WWE Friday Night Smackdown #1326 (January 17th, 2025) Review

WWE has been firing on all cylinders recently, and Smackdown has perhaps been one of their most consistent shows in terms of characters and matches. Some great weekly wrestling that keeps WWE at the top of the market, even if it isn't always treated as level with Monday Night Raw.

So, let's see what we get this week!

Commentators Wade Barrett and Joe Tessitore make their way out through the crowd, which was unique and a great way to start off with them talking about the historic significance of the arena that they are in as well as what to expect from this show.

We then quickly go to our first segment of the night, WWE and really wrestling in general legend Rey Mysterio coming out to thank his hometown crowd and declare for the Royal Rumble match, a very match type he won back in 2006 from the number 2 spot. He talks about some of the people who have already declared, which really does make this the single biggest and most unpredictable Royal Rumble match perhaps in WWE history.

He talks about how he won his Rumble in memorium of the great Eddie Guerrero, which is when he is interrupted by Kevin Owens.

Kevin Owens has a character who is completely mad. Driven past the edge of his sanity yet always speaking the truth. A villain who is convinced that he is the hero, and is honestly correct in many of his points.

He also has the great t-shirt I have ever seen, reading "The Canadian Dream son of a security system technician" which is a great joke against his biggest rival Kevin Owens.

Kevin talks about how he respects Rey Mysterio more than anybody else in the entire industry and goes into his own career, talking about how he is the "rightful" WWE Champion with the old, classic winged eagle championship belt.

He is scheduled to fight Cody Rhodes at the Royal Rumble event in a ladder match with both championships on the line, even if Kevin is not an official or recognized champion.

Kevin gets into the ring and basically tells Rey that he is going to win the Royal Rumble because he is a legend, and that when Rey wins he should announce his challenge for Kevin Owens as WWE Champion (saying that he will defeat Cody.)

Rey tries to stay respectful and tells Kevin that he isn't a champion, but promises to challenge Kevin at Wrestlemania if they both win.

Kevin begins to shout and scream that he is a champion, showing his anger and insanity slipping through.

The two then have a brawl, with Owens escaping before Mysterio could truly do a good amount of damage.

We go backstage to see the WWE Women's Tag Team Champions Naomi and Bianca Belair. They talk about Jade Cargill, who was the former champion with Belair before she was attacked and taken out in a brutal injury, being slammed through a car windshield and covered in blood.

They can't find out who did it before they show that they are good friends and just being all positive and joking around, even if there is some subtle tension due to the two accidentally hurting each other in a four way match last week and preventing them from winning.

Before our first match of the night starts, General Manager Nick Aldis is talking to Rey Mysterio and announces that he will be wrestling Kevin Owens later on tonight.

Cody Rhodes comes out of the trainer's room, announcing that he is seeing if he is medically cleared to wrestle but wishes Rey good luck. They share more respect and encouragement back and forth.

He tells Nick Aldis that he is cleared, and Aldis says that he has a contract that he needs both Cody and Kevin to sign, but Cody won't until Kevin does.

Match 1: Tag Team Match

Naomi and Bianca Belair vs Nia Jax and Candice LeRae

I don't totally understand why this wasn't just a tag team championship match, but it has a story and feud so that's good.

Nia attacks Naomi before the bell, but Bianca very quickly dominates for a while, not really having much trouble taking on Candice or even both women on her own. Bianca even throws Candice out of the ring and onto Nia, with the crowd going wild.

During the break, Candice and Nia get the advantage and start to work over Bianca, coming back from break just as Bianca starts to get some momentum again.

Candice especially looks great, and it is incredibly great to see her finally getting her time to shine, even if it took way too long. She could easily be a Women's Chamion. Not just US or IC, but like World Champion material.

Bianca finally has time to go for a tag to Naomi, but Nia runs over from the outside and lays out Naomi, leaving Bianca still on her own getting worked over and beaten down.

Nia gets tagged in and taunts Bianca being alone while laying her out with some great, impressive power.

Really, all the women so far have shown incredible skill and character work. They are all incredibly talented and even somebody like Nia who gets a whole lot of flack and hate has gotten so much better than her first tenure in WWE, and even just since her return has been improving more and more.

