WWE Great American Bash
July 23rd 2006
July of 2006 was a turbulent time for the Smackdown brand of World Wrestling Entertainment. The new wellness policy was in full force for the first time, and Smackdown paid the price, as many superstars were forced to miss this show. Heading into this event, the following changes had to be made:
The Great Khali had to be substituted with Big Show, due to his blood test damning him and because WWE officials did not trust him to not botch his match.
Bobby Lashley had to sit out the U.S. title match.
Super Crazy lost his shot at the Cruiserweight title.
Mr. Kennedy had to step in for an injured Mark Henry.
Since being revived by the WWE, the annual Great American Bash event has been a critical flop in the eyes of most wrestling fans. Will the 2006 break this trend? Let us find out.
The opening pay-per-view hype video plays. I always love these things. This one is a bit obnoxious in that it is still hyping up the Great Khali. They had pretty short notice, so I can’t hold that against them.
Our hosts for the evening are Michael Cole and John Bradshaw Layfield.
WWE Tag Team Championship:
Paul London and Brian Kendrick © vs. Jamie Noble and Kid Kash
Kash and Noble were trying to get over as a new version of the Pitbulls. They never got off the ground as Kash was suspended after this show and later fired. London and Kash start things off with a little shoving and a good old fashioned rolling around the ring. They take a break for some stalling before tying up again. Kash puts London into a few headlocks. London reverses a hip toss and gets a clothesline in. London whips over the ropes into a hurrancarana. Tag is made to Kendrick, who aggressively goes after Kash. Kash is not to be stopped so easily and tags in Noble, who viciously chops Spanky. Kendrick is back with some arm drags and a near fall and into the wrist lock. Tag is made to London, who this the mule kick on Noble. Kendrick and London make some frequent tags, with off the top forearms onto Noble. Noble finally gets his bearing and shoves London into the turnbuckle. Kash and Kendrick both storm the ring. This bridges into London and Kendrick hitting simultaneous drop kicks and then suicide dives through the ropes. The chaos dies down and it’s back to Noble vs. Kendrick in the ring. Noble takes control with some “ground and pound” offense. Noble tags in Kash and they double team Kendrick. Kash uses Kendrick’s hair to slam him to the match and heads into a rest hold. Kendrick makes the babyface comeback and gets a head scissors takedown. London tags in and leaps off the ropes onto Noble. London hits an impressive belly to belly suplex on Noble and flapjacks Kash. London is flipped over the ropes by Noble, but hangs on to the apron. London tries to skin the cat, but Noble drop kicks him and London hits the floor hard! The crowd did not appreciate that spot half as much as they should have. That was a turning point in the match, as the Pitbulls are back in control. London drags himself into the ring, and Noble takes advantage of London’s potential back and rib injuries. The crowd politely cheers London on as he tries to make a babyface comeback. It doesn’t work, as Noble hits a vicious drop kick and tags in Kash. Kash pulls out his sneaky, evil heel offense for a bit. Kash tags in Noble for a double team. They hit double chops, and Noble goes for a cover. Noble tags in Kash, but London makes a comeback attempt, but can’t get to Kendrick for a tag. London nearly makes the tag, but Jamie Noble pulls Kendrick off the apron. Kash is back on London, but London quickly sprints to Kendrick. Kendrick proceeds to clean house on the man resembling dogs. Kendrick hits a dazzling series of high impact moves before getting a very close near fall on Kash, which the crowd bought. Noble makes the save on a second near fall attempt. London saves Kendrick from the Gibson Driver. Kendrick finishes his series of awesomeness by leaping off the turnbuckle onto the Pitbulls on the mat. The chaos continues until Kendrick goes for a sunset flip on Kash off the turnbuckles, but Kash counters. London then hits the drop sault on Kash, allowing Kendrick to complete the sunset flip into the cover for the victory at 13:28! This was an impressive outing by London and Kendrick, though the match fell short of having that great “epic” feel to it. ***.
Winners and STILL the WWE Tag Team Champions: Brian Kendrick and Paul London
Backstage, Great Khali is yelling some gibberish about wanting to call out the Undertaker before their “Punjabi Prison match.” Daivari is begging Khali to settle down, which results in Khali grabbing Daivari and lifting him up. The camera pans away before we see if Khali gets to hurt Daivari or not, but oh well.
