WWE SmackDown LIVE Results: July 18, 2017By Cassidy| July 19, 2017 WWE SmackDown Previous Page Detailed Results As he promised last week, SmackDown LIVE kicks off with WWE Champion Jinder Mahal and The Singh Brothers as the unforgiving and savage Punjabi Prison surrounds the ring in a preview of what it will be like when Jinder Mahal defends the WWE Championship against Randy Orton at Battleground this Sunday! With an inner structure that has a height of sixteen feet and an outer structure that stands at twenty feet, the towering Punjabi Prison is a breathtaking sight to behold as Jinder Mahal and The Singh Brothers stand in the middle of the ring surrounded by the bamboo nightmare. The WWE Champion says that the Punjabi Prison will be the “final resting place” of Randy Orton’s legacy at Battleground this Sunday. Jinder then asks for silence so that The Singh Brothers can explain the rules of the Punjabi Prison Match. One of The Singh Brothers explains that the inner structure of the Punjabi Prison has four doors built in and each of these doors are manned by a referee. Then, when one of the two competitors instruct a referee to open a door, the referee will do so and the door will remain open for only sixty seconds before the door is closed and that door will remain closed for the remainder of the match. The Singh Brothers then explain that the outer structure has no doors at all and the only way to win the Punjabi Prison match is escaping both structures with both feet touching the floor. Jinder Mahal then says that the match will have no rules and there will be “no escape” for Randy Orton this Sunday before saying that he is going to take Randy all the way to the top of the Punjabi Prison and Khallas “The Viper” all the way to the floor and send a “shockwave” through WWE! The WWE Champion continues, saying that two men will walk into the Punjabi Prison at Battleground, but only he will walk out as the WWE Champion. Jinder then addresses his people in Punjabi before the WWE Champion is interrupted by his Battleground opponent Randy Orton. Randy says that Jinder is either the “bravest S.O.B.” he’s ever met or he’s just “not all that bright”, saying that Mahal is choosing to be locked inside the Punjabi Prison against him. Orton then says that Jinder is eliminating any advantage that the WWE Champion had, pointing out that The Singh Brothers will be locked outside of the Punjabi Prison. “The Viper” then says that The Singh Brothers are the “only reason” that Jinder Mahal took the WWE Title from him in the first place. Peering into the intimidating structure, Orton tells Jinder that there will be “no escape” for Jinder this Sunday. Randy then starts to climb the Punjabi Prison, saying that he’s got “nothing to lose” after their first two matches. As Orton continues to climbs higher, “The Viper” says that he’s got nothing to lose but Jinder Mahal has “everything to lose”, saying that Jinder has the weight of the entire nation of India on his back. Orton then asks what Mahal is going to do when everyone in India thinks Jinder is a “disgrace” before Orton sits atop the outer structure of the Punjabi Prison, saying that it’s going to be his view before he takes the WWE Title back. Randy then says that it’s going to be his view when Jinder realizes he chose his own “fate” when Jinder hears Randy Orton announced as the new WWE Champion! “The Viper” then continues to show no fear for the Punjabi Prison, posing atop the twenty-foot outer structure, enraging Jinder Mahal and The Singh Brothers. Before The Usos defend the SmackDown Tag Team Titles against The New Day at Battleground this Sunday, one-half of the SmackDown Tag Team Champions Jimmy Uso, with Jey Uso in his corner, would face The New Day’s Kofi Kingston, with Big E & Xavier Woods in his corner in the opening match of the night. During the match, Kofi Kingston would go for a high cross body off of the top rope but Jimmy Uso would roll through the high cross body, pinning Kofi to pick up the win. After the shocking announcement by RAW General Manager Kurt Angle on RAW where the WWE Hall of Famer revealed that former SmackDown Tag Team Champion Jason Jordan is his son and will now be competing on RAW, Jason Jordan’s longtime and now former tag team partner in American Alpha, Chad Gable, would have a sit-down interview with Renee Young on SmackDown LIVE. Gable says that a little “heads up” would have been nice, saying that Jason Jordan did not tell him anything about being Kurt Angle’s son. However, Gable says that he could tell something was bothering Jason Jordan as Jason seemed very “distant” before saying that Jason called him after RAW and explained it to him, saying he understood what Jason was going through. When asked about his own future now that Jason Jordan is a part of RAW, Chad says that he is going to support Jason Jordan every step of the way before saying that he’s “got some ideas” for what’s next for him. Gable then says that this is a chance for the world to see what he can do on his own. After being slapped by Maria Kanellis and having a vase smashed over his head by Mike Kanellis, Sami