Smackdown, Sami Zayn, and Montreal
Photo by Jason C. McLean
The proverbial circus coming to town, or specifically the extremely popular global sports entertainment (aka pro wrestling) behemoth that is the WWE coming to Montreal, is nothing out of the ordinary. The circus being thematically about the town, now that’s something special.
As is being part of a crowd that may one day be considered iconic and cheering wildly as a man swears in French on US TV. And that was my Friday night: The WWE was in town for two nights. Saturday was the big one, the Elimination Chamber premium live event (formerly known as pay-per-views) at the Bell Centre.
What would normally be considered a B show, an only somewhat important stop between the Royal Rumble and Wrestlemania, this year took on a whole new life. The main event was possibly the culmination of one of the hottest storylines the company, and possibly the industry, had seen in decades.
Seemingly unbeatable heel Roman Reigns defended the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship against a former member of his Bloodline (his faction) Sami Zayn. To make things even more exciting, the David confronting this top-tier gaslighting Goliath is local.
From the promotional and merchandise tie-ins with the Canadiens to the fact that Montreal crowds are famously vocal when they want to be, this weekend promised to be intense, fun and memorable. And it started with Friday Night Smackdown, the WWE’s weekly series airing on FOX in the US and SportsNet in Canada, which I attended in-person for the first time.
Photo courtesy of WWE
THE PRE-SHOW
The Bell Centre was decked out with the all-too familiar trappings of the show plus the Elimination Chamber structure already hanging above the ring to be lowered the following night. While not on the floor, our seats were close enough to the ring to see the action and on the side of the arena that was behind the hard cam, which was nice, as it meant anyone playing to the camera was also playing to us directly.
Ring announcer Samantha Irvin welcomed us and introduced the first dark match (there would be two more after the show). Irvin was effectively the host of the evening for the live crowd, something I didn’t realize was the case but that makes total sense.
Next it was time to watch a video package narrated by combat sports journalist Ariel Helwani talking about Montreal’s rich pro wrestling history. It was focused on greats that had some affiliation with WWE and ultimately tied in with Zayn and fellow Quebecker Kevin Owens, because how could it not?
This was seen on WWE programming, as were Helwani’s crowd appearances during the broadcast. When a famous journalist appears in a movie or TV show in character as themself, it’s understood that they are playing a role in the narrative and what they say doesn’t reflect their credibility in what they do outside as journalists. This was like that.
(If you’re wondering why I’m defending Helwani’s appearance, then you’re probably unaware of Tony Kahn, owner of another pro wrestling promotion. When you have yet to produce an event in Montreal yourself, don’t slam someone for showing some love to their city, to my city.)
Photo by Jason C. McLean
SHOWTIME!
Smackdown went live on the air at 8pm with a match (well, a recap video package, pyrotechnics, then a match). Natalya Neidhart and Shotzi took on Ronda Rousey and Shayna Baszler in a tag match. Natalya was the defacto hometown favourite in this match. (Sure, defacto is doing a lot of work in that sentence, but she’s Canadian and that’s what matters to fans.) She’s from Calgary, which has its own storied pro wrestling history centred around the Hart family’s Stampede Wrestling.
Next up was Hit Row, but thankfully not for long. They invoked the infamous Montreal Screwjob (low hanging fruit) as part of their “Bret Screwed Bret” rap designed to piss off the crowd. This worked, until Bray Wyatt and Uncle Howdy showed up and quickly disposed of them so Bray could cut an ominous promo.
Interestingly, this was one of only two in-ring promos (think of these as wrestler’s monologues) and the usual litany of backstage segments seemed to be limited as well. This was largely a match-driven card.
While the distance from the Titantron to the ring, and the set in general, seemed significantly smaller live than it does on TV, some of the wrestlers seemed much larger. In particular Seamus and Drew McIntyre, who had a banger of a match with the Viking Raiders.
Asuka and Liv Morgan had a good match, despite the pauses and breaks designed to shift focus to the action at ringside, as all the women at the following night’s main event were present for the bout. Unfortunately, much of the action took place at the commentary table, which could only be appreciated by at-home audiences.
The main event of Smackdown was Gunther, the reigning Intercontinental Champion, defending against Madcap Moss. The Montreal crowd proved once again that the WWE Universe has the ultimate control, crushing the push to babyface Moss by proudly cheering for Gunther, filling the arena with “Let’s Go Gunther!” chants.
Photo courtesy of WWE
IT’S ALL ABOUT SAMI ZAYN
The last televised segment of the night was an in-ring promo. More accurately, it was the crowd cheering, chanting and singing for Sami Zayn and against Roman Reigns for well over five minutes. They couldn’t be stopped. Always entertaining on the mic, Sami managed to get out the important aspects of the promo before the broadcast ended.
A proud Zayn swore in French, live on American television, telling Reigns that the following night he was in his house, tabernac, and that the champ was stepping into the ring with not only him but the entire City of Montreal. Fans lost it, and Sami dropped (slammed, really) the mic.
I’m extremely proud to have been a part of a moment that has the potential to be included in those WWE “all-time” moments.
It’s important to highlight that Zayn, as well as Kevin Owens, are the products of the storied local Montreal wrestling scene. And while the retrospective at the beginning didn’t specifically mention it, I should note that both men got their start in our very own local promotion, the IWS, which continues to this day with live shows once a month.
If you like pro wrestling, you should check it out. After all, it’s not every day that the WWE centers a major show around Montreal. I’m glad I was there when they did.
