WWF Smackdown 12/21/2000

Written by: Adam King

WWF SMACKDOWN
Thursday, December 21st, 2000

Taped (12/19) from The Hive in Charlotte, NC

List of WWF Champions at the time:
●  WWF World Heavyweight Champion: Kurt Angle (10/22/2000)
●  WWF Intercontinental Champion: Chris Benoit (12/10/2000)
●  WWF World Tag Team Champions: The Rock & The Undertaker (12/18/2000)
●  WWF European Champion: William Regal (12/04/2000)
●  WWF Hardcore Champion: Steve Blackman (9/24/2000)
●  WWF Women’s Champion: Ivory (11/02/2000)
●  WWF Light Heavyweight Champion: Dean Malenko (4/27/2000)

~ Smackdown comes on the air with clips of Vince McMahon taking full control and firing Mick Foley on Raw. After the intro Michael Cole welcomes us to the show along with Jerry “The King” Lawler.

~ Things kick off with Vince McMahon swaggering to the ring for the opening promo with Stephanie by his side. Vince gets on the mic and says he has a confession to make, that he’s not a role model like the fans may think he is. Vince says it’s not all right for someone to drive his wife into a nervous breakdown and fire Mick Foley around Christmastime but it is all right for him because all he is and hopes to be he owes to him as well as ‘Daddy’s little girl’. Stephanie takes the mic and puts Vince over for giving her a superior intellect and the values she needed to develop as well as teaching her all she knows, like how to find the weakness in people such as her mom. Stephanie claims Linda could never excell in business because she keeps letting her heart get in the way of her brain. Stephanie calls Vince the most upstanding icon in wrestling and unlike Foley, he always treated the wrestlers fairly. Stephanie mentions how Steve Austin dropped Triple H from a forklift while Foley stood by and allowed it to happen, Foley didn’t check to see if Triple H was cleared to compete before putting him in the Cell. Stephanie says as a result Triple H is spending the holidays in traction, not being able to do what he loves the most. Stephanie says she’s proud that Vince did what he had to do to regain control of the company, feeling we’re better off. Vince then wraps up by wishing everyone a happy holidays from the McMahon family as the two of them head out after 10 minutes I’ll never get back.

~ Cole and Lawler then announce Edge & Christian will get their tag title rematch against The Rock & The Undertaker tonight.

~ Back from break we find Vince and Stephanie walking to their limo with Vince signing some Christmas carols. Vince tells Stephanie she’s done so much for the business but now she needs to go home and take care of Triple H. Vince asks Stephanie to give Triple H his regards as climbs in the limo and drives off with Vince waving after it. However once Stephanie is out of sight Trish Stratus walks up to Vince and the two of them share some small talk. Trish says she took a beating from Jacqueline on Monday but feels Jackie deserves a title shot against Ivory tonight and Vince agrees to book the match for her. Vince then invites Trish to go inside and get warm as they walk off arm in arm.

• The Dudley Boyz vs. Lo Down (w/Tiger Ali-Singh)