Zayn would be out for revenge as “The Underdog from the Underground” would go one-on-one with Mike Kanellis, with “The First Lady of SmackDown LIVE” Maria Kanellis in his corner, in Mike Kanellis’ SmackDown LIVE in-ring debut. During the match, Sami Zayn looked like he was closing in on the victory when Maria Kanellis would get in the ring, standing guard over her husband. This would draw the attention of Sami and, as soon as Sami looks away, Mike Kanellis catches Sami with a right hand before planting Sami with a Samoan Driver, pinning Sami to pick up the win in his SmackDown LIVE in-ring debut. Five nights before he faces Rusev in a Flag Match at Battleground, sixteen-time former World Champion John Cena would appear on SmackDown LIVE with the American flag and the Bulgarian flag hanging from poles in opposing corners much like they will be this Sunday. Cena explains that, in the Flag Match, whoever is able to grab their respective country’s flag from the corner and carry the flag to the finish line on the stage will be the winner. Cena then says that the reason they will remember the Flag Match at Battleground is because they will see either the American flag or the Bulgarian flag wave proudly this Sunday. Cena continues, saying that they can all agree that they love the American flag, asking if the American flag fly or fall come Battleground. Cena then promises that he is “ready” and, if it was any of them, they would do the exact same thing because they are Americans and they fight for what they believe in and they “never give up”. Cena then recounts some of the biggest events in American history, saying that the American flag still “flew high” after all the wars and tragedies that the United States of America has been through. Cena then proclaims that, at Battleground, the American flag will “fly high” before emphatically waving the American flag proudly. This is when Rusev would attack John Cena from behind, leveling his Battleground opponent with a Machka Kick before locking in the Accolade. However, Cena would manage to get to his feet with Rusev still holding on, but Cena is unable to break the grip of Rusev as “The Bulgarian Brute” renders Cena unconscious before letting go of the Accolade, leaving Cena face-down in the ring as Rusev would climb up and retrieve his Bulgarian flag, walking to the stage and waving the flag proudly before putting the flag in its designated holder in what could be a sign of things to come at Battleground. Before they, along with Natalya, Lana, and Tamina, compete in a Five-Way Elimination Match at Battleground to determine who will face Naomi for the SmackDown Women’s Championship at SummerSlam, longtime friends and rivals would face off on SmackDown LIVE as “The Irish Lass Kicker” Becky Lynch would go one-on-one with “The Queen” Charlotte Flair with Natalya a guest on commentary. During the match, Charlotte Flair would miss her signature moonsault and Becky Lynch would take advantage, locking in the Dis-Arm-Her. Despite Charlotte’s best efforts to escape the hold, Becky would not let go and Charlotte would have no choice but to tap out as Becky picks up the win. After the match, Becky and Charlotte would shake hands before Lana and Tamina come out to the ring. Natalya then attacks Becky and Charlotte from behind with Natalya and Tamina working together to take out Charlotte. Tamina then tosses Becky out of the ring before Natalya tries to lock in the Sharpshooter but Lana breaks it up before Tamina blasts Natalya with a super kick. Lana and Tamina then stare uncertainly at each other before Tamina leaves the ring. Then it was time for the main event as, before their respective matches this Sunday at Battleground, United States Champion AJ Styles would team up with “The Artist Known As” Shinsuke Nakamura to face the team of “The New Face of America” Kevin Owens and “Mr. Money-in-the-Bank” Baron Corbin. However, before Shinsuke Nakamura could even get to the ring, he would be ambushed by Baron Corbin but Nakamura would fight back against his Battleground opponent. Kevin Owens then joins the fight before AJ Styles jumps out to even up the fight. The referee is then able to get Styles and Nakamura back into the ring before getting Owens and Corbin to do the same as the match officially gets underway. During the match, all hell would break loose between the four Superstars as Kevin Owens would trip AJ Styles on the ring apron before Shinsuke Nakamura would come after Owens on the outside. Baron Corbin then enters the fray, dumping Nakamura over the barricade. “Mr. Money-in-the-Bank” then turns his attention back to AJ Styles in the ring but, unbeknownst to the United States Champion, Kevin Owens would tag himself into the match. This would allow Owens to super kick AJ Styles before delivering the Pop-Up Powerbomb, pinning the champion to pick up the win for himself and Baron Corbin. Kevin Owens and Baron Corbin then celebrate their victory as they pick up some momentum heading into Battleground this Sunday. What did you think of the last SmackDown LIVE before Battleground? Post your comments in the box below.