Smackdown General Manager Theodore Long is now joining us in the ring! I can’t imagine he has anything important to say other than to apologize for the way half the card changed before the show. Long has bad news, and it is that Bobby Lashley has “elevated enzymes in the liver” and for medical reasons Lashley cannot compete. That is a nice way of saying that Lashley tested positive for steroid use. The crowd does not like this… but Lashley is now joining us in the ring! Lashley has the microphone so I prepare for a cruel assault on my ears. Lashley does not think there is a damn thing wrong with him, he came all the way here to get his title back. He should’ve read WWE.com then, they had the story there. Long wants Lashley to compete, but he owes it to Lashley and the fans to make sure that Lashley’s long term health is fine. Long promises Lashley a shot at the U.S. title when he is cleared to wrestle. Lashley denies Long a hand shake and pouts his way out of the arena. As Lashley is leaving, Regal and Finlay come out together.
Long does not follow his own show too well, as he asks Finlay what he’s doing out in the arena. Finlay is angry about the “elevated enzymes” diagnosis and cuts a vicious promo against Lashley. And people don’t think Finlay is charismatic. Finlay demands that he be declared the winner because Lashley technically had to forfeit. Long then makes Finlay vs. Regal official.
United States Championship:
Finlay © vs. William Regal
The bell rings and the crowd is less than jazzed to be treated to this heel vs. heel bout. Regal takes a moment to check under the ring for Little Bastard before the action starts. Regal tries to leave the ring again, and Finlay goes for the roll up. Regal kicks out and slaps Finlay across the face. They tie and take turns cornering each other. Crowd doesn’t give them a chance before a faint “boring” chant starts. Their tie up spills through the ropes to ringside and back into the ring. The crowd hated that, but I thought it was neat. The tie up finally breaks. Regal pushes Finlay down and twists the leg. Finlay reverses the pressure and flips Regal down. Finlay puts Regal in a side head lock and it goes into the ropes. Finlay knocks Regal down with a shoulder block and back into the side head lock. Regal pushes Finlay over the ropes and soon hits an uppercut on the apron. Regal is then distracted, as Little Bastard grabs Regal by the ankles from under the ring. Little Bastard chases after Regal with the shillelagh. Regal runs back into the ring, and the match restarts. Finlay and Regal take turns hitting each other with stiff upper cuts and forearms. Finlay goes for the roll up, but Regal kicks out. Finlay whips Regal into the turnbuckle, and Regal appears to be out of breath. Regal desperately attempts to defend himself from the mat. Regal comes back with a boot to the face and a suplex. Regal gets a near fall. Regal gets too close to the side of the ring, and Little Bastard strikes again by biting Regal’s fingers. Finlay then focuses his attacks on Regal’s injured hand. That was a rather bizarre bit of ring psychology. Regal comes back with the head lock, despite potentially catching rabies from the leprechaun. Finlay breaks the hold and takes control with some vicious, stiff attacks. They spill to ringside, where Finlay pushes Regal’s back into the ring and barricade. Back in the ring, Finlay snapmares Regal into a head lock. Regal fights out of the move and shoves Finlay into the turnbuckles and to the mat. Regal goes for a trio of covers after some knee shots on Finlay. Regal hits a drop kick into another duo of cover attempts. Regal delivers a high knee drop and gets another near fall in. There is a full blown “boring” chant now. Finlay crotches Regal with the ring cloth. Regal is trapped there for quite a bit, as Finlay is relentless with his assault. In the process, Regal somehow loses a boot, probably the work of Little Bastard. Finlay attacks the exposed foot. Regal dodges Finlay, who thrusts himself into the ring post. Finlay grabs his shillelagh , which the referee takes from him. While distracted, Little Bastard hands Finlay the missing boot. Finlay knocks Regal in the head with the boot and covers him to retain the U.S. title at 13:48! This match was a mixed back. There was some good violence and some hit or miss attempts at creativity. The crowd was dead and pissed off about Bobby Lashley sitting the match off, which really hurt it. **1/4.
Winner and STILL the United States Championship: Finlay
Backstage, Rey Mysterio and Chavo Guerrero embrace each other with exaggerated expression of male love. This screams “Chavo is turning heel” from a mile away.
Non-title match:
Cruiserweight Champion Gregory Helms vs. Matt Hardy
This is from an era where Super Crazy needed to test high on stomach enzymes for Matt Hardy to get included on a pay-per-view. But it kick started a great feud between Hardy and Helms, so that is significant. At this point, Helms was already the longest reigning Cruiserweight Champion in WWE history and it was only July.
