The December 4th, 2018 edition of WWE SmackDown Live took place at the Frank Erwin Center in Austin, TX.
– Tonight’s broadcast opens up with a video package looking at last week’s women’s division battle royal.
– WWE SmackDown GM Paige comes out to the ring to kick off the show, and the ring is surrounded by tables, ladders, and chairs. A table is set up in the ring for a contract signing, and then Paige introduces Asuka, Charlotte, and Women’s Champion Becky Lynch. Becky gets on the mic and talks about the weapons that will come in to play in their TLC match, and how the pain of the match won’t match the pain she went through getting to where she is today. Becky says she’ll do anything it takes to win, then Charlotte interrupts and tells her to stop singing the same song every week. Charlotte and Becky exchange words until Asuka interrupts and talks about her strong win-loss record. Asuka says she could have beaten Ronda, and at TLC she’ll beat Becky. Becky ends up leaving and heading up the ramp, leaving Charlotte and Asuka alone in the ring with Paige. Charlotte and Asuka sign the contract on the table, then Asuka challenges Charlotte to a match right now. Mandy Rose and Sonya Deville come out to interrupt. Mandy says Charlotte and Asuka aren’t deserving of their opportunity. This leads to Paige booking a tag match between the two sides, and that starts next.
– The Miz approaches Shane McMahon backstage and talks to him about wanting to be the greatest team ever, and he complains about having to host Miz TV with Daniel Bryan tonight. Shane tells Miz to use his smarts to get some answers from “the new Daniel Bryan” tonight.
– Charlotte & Asuka vs. Mandy Rose & Sonya Deville: Asuka starts this one off with a hammer lock on Sonya, then they trade shoulder blocks and take-downs. Sonya takes control, then Mandy tags in to continue the offense on Asuka. Mandy wastes some time, then Asuka fires back with a series of strikes. Mandy shoots back with a forearm to the face, but Asuka shuts her down with a kick to the head. Charlotte tags in now and snapmares Mandy down before putting the boots to her. Charlotte misses a shot in the corner and Mandy drops her face-first into the middle turnbuckle. Charlotte comes back and throws Mandy outside, then Sony runs in and she throws Sonya to the outside too. Charlotte hits a dive on Mandy and Sonya at ringside, then she exchanges words with Asuka. Becky comes out to the stage for a closer look at this match. Back in the ring, Mandy and Sonya turn things around on Asuka. Becky sits at ringside now with her Women’s Title belt to watch. Sonya hits a running knee strike to Asuka for a two count. Mandy tags in for a knee strike of her own to Asuka for another two count. Mandy clotheslines Asuka back down and she looks for a back suplex, but Asuka escapes and drops Mandy. Sonya and Charlotte tags in, and Charlotte hits a series of strikes. Charlotte hits a belly to back suplex and then kicks up. Charlotte hits a spear on Sonya, then Mandy runs in and Charlotte throws her out over the top rope. Mandy drops Asuka at ringside, then hits a cheap shot on Charlotte from the apron. Asuka gets on the apron and drops Mandy, then Charotte swings for Mandy but hits Asuka instead. Asuka returns the favor and hits Charlotte, which leads to Sonya pinning Charlotte for the three count.
Winners: Mandy Rose and Sonya Deville
– Still to come: The Miz interviews WWE Champion Daniel Bryan; Jeff Hardy takes on Randy Orton in a singles match; and one member each of The New Day, The Bar, and The Usos will take part in a triple threat match.
– Jon Stewart is shown sitting in the front row.