I guess the bookers remembered Lo Down holds a victory over the Dudleys frim sime weeks back and decided to give them their win back. Once everyone is out (with Chaz and D’Lo wrestling in turbans with very visible chinstraps) Tiger gets on the mic and chastises the fans for their prejudice, saying his men are athletes, not taxi drivers. Tiger warns the fans to stop the ignorance or they’ll beat the respect out of the “inferior” American athletes. Chaz and D’Lo do their ritual on the ramp but turn their backs to the ring allowing the Dudleys to jump them and toss them in the ring. Bubba hammers away on Chaz before tossing him back out. D’Von goes to whip D’Lo but D’Lo reverses it and Chaz trips him from the floor while D’Lo hits an elbowdrop. D’Lo whips D’Von and hits a heelkick then tags Chaz in and holds D’Von for a guillotine into a sidewalk slam. Chaz whips D’Von in a corner and charges but eats a boot and D’Von comes out but runs into an Atomic Drop. Chaz clotheslines D’Von then tags D’Lo and D’Lo drapes D’Von on the ropes while Chaz hits a leapfrog splash. Chaz and D’Lo then deck Bubba and work him over on the floor distracting the referee while Tiger comes in and nails D’Von with a neckbreaker. D’Lo comes back in and covers D’Von but only gets a two count. D’Lo whips D’Von into a corner and charges, D’Von sidesteps it and pulls him off the ropes with a neckbreaker. Both men crawl to their corners and D’Lo tags in Chaz while Bubba gets the tag and hits several clotheslines. Bubba plants Chaz with a sidewalk slam then turns and hits D’Lo with a backdrop followed by a clothesline. Bubba tags D’Von and sets Chaz on his shoulders while D’Von climbs to the top rope and hits the Dudley Device. D’Von covers Chaz but D’Lo saves it so Bubba pounds on D’Lo while Chaz and D’Lo head out to the floor. Chaz grabs D’Lo for a clothesline from Tiger but D’Lo escapes and Tiger clotheslines his own man instead. In the ring D’Lo whips Bubba into a corner and charges but eats a boot. Bubba slams D’Lo then sets him up while D’Von climbs to the top rope and hits the “Wassup” headbutt while the referee tries to keep Tiger out of the ring. Bubba sends D’Von out for a table and knocks Tiger off the apron but Chaz comes back in and cuts D’Von off. Chaz goes for a whip but D’Von reverses it and the Dudleys nail him with the 3D for the victory. (4:13) As someone once said, perfectly acceptable wrestling. **

~ Backstage Vince meets with referee Tim White on his condition after taking a Stone Cold Stunner on Monday and White says he’s good to go. Vince promises that with him in charge, all the referees will be treated with respect. Vince also says he’s going to show White what he means by that tonight and White heads out as we go to commercial.

~ Back from break we get footage of Steve Austin arriving at the arena during the break. That’s followed by clips of Austin attacking White after being DQ’ed in his match with William Regal on Raw.

• WWF Women’s Title: Ivory © vs. Jacqueline

Still don’t get why Trish would endorse a title shot for Jackie here. Ivory gets on the mic about Jackie’s immoral behavior and decides to make an example of her just like Chyna but Jackie responds by calling Ivory a penguin. Jackie starts off with a kick to the chest and applies an armwringer, Ivory reverses into her own armwringer but Jackie counters with a pair of hiptosses followed by an armbar. Ivory whips Jackie but Jackie hits a shoulderblock then comes off the ropes and hits a dropkick for a near fall. Jackie whips Ivory into a corner and goes for a monkey flip but Ivory holds onto the ropes to prevent it and rolls her up for a two count. Ivory gets an armwringer and hits a Northen Lights suplex for another two. Ivory applies a chinlock and Jackie fights out then whips Ivory and hits a backdrop and rams her into the mat as Steven Richards, Bull Buchanan and Goodfather file out to ringside. Jackie whips Ivory and hits a spinkick then covers her but Richards distracts the referee from seeing it while Goodfather pulls Jackie off Ivory. The referee argues with Buchanan and Goodfather about it when Jackie nails both of them with a baseball slide. Jackie has words with the RTC’ers when Ivory rolls her up from behind and grabs the pin to retain. (2:08) The RTC’ers then head in the ring when the Acolytes run out to Jackie’s aid and clear the heels from the ring. *½

~ Backstage we find Debra watching the proceedings from the interview set when Vince comes up calling it a shame and that all these run-ins are a holdover from the Mick Foley regime. Vince then accuses Foley of never treating Debra fairly then offers her the Lt. Commissioner spot under his administration. Vince asks Debra what match would she want and Debra asks for Billy Gunn to face Steven Richards since the RTC never did get punished for what they did to Chyna. Vince agrees to book the match for tonight so Debra agrees to be his Lt. Commissioner and the two shake hands on it. However after Vince leaves Debra rolls her eyes at him as we go to commercial.

~ Back from break Lawler gets a call on his cell phone .. from Gary, as in the upcoming Gary & Mike show on UPN. Form what I remember it was some claymation show that came and quickly disappeared, just like 95% of the shows UPN trotted out during its run. Anyway Gary says he and Mike are on a road trip and want to be on Smackdown next week when they’re cut off by the operator.

~ We then cut backstage as a limo pulls up and out comes Edge & Christian along with a very chipper Kurt Angle. E&C express to Angle how much they want their titles back tonight and Angle assures them they’re the best tag team.

