The 572nd edition of WWE Friday Night SmackDown came to you from the Laredo Energy Arena in Laredo, TX. After defeating the champion, by hook or crook, in back-to-back non-title matches, “The Platinum Superstar” Dolph Ziggler would challenge Kofi Kingston for the Intercontinental Championship! On the May 14th edition of SmackDown, Michelle McCool & Layla face then Women’s Champion Beth Phoenix in a 2-on-1 Handicap Match with Layla ultimately getting the pinfall win over Beth Phoenix and, since winning the 2-on-1 Handicap Match, LayCool has dubbed themselves the “co-Women’s Champions”, but after SmackDown Consultant Vickie Guerrero let Michelle McCool defend the Women’s Title against Tiffany on last week’s SmackDown, General Manager Theodore Long informed Michelle McCool & Layla that they will have to decide, amongst themselves, who will represent the WWE as the sole Women’s Champion and if LayCool does not make the decision, then Theodore Long will make the decision for them!
>>Match Results<<
- "Dashing" Cody Rhodes def. Matt Hardy by pin following the Cross Rhodes.
- Intercontinental Championship: Dolph Ziggler (with Vickie Guerrero) def. Kofi Kingston (c) by pin following the Zig Zag to win the Intercontinental Title.
- 6-Man Tag: The Straightedge Society (CM Punk, Luke Gallows, & Joey Mercury) def. MVP, JTG, & Chris Masters by Luke Gallows pinning MVP following a big boot.
- Rey Mysterio def. Drew McIntyre by roll-up.
>>Detailed Results<<
Nine nights before he challenges Kane for the World Heavyweight Championship at SummerSlam, the #1 Contender, Rey Mysterio, opens the show on SmackDown! Rey states that, when he was thrown in to the Gulf of Mexico by Kane last week, his lungs filled up with water and he could not breathe and he started to “freak out”! Rey continues that, as he struggled to rise to the surface, he saw the face of his “accuser”, Kane, before Kane turned and simply walked away! Rey states that he has been through a lot in his career, but he has never been accused of something he did not do and he can not believe that Kane accused him of taking out The Undertaker! Rey then emphatically states that he had “nothing to do” with the attack on The Undertaker! Rey admits that he does not like caskets, because the caskets are for the “dead” and Rey then proclaims that he knows who attacked The Undertaker! Before Rey Mysterio could speak the name of The Undertaker’s assailant, he is interrupted by “The Chosen One” Drew McIntyre! McIntyre states that they have people like Rey Mysterio in Scotland and they call them “criminals”! McIntyre then states that the “truth” has come out and states that Rey is a “hero” to the fans and questions if a “hero” would let CM Punk be accused by Kane and have his arm injured! Rey responds by saying that it was not his “business” and McIntyre brings up Jack Swagger being accused by Kane; an accusation that ultimately ended with Kane chokeslamming Swagger’s father and Rey once again states that it was not his “business”! McIntyre then states that he “admires” what Rey did and that he “wishes” that he would of taken out The Undertaker himself! McIntyre continues that Rey was not capable of taking anyone out on his own, but he is! McIntyre brings up his destruction of the arm of Christian last week and, after doing so, he came up with an idea to do the same to Rey Mysterio! McIntyre then gets in the face of Rey and shouts at Rey to show him the “aggression” that he showed in taking out The Undertaker! Rey Mysterio responds by saying how “dare” McIntyre come out there and “disrespect” him and asks if he wants to see him get “aggressive” before shoving Drew McIntyre in a sign of acceptance for a one-on-one match! After what Drew McIntyre did to Christian last week, could Rey Mysterio suffer a similar fate just nine nights before he is set to challenge Kane for the World Heavyweight Title?
The opening match of the night saw Matt Hardy go one-on-one with one of the WWE Pros in NXT Season Two, “Dashing” Cody Rhodes! At the end of a hard-fought match, it was Cody Rhodes hitting the Cross Rhodes en route to picking up the win!
Backstage, the self-proclaimed “co-Women’s Champions” Michelle McCool & Layla confront SmackDown General Manager Theodore Long to plead their case to let both of them represent as Women’s Champion, but Long informs LayCool that there can only be one Women’s Title! After Michelle McCool reluctantly hands over her Women’s Title, McCool & Layla have a tug-of-war over the one Women’s Title, but the title belt then breaks in two and LayCool tells Long that there is till only one Women’s Title before leaving Long’s office! Will Theodore Long accept Michelle McCool & Layla’s latest scheme to keep both of them as the Women’s Champion?