– Jey Uso vs. Xavier Woods vs. Cesaro: Woods and Uso dump Cesaro to the outside early on, then they go at it with each other. Cesaro comes back in, but Woods and Uso drop him again and send him back down to the ringside floor. While at ringside, Cesaro rips up The New Day’s orange commentary table. Woods and Uso fight on the turnbuckle, then Cesaro breaks it up. Uso takes Cesaro down, then he hits a Samoan Drop on Woods. Uso follows up with the butt bump in the corner on Woods, then he goes for one on Cesaro but Cesaro rolls out of the way. Cesaro rolls out to ringside, and Uso hits a suicide dive on him. Woods then hits a tornado DDT off he apron on Uso on the floor. Back in the ring, Woods hits a facebuster on Cesaro for a two count. Woods looks for the Honor Roll, but Cesaro blocks it. Cesaro misses a shot in the corner and Uso kicks him int he face out of nowhere. Woods hits a flying elbow drop on Cesaro and pins, but Uso breaks it up. Woods and Uso trade right hands in the middle now, until they run the ropes and collide. Jey hits a shoulder block, then Cesaro drops him. Cesaro hits Woods with a right hand and puts Woods on his shoulders, then he grabs Uso by the legs and swings Uso around while Woods is on his shoulders. Cesaro drops them both, then puts Woods in the Sharpshooter. Uso breaks it up and boots Cesaro in the head. Woods tries to steal the pin on Cesaro, but Cesaro kicks out and throws Woods to the outside. Uso then immediately superkicks Cesaro and pins for the three count.
Winner: Jey Uso
– All three teams come face to face in the ring after the match as The Usos celebrate.
– Rusev and Lana are backstage for an interview. Rusev says Nakamura attacked him before his match last week because he’s scared of him. Rusev says he’s stronger, more relentless and hungrier than Nakamura. Rusev says Nakamura is ducking him, but Rusev will get his hands on him and feast on Nakamura on the greatest holiday of them all – Rusev Day.
– Still to come: Jeff Hardy vs. Randy Orton
– We see a shot outside the arena at the University of Texas in Austin, TX.
– The broadcast team introduces a video package looking at Lars Sullivan. Sullivan hasn’t chosen his brand yet, but says in the video that you’d never seen a freak like him.
– The Miz comes out to host Miz TV. R-Truth and Carmella immediately come out to interrupt him, and they have a dance break on the stage. They finish dancing, and then they leave. The Miz continues now and welcomes everyone to Miz TV. The Miz introduces his guest tonight – WWE Champion, “the new” Daniel Bryan. Bryan steps in the ring and sits down next to Miz. Miz says Bryan still looks like the old Daniel Bryan, but something is different about him – his eyes are open and he realizes there’s no point to a virtuous win – there’s only winning a losing. Miz says Bryan realizes he was right all along. Bryan picks up his mic and starts talking about “the old” Daniel Bryan wasn’t very smart since he catered to the opinions of the fans. Bryan says he doesn’t care about these people anymore, and he’s letting his dreams take control. Bryan says he doesn’t have enough intellectual peers in WWE – Miz included – but Bryan can read books and consult the great minds of history. The fans chant “what,” and Bryan says they’re chanting something stupid from 20 years ago. Bryan says the fans are all sheep. Miz says Bryan took his advice and did whatever it took to win. Bryan says Miz is dancing around the issue and not getting to the point – Bryan says he kicked AJ Styles in the groin. But that was only one match on one day, and these fans ruin the earth with their needless consumption, and he talks about water bottles and people hurting the environment. Miz says he didn’t bring Bryan here to talk about methane gas and water bottles. Miz says Bryan painted him as the bad guy for eight years, but Miz saw through him the whole time. Miz says he wants Bryan to answer a simple question: Is he WWE Champion because he listened to what Miz said? Bryan says yes, then he says no. Bryan says it doesn’t matter, the only thing that matters is the old Daniel Bryan is dead and the yes movement is dead. Bryan says the only thing that matters is that this is your new WWE Champion – the new Daniel Bryan. AJ Styles comes out to interrupt. AJ steps in the ring, and Bryan shoves Miz into him then slides out of the ring. AJ chases Bryan out to the ringside, then back into the ring. AJ gets his hands on Bryan, but then Miz hits the Skull Crushing Finale on him. Bryan watches from ringside then heads up the ramp.
– The broadcast team informs us that Paige has booked AJ Styles and The Miz in a singles match later tonight.
– We see a pre-taped promo from Randy Orton talking about taking Rey Mysterio’s mask, and calling Jeff Hardy a cockroach he has to stomp on tonight.