~ Elsewhere Kevin Kelly interviews The Rock on how he and Undertaker unexpectedly became Tag Team Champions but Rock takes exception and asks Kevin if he didn’t lay the Smackdown in the match before embarassing him as usual. Rock then mentions Vince firing Mick Foley that same night and Edge & Chrsitian hitting him with two chair shots, saying it takes real big men to beat on Foley when he’s down and bleeding. Rock dares E&C to beat on him before promising that tonight he’s going to take his boot and whip E&C all over Charlotte, if ya smell and so on.

~ Again elsewhere we find Vince visiting with Steve Austin about what he did to referee Tim White on Monday and Austin says White made the wrong call but Vince feels he still can’t give him a Stunner and pour beer all over him. Vince tells Austin that he can’t spit in the face of authority so he wants him to feel what it’s like to be a referee tonight. Austin protests but Vince insists he officiate the European title match and even asks him to get a more appropriate shirt. Vince wishes Austin a Merry Christmas and heads out while Austin tells him he’s not going to like him as a referee.

~ The Hardys and Lita are shown heading to the ring for a six-man match as is Chris Jericho as we go to commercial.

• Chris Jericho & The Hardy Boyz (w/Lita) vs. Chris Benoit, Dean Malenko & Perry Saturn (w/Terri)

Once everyone is out Jericho gets on the mic saying the Radicalz each found someone to cuddle up to. Jericho says Saturn has Terri and “MaUrkel” has Lita then goes on about how Benoit found someone as well before displaying a picture of the ‘perfect couple’ showing Benoit with Rosie the Robot from The Jetsons. The Hardys and Jericho rush the ring and all six men go at it when Matt clotheslines Malenko over the ropes. Benoit and Jericho duke it out while the Hardys whip Saturn and hit a double elbow and their combo move. Jericho knocks Benoit through the ropes and goes after him while the Hardys continue to double-team Saturn. The Haryds whip Saturn into a corner and Matt readies for the Poetry in Motion but Terri grabs Jeff’s ankle. Jericho goes after Terri and rolls her in the ring before Malenko can save her and those two start fighting it out. The Hardys try to it Terri with the double wheelbarrow suplex but Saturn runs up and manages to break her fall. Benoit comes back in and knocks Matt through the ropes and things settle down to Malenko and Jeff in the ring. Malenko wrenches Jeff’s arm then tags Benoit in and Benoit throws Jeff into a corner and gets in his shots. Saturn tags in and hits a Northern Lights suplex before taging in Malenko. Malenko whips Jeff into a corner and sets him on the top rope then goes for a superplex but Jeff fights him off and hits the Swanton Bomb. Jeff makes the tag to Jericho and Jericho hits Malenko with a flying forearm then whips him and hits a backdrop. Jericho fights off Benoit and Saturn then turn and knocks Malenko off the apron with the springboard dropkick. Malenko is down on the floor when Lita goes over seemingly to check on him only to whip him into the steps. Matt throws Malenko back in the ring while Saturn and Benoit go out and battle with the Hardys on the floor. Meanwhile Jericho hits Malenko with the bulldog then follows up with the Lionsault and there’s the pin. (3:13) Benoit and Saturn run back in the ring but Jericho slips out and celebrates with the Hardys on the ramp. Fun match but too short and a little too chaotic. **

~ Backstage Vince is walking somewhere and greets Rodney (he’s still around?) before bumping into Raven. Vince mentions Al Snow but feels Raven did what he had to and it’s on Mick Foley’s hands. Vince also tells Raven how impressed he was with the way he stood up to Taker in his match then decides to reward him with a Hardcore Title match with Steve Blackman tonight and Raven thanks him.

~ Elsewhere Austin is talking with some backstage guy when Tim White walks up and hands Austin a referee shirt before saying his match is next. White leaves but Austin feels wearing the stripes would be sacrilige so he takes off his own black t-shirt then grabs a can of white spraypaint and writes ‘Ref 3:16′ on the shirt.

~ Back from break we get an exterior shot of the building which has a giant inflatable XFL football in front of it. It’s coming up quick, people!

