written by Adam King
WWF SMACKDOWN
Thursday, June 1st, 2000
Taped (5/30) from the Tacoma Dome in Tacoma, WA
List of WWF Champions at the time:
WWF World Heavyweight Champion: Triple H (5/21/2000)
WWF Intercontinental Champion: Chris Benoit (5/08/2000)
WWF World Tag Team Champions: Too Cool (5/29/2000)
WWF European Champion: Eddie Guerrero (4/03/2000)
WWF Hardcore Champion: Gerald Brisco (5/18/2000)
WWF Women’s Champion: Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley (3/30/2000)
WWF Light Heavyweight Champion: Dean Malenko (4/27/2000)
~ Smackdown comes on the air with clips of the Rock/Undertaker match and Kane making his presence felt in the war against the DX Regime. After the intro Michael Cole welcomes us to the show along with Jerry “The King” Lawler.
WWF World Tag Team Titles: Too Cool © vs. The Hardy Boyz
The Hardys go right to work on the champs and Jeff throws Grandmaster Sexay through the ropes while Matt works over Scotty in a corner. Matt whips Scotty hard into the opposite corner then he and Jeff head out and throw Sexay into the ringsteps. The Hardys climb back in and work over Scotty in a corner then Matt drops the mat and Jeff lauches off him into the Poetry in Motion. We then get a shot of Lita watching her new pals in action backstage as the Hardys whip Scotty into the ropes but miss a double clothesline. Sexay trips Matt from the floor while Scotty slams Jeff for a two count. Scotty whips Jeff and hits an Atomic Drop while Sexay climbs to the middle rope and connects with a missile dropkick. Scotty sets Jeff up for a powerbomb but Matt comes in and hits a neckbreaker. Matt slams Scotty to the mat then hops to the middle rope and hits the guillotine legdrop for a near fall. Matt drops Soctty on the top rope and Scotty staggers into a back suplex for another two count. Matt chokes Scotty on the middle rope then distracts the refere while Jeff hits a legdrop on Scotty. Matt whips Scotty into a corner and charges at him but eats a double boot and Scotty comes out with a clothesline. Sexay gets the tag and takes it to both Hardys then sets Matt up for a powerbomb when Jeff tries to make the save but Scotty backdrops him then hits the powerbomb. Jeff breaks up the pin and throws Sexay through the ropes but Scotty comes off the ropes with the bulldog then follows up with the Worm. Matt comes in but Scotty whips him into a corner and goes for another bulldog but Matt stops him and hits the Twist of Fate. Sexay hits a crossbody on Matt that takes them both over the ropes while Jeff climbs to the top rope and hits Scotty with the Swanton Bomb. Jeff covers and the Hardys look to have the titles won when suddenly … Kane’s pyro goes off?! Kane makes his way to the ring still carrying Triple H’s WWF Championship belt then chokeslams Jeff and Scotty and there’s the bell. (4:32) Kane then gets on the mic and dares Triple H to come out and try to get his belt back. Couldn’t he do this without ruining a good title match? NR
Anyway it isn’t long before the Helmsleys come out to the stage with Triple H getting on the mic to offer a response. Triple H tells Kane he could come down to the ring, beat him up and take back what’s rightfully his but he fells Kane knows right from wrong and wants the do the right thing. Triple H reminds Kane the title belt is his property since Kane will never beat him for it so he tells him to do the rig thing and give him back the belt. Kane refuses when Stephanie whispers something to Triple H who says he realizes that Kane wants something so he asks what it will take for him to return his belt. Kane demands a championship match and Triple H admits Kane is smarter than he looks but doesn’t deserve a title shot. However Triple H is willing to give Kane a chance to earn a shot at his belt. Triple H challenges Kane to face him one-on-one in a non-title match tonight and if he wins he’ll become #1 contender and get his title shot at King of the Ring. Triple H then tells Kane he kept his word so he demands his belt back and Kane hands the belt over to Jack Doan who takes up the ramp and hands it to Triple H. Triple H finishes by promising to show Kane why he’s the best but Kane says Triple H may be that good but he is that bad then sets off his pyro while Triple H doesn’t look intimidated. Still, couldn’t Kane have done this without screwing the Hardys out of the titles?