– Randy Orton vs. Jeff Hardy: The opening bell sounds and Jeff immediately takes the fight to Orton and pummels on him in the corner. Orton tries to grab on to Jeff’s ear but Jeff fights him off. The fight spills out to ringside and Jeff hits a back suplex on Orton. Back in the ring, Hardy boots Orton in the face and hits the Whisper In The Wind for a two count. Hardy hits the inverted atomic drop, and a leg drop and dropkick for a two count. Hardy goes for the Twist of Fate, but Orton fights him off and elbows Hardy in the face. Orton hits the draping DDT off the middle rope, but then he wastes some time. Orton looks for the RKO, but Jeff shoves him off. Hardy and Orton both block some shots before Jeff drops him and then goes to the top turnbuckle. Orton meets him there and looks for a superplex, but Jeff fights out and slams Orton’s face into the turnbuckle. Jeff follows up with the Twist of Fate, then he goes to the top rope. Orton rolls out of the ring and Jeff climbs down. Jeff dropkicks Orton through the ring ropes, then follows him out to ringside. Jeff clears off the announce table, then slams Orton’s head onto it. Jeff back suplexes Orton on top of the announce table. Jeff then climbs up to the top turnbuckle as Orton lays on the table. As Jeff reaches the top rope, Samoa Joe appears on the big screen. Samoa Joe is in a bar somewhere, and he tells Jeff he’s keeping an eye on him and to keep up the good work. The distraction leads to Orton rolling back in the ring and hitting the RKO on Jeff for the three count.
Winner: Randy Orton
– After the match, Samoa Joe appears back on the big screen from behind a bar. Joe says he’s here for a lesson for everyone about excess. He talks about people drinking too much and waking up in jail, and tells everyone to drink responsibly. The video turns off, and Jeff heads to the back while high-fiving fans at ringside.
– WWE Champion Daniel Bryan does an interview in the back saying that he didn’t run from AJ earlier, and he does everything with purpose. Bryan says he’s going to join the commentary team for AJ and Miz’s match.
– The Miz vs. AJ Styles: Daniel Byan joins the broadcast table at ringside before the opening bell. The bell sounds and Miz starts off strong in this one. AJ ducks a shot and shuts down Miz with a big dropkick. Styles and Miz trade strikes now, and Miz drops AJ with a knee to the body. Daniel Bryan freaks out at Bryon at ringside and yells at him about bottled water and wanting his daughter to kick Byron in the groin. The Miz misses a shot and AJ kicks him in the face. Miz fights back and kicks AJ off the apron down to the ringside floor. Back in the ring, AJ fights back and hits a neckbreaker for a two count. AJ calls for the Styles Clash, but Miz reverses it and slams AJ face-first into the turnbuckle. Miz follows up with a DDT for a two count. AJ fights back and throws Miz over the top rope down to the ringside floor, then AJ follows up with a flying forearm smash on the floor. AJ locks his sights on Daniel Bryan, and the distraction leads to Miz slamming AJ into the ring steps. Miz takes AJ back in the ring and hits the Skull Crushing Finale for a two count. The Miz is shocked that AJ got out, and he starts working over AJ’s left knee now. Bryan gets a cheap shot on AJ while Miz distracts the ref, but AJ kicks Bryan away. Miz goes to grab AJ, but AJ catches him in the Calf Crusher and The Miz taps out.
Winner: AJ Styles
– After the match, Daniel Bryan attacks AJ and repeatedly slams AJ’s knee into the ring post. Bryan slams AJ head-first into the ring post, and then the announce table. Bryan takes AJ back in the ring and continues beating on AJ’s knee. Bryan applies a heel hook as the ref attempts to pull him off. More referees come out and Bryan finally lets go. Bryan kicks AJ, then grabs AJ’s arms and repeatedly stomps on his head. Bryan runs a lap around the ring, then he stomps on AJ’s head again. Bryan rolls out to ringside and makes the ring announcer introduce him as “the new Daniel Bryan.” Bryan gets on the mic and calls the fans fickle as he holds up his WWE Title belt. Bryan gets back in the ring and continues to beat on AJ’s bad knee as SmackDown goes off the air.