• WWF European Title: William Regal © vs. Hardcore Holly

Yes, we’re apparently not done with this feud still. Regal makes his way to the ring first but first gets on the mic to greet the fans then brags about his win over Steve Austin on Raw, calling it a victory for goodwill everywhere. Regal says he proved that good manners and etiqutte can always overcome a foul, uncouth toerag like Austin. Hardcore heads out next before Austin comes out as the special referee and has words with both participants. Regal argues back at Austin but that allows Hardcore to attack him from behind while Austin rings the bell. Hardcore wails way at Regal then goes for a whip, Regal reverses him into the opposite corner but eats a boot. Hardcore applies a headlock, Regal shoves him away and eats a shoulderblock. Regal hits a knee to the chest and covers Hardcore but Austin takes a moment to sip a beer before heading over to count and only gets one. Austin calls for another beer while Regal goes for a whip but Hardcore reverses and connects with the dropkick. Hardcore covers Regal but Austin is slow to get in position with two beers in his hand and only get a one count. Hardcore argues with Austin about the count allowing Regal to fight back and Regal hits the kneelifts to the face. Austin then leaves the ring and grabs a headset at the announce table talking about refereeing making him thirsty. Regal goes for a Tigerbomb but Hardcore counters with a backdrop prompting Austin to head back in the ring. Hardcore whips Regal and hits a clothesline followed by a suplex and Austin drops down to count but gets one. Regal goes for a whip, Hardcore reverses and Regal tries to stop himself but bumps into Ausitn, spilling his beer. Uh-oh! Austin expresses his unhappiness with Regal for causing him to spill his beer and lays him out with the Stunner. Hardcore then gets in Austin’s face (instead of covering Regal and winning the title) and he gets Stunned as well. With both Regal and Hardcore out of action, Austin asks for some more beers before beginning the 10 count but doesn’t get very far when the pyro goes off and Kane makes his way out for whatever reason. Austin greets Kane with a series or right hands but Regal is back to his feet and nails Austin from behind. So Austin turns and pounds on Regal but Regal jabs his eyes and Kane finishes Austin off with the chokeslam. Austin is left laying in the ring with the red lights shining over him and I guess that’s it for this match. (~4:00) Can’t really rate this since it wasn’t about the match. NR

~ Back from break we get a replay of Austin’s officiating job getting cut short by Kane’s appearence. We then find Austin on the prowl backstage when he bumps into Vince and acusses him of sending Kane after him but Vince denies it saying no one can control Kane. Vince then offers Austin a match with Kane on the Christmas night Raw and Austin accepts, saying it may just be a merry Christmas after all and spares Vince from a beating.

• Crash & Molly Holly vs. Kaientai

On Heat the Holly clan tried to give the fans their Christmas wishes but got interupted by the Japanese duo so we have this match. Also around this time Taka and Funaki began borrowing La Parka’s gimmick with the dubbed voices. Taka grabs a mic and “talks” about the Hollys growing tired and worrysome while Funaki adds in an “Indeed!” Taka and Funaki rush the ring and pair off with their foes then whip them but the Hollys each hit a headscissors. Molly dropkicks Taka and Crash does the same to Funaki then kicks him down while Molly heads to the corner. Crash goes for a whip and Funaki reverses him into a corner then eats a boot but comes back with a suplex. Funaki trips Crash with a drop topehold then applies a Camel Clutch while Taka dropkicks Crash in the face. Crash fights back and comes off the ropes but eats an elbow. Funaki chokes Crash a corner with his boot then whips Crash into another corner and hits a running kick to the ches. Taka helps with a double-team when Molly comes in and slaps Taka then kicks at him in a corner while Funaki works Crash over in another corner. Taka whips Molly toward Crash but Crash tosses her over his head and into a flying crossbody on Funaki. Taka and Crash battle while Molly goes to whip Funaki who reverses but Molly floats over him into a DDT. Crash plants Taka with a Slop Drop while Molly climbs to the top rope and hits Funaki with a dropkick. Crash then takes Funaki out with a tornado bulldog and that scores the pin. (2:31) Entertaining for what it was. **

~ Backstage Lillian Garcia interviews The Undertaker for his thoughts on the main event and Vince’s return to power. Taker says he and Vince go way back and have an understanding that Vince won’t get hurt if he stays out of his yard. Taker says as far as the rematch goes, he tells Edge & Christian that pain is the name of the game.

