Smackdown!

Cleveland, Ohio
February 4, 2004

OPPORTUNITY KNOCKS AS NO WAY OUT APPROACHES
Feb. 5, 2004

In his efforts to put forth the notion that he is the General Manager of not only a weekly wrestling show, but a sports entertainment empire, Paul Heyman declared on SmackDown! that his show is superior not only because of its action and excitement, but – as Heyman put it – because it is a “land of opportunity.” And on SmackDown!, Heyman’s words proved to be true as opportunity knocked for several SmackDown! Superstars.

And nobody answered when opportunity came knocking in a bigger way than the tag team duo of Rikishi and Scotty 2 Hotty. Finally getting the opportunity to challenge for the WWE Tag Team Championship with no pre-match interference, the team made the most of their chance when they stunned the Basham Brothers to win the WWE Tag Team Championship. Despite the fact that there appeared to be some dissention between Rikishi & Scotty 2 Hotty three weeks ago when they competed in a Royal Rumble Qualifying Match against each other, the duo never looked as strong as they did on SmackDown! as they began their first reign with the WWE Tag Team Championship!

Speaking of opportunities, with No Way Out 10 days away and WrestleMania XX on the horizon, the opportunity to compete on the biggest stage of them all brought out the best in the Superstars of SmackDown! Earlier in the evening, Heyman announced that he would reveal the man who would be the No. 1 Contender for the WWE Championship at WreslteMania XX. By evening’s end, the competition became so fierce that it will require a Triple Threat Match at No Way Out to determine the No. 1 Contender. The Big Show – fresh off of his impressive victory over Billy Gunn, Kurt Angle – who defeated Hardcore Holly, and John Cena – who was able to pick a fight with Angle and Big Show – will face each other at No Way Out, with the winner gaining the opportunity of a lifetime … to go to WrestleMania XX and compete for the WWE Championship.

But who will be the WWE Champion when WrestleMania rolls around? Brock Lesnar and Eddie Guerrero – who will meet for the WWE Championship at No Way Out – had their first face to face encounter on SmackDown! with both proclaiming why they will win on Feb. 15. Lesnar claimed that Guerrero’s recent accomplishments were impressive, but not nearly as impressive as his defeats of Hulk Hogan, The Rock, Kurt Angle, and many others. Guerrero responded by saying that Lesnar’s accomplishments do not match the personal adversity he has faced to get to this point in his career, and that beating Lesnar to reach the top of the mountain would simply be overcoming another obstacle. Guerrero vowed that Lesnar will face all of the hated that Guerrero holds within that makes him Latino Heat.

And if the upcoming SmackDown! pay-per-view was not enough to heat up an otherwise chilly winter night, the announcement from the hottest Divas on SmackDown! surely took care of it. Torrie Wilson and Sable, two Divas who have graced the pages of Playboy Magazine individually, will now do so together! The March issue of Playboy will feature both Torrie Wilson and Sable. And next week on SmackDown!, both lovely ladies will be present for a live interview!

SmackDown! also saw an escalation of activities within the Cruiserweight Division when Chavo Guerrero set his sights on Rey Mysterio and the Cruiserweight Championship. Guerrero arranged for a match between the two at No Way Out when he vowed he would not only defeat Mysterio, but remove his mask as well! However, as a tune-up, Mysterio met the elder Chavo Guerrero and defeated him handily. After a post-match assault at the hands of Chavo Guerrero, will Mysterio be able to fend off both father and son to retain his Cruiserweight Championship after No Way Out? Stay tuned to find out!

SmackDown! next week will come to you just three days before No Way Out and if tonight’s action was a sign of things to come, the developments for the SmackDown! pay-per-view event are going to come quickly! Will somebody challenge the newly crowned WWE Tag Team Champions? How will the participants in the Triple Threat No. 1 Contender’s Match prepare for the biggest opportunity of their careers? Will Nidia be ready for her No Way Out Match against Jamie Noble? Only one way to find out … watch SmackDown! next week at 8/7 CT on UPN!

Match Results:

Rikishi & Scotty 2 Hotty defeated the Basham Brothers

Big Show defeated Billy Gunn

Billy Kidman defeated Jamie Noble

Rey Mysterio defeated Chavo Guerrero, Sr.

Kurt Angle defeated Hardcore Holly