WWE Friday Night SmackDown is back.
The road to the Elimination Chamber wraps up tonight, as the "go-home show" for this weekend's premium live event goes down tonight from the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
On tap for tonight's show is Asuka vs. Liv Morgan, Ronda Rousey and Shayna Baszler vs. Natalya and Shotzi, Sami Zayn returns to Montreal, The Viking Raiders vs. Sheamus and Drew McIntyre, as well as WWE Intercontinental Champion GUNTHER defending against Madcap Moss.
Featured below are complete WWE Friday Night SmackDown results from Friday, February 17, 2023. The following report was written by Rajah.com reporter Matt Boone (@MattBoone0709) as the show aired live from 8-10pm EST. on FOX.
WWE FRIDAY NIGHT SMACKDOWN RESULTS (2/17/2023)
This week's show kicks off with an "In memory of Jerry Jarrett" graphic and then the usual "WWE Then. Now. Forever. Together" signature narrated by John Cena airs.
Now an in-depth video package covering all of the latest happenings within The Bloodline airs. After that, the regular SmackDown cold open and accompanying theme song plays.
We shoot inside the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada and we see the Elimination Chamber hanging above the ring. A graphic promoting Sami Zayn "coming home" to Montreal is shown.
Natalya & Shotzi vs. Ronda Rousey & Shayna Baszler
The familiar sounds of Natalya's theme hits and Canada's own women's wrestling legend makes her way out and heads down to the ring for this week's opening contest.
She settles in the ring after giving a lucky fan a pair of sunglasses. Now her music dies down and the theme for her tag-team partner plays. Out comes Shotzi in the "Taking Care of Business" tank.
As the two settle in the ring and pose for the fans, Michael Cole and Wade Barrett introduce a video package to tell the story of why these two are teaming up tonight, as well as the story of their beef with Ronda Rousey and Shayna Baszler.
From there, the iconic sounds of Joan Jett plays and out comes Ronda Rousey and Shayna Baszler together to a chorus of boos. The two are each wearing their respective Jiu-Jitsu and Judo gis and black belts.
With both teams settled into the ring, it's time to get our first match of the evening officially off-and-running. The bell sounds and we see Nattie and Baszler kicking things off for their respective teams.
Baszler has some trouble with Natalya early on and tags in Rousey. The fans boos pick up. Rousey and Nattie go for some grappling holds and reversals and counters and the fans break out in a loud "You can't wrestle!" chant aimed at "Rowdy" Ronda.
Each woman tags out and in comes Shayna and Shotzi for their respective teams. Baszler works Shotzi over and then tags in Rousey, who secures an armbar on Shotzi through the ring ropes. Baszler tags in and picks up where Ronda left off, working over the softened up arm of Shotzi.
Rousey tags back in and goes to work on Shotzi, who starts to fight back into competitive form. Shotzi gets Ronda down and bridges up on the mat. Ronda fights her way out and hoists Shotzi up, but Shotzi escapes out the back door and sends Rousey out to the floor.
Shotzi hits a follow-up dive onto Ronda on the floor. Nattie takes out Shayna with a clothesline. Shotzi heads to the top-rope and leaps off, splashing onto Ronda and Shayna on the floor. Afterwards, we head to a mid-match commercial break as the action continues.
We return from the break and see Shotzi and Shayna duking it out. Shayna is knocked out to the floor and then Shotzi hits a crazy springboard DDT on the hard part of the ring apron to Rousey. Back in the ring, she makes a much-needed tag to a fresh Natalya.
Nattie hits the ring like a bat out of hell, taking it to "The Submission Magician" and popping the crowd in the process. Shayna tries fighting back but Nattie cuts her off. Nattie power bombs Shayna out of the corner into a close pin attempt.
We see Nattie apply the Sharpshooter on Ronda. Nattie cranks back as Ronda tries crawling to the ropes. Rousey gets close to the ropes but Nattie drags her back into the middle of the ring. Shayna hits the ring to break it up and moments later, Ronda gets an armbar on Shotzi for the win.
