After a history-making WWE Raw debut on Netflix this past Monday, WWE SmackDown heads to Moda Center in Portland, OR. Now with WWE Royal Rumble 2025 less than a month away, WWE focuses on building up the new storylines for the upcoming PLEs. WWE SmackDown kicked off with a highlight from this past Monday where Roman Reigns defeated Solo Sikoa to become the Only Tribal Chief in WWE.
Paul Heyman kicks off WWE SmackDown
After months of proving his loyalty to the OTC Roman Reigns, WWE Hall of Famer Paul Heyman came down to the ring to kick off the show. He came to the ring to address the Reigns’s victory over Solo Sikoa stating that we now have our one and only Tribal Chief Roman Reigns.
Heyman also unveiled on what is the next plan of Roman Reigns, now that he has got his rightful place back at the head of the table. Heyman then called out Cody Rhodes to the ring saying that he needed to hear this news one-on-one. He then told him that he had earned every bit of respect from Roman Reigns after what he did in the few months, after becoming the Undisputed WWE Champion.
Heyman then broke the big news saying that Roman Reigns would be entering the 2025 Mens Royal Rumble match to earn a shot for the Undisputed WWE Championship against Cody Rhodes at WrestleMania 41. Just as this whole thing was going on, Kevin Owens interrupted Rhodes as he appeared in the audience. Owens called Rhodes for hanging out with The Rock on the WWE Raw debut on Netflix. Owens also called out Rhodes for helping Reigns during the Tribal Combat.
Rhodes then went after Owens as the fight began in the crowd. Meanwhile, inside the ring, Jacob Fatu and Tama Tonga cornered Heyman before Jimmy Uso arrived to save the Wiseman. Jimmy took the fight to Fatu and Tonga but got outnumbered. Rhodes came back to the ring to help Jimmy and Heyman as he took out Fatu and Tonga. The show also went backstage where LA Knight helped the WWE SmackDown GM Nick Aldis kick Fatu and Togna out of the arena.
Michin battles Chelsea Green (c) for the WWE Women’s United States Championship
WWE SmackDown featured a singles match for the WWE Women’s United States Championship, where Michin challenged Green. Remember, Green defeated Michin in the finals to become the inaugural Women’s United States Championship at WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event.
Challenger Michin took the fight to Green, delivering a canon ball for a close count on the champion. Michin then dropped Piper Niven on the floor with with kick right to her face when she tried to stop her. After dealing with Green’s insurance policy at the ringside, Michin delivered a crossbody from the top rope to the champ in the ring — who countered with a rollup to retain her WWE Women’s United States Championship.
Michin attacked Green after the match but got laid out by Piper Niven.
Result: Chelsea Green def Michin
Ratings: 6.5 /10
What is the future of the WWE Tag Team Championship?
WWE SmackDown then featured a highlight from last week’s episode where DIY retained their WWE Tag Team Championships against MCMG due to double disqualification by Pretty Deadly and Los Garza.
The show then featured a segment from earlier on the night, where WWE SmackDown GM made two tag team matches official for the night. One between Los Garza and Pretty Deadly, the second between Motor City Machine Guns and A-Town Down Under.
Los Garzas vs. Pretty Deadly
The first of the two newly scheduled matches took place immediately with Los Garzas taking out on Pretty Deadly. The match began hard for Pretty Deadly who were clearly struggling against the team of Humberto Carrillo and Angel Garza.
Pretty Deadly got the match in control after using a little bit of underhand tactics. Santos Escobar on the ringside returned the favor when he attacked Elton Prince behind the referee’s back who was distracted by Elektra Lopez. Los Garzas took the advantage to win the match.
Result: Los Garzas def Pretty Deadly
Ratings: 6 /10
LA Knight faces Shinsuke Nakamura (C) for the WWE United States Championship on WWE SmackDown
After losing his championship to Shinsuke Nakamura at WWE Survivor Series: WarGames 2024, LA Knight now hopes to get it back once again from the man he lost. The match was made official last week here on WWE SmackDown after Knight attacked Nakamura after his match against Andrade. I must say, Nakamura’s new character and gear look absolutely incredible.
