WWE News: Daniel Bryan vs. Samoa Joe confirmed for next week's SmackDown Live
What's the story?
In a dream match come to life, Daniel Bryan and Jeff Hardy squared off to determine who would face Samoa Joe in next week's Money in the Bank qualifying match.
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But it would be The American Dragon who would emerge victoriously and will go to face his fellow Ring of Honor Alumni on next week's episode of SmackDown Live.
In case you didn't know
Bryan and Hardy have competed in Money in the Bank Ladder matches before, but only Bryan has won the briefcase.
He would use the briefcase to win his first world championship in WWE by pinning the Big Show for the World Heavyweight Title in 2011.
The heart of the matter
As far as TV matches go, this would be one of the best SmackDown matches in recent memory were it not for Styles vs. Nakamura last week.
Bryan maintained the momentum through most of the match, but the tides would shift when he hit Hardy with the Yes! Kicks.
Hardy dodged the final kick and landed a Twist of Fate knocking Bryan down to the mat. He attempted to win the match using the Swanton Bomb, but Bryan countered the aerial move by putting his knees up.
Bryan got back to his feet and attempted the Running Knee, but Hardy moved out of the way and attempted a roll-up pin for a near fall.
Both men went back and forth with different strikes and pin attempts, but Bryan would regain momentum with a Dragon Screw throw that he transitioned into a Heel Hook to make Hardy submit.
What's next?
With Bryan scheduled to face the Samoan Submission Machine, this will be their first singles match against each other since ROH:
The Chicago Spectacular where Bryan defeated Joe in a Steel Cage match for the ROH World Heavyweight Championship.
Author's take
We got a great match to end the show this week and next week's match should be even greater.
SmackDown needs to keep these good matches going if they want to get their viewership back on track.