Helms and Hardy start up with some tie ups, but it devolves into a shove and an arm drag by Hardy. Hardy wrenches Helms by the wrist and goes into what feels like the billionth side head lock of the night. They fall to the mat, and Helms almost pulls off a fast one by covering Hardy while still in the side head lock. That just redeemed that move. Hardy gets back to his feet and mocks Helms’ old “Hurricane” gimmick. Hardy dishes Helms out of the ring and hits a flying crossbody over the ropes. Hardy rolls Helms back into the ring for a cover attempt. Helms kicks out of a roll up and hits a couple of cool neckbreakers. Helms is the angry heel in charge of the plucky babyface. Helms gets in a back breaker and a cover attempt. Helms makes Hardy suffer through some more head lock action. Hardy breaks it up, as usual, but gets grounded with a clothesline. Helms tries to win the match on a clothesline, but Hardy kicks out of the cover. Helms stays in control and mocks some of Matt’s mannerisms himself. Hardy comes back, hits the Russian legsweep. Helms reverses the side effect into a unique cover attempt. Helms goes to the top rope, but Hardy cuts him off with punches. Hardy climbs up too for a superplex, but Helms counters. Helms then hits a swinging neckbreaker off the top rope! That was awesome! Helms takes too long to go for the cover, and Hardy gets a foot on the ropes. Helms drags Hardy into the center for another cover, but Hardy kicks out again. Frustrated, Helms hits the snapmare and some elbow drops. And to cap off this hot streak, Helms goes back to the rest holds. Hardy fights back, shoving Helms into the turnbuckles. Helms and Hardy exchange some hard shots. Hardy finally hits the side effect and goes for a cover. Hardy whips Helms around the ring and gets in a bull dog and another cover attempt. Helms reverses the scoop slam, and after a series of counters, Helms slams Hardy to the mat. Helms misses the shining wizard. Hardy fails to gain momentum and Helms finally connects with the shining wizard. That could be it, but Hardy kicks out of the following cover. Helms positions Hardy on the top rope, but Hardy counters. Hardy hits Helms with the moonsault, but Helms kicks out of another cover. Hardy hits an elbow off the top on Helms. Helms refuses to stay down. After taking some blows in the corner, Helms drops Hardy head first on the top turnbuckle. Helms rolls up Hardy and grabs the tights for the victory at 11:46! This was a great little match, and kicked off a great rivalry that is still going strong six months later, ***1/2.
Winner: Gregory Helms
Backstage, Daivari and Great Khali are still arguing. Undertaker pounces from the corner and takes out Daivari. Before he can get to Khali, ECW Champion Big Show randomly shows up and pounds Taker to the concrete floor. Officials separate Show from Undertaker, giving Khali a chance to hit one of his oh so devastating kicks to the head.
Punjabi Prison match:
The Undertaker vs. ECW World Champion Big Show
The Punjabi cage is quite the sight. There is a stick cage around the ring, and a second one around the ringside area. I see potential of this gimmick match given the right participants. The interior cage has four doors. The doors will be opened by a referee when called upon by a wrestler. When opened, the doors will only stay open for sixty seconds. The winner of this match is whoever can escape both structures. I would like to thank Michael Cole for explaining this to us. On a side note, the cages have spikes all along the top.