Candice and Nia work together to keep beating down Bianca, but Bianca eventually fights back and is able to hit a big Diving Crossbody onto Nia while Naomi gets back onto the apron.

Naomi finally got the tag and went on a great run for a bit, the match very back and forth until Bianca comes back in and gets destroyed for a short period, yet refuses to stay down for a pinfall.

The finish came fast and furious with all sorts of actions and moves until Naomi finally got the win by pinning Candice LeRae.

The match was pretty great and had all sorts of awesome drama and furthered the story of everyone involved.

Result: Naomi pinned Candice LeRae

Star Rating: 3.25/5 Stars

We get a pre-show video package of Bayley ahead of her WWE Women's Championship match, talking about her history and her dream. Saying that this is the most important match of her career. Also going over her history with champion Tiffany Stratton.

After that, we go backstage to see Mia Yim and B-Fab talking about Chelsea Green and how Mia should've been the first Women's United States Champion.

There is some verbal jabs and tension with B-Fab stepping up to Chelsea's "bodyguard" Piper Niven before announcing she is gonna get a match scheduled with Piper for later on in the night.

We then see Jimmy Uso backstage, cutting a promo as he walks down to the ring for his match that is coming up next.

Match 2: Singles Match

Jimmy Uso vs Carmelo Hayes

Carmelo comes out and cuts a promo on Jimmy, saying that his Bloodline stablemates in Roman Reigns being in the Royal Rumble and Jey Uso having a World Heavyweight Championship match while Jimmy has nothing. He tells Jimmy to get ready and get off the bench, looking like a star. Since Carmelo came up from NXT, he hasn't really looked as good or like a total star yet, but he is still incredibly charismatic and great in the ring.

Jimmy starts off on top, even putting on Melo's glasses and sends him to the floor before Melo got back on top with some slightly dirty tactics and beating him down.

The action was very even, back and forth with both men looking great. It went into commercial break just after Jey hit a Tope Suicida to Carmelo outside the ring, sending him flipping over the commentary table. They get back into the ring and keep going back and forth, but Carmelo gets the advantage and looks great with a Springboard Clothesline and a beat down, the crowd giving him great heat.

The crowd was chanting "Melo sucks" which is more of a showing of just how good of a heel Carmelo is, rather than actually being bad. Carmelo didn't let it get to him and played into it, getting even more heat and boos to show that he knows his character and how to handle it.

Carmelo had a great showing with some great moves, with Jimmy's seeling it really helping to make Melo look like a legit threat. A great future star who. I really hope WWE straps a rocket to and pushes him to the main event scene. He clearly deserves it, especially if you saw his work in NXT.

Jimmy finally starts to fight back, but Melo shuts it down quickly and gets some great nearfalls that get the crowd loud.

Jimmy got back on top, but Carmelo perfectly countered a dive from the top rope into a Lungblower, which had the crowd going wild. Carmelo went for his finishing move Nothing But Net, but Jimmy blasted him with a Superkick for a GREAT nearfall.

Jimmy was able to hit a Spear and climb to the top rope for an Uso Splash, but new Bloodline member Jacob Fatu came out to distract Jimmy before other member Tama Tonga ran out to attack Jimmy.

Result: Jimmy Uso defeated Carmelo Hayes via disqualification

Star Rating: 3.5/5 Stars

The match was incredible, but the finish was predictable and had the crowd unhappy, even if it totally works from a story sense. Fatu and Tonga keep beating down Jimmy while Carmelo decides to trash talk Jimmy and thanks the Bloodline, but Fatu lays him out with a great Clothesline, then goes back to destroying Jimmy.

The crowd rains down boos as their leader Solo Sikoa's music hits, coming out to the loudest boos so far.

He looked incredible in his nice suit, but also looked much more emotional and somber than before. He didn't have AS much swagger or confidence as before, which was a nice acting touch.

It goes to commercial break, with the entire time being used to have Solo slowly walk down to the ring, then get inside to look around before he spoke because we had to wai for the video feed to come back.

