WWE SmackDown Results – Mar. 17, 2023 – McIntyre vs. Sheamus

WWE

TPWW

Mar 17, 2023

Results by Roy Nemer of Wrestleview.com

March 17, 2023
Kansas City, Missouri – T-Mobile Center
Commentary: Michael Cole and Wade Barrett

Quick Match Results

Mixed Tag Team Match: Dominik Mysterio & Rhea Ripley defeated Santos Escobar & Zelina Vega via Riptide by Ripley on Vega
Raquel Rodriguez & Liv Morgan defeated Emma & Tegan Nox via Ob-Liv-ion by Morgan on Emma
Xavier Woods defeated LA Knight via roll up
#1 Contender for Intercontinental Championship Match: Drew McIntyre vs. Sheamus was no contest when Imperium attacked them both. Gunther will defend the title in a triple threat match against both at WrestleMania.

In-Ring: Cody Rhodes, Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn

WWE SmackDown kicks off with the 2023 Men’s Royal Rumble winner Cody Rhodes walking down to the ring. The fans chant “Cody” as he asks them what they want to talk about. He says they could talk about WrestleMania. Cody says that he has a lot of respect for Roman Reigns, how he is the best champion in sports and sports entertainment. He looks forward to seeing Roman Reigns on Raw and to beating Roman Reigns at WrestleMania. The fans chant “Cody” once more as he says he doesn’t want to talk about somebody. He wants to talk to somebody. Cody calls out Kevin Owens to the ring.

Kevin’s music hits and out he comes to the ring. The fans chant “KO” as Owens tells Cody he knows what this is about. Cody tells him to hear him out. He doesn’t think this is a conversation between two people. It’s a conversation that involves Sami Zayn.

Out comes Zayn to the ring. Cody says in the spirit of the road to WrestleMania, he has an incredible respect and love for Kevin Owens. Six or seven years ago when he told WWE good luck in your future endeavours, he said it in a false sense of confidence. He needed someone to have his back and Owens introduced him to friends and bettered his livelihood. And it is a favor he can never repay but he would like to repay it in this moment. Cody tells them that they are all here and to have the conversation.

The fans chant “Hug it out”. Owens tells Cody he has heard everything Zayn has to say. Zayn says he hasn’t heard everything Owens had to say. He doesn’t know what to say. Throughout the years, they have turned on each other but they have always somehow found a way to come back and forgive each other. Zayn says he can’t understand why this time it’s different. Zayn tells Owens if there is something he has to say, to say it. If he has to hit him to hit him that way they can get back to working together.

Owens tells Cody he came out like he asked. He heard Zayn out and if he can leaves. Cody says they both know that they are in the people pleasing business. It doesn’t matter what he wants. It’s what everyone wants. They all want to see them both back on the same page.

Zayn tells Kevin everyone wants it. If they can come together, they can do something magical. They can be the one’s that bring down the one’s. And he knows it might take years until this is totally repaired. But they don’t need to do this as friends, just work together. Owens says he has heard him say it for weeks. He just needs him to fight with him. That way they can take the Bloodline out together.

Owens asks why he would fight with someone who doesn’t want to be his friend. He thanks Cody for trying to do this but he is all set. Owens gives Cody the microphone and leaves the ring.

Parking Lot: Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn

“We’re not just friends, we’re brothers.” 😭@FightOwensFight @SamiZayn #SmackDown pic.twitter.com/GVz0GivnaQ

— WWE (@WWE) March 18, 2023

Back from commercial, Owens is about to get in his car. Zayn stops him. He says what Owens said in the ring, he was wrong. They will always be friends, they are brothers. And if Owens never wants to talk to him again, that is fine. But he just wants to let him know that he loves him. Owens gets in his car and drives away.

