WWE SmackDown live results: SummerSlam fallout

At SummerSlam, Cody Rhodes reclaimed the WWE Championship in a hard-fought street fight against “the real” John Cena that saw the two men show tremendous respect for one another following the match. Rhodes is scheduled to appear tonight in Montreal’s Bell Centre to address his championship victory and potentially find out who his first title defense will be against.

Meanwhile, Cena will kick off SmackDown to not only discuss his defeat at SummerSlam, but also being attacked post-match by a returning Brock Lesnar.

Motor City Machine Guns will face Talla Tonga and JC Mateo of the MFTs in tag team action. The team of Chris Sabin and Alex Shelley were one of five teams who came up short in dethroning the Wyatt Sicks in a hotly contested TLC match at SummerSlam.

The MFTs are coming off a mixed night at SummerSlam where Solo Sikoa retained the United States title against Jacob Fatu inside a steel cage — but Fatu and Jimmy Uso left Mateo and Tonga Loa laying after.

Join us for live coverage starting at 8 p.m. Eastern time.

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– SmackDown opened with a recap of the SummerSlam Sunday main event between Cody Rhodes and John Cena, as well as the Brock Lesnar return after the match.

John Cena opens SmackDown

We didn’t waste any time as John Cena opened SmackDown, with his usual babyface entrance back in full force after SummerSlam. The Montreal crowd responded with a loud cheer for Cena as he addressed the camera, telling Stu the Cameraman “let’s go to work” before he ran down to the ring, full of vigour.

Ring announcer Mark Nash did the introduction for Cena, but added that the “Last Real Champion” was here to celebrate with all the fans.

“Man, we have come a long way,” began Cena. He said for the longest time, WWE was afraid to come to Montreal because they thought the audience would hijack the show. Cena said that he wasn’t afraid of that possibility because he knew that the audience was the show. If we watched at home, we could see the crowd go and wish we were there. Cena noted that the Montreal crowd was so loud that he could barely hear himself talk.

For the crew in the back, Cena said that it could get scary if the crowd started singing. “Some performers might get scared,” but Cena said that he might’ve been afraid, but the crowd helped him through it by letting him embrace and enjoy every single second. He said that it didn’t last forever, unfortunately, as the crowd chanted “Thank you, Cena”.

He said that he’s been coming here for over two decades, and that he had shared many valuable moments in this ring, and that all he had to say was: thank you. Cena reminded the crowd that after tonight, he has 11 dates left before retirement. Cena admitted that every time a day goes by, he gets more and more afraid, and he thanked everyone for that.

Cena said that no matter how much he gave to the crowd in the little amount of time left, that it wouldn’t be enough. Cena continued by saying that he was also afraid that after he was gone and WWE moved on without him, he’d be forgotten as a result. Cena finally addressed Brock Lesnar, stating that there’d be no universe ever that he’d back down against Lesnar’s challenge.

Cena said that he’s afraid that Brock Lesnar has just gotten a “John Cena problem”, and that everyone in the locker room has also got themselves a “John Cena problem”. Cena declared that he was ready to go down guns blazing, because the last time was now. “If you want some, come get some!” challenged Cena.

The music of Logan Paul heralded the arrival of the so-called YouTube influencer to the ring. As the crowd booed, Paul said that this version of John Cena made him sick. Paul noted how he once respected Cena, but no longer as he “switched up” in his eyes.

As Paul entered the ring, Cena told him that he might’ve made the biggest mistake of his life. Paul claimed that the people didn’t know who John Cena was, and that he did WWE better than any professional wrestler. Cena responded by calling Paul the “biggest dumbass he had ever seen in his life”.

Paul called Cena a liar as he wanted to face him in a match, if Cena was in the mood for giving matches. Paul said that we would see this match in a beautiful French-speaking country… Paris, France. As Paul rambled on, Drew McIntyre snuck up on Cena and helped Paul ambush him. Cody Rhodes ran in to make the save to help Cena clear the ring of Paul and McIntyre.

