WWE Smackdown/ECW house show results
January 24, 2010
Cleveland, Ohio
Report by Paul Greer, Torch VIP member

The show started promptly at 3:00 p.m. Announcer Tony Chimel introduced Smackdown GM Teddy Long. Teddy came out and danced with Chimel. He wished everyone a belated Happy New Year and said he had some good news and some bad news for the fans. The bad news was that World champion The Undertaker would not be making his scheduled title defense against Chris Jericho. The crowd booed and Jericho’s music hit. Huge heat for Jericho.

Jericho told Long that since The Taker is a no-show he should be awarded the World Title by default. Teddy said he didn’t enjoy being interrupted before he gave the good news about the special guest superstar replacing the Undertaker. He wouldn’t give Jericho the title, however, he would give Jericho a chance at facing his special guest superstar for the evening. He said if Jericho could beat this superstar, he would get a title shot at next Friday’s Smackdown. Jericho asked who the superstar was and Long said it was "The Game," Triple H. This was a nicely done set-up and suitable replacement for the Undertaker.

(1) Intercontinental champion Drew McIntyre beat Matt Hardy, R-Truth, and John Morrison in a four-way match to retain the IC Title. McIntyre pinned Hardy for the win. Nice pop for Hardy. Nice match to keep the crowd hot.

Tony Chimel announced the guest host for the evening, ECW announcer Savannah. She gave a kid in the audience a chance to sit next to the timekeeper if he could tell her the name of the next PPV.

(2) Mickie James & Maria beat Beth Phoenix & Layla. Mickie pinned Layla. They gave this match some time and, while it was a standard tag-style match, it was well done.

(3) Tyler Reks beat Goldust in a short match.

(4) Hart Dynasty (D.H. Smith & Tyson Kidd w/Natalya) beat Jimmy Wang Yang & Slam Master J. Smith pinned SMJ for the win.

(5) ECW champion Christian beat Ezekiel Jackson to retain the ECW Title. Decent reaction to the match.

C.M. Punk and Luke Gallows came out. They said they were looking for another member for the Straight Edge Society. A young kid named John was pulled from the audience. He pledged his devotion to Punk and got his head shaved. He didn’t look like a wrestler with his body type. Either a member of the road crew or a fan who got his five minutes of fame and a hair cut. It was still a great segment. The fans absolutely hate Punk.

(6) Finlay beat Dolph Ziggler. Finlay won with a roll-up. Being that Ziggler graduated from my Alma Mater of Kent State University, he was announced as hailing from Hollywood, Ohio tonight.

(7) Rey Mysterio & Kane beat C.M. Punk and Luke Gallows. This match was off the charts in terms of crowd reaction. They hated Punk almost as much as they loved Mysterio. It was a really good match to boot. The match ended when Mysterio gave the 619 to both Gallows and Punk. Kane chokeslamed Gallows, then Mysterio did a top rope splash onto Punk and they scored a double pin-fall.

(8) Unified tag champion Triple H beat Chris Jericho in the main event. Triple H came out to a huge pop. The fans chanted, "You suck" at Jericho. They fought in the back of the building and put on a good show in the ring. By the end of the match, no one seemed to mind the Undertaker canceled.

Overall, a fun afternoon show. The final two matches made for a great show. Attendance was rather sparse. I'd estimate 5,000 in the Quicken Loans Arena, which can hold up to 20,000. The audience was 80 percent kids with their parents. At 38, I’m beginning to feel like an old man at these events.

Biggest Pops:
-- Rey Mysterio (he even sustained it through his entire match).
-- Triple H (a close second).
-- Matt Hardy (can you imagine how popular he would be if he were in shape and won matches?)

Biggest Heat:
-- Chris Jericho (the crowd hated him and he juiced it to perfection).
-- C.M. Punk (a real close second).
-- Luke Gallows (guilt by association).

[Torch art credit Grant Gould (c) PWTorch.com]

We suggest these recent related articles...

SHOW RESULTS - 10/9 AAW in Berwyn, Ill.: Gargano challenges for AAW Hvt. Title, more title matches, big women's tag match, more

SHOW RESULTS - 10/3 NWA Smoky Mountain in Kingsport, Tenn.: NWA Hvt. Title match, Rob Conway, Kid Kash, Ricky Morton, more

LIVE REPORT - 10/4 TNA BFG PPV in North Carolina: Live notes on technical glitches, pre-Angle match announcement, Captain America Fan, more