WWF Smackdown 7/26/2001

July 26, 2001
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Report by: Dan the Man, rajahwwf.com reporter

We start with still shots from Austin’s aligning with ECWCW at Invasion, then clips from Austin’s speech last night at Raw, then Angle’s attack on Austin, then clips from the six-man table tag match, including Austin’s involvement in costing Angle the match. Wow, long video. The SmackDown! video runs, the pyros explode, and we are underway from Pittsburgh PA. Already signed for tonight is Diamond Dallas Page vs. Kane.

Hardy Boyz vs. Billy Kidman & Shane Helms
-The Hardys music hits, and the brothers come out with Lita, for their first tag match in quite some time. Billy Kidman comes out, along with the newly renamed “Hurricane Helms”. This one starts with a four-man brawl, with the Hardys in control. Double legdrop by Jeff on Kidman, then a double back elbow and boule splash on Kidman. Jeff pins 1-2-shoulder up. Kidman takes Jeff down hard and tags in Helms. Helms with mounted punches. Backbreaker by Helms 1-2-shoulder up. Helms chokes Jeff on the ropes. JR tells us that Vince is in Miami, which is the Rock’s hometown. Tag to Kidman, who hits the slingshot off-the-rope backbreaker. Kidman goes up top, but Jeff dropkicks him out of the air. Both men crawl to their corners and make the tags. Matt cleans house with a scoop slam to Kidman and a neckberaker to Helms 1-2-broken by Kidman. Double clothesline by Matt, followed up with Poetry in Motion to Kidman, and then to Helms, but Helms moves and rolls up Matt 1-2-kickout. Kidman and Jeff fly over the rope to the outside. On the inside, Helms flies into the ref, but stops. He turns around into a Helms Superkick 1-2-shoulder up. On the outside, Lita hist the Hurricane Lita on Kidman. Inside the ring, Matt reverses a neckbreaker and hits the Twist of Fate on Helms. Jeff climbs and hits the Swanton. Matt makes the cover 1-2-3!

In the back, Billy Gunn is working out, when Big Show tells him that he has a great idea. He knows what they can call themselves: The ShowGunns, you know, like “shogun”. Billy says that’s a terrible idea. Show says that it’s better than being “Rockabilly” or “Mr. Ass” or “The One With No Talent”. Billy agrees, and says it is better than being “The Giant” or “The Big Slow” or “A Big Pile Of Horse Sh” Show cuts him off and says that it’s settled, they’ll be the ShowGunns. Billy asks when Show is going to work out, but Show says he just got done. Gunn: “Driving through the parking lot doesn’t count.” Fade Out.

WCW/ECW Interview
-The ECW music hits, and Steph, Paul and Shane’O come down the ramp and into the ring. Steph says that she sees a lot of non-believers out here tonight. No one believed they would win the Inaugural Brawl. No one believed they would crush the WWF at Invasion. Not only did the Alliance strike a fatal blow at Invasion, but now they have almost all the WWF Titles. Ladies and gentlement, introducing the Golden Alliance! First up are the WCW Tag Team Champions: O’Haire and Palumbo! The WCW Cruiserweight Champion: Billy Kidman! The WWF Hardcore Champion: Rob Van Dam! The WWF Intercontinental Champion: Lance Storm! The WCW Champion: Booker T! Yes, he is no longer the US Champion, because he has given that Title to none other than Chris Kanyon! And the crown jewel of the Alliance, the WWF Champion, Stone Cold Steve Austin! Ladies and Gentlemen, this is the Alliance! This is the Home of the Gold! “Medal” hits, and Olympic, and Hometown, Hero Kurt Angle comes out on the stage. Hold on a second. Home of the Gold? You can stand there with all the gold you want, but none of them will ever be an Olympic gold medalist. That is Kurt’s gold, and this is Pittsburgh, PA, Kurt’s hometown. And nothing would please him more than to take down Stone Cold right here tonight to bring the WWF Title back where it belongs, and that is damn true. Big “Austin Sucks!” chant as Stone Cold tries to speak. You want to face Stone Cold tonight in your hometown? It’s true, and you know why? Because it shows how selfish Kurt is. Kurt has his own gold, why does he need Stone Cold’s gold? The problem is that Stone Cold is selfish as well. So right here, in front of these mealy-mouthed steel workers, he will grant Angle his title match. Stone Cold is an American, and he’s about opportunity. Since he’s about opportunity, and is a Champion’s Champion, Kurt can fight Booker T for the gold. Booker looks at Austin in disgust. Angle says he has no problem with that. Kurt has been talking about he’s been bragging about putting Booker T through a table. How he said he could beat “this sucka” anytime, anywhere. Angle says that is true. Booker gives Angle his title shot, but Kurt’s ass belongs to him. Angle says that his ass belongs to no one. It’s like this: after he kicks the crap out of Booker T, Austin is next. Austin’s ass is his, and he will make Austin part of a different alliance: the Alliance of Former Champions Beaten by Kurt Angle. It’s true, oh lord, is it true!