Jacob Fatu hands him a microphone and the crowd gives him all the boos and jeers that they can muster.

Jacob then takes the mic in order to shout at the crowd and tell them to shut up so we can hear from Solo.

We get back from commercial break and Solo just continues to stand in the ring before he suddenly drops the microphone, leaving the ring without saying a single word. He takes off his suit jacket and just walks away through the crowd while Jacob and Tama watch on in confusion.

The crowd chants "na na na na hey hey hey goodbye" while Jacob lets loose and screams at the crowd with INTENSITY!

The crowd is giving him so much hate while he cuts an incredible promo, making Jacob truly feel like he is a future star for WWE. Somebody who could easily be the face of the entire company.

Jacob says that he is just getting started and will cause more pain and destruction when LA Knight's music hits.

Knight ran down from the crowd and attacked Jacob and Tama from behind, able to do so for a while until the number's game is too much. They lay him out and beat him down when we get an awesome surprise.

Braun Strowman marches down to the ring, a GIANT of a man who is 6'8 and nearly 400 pounds. Tama Tonga dives out the ring and Braun catches him like he is a child before slamming him into the barrciade.

We tease a fight between Braun and Jacob Fatu, but Tama pulls Jacob out to protect him from himself.

We hear later on tonight that Jacob Fatu vs Braun Strowman will be taking place on Saturday Night's Main Event, which is sure to be an AWESOME match.

We go backstage to see Legado Del Fantasma talking about last week, with leader Santos Escobar and valet Elektra Lopez giving Angel and Humberto a pep talk about how they will win their match later on tonight and go on to win the WWE Tag Team Championships.

How they need to TAKE respect and success, not let it come to them.

Match 3: Tag Team Match

Motor City Machine Guns (Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin) vs Los Garza (Angel and Humberto)

The Motor City Machine Guns have long been one of the greatest tag teams in all of professional wrestling, winning championships in just about every single promotion they have went. A crazy long resume for both men before they even came to WWE something like 20+ years after each man debuted.

The Guns were recently WWE Tag Team Champions, winning them after only being in WWE for 2 weeks and winning them in just 3 matches. They then lost them quickly to their long time friends Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa (DIY) who turned evil and cheated to win.

Meanwhile Los Garza have long been disrespected and not achieved that much success in WWE, and have been doing whatever they can to show that they can hang and deserve gold.

Los Garza dominate for a long time in the early going, getting a great amount of offense and great moves in, while the Guns just looked full of heart and unable to be put down. A great story that perfectly fits both men, with Los Garza especially showing much more aggression and determination than before. A renewed sense of focus and wanting to do everything they can to win.

The crowd is a little dead for this match, which is a real shame when it is packed full of great talent and them putting on a good match. Sabin gets beaten down and worked over for quite a while, which I guess is just the crowd wanting some excitement and wild, frantic drama rather than smart ring psychology.

Sabin fights back just as we come back from commercial, but gets cut off with an incredible double team move, with a Gory Special from Garza while Humberto flips over the ropes and slams Sabin down face first.

Sabin starts to get the chance to fight back and tag Shelley, but he gets shut down before finally tagging him in.

Shelley goes on a quick run, picking up the pace a few notches and laying out both of his opponents with some awesome skill that made the crowd wake up. We get some great and unique tag team offense from the Guns, targeting Humberto's legs to take away his speed and flying ability.

Shelley locks Humberto in a Figure Four Leglock, a very popular wrestling submission hold, while Sabin and Garza both run in and lock in a second one at the same time.

Humberto gets to the ropes and Shelley releases the hold, but stays on top.

Elektra distracts Shelley which allows Humberto to hit a crazy one armed powerbomb for a nearfall, the crowd cheering and staying vocal for a bit.

Garza tags in and Los Garza work together to hit a double team move onto both men. Garza able to carry both men at once while Humberto hits a Springboard Kick and takes out both men in seriously a great looking move.

Motor City Machine Guns are close to winning until Pretty Deadly run down to the ring to cause a distraction, but in doing so keep the referee distracted from Humberto going for a winning pinfall. The Machine Guns take advantage and get the victory.