Mixed Tag Team Match
Dominik Mysterio & Rhea Ripley vs. Santos Escobar & Zelina Vega

The bell rings and we are under way. Dominik with a dropkick on Escobar. He throws Escobar to the ropes but Escobar with a flying forearm. Dominik rolls to the outside and in comes Rhea. She goes for a kick but Santos blocks it. Holding Rhea’s leg, Zelina is tagged in as she climbs up the top rope and jumps onto Rhea. Santos with a splash onto Dominik. Zelina with a moonsault off the top rope onto the outside on Rhea.

Back from commercial, Dominik with right hands in the ring. He runs to the ropes and Escobar with a dropkick. Escobar with a leg drop. He goes for the cover but Rhrea breaks it up. Rhea lifts Dominik up and throws him onto Santos. He goes for the cover but Zelina breaks it up. Forearms by Dominik as he taunts Zelina. Escobar throws Dominik to the ropes and both men collide in the middle of the ring.

Zelina and Rhea are tagged in and Zelina with a dropkick to the leg followed by a knee to the face. Zelina runs to the ropes and a spinning DDT. She rolls Rhea up but Dominik breaks it up. Santos gets in the ring and hits him with a knee to the face. Rhea throws Zelina to the outside. Escobar places Dominik on the top rope. He goes for a suplex and Rhea powerbombs him off the top rope. Zelina back in the ring and she hits Rhea with a cross body. A knee to the face by Zelina. She climbs the second rope and a hurricanrana onto Dominik. Rhea hits Zelina with the Riptide. She goes for the cover and gets the pin.

Winners: Dominik Mysterio and Rhea Ripley

In-Ring: Dominik Mysterio, Rey Mysterio

Dominik and Rhea stand in the ring after the match and Dominik says their WWE Hall of Famer is nothing but a disrespectful, deadbeat of a father. The fans boo Dominik. He says he was never there for him, all those sleepless nights. We see Rey Mysterio walking backstage.

We come back from commercial, Dominik and Rhea are still in the ring and out comes Rey. Dominik says he actually showed up and he went a lot of nights without a father. Rey asks Rhea if he can have a moment with his son alone. Rhea leaves the ring.

Dominik says now that they are in the middle of the ring, he has time for him. He asks Rey where he was when he needed him, all those late nights. Dominik says Rey is so selfish, he took away his WrestleMania moment. And at the end of the day, he is just a poor, pathetic excuse of a father. And thee truth is that he is just a piece of… But Rey cuts him off.

Rey tells him he is right, he has not been the best father in the world. He has missed birthday’s, Christmas, graduation, football games. He knows he hasn’t been there all the time but that doesn’t take away his love for him. He still loves him. And he is his world. But soon Dominik will find out that this business is selfish. He made sacrifices so that himself, his mom and his sister can have a life that he only dreamed of. All the fancy cars, Gucci, Louis, Prada, Rolls Royce, all for Dominik. And what would happen when he would get into trouble? The Mysterio name would bail him out.

He tells Dominik because he is having a hard time coping with all of this. Rey tells him he is being inducted into the Hall of Fame. And he would love nothing more than to have him stand by his side on that stage. Dominik shakes his head. The fans chant “You deserve it”. Rey says his biggest regret is what Dominik has become. Rey tells him if someone like Dominik, some ungrateful, disrespectful, pathetic, punk ass kid called him out at WrestleMania, he would gladly woop their ass.

The fans cheer for that. Rey says but unfortunately, he is his son. And fighting him would be his biggest disgrace as a father. Rey tells Dominik that he isn’t worth it. He won’t fight him now, never or at WrestleMania. Rey leaves the ring as Dominik asks him why.

Dominik says he is running away from his own son. Dominik says like he said last week, he is doing the only thing he taught him what to do and that is what not to be. A scared little man. Dominik tells him if that is all he has as we cut to the back.