In the back, Regal tells Tajiri that he’s glad they have Kurt Angle on their side. Kanyon comes in and asks for a rematch against Chris Jericho. Regal asks if the US Title will be on the line. Kanyon says that there’s no way he’s going to put it on the line, since he just got it. Regal says that if he wants the match, he has to say “She sells seashells by the seashore” ten times fast. Kanyon tries but his lisp gets in the way. Tajiri laughs at him. Kanyon wants to know why Tajiri is laughing, and Regal tells him that’s it’s because Tajiri speaks better English than Kanyon! And if Kanyon doesn’t want to put his Title on the line, then he’ll be in a tag match: Jericho and Tajiri vs. Kanyon and any partner he wants. Kanyon: “Any partner? Well then, who better than Rob Van Dam?”

Dudley Boyz vs. Billy Gunn & Big Show
-The D-Bombs drop, and the Dudleys come down, followed by the newly renamed ShowGunns. Billy and D-Von start this one off, and Billy fires away, only to be clotheslined by an entering BuhBuh. BuhBuh knocks Show off the apron, allowing D-Von to hit the Wassup Headbutt. They pull Gunn outside to get away from Show, where they slam Gunn’s head into the announce table. Back in the ring, D-Von tags in BuhBuh. Chops by BuhBuh, who tags D-Von back in who gets a two count. Tag to BuhBuh. They go for the double back bodydrop, but Billy stops and DDTs both Dudleys. Tag to Show. Show comes in and starts beating the Dudleys down. Clothesline to BuhBuh, sidewalk slam to D-Von. He goes for the ShowStopper on D-Von, but BuhBuh breaks it up. Double clothesline by Show. Tag to Gunn, who gets whipped by Show into both Dudleys, and then they whip the Dudleys into each other. FameAsser to BuhBuh 1-2-shoulder up. Gunn sets D-Von up for the One and Only, but BuhBuh low blows him. Show runs in to clothelsine BuhBuh, but he ducks and Show nails Gunn inadvertantly. BuhBuh clotheslines Show out of the ring and comes back in for the 3D 1-2-3!

JR announces that The Rock will in fact be at Raw this Monday night, where he will tell Vince and the fans if he wants to come back to wrestling. And now, a special tribute to the Rock.

We see last night, when Vince reinstated the Rock. Rock’s entrance video starts to play. We go through all of Vince’s questions to Rock last night, after each of which we see video of him doing each of them: bringing it, laying the smacketh down, raising the eyebrow, dropping the elbow, being the People’s Champ, and being the most electrifying man in the business today. Clips of the best of Rock’s mic work follow. Boy, I forgot just how funny he can be. Vince wants Rock back. He needs him back. And most of all, he needs to smell-a-la-la-la-la-low… what the Rock…is…cookin’

In the back, Booker T says “the hell with the Rock”. Who cares about the Rock? Who cares about the WWF? Austin says he doesn’t need to worry about The Rock, he needs to worry about the Olympic Slam. Austin says Rock may not even be coming back to the WWF. He may have found a home with *dun dun dun* the Alliance.

Diamond Dallas Page vs. Kane
-Bang! It’s he, it’s he, it’s DDP. Boom! The fires of hell erupt, and Kane comes out. Michael Cole tells us that Sara is at home tonight, and her husband is with her. Kane with knockdown punches to start, then stomps in the corner. Clothelsine by Kane, followed with a big boot. Kane goes up top for the flying clothesline. He locks in the choke, but DDP elbows out. Bulldog by DDP and a neckbreaker. Clothesline by Page 1-2-kickout. Page with the reverse chinlock, followed by some stomps. DDP goes up top for a flying clothesline of his own 1-2-kickout. Exchange of punches. DDP goes for the Diamond Cutter, but Kane pushes him off the ropes and slams him down. Kane starts kicking away at Kane’s stomach and hits the sidewalk slam. Clothesline from Kane that sends Page over the top. On the outside, Kane clubs at Page’s back, but Page comes back and slams Kane into the stairs. DDP pounds away on Kane before tossing him in the ring. DDP gets a chair and brings in in the ring. DDP swings at Kane, who ducks and knocks it away. Kane clubs Page down and grabs the chair. He shoves it into DDP’s gut, causing Nick Patrick to call for the DQ bell. Kane, none to happy at Patrick’s decision, backs the referee into the corner. Meanwhile, DDP gets up and nails Kane in the back with the chair. Kane, though, sits up like the Kane of old. Page can’t believe it and escapes up the ramp. Kane, with no one to hurt, grabs Patrick and chokeslams him down.

