{"id":84940,"date":"2019-08-20T13:26:47","date_gmt":"2019-08-20T18:26:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/?p=84940"},"modified":"2019-08-20T13:28:25","modified_gmt":"2019-08-20T18:28:25","slug":"wwe-smackdown-primer-8-20-murphy-vs-bryan-king-of-the-ring-first-rounders-owens-vs-elias-and-crews-vs-andrade-the-viper-strikes-again","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/2019\/08\/20\/wwe-smackdown-primer-8-20-murphy-vs-bryan-king-of-the-ring-first-rounders-owens-vs-elias-and-crews-vs-andrade-the-viper-strikes-again\/","title":{"rendered":"WWE SMACKDOWN PRIMER 8\/20: Murphy vs. Bryan, King of the Ring First Rounders Owens vs. Elias and Crews vs. Andrade, The Viper Strikes Again"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"pwtor-4035627318\" class=\"pwtor-before-content pwtor-entity-placement\"><hr \/><b>SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)... <\/b>\r\n\r\n<iframe src=\"https:\/\/widget.spreaker.com\/player?show_id=3076978&theme=light&playlist=false&playlist-continuous=false&autoplay=false&live-autoplay=false&chapters-image=true&episode_image_position=right&hide-logo=false&hide-likes=false&hide-comments=false&hide-sharing=false&hide-download=true\" width=\"100%\" height=\"140px\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe>\r\n<hr \/><\/div><h3>WWE SMACKDOWN PRIMER<br \/>\nAUGUST 20, 2019<br \/>\nSIOUX FALLS, SD AT THE DENNY SANFORD PREMIER CENTER<br \/>\nAIRS ON USA NETWORK, 8:00 p.m. EDT<br \/>\nBY FRANK PETEANI (@FrankPeteani), PWTORCH CONTRIBUTOR<\/h3>\n<p><em>Announcers: Tom Phillips, Corey Graves, Byron Saxton<\/em><\/p>\n<h3>Arena and Items Advertised by WWE<\/h3>\n<p>WWE heads up towards Sioux Falls, S.D. for tonight\u2019s Smackdown as they return to the Denny Sanford Premier Center. Smackdown had an appearance here in September of 2017 along with 205Live as well as Raw in July of 2018. The building first opened in 2014. SummerSlam is firmly behind us and we begin to turn our attention towards Clash of Champions, which comes our way on Sunday, September 15th.<\/p>\n<p>Here is what\u2019s advertised for tonight\u2019s show:<\/p>\n<p><strong>Matches &amp; Segments:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Buddy Murphy and Daniel Bryan to battle as the Big Dog whodunnit looms large<\/li>\n<li>Can Kevin Owen silence Elias as the King of the Ring begins?<\/li>\n<li>Apollo Crew and Andrade to settle the score in the first round of the King of the Ring<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Storyline Follow-Up:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>How will Kofi Kingston respond to Randy Orton\u2019s vicious assaults?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Daniel Bryan vs. Buddy Murphy<\/h3>\n<p>Last week on Smackdown, Buddy Murphy took on Roman Reigns as the case of who has been attacking Roman continues. Roman picked up the victory, but Murphy looked strong as the match went around twelve minutes. It ended when Roman hit his signature spear, which Murphy sold like a rock star.<\/p>\n<p>Prior to the match Daniel Bryan and Rowan came out and claimed they had nothing to do with the recent attacks on Roman. He claimed, and I do paraphrase, that anyone under duress would lie and tell you what you want to hear. He of course was referring to Roman\u2019s questioning of Murphy a week prior.<\/p>\n<p>Following the match, Bryan and Rowan questioned Murphy in the back. Rowan then coerced Murphy when he wouldn\u2019t talk, and he admitted he lied to Roman about Rowan being behind the attacks. He was then unceremoniously tossed across the room. At the close of Smackdown, Roman confronted Bryan and Rowan. They said they had been doing their own investigation, and now know who did it and would reveal the attacker next week (tonight).<\/p><div id=\"pwtor-27532646\" class=\"pwtor-content pwtor-entity-placement\"><div align=\"center\" data-freestar-ad=\"__336x280 __336x280\" id=\"pwtorchcom_test_300x250\">\r\n  <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\">\r\n    freestar.config.enabled_slots.push({ placementName: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x250\", slotId: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x250\" });\r\n  <\/script>\r\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p>Roman had some kind words for Murphy on Twitter, and a message for Bryan and Rowan. Murphy challenged Bryan to a match, which Bryan accepted:<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Meant every word I said about @WWE_Murphy in the ring. He said he wanted a fight and he got one. Tonight was my night, but I\u2019m sure it won\u2019t be the last time I\u2019ll stand across from you. <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/SDLive?