~ Elsewhere we find Edge & Christian watching the interview with Kurt Angle and wondering what Taker meant and Christian feels Taker is out to get intentionally disqualified just so he and Rock can retain ‘their’ Tag Team titles. Angle tries to assure his pals they got this match but Edge reminds Angle he promised they’d get the belts back. So Angle tells his pals if they’re worried that much about the match then he’ll see what he can do.

~ Steve Blackman is shown warming up backstage for his title defense as we go to commercial.

~ This week’s Royal Rumble replay is Shawn Michaels superkicking Diesel over the ropes to win the 1996 Rumble.

• WWF Hardcore Title: Steve Blackman © vs. Raven

Raven has a garbage can of plunder with him which he dumps in the ring then grabs a kendo stick and trash lid. Blackman responds by pulling out his own kendo stick from under the ring and we apparently have a standoff. Blackman takes the first swing and Raven blocks it with the lid then moves in but Blackman gets in the first shots. Blackman grabs the lid and whips Raven then bashes his knee with the lid and nails him in the back of the head. Raven comes back with a lid shot then pulls him out to the floor and hits a Russian legsweep into the barrier. Raven goes for a crossbody but Blackman ducks it and Raven sails over the barricade, taking out a few fans. Blackman goes after Raven in the crowd and grabs someone he thinks is Raven but is just a fan in a black shirt while Raven waffles him with a popcorn tray. Raven tosses Blackman back in the ring and grabs a pair of trash lids but Blackman hits an armdrag then hits Raven with the lid. Blackman covers but Raven nails Blackman with his own lid then grabs a kendo stick and works Blackman over with it. Raven grabs a trash can but Blackam trips him into it then goes out and slides another can in the ring. Blackman grabs his fighting sticks and hammers away on Raven then follows it up with the stick-assisted suplex .. but only gets a two count. Raven hits a shot below the belt then grabs a fire extinguisher and sprays Blackman’s face with some CO2. Raven climbs to the middle rope with a trash can in hand but Blackman quckly superkicks the can in his face. Blackman then climbs up and DDTs Raven from the top rope into a trash can and that gets the three to retain. (4:10) Okay stuff but Blackman’s reign had gotten old by this point so there was no reason Raven couldn’t have won the title right there. I guess Shane wasn’t ready for his boy to drop the title just yet. *

~ Backstage Kurt Angle visits Vince who’s looking at his wedding band and Vince puts over his actions on Monday. Angle mentions Edge & Christian’s concerns that Undertaker and The Rock might cheat or get themselves disqualified. Vince ponders this for a second then tells Angle that he has an idea on how to make certain the match is fair for them. Vince then asks Angle if there’s a story behind one of his medals and Angle starts to tell it as we go to commercial.

~ Back from break Angle goes back to Edge & Christian telling them that Vince has guaranteed a fair match for them. Edge asks Angle if he’s going to run in for them but Angle says that wouldn’t be fair and that he and Christian will be fine. Angle heads out while telling his pals to do their best but E&C are left dumbfounded by this development.

• “The One” Billy Gunn vs. Steven Richards

Richards denied Billy his shot at payback against the RTC on Monday so here’s another shot at revenge. A funny momnet occurs as Billy makes his entrance but the crowd seems more interested in something that’s happening off-screen. Billy goes out to meet Richards on the ramp then throws him in the ring and pounds away on him in a corner. Billy whips Richards into the other corner and Richards tries to come back but Billy clotheslines him down and stomps away on him as we get a shot of Debra watching the action from the interview set. Billy hits a press slam and unloads on Ricahrds with rights then continues his assault while trash-talking him. Richards stops Billy’s offense with a low blow and hits a swinging neckbreaker. Richards whips Billy into a corner and works him over then applies a Camel Clutch. Billy tries to power out of it and gets to his feet with Richards on his shoulders then hits an electric chair and both men are down. Billy whips Richards and hits a powerslam then whips him again and plants him with a tilt-o-whirl slam. Billy finally hits Richards with the Cobra Clutch slam for the three and gets some measure of revenge for Chyna. (2:47) Just what it was, a boring squash. DUD

~ Edge & Christian are shown heading to the ring as are Rock and Undertaker as we go to commercial.

