Smackdown results: Tiffany Stratton wins belt with cash-in, The Bloodline beat Usos & Zayn

January 3, 2025 Jack Wannan NEWS, Show Reports
Image Credit: WWE

It’s a new year and also a new era for WWE Smackdown. It might sound cliché to say that, but it’s true: This week marked the start of the Friday night program’s three-hour era. Yes, Smackdown will now span 180 minutes every single week.

How did WWE fill up those three hours when they visited the Footprint Center in Phoenix, Arizona this week? They had three different title matches (one of which was impromptu), the latest between Cody Rhodes and Kevin Owens, plus a match in the feud between The Bloodline and The O.G. Bloodline. Here’s a rundown of everything from episode 1,324 of Friday Night Smackdown.

Quick results

  1. Shinsuke Nakamura def. Andrade (8:50)
  2. Michin def. Piper Niven (6:58)
  3. #DIY (Johnny Gargano & Tommaso Ciampa) vs. The Motor City Machine Guns (Alex Shelley & Chris Sabin) (No Contest) (10:52)
  4. Nia Jax def. Naomi (WWE Women’s Championship) (19:38)
  5. Tiffany Stratton def. Nia Jax (WWE Women’s Championship) (0:08)
  6. The Bloodline (Solo Sikoa, Jacob Fatu & Tama Tonga) def. Jey Uso, Jimmy Uso & Sami Zayn (22:38)

Cody Rhodes gets two surprises in one segment

The first Smackdown of the new year kicked off with a recap of last week’s developments between Kevin Owens and Cody Rhodes. Here’s what we saw: Owens, who believes he didn’t have a fair shot against Rhodes at Saturday Night’s Main event and wanted a rematch, refused to give up the special Winged Eagle Championship which was used for the event. While Smackdown General Manager Nick Aldis threatened to outright fire Owens due to his theft of the champ’s property, Rhodes had a better solution: Put both the Winged Eagle on the line with his WWE Championship as part of a ladder match at the Royal Rumble, a stipulation which would prevent either wrestler from losing due to referee error. Owens agreed to the bout, but the episode ended on a sour note after he attacked both Owens and Aldis in the ring.

Now back to this week: WWE Champion Rhodes made his way out to the ring in Phoenix, Arizona to address fans. Rhodes mentioned that his excitement surrounding WWE’s new changes – namely Raw going to Netflix and Smackdown being upgraded to three hours – was “tempered” because he was not cleared to wrestle after last week’s attack. “Nick Aldis and management are concerned that I’m here in the first place,” he said.

Then, an unexpected guest appeared: Drew McIntyre. While McIntyre has mainly been a Monday Night Raw talent for months, the broadcast team mentioned that a “transfer window” between the brands is currently open, and a McIntyre move to Friday nights is not impossible.

McIntyre’s initial actions after he entered the ring puzzled Rhodes: The champ was greeted not with harsh words, or a fist to the face, but a hug. “I’m not here to hurt you, Cody. I’m here to help you.”

McIntyre claimed that Rhodes was “about to screw up your entire life’s work.” He then explained that Rhodes needed someone to watch his back. The champ wasn’t sold: “I don’t believe you, and I can just feel this situation is certainly going to devolve.”

Rhodes called McIntyre’s bluff and instead thought he was playing the long game for his championship: “You want a shot at this championship? … Drew, come and get it.”

But McIntyre was still committed to his pitch of offering up assistance, leaving the ring as he repeated that he was there to help Rhodes. “One more thing: You need to watch your back.” That advice became useful immediately, as the aforementioned Owens appeared from behind and attacked Rhodes. The future Royal Rumble opponents brawled in the ring, continuing to fight until security separated the two. 

Shinsuke Nakamura wins in return to WWE TV, gets confronted by past rival

The first match of the evening saw WWE United States Champion Shinsuke Nakamura take on Andrade in a non-title bout, appearing on TV for the first time since he beat LA Knight at Survivor Series to initially capture the title.

Announcer Corey Graves mentioned during the entrances that Nakamura won in his home country of Japan already this year, alluding to his victory against Ulka Sasaki at NOAH The New Year 2025 on Wednesday. It was also pointed out by the broadcast that Nakamura previously overcame Andrade on Smackdown two months back.

As the first match started, another new change for Smackdown became clear: The ring canvas was blue.

The match went to a commercial break early, but not before Andrade scored a moonsault off the corner to the outside. A few minutes later, the broadcast returned with the champ putting together some big moments. Nakamura scored a snap German suplex while sliding out of the ring, then came off the ropes with a knee strike to the head of Andrade. Nakamura peeled off the padding of a turnbuckle, but that allowed Andrade the chance to regroup. Andrade kicked Nakamura into the corner, then scored a running Meteora for a two-count.