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#SDLive<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/SecretsOut?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#SecretsOut<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/4zD6znVznz\">pic.twitter.com\/4zD6znVznz<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Roman Reigns (@WWERomanReigns) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/WWERomanReigns\/status\/1161488314853199872?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">August 14, 2019<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">&#8230;and as for @ERICKROWAN and <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Wwedanielbryan?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@WWEDanielBryan<\/a>, you have 6 days. <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/RentsDue?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#RentsDue<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/SDLive?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#SDLive<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Roman Reigns (@WWERomanReigns) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/WWERomanReigns\/status\/1161684071812149249?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">August 14, 2019<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Last week on <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/SDLive?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#SDLive<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/WWERomanReigns?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@WWERomanReigns<\/a> and I went face to face &amp; left it all in the ring. If <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Wwedanielbryan?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@WWEDanielBryan<\/a> has an issue with me, he can meet me in the same place I met Roman! Challenge issued.<\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Buddy Matthews (@SNM_Buddy) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/SNM_Buddy\/status\/1162856412374061057?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">August 17, 2019<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Last week on <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/SDLive?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#SDLive<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/WWERomanReigns?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@WWERomanReigns<\/a> and I went face to face &amp; left it all in the ring. If <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Wwedanielbryan?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@WWEDanielBryan<\/a> has an issue with me, he can meet me in the same place I met Roman! Challenge issued.<\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Buddy Matthews (@SNM_Buddy) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/SNM_Buddy\/status\/1162856412374061057?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">August 17, 2019<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Bryan and Murphy go one-on-one tonight.<\/p>\n<p><em>Frank\u2019s Analysis: I hope the match between Roman and Murphy sticks in people\u2019s minds more than what happened afterwards, which may have deflated the balloon for Murphy\u2019s great effort earlier. That and the banter between suggests a babyface turn for Murphy, but we\u2019ll see. It was suggested that Murphy, Bryan, and Rowan could be in on it together and one of them was truly the attacker. Overall, WWE should recognize what they have in Buddy Murphy. He can wrestle and has a snarky little personality that could work as a heel or babyface. He certainly doesn\u2019t wrestle heel.<\/em><\/p>\n<h3>King of the Ring First Round Matches: Kevin Owens vs. Elias and Apollo Crews vs. Andrade<\/h3>\n<p>Last night the King of the Ring tournament got underway. Tonight, we continue with two more first round matches as Kevin Owens takes on Elias and Apollo Crews hooks up with Andrade. Last night on Raw Samoa Joe defeated Cesaro and Cedric Alexander defeated Sami Zayn. Update those brackets folks!<\/p>\n<p>Owens and Elias have had their issues lately, especially at SummerSlam when Elias when the special outside enforcer for Owens\u2019 career-on-the-line match against Shane McMahon. When Elias tried to interfere, Owens attacked him. That lead to Shane fining Owens $100,000 last week. Elias also got involved as an enforcer for a match between Owens and Samoa Joe last week. With the referee incapacitated, Elias stepped in and fast-counted Owens giving Joe the win. Owens and Elias go at it tonight in their first round King of the Ring match.