~ Backstage a limo pulls up as we hear Vince McMahon’s voice coming from it. Vince starts to climb out but herds everyone back in as the Undertaker drives by on his motorcycle. Taker circles the limo on his bike then pulls up to the side as Vince, Road Dogg and X-Pac peek out from the roof. Vince asks Take who he thinks he is and Taker threatens to jump up and deck him. Vince asks Taker what he wants and Taker demands a WWF Championship match with Triple H. Vince tells Taker he has it at King of the Ring, if he can beat X-Pac and Road Dogg in a hadicap match and Taker accepts the challenge and rides off with Vince yelling at him as we go to commercial. But don’t we already have a #1 contender’s match tonight? And what will The Rock say about this?
~ Back from break Triple H and Stephanie are sitting in their office when Vince, Road Dogg and X-Pac come in. Triple H yells at Vince for offering Taker a title shot for beating his DX mates in a handicap match but Vince doesn’t understand, feeling he doesn’t think his pals can beat Taker. Triple H explains his match with Kane for a title shot as well and Vince starts yelling at him in return. Triple H feels Vince doesn’t think he can beat Kane and the two continue to argue about the lack of communication.
~ Elsewhere Shane McMahon is arriving at the bulding with Edge and Christian who ask Shane about becoming #1 contenders to the tag team titles, like they’ve been doing for the past half hour. Shane mentions that The Rock has been bothering him about getting his own WWF title shot so he decides to kill two birds with one stone by booking his own #1 contender’s handicap match. Shane tells Edge and Christian if they defeat the Rock they become #1 contendors to the tag titles but if Rock wins, he’ll be #1 contender and get his WWF Championship match. We then get a shot of the rest of the Regime watching this on a monitor in disbelief. Yep, we now have three #1 contender’s matches, like we pretty much expected after the last two segments.
~ Out in the arena Kurt Angle makes his way to the ring and gets in the mic saying he knows the fans are depressed because he’s been in a slump lately. Angle mentions how he failed to win the Intercontinential and European titles over the past week and suggests the fans are used to falling short of their goals. Angle says he’s differnet because he’s a winner and makes a vow to win the King of the Ring tournament. Angle says he doesn’t care who his opponent is tonight because he’s going to teach him an Olympic lesson. Angle then sees his opponent just happens to be…
Kurt Angle vs. Bradshaw – King of the Ring Qualifying Match
Bradshaw starts off by clubbing Angle in the back and throwing him through the ropes then going out and tossing him into the ringsteps. Bradshaw tosses Angle back int he ring and hammers him in a corner with knees and elbows. Bradshaw whips Angle into the other corner and sets up for a powerbomb but Angle goes down to prevent it. Bradshaw clubs Angle and sets up for the powerbomb again but again Angle goes down. Bradshaw sets up for the powerbomb a third time but Angle counters that with a backdrop. Angle trips Bradshaw with a drop toehold then goes into a front facelock and rolls him into a cradle for a two count. Angle comes off the ropes and ducks a clothesline but runs into a big boot. Bradshaw moves in when Angle hits a back suplex then goes for a vertical suplex but Bradshaw blocks it. Bradshaw counters into his own suplex but Angle floats over him into a belly-to-belly suplex. Angle goes for a whip but lowers the head and Bradshaw clubs him in the back again. Bradshaw goes for a whip, Angle reverses and looks for a dropkick but Bradshaw fakes him out. Bradshaw comes off the ropes and hits the Clothesline from Hades then covers him but Angle gets his foot on the bottom rope. Bradshaw goes for the powerbomb again but Angle reverses into the Olympic Slam and gets the three. (2:46) Short match but what we got was pretty sweet. Angle celebrates locking up his spot in the tournament when Bradshaw kicks him in the back to cut it short and finally hits the powerbomb. **½
~ Backstage Shane McMahon walks into the Regime’s dressing room but finds a lot of angry looks greeting him. Shane tries to figure out what’s their beef but all he gets is the silent treatment.