Andrade tried for a moonsault off the top rope. Nakamura rolled away from the move but was hit with a second moonsault attempt which Andrade tried after landing on his feet. After a pair of reversals, Andrade hit The Message for another near fall. It seemed as if the challenger was closing in on a win.

Andrade put Nakamura on the top rope and tried for a Superplex, but Nakamura reversed and instead DDT’d Andrade’s head into the ring post. Nakamura then scored his patented Kinshasa to earn the pinfall win.

Nakamura didn’t get to celebrate for long, as LA Knight stormed the ring. The former champ got some moves in but wasn’t able to hit his BFT before Nakamura escaped. “One way or another, I’m coming to collect what’s owed to me,” Knight said after grabbing a mic.

Michin gets past Piper Niven, eyes rematch with Chelsea Green

The next match saw Michin face off against Piper Niven, the ally of WWE United States Women’s Champion Chelsea Green. The broadcast reminded viewers that Michin lost to Green in the grand finals of the U.S. title tournament last month. Michin came off the ring apron early for a hurricanrana onto Niven but was given a hard sidewalk slam just before the broadcast went to a break.

Niven remained in control of the match as they returned. However, the tides started to turn after Michin avoided a cannonball in the corner and then connected with her own rendition of the move. Niven avoided a dive and then scored a Piper Driver after a series of reversals. However, the move didn’t end the match. Michin avoided a splash from Niven off the second rope, then landed an Eat Defeat to pick up the win. Michin set her sights on U.S. champ Green as the segment came to an end.

Paul Heyman speaks ahead of Tribal Combat match

Back from the break, Paul Heyman appeared in the ring to discuss the upcoming match between Roman Reigns and Solo Sikoa. In case you didn’t know, the duo is set to face off as part of the Monday Night Raw premiere on Netflix to determine who is the “real Tribal Chief.”

Heyman said that he and Reigns trained Sikoa to become the Tribal Chief sometime in the future. He said Sikoa snuck into control following Reigns’ loss to Cody Rhodes at Wrestlemania and took over The Bloodline.

Heyman emphasized that he believes Reigns, “the only Tribal Chief,” will win on Monday. The soon-to-be opponent of Reigns, Sikoa, then came to the ring to confront Heyman.

“I’m about 10 seconds away from pissing in my pants,” Heyman admitted, recounting how he was put through a table by The Bloodline at Madison Square Garden last year and how he believes the same could easily happen again this week.

Sikoa was given Heyman’s microphone. He asked Phoenix to acknowledge him. He then put out a request for Heyman: “This Monday, I need somebody to hold the Ula Fala during the Tribal Combat match … If Roman beats me in the Tribal Combat match, you will put the Ula Fala around his neck and I will acknowledge him as the Tribal Chief. But when I beat Roman, and I will, you know it, I know it, and everyone else here knows it too. So when I beat Roman in the Tribal Combat match, you will put this Ula Fala around my neck.”

Sikoa continued, saying if he wins Heyman will be his Wise Man forever, and Reigns will have to acknowledge him. A stunned Heyman was handed the mic, but instead of talking he decided to place it on the ground and leave the ring.

Through no fault of their own, a new title reign fails to materialize for The Motor City Machine Guns

The Motor City Machine Guns aimed to regain the WWE Tag Team Championships in the next match, facing defending title holders #DIY. MCMG notably dropped their belts to #DIY on an early December episode of Smackdown due to a low blow, ending their brief run with the belts.

Something worth noting: Earlier in the episode, #DIY told Pretty Deadly that they would give the duo a title shot if they were able to leave Phoenix as champs, implying they wanted help from the team.

MCMG had a strong start to the match, with Sabin going flying with a fast Suicide Dive to #DIY just before a commercial break. A few minutes later, Gargano and Shelley were tagged in at the same time for a one-on-one duel. Shelley had the hot tag out of the two, getting a near fall after a neckbreaker. Shelley threw Gargano outside of the ring, then MCMG did stereo baseball slides and then crossbody dives out of the ring.

The commentary team started to discuss Shelley possibly having a knee issue. However, MCMG continued to be on a roll. Ciampa broke up a pin attempt after MCMG landed dual head kicks to Gargano. All four wrestlers were wiped out and on the ground after a fast-paced striking sequence.

Gargano tagged in Ciampa, who then got into a chop battle with Shelley. Sabin tagged himself in as the legal wrestlers went into the ropes, allowing MCMG to start double-teaming on Ciampa. They scored a pair of kicks in the corner, then looked to land another double-team move on Ciampa. It was at this point that Pretty Deadly came to the ring to get the attention of MCMG. The distraction proved to work, as Ciampa escaped the double team set-up and tagged in Gargano.

As the match continued, Angel and Berto came appeared at ringside to fight with Pretty Deadly. MCMG put both members of #DIY in submissions, threatening a possible finish to the match. However, as this