Result: Alexy Shelley pinned Humberto

Star Rating: 3.25/5 Stars

We go backstage to see general manager Nick Aldis, walking up to Kevin Owens as he prepares for his single's match against Rey Mysterio. Also, Kevin is wearing a Rey Mysterio shirt which was incredible. Kevin is one of the funniest people in the company while also still being incredibly dangerous and serious.

Match 4: Singles Match

Piper Niven vs B-Fab

A match that was created earlier in the night, we see the partner of Women's United States Champion Chelsea Green take on the partner of US Challenger Mia Yim. B-Fab and Piper are really only having a match because their partners are feuding, but it is good to see them getting time on tv to wrestle and showcase their skill and character.

B-Fab especially has been treated as a manager for most of her time in WWE, and I am REALLY hoping we get to see more of her shine in the ring. She has an incredible look and could easily be a good mid carder or bottom carder. Sure she may not win a whole lot of matches, but she can help other talent look really good in the beginning before she finds herself some success.

The match was even, both women getting tme to show off their movesets and work over each other, but this match only went just over 2 minutes. It had B-Fab on top in the beginning before Chelsea distracted her. B-Fab attacked Chelsea, but then immediately got destroyed by Piper in just a few seconds. It was an effective match and had both women look good in the incredibly short amount of action.

Result: Piper Nive pinned B-Fab

Star Rating: 2/5 Stars

After the match, Chelsea Green and Piper Niven beat down B-Fab until Mia Yim runs down with a kendo stick. But Piper is still able to overpower her, but Mia still gets the upperhand and sends Piper and Chelsea running.

Before our next match, we get a video package about WWE Hall of Famer Bob Uecker, who passed away this past Thursday. He was involved very early on in WWE's rise into the main stream with the first Wrestlemania.

We get a quick little video of YouTube channel Dude Perfect showing off their new headquarters, along with an appearance from Cody Rhodes alongside many other celebrities and athletes. Just a quick little thing to show off how mainstream WWE is nowadays.

We then go backstage with the new WWE Women's Champion Tiffany Stratton being interviewed about her winning the title. She is asked about her first challenger in Bayley later on in the main event.

Tiffany comes off just so confident and with more charisma than most people in the entire world. It is very short, but she is just talking about how she is confident and will win.

Match 5: Singles Match

Rey Mysterio vs Kevin Owens

Rey mYsterio came out first with a decently long entrance considering that this is his home town. He comes out in 619 gear and the crowd is firmly behind him.

Before the two even touch, the crowd is incredibly loud and hot. A great match that feels like a huge deal. Almost like it is a main event championship match with a incredibly popular and beloved face in Rey Mysterio while Kevin Owens is one of the best heels in all of wrestling.

The early part of the match is Kevin trying to get something on Rey, but Rey has the experience and technical advantage that keeps him from suffering too much damage. That is until Owens hits a rather basic shoulder tackle, but his size advantage sends Rey crashing into the ropes and out of the ring.

Rey then gets a chance to show that, even at 50 years old and been wrestling since he was 16, he is still incredibly athletic and able to do a lot of the same moves he did when he was a young adult.

Kevin though is able to use his power, just slamming Rey down and throwing him around with reckless abandon.

We get a tiny bit of a messy moment, with Rey jumping off the middle rope backwards onto Kevin's shoulders, but the two almost fall over. Then Rey tries to front flip over the ropes with Kevin, but Kevin caught in the ropes. They recovered nicely and it didn't go on for too long, letting the two fight outside the ring when Rey hit a Diving Hurricanrana off the apron, then a sliding dive underneath the bottom rope onto Kevin lying on the floor, which always looks so cool and crazy to see.

During the commercial break, both men are selling the incredibly physical match so far with bit of slower movements with Rey getting a chance to shine for a bit, until Kevin hits a stiff punch and sends Rey to the floor again, his anger taking over with slamming him onto the barricade and hitting a Swanton Bomb off the apron. He poses with Victoria, a former WWE Women's Champion, who is sitting front row.

Kevin then takes Rey over to his family in another part of the front row, beating him up in front of his own wife and daughter.