After two weeks of, by hook or crook, defeating the champion in back-to-back non-title matches, “The Platinum Superstar” Dolph Ziggler would challenge Kofi Kingston for the Intercontinental Championship! In the end, it looked like SmackDown Consultant Vickie Guerrero may have cost Dolph Ziggler the title by getting on the apron of the ring and conversing with Dolph, which distracted Ziggler long enough for Kofi Kingston to hit Trouble In Paradise on Dolph! However, Vickie would enter the ring, distracting the referee and Kofi Kingston long enough for Dolph Ziggler to recover and hit the Zig Zag en route to pinning Kofi and being crowned the new Intercontinental Champion! The celebration for the new champion was short-lived, however, as the former champion, Kofi Kingston, absolutely snapped on Dolph Ziggler, ravaging the new Intercontinental Champion in the ring and to the outside where Kofi slammed Dolph on the announce table and, as Vickie Guerrero watched in horror, Kofi proceeded to slam Dolph’s head, multiple times, into the steel steps before hurling the new champion, head-first, on top of the steel steps before several referees were finally able to pull Kofi Kingston off of Dolph Ziggler! After the attack, a distraught Vickie Guerrero checked on Dolph Ziggler as an EMT came in to check the condition of Ziggler! After this attack and with a guaranteed rematch for the gold, could Kofi Kingston be regaining the Intercontinental Title sooner than later? How will Dolph Ziggler and Vickie Guerrero respond to the attack?
It was announced on SmackDown that, in nine nights at SummerSlam, “The World’s Largest Athlete” Big Show will compete in a 3-on-1 Handicap Match against the group responsible for injuring his hand last week as CM Punk, Luke Gallows, & Joey Mercury of The Straightedge Society will face the giant at “The Biggest Event of the Summer”!
Nine nights before they would face Big Show in a 3-on-1 Handicap Match at SummerSlam, CM Punk & The Straightedge Society made an appearance on SmackDown! CM Punk states that he has accomplished what the fans can only dream of; like being the first three-time “Straightedge World Heavyweight Champion” in history or winning back-to-back Money-in-the-Bank Ladder Matches at WrestleMania, but he has never been more “proud” as he was last week when The Straightedge Society destroyed the dorsal side of his right wrist and has two severed tendons in his right hand! Punk continues that he does not even know if Big Show can make it to SummerSlam and does not know if Big Show can even sign any autographs for the fans! Joey Mercury then takes the mic and says that his “favorite part” was The Straightedge Society bringing Big Show “to his knees”! CM Punk then takes the mic and asks Joey Mercury, Luke Gallows, & Serena if they are “happy” and when all three of them showed their thrill, Punk shouts at them that he did not tell them they could be “happy”! Punk then orders them to get on their knees and says that he has come to learn that their “happiness is weakness” and when they are happy, they let him down and when they let him down, they “slip” and “show weakness” and, by doing that, they might as well be “falling off of the wagon”! CM Punk then tells the three of them that he will not “tolerate” them “falling off of the wagon” because if they do, they might as well “pack their bags”! Punk then tells them that they will be “better” and tells them to remember that “satisfaction is the death of desire”!
After his impassioned speech to The Straightedge Society, CM Punk would team with his Society followers, Luke Gallows & Joey Mercury, to face “The Ballin’ Superstar” MVP, “The Brooklyn Baller” JTG, & “The Masterpiece” Chris Masters in a 6-Man Tag Match! In the end, it was CM Punk hitting a well-placed kick to the back of MVP’s head that allowed Luke Gallows to take advantage by hitting a big boot on MVP en route to picking up the win! Can The Straightedge Society bring the same unity and dominance when they face Big Show in a 3-on-1 Handicap Match in nine nights at SummerSlam?
Then it was time for the main event as the #1 Contender for the World Heavyweight Title, Rey Mysterio, would go one-on-one with “The Chosen One” Drew McIntyre for the first time ever! At the end of a hard-fought match, it was Rey Mysterio catching Drew McIntyre with a roll-up en route to picking up the win! After the match, Rey Mysterio grabbed a mic and was set to announce the name of The Undertaker’s assailant when the World Heavyweight Champion, Kane, came out and wheeled a casket to ringside before entering the ring! After Kane entered the ring, Drew McIntyre blasted Rey from behind, but when Kane seemed set to place Rey in the casket, Rey backed out of the ring and inadvertently almost put himself in the casket! Rey escaped to the stage where he announced that Kane was the one who put his own brother, The Undertaker, in a vegetative state! Upon hearing this, Kane repeatedly shook his head and stared up to the sky! Is Rey Mysterio right in his accusation? Did Kane really assault his own brother, The Undertaker, and put him in a vegetative state? How will Kane respond to Rey Mysterio’s accusations?