Cena accepted Paul’s challenge for Clash in Paris, but it was clear that Paul and McIntyre wanted a fight. He then threw down the challenge for Paul and McIntyre to take him on and Rhodes for a tag match tonight. “The Champ is Here!” declared Cena, referring to our new Undisputed WWE Champion in the form of Cody Rhodes.

A rather interesting opening segment that seemed more centered on Cena’s final goodbye than directly addressing the Brock Lesnar/SummerSlam fallout, as well as giving us a match for Clash in Paris with Cena vs. Paul. The promo itself was back to a usual Cena babyface one, and it’s honestly good to hear it again, because Cena is a natural at these types of promos as opposed to the ones we got during his recently-wrapped heel run.

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– The Motor City Machine Gunes were asked backstage about their chances against Talla Tonga and J.C. Mateo of the M.F.T.s. They said that their road to the top began with this match.

– Rhodes/Cena vs. Paul/McIntyre was made official for later tonight.

The Motor City Machine Guns (Chris Sabin & Alex Shelley) vs. Talla Tonga & J.C. Mateo (w/ Solo Sikoa and Tama Tonga)

Mateo and Shelley opened the match as the two traded offense until Shelley and Sabin used a double team attack to floor Mateo and send him to the outside. Sabin took down Mateo with a five-hole suicide dive as the MCMGs did a number on Talla Tonga.

Tama Tonga got on the apron, which caused a distraction and gave Talla the time to pick Sabin off the apron and throw him into the barricade, which sent us to a break in the action.

We returned to the match as Talla had Shelley locked in a bearhug before he slammed the tag veteran to the mat. Shelley found a way to create separation as he elbowed Mateo before he got the tag on Sabin.

Sabin attempted to take down Mateo, but had to hit multiple superkicks before he did the job with a springboard DDT for a near-fall. The Machine Guns then attempted a double team on Mateo as they took Talla down from the apron. This gave Mateo time to recover and slam down Sabin. The cover, but Shelley broke it up.

A double superkick from Sabin and Shelley stunned Mateo, but Talla got involved and prevented the Skull and Bones with a boot to Shelley on the top rope. He then chokeslammed Sabin to pick up the victory for the M.F.T.s.

Talla Tonga & J.C. Mateo def. Motor City Machine Guns via pinfall

An okay match. Nothing really much to say, but does seem to set up Talla and J.C. as challengers for the Wyatt Sicks. Not sure what that will look like, but it’s at least worth keeping an eye on.

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After the match, Solo Sikoa got on the microphone and declared that he and his M.F.T.s were what greatness looked like. He said that we were looking at the soon-to-be WWE Tag Team Champions and the most dominant United States Champion. Sikoa said he was feeling good and ready for a fight, but the problem is that nobody was wanted to fight him. He said that this was the last place that he wanted to fight so he was ready to celebrate.

SmackDown GM Nick Aldis interrupted him and that he found someone who was also ready for a fight. That someone being a person that Sikoa knew all too well and one that Montreal knew well. Sami Zayn then entered to a raucous ovation from the hometown crowd.

Solo Sikoa vs. Sami Zayn

The match officially kicked off after a commercial break as Zayn and Sikoa stared down one another across the ring. The crowd broke out in an “ole ole ole” singalong as this was happening. Zayn and Sikoa finally locked horns in the middle of the ring as the latter forced his opponent into the corner. Sikoa tried to beg off Zayn by throwing up the Bloodline ones, but got a slap in the face for his troubles.

Zayn responded with punches in the corner before Sikoa regained control with a running shoulder block. The United States Champion chopped at Zayn in the corner before he struck with some punches of his own. Zayn escaped and once again hammered away at Sikoa in the corner. Zayn sent Sikoa to the outside with a clothesline and sized him up for a dive. He soared over the top rope with a dive that took down Sikoa, but soon found himself surrounded by the M.F.T.s by the commentary table.

In the ring, Sikoa provided a distraction, which allowed Tama Tonga to hit Zayn with a clothesline from the apron, which took us to a break in the action.

We came back from the break with Zayn connecting on a sunset flip powerbomb to Sikoa from the top rope for a close near-fall. Zayn followed that up by attempting to lift Sikoa up, but to no avail. An attempted Blue Thunder Bomb was met by a Spinning Solo from the United States Champion. One, two… Zayn just managed to kick out.

