WWE Smackdown 3/9/2012

Tonight, WWE World Heavyweight Champion Daniel Bryan teams with WWE Intercontinental Champion Cody Rhodes and the Miz against Sheamus, Big Show and Randy Orton! Also, the WWE United States Championship is defended inside a steel cage!

World Wrestling Entertainment presents Smackdown
Date: 3/9/2012
From: Uncasville, CT

We open up with David Otunga standing in the ring and introduces Johnny Ace, who will be running the show tonight. Ace talks about how Teddy Long has never given a championship cage match to open Smackdown before. So, tonight they are going to start off with a championship cage match to prove to the fans that he should be running both shows!

Opening Contest: WWE United States Championship – Steel Cage Match
[champion] Santino Marella vs. Jack Swagger
Swagger controls the opening moments of the match by sending Marella into the cage and connecting with a short arm clothesline. Marella makes his comeback by ducking under a clothesline and hits a hip toss before delivering a falling headbutt. Marella uses the Cobra on Swagger as he attempted a back suplex. Marella tries a few rollups but can’t keep Swagger down. Swagger regains control after hitting a Swagger Bomb out of the corner for a near fall. Marella plants Swagger with a tornado DDT and tries to escape but is stopped by Swagger at the last moment. Late in the match, Vickie tries to hit Marella in the face with the door but the referee stops that from happening. Vickie tries to do it again but this time hits Swagger. That allows Marella to escape through the door for the win. After the match, Teddy Long celebrates the win with Santino.

Backstage, Johnny Ace is pacing in his office when David Otunga tries to get him to calm down. Teddy Long enters the room and wants to know what Ace wants. Long is trying to get Ace to not keep the match between Aksana and Kane. Long even apologizes to Ace to save Aksana from Kane. Ace wants to have a match with Long tonight to determine if the match happens or not.

Drew McIntyre comes out for his match. Drew talks about being here because of Johnny Ace and he knows that Drew is the future of the WWE. He is going to get his job back tonight. The Great Khali comes out but David Otunga tells him to sit at ringside and instead, Hornswoggle will wrestle McIntyre!

Second Contest: Drew McIntyre vs. Hornswoggle
Drew wins his job back after he viciously beats up Hornswoggle causing the referee to call for the bell and stop the match. After the match, McIntyre celebrates but is clubbed over the head by the Great Khali.

Backstage, Teddy Long assures Aksana that everything will be okay.

Third Contest: Mark Henry vs. Ezekiel Jackson
Poor Jackson continues to find himself on the losing end of his matches. Henry cuts Jackson off in the corner and hits the World’s Strongest Slam to win the match.

Fourth Contest: Johnny Ace vs. Teddy Long
Johnny Ace wants Long to lay down, but he refuses. So, Kane comes out to get his hands on Aksana. Aksana hides behind Long in the ring when Randy Orton comes out and hits the RKO on Kane on the floor! That allows Long to roll Ace up for the win.

Fifth Contest: WWE World Tag Team Champions Epico & Primo vs. Kofi Kingston & R-Truth
The tag team champs continue to have a hard time against non-regular tag teams. This time around they fall victim to the team of Kofi and Truth. Truth was able to hit the Little Jimmy on Primo to pickup the win. Perhaps, this will lead to a title match in the near future?

Michael Cole is in the ring to let us know that he is going to interview Sheamus and WWE World Heavyweight Champion Daniel Bryan. He gives Johnny Ace credit for giving him this opportunity. They start the interview with Cole chatting with Bryan, since he is the champion. Bryan doesn’t believe that he needs any luck because he is good. Bryan even credits his charisma and “undeniable sex appeal” as things that contribute to his success! Sheamus believes that there is a little bit of luck in winning the Royal Rumble. Sheamus takes a shot at Bryan when he says he doesn’t need to hide behind a 99-pound woman. Bryan prevents AJ from saying something. Bryan believes that AJ has gotten in his way instead of helping him. Sheamus tells Bryan that his luck will run out at WrestleMania and he will walk out as the new WWE World Heavyweight Champion!

Main Event: WWE World Heavyweight Champion Daniel Bryan, WWE Intercontinental Champion Cody Rhodes, and the Miz vs. Sheamus, Big Show and Randy Orton
Sheamus and Rhodes open the match, but they don’t last long as Orton tags into the bout quickly. Rhodes is taken down by a clothesline and tags in Bryan. They exchange dropkicks when Big Show tags into the bout. Show power slams Bryan, who goes to his corner and tags in Miz. Show chops Miz, who tags in Rhodes only for Rhodes to quickly tag out and Miz is tossed back into the ring. Sheamus is clubbing away on Miz as the show returned from a break. Sheamus is able to hold his own against the Miz until Bryan comes off the top to deliver a knee shot from the top rope and legally tags in.

All three heels work on Sheamus with kicks and their offense is really basic. Miz plants Sheamus with a quick DDT for a two count. Rhodes counters the Celtic Cross with a side Russian leg sweep for a two count. Sheamus nails Rhodes with the Irish Cruse to get the momentum. Miz and Orton are tagged in with Orton dropping Miz with clotheslines and a power slam. Show enters and send Rhodes over the top to the floor. Show chases after Rhodes. Orton ducks under a kick from Bryan and attempts a hanging DDT but is able to break free. Sheamus sends Bryan into the guard railing and clotheslines Bryan into the crowd. Orton counters the Skull Crushing Finale from Miz and hits the RKO to win the match.

After the match, Kane drags Orton to the floor. Kane sends Orton into the table and Orton does the same. They both are sent into the ring post. They end up fighting into the crowd as the show comes to an end.

Final Thoughts:
It was a decent show this week. The cage match was actually a fun little opener and Marella seems to be growing on me. I don’t know how I feel about that, though. Drew McIntyre getting his job back only to be attacked by Khali just shows the guy can never get momentum anymore. The segment between Bryan/Sheamus didn’t offer anything new, really. The main event was okay, but the heels didn’t seem to get all that much of an upper hand over Sheamus. This is making me believe that Sheamus gets the better of Bryan and becomes a dominate babyface champion. I’m not sold on Sheamus being the top champion for Smackdown at this time. Hopefully he can pull it off, though.

Thanks for reading.