Knight took the fight Nakamura in the early moments of the match, who seemed to be struggling against the challenger. But that didn’t last for too long for Knight. The two men also fought outside the ring where Nakamura slammed Knight into the ring post. Knight had a really close count on Nakamura after he hit him with a suplex from the top turnbuckle.
Both men went for their finishers looking to end the match as Nakamura found a way to hit Knight with his signature Kinshasa but it was not good enough to keep the megastar down who put his right leg on the bottom rope to interrupt the cover. Nakamura then placed Knight’s face on an exposed turnbuckle to hit a Kinshasa from the back but Knight moved from the way causing Nakamura to hurt his own knee. Knight then hit Nakamura with the BFT before the New Bloodline of Solo Sikoa attacked Knight, causing the match to end via no contest.
Remember Knight kicked out both Fatu and Tonga out of the arena earlier in the show. Cody Rhodes and Jimmy Uso then arrived to help LA Knight as they took the fight to The New Bloodline of Solo Sikoa. Rhodes then asked the GM Nick Aldis to make this tag team match official for the night, which he accepted.
Result: Shinsuke Nakamura retained the championship due to disqualification caused by Jacob Fatu and Tama Tonga
Ratings: 8 /10
Did you know:
- Wade Barrett and Joe Tessitore mentioned the new company desk setup which looks really awesome, considering it might be the first time in over 20 years when WWE changed them.
Recap to Tiffany Time from last week
WWE SmackDown then featured a highlight from last week when Tiffany Stratton cashed in her Money In The Bank contract on Nia Jax to become the new WWE Women’s Champion.
A-Town Down Under vs. Motor City Machine Guns
It was now time for the second tag-team match of the night as Motor City Machine Guns faced A-Town Down Under. Both teams delivered some really incredible offense, but no one was able to get a proper overhand in the match as the fight progressed. Theory and Waller took the double team fight to Chris Sabin but it was not good enough to keep him down even when Alex Shelley was nowhere to be seen for the moment.
Motor City Machine Guns then laid out both Theory and Waller, before taking out Waller in the ring to pick up the win. WWE SmackDown then went backstage where DIY doged Pretty Deadly promising them that they get their match soon for helping them.
Result: MCMG def A-Town Down Under
Ratings: 8 /10
Tiffany Stratton celebrates her first-ever main roaster championship
WWE SmackDown then went to the women’s locker room where Candice LeRAE told Nia Jax that Tiffany Stratton was heading toward the ring to celebrate her newly won WWE Women’s Championship. Stratton then arrived at the ring along with her Women’s Championship, which she won last week here on WWE SmackDown.
Stratton began her interview with Byron Saxton, highlighting her journey here in WWE saying that it was Jax who was actually stupid the whole time. Jax then appeared on the scene, saying that it was now time over for the new champ. Bayley then arrived at the scene admiring Stratton on how she pulled that off last week. Belair and Naomi then arrived on the scene as well, as Naomi stated that she would have been the champion right if it wasn’t for Stratton. Jax then attacked Belair, Naomi, and Bayley before Tiffany Stratton took them all out the prettiest moonsault ever.
Nick Aldis then appeared on the scene saying that Nia Jax, Naomi, Bayley, and Bianca Belair would face each other in a Fatal 4-Way Match to earn a match against Stratton for the WWE Women’s Championship, right now.
Naomi vs. Bianca Belair vs. Bayley vs. Nia Jax – No.1 Contenders Fatal 4-Way on WWE SmackDown
All four women went after each other as the match began, former Womens Champion was clearly a common target for all three womens as they teamed up to attack Nia Jax. Jax finally found an opening in the match when she went on to deliver a Samoan drop to Bayley from the second rope but Naomi and Belair turned it into a double powerbomb. It was awesome.
The speed and power were all on display as all four womens took the fight to each other. Jax who was clearly outnumbered by the opponents finally saw little light of hope when Candice LeRae arrived on the ringside. The close counts were happening all over the ring during the match, which made it really exciting to watch.
Belair took out both Jax and LeRae on the ringside. Meanwhile, Bayley hit Naomi with her signature Rose Plant to win the match.
