Welcome again, Friday Fanatics, for another edition of WWE’s Smackdown!  We’re nine days away from Elimination Chamber and with the matches set, look for wrestlers involved to collide tonight, including Chris Jericho facing the Undertaker in the main event with No Disqualifications.  Does The Animal Batista have a response for John Cena?  Or a reason for getting counted out of his Elimination Chamber Qualifier against CM Punk last week?  We should get those answers and more tonight as Smackdown is set to hit the air.

Rey Mysterio vs. CM Punk

Booyaka Booyaka, the Ultimate Underdog, Rey Mysterio kicks off Smackdown as we head down the Road to Wrestlemania.  Rey defeated Dolph Ziggler last Friday to qualify for the Smackdown Elimination Chamber match and tonight he’ll take on fellow Chamber combatant, the Pastor of Purity, our Straight-Edge Savior, CM Punk.  Todd Grisham comments on Punk and Gallows being in a match for the Unified Tag Team Championships on Monday, which they did not win, as Punk and Rey are in each other’s faces.  Punk starts things off pushing Mysterio in the face a couple of times and then it’s fast paced offence right from the start.  Punk slows Rey down, using kicks and submissions to keep Mysterio grounded.  The pace speeds up again as Rey takes things to the floor a couple of times, but Mysterio needs to be cautious as Serena and Luke Gallows are luring at ringside.  Their distraction is enough to allow Punk to slam Rey back first on the barricade, who then falls to the floor amongst the fans.  The Ultimate Underdog struggles to mount some offence while our Saviro works on the back of the masked man, keeping him on the ground as much as possible.  Rey looks to hit the 619, but Gallows and Serena intervene, Serena distracting the ref while Gallows attacks Rey from behind.  Rey positions Punk for the 619 again, but Punk ducks.  The Pastor of Purity then has Rey set for the Go to Sleep, but Rey counters it into a roll up for the win.  And he then pays for his victory with a beating at the hands of the Straight-Edge Society.  Punk proclaims he can save Rey.  Gallows places Mysterio on his Savior’s shoulders and Rey has a “crucifixion” of sorts (thank you Striker and Grisham) as Punk puts him to sleep.

Rating:  ***

Winner:  Rey Mysterio

This was an incredible match between Mysterio and Punk.  These two can put on a show.  And after the fact, Punk and Co. attacking Rey furthers the Straight-Edge Society and adds more heat to them.

After the break, Intercontinental Champion Drew McIntyre is making his way to the ring.  We’re reminded that McIntyre is still undefeated in singles competition and was hand picked by Vince McMahon to be a champion.  Drew has a microphone and tells us he’s unstoppable.  He doesn’t care who his opponent is.  Drew may believe himself unstoppable, but not many can stand toe to toe with his opponent and live to tell the tale without a notch in the “L” column.  That man is Kane.  McIntyre says he has nothing to prove to Kane, though.  He tells the Big Red Machine he can have a match next week, but both the ref and Kane disagree with this.  The bell rings, Kane sends a kick to Drew, and this match is underway.

Intercontinental Champion Drew McIntyre vs. Kane

During the break, McIntyre sent Kane into the barricade to take control of the match.  Grisham informs us that according to a poll McIntyre took himself, he’s more popular in Scotland than Sean Connery.  They also talk about ECW and the superstars there becoming Free Agents after next week, but in the ring, Kane has taken over this match.  The Big Red Machine attempts a couple of chokeslams, but is blocked both times, so he clotheslines McIntyre out of the ring.  The two of them fight outside the ring while the ref administers the 10 count and this match is officially over.

Rating:  *

Result:  Double Count Out

After the bell, McIntyre and Kane continue fighting.  Drew rolls back outside the ring to grab the Intercontinental Championship, looking to use it on Kane, but Kane has other plans.  He drops Drew with a  chokeslam and symbolically lays the title across McIntyre before leaving the ring.

Backstage, Mickie James has another run in with Michelle McCool and Layla.  McCool is still at it, making fun of Mickie and her weight.  A big bowl of cottage cheese comes into play and Mickie ends up smacking it out of McCool’s hands and onto Vickie Guerrero.  James takes off for the ring and we go to commercial.