The ECW Champion, Big Show, looks scared of this structure. That isn’t very extreme of him, is it? The Undertaker does his typical endless entrance. When Undertaker finally gets into the ring, Big Show quickly assaults the Dead Man. Show does what he does best, and that is hitting lots of punches. Taker comes back with his own punches, striking Show all over the ring. Show slams Undertaker’s head into the turnbuckle, and floors him. The cage finally comes into play as Show pushes Taker into it before choking him with his boot. Show whips Taker into a corner, but eats a big boot. Undertaker tackles Show’s knee from behind and kicks him in the face. Now that is adding insult to injury. Undertaker tries climbing the cage, apparently he forgot about the “razor sharp” spikes at the top. He tries to knock them out of the way, but Big Show chases him up and crotches him on the cage. Show climbs up and hits some head butts. Show can’t decide whether he wants to do anything extreme or now while he’s up there, and finally settles on choking. Instead of hitting an awesome Chokeslam off the cage, Show climbs back down to safety. Undertaker slides down to the ring and is selling as if the match has been in duration for twenty minutes instead of five. Taker hits some desperate punches and miraculously regains control. Taker rams the back of Big Show into the cage. Taker splashes him against the cage, nearly busting the damn thing. Taker goes for a third splash, but Show grabs him by the neck. Show goes for the Chokeslam, but Taker counters it into a DDT. Taker asks for the door to open, so the referees oblige and a 60 second timer begins. Big Show gets back to his feet and prevents Taker from escaping. Show pulls a strap off the cage and whips Taker with it. The 60 seconds is up and the door is locked shut. That only leaves three doors. Show continues his extreme ways by uncovering a turnbuckle. He has a cage, spikes, and straps all around him, but Show wants to use the turnbuckle. He takes too long untying, so Undertaker has time to recover long enough to punch Show again. Taker knocks Show to the mat after some jogging around the ring. Undertaker goes for his “old school” move, but Show counters. Show calls for the door and tries to exit. Undertaker stops him and lunges for the exit himself. Taker latches himself to Show’s leg and suffers some blows from Show’s other, more extreme, leg. In a daze, they exchange shots. Show hits the Chokeslam, but the 60 seconds is up right before Show can get there. Show spends some time pouting before finally introducing Taker’s skull to the exposed turnbuckle, busting him open. Show hits a series of extreme head butts on the exposed wound. The next couple of minutes are devoted to the usual methodical Big Show offense. Show then starts climbing the cage, but suffers a low blow, which is legal in the Punjabi Prison. Show slumps into the corner, still on the ropes, and Undertaker climbs up to join him. Taker hits some punches and hits a superplex! That was awesome! Undertaker calls for the third door to open, and he escapes! Undertaker still needs to escape the next structure, which is apparently 20 feet high, and has no doors. So in other words, it resembles the steel cages in the old No Mercy video game. Undertaker starts climbing the outside cage, meanwhile the third door closes. Big Show asks for the fourth door to open, and he escapes too. Big Show climbs up the outside cage and knocks Undertaker down. There is a table wrapped in cloth randomly set up. Show puts Taker through the table! Then, in a moment of creativity, Show throws Undertaker into the ring right before the fourth door closes forever! Undertaker is locked inside the ring, while Big Show begins climbing the outside cage. I want to see Show climb, just to see if he can actually make it to the top. I mean, Big Show is really fat. Meanwhile, Undertaker climbs up the inner cage and immediately reaches for the outer cage. Taker knocks Show back down to the floor. Undertaker then puts Show through another cloth covered table with a leg drop! That was kind of cool too. Big Show has been busted open, and stumbles around while absorbing punches. Meanwhile, Khali and Daivari show up outside the cage. Undertaker is climbing the inside cage and leaps off of it onto Big Show. They fall backwards into the outer cage, breaking it. Undertaker is declared the winner of the match, while Khali and Daivari are stuck on the opposite side of the cage. The match comes to an anticlimactic finish at 21:26. I have to say, the concept of the Punjabi Prison match is really neat, and has the potential to be great given the right participants. Unfortunately, Show and Undertaker were not the ones to do it, *3/4.
Winner: The Undertaker
Backstage, King Booker is enjoying a back rub from his queen. Sharmell gives a speech about how when Booker wins the World title tonight he will be the king of the world. Well, technically he will be the king of half empty arenas, but that is an okay place to start. The royal couple shares a kiss and we go back to Cole and JBL at ringside, who are gloating about how great the Punjabi Prison match supposedly was.
Bra and Panties match:
Kristal vs. Ashley vs. Jillian vs. Michelle McCool
This match will surely be the technical masterpiece we were all expecting. Jillian and Michelle tangle while Ashley and Kristal collide. The winner of this match is obviously whoever can keep her clothes on the longest. Michelle tries to run away, but Jillian was too smart for her. In the ring, Kristal viciously attacks Ashley, removing her shirt in the process. Kristal takes too long celebrating and gets knocked out of the ring. Michelle reenters the ring, attacking Ashley. Jillian returns and sparks a cat fight with Michelle. Why am I providing play by play for this? Who knows. Jillian hits a scoop slam and climbs to the top turnbuckle. Kristal knocks her down and then drags Ashley out of the ring. Jillian had her feet tied up in the turnbuckle, making it easy for Michelle to strip her shirt off. Meanwhile, Ashley and Kristal are “brawling” at ringside, and eventually back into the ring. Ashley and Jillian whip Kristal and Michelle into each other. They then simultaneously remove the bottoms from the heel divas. Michelle was clever, and wore two skirts, which is a nice touch. After come chaos, Jillian holds Kristal still while Ashley finishes stripping Kristal. Ashley is then declared the winner at 5:21? Wait, what? That does not make any sense, this was a four way? Oh well, I am not going to argue about the results to a bra and panties match, DUD.
