WWE SmackDown Recap: High-Stakes Matches and Electrifying Moments from June 28

From the kick-off till the end, the WWE Smackdown on June 28 was a memorable Smackdown conducted at the historic and prestigious Madison Square Garden, with exceptionally interesting matches and compelling storylines leading to the Money in the Bank pay-per-view event. Here are the previews of what was to happen on the night, the match outcomes and the general effect on the WWE fraternity.

The Bloodline Starts with a Bang

The period got off to an exciting start as Tama Tanga, Tonga Loa, and Solo Sikoa entered MSG. The fans got agog as they anticipated the other offshoot of Jacob Fatu last week’s appearance. There were some concerns from the fans when Fatu was not there during the initial entrance.

However, for anything to happen Owens Randy Orton and Cody Rhodes attacked The Bloodline first. This caught the attention of the security teams where Nick Aldis was seen extremely angry that TV crews had arrived. This opening segment was very intense and paved the way for more confrontation of actors and progression of storyline which the audience wanted more of.

MITB Qualifier: Jade Cargill vs Candice LeRae vs Tiffany Stratton

The first bout of the evening was a exhilarating triple threat Wedding MITB qualifier between Jade Cargill, Candice LeRae, and Tiffany Stratton. This briefcase was what all the three competitors were eyeing while the energy in the arena was increasing. They were both very intense fighters, bringing the best out of each other through their different strengths, movements and skills used in the match.

Thus, Nia Jax and Bianca Belair by ringside added more tension to the match. Though they used to stay out of it, they had to get in the mix eventually. If there is one significant event before going to the conclusion of the animosity between Jax and Cargill, Belair stopped Jax from attacking Cargill. Nonetheless, Indi Hartwell’s decision to intrude made Belair pushed against the ring post. Stratton seized the opportunity as the diversion was created and delivered her season’s climax moonsault on LeRae to pin her and qualify for the MITB match.

Triple Threat Showdown: Santos Escobar vs. Logan Paul vs. LA Knight

Up next was another triple threat MITB qualifier match and this one was easily the most entertaining of the three; this match pitted Santos Escobar up against Logan Paul and LA Knight. Just before the cell match, the fans saw the promos which increased the animosity between Paul and Knight.

Disagreements arose when Logan Paul decided to have Haliburton, an Indiana Pacers player, to be in his corner against the New York fans.

The match part also deserved words as it was a real parade of athletic performance and operational planning. First, there was a temporary coalition between Paul and Escobar against Knight; however, it did not last long. Paul being the sly competitor that he was then turned on Escobar and pushed him out of the ring.

This match was divided into two parts and each of the competitors could show his or her talents. Paul, who is popular for flamboyant movement, decided to stampinate himself down and show that he has it in him to move both gracefully and with a powerful stamping. The feud was explosively unpredictable and all three gifted men had plausible reasons to challenge for a MITB opportunity. Finally, LA Knight was able to come out of the ladder match and defeat his opponent by reversing the roll-up performed by Paul.

Tribute to Sika Anoa’i

The wrestling event also featured raw wrestling action, but before one intense match WWE paid tribute to Sika Anoa’i of The Wild Samoans. A memorial video was played that expressed the show’s respects to the super legend wrestler. This segment gave the WWE universe a chance to stand back a little and remember the part Sika played in the sport and what he left behind.

MITB Qualifier: Blair Davenport vs. Indi Hartwell vs. Naomi

The final MITB qualifier of the evening was Number Three featuring Blair Davenport, Indi Hartwell, and Naomi. Right from the start Naomi demonstrated her speed and moves, she really seized the fight with a double drop kick. But, gradually, Davenport began to get aggressive and this slowly changed the fate in favor of Diana.

After the break, Hartwell took over her opponents with her size that was a big plus for her. Lastly, she put Naomi in a spinebuster on Davenport, which was almost a near-pinfall, thus showing her A. C. s strength. The match that could have seen either of the wrestlers triumphantly rejoice at the end of the fight was largely contested in parallel fashion, with each wrestler at some point being on the verge of winning the bout.

Finally, it was Naomi who scored the decisive pin fall thanks to the help of Jade Cargill from the ramp. This win locked Naomi’s position in the MITB ladder match, which only increased the threat level of the competitors in the wwe.

The Bloodline Acknowledgement Ceremony

The most eagerly awaited portion of the Main event segment was Bloodline Acknowledgement Ceremony. Ceremony was intended to formally introduce Paul Heyman as Wiseman of Solo Sikoa into the New World order. Segment started with Sikoa responding to the audience and stating the importance of acknowledging Heyman’s knowledge. But, Sikoa had earlier truthfully told the truth about Jacob Fatu not being there which created a twist.

After the ceremony moved on, Sikoa allowed Fatu to come to the ring and betrayed him. Heyman was surprised when Fatu came out and he was reluctant to bow down to Sikoa as his tribal chief. Stress rose to a boiling point and Sikoa speared an unsuspecting Heyman then Fatu gave a flying head-butt. New Bloodline then proceeded with the triple power bomb through the hardness of the announce table with Heyman.

Violent strike defined a certain shift in plot in the series that introduced a new Bloodline as leaders of the pack. This segment was concluded with people chanting intensely; however, due to signal conversion by WWE some part of more vulgar sentiments was not audible. This climactic ending left the fans waiting for Roman Reigns’ comeback and what more was in store for this interesting storyline.

Final Thoughts

The June 28 episode of WWE SmackDown was an up and down ride of emotions and excitement and featured three MITB qualifiers, plus key story progression. Every segment that took place on the show started with The Bloodline’s pre-show segment and the high bar was kept and upheld all night.

Every match had special moments – Tiffany Stratton, the beauty about her win, LA Knight’s strategy and win over Mansoor, Naomi’s victory. It gave the people a brief teary-eyed intermission before the battle with another tribute video, this time to Sika Anoa’i, being shown to bring them back to the reality of true wrestling .

But as they say, nothing is excellent and the show also has few flaws. While promoting this show, they organically demanded another episode by the end of it as it only featured three matches in two hours. More could have been added to make the episode even better, there should have been more wrestling to complement the massive storytelling.

Nevertheless, this episode was good in moving forward important storylines and in creating hype for Money in the Bank. The Bloodline Acknowledgement Ceremony episode was a highlight where some dramatic turn of events were executed with the best shocker for the upcoming episodes.