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WWE Throwback SmackDown kicked off with some snippets of the first episode of the blue brand before Roman Reigns and his crew walked up to the ring. They mocked Daniel Bryan and Reigns welcomed back a returning Jimmy uso
Cesaro interrupted them and defended Daniel Bryan before saying that he would take care of Roman himself if he didn't have a match with Seth Rollins.
Rollins, and later Reigns ambushed Cesaro during the promo and a group of officials had to separate them.
WWE Hall of Famer and former GM Teddy Long was back and made an announcement stating that if Cesaro can beat Seth tonight he’ll face Roman for the Universal Title at WrestleMania Backlash.
Cesaro vs. Seth Rollins on SmackDown
The Usos were present at ringside as the match began and Cesaro was still dealing with the aftereffects of the early attack, giving Seth Rollins an early two-count with a slingblade.
Cesaro’s Neutralizer was blocked twice on SmackDown. Thanks to Jey Uso, Seth was able to hit the superplex-falcon arrow combination for a two-count. Cesaro put Seth in a deep Sharpshooter but The Messiah scratched and clawed to get to the ropes.
After an uppercut to the back of the neck, a kick to the same spot left the Swiss Superman in bad shape. Cesaro bounced off the turnbuckle following a buckle bomb and responded with a clothesline that almost took Seth’s head off.
As the action spilled to the outside, Seth was furious about The Usos’ interference. This lead to a superkick from Jimmy to The Messiah. Cesaro quickly capitalized on this by taking out The Usos and putting Rollins away with the Neutralizer on SmackDown.
Result: Cesaro def. Seth Rollins
Grade: A
Seth Rollins was backstage on SmackDown and yelled at Roman Reigns about Jimmy costing him the match. Roman said he understood where Seth was coming from but needed Rollins to understand his side as well. Seth walked off after telling him to handle Jimmy or he will.
Teddy Long was still backstage on SmackDown and added Sami Zayn to a ten-man tag match tonight.
In Reigns' personal lounge, Jimmy Uso wasn't used to the way Roman was calling the shots and said that he wasn't going to be bossed around.
Ruby Riott vs. Carmella on SmackDown
Ruby dodged an early superkick on SmackDown and brought the former Women's champion down with a leg sweep takedown.
Carmella caught Ruby with a huge kick in the corner, but couldn't get the three-count.
They traded pinfall attempts, leading to an STO and the Code of Silence which led to a win for Carmella on SmackDown.
Result: Carmella def. Ruby Riott
Grade: C
Bayley takes out Bianca Belair on SmackDown
Bayley was out next on SmackDown and thanked the women's champions of the past like Ivory, Molly Holly, Alundra Blaze, Lita, and finally made fun of the current champ, Bianca Belair.
Belair came out and said that her confidence bothered Bayley. The Role Model eventually attacked Belair who got a drop on her and took her Backlash opponent out.
Bayley took a dropkick but then yanked at Belair's ear rings and trapped her hair under her boots before slamming her on the mat.
Backstage, Jimmy told Jey he wasn't going to be treated like Roman's lackey and asked his brother to back him up for a tag team title opportunity. Jey looked like he was torn between his brother and his tribal chief.
Rey Mysterio was supposed to face Dolph Ziggler next on SmackDown but Dolph ended up getting into Dominik's head claiming he didn't belong in WWE. Dom demanded to face Ziggler instead, leading to the new match.
Dolph Ziggler vs. Dominik Mysterio on SmackDown
Dominik started strong and hit some big moves and a dropkick before Ziggler fled the ring. Dominik was dropped on the apron before Dolph took control of the match and hit a neck breaker.
A sudden roll-up saw Dominik pick up the win and we headed for some more recaps from earlier SmackDown episodes.
Result: Dominik Mysterio def. Dolph Ziggler
Grade: B-
Reginald was backstage and he was about to face Tamina in a match tonight.
Roman asked Heyman to get his cousin but didn't mention which one.
Tamina vs. Reginald on SmackDown
Reginald did some flips and dodged a superkick before Tamina caught him and tossed Reggie into the corner.
Reeginald made Tamina chase him around before taking a superkick and going down.
Tamina headed to the top rope for the finish but Shayna attacked her and caused a DQ. Jax and Baszler attacked Tamina and Natalya joined in but got taken out too.
Result: Tamina def. Reginald via DQ
Grade: B
Backstage on SmackDown, Apollo said that his team was ready to go into battle. Big E hyped up his squad as well.
Street Profits, Shinsuke Nakamura, Kevin Owens & Big E vs. Sami Zayn, Apollo Crews, Alpha Academy & Baron Corbin on SmackDown
We came back from commercials to see that the match was underway on SmackDown and Dawkins and Gable were in the ring. Ford and Apollo was tagged in and the IC Champion took control of the match.
Big E came in and took down Corbin before Owens attacked Zayn on the outside, leading to an all-out brawl. KO splashed on the whole group before we headed for commercials.
Shinsuke came in after a break and cleared the house before getting a near fall on Zayn. Big E hit a suplex, Owens hit a Stunner on Crews, and then a superkick on Otis.
Ford dived on Otis and Nakamura hit the Kinshasa on Sami in the ring but Zayn managed to tag out to Corbin. King Corbin came in and picked up the win with the End of Days.
Result: Sami Zayn, Apollo Crews, Alpha Academy & Baron Corbin def. Street Profits, Shinsuke Nakamura, Kevin Owens & Big E
Grade: A
Backstage on SmackDown, Roman talked to Jey about 'rising to the occasion' before heading to the ring.
Roman Reigns and his crew are taken out by Cesaro on SmackDown
Roman was out with Heyman and Jey. Jimmy walked out to ask Jey where he stood. Jimmy said that in the I Quit match, Jey gave up trying to save him and showed us the footage.
Jimmy then said if it was up to him, he would have never quit. Roman told him that he and Jey moved forward from that night. He added that Jimmy could either fall in line or go home.
Jimmy backed off and left the ring before Jey went after him. Main event Jey tried to convince him to make peace with Reigns but Cesaro rushed the ring and took out both Reigns and the Usos before SmackDown went off the air.
Episode grade: A
We had a decent throwback episode of SmackDown with some recaps of past moments, a few big matches, a lot of promos. Jimmy Uso returned to Smackdown while Seth Rollins and Romans teased an alliance. We got a bunch of cameos and a huge 10-man tag match on SmackDown: Throwback Edition.
