From WWE.com:
Daniel Bryan def. Jack Swagger
COLORADO SPRINGS, Co. – Two days before Elimination Chamber – and three days before WWE Network unleashes itself on the WWE Universe – a slew of determined Superstars used SmackDown to position themselves for the final pay-per-view along The Road to WrestleMania.
Battered, bruised and bandaged, Daniel Bryan ultimately used a Running Knee to triumph over No. 1 contender to the Intercontinental Title, Jack Swagger, in SmackDown’s opening showdown. However, The Beard’s test of resilience was far from over.
Before the dust could clear, SmackDown General Manager Vickie Guerrero emerged, flanked by Director of Operations Kane. The Queen Diva congratulated Bryan on his victory, “rewarding” him with the opportunity to compete in a second match of the night against the other Real American, and fellow Elimination Chamber combatant, Cesaro!
Again, pretty standard fare for the SmackDown before a PPV. And, again, it’s pretty clear SmackDown is not only the red-headed stepchild of the shows, because dear gods, these results articles are getting more perfunctory every week. And they’ve got almost five days to write the bloody things!
Kane 21 February 2014 – Daniel Bryan vs. Jack Swagger: Photos
“WWE Director of Operations Kane and SmackDown General Manager Vickie Guerrero emerge, and The Queen Diva informs The Beard that she has a “reward” for him … ”
-snickering- Do you think the look on Kane’s face there is at the idea that Vickie is now “The Queen Diva”?
Doesn’t matter – I’m still busy undressing him with my eyes! 😉
” … a second match of the night against Zeb Colter’s other patriotic pupil and a fellow Elimination Chamber Match challenger, Cesaro!”
Cesaro, who lost half of his name this week because Vince didn’t think it was manly enough, apparently … -facepalm-
Kane looks bored – maybe if he got undressed he’d feel better? 😉
No video of the announcement … oh well, moving on!
Again, from WWE.com:
Daniel Bryan def. Cesaro by Disqualification
In his second match of the evening, Bryan faced Cesaro and both Swagger and Zeb Colter were expelled from ringside by the referee. But the area outside the ropes didn’t stay empty for long, as Kane soon walked down to ringside to observe the action.
In the height of the heated contest that followed, the ever-resilient Beard managed to hit a second Running Knee of the night on his opponent. Before he could even stand to follow up, however, Kane entered the ring and hit Bryan with a chokeslam. An amused Kane announced the fallen Bryan the winner by disqualification, before Cesaro delivered The Neutralizer on the three-time World Champion.
In light of the anguish Bryan has endured in recent weeks – thanks to what Michael Cole called a personal “vendetta” by Kane – the question arises whether he will be in any condition to battle inside the Elimination Chamber in just two days. Then again, could the punishment be all the incentive the underdog warrior needs to emerge victorious this Sunday?
Kane 21 February 2014 – Daniel Bryan vs. Cesaro: Photos
“WWE Director of Operations Kane emerges and watches the action at ringside.”
Damnit, I love it when I see Kane next to everyday objects, like that chair – because it just emphasises how goddamned big he is. His knees are almost up to his chin, his legs are so long! Hot stuff!
“Bryan nails his Running Knee again and appears headed for his second hard-fought victory of the night … ”
” … but Kane enters the ring and hits Bryan with a ring-shaking chokeslam!”
Only fair, right? 😉
Love that big one-handed chokeslam though!
Doesn’t even ruffle his suit!
And dear gods, that cocky smirk!
And then DBryan gets Cesaro’s finisher and yadda yadda yadda, oh noes, will he be okay to compete in the Elimination Chamber?
WWE.com has the video here – the part that is relevant to our interests is around 2:30. Watch for the purple tie coming into frame! 😉
And then after the chokeslam, there’s the straightening of the tie, the shooting of the cuffs, and my ovaries once again a’sploding.
Then it’s a casual exit from the ring (through the ropes and an athletic jump down – because Directors of Operations don’t need steel steps, thank you!), and then he’s got the mic.
“Cesaro has been disqualified as the result of outside interference.”
Pause. Smirk.
“Your winner is … Daniel Bryan.”
Pause. Shark-like grin. Hand mic nicely back to ringside official. Straighten tie and leave.
Guess that’ll teach DBryan to call him a “corporate suck up”, huh? 😉
But keep watching – there’s a couple of shots of Kane nonchalantly walking up the ramp, straightening his jacket, not a care in the world. That alone is worth the price of admission! 😉
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License. Please read the terms of the licence before copying or sharing any part of this entry.
The Brothers of Destruction 