Smackdown Review: Tiffany Stratton & Kevin Owens Qualify

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1:01into the money in the bank matches. That's what we're going to lead off with. That's what we're going to start with. And I'm pretty hyped about money in the bank. You know why? Because, well, first of all, money in the bank has sort of become, I don't even know if it's sort of become it, is now one of the tentpole WWE events, right? Like when you're growing up and you watch the various PLEs and the pay per views and the type of matches that are put together. I mean, I remember when Survivor Series used to be the five-man elimination matches and what not. But the Royal Rumble has always been that main stay every single year. You get pumped for the Royal Rumble. And other formats have common gone. Money in the bank is kind of for whatever generation it was. I don't know between X, Y, Z. But money in the bank, I'm an old guy, I guess, at this point. Because it still feels like a new concept to me, even though it's been around quite a long time.

2:02Because it wasn't around when I was a kid. The idea of money in the bank, the first of all, the match itself, being a latter match is always exciting. And then the plot device of that briefcase is amazing, right? The suspense that can come with that briefcase that can be cashed in at any time. You are holding a championship match in your hands at any time. So you get the fake cash-ins, you get the real cash-ins, you get the legendary cash-ins. I mean, I was at SummerSlam at MetLife, not this past summer, obviously. But the year before, when Seth Rollins did the cash-in. And it was one of those moments. It was one of those moments. And also, on top of that, not only has money in the bank become a staple of WWE fandom, but there hasn't been a PLN a minute. I mean, SummerSlam was back at the beginning of August.

3:03Now, there's been some cool stuff that's happened in between, Sammy Zane, wins the title, right? Like on SmackDown. Roman Reigns goes against Penta on Raw. You had a Sunday night's main event, but there hasn't been a real deal PLE since SummerSlam. And now we've got these money in the bank matches, which are loaded with great participants and interesting storylines. On the men's side, Kevin Owens, the final qualifier tonight, he gets into the money in the bank. And he gets in there in large part because Cody Rose and Randy Orton can't stop feudin. Right? Like you've got Cody Rose and Randy Orton who are having the kind of feud that you wish they'd had that first time around. But now it's really getting baked in. You know, no Pat McAfee involvement this time around. We're getting the real deal Randy Orton

4:03Cody Rose feud. And because of Randy Orton's involvement, Cody Rose is not involved in this money in the bank match. Kevin Owens qualifies, he makes his way into it. So it is now CM Punk, Kevin Owens, Penta, Trick Williams, Javon Evans, Braun Breaker. And a lot of those guys were in that Sammy Zane segment tonight. And I really like Sammy Zane, the promo that he caught, basically telling them like, y'all ain't been through what I've been through. Y'all ain't done what I've done. You ain't been pinned in a mouse trap at WrestleMania. Which by the way, Shasta Sammy Zane, that's a classic Sammy Zane Johnny Knoxville, all-time classic in my books. I love that match. It's one of those ones like, if you were to show a wrestling fan a match or a non-wrestling fan, I'm sorry, a match to like get them into wrestling, that would be on that short list for me because it has the celebrity spectacle and all of the great things that that can be so fun about pro wrestling. But I like that promo

5:07from Sammy Zane where he's telling those guys, a lot of those new kids on the block. Yo, you know, all right, all right, you think you can take this from me? You don't know what it's like to get here. And that's what it was, that's what it sounded like on SmackDown when everyone wanted a piece of Sammy's title. And that was Sammy Zane, you know, telling people that you're not going to take this from me. But the first person that interrupted him, I thought was interesting. And that was Javan Evans. And you know, a good call from Michael Cole there because when you do get Javan Evans involved in a ladder match, you know that business is about to pick up because of the bouncing nature of what he's able to do. And Javan Evans, I don't know if I saw necessarily main eventor in Javan Evans this early, but now it's starting to feel that way. You know, now it's