Sikoa sized Zayn up for a Samoan Spike, but Zayn got a boot up and threw him in the corner for an Exploder Suplex. Zayn locked in and looked like he was about to hit a Helluva Kick, but Tama Tonga provided the distraction. Another Exploder was followed by an attempted Helluva Kick, but J.C. Mateo this time provided a distraction. Talla Tonga got up on the apron and faced off with a defiant Zayn, but this opened him up for a superkick from Sikoa. The U.S. Champion looked to have this won with a Samoan Spike, but Zayn turned that around and got the surprise rollup pinfall win to a huge ovation from the hometown crowd. Zayn immediately rolled out of the ring to avoid an M.F.T. beatdown as Sikoa looked stunned at losing in such shocking fashion.

Sami Zayn def. Solo Sikoa via pinfall

This was a nice little match, and Sami getting the hometown hero win was a good change of pace.

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– We got a promo from the Wyatt Sicks. Uncle Howdy said that the Sicks would never lead us astray, and that when they spoke, they only spoke the truth. The Sicks said they woke the SmackDown tag division up to their true reality. This was clear that this was about something bigger than the Tag Titles, and that there were more lessons to be learned.

– Backstage, the Street Profits and #DIY got into an argument, with Tommasso Ciampa calling the Profits a bunch of “motherkillers” for what happened to Candice LeRae. The bickering continued until Nick Aldis interrupted. He said that the TLC match didn’t keep everyone in check, but that would start next week with #DIY vs. the Profits next week on SmackDown.

Alexa Bliss and Charlotte Flair’s Championship Celebration

The new WWE Women’s Tag Champions had themselves a Championship Celebration, which happened to fall on Bliss’s birthday. In the ring, was a cake that said “Congratulations Charlotte! – Alexa”, which Flair tried to pass off as a birthday gift to Bliss.

Flair said that if Bliss and her were tag partners, then Lilly the doll needed a tag partner of her own. Flair then unveiled “Charlie”, a doll that looked quite similar to Lilly. Bliss thanked Flair for the appreciation, but it wasn’t enough. Flair said that she needed something and Montreal needed something. And that something was a hug. Bliss said she didn’t know if that was necessary, but Flair beckoned her partner to give her a hug.

Chelsea Green and the Secret Hervice interrupted before we got a hug. Green said that while she was a proud Canadian, seeing the Montreal crowd cheer for Bliss and Flair made her want to turn her passport in. She dissed the Montreal Canadiens and then said that the we should be celebrating her homecoming instead.

Flair said that she had one more gift for Bliss: kicking Chelsea Green’s ass tonight. As Green tried to back away, Nick Aldis appeared with a referee who wore a bowtie. The referee was apparently a “birthday gift” for Bliss as Aldis then made Flair vs. Green official, and we’d see that match after the break.

– Backstage, Carmelo Hayes tried to pay a visit to Nick Aldis, but was met by The Miz instead. Hayes was upset that Miz ignored him for two months and he wanted to get a shot at the United Staes Championship. Miz said that he supposedly got a tag team match for him and Hayes next week. Hayes tentatively agreed and left. Nick Aldis appeared and it was clear that Miz had not spoken to to the SmackDown GM about this supposed tag match.

Charlotte Flair vs. Chelsea Green

Flair had the advantage early on as she forced Green out of the ring for the time being. Green got the upper hand in the ring with a boot to the face. Green then slammed Flair’s face on the turnbuckle, but got countered and hit with a chop to the face.

On the apron, Flair fended off Alba Fyre and Piper Niven before she took the top rope and hit a diving crossbody for the near-fall. The Secret Hervice provided a momentary distraction, that didn’t provide any sort of advantage for Green. A rollup attempt by Flair was turned into a moment of opportunity for Green as she pushed her into the middle turnbuckle. That took us into an oddly-placed ad break.

We returned to the match and we found out that the birthday cake from the birthday celebration for Bliss was placed outside the ring while the match was in progress.

