WWE SmackDown Live Results and Review for February 12, 2019

On the final episode of SmackDown Live before Elimination Chamber, the consequences for this Sunday were on display right from the start. Three teams competed to see who would be forced to start the Women’s Tag Team Elimination Chamber with Sasha Banks and Bayley, while all six men in the WWE Championship Match were in a gauntlet to determine who earned the final spot this Sunday.

Right from the start, SmackDown Live literally picked up where WWE Raw left us on Monday. The show began with a replay of Vince McMahon’s final words where he suspended Becky Lynch and introduced Charlotte Flair. Just as the video saw McMahon utter The Queen’s name, her music hit and she made her way to the ring on SmackDown Live. Flair immediately nestled back into her role as the top heel in the women’s division, drawing heat from the crowd with every word.

It was a fitting way to begin things with the topic that had been buzzing around the internet for nearly 24 hours, but it also made the mistake of immediately reminding us of the good and bad that WWE Raw provided on Monday. After watching Raw, a moment of recovery was needed from a show that dragged on to a jarring ending. On SmackDown Live, we instead got a well paced gem that featured an unforgettable performance by Kofi Kingston and an ending that cut things even closer than Raw did.

Who will start at Elimination Chamber?

Just like WWE Raw, the first match of the night featured three teams from the Women’s Tag Team Elimination Chamber Match. In what turned out to be a theme of the night, SmackDown succeeded where Raw failed. While both nights featured great matches, SmackDown’s saw a team actually utilize the rules in a logical manner.

With the stipulation that the team taking the losing fall would enter the Elimination Chamber first, the safest choice for any competitor would be to stay out of the match. This could have come into play on Raw when Sasha Banks was escorted to the back with a potential injury. Had Bayley accompanied her friend, she would have been unable to take the fall. Instead, Bayley fought on by herself and ultimately was pinned by Nia Jax.

On SmackDown, we instead saw The IIconics immediately exit the fray. By staying on the apron throughout the match and avoiding getting tagged in, they were able to steer clear of risking the loss. The match saw great moments from all, but it was Naomi who really shined throughout. Whether she was taking on Sonya Deville or seeking retribution against Mandy Rose, she made certain her opponents felt the glow.

In the end, it was Mandy Rose who was the recipient of a split-legged moonsault from Naomi. The pinfall followed, and Mandy Rose and Sonya Deville were set to enter the Elimination Chamber first against Bayley and Sasha Banks. Moments after the bell rang, as Naomi and Carmella were celebrating, The IIconics capitalized by assaulting both opposing teams. They weakened their opponents, kept themselves from taking the fall in the match, and carry the momentum heading into Sunday.

McMizTV feat. The Usos

More from SmackDown

• Randy Orton signs with SmackDown to go after The Bloodline
• Potential Challengers for Roman Reigns before WrestleMania
• WWE SmackDown Predictions: AJ Styles Will Help Randy Orton
• WWE SmackDown Predictions: Street Profits Will Dethrone Judgment Day
• SmackDown reminded us of how pointless the brand split is

We also got to see build for the SmackDown Tag Team Championship Match at Elimination Chamber. While The Revival had an instant classic on Raw and captured the titles from Chad Gable and Bobby Roode, they did so despite almost zero hype for what was arguably one of WWE’s best tag team matches in months. On the other side, SmackDown gave us an entertaining segment that only added heat for this Sunday.

To say that fans, myself included, were skeptical of Shane McMahon being one-half of the SmackDown Tag Team Champions would be an understatement. WWE choosing to put the title on a 49-year-old part-time competitor who is also an authority figure is a terrible idea on paper. On top of that, it continues to ring as a reminder about WWE’s atrocious Crown Jewel pay-per-view event in Saudi Arabia.

Yet somehow, despite all of those problems, The Miz and Shane McMahon have become one of the most organically endearing tag teams in WWE. It defies all logic, but these two dorky dads are a joy to watch on a weekly basis.

