SD Fusion: Don’t Stop Believin’

by Firefly on 1st January 2012

The 30th December 2011 episode of Friday Night SmackDown! starts with a video recapping the events involving Wade Barrett and Randy Orton, and hyping their match together later on in the episode which it states will have a Falls Count Anywhere stipulation, followed by Booker T being introduced and making his way to the ring.

Booker T talks about being in the 2011 Royal Rumble, working with Michael Cole on commentary, and being dragged back to the ring by Cody Rhodes, but mentioning his match against Rhodes on Monday Night Raw (click here for our Raw report) which Booker won.

Rhodes decides to make his presence known, as his music hits and he starts walking to the ring while insulting the crowd. He recaps how the year has gone for himself, followed by insulting Booker T and calling him a joke.

Cody Rhodes tells Booker T to do everyone a favour an go home, but instead gets another interjection, this time by Goldust’s music hitting, and his brother Dustin “Goldust” Rhodes making his way to the ring in a suit and without the Goldust attire.

Goldust talks about how when he was down and out, Booker T inspired him and took him under his wing, and that he had the best time of his career when he was tagging with Booker. He says that he understands about Cody wanting to make a name for himself, but that it shouldn’t be at Booker’s expense and he says that Cody knows that it is wrong.

Cody doesn’t care about inspiration and says that the fans aren’t worth inspiring, as for knowing better, he says that he knows that he restored the Rhodes family name after Goldust threw up all over it. Booker T interjects and says that Goldust is more of a man than Cody will ever be, but it is not about him or Booker T, but it is rather about Cody Rhodes.

Booker points out that they now have a win each, so suggests that they have one more match against each other, but that they make it for the Intercontinental Championship, and he is happy to do so right now. Cody accepts the match, but says that it won’t take place until next week instead.

Booker T tries to get the last word, but Cody is the one to send the message to Booker T, as after Booker exits the ring and joins the announce table, Cody takes out his brother with a springboard kick to the face.

After a video recapping the match between Heath Slater and Ted DiBiase two weeks ago, and the subsequent attack by Jinder Mahal on DiBiase, Ted DiBiase takes on Jinder Mahal in a match which sees Mahal get the victory, when he forces DiBiase to tap out to the camel clutch.

After an interaction backstage involving Aksana and Teddy Long, which is followed by an interaction involving Teddy Long and Drew McIntyre, that sees Long telling McIntyre that he’ll need to see some results if he’s going to keep his job, Kaitlyn and Alicia Fox are pitted against Natalya and Tamina in a tag team match which sees Alicia get the victory for her team, when she hits Natalya with a scissors-kick for the 3-count.

Afterwards, Tamina isn’t happy with Natalya so hits her with a superkick, which she then follows up with a Superfly Splash.

After a video recapping CM Punk’s gauntlet match on Raw that saw Dolph Ziggler win the chance to face Punk for the WWE Championship on the next episode of Raw, and a video recapping the events involving David Otunga, The Big Show, Mark Henry, and Daniel Bryan on Raw, Daniel Bryan is shown talking to AJ about “saving” The Big Show when Show himself interrupts.

Show says that giants don’t need to be rescued or saved, but although Bryan saw differently, he is looking forward to their tag team match later on. It is at this point that Teddy Long makes an appearance and lets them know that the tag team match will no longer be going ahead due to orders from higher up.

Instead, Long says that David Otunga wants another match with The Big Show, and that in Otunga’s corner will be Mark Henry.

Back in the arena, Justin Gabriel goes against Hunico (riding to the ring on a low-rider bicycle and accompanied by Camacho) in a match which sees Hunico get the victory, when he hits Gabriel with a senton bomb for the 3-count.

Afterwards, Camacho and Hunico send a message, by hitting Gabriel with an elevated double-neckbreaker.

Next, David Otunga (with Mark Henry in his corner) takes on The Big Show in a match which sees Show get the victory, when Daniel Bryan appears and lures away Henry, and Show hits Otunga with the Weapon of Mass Destruction for the 3-count.

Now, Ezekiel Jackson is pitted against Drew McIntyre in a match which sees Jackson get the victory, when he takes advantage of McIntyre’s argument with the referee, and rolls up McIntyre with a handful of tights for the 3-count.

After a video hyping Sheamus and an interaction involving Drew McIntyre and Teddy Long in which Long says that he can’t stand losers, especially ones who make excuses, Sheamus makes his way to the ring and talks about how he is going to win the 2012 Royal Rumble.

After Hornswoggle’s music hits and he makes his way to the ring, Sheamus comments that it is the person who eliminated him from the Christmas Battle Royal, and asks Hornswoggle if he is entering the Royal Rumble too, to which Hornswoggle responds in the affirmative.

Hornswoggle thinks that he’ll be the one to win the Royal Rumble, but although Sheamus admires his confidence in himself, he quotes his great uncle in saying “fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice – you’re begging for a kick up the arse”.

Heath Slater is the next to interrupt, and he says that there is always the one guy who says that he is going to win the Royal Rumble but never takes seriously, in this case Hornswoggle, but citing in the past examples such as Bushwhacker Luke and the Brooklyn Brawler.

He says that he himself isn’t that type of guy, and that Sheamus isn’t the number one redhead on SmackDown!, as he is. Slater says that he liked Hornswoggle better when he didn’t speak, though he didn’t even like him then, but he says that the only reason that Hornswoggle won the Battle Royal was the Sheamus didn’t want to squash a leprechaun.

Slater says that he is the “One Man Rock Band”, and he doesn’t have that problem. Sheamus says that he has nothing against Southern Rock, and gives him credit for trying to spread the message about it, but says that he bets that Slater sees himself as a Journey type of guy, with Journey being the band who had a hit with “Don’t Stop Believin’”.

Unfortunately for Heath Slater, Sheamus says that he sees him as more of a an R-Kelly type of guy – he believes he can fly, as he takes Slater by the head and sends him over the ropes and out onto the floor.

Next up, Heath Slater goes against Sheamus in a match which sees Sheamus get the victory, when he hits Slater with the Brogue Kick for the 3-count.

After an interaction involving The Big Show, Daniel Bryan, and Teddy Long, in which Long informs Show and Bryan that they will be facing each other for the World Heavyweight Championship next week on SmackDown!, a video recaps the events of last week involving Wade Barrett and Randy Orton which saw Orton hit Barrett with an RKO on top of a car.

After another video hyping the appearance of a mystery person who will supposedly reclaim what is theirs on the upcoming episode of Raw, Randy Orton takes on Wade Barrett in a Falls Count Anywhere match which sees no apparent decision rendered due to the referee being knocked out during the match.

After the referee is knocked out, the brawl ends up going all through the halls and in an elevator, with Barrett apparently getting the upper-hand, as he sends Orton down a flight of stairs, and the camera focuses on the downed Orton as SmackDown! goes off the air.

About the Author: Firefly

Avatar of Ron Simmons saying "Damn!"
Discovering WCW Monday Nitro in the 1990s, he has been hooked on wrestling ever since, later going on to also discover WWF (now WWE), and even later numerous independent promotions, TNA and now the very captivating challenger known as AEW.

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