Flair blased Green with chops followed by a walkover clothesline and a high-angle German suplex on the Canadian. Flair then connected with Natural Selection, but Green kicked out at two. As Flair tried to run at Green, she was met with a big boot. Flair quickly recovered and tried to head up top. Green stunned Flair and landed a superplex for the close near-fall. A flustered Green motioned to the Secret Hervice to bring the birthday cake to her, as Fyre and Niven slid it into the ring.

On the outside, Bliss took out both members of the Secret Hervice with a dive. In the ring, Green set Flair up for a Un-Pretty-Her on the cake, but Flair reversed it and delivered an Un-Pretty-Her of her own on Green instead. In the end, Flair made Green submit to the Figure Eight for the win.

Charlotte Flair def. Chelsea Green via submission

A fun little segment and an entertaining match afterwards with a funny finish to the proceedings.

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– Tiffany Stratton was interviewed about what was next for her. She said that she’d just keep on doing what she had been doing for the past 216 days. Jade Cargill interrupted and promised that it’d be different next time she and Stratton faced off. Stratton said that it’d be a different story, but with the same ending: her winning out. As Stratton left, Cargill was confronted by Kiana James and Giulia. Cargill said that she’d go after Giulia’s Women’s U.S. Title on her own time. Finally, Michin showed up and offered to help Cargill out against Giulia and Kiana.

– We got a video from Aleister Black, where he said that he was granted the power to use violence to stop a greater violence being committed. Black said that he is an eye for an limb and and an eye for a life kind of guy. Black took credit for giving Damian Priest a hairline fraction in his jaw following his attack on last week’s SmackDown.

– John Cena was walking backstage and was met by Ron Killings/R-Truth, who seemed happy that the “real” Cena was back. Cena played along and acted like Truth had turned heel for the past five months and only since turned back face. Cena gave Truth an appreciative pat before he walked off for our main event up next.

Cody Rhodes & John Cena vs. Logan Paul & Drew McIntyre

Rhodes and Paul started off our main event with a tie up in the middle of the ring, as Rhodes took him down with a running shoulder block. Paul responded with a standing headlock that he failed to keep on as Rhodes fought back with his signature drop down slap to the face. After a suplex, Rhodes tried to tag Cena, but Paul rolled him up and dragged the Undisputed WWE Champion back to the his corner as McIntyre tagged into the match.

McIntyre failed to get any momentum as Rhodes slammed him with a running powerslam. Meanwhile, Paul ran a distraction, which gave McIntyre the chance to blast Rhodes with the Glasgow Kiss headbutt. In the ring, McIntyre provided a distraction of his own as Paul hit Rhodes with a clothesline at ringside, which took us to the final ad break of the night with about 7 minutes to 10:00pm.

We returned to our main event with McIntyre attempting to prevent Rhodes from making the tag to Cena. Rhodes managed to create some needed separation as he avoided a shoulder charge from McIntyre, which sent the Scotsman crashing into the corner. This allowed Cena to get the hot tag as he unleashed his Five Moves of Doom on legal man Paul. The Montreal crowd was on fire as Cena delivered the Five Knuckle Shuffle, followed by the Attitude Adjustment. McIntyre made the save by breaking up the pin. McIntyre tried to target Cena for a Claymore Kick, but Rhodes intervened.

In the ring, Cena was hit by a low blow from Paul to cause the DQ finish. After the match, Paul and Cena brawled to the back while Rhodes and McIntyre continued to mix it up at ringside. The fight took a turn as McIntyre smacked Rhodes across the face with the Undisputed WWE Championship. With the Champion prone next to the edge of the commentary table, McIntyre delivered a particularly vicious Claymore Kick that managed to break the bottom of the commentary table entirely to end our night.

Cody Rhodes & John Cena def. Logan Paul & Drew McIntyre via Disqualification

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Kind of a hard reset of sorts, particularly with the past five months for John Cena as he abruptly turned back face. Main event was fine, and the post-match extracurriculars set up the already-announced Cena vs. Paul match and a presumed Undisputed WWE Championship match (and presumably writing Cody Rhodes off until Clash in Paris so he can film Street Fighter).

All in all, an average SmackDown at best.