<\/p>\n<p>Apollo Crews and Andrade have circled each other as well recently. They had some exchanges on TV that lead to a match ending in a no-contest several weeks ago. They then took their feud to WWE.com exclusives and had a match on Smackdown, which was decisively won by Andrade. They renew their feud in first round action tonight. Here\u2019s a WWE.com exclusive with both of them talking to Sarah Schreiber:<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Will Apollo Crews or Andrade become King of the Ring?: SmackDown Exclusive, Aug. 13, 2019\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/7kmLMDQQqNg?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Frank\u2019s Analysis: Apollo and Andrade had a decent match when they worked weeks ago. I\u2019d lean towards Andrade winning as I have him in the higher \u201ctier\u201d of possibilities winning the tournament. As far as Owens vs. Elias, Owens should win. I do fear Elias winning this tournament as I could see Vince getting a kick out of him wearing the crown and robe while playing the guitar.<\/p>\n<h3>Randy Orton Assaults<\/h3>\n<p>The saga between Randy Orton and WWE Champion Kofi Kingston continued last week. Kofi reiterated how inappropriate it was for Randy to stare at his family the way he did at SummerSlam, which is why he attacked him the way he did. Randy talked about Kofi\u2019s kids growing up one day and asking why their father ran away from that \u201cbig, scary man\u201d because he can\u2019t beat him. Randy and the Revival (Scott Dawson &amp; Dash Wilder) proceeded to take on and defeat Kofi and his New Day brothers, Smackdown Tag Team Champions Big E &amp; Xavier Woods. Here\u2019s Randy in a WWE.com exclusive following last week, where he dropped Kofi with two RKOs:<\/p><div id=\"pwtor-1004679758\" class=\"pwtor-content-1 pwtor-entity-placement\"><!-- Tag ID: pwtorchcom_test_300x600 -->\r\n<div align=\"center\" data-freestar-ad=\"__336x280 __300x600\" id=\"pwtorchcom_test_300x600\">\r\n  <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\">\r\n    freestar.config.enabled_slots.push({ placementName: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x600\", slotId: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x600\" });\r\n  <\/script>\r\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Randy Orton sees more RKOs in Kingston&#039;s future: SmackDown Exclusive, Aug. 13, 2019\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/HjNuci3PPAU?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Last night on Raw the assaults continued. Randy interfered in a match between E &amp; Woods and the Revival by giving E an RKO out of nowhere, causing Revival to get disqualified. Kofi went out for the save but was beaten down and then forced to watch Dawson drop a flying knee onto Xavier\u2019s leg. Xavier screamed in pain. According to WWE.com, Xavier was \u201crushed to a medical facility\u201d:<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">BREAKING: @XavierWoodsPhD was rushed to a local medical facility following the attack on Raw by <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/RandyOrton?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@RandyOrton<\/a> and The Revival. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/iGsp0rNoIN\">https:\/\/t.co\/iGsp0rNoIN<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; WWE (@WWE) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/WWE\/status\/1163641990732550144?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">August 20, 2019<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>We\u2019ll find out tonight how they follow up on this story between New Day, Randy, and the Revival. Kofi and Randy are at the center.<\/p>\n<p><em>Frank\u2019s Analysis: I have to admit I didn\u2019t like the finish at SummerSlam between Kofi and Randy but looking back it makes sense as it furthered the story. It feels like there\u2019s genuine animosity between these two. Done right, this could be a go-to feud down the line if they want to revisit. Revival is getting a boost hanging with Randy and it\u2019s nice to see Randy hanging with others as opposed to doing his own thing. The heels and babyfaces should stick together more often when it makes sense.<\/em><\/p>\n<h3>The Undertaker<\/h3>\n<p>This isn\u2019t part of tonight\u2019s show. WWE announced that the Undertaker will be on the Smackdown September 10th episode at Madison Square Garden.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">The <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/Undertaker?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#Undertaker<\/a> will appear at <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/TheGarden?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@TheGarden<\/a> when <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/SDLive?