WWF Intercontinential Title: Chris Benoit © vs. D’Lo Brown
Cole says Benoit is a fighting champion ready to take on all comers which explains this match. Both men lockup to start and jockey for position in a corner and the referee tries to force a break when Benoit lands several chops. The referee repremands Benoit allowing D’Lo to get in a few shots of his own and D’Lo goes for a whip but Benoit reverses and chops him down. Benoit whips D’Lo but D’Lo slides under him and hits a heel kick. Benoit lands more chops but D’Lo jabs the eyes to stop that. D’Lo hits a sidewalk slam then springboards off the middle rope into a moonsault but only gets a two count. D’Lo throws Benoit through the ropes then goes out after him when Benoit greets D’Lo with a chop then whips him into the ringpost. Benoit throws D’Lo back in the ring and hits a snap suplex for a two count. Benoit whips D’Lo into a clothesline then rams him into a turnbuckle and hits a chop. D’Lo reverses position and hits his own chops then whips Benoit into the other corner for a clothesline. D’Lo whips Benoit back the other way and charges at him but eats an elbow. Benoit comes out with a clothesline and hits a back suplex then climbs to the top rope and goes for the diving headbutt but misses. D’Lo whips Benoit into an elbow then whips him again but lowers the head and Benoit rolls him up for a two count. Benoit goes for a whip which D’Lo tries to counter into the Sky High but Benoit counters that into the Crossface and D’Lo gives it up. (4:23) Pretty good match there and Benoit finally gets a clean title defense with no interference or chairshots. ***
~ Backstage Vince McMahon is speaking with Road Dogg and X-Pac while Tori stands nearby. Vince expresses his concers about Triple H’s chances and Edge and Christian’s chances tonight but gives the DX’ers his confidence that they can get the job done against the Undertaker.
~ The Kat and Terri are shown preparing for an arm wrestling match as we go to commercial.
~ Back from break Jerry Lawler is ready to officiate the arm wrestling match. Kat and Terri take their positions on the table and lock hands but just as Lawler is about to start, Terri complains that something slimy is on Kat’s hands. Lawler checks out Kat’s hands then asks Terri to lock hands with Kat again and is again ready to start when Terri backs away saying she needs water. Terri takes a drink from her water bottle and locks up with Kat again then backs away one more time wanting to do some excercises. Finally the match begins and eventually Terri spits water on Kat and wins. Naturally Kat responds by flipping the table over and throwing Terri into a corner by the hair and delivering a Bronco Buster. Let’s just move on, folks.
~ The Undertaker is shown walking to the ring for the first of the #1 contender’s matches as we go to commercial.
The Undertaker vs. Road Dogg & X-Pac (w/Vince McMahon & Tori) – Handicap #1 Contenders’ Match
Road Dogg gets on the mic and does his usual while Vince joins the announcers for commentary. The DX’ers try to rush Taker but Taker drops Road Dogg with a boot and throws X-Pac over the ropes. Taker hammers Road Dogg in a corner when X-Pac comes back in and nails Taker from behind with the spinkick. X-Pac comes off the ropes for a heel kick but Taker catches him and slams him to the mat then clotheslines him over over the ropes. Road Dogg hits the juke ‘n jive punches and winds up for the big right when Taker grabs him by the neck and throws him into the corner to work him over. Taker whips Road Dogg into the opposite corner and grabs him by the throat when X-Pac comes in but Taker grabs him as well. Taker then decides to shove both of them over the ropes to the floor and the DX’ers decide they’ve had enough and start walking out. However the Dudleys come out to block their exit and back them up to the ringside area when Taker brings Road back in the ring. Taker pops Road Dogg then brings X-Pac in the ring and drops him as well. Taker knocks Road Dogg through the ropes then grabs X-Pac and points at Vince before chokeslamming X-Pac and getting the pin to earn his title shot. (2:25) The DX’ers totally got squashed, not that I’m complaining. D’Von Dudley comes in to taunt X-Pac about doing a job but bumps into Taker and eats a chokeslam as a result. Taker has his title shot but the Rock and Kane still have their matches to come as well. *
~ Back from break we get a replay of the Undertaker defeating Road Dogg and X-Pac. We then find Vince and the DX’ers returning to the dressing room where Triple H and the others are waiting. The three of them try to blame the Dudleys for their loss but Triple H says all he’s hearing is excuses.
Chris Jericho vs. Hardcore Holly
This match stems from Jericho interfering in Hardcore’s Intercontinental Title match on Raw. Jericho comes out with a mic and tells “Baldcore” they don’t need to hit each other with chairs anymore since they could have a intelligent discussion and he could even bring him some Rogaine. Jericho then rushes the ring but Hardcore gets the advantage first and pounds on Jericho then him hard into the ropes. Hardcore chops Jericho in a corner and kicks him down then whips him but Jericho comes back with a spinniing heel kick. Jericho goes for a whip but Hardcore revereses it and hits the dropkick. Hardcore chops Jericho in a corner and Jericho starts to fight back but Hardcore jabs the eyes t stop that. Hardcore whips Jericho into a corner but eats a boot and Jericho hops to the middle rope and connects with a missle dropkick. Jericho lands some shots when Hardcore gets the advantage and whips him but misses a right hand and Jericho lands some chops. Jericho goes for a whip, Hardcore reverses it but Jericho hits a forearm then comes off the ropes with the bulldog for a two count. Jericho goes for a suplex but Hardcore floats over him and powerbombs him for a two count. Hardcore climbs to the top rope and leaps off but Jericho catches him in mid-air with a dropkick. We then see Chris Benoit coming out with a chair and the crowd boos becuase they’re tired of non-concolusive finishes between these guys. Benoit hops onto the apron when Jericho dropkicks Hardcore right into Benoit and the chair. Jericho connects with the Lionsault and that’s it for this one. (3:04) Solid match with an actual finish between these guys. Too bad the actual blowoff to this issue would take place on Heat instead of the main shows. **½
~ Backstage Edge and Christian are talking when Shane McMahon comes into their lockerroom telling them Vince couldn’t get the job done and now he’s making excuses. Shane also expresses his concern that Triple H might fail to beat Kane as well. Shane does give E&C his confidence that they’ll take care of business against The Rock and Edge promises they’ll (finger quotes) “do a number” on The Great One.
