Smackdown!
Bakersfield, California
June 2, 2006
All hail the king
By Brett Hoffman
June 2, 2006
SmackDown proved to be a truly historic night for more reason than one. On his
first SmackDown since being coronated as the King, Booker T and his associates
brutally attacked the United States Champion Lashley, and made him bow to the
feet of the new king. But well before all that, the Portland fans were treated
to Kurt Angle’s SmackDown farewell.
Earlier this week, ECW boss Paul Heyman used his one and only SmackDown draft
pick to bring Kurt Angle to the new ECW. Knowing he would be appearing on his
final SmackDown, the Wrestling Machine issued a challenge to World Champion Rey
Mysterio, setting the stage for one final battle. The fans got everything they
expected and more as the world class competitors engaged in an all time classic.
Angle controlled the action early on, bringing Mysterio to the ground with a
variety of mat-based attacks. Eventually, Rey was able to work free from Angle’s
grasp and make it back to his feet and launch an offensive attack.
A series of high risk maneuvers from Rey only served to anger the new ECW star.
Angle turned up the intensity, using a belly-to-belly and german suplex to set
up Mysterio for the normally fatal Angle Slam. However, an extremely alert World
Champion was able to get his foot on the rope and break the count. Mysterio
reversed a second Angle Slam attempt into a 619. Still winded, Rey was unable to
follow up with a pinning combination. Instead, Rey tried the move for a second
time, but it would end up leading to his biggest and most crucial mistake of the
entire match. Angle caught the champ and executed a perfect belly-to-belly
overhead suplex over the top rope to the outside, leaving Mysterio incapacitated
on the arena floor. Perhaps suffering from an ankle or leg injury, Rey was
unable to return to the ring by the count of 10, resulting in a final SmackDown
victory for Angle.
Following the match, Kurt and Mysterio exchanged one last embrace. The departing
SmackDown legend welcomed Rey back into the ring, and handed him his
Championship, providing a lasting image that will be forever remembered as Kurt
Angle’s last night on SmackDown.
In the main event, the newly crowned “King Booker” took on the new U.S. Champion
Lashley in a Judgment Day rematch. Prior to the match, Booker sat on his throne
and was introduced to the crowd by William Regal. Following the impromptu
ceremony, a match actually took place. The match went back and forth with Booker
using a series of vicious strikes in an attempt to slow Lashley. Eventually,
Lashley overpowered Booker, using a pair of suplexes and a running powerslam to
score the pinfall. What happened after the match however made Lashley’s victory
seem like a distant memory.
Lashley was attacked by Regal and Finlay, who appear to be two of King Booker’s
new associates. With Lashley disarmed, Booker delivered a Bookend and a Scissor
Kick to the fallen U.S. Champion. Sitting on his throne, Booker ordered Regal
and Finlay to make Lashley “Bow Down to King Booker” and kiss his royal feet. As
SmackDown went off the air, Lashley was left face down at Booker’s feet as Queen
Sharmell proclaimed, “All hail King Booker”.
SmackDown also provided fans with a trio of breaking news updates. First, it was
learned that a dream match had been signed for ECW’s One Night Stand. For the
first time ever, Rey Mysterio will meet the suicidal, homicidal, genocidal death
defying Sabu. To make things even more interesting, the two will meet over the
World Championship.
In other news concerning a pair of returning SmackDown Superstars, it was
revealed that the one and only Mr. Kennedy will return to SmackDown next week.
Also, it was announced that former World Heavyweight Champion Batista will
return in just five weeks.
The Portland fans gave a huge Rose City welcome to the hometown hero Rowdy Roddy
Piper, who hosted a special edition of Piper’s Pit. His guest, The Great Khali,
was not as generous to Piper as the hometown fans. The WWE Hall of Famer ended
up embroiled in an intense argument with Khali’s manager Daivari, and
eventually, things got physical. Piper leveled Daivari with a sharp right hand,
but the scuffle was short lived as Khali intervened and brutally assaulted the
WWE legend. When it was all over, a triumphant Khali stood over a motionless
Piper, raising his arms to the crowd, further suggesting that the newcomer may
be the most dominating force in WWE history.
If it wasn’t already made clear in previous weeks, the SmackDown roster was
further put on notice that when Mark Henry comes to the ring, “Some bodies gonna
get their ass kicked.” Added to the list of stars injured at the hands of the
World’s Strongest Man was Paul Burchill, whom Henry seemed to enjoy dismantling
both during and after their match. Henry used two World’s Strongest Slams, and a
brutal spear to the ring post to take the Burchill out. Afterwards, Burchill had
to be carted away from ringside on a stretcher.
SmackDown also featured a pair of bizarre incidents. First, following his loss
to Matt Hardy, Nunzio’s tag team partner Big Vito came to ringside wearing a
dress, stunning nearly everyone in attendance. Later, the creature resembling a
leprechaun appeared for the second straight week after Finlay’s match with Caden
Matthews.
Prior to the main event, SmackDown announcer and former ECW standout Tazz made a
big time challenge to RAW commentator Jerry Lawler. Sick of the constant jabs
from Lawler at both himself and the ECW legacy, the Brooklyn native challenged
the King to a match at ECW’s One Night Stand. “I got one left in me Lawler. With
God as my witness, I guarantee that I will choke your ass out at One Night
Stand. Because I am Tazz, beat me if you can old man, survive if I let you.”
SmackDown also saw the introduction of the show’s new host, Mike “The Miz”
Mizanin. The brand’s newest name spent most of his evening mingling with the
raucous Rose Garden crowd, serving as a guide to the night’s proceedings.
Besides The Miz, another new face made their SmackDown debut. Following Jillian
Hall’s victory over Kristal, Michelle McCool made her way to the ring. Dressed
in a provocative short skirt, McCool told the exhausted Divas that things were
about to get a whole lot hotter on SmackDown. McCool’s speech also appeared to
be directed towards returning Diva Ashley, who made her return from injury to
sit in on commentary.
Matches
Finlay def. Caden Matthews
Kurt Angle def. Rey Mysterio (countout, non-title)
Matt Hardy def. Nunzio
Jillian Hall def. Kristal
Mark Henry def. Paul Burchill
Lashley def. Booker T (non-title)