October 14 , 2011 Smackdown results The October 14 , 2011 Edition of Smackdown is a Professional wrestling television show of the WWE ' s Smackdown brand , which took place on October 11 , 2011 at the American Airlines Center in Dallas , Texas . Summary . The night started with major news . With new Interim Raw GM John Laurinaitis at his side , Teddy Long announced the first match of the night would feature 41 Superstars in the largest Battle Royal in WWE history . Laurinaitis then revealed the winner would earn a title match against the champion of his choosing . During the mayhem , powerhouses like Mason Ryan and Sheamus eliminated multiple Superstars . With bodies flying , a Brogue Kick from The Celtic Warrior sent The Miz careening from the ring . But since Miz didn ’ t go over the top rope , he was still in contention . In contrast , even though Christian was eliminated , in a devious move , he reentered the ring and took Sheamus out of the hunt . As the field thinned down to the final two combatants , Miz found himself battling Randy Orton tooth - and - nail for the championship opportunity . With both Superstars tangling with each other on the ring apron , The Viper downed Miz with an RKO . In a wild finish , the momentum from the RKO carried both Superstars to the arena floor . But since Miz ’ s feet hit just before Orton ’ s , the victory went to The Viper . Despite showing signs of her new , aggressive style , Kelly Kelly could not overcome Divas Champion Beth Phoenix , who successfully defended her title with a devastating Glam Slam . In the ongoing rift between the two Sin Caras , Sin Cara ( Negro ) brutally attacked Sin Cara ( Azul ) in the backstage area , ripped off his blue mask and put it on himself . Later , he kept the blue mask on and wore it during his match with Justin Gabriel , who he defeated with a leap from the top rope . For the second time in the night , Christian screwed Sheamus . With The Celtic Warrior perched on the turnbuckle , Christian appeared out of nowhere and pulled Sheamus ’ feet out from under him . WWE Champion Alberto Del Rio quickly seized the opportunity by kicking Sheamus twice in the head and pinning him . Afterward , Christian put the punctuation mark on his dastardly deed by blasting The Celtic Warrior with two hard - hitting spears . Zack Ryder continued to generate attention for himself by convincing SmackDown GM Theodore Long to put him in a match because WWE Tag Team Champion Evan Bourne is injured . Picking up a huge win for his team – and more momentum in WWE – Ryder pinned United States Champion Dolph Ziggler . When Randy Orton won the 41 - Man No . 1 Contender ' s Battle Royal at the start of the night , there was no hesitation when he said the champion he wanted to face was World Heavyweight Champion Mark Henry . Although Orton held his own against The World ’ s Strongest Man , The Viper ’ s quest to regain the World Title was thwarted by a sneak attack from Intercontinental Champion Cody Rhodes . After leaping into the ring and stomping on Orton , Rhodes was prepared to humiliate him further by placing a paper bag over his head like he did on Monday ' s Raw . However on this night , Big Show charged to the ring , sending Rhodes scurrying for cover . Then after driving Henry to the canvas with a shoulder tackle , The World ’ s Largest Athlete fed Rhodes to Orton , who promptly dropped him with an RKO . To cap things off , Show demolished Henry with a chokeslam , leaving Orton and Show standing tall . With its 634th episode , SmackDown surpassed Gunsmoke to become the second longest running weekly episodic TV program in history . The longest running show ? Raw . Battle Royal Elimination Order . A new entrant came out approximately every 90 seconds .