6:10starting to feel like maybe this happens early, maybe, you know, he could be the youngest champion in history. That would be a hell of a, you know, an accomplishment to get there and do that, to do it at his age. I believe that he would be the youngest. Certainly, he's fresh into his career at this point. And he kind of made that point to Sammy Zane talking about how long it took Sammy Zane to get to that level, to establish what Sammy Zane has done. So a good line from Javan Evans right there. And really, I like the fact that he was the first person to come out and confront Sammy Zane because that sent the message that Javan Evans is in this picture. Javan Evans could scale that ladder. Javan Evans could bring down that briefcase and bounce right into the title

7:15picture. Like he said, you know, maybe the time isn't in the future. Maybe shout out to, you know, a guy who I can't see right now. Maybe the time is now for Javan Evans. And that back and forth, I thought really landed. And I thought it really established Javan Evans and helped elevate him as he continues to help because he's one of those guys when he came out from NXT, it's like, wow, look at the athleticism, right? Like, wow, he can do that. He can fly from over there. And that's cool and all that. But I didn't know he would be in this picture the way he has. He's used that athleticism to leap through the glass ceiling, if you will, and put himself into that title picture where it feels realistic that he could win the ladder match. And that's the case with all these participants. That's what's so fascinating about these money in the bank matches. We'll get to the women in a second, but on the men's side, you know, you have CM Punk, who is always a threat

8:17to be the champion. He's been the champion. He was the champion going into WrestleMania. He came back after a little break and won the championship again before he just lost it. So you know CM Punk, you know, as far as gravitas and being established is the number one guy in this match. Kevin Owens comes off the shelf from injury and immediately back into the picture and gets in tonight on SmackDown. So you know he's a live threat. Trick Williams, I mean, when you talk about somebody who's got the total package, as far as can be next, charisma, build, ability, all that stuff. That's Trick Williams. And his coat was really, it was a very, very white coat tonight. Like I'd be scared to wear that outside. I'm scared to wear a white t-shirt outside. Sometimes like, but that white coat, I don't know, I can only do it. I can only, you know, wear it for like

9:17Zoom meetings and they're like, I don't know if I would go anywhere in something that pristine. Then you've got, like I said, Javon Evans, Penta, who got elevated, I believe, in the process of that match with Roman Reigns. So you have to consider Penta and Braun Breaker. You know, Braun Breaker, I love what they've done with him with that bit of insecurity that he's got, where Braun Breaker was supposed to be next. You know, he was the guy that everybody tabbed and then Oba Femi comes along and Braun Breaker's like, wait a second, you're saying he, he's actually the guy? Not me anymore? What happened? So you know that's eating at him, which could make the money in the bank a big pay-off for Braun Breaker. Who do you think wins the men's money in the bank match? Who should win the men's money in the bank match? And you see Sami Zayn. You know, Sami Zayn feeling like, what I liked about Sami Zayn's promo tonight is, he didn't feel like somebody who stumbled into the title.

10:22He didn't feel like somebody who, oh, I can't believe Sami Zayn's the champion. It was like, oh, Sami Zayn is the champion. Sami Zayn's gone and done the things to get to be the champion. That was the message he said. He's been the gingerbread man. He's been pinned in a mouse trap. Hell, you know, you can go all the way back to El Generico and everything else. It is, it is, it is, it is paid as dues. The last real good guy is established at this point. So I'm really into the prospects of that men's money in the bank match. One of the things I love about Goother and Dan Howzen is how it's kind of put the IWC in Chambles, you know, because there's this idea of like Goother, the best professional wrestler in the world is going against Dan Howzen,

11:24the glorified mascot, side show, slapstick comedy, whatever bit that you want to call it. But it's almost perfect to me because of that. You know, because of course Dan Howzen is beneath Goother, right? You know that Goother believes Dan Howzen is so far beneath him. It's insulting to the ring general. They got me. Dan Howzen. And if you were to match them up, it, you know, it should be a squash. Dan Howzen should get totally demolished by Goother. But because of all that, it gets under his skin. It gets under his skin. He's almost the ideal foil for Goother, this monster heel who prides himself on being a professional wrestler. He's got the guy walking around. It's going to curse him