Winners: Ronda Rousey & Shayna Baszler
The History Of Sami Zayn & The Bloodline -- Part 1
We see part one of a lengthy video package that will air throughout the show tonight looking at the history of Sami Zayn and The Bloodline. Part one airs now and focuses on Sami Zayn's initial dealings with Roman Reigns and The Bloodline after his WrestleMania showdown with Johnny Knoxville.
Bray Wyatt & Uncle Howdy Beats Down Hit Row
Now we head to the ring where Hit Row are shown. Top Dolla, Ashante "Thee" Adonis and B-Fab start freestyle rapping when the lights go out and their music dies down. When they come back on, we see Bray Wyatt in a black mask on one side of the ring and Uncle Howdy on the other.
The two each hit the ring and beat down all of Hit Row. The fans chant "Thank you" at Wyatt and Wyatt gets on the mic and says "You're welcome, Montreal!" He then tells Brock Lesnar or Bobby Lashley, whoever wins, to "run!"
Drew McIntyre & Sheamus vs. The Viking Raiders
Now we see Drew McIntyre and Sheamus getting amped up backstage. We head to a commercial break with the two scheduled to face The Viking Raiders when we return.
We return to the Progressive Match Flo segment of the week, which sees Madcap Moss become number one contender to the Intercontinental Championship with his win in the Fatal-4-Way bout last week. We then see him live backstage with Emma. The two claim it's his time and then Cole and Barrett plug his title shot against GUNTHER later tonight.
From there, we are sent to MMA reporter and WWE on BT Sport personality Ariel Helwani, who is with a ton of fans in his hometown of Montreal. We shoot back inside the Bell Centre and out comes Sheamus, followed by Drew McIntyre.
The two head to the ring ready to do battle in this scheduled tag-team contest against Erik and Ivar -- The Viking Raiders.
We see the two settle into the squared circle and their music dies down. Now the theme for their opponents hits and out comes Valhalla, leading Erik and Ivar to the ring for our next match of the evening here on the Elimination Chamber "go-home" edition of SmackDown.
Both teams are in the ring and ready to rock. The bell sounds and we're officially off-and-running with this one. Sheamus and Ivar kick things off for their respective teams. Sheamus goes for a Brogue Kick coming straight out of the gate, but misses.
The two blast into each other and the fight spills out to the floor with all four men involved. Drew and Sheamus establish the offensive control and then head back in the ring as The Viking Raiders re-group on the floor. On that note, we head to a mid-match commercial break as the match continues.
We return from the break and see Ivar beating down Sheamus in the ring. The commentators inform us that Ivar and Erik shifted the momentum in their favor during the break, which is quite clear based on the action unfolding in the ring.
Erik tags in and he and Ivar both go to work on "The Celtic Warrior" with double-team action. Drew finally gets the hot tag and goes on an offensive rampage. Sheamus tags back in and hits a crazy flipping death valley driver type spot off the middle ropes.
Afterwards, we head to another mid-match commercial break as this tag-team contest continues. When we return, we see Drew and Sheamus nearly finish this one off, however The Viking Raiders hang in there. Valhalla distracts Drew and leads to a high spot off the ropes from The Viking Raiders that nearly ends this one.
Moments later we see Erik and Ivar try and hit their finisher, however Drew and Sheamus end up avoiding it and hit their respective finishers for the pin fall victory.
Winners: Drew McIntyre & Sheamus
The History Of Sami Zayn & The Bloodline -- Part 2
We see part two of a lengthy video package that will air throughout the show tonight looking at the history of Sami Zayn and The Bloodline. Part two airs now and focuses on Sami Zayn's dealings with The Bloodline from the Royal Rumble 2023 premium live event until now.
Asuka vs. Liv Morgan
After the Sami Zayn video wraps up, we return inside the Bell Centre where Asuka's theme hits and the women's wrestling star makes her way to the ring with a bizarre mask on.
She looks up at the Elimination Chamber hanging above the ring as Michael Cole mentions her as one of the favorites in the Women's Chamber match scheduled at tomorrow night's premium live event.
Asuka will be in one-on-one action against another competitor scheduled for the Women's Chamber bout tomorrow -- Liv Morgan. As Asuka finishes her ring entrance, we head to a pre-match commercial break.
We return from the break to Rey Mysterio backstage. We are shown a moment he had with Santos Escobar recently.
