It might have been the night before Elimination Chamber, but the Smackdown roster didn’t have the night off. Even John Cena didn’t get a vacation day. Smackdown Live took over the Pan American Center in Las Cruces, New Mexico on Saturday for quite a stacked live show, and the Smackdown roster delivered.
Related: Kickoff Show Match Announced For Elimination Chamber, Darren Young Undergoes Surgery
Before the event even started, fans had access to the superstars. Sometimes it really pays to know where to stand outside the building to see your favorite superstars arrive so you can snatch an autograph or a photo op. It also pays to go to live events where the WWE Superstars can’t just drive inside the building and park in there. It’s much easier to get them to come see you if they have to walk by you rather than having to come back outside.
Also, note the fact that Rhyno is still wearing his campaign t-shirt. Although not officially licensed by WWE, he probably got a ton of them for free and likely still has plenty of them lying around.
@RhynoWWE @NMSUinsider #WWELasCruces pic.twitter.com/8GeRFL9s2r
— Andy Quintana (@TheOriginal_Q) February 12, 2017
#WWELasCruces @harryruiz @stevekaplowitz @BeckyLynchWWE great fan experience! Welcome to the southwest! pic.twitter.com/V5D9RwxQJu
— Andy Quintana (@TheOriginal_Q) February 12, 2017
Bray Wyatt was spotted arriving at the building a day before he is rumored to take home the top prize on the blue team. It’s always nice to see a smile from Wyatt that isn’t intentionally creepy AF.
@WWEBrayWyatt #WWELasCruces @WWEUniverse pic.twitter.com/hxMQCVggRZ
— Nexusrko13 (@Nexusrko13) February 12, 2017
Las Cruces felt the glow the night before Naomi’s Women’s Title opportunity in Phoenix. Unfortunately, she didn’t feel the glow in this one as Alexa Bliss ended up successfully defending her title in a 5-way match against Becky Lynch, Carmella, Naomi, and Natayla.
i got to experience @NaomiWWE 's entrance live 😭😍 #WWELasCruces pic.twitter.com/kcA8slzlvk
— al🅴xis (@invademyprivacy) February 12, 2017
Becky Lynch is obviously such a crowd favorite and fans can only hope that they’re delaying her return to the echelon of the Smackdown women’s division until WrestleMania. She was straight fire in New Mexico, as always.
the smackdown girls did THAT! #WWELasCruces pic.twitter.com/DS8QFGTbKl
— al🅴xis (@invademyprivacy) February 12, 2017
After the main event match featuring Randy Orton and John Cena (what a unique match-up for the lucky fans in attendance), Orton showed that he obviously hasn’t learned his lesson when it comes to positive fan interaction. Then again, he probably doesn’t care because he’s Randy Orton. We here at Still Real To Us are thoroughly entertained by Orton nonetheless and respect him very much. So please don’t come after us Randy. We love you.
https://twitter.com/chiefluiville/status/830643584504307712
[…] So we can only applaud The Viper for being himself. […]