Raquel Rodriguez & Liv Morgan vs. Emma & Tegan Nox

The bell rings and we are under way. Raquel throws Tegan into the corner and Liv is tagged in. They double team Tegan and Liv with a kick to the side of the head. She goes for the cover but Nox kicks out. She grabs Tegan but Tegan with an uppercut followed by a knee to the face. Emma is tagged in and they double team Liv in the corner. Emma goes for the cover but Liv kicks out. Right hands by Emma followed by a double underhook suplex. She goes for the cover but Liv kicks out again. Tegan is tagged back in and she slams Liv face first onto the mat. Tegan goes for a suplex but Liv lands on her feet and hits her with a backstabber. Raquel and Emma are tagged in. Emma with a clothesline.

Raquel with a fall away slam. Raquel with a corkscrew elbow off the second rope. She goes for the cover but Tegan breaks it up. Liv with the Code Red onto Tegan. Emma throws Liv over the top rope onto the outside. Emma runs towards Raquel but Raquel catches her and hits her with the Tejana Bomb. Liv is tagged in and she hits her with the Oblivion. She goes for the cover and gets the pin.

Winners: Raquel Rodriguez and Liv Morgan

In-Ring: Charlotte Flair, Rhea Ripley, Dominik Mysterio

WWE SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair is in the ring. She says the more things change, the more things stay the same. When she was a kid, it was a Rhodes as a challenger and Flair as a champion. And this WrestleMania is built as Rhodes as a challenger and Flair as a champion.

Flair says she is walking into her seventh WrestleMania and she has always been the star. Rhea Ripley wants to be the champion, the star. But she can’t be the star until she becomes the champion. And she can’t become the champion until she comes through her. Three years ago Rhea wasn’t able to go through her and today she can’t go through her. Because the more things change, the more they stay the same.

Out comes Rhea Ripley with Dominik. Rhea tells Charlotte that she is 100% right. She chose Flair. She didn’t choose Bianca Belair because she has her reasons but they will get back to that. When she walks through the locker room, men and women, they all turn their backs and walk away because of fear. She is dangerous and good at what she does and everyone fears her. Except for Flair.

She tells Flair that she is staring her down without an ounce of fear in Flair’s eyes. And to be honest, that pisses her off. Flair is the SmackDown women’s champion for a reason. She has been 14 times women’s champion for a reason. It’s because she is a superstar. She is one of the biggest stars in the WWE and she can give her all the credit in the world. But the belt, she wants, she needs it. She doesn’t only wants to be a star but she needs to be a star. And after WrestleMania, Flair will learn to call her champion. And she is going to learn to fear her.

Dominik tells Flair that Mami will beat her at WrestleMania. Flair goes to slap Dominik but Rhea hits Flair with a right hand as she and Dominik leave the ring. Flair runs to the outside and throws Rhea onto the barricade. Both women begin to fight as WWE officials try to break it up. Rhea throws Flair over the announce table. Flair jumps off the table onto Rhea as they both beat up security. They fight over the barricade as the officials are able to break it up.

Backstage: Sami Zayn

We cut to Zayn backstage and he is with Kayla. He tells her it’s a heavy night. One guy who once considered him his brother drove off in the parking lot and someone else who considered him his brother will probably knock him out in the ring. When they tell him he is the problem, he starts to believe it. Zayn says he is fine with what happens next.

Xavier Woods vs. LA Knight

The bell rings and we are under way. Woods with a waist lock but LA Knight runs and Woods slams into the turnbuckle. LA Knight stoms on Woods and throws him to the ropes. A right hand by LA Knight followed by a DDT. He goes for the cover but Woods kicks out. He places Woods on the top rope but Woods with right hands and LA Knight is knocked off the second rope. A drop kick by Woods as he goes for the cover but LA Knight kicks out. Woods grabs LA Knight but LA Knight with a neck breaker. He slams Woods face first onto the mat. He goes for the cover but Woods kicks out. LA Knight goes for a suplex but Woods rolls him up and gets the pin.

Winner: Xavier Woods

Backstage: LA Knight, Rey Mysterio

After commercials, LA Knight is backstage and he sees Rey signing autographs. LA Knight tells Rey if he won’t fight Dominik, he will fight Dominik and give him an LA moment. He will be a deadbeat dad too and Rey hits him with a right hand.