Result: Bayley def Naomi, Bianca Belair, Nia Jax to become the No.1 Contender for the WWE Women’s Championship
Ratings: 7 /10
Jimmy Uso and Cody Rhodes meet backstage before the match
WWE SmackDown then went backstage where Jimmy Uso was seen hanging out with Cody Rhodes ahead of their big match tonight. Carmelo Hayes also appeared on the scene after Rhodes left.
Bayley’s post-match interview with Byron Saxton backstage on WWE SmackDown
Bayley then appeared in a backstage interview segment where she found out that her championship match will take place next week here on WWE SmackDown. Bayley seemed to be confident about her match next week saying that Tiffany Stratton has never beaten her in a one-on-one match.
Jimmy Uso and Cody Rhodes battle Jacob Fatu and Tama Tonga in a tag team match
Here we go, Main event time on WWE SmackDown.
Jimmy Uso and Cody Rhodes started the match in fury as they tried to corner Tama Tonga in the early moments of the match. It didn’t last too long for them as Jacob Fatu and Tama Tonga took Jimmy hostage in their corner. Rhodes then took the fight to Tonga after getting the hot tag. Rhodes delivered a suicide dive — taking out both Jacob Fatu and Tama Tonga on the outside.
The fight then continued with Jimmy Uso and Cody Rhodes getting the upper hand in the match after Rhodes delivered a superplex to Tama Tonga from the top rope — with a Uso splash by Jimmy. Jimmy then delivered a suicide dive to Jacob Fatu outside the ring following up on the Cody cutter by Rhodes. Kevin Owens then appeared on the scene as Rhodes left the ring to fight with him on the ramp. Jimmy who was now left alone inside the ring, delivered a spear to Tonga and went for a Uso splash.
Fatu interrupted the cover and attacked Jimmy, delivering a moonsault from the top rope to win the match.
The show then went backstage where Owens was seen fighting with Rhodes. They then came into the technical staff arena near the ringside, where Rhodes took out Owens driving himself along with him through a couple of tables.
Result: Jacob Fatu and Tama Tonga def Jimmy Uso and Cody Rhodes
Ratings: 8.5 /10
WWE SmackDown, Dec. 10: Results Highlights
WWE Women’s United States Championship match:
Chelsea Green (C) def Michin
First of two tag team matches:
Los Garzas def Pretty Deadly
WWE United States Championship:
Shinsuke Nakamura retained the championship against LA Knight due to disqualification caused by Jacob Fatu and Tama Tonga
Second of two tag team matches:
MCMG def A-Town Down Under
No.1 Contenders Fatal 4-Way for the WWE Women’s Championship:
Bayley def Naomi, Bianca Belair, Nia Jax
Tag team match:
Jacob Fatu and Tama Tonga def Jimmy Uso and Cody Rhodes
My thoughts on this week’s edition of WWE SmackDown
This week’s edition of WWE SmackDown was primarily used to build the storylines for 2025 Royal Rumble as the show kicked off with a big announcement by Paul Heyman saying that Roman Reigns will be entering the Men’s Royal Rumble match. Kevin Owens and Cody Rhodes fought all over the arena throughout the show, starting when Owens appeared at the start of this week’s WWE SmackDown, and fighting at the end of the night. I think that WWE clearly planning towards a Cody vs Roman III at WrestleMania 41, but it will surely have a lot more drama than we can expect.
WWE shifted a lot of focus towards the tag team division during the show, and I am really looking forward to the next which would probably be between Los Garzas and Motor City Machine Guns. WWE is also in a mix for setting up the future storylines for the United States Championship, but as of now, I am loving what is going on right now. Bayley punched her ticket for a WWE Women’s Championship match for next week against Tiffany Stratton. Nia Jax being out of the picture at the moment, I wonder when she would get her rematch.
There is one more storyline developing where DIY will soon be facing Pretty Deadly. I don’t know exactly how would that happen after they lost to Los Garzas on the show, but there is definitely something brewing up.
That’s all for now, let me know your thoughts in the comments down below.
Ratings for the show: 5.5 /10