Mickie James vs. Layla

The “Simply Flawless” LayCool come to the ring and Layla is ready to face Mickie James in the ring.  Gee, I wonder if the inadvertent covering of Vickie Guerrero is going to come into play.  Oh, look, here she comes.  Right on cue!  EXCUSE ME!!  Vickie calls a stop to the match and informs us that the match is now a handicap match.  Mickie’s all over this, though, as she works to overcome the disadvantage of a handicap match between here and LayCool.  As good as Mickie is at overcoming the odds, it’s not enough here as Michelle McCool hits the Faith Breaker as the numbers game takes its toll on James and this match is over.

Rating:  **

Winners:  Michelle McCool and Layla

Dave Batista is menacing his way through the backstage area.  He’s requested some time to talk about his recent actions and that’ll be next.  When Smackdown comes back from commercial, we recap Batista’s actions on Raw a couple weeks ago, attacking Bret Hart at the behest of Mr. McMahon.  Following his attack on Hart, Batista would return to Batista Bomb John Cena on the steel steps after a brutal assault on the former WWE Champion.  Then, last Friday, Batista stepped out of the ring and allowed himself to get counted out in a match with CM Punk, effectively removing him from the Elimination Chamber match at the same named PPV.  Well, now it’s time for The Animal to step out and talk to Josh Matthews about his reasons for the actions of the past couple of weeks.  Matthews asks Batista about his actions and the Animal takes his time to respond.  The crowd starts chanting for Cena and Dave sits on the top turnbuckle for a few seconds before leaving the ring with microphone in hand.  All the while, the spotlight Batista has repeatedly requested is following him around the ring.  A fan wearing a Cena shirt gets in his face, motioning the “You Can’t See Me” much to the delight of the fans, and the Animal finally gets back in the ring.  He holds the microphone up to his mouth, then drops it and walks out again, this time heading up the ramp as the fans tell him what they think of him.  He yells out at them angrily asking if they really want an explanation and returns to the ring, grabbing the microphone and dropping it once more, then even kicks it away from himself and heads back up the ramp again, this time leaving the arena.

I don’t know what to make of this segment, honestly.  It really looked just like filler, and terrible filler at that as it did absolutely nothing but show Batista refusing to address anyone.  I guess that was the point.  It furthers Dave’s heel push without him really having to do anything.

Following a break, the Smackdown General Manager Teddy Long came out to address Batista and his refusal to both compete and explain himself.  Teddy signs a match between Edge and Batista on Smackdown, stating that since he doesn’t feel like talking tonight, then maybe he feels like competing.  But first, it’s time for some tag team action.

The Great Kahli and Matt Hardy vs. The Hart Dynasty

Matt is in the ring wishing everyone a Happy Valentine’s Day in advance and talks about Kahli always having a great Valentine’s Day, but Matt’s going to have the best one ever as he introduces his special Valentine, Maria.  Following Maria’s entrance, Tyson Kidd and DH Smith come down to the ring and this match is under way.  Smith looks like he’s going to start things off against Kahli, but DH quickly tags out to Kidd and the Punjabi Powerhouse pulls him into the ring.  Kahli tags in his partner Matt, and the Dynasty is ready to take control of the match.  A week ago, Hardy & Kahli teamed with Johh Morrison to face Drew McIntyre and the Hart Dynasty, Morrison, Kahli, and Hardy getting the win there.  Natalya gets involved outside the ring, but Maria will have none of it, pulling the legs out from under Matt.  Kidd gets a roll up on Hardy, but only a 2 count, Matt gets a roll up of his own and this one barely gets a 1, 2, 3 for the win.

Rating:  * 3/4

Winners:  Matt Hardy and The Great Kahli

I’m not sure why Hardy is teaming with Kahli.  I don’t understand the pairing and therefore am not going to really comment on it beyond this.  Hopefully, though, they will move on to push Matt a little more in the near future.  Following the match, we learn of the first inductee into the Hall of Fame’s class of 2010, “The Million Dollar Man” Ted DiBiase.  I don’t think I need to go into this video piece as it’s run on all three shows now.  We’ll find out the next Inductee on Monday.

After a break, we get the Raw Rebound and talk about Elimination Chamber.  Grisham and Striker thank Cypress Hill for the official theme song.  They talk about the two big title matches at the PPV, and then we see the aftermath of the Rey Mysterio/CM Punk match where Rey got attacked by the Straight-Edge Society, putting the Ultimate Underdog to sleep.  Now it’s time for two more Elimination Chamber combatants to square off as R-Truth will take on the Shaman of Sexy, John Morrison.