#1 Contender for Intercontinental Championship Match
Drew McIntyre vs. Sheamus

Imperium walk down to the ring before the match. The bell rings and we are under way. Drew extends his hand but Sheamus doesn’t want to shake. Drew throws Sheamus to the ropes but Sheamus with a shoulder tackle. Sheamus to the ropes but Drew with a knee. Drew with a snap suplex. He goes for the cover but Sheamus kicks out. An arm bar by Drew but Sheamus with a hip toss. Sheamus throws Drew in the corner but Drew with an elbow to the face. Drew with the Michinoku driver. He goes for the cover but Sheamus kicks out. A chop to the chest by Drew and Sheamus with a right hand.

Drew with a chop to the chest and Sheamus with an Irish curse back breaker. Sheamus throws Drew over the top rope and onto the ring apron. Sheamus goes for the 10 beats of the Bodhran but Drew blocks it. Sheamus brings Drew back into the ring. He lifts Drew up on his shoulders but Drew pushes him into the corner. Drew runs towards Sheamus but Sheamus with a double boots. Sheamus on the top rope but Drew with a right hand. Drew climbs the top rope and a superplex off the top rope.

Back from commercial, Sheamus with the 10 Beats of the Bodhrán. Drew back in the ring. Sheamus goes for the Brogue Kick but Drew ducks and hits him with a neck breaker. Drew goes for the Claymore Kick but Sheamus hits him with the Brogue Kick. He goes for the cover but Drew kicks out. Drew and Sheamus with right hands and Drew with the Glasgow Kiss. Sheamus with a headbutt. They run towards each other and hit each other with big boots. The referee starts to count to 10 but Gunther gets in the ring. Gunther asks them who it is going to be. Sheamus and Drew get to their feet as Vinci and Kaiser attack Sheamus and Drew from behind.

Winner: No contest

Sheamus throws Vinci and Kaiser to the outside of the ring. Gunther with a dropkick on Drew and a right hand to Sheamus. Gunther powerbombs Sheamus onto McIntyre.

Adam Pearce appears on the titan tron. He says last week, Gunther told him he wants an opponent at WrestleMania. But he is making it official. He will defend his Intercontinental title against Drew McIntyre and Sheamus in a triple threat match at WrestleMania.

In-Ring: Jey Uso, Sami Zayn, Kevin Owens, Jimmy Uso

Jey Uso is standing in the ring and out comes Zayn. He tells Jey this is what he wanted as Zayn gets in the ring. He asks Jey how he wants to do this. Jey tells him he has a job to do tonight but he is about to hear this. From day one, he didn’t like him. From day one, he didn’t trust him. He didn’t want him around his family. But then everyone started to like him except for him. Jey says he always thought it was his job to protect his family and the one time he let his guard down, Zayn betrayed him. He made him look stupid in front of the world. He called him his brother.

He tells Zayn he has always been a fake ass Uce since day one. And he had no choice. Zayn cuts him off and says he had a choice since day one. He loved him and the family but he wasn’t going to take that every week the way he does. He doesn’t think he Jey is mad at him, Jey is mad at himself. He isn’t mad that he hit Roman with the chair, he is mad that Jey didn’t do it first. Jey with a right hand as he and Zayn fight. In comes Jimmy but Zayn with right hands and Jey hits him with a super kick. Zayn rolls to the outside and Jey hits him with the steel steps.

Kevin’s music hits as Owens shows up from behind them. Owens with a right hand on Jey and he clotheslines Jimmy to the outside of the ring. Right hands onto Jey. Jimmy gets back in the ring and Owens hits him with a stunner. Jey runs and Owens with a popup powerbomb. The fans chant “Hug it out” as Owens hugs Zayn in the ring and the fans cheer.

We cut to the back as Cody watches them and smiles.