In the back, Lance Storm comes up to Perry Saturn, who he defends the IC Title against tonight. Lance tells Perry that what he does with the mop in private is his business, but Perry is not to bring that mop to ringside and make a mockery of his business. Perry replies “Underroos are fun to wear. You’re Welcome” Fade Out.

In the back, Edge and Christian say they want to go wish Kurt luck in his match against Booker “Don’t call me Mr.” T. They try to find him and enter a room, but find Taz instead. Taz wants them to stay, since they’re so funny. Edge: “What was your old saying? Thug life born, thug life bred, and when I die I’ll be thug dead?” Christian: “And on Christmas, I ride in my thug life sled” Edge: “And on vacation, I go to thug life Club Med” Christian: “And when I’m tired, I go to my thug life bed”. They leave, and Taz is pissed.

Chris Jericho & Tajiri vs. Kanyon vs. Rob Van Dam
-In the arena, the Y2J Countdown hits 0.00, and out comes the Ayatollah, followed by the Japanese Buzzsaw. Kanyon comes out with his US Title, followed by soon-to-be Mr. Tuesday/Thursday Night, Rob Van Dam. Kanyon and Jericho start this one off, and Kanyon scores a shoulder block. Chops by Jericho, who tags in Tajiri. The two men stomp away on Kanyon. Tajiri trips Kanyon and runs on his back. One-handed snapmare by Tajiri, but Kanyon makes the tag to RVD. Reverse thrust kick by Tajiri, and a hurricanrana. RVD runs at Tajiri, who ducks, and RVD nails Kanyon. Kanyon trips Tajiri and RVD hits an elbow drop. Tag to Kanyon. Kanyon hits a whiplash reverse powerbomb 1-2-broken by Jericho. Kanyon locks Tajiri on his back and goes up top, but Jericho punches him. Tajiri breaks free and hurricanranas Kanyon off the top. Double tag. Shoulder blocks by Jericho, who bulldogs RVD and then hits the springboard dropkick to Kanyon, knocking him off the apron. Jericho takes RVD down and locks in the Walls of Jericho. Kanyon runs in, causing Jericho to break the hold. Jericho takes Kanyon outside, but not before tagging in Tajiri. Tajiri hits a missile dropkick off the top, then a thrust kick. Tajiri locks in the Tarantula on RVD, but Kanyon grabs his US Title and nails Tajiri with it while he’s in the hold. Tajiri falls to the mat, allowing RVD to go up top for the Five Star Frog Splash 1-2-3!

In the back, Perry is desperately searching for “Moppy”. Terri walks in with it, but says that they have to have a talk. Terri tells him to think about the time she and he spent together. Will the mop come between them? Perry has to make the decision: It’s either the mop, or Terri. Perry grabs the mop from Terri and mutters an angry “You’re Welcome”. Fade Out.

Lance Storm vs. Perry Saturn
-Lance comes down first, followed by Perry and Moppy. Perry runs around the ring with his mop, before locking it into the turnbuckles. Storm takes him down from behind and stomps away on him. Clothesline by Storm 1-2-shoulder up. Jawbreaker by Storm, and some chops in the corner. Perry fires back with punches of his own, and a big flapjack. Clothesline by Saturn and a belly-belly. Perry rams Storm into the corner and climbs, only for Storm to punch him and superplex him down. Superkick by Storm 1-2-shoulder up. Powerbomb by Saturn, who sets up Moppy and slingshots Storm into the mop. Swigning Fisherman’s Suplex 1-2-kickout. Storm rolls Saturn and gets him in the Half Crab, but Saturn gets to the ropes. Storm grabs Moppy and throws it into the ring. Perry covers Moppy and gets stomped on. Storm appears to get ready to break Moppy, but Perry spears him. He goes for the spear again, but hits the turnbuckle. Storm wipes his behind with the mop and tosses it at Perry. Perry, disgusted, nails Storm with the mop, causing the DQ bell. Storm escapes the ring, but Perry dives on top of him and leaves up the ramp.

In the back, Shane pulls out a tape and says they may need to remind Rock what kind of guy Vince really is. Steph: “I love my brother” Paul: “And I hate your father”. Fade Out.