That was helped even more this week by the presence of The Usos, who are arguably some of the best talkers in all of WWE. In their back and forth, The Usos pushed Shane McMahon and The Miz about just how strong their connection as a team could be.

While The Usos are brothers who do nearly every part of their lives together, The Miz and Shane McMahon are a tag team that’s only existed for a few months and doesn’t spend nearly as much time together. The response from “McMiz” was utterly hilarious, and the shoving that led to them eating superkicks from The Usos successfully planted the seeds for what could be a great match this Sunday.

Kofi Kingston (Almost) Runs the Gauntlet

In what was technically only the second match of the night, we saw a gauntlet to determine who would earn the right to enter the WWE Championship Elimination Chamber Match last. Earlier in the show, reports of Mustafa Ali being injured were confirmed and he was officially removed from the match. The New Day was announced as his replacement, but it wasn’t revealed which member would be representing them.

After some teasing by Big E and Xavier Woods, the veteran who signed a developmental contract with WWE over 12 years ago stepped up to represent their trio. Kofi Kingston may be most known today for being a part of The New Day, but that’s only a fraction of his career. Since joining the industry all the way back in 2005, Kofi Kingston has racked up over a decade of amazing performances in WWE.

As a friendly reminder, Kofi Kingston is a 8-time Tag Team Champion, 4-time Intercontinental Champion, and 3-time Unied States Champion. Kingston’s extensive resume and skill was on display right from the start, as he opened the gauntlet against WWE Champion Daniel Bryan. The match started with just over an hour left on SmackDown Live, and nearly half of that was just Kofi Kingston taking on Daniel Bryan.

After a grueling match, and some interference by Rowan that ultimately backfired, Kofi Kingston pinned the WWE Champion in the center of the ring. His fight continued as Jeff Hardy entered the fray. While Hardy fought hard, Kofi refused to go down and ultimately nailed an SOS to pick up another win. Kingston’s third opponent was Samoa Joe, and it looked like the dream was about to come to an end.

The air was sucked out of the room as Joe’s music hit, but Kofi Kingston was not about to give up. Samoa Joe made the fundamental mistake of letting his arrogance get the better of him, toying with Kofi Kingston and getting increasingly frustrated at not being able to put him away with simple maneuvers. Kofi kept fighting, ultimately countering the Coquina Clutch into a pinfall to eliminate Samoa Joe. The crowd was shocked, and Joe was absolutely irate.

After being eliminated, Joe put Kofi to sleep on the outside of the ring. AJ Styles made his way to the ring and stopped Joe’s attack, but the damage had been done. Styles tried to tell Kofi he didn’t have to keep going, but the veteran refused to quit. Instead, Kofi kept fighting and ultimately spent an entire hour in the gauntlet match before being forced to tap out to the Calf Crusher by AJ Styles.

With seconds left on the show, Randy Orton’s music hit. AJ Styles looked to the entrance, and was completely blindsided as Orton entered behind him and landed an RKO outta nowhere to pin Styles and secure his spot as the final entrant in the Elimination Chamber.

Quick Hits

• Charlotte Flair is finally back in her rightful place as the despicable heel she plays so well.
• The IIconics may not be the most technically gifted team going into Sunday, but they play their roles so perfectly.
• Shane McMahon and The Miz are the adorkable dads I didn’t know I needed.
• Kofi Kingston deserves to leave Elimination Chamber as the WWE Champion.
• United States Champion R-Truth and SmackDown Women’s Champion Asuka were missing in action tonight, with no mention of them whatsoever.

Match Results

• Carmella & Naomi def. Sonya Deville & Mandy Rose and The IIconics, with Rose taking the fall, she and Deville will start the Elimination Chamber against Sasha Banks and Bayley
• Gauntlet Match: Kofi Kingston def. Daniel Bryan, Kofi Kingston def. Jeff Hardy, Kofi Kingston def. Samoa Joe, AJ Styles def. Kofi Kingston, and lastly Randy Orton def. AJ Styles to become the final entrant in the Elimination Chamber