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#SDLive<\/a> emanates from there on September 10! <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/8uVfpwPADC\">https:\/\/t.co\/8uVfpwPADC<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; WWE (@WWE) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/WWE\/status\/1163767675555856384?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">August 20, 2019<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>We last saw the Undertaker team with Roman Reigns to defeat Drew McIntyre and Shane McMahon at July\u2019s Extreme Rules. He had defeated Goldberg at Super Showdown in Saudi Arabia in early June in a widely criticized match. Smackdown was Undertaker\u2019s \u201chome\u201d for the most part during the original roster split era from 2002-\u201911 (What roster split? They stopped honoring that three years in just like now.).<\/p>\n<p><em>Frank\u2019s Analysis: No matter what, it\u2019s always exciting to see that the Undertaker is coming. This has got a Bray Wyatt attack written all over it given Bray has been attacking the legends upon his reintroduction.<\/em><\/p>\n<h3>Other Match Results and Segments from Last Week<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Charlotte Flair defeated Ember Moon<\/li>\n<li>WWE announced that next year\u2019s SummerSlam will be in Boston, Mass. They also announced the 20th anniversary show will be the debut of Smackdown on FOX on October 4th.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Overall Thoughts on Tonight\u2019s Show<\/h3>\n<p>Dare I say I\u2019ve been enjoying the main roster product the past few weeks? People are looking at the camera when they do interviews. They\u2019re showing inset promos \u201cfilmed earlier\u201d with the wrestlers talking about what the matches mean to them. They have purpose when they come to the ring, which is what you want to see on a wrestling program. The King of the Ring tournament continues tonight with at least one match that ought to be good in Apollo vs. Andrade. Hopefully WWE gives some stakes to this tournament.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><em>Follow Frank on Twitter @FrankPeteani. Questions and discussion are welcome. Thank you for reading!<\/em><\/p>\n<div class=\"pwtor-end-article-groups pwtor-entity-placement\" id=\"pwtor-1050457255\"><div id=\"pwtor-1367463310\"><div align=\"center\" data-freestar-ad=\"__336x280\" id=\"pwtorchcom_medrec_3\">\r\n  <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\">\r\n    freestar.config.enabled_slots.push({ placementName: \"pwtorchcom_medrec_3\", slotId: \"pwtorchcom_medrec_3\" });\r\n  <\/script>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\nTHANK YOU FOR VISITING<\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<div class=\"mh-excerpt\"><p>WWE SMACKDOWN PRIMER AUGUST 20, 2019 SIOUX FALLS, SD AT THE DENNY SANFORD PREMIER CENTER AIRS ON USA NETWORK, 8:00 p.m. EDT BY FRANK PETEANI (@FrankPeteani), PWTORCH CONTRIBUTOR Announcers: Tom Phillips, Corey Graves, Byron Saxton <a class=\"mh-excerpt-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/2019\/08\/20\/wwe-smackdown-primer-8-20-murphy-vs-bryan-king-of-the-ring-first-rounders-owens-vs-elias-and-crews-vs-andrade-the-viper-strikes-again\/\" title=\"WWE SMACKDOWN PRIMER 8\/20: Murphy vs. Bryan, King of the Ring First Rounders Owens vs. Elias and Crews vs. Andrade, The Viper Strikes Again\">[&#8230;]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":76206,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"episode_type":"","audio_file":"","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","itunes_episode_number":"","itunes_title":"","itunes_season_number":"","itunes_episode_type":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,52,4403,27,5893,3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-84940","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-prowrestlingnews","category-opnionandanalysis","category-smackdown-primer","category-specialists","category-tvprimers","category-news_wwe"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/post\/2019\/03\/BryanDanielJoelTesch3x2_600.png","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/84940","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=84940"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/84940\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":84947,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/84940\/revisions\/84947"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/76206"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=84940"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=84940"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=84940"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}