Winner: Ashley
After the match, Ashley and Jillian finish stripping each other. Somewhere there were a bunch of happy 13 year olds pleased with having spent 40 bucks to see this.
Backstage, Mike Mizanin is interviewing Mr. Kennedy. Kennedy says it takes a lot of guts for Batista to step into the ring with a man like Mr. Kennedy. Mark Henry would not have been able to beat Batista, but Kennedy can. The crowd is really into Kennedy, which is a good thing considering he is in one of the big matches tonight.
Batista vs. Mr. Kennedy
Batista comes out to a huge ovation. This was his first pay-per-view since returning from his injuries. He was supposed to wrestle Mark Henry tonight, but fate stepped in and prevented us from seeing it. Fate just didn’t want Batista and Henry wrestling on pay-per-view, as their Royal Rumble match had to be called off due to Batista’s injury in January.
Batista attacks Kennedy before he can do his prematch introduction, which upsets the crowd. Batista hammers Kennedy into the corner, but Kennedy thumbs him in the eye. Batista recovers and pummels Kennedy out of the ring. Batista follows his prey and drives Kennedy kidney first into the apron. Batista slams Kennedy into the steps by the head and rolls him into the ring. Kennedy has been busted open, but hits some punches before being cornered again. Batista hits the clothesline into the corner, and Kennedy flees to ringside again. Kennedy is bleeding quite heavily now. He teases leaving, but rushes back when Batista turns his back. Batista was playing stupid, as he turns around and spears Kennedy. Kennedy isn’t down for long, as he hits some shoulder blocks on Batista on the apron. He rushes at Batista, who moves out of the way and Kennedy hits the floor hard. Kennedy flees into the ring and pushes the referee into Batista. Kennedy hits a running knee on Batista and stomps a mud hole into him. Kennedy bleeds all over Batista while choking him in plain view of the referee. Kennedy hits a clothesline and goes for some punches instead of a cover. I hope Matt Hardy is watching this and taking notes. Kennedy hits a running knee into Batista’s face, who was slumped in the corner. Kennedy then viciously whips Batista’s arm into the ring post and chokes him some more. Kennedy kicks Batista in the head, spilling him to the floor again. Kennedy rolls Batista into the ring and goes for the cover. This bridges into the first rest hold of the match. Kennedy is working on the injured arm, the same arm which collided with the ring post earlier and needed surgery on the triceps. That is called wrestling psychology 101. Batista gradually makes it to his feet, but suffers some clubs to the back and a slap to the face. Batista grabs Kennedy by the throat and corners him. Kennedy goes for the boot, but Batista grabs it and hits some killer shoulder thrusts. Batista rams Kennedy into the ring post shoulder first. This match has been delightfully violent thus far, I am pleasantly surprised. Batista chokes Kennedy with his boots and refuses to let go of it, which disqualifies him at 8:38! Batista is unhappy and hits a trio of spine busters on Kennedy. Batista finishes Kennedy with the Batista Bomb, so Batista might as well be the winner. This match really surprised me, I was expecting a boring rest hold fest, but instead this was good brawl. Kennedy showed some great intensity and Batista reestablished what a bad-ass he can be when he wants to be, **3/4.
Winner by Disqualification: Mr. Kennedy
World Heavyweight Championship:
Rey Mysterio © vs. King Booker
Booker earned this match by winning a battle royal, in a stunning display of creativity by the writing staff. We are treated to a good hype video of the Booker/Rey feud, which mainly consisted of Booker kicking Rey in the crotch backstage and Rey hitting a 619 around the ring post. The video does a good job of making both Mysterio and Booker look like true main event superstars.