~ Elsewhere Kevin Kelly is standing by to interview The Rock as we go to commercial.
~ Back from break Kevin Kelly interviews the Rock on the Undertaker winning his #1 Condentor’s match. Rock says it doesn’t matter since he was promised a title shot if he beats Edge and Christian. Rock says he’s going to move on to King of the Ring and beat Triple H to regain the WWF Championship. Rock then addresses his opponents, saying he has a treat for the benefit of those with flash photography but it’s not a 5-second pose, it’s going to be him beating E&C all over Tacoma, “If ya smell”, etc. etc.
The Rock vs. Edge & Christian (w/Shane McMahon) – Handicap #1 Contenders’ Match
We don’t get a 5-second pose from E&C this time around. Christian starts off against Rock who tells him to “just bring it” so Christian brings it only to get dropped with a right hand. Rock whips Christian into an elbow then scares Shane off the apron but that allow Christian to rake the face. Christian works Rock over in a corner then tags in Edge but Rock comes out with a clothesline. Rock throws Christian over the ropes but Edge clotheslines him over to the floor as well. Edge goes out but Rock rams him into the announce table then rams Christian into the ringsteps. Edge whips Rock into the barricade and Rock comes back with a clothesline when Christian leaps off the apron and connects with a flying clothesline on Rock. E&C lay the boots to Rock as Shane directs traffic then both men drop him on the announce table. Edge rolls Rock back in the ring and stomps away at him but Rock starts to come back. Rock goes for a whip but Edge counters into a Russian legsweep then hops to the middle rope and connects wiht a missile dropkick that gets two. Christian tags in and chokes Rock on the mat before tagging Edge back in. Rock again starts to fight back and comes off the ropes but runs into a spinning heel kick. Christian comes in and helps Edge with a double-team slam but that only gets a two count. Christian tags in and goes for a whip but Rock counters into a belly-to-belly suplex. Both men are down as Christian crawls over and tags in Edge but Rock hits a pair of clotheslines then caps off with a right hand. Christian comes in but runs into a tilt-o-whirl slam and Rock whips Edge in a corner and charges but eats a boot. Edge goes for a spear but Rock sidesteps and Edge takes out the referee instead. Rock plants Edge with a Samoan Drop then works over Christian in a corner but doesn’t see Shane passing the ringbell to Edge. Rock goes for a whip and Christian reverses it as Edge swings the bell but Rock ducks and Edge nails Christian. Rock hammers Edge in a corner and hits the Smackdown then turns when Shane flies in the ring and waffles him with a chair. Shane then drapes Christian’s arm over Rock as the referee reveives and counts for the upset … but only gets two! Edge tags in but Rock ducks a clothesline and hits a spinebuster. Rock connects with the People’s Elbow and gets the pin to become the second #1 contender. (5:50) Fun match for what it was even if we did see Rock go over the top heel tag team. Rock exchanges words with Shane then does his posing on the turnbuckles but now the question is will Kane make it 3-for-3? **½
~ Back from break Shane tries to explain the Rock winning his contender’s match to the rest of the Regime by pinning the blame on poor officiating but Vince says all they’re hearing is excuses.