12:27with what is he having an evil detector? So if you asked me, would Dan Howzen and Goother work, I would say, Hell yes. And right now we're seeing it work. Now what's the end game for it? That's what I'm fascinated by. Where is it heading? Because they've kind of been feuding in these backstage segments for a minute now. And there really should be a payoff for that. And maybe, you know, Goother gets cursed by the end of all this. His career killing days could come to an end thanks to a Dan Howzen curse. But so far, I think it is definitely working. Coming up next on the Busted Open After Dark podcast, we get into the qualifiers from SmackDown for the women's money in the bank ladder match. The fastest growing pro wrestling show on the planet.

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17:39Maxer. YouTube Premium enhances how I use YouTube with awesome features like offline downloads so I could download my favorite training videos before I hit the gym. So no Wi-Fi doesn't turn leg day into loading day. Plus I get ad free videos, background play and so much more. YouTube Premium is like YouTube got some extra gains. Try YouTube Premium for two months free at youtube.com slash premium. Trial eligibility varies. Terms apply cancel anytime. And Tiffany Stratton qualifies for the money in the bank. It's just like Javon Evans on the men's side. You know that's another high flying aspect that you can throw into a ladder match. But here's the thing about the women's ladder match. When I look at the women's ladder match, what do I see? I see the future. I could see right into the future. So Ruka, Lola Vice, JC Jane, Roxanne Perez, Lash Legend, Tiffany Stratton feels like the old head in that mix which is wild considering you know she's still young in her career.

18:46And that's what's so fascinating to me about the women's side because when you look at money in the bank, right? Like a lot of times I think it makes the most sense to elevate that person who feels like they're up next. It's either somebody who you know is in the title mix all the time and is that looming threat or somebody who grabs that briefcase and you go, oh okay, there's plans here. And you can see on the women's side, there's a lot of candidates for that. I mean Lash Legend, I really like her presentation and how serious she feels as a threat at this moment. JC Jane has burst onto the scene. You know, Soul Ruka, Roxanne Perez, Lola Vice, just coming up, all of them are prime for that sort of opportunity. But Tiffany Stratton,

19:51she's the one who's kind of been there and done that a little bit and that pretty as Moonsol'd ever can look pretty good off of a ladder. I see Ben putting the chat he plays WW2K just to hit the prettiest Moonsol'd ever. I mean, there's some good finishers in that move. You know, this Soul Snatcher is one of my in that match. I mean, Soul Snatcher is one of my favorite finishers as well. So money in the bank is looking really, really good coming up for next weekend, next Saturday, money in the bank from New Orleans. Jervann Evans, I love the fact that he interrupts the sandwiching tonight. You know, I do feel like it gave some credibility to Jervann Evans and it gave a level of, you know, belief, I would say that he can get to those heights, that he can climb that ladder and he can pull that briefcase down. And that's what I liked about Jervann Evans being the

20:57first one to come out because I mean, everybody came out in that segment with Jervann Evans, was followed by Penta, right, who was followed by Trick Williams and then as Sammy Zayn's making his way back to the back Finn Balor comes out and then Goonther comes out, takes out Finn Balor, takes out Sammy Zayn. But when it comes to the money in the bank participants, you know, Trick Williams, I always believed the US title was a launching pad to him going on to perhaps winning what, you know, a big title. I think with Penta, we just have what happened with Roman Reigns and like I said, the uniqueness of that match, being on the opposite side of Roman Reigns, doing it in Mexico City helped elevate him. Jervann Evans, he was young, he's an up-and-comer, he's fun to watch, but I did wonder, you know, what was the ceiling for him or how, you know, how involved in the