Before the bell rings, Booker reminds Rey that Eddie can’t help him. Who does Booker think he is, Randy Orton? Or just the typical main event heel on Smackdown since Eddie died? Yeah, that one. They bell rings, and the competitors circle each other. Booker pushes Rey into the corner and we have a clean break. That King Booker is a magnificent ruler. They tie up again, and Booker easily pushes the tiny Mysterio into the ropes. Mysterio uses his speed to escape. They go for a test of strength, but Booker instead kicks the life out of Rey and chops him around the ring. Mysterio quickly reverses Booker into the corner and hits some punches, a snapmare, and our first cover attempt of the match. Booker takes a minute to regroup and the match restarts. They tie up again, and Booker hits some knee shots. Booker whips Mysterio into an elbow, flooring the high flier. It’s worth mentioning that on commentary JBL just accused Michael Cole of being a socialist. Back to the match, and Mysterio is fighting his way out of an arm wrench. Mysterio hits a snapmare and a drop kick to the face, and gets in another near fall. Mysterio hits a swinging head scissor takedown, but Booker regains control with a thumb to the eye. Booker hits some shoulder thrusts, but Mysterio eventually dodges and Booker hits the ring post. That ring post has gotten lots of shots in tonight, hasn’t it? I think the ring post should get a main event push. Booker regroups at ringside, but Mysterio leaps off the top onto Booker on the floor. Booker is rolled back into the ring and suffers a springboard splash from Mysterio. Mysterio misses a moonsault off the second rope and gets kicked in the face. Booker goes for the cover, but it’s no good. Booker kicks Rey in the head again and goes for another cover. Booker chokes Rey on the bottom rope, but has to break it, leaving Rey to be attacked by Sharmell. Booker kicks Rey in the gut and goes for another cover. Wasn’t Booker watching Kennedy/Batista earlier, it’s better to punch than go for random covers! Back to the match, and Booker is working Rey’s arm. Rey escapes to the apron, but Booker suplexes him back into the ring. Booker then earns some heat by copying Eddie Guerrero’s “three amigos” spot. Booker goes for the cover, and it’s only two again. Booker goes for the scissors kick, but misses, and Rey hits a series of lightning fast kicks. Mysterio goes for the 619, misses, but hits a kick to Booker’s head. The cover is no good, but Rey positions Booker for the 619 again. This time Sharmell trips him, but the referee Nick Patrick noticed. Patrick throws Sharmell out of the arena, which greatly upsets His Majesty. Rey kicks Booker in the jaw and goes for a bulldog, but Booker counters into a back suplex. Booker only gets two in a cover attempt. Desperate, Booker climbs to the second rope for a flying move, but Rey gets a boot up. After some resting, Mysterio hits another head scissors take down and then a crossbody off the second ropes. Mysterio gets two in a cover. Mysterio plants Booker with a spinning DDT, and gets another two count. Booker reverses an Irish whip, and swings Mysterio into the referee, who drops like a brick. Mysterio hits a senton off the ropes and sets Booker up for the 619, and actually hits it this time. Mysterio does the Eddie strut and heads to the top rope for the frog splash! Rey covers Booker, but the referee is still napping at ringside. Rey doesn’t know what to do and gets hit with a low blow. Booker hits the Bookend, and grabs a chair from ringside. Rey dodges the chair shot and drop kicks the chair into Booker’s face. Chavo Guerrero then runs in and grabs the chair. Then in the most shocking heel turn of the evening, Chavo cracks the chair over Rey’s skull! Booker covers Rey, and the referee takes about ten minutes counting to three, giving the World Championship to King Booker at 16:48! This match had it’s moments, as Rey and Booker meshed well to countering each other, but it never really got going. This would have been a perfectly good Smackdown main event, but felt flat as a pay-per-view finisher, **1/2.
Winner and NEW World Heavyweight Champion: King Booker
Booker celebrates with the World Championship to a polite pop from the fans. Chavo storms off, in a heel like manner of grumpiness. Rey quietly slips out of the ring. The show ends.
Final Thoughts: This was not a bad pay-per-view at all. The mid-card really had some opportunities to shine tonight, as London, Kendrick, Hardy, Helms, Kash, and Noble were all booked to appear quite strong and delivered quality matches. Finlay and Regal was good for what it was, but was hurt by an unruly crowd. The Punjabi Prison match was a neat concept, but needs some tweaking and more agile participants. I was really surprised by how entertaining Kennedy vs. Batista was, though the show is not worth seeking out for that alone. And finally, the main event was perfectly acceptable wrestling, but not worthy of main eventing. In regards to recent Smackdown history, this show was significant in that it featured the opening round of the Helms/Hardy rivalry and the crowning of King Booker as World Champion, but otherwise you can easily miss this event and rest well.
Mild Recommendation.