After it is shown we return live and as Rey is talking, he is confronted by Karrion Kross. He mentions Mysterio being a pathetic excuse for a father and says that's why he covers his face with a mask.
Back live, we see Asuka still in the ring finishing up her entrance. Her music dies down and the theme for Liv Morgan hits and out comes her opponent for this scheduled one-on-one women's bout.
While Morgan settles inside the ring, Carmella joins the duo of Cole and Barrett on special guest commentary for this match. The bell sounds and we're officially off-and-running with this one.
As the action unfolds in the ring, we hear Carmella talking bad about Raquel Rodriguez on commentary. This brings Rodriguez out to confront her. While they bicker back-and-forth, we see Nikki Cross appear at the commentary desk acting goofy.
The action continues in the ring with Liv beating Asuka down and going for a pin fall, but only getting two. After this, we head to a mid-match commercial break as the action continues.
When we return from the break, we see the action still in progress and hear Carmella still talking trash on special guest commentary. Finally, we see Asuka slap the Asuka Lock on Liv and she has no choice but to tap out.
Once the match ends, we see everyone involved in the Women's Elimination Chamber duke it out. Raquel Rodriguez helps Liv Morgan up and Morgan hits her with a cheap shot. Asuka and Liv Morgan are left standing and they each look up at the Chamber hanging above the ring to end the post-match scene.
Winner: Asuka
WWE Intercontinental Championship
GUNTHER (C) vs. Madcap Moss
We check in with Ariel Helwani once again. He is in the crowd inside the Bell Centre with the fans talking about how excited everyone is for Sami Zayn's homecoming tonight and shot against Roman Reigns at the Elimination Chamber premium live event tomorrow night.
Now we shoot backstage and we get a quick interview with GUNTHER. The WWE Intercontinental Champion talks about his upcoming title defense against Madcap Moss. He then heads to the ring accompanied by Imperium.
As we return from the break, we see GUNTHER in the ring awaiting the arrival of his opponent. The theme for Madcap Moss hits and out comes the challenger for this scheduled one-on-one showdown for the I-C title.
Both guys are in the ring and ready to rock. The bell sounds and we're officially off-and-running with this championship contest. We see some good back-and-forth action and then head to a mid-match commercial break with Moss faring well.
When we return, we see GUNTHER dominating the offense and taking it to the challenger with relative ease. Moss starts to fight back into competitive form. He hits a nice back suplex and comes off the ropes with a huge lariat for a close near fall attempt.
Moss hits a big suplex and starts to get close on some follow-up near fall attempts, but then GUNTHER takes back control of the wheel and rides this one into the finish, which sees him pick up the victory to retain his I-C title.
Winner and STILL WWE Intercontinental Champion: GUNTHER
Sami Zayn Ends This Week's Show
We head back from the commercial break that followed the I-C title bout and we hear Michael Cole and Wade Barrett run down the action scheduled for next week's installment of Friday Night SmackDown.
From there, we head back inside the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada where the familiar sounds of the theme song for Sami Zayn hits and out comes the former "Honorary Uce" to an enormous, thunderous ovation from his hometown fans.
Zayn settles in the ring and his theme dies down, but the noise from the crowd only gets louder. This is Hulk Hogan in Montreal type stuff, folks. It goes on for several, several minutes without Sami saying one word. Loud "Ole!" chants. Loud "You deserve it!" chants, etc.
The audio goes out, as apparently a vulgar chant also breaks out. Finally an emotional and fired up Sami begins speaking. He talks about how everyone points to that sign, which leads to him pointing to the WrestleMania sign in the rafters. He says that is what this business is all about.
Sami finally addresses Roman Reigns. He says tomorrow night is not just Roman Reigns versus Sami Zayn, it's Roman Reigns versus Sami Zayn and the entire city of Montreal. His voice cracks as he yells at the top of his lungs "Roman Reigns ... you are going down!" His theme hits again.
That's it, folks. He says all of a sentence or two and then his music plays and the crowd chants and goes nuts as Michael Cole plugs Elimination Chamber one more time and the go-home show for tomorrow night's premium live event wraps up on that note. Thanks for joining us!