• WWF World Tag Team Titles: The Rock & The Undertaker © vs. Edge & Christian

Now the question is how are they going to make this match different from the one on Raw? Rock and Taker get to enter first since they’re Rock and Taker then E&C are out and hesitate on getting in the ring. However Kurt Angle suddenly appears wearing a referee shirt. Ah, here we go. E&C are happy about this and want a high-five but Angle just ignores them as he heads in the ring to officiate. Rock and Taker protest but turn their backs to their opponents who jump them from behind to start us off. Rock knocks Edge out of the ring but Angle orders him out to the corner while Christian works over Taker. Angle then repremands Christian but that allows Taker to throw Christian into the corner and get in his offense until Angle then pulls him off. Taker wrenches Christian’s arm when Christian reverses it but Taker decks him then whips him into a corner and hits a clothesline. Taker whips Christian the other way when Edge comes in but Taker boots Edge down then gets Christian in a cross armbreaker. Edge saves it before Christian can submit and Angle orders him back to the corner while Rock tags in to take over and whips Christian, hitting an elbow. Rock whips Christian when Edge make a blind tag and Christian slides under Rock but Rock clotheslines E&C. Rock plants Edge with a Samoan Drop and covers him as Angle makes a fair count but only gets a two. Rock goes for a whip but Edge reverses and Christian grabs Rock’s ankle. So Rock pulls Christian onto the apron but Christian snaps his neck on the top rope and Edge follows it up with a spinning heel kick.

Edge lays the boots to Rock then tags Christian in and Rock fights back but Christian hits a Russian legsweep. Edge tags back in and helps Christian with a double-team when Angle demands that Christian go to the corner. Edge gets in Angle’s face on why he’s not cheating for them while that allows Rock to start fighting back again. Rock goes for a whip and Edge reverses it but both men clothesline each other and are down as Angle counts. Both men are up and Edge tries to keep Rock from reaching his corner but Rock still makes the tag to Taker. Taker pounds away on Edge with right hands and whips him, hitting a boot then decks Christian off the apron Edge rakes Taker’s face and whips him but lowers the head and Taker sets him up then hits the Last Ride! Taker covers Edge but Angle is too busy getting Chrsitian back to the corner even though he sees the cover. Rock comes in and gets in Angle’s face when Angle shoves him so Rock takes Angle out with a Rock Bottom. Rock stomps Angle out to the floor but Taker isn’t happy Rock took out the referee while he had a pinfall when Christian low blows him. Rock pops Christian through the ropes then goes out and rams him into the barricade. In the ring Taker chokeslams Edge and covers him as Earl Hebner runs in and counts 1..2..but Christian barely makes the save. Christian tees off on Taker and chokes him when Hebner pulls him off. Taker plants Christian with a flapjack and both men start crawling toward their corners when Christian tags in Edge while Taker makes the hot tag to Rock. Rock peppers Edge with right hands and caps off with the Smackdown then knocks Christian off the apron. Rock drills Edge with a DDT and covers him but Hebner is too busy getting Christian out of the ring to count. Taker pops Christian through the ropes and fights him on the floor while Hebner tries to get them back in the ring. Meanwhile Rock plants Edge with the spinebuster and readies to deliver the People’s Elbow when Angle comes back in and plants Rock with the Olympic Slam. Angle then drapes Edge’s arm over Rock and counts the 1..2..3 and Edge & Christian regain the titles after just three days. (7:47) E&C are now five-time champs, tying the New Age Outlaws for most title reigns together. Main event was fine but leaves you wondering why Rock and Taker got that meaningless title run to begin with. Plus five title wins for E&C in just nine months, and you though Harlem Heat had a lot of reigns in a short time. **½

Conclusion: Not a great show by any means but not a real bad one, either. The in-ring action was mostly okay with a solid main event and the booking was kept somewhat in check this time around. But since the Royal Rumble was still a ways off the WWF didn’t feel the need to really start building anything toward that supercard just yet and as a result this show comes off as a filler episode and not much else. Not the mention we still got plenty of Vince, only not as much as the last time. So overall an okay show, but unless you’re interested in seeing Edge & Christian regain the titles they never should have lost, this isn’t one to go out of your way to see.