Rey fights back only briefly, but then Kevin sends him into the steel stairs and goes back to Rey's family, patting the head of Rey's daughter to get extra heel heat.

They get back into the ring and Kevin stays on top as we come back from the break during a headlock.

The crowd was loud and vocal, booing Kevin for everything he did while trying everything they could to give support to Rey and hope he would fight back. Rey finally got a chance, flipping out of a back suplex and then sending Kevin into the corner. Rey climbed to the top rope and hit a Diving Senton, followed by a quick Wheelbarrow Bulldog that shows just how crazy agile and athletic he is.

Rey went for a 619, his finishing move, but Owens reversed it and went for a Pop-Up Powerbomb. Rey was able to reverse and hit a crazy Tornado DDT for a nearfall, the crowd going crazy for Rey.

Both men were selling the beating incredibly well, looking so beat up and tired but in a good way.

Owens sent Rey off the top rope and hit a Frog Splash onto Rey, adding some insult to injury in this personal match up. The crowd even began to chant Eddie, which was a great touch from them.

Rey hit a great Sunset Flip for another great nearfall and a hot crowd, but the match continues on.

This match has honestly been made to feel so special and like a major match up for both men. A main event caliber in the best way possible. Rey went for a Springboard Crossbody, but Kevin just ducked to dodge it and then hit a Stunner. The crowd thought it was over (and Rey's sell of the move was incredible) but Rey somehow kicked out.

The crowd lit up even more as Kevin went to the top rope. He went for a Swanton Bomb, but Rey got the knees up. They both then perfectly went straight into a 619 from Rey. Rey climbed to the top rope, but Kevin bumped into the ref who bumped into the ropes, making Rey fall off. Kevin then quickly hit a Pop Up Powerbomb to get the win to MASSIVE boos.

Result: Kevin Owens pinned Rey Mysterio

Star Rating: 4.25/5 Stars

After the match, Owens helps Rey up and shakes his hand. But then he tries to hit Rey with a Package Piledriver (Piledrivers are banned in WWE and is the reason Cody was "injured" and Kevin is calling himself the World Champion) but Cody Rhodes runs down.

A massive brawl breaks out, with all sorts of security and officials going on while the commentators get tied up and almost can't speak for a bit.

Cody gets in the ring to fight while Kevin poses on a ledge in the crowd.

We come back from commercial break for a quick recap of the Cody/Kevin chaos before we go backstage to see Cody and Nick Aldis. They argue a bit until Nick tells Cody that at Saturday Night's Main Event, the two men will reliquinsh their title belts and sign their contract for their match. And then, instead of being the one to mediate the signing, Shawn Michaels will do it (because the show is in Texas you see).

We get a rundown for future shows and matches.

Saturday Night's Main Event: Braun Strowman vs Jacob Fatu

Friday Night Smackdown next week: LA Knight vs Tama Tonga and Motor City Machine Guns vs Pretty Deadly

We go backstage to see Pretty Deadly be approached by the tag team champions DIY. The story right now is DIY is manipulating Pretty Deadly to do their dirty work for them. DIY is trying to tell them that they're special and that DIY will promise them a championship match, but only if they listen to advice.

Apollo Crews comes out to talk to Pretty Deadly and try to help them realize that they are being used, but then Crews gets attacked by Johnny Gargano.

Main Event: WWE Women's Championship

Tiffany Stratton (Champion) vs Bayley (Challenger)

We go down to the ring for our massive main event, th crowd going wild for Bayley. She is from the San Jose area and this show is in San Diego, so close enough to hometown right?

In the crowd, we see NXT Superstar Roxanne Perez.

On this past Tuesday's NXT, Perez and Bayley had a confrontation that lead to a brawl to end the show. I can see this being Roxanne's long overdue call up to the WWE main roster and her first feud, which I am very excited for. Hopefully she is in the Royal Rumble and we have them sharing a moment together.

Before the champion comes out, we get a video package about Charlotte Flair. The daughter of wrestling legend Ric Flair, a 14 time women's champion, and somebody who has been gone with injury (torn ACL, MCL, and meniscus) back since December of 2023.

