, forearm and a kick, Tiger suplex into the corner! Big senton, off the ropes, suicide dive takes IYO out! Blackheart gourdbusters her off the top but Bayley runs in and trips her up!
SKY up top...
IYO SKY wins by pinfall with the moonsault, qualifying for the Money in the Bank ladder match.
Austin Theory is interviewed backstage and he’s confident he’ll beat Jey Uso and send him back to the Bloodline like the failure he is, and volunteers himself as a new client for Paul Heyman, should he need one, and we go to break.
Back from commercial, Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens chat.
Pretty Deadly roll up and demand a title match, but Sheamus and Ridge Holland appear to suggest a contender’s match. The OC join the fun, as well as the LWO, and Street Profits.
Adam Pearce is here to ask what’s going on, a stressed out KO screams about it, Zayn reminds him about his blood pressure and Adam is appraised that they all want tag title matches, and Pearce books a gauntlet match for next week to determine a #1 contender.
We get a hype reel for Grayson Waller.
Jey Uso makes his entrance and we go to break.
Back from commercial, commentary hypes up some matches on upcoming shows.
Austin Theory (c) vs. Jey Uso (WWE United States Championship)
Uso in control out of the feeling out, a lariat sends Theory to the floor and Jey puts him over the announce desk to send us to break!
Back from commercial, trading punches, Uso gets a nearfall out of it! Theory with a rolling thunder dropkick, front chancery, Jey reverses, Austin ducks a lariat, kidney shot, Argentine backbreaker rack spin-out powerbomb... NOPE! Theory waiting for him, fireman’s carry, Uso slips out and hits a superkick!
Drop down uppercut gets a superkick, enzuigiri follows, elbow from the champion! Superkick from Uso puts Theory into referee Ryan Tran by accident! Splash off the top, he’s got Austin down for about a seven count but there’s no referee!
Pretty Deadly appear to cut Uso off with forearms, but Jimmy Uso makes the save! Superkicks send Pretty Deadly packing, he turns to Jey but Solo Sikoa lays him out! Sikoa draws Jimmy up for the Samoan Spike but Jey cuts him off! Solo sidesteps and Jimmy accidentally superkicks Jey!
Jim puts Sikoa on the floor, plancha, Tran wakes up and Theory slides in...
Austin Theory wins by pinfall with a lateral press to retain the WWE United States Championship.
Paul Heyman stands with Sikoa on the ramp while the Usos recover in the ring.
Jimmy helps his brother up but Jey shoves him away! Jimmy tries to explain himself but Jey isn’t having it and leaves on his own, staring Heyman down. Paul apologizes and Jey waves them all off, disgusted.
Heyman calls Roman Reigns on his cell phone.
That’s the show, folks.
Loading comments...