21:58plans for possibly capturing Goldie May B. And I took that as a serious message. I took that as a serious message tonight that Jervann Evans could be up next that he could bring down that brief case. And I like to how Sammy Zayn also cut them all down in the ring basically saying, well, look, I mean, I know two of you guys are going to be losers because there's only going to be one money in the bank winner. That was when Penta, Trick Williams and Jervann Evans were in the ring. And he said, and let's be real about it, you're probably all three going to be losers. But Kevin Owens qualifies tonight. So he's now in that men's money in the bank match. Tiffany Stratton qualifies tonight. She's now in that women's money in the bank match. As far as the rest of the card, Oba Femi and Bronson Reed, that's, you know, Oba Femi has to deal with these forceful challengers, these real threats. And of course, Bronson Reed, since he's come back,

23:01has totally been that for sure. And then you've got LA Knight and Roman Reigns. LA Knight and Roman Reigns is another interesting one too because of the momentum that LA Knight has gained over the years. And one of the things about LA Knight that the timing was tough for him because Jusso kind of happened at the same time. I remember being at WrestleMania 40 and walking down that hallway at Lincoln Financial Field and you hear like, yeet and you hear, yeeeh, and you hear yeeeh, and then you hear yeet. And you can't really have, yeah, and you eat at the same time, right? Like, there's not to say that those two guys are that similar. They're not really that similar. But, you know, that catchphrase carries a lot of weight. And I don't know if the yeet train and the yeet train can run parallel. They'll wind up colliding, so yeet

24:07ruled the day because he won the role, Rumble, Jusso did at that time, goes on wins the title from Goon Thurard, WrestleMania. And LA Knight, what was the, when was his last match that match he had against Roman Reigns? That was a long ways back. And I thought at that time that could be, you know, his sort of test case to see what he could be. But he hadn't really gotten back to that level until now. And in fact, it's money in the bank that maybe is the face of LA Knight's lowest moment. I mean, when you watch WWE Unreal, remember that backstage segment with Triple H and LA Knight, where it didn't exactly go the way everybody wanted it to go. And LA Knight looked a little downtrodden about it. That was a money in the bank match. Now, he's not in the ladder match against

25:09Roman Reigns, but it's that same PLE. And LA Knight has organically gotten a bunch of fans support. The problem is he's on the other side from the OTC. And as much complaining and crying as people do, he's not around all the time. It's boring. The bloodline, it's the say I'm so tired of Roman Reigns is still that guy. Roman Reigns, you know, I just talked about Penta. Penta is a made man because he stood across the ring from Roman Reigns because of the great match with Roman Reigns. And I'm sorry, I don't think LA Knight is getting it done. I think LA Knight is the latest speed bump for Roman Reigns. And eventually, you know, I see that collision course

26:16between Roman Reigns and Obafemmy, who are both on that same car. Because who do I believe eventually takes the championship off of Roman Reigns? Obafemmy, the ruler. And if you're asking me, is LA Knight going to defeat Roman Reigns? I'm sorry, I cannot give you a yeah for that. Cody Rhodes and Randy Orden right now, I'm really enjoying what's going on with Cody Rhodes because I like this struggle that he's in right now. You know, what's he finished the story? He was mostly the champion. And even when he lost the championship for, you know, a little spell here or there, he kind of expected him to get it back. And, you know, he did just that. And there wasn't really more for him to accomplish. So I like the idea of this struggle that he's

27:17going through both as far as not being on top, not being the QB1 at this very moment, at least when it comes to having the gold and that struggle internally. And there was a nice little spot in the match where he looked like he was going to go for the punt. And it was broken up, wasn't allowed to happen at that point. They've kind of been teasing that along. But because of the involvement of Randy Orden, Kevin Owens winds up qualifying for the men's money in the bank. So on that side, we do now have a set lineup, Bronbreaker, Javan Evans, Trick Williams, Penta, CM Punk, Kevin Owens, in the men's money in the bank ladder match. Like I mentioned before, on the women's side, Sol Ruka, Lola Vice, JC Jane, Roxanne Perez, Lash Legend, and Tiffany Stratton. Busted Open has a new home. If you like what you heard on today's podcast, you can catch the full episode every morning at 9 Eastern on WWE Radio, now on Sirius XM93.

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