Shane McMahon Interview
-Here comes the Money! Shane’O Mac makes his way down the ramp. This message goes out to the hottest free-agent in sports-entertainment history: The Rock. He knows that Vince is down in Miami, begging Rock to come back to the WWF. We’ve seen some wonderful memories of the Rock to pump us up for his return, but it is Shane’s responsability to show some of Rock’s other memories. The tape rolls of WrestleMania 2000, when Vince, Rock’s McMahon backer, nailed him with a chair, costing him the WWF Title. Then April 2000, when Vince nailed Rock with a lowblow, allowing Triple H to Pedigree him. Then in a cage match, Vince nailed Rock with the brass knuckles. And in another match, Vince nailed Rock with the WWF Title belt. Then in May 2000, Vince, with the help of nearly every WWF Superstar, beat the Rock with Vince’s elbow. Then at WrestleMania 2001, when Vince nailed Rock with a chair. Then that cage match, when Vince and Austin beat down Rock with a chair, followed by Triple H turning on Rock and nailing him with a sledgehammer. And finally, Vince suspending The Rock, in the interest of fairness. We come back, and Shane says that the choice is Rock’s to make. Either Rock can accept Vince’s invitation to come back, and we all know how that will turn out, pointing to the TitanTron. Or, Rock can take Vince’s invitation, shine it up real nice, turn that som’bitch sideways, and stick it straight up Vince’s candy-ass. The choice is Rock’s, and we’ll all find out this Monday Night.

In the back, Stone Cold fires up Booker T to get ready to take down Kurt Angle, embarass him, and whoop his ass.

Edge & Christian vs. Rhyno & Taz
-In the arena, Christian and King Edge come down, and yes, Christian still has the King of the Ring trophey. Taz comes down, still with his WWF-style entrance, followed by Rhyno. Edge and Rhyno start off, with Rhyno taking it to Edge, only for Edge to hit a facecrusher. Edge knocks Taz off the apron, but Taz pulls him outside. Edge tries to get back in the ring, but Rhyno kicks him back down. Taz gets in his shots and tosses Edge back in. Tag to Taz. Snapmare by Taz, followed up with clubs to the neck. Clothesline by Taz, who tags in Rhyno. Stomps to the face by Rhyno. Rhyno spears his former team-member in the corner, but Edge brings him down. Tag to Christian and to Taz. Christian throwing knockdown punches to Taz. Drivign reverse backbreaker to Rhyno, but Taz suplexes him down. Edge goes up and hits a double clothesline. Rhyno whips Edge away and spinbusters him. Taz locks in the Tazmission on Christian, while Rhyno backs up for the Gore. He runs at Edge, but Edge sidesteps him and Rhyno hits the locked up Chrsitian and Taz. Edge hits the Spear on Rhyno, and meanwhile, Christian fell on top of Taz 1-2-3!

Kurt Angle vs. Booker T
-The flames erupt and WCW Champion Booker T makes his way out first. Hometown Hero Kurt Angle comes out, and is ready to win some more gold. They lock up, and Angle starts pounding away in the corner. More punches by Angle, followed with a big back bodydrop. Clothesline from Angle, and he goes for the AngleLock, but Booker gets to the ropes. On the outside, Angle slams Booker onto the announce table not once, but twice. Back in the ring, Kurt hits a German Suplex, and he goes up top. He goes for the moonsault, but Booker rolls out of the way and covers 1-2-kickout. Short clothesline by Booker T, who then tosses Angle out of the ring. On the outside, Booker chops away on Angle and then tosses him over the barrier. Booker kicks away at Angle, but Angle back bodydrops Angle over the barrier and back to ringside. Booker rams Angle into the stairs and then breaks the 10 count. Chops by Booker, who stares the crowd down before tossing Angle back in the ring. Snapmare by Booker, followed with a kneed drop 1-2-kickout. Booker locks in a sleeper. Angle, using the hometown crowd for energy, fights up and out of the hold, only to be spinebustered down 1-2-shoulder up. Booker again goes for the sleeper, and Hebner checks on Angle. Hand down once, twice, thre-no! Angle fights up and out again and hits a flying forearm. Clothesline by Angle, followed with an overhead belly-belly 1-2-shoulder up! Kurt puts Booker on the turnbuckle and goes up with him. Both men standing on the top rope now, and Angle hits the Superplex, but both men go down. Alliance members run down to try and save the WCW Title, but the WWF Troops come down and battle them at ringside. Angle covers Booker, but Hebner is lost somewhere in the brawl. Kanyon runs in the ring and nails Angle with a chair to the back. Both men are down as this brawl escalates with seemingly every wrestler outside the ring. Finally Hebner gets back in the ring, but Angle and Booker are still down. The brawl outside the ring has been taken to the crowd and to the back. Finally Booker wakes and rolls ovre 1-2-shoulder up! Chops by Booker, but Angle fires back with punches of his own. Big jumping calf kick by Booker 1-2-shoulder up! Angle will not stay down. Booker again goes with the chops, but suddenly, Angle awakens. Booker misses Angle with the scissor kick, but hits Hebner inadvertantly. With Hebner out, Angle takes it to Booker and hits the Olympic Slam! But Hebner is still out. Austin runs down the ramp and gives Angle the Stunner! As Austin goes up the ramp and Hebner wakes, Booker hits the Spinnaroonie, but wait! Angle grabs Booker and puts him in the AngleLock! Hebner sees Booker tapping and calls for the bell! Kurt Angle is the new WCW Champion! It’s true, it’s damn true! Whoo!