Crash Holly vs. Albert – King of the Ring Qualifying Match
Albert starts off by throwing Crash across the ring but Crash ducks a clothesline and kicks away at Albert in a corner. Crash tries to throw Albert but Albert shoves him down to the mat then slingshots him into the middle rope for a two count. Albert then swings crash around the ring but ends up dizzying himself. Albert charges at Crash in a corner but Crash sidesteps him and hits a tornado DDT for a two count. Crash lands some shots but Albert drops him with a right hand then goes for a press slam but Crash slips out of it. Albert clotheslines from behind and Albert goes for a powerbomb but Crash floats over into a rollup for the 1..2..3 and the upset! (1:24) As Crash celebrates, Trish shove Crash into the ringpost before Albert throws him back in the ring and hits the Torture Rack neckbreaker. Crash is rapidly becoming the WWF’s version of Mikey Whipwreck. DUD
~ Back from break we get an exterior shot of the Tacoma Dome.
~ Backstage Triple H has harsh words with the DX Regime about what’s happened so far. Triple H says he does what he wants and did what he thought was right by offering Kane a #1 contender’s match. Triple H yells at Vince for taking things into his own hands and screwing things up while critizing Shane for dropping the ball with his brilliant idea. Triple H says they may have two #1 contenders but he’s going to make sure there won’t be three himself. Triple H demands everyone stay in the back during his match because he’s going to beat Kane on his own and doesn’t want any help. Triple H and Stephanie depart and the rest of the Regime grumbles about his decsion with Vince deciding if Triple H wants to shine, they’re going to give him his chance to shine. Uh-oh.
~ Out in the arena Cole and Lawler give us the King of the Ring tournament update. On Raw Rikishi advanced over Shane McMahon by DQ and Bull Buchanan defeated Steve Blackman. We then saw Kurt Angle beating Bradshaw and Crash upsetting Albert earlier tonight. Cole then announces that two more qualifying matches will take place on Heat this Sunday, with Val Venis facing Al Snow and Chyna taking on The Godfather.
~ Kane is shown making his way to the ring for his big chance as we go to commercial.
Kane vs. Triple H © – Non-Title #1 Contenders’ Match
Once both men are in the ring Kane goes out to the floor and gets on the mic demanding the referee leave the ring immediately. Tim White departs without hesitation while Kane then tells Triple H there’s been a special official appointed for this match then proceeds the bring out … Earl Hebner! Triple H is not happy with Hebner coming back from his beatdown last month and gets in his face until Hebner reminds Triple H if he gets DQ’ed he will have three #1 contenders. Kane starts off with an uppercut then works Triple H over in a corner before whipping him into the other corner and lifting him up for a double choke. Triple H gets in a shot but Kane shrugs it off and thows Triple H into the corner and lands several shots. Kane whips Triple H into the opposite corner and hits a clothesline then pops him with an uppercut. Kane whips Triple H again and lowers the head, Triple H hits the facebuster but it has no effect and Kane clotheslines Triple H over the ropes. Kane goes out to continue his assault and drops Triple H onto the barricade then rams him into the steps. Triple H rolls back in the ring and Kane climbs onto the apron then Triple H knocks him to the floor with the high knee. Triple H goes out and tees off on Kane before throwing him into the ringpost. Triple H whips Kane into the steps then rolls him back in the ring and stomps him down in a corner. Hebner pulls Triple H off Kane and Triple H shoves Hebner away only to get warned getting himself DQ’ed. Kane uses this chance to come back but Triple H stops that rally and goes for a whip. Kane reverses Triple H into a corner and charges but eats an elbow. Triple H hops to the apron and leaps off right into Kane’s waiting hand but fights out of the chokeslam. Triple H hammers away on Kane but can’t knock him down with his punches. Triple H comes off the ropes but runs into a clothesline and Kane hits a second clothesine followed by a shot to the throat. Kane whips Triple H into a boot and hits a sidewalk slam then climbs to the top but Triple H bumps the ropes causing Kane to straddle the turnbuckle. Kane tumbles to the mat while Triple H brings a chair in the ring and readies a swing. Hebner tries to take the chair away and Triple H shoves him off and turns back to Kane when Kane grabs him and hits the chokeslam! Kane covers as Hebner makes the count and Kane gets the three! Kane finally gets a clean pin over Triple H! (5:19) Kane completes the sweep and you’ll notice the Regime never came out to help their leader. Hebner brings the championship belt in the ring but Kane grabs it from him and poses with it before drapes the belt over the fallen Triple H. Kane departs and we do have three #1 contenders as Smackdown goes off the air. **½
Conclusion: Pretty solid episode of the blue show. I didn’t like how Kane ruined the opening bout , especially after the Hardys had the titles won, but once we got past that we got some good in-ring action with a minimum of promo segments. Also the main angle was progressed nicely with the first cracks showing in the DXWo’s upper ranks and Kane beating Triple H cleanly was the icing on the cake. So nothing too memorable this week but still a nice show to check out.