R-Truth vs. John Morrison

Truth comes to the ring before the break and when we return, instead of asking “What’s up?” this week he asks “Who dat?” in honor of  the Super Bowl Champions Saints.  Truth and Morrison shake hands before the bell and these two faces are ready to do battle.  Morrison starts the match with some high flying offense and Morrison twists his ankle, rendering him unable to continue and giving R-Truth the win.  Morrison would hurt himself coming off of a roll over Truth’s back, landing on his ankle wrong.  Truth would help John Morrison to the back.

Winner:  R-Truth (due to injury to John Morrison)

Still ahead, Jericho and Undertaker will face off in a No Disqualification match.  We see a quick preview for NXT, which begins in 2 weeks.  And when we return to the arena, the 2010 Royal Rumble Winner Edge is on his way down to the ring.  Edge talks about his possible opponents at Wrestlemania, previewing the Elimination Chamber matches.  His first great line is calling Punk the love child of Brutus “The Barber” Beefcake and Charles Manson.  Edge has the potential to face 12 different stars depending on who wins each Elimination Chamber match as well as his choice of the winner.  Edge talks about possibly facing The Undertaker, who is still undefeated (and getting huge pops for it) at WrestleMania.  Edge then talks about his match next week against Batista, but before he can get too far into this, he’s interrupted by The Best in the World at what he does, Chris Jericho.  Jericho and Edge have a long history in the ring and Y2J is out to talk about Edge not mentioning him as a possible WrestleMania opponent.  Jericho calls himself a bad luck charm for Edge.  Chris was there when Edge was injured, but Chris doesn’t get injured, he just wins championships and carries the company on his back.  He advises Edge to choose the Raw champion and stay away from Jericho, who will walk out of the Elimination Chamber with the World Heavyweight Championship (that’s Jericho’s guarantee and my prediction, by the way).  Bad things will happen if Edge keeps getting in Jericho’s face and Jericho predicts a victory over the Undertaker tonight in the Main Event.  Cue those bells!!  Taker comes out in response to Jericho’s claim at a pending victory.  The Dead Man walks slowly and methodically to the ring, as usual, and Edge clears out in preparation for this contest, joining Grisham and Striker on commentary.

Undertaker vs. Chris Jericho
No Disqualification

Edge talks about what it takes to win in the Elimination Chamber, an accomplishment he has under his belt, and Edge tells us it’s the hardest night of the career among other things.  Edge also talks about what it’s like to face The Undertaker.  The two of them have been involved in pretty much every match conceivable.  Striker asks the question on everyone’s mind, will Edge challenge Taker should he win at Elimination Chamber and Edge refuses to divulge the information.  In the match, Jericho and Taker are going back and forth, fighting outside the ring off the bat.  When Undertaker and Jericho come back in the ring, Taker looks for Old School, but Jericho hits the ropes, forcing The Dead Man onto the top turnbuckle and following up with a Superplex.  Jericho stays toe to toe with Taker and Edge comments that only an elite few can accomplish that.  But the momentum swings back in the Taker’s favor with Snake Eyes and a big boot.  The Dead Man raises an arm, looking for a chokeslam but Jericho rolls out of the ring and onto the commentator’s table.  Edge calmly tells him to get back in the ring as Taker follows Y2J outside.  He hurls Jericho over the announce table towards Edge and the two men stare each other down.  Undertaker rolls Jericho back in the ring and takes Edge down with a big boot.  Jericho fights his way back and exposes a turnbuckle, but it backfires and Y2J gets sent into it instead.  Taker hits the Last Ride on Jericho and edge rolls into the ring, Spearing the Dead Man in response to the big boot before walking out of the arena.  Taker sites up and picks up Chris Jericho, who then hits the Codebreaker and gets the win over the Undertaker, picking up momentum as we’re now just over a week away from Elimination Chamber.

Rating:  ** 3/4

Winner:  Chris Jericho

Not a bad match overall.  It furthered a couple possible storylines between Edge and either Jericho or the Undertaker.  I will reiterate my prediction that Chris Jericho will win the Elimination Chamber match and go on to face Edge at WrestleMania.  But before we get there, Edge will make his big return to singles competition on Smackdown as next week he’ll face off with The Animal Batista.