But then Tiffany Stratton comes out to a big pop from the crowd and looks like an absolute star. The WWE Women's Championship looks like it fits her perfectly.

A thing in wrestling is that some people just look like they belong with championships, or that specific championship designs just look like they belong on certain wrestlers. With Tiffany and this version of the Women's Championship, it goes both ways. A perfect combination that makes both look even better.

The hot crowd, the commentary truly putting over Bayley being a legend full of achievements and Tiffany for being a total prodigy who has her own amount of success in a very short period of time, and the two women showing off their skill from the get go just made this match feel like something truly special.

An AWESOME start that was a little bit slow, but Tiffany showed off some great athleticism with kip ups and cart wheels and a back bend to avoid a strike. Her gymnast background coming in handy to make her move unique to other women on the roster, while Bayley shows off some great wrestling skill and experience. Somebody is a pure athlete vs somebody who almost only knows wrestling. It's a great dynamic for a match.

In the commercial break, Bayley was on top for a bit until Tiffany fought back.

Honestly, this match is so good that I stopped taking notes and just started to watch the match. It did an incredibly perfect job of making both women look like absolute stars.

Tiffany tied Bayley up in the ring apron and hit a brutal looking Hip Attack, which was followed up almost right away by Tiffany going for a dive but Bayley catching her and hitting a Bayley to Belly on the floor.

The women were both down, selling the physical match up before they both got in just in time.

Bayley hits a great looking Superplex coming out of commercial break, the crowd still firmly invested in the match and behind Bayley.

Just a masterclass of wrestling that I can't go further in detail with.

Tiffany began to target the arm with a great move in the ropes, followed up with a gorgeous Swanton Bomb, then going straight into a snug Powerbomb that had the crowd think that was it.

Tiffany locked in a Fujiwara Armbar, showing both an additional amount of aggression while also showcasing some technical and submission wrestling that she hasn't done a whole lot of.

They fight out to ringside ahain, with Tiffany going for her cartwheel into an Alabama Slam, but Bayley reversed and slammed Tiffany onto the announce table followed by a Suplex.

Bayley got distracted by Roxanne Perez in the crowd, going to trash talk with her rather than go after her opponent.

Bayley climbed to the top rope and hit her signature Diving Elbow Drop, but Tiffany kicked out. Bayley then went straight into a Crossface that looked very similar to the Bank Statement, the move to perhaps her best rival Sasha Banks (now Mercedes Mone in AEW)

Tiffany got out and reversed a Bayley to Belly with an amazing Arm Drag followed by a great Spinebuster like move, but Bayley kicked out.

Both women looked exhausted and in so much pain. Giving it their absolute all for the title.

Bayley hit a Bayley to Belly, but Tiffany kicked out once again. Tiffany hit a move that was hard to see because of the camera cut, but then she went for her finishing move the Prettiest Moonsault Ever, but Bayley reversed and hit a running Sunset Flip into the corner, which always looks so painful and dangerous.

Tiffany kicked out of another pinfall attempt as Bayley hit a really cool move that was hard to explain. It was like a Fireman's Carry into a Sidewalk Slam, showing that she is doing anything and everything she can. She is emptying her arsenal to try and win.

Bayley went for her finsher the Rose Plan, but Tiffany kicked her in the face and tried to pin her. Bayley kicked out and went straight for a Rose Plant, but Tiffany reversed it right into a Cartwheel Alabama Slam, followed up right after by a Prettiest Moonsault Ever to get the win.

A bit of a sudden finish that seemed to come out of nowhere, but made it all that much more impactful and fun.

Result: Tiffany Stratton pinned Bayley to retain

Star Rating: 4.75/5 Stars

The show ended right after Tiffany won, not giving us much time to see Bayley's reaction or any further story developments.

This show was honestly incredible. Aside from the B-Fab vs Piper Niven match, nothing here really felt skippable or unimportant. The roster is stacked and everyone has characters or storylines that give them time to showcase themselves and give them stuff to do. It's incredible how much they jam packed into this show and it was really just full of great quality top to bottom. Whether it be wrestling, promos, storyline progression, building to future shows, character work...it was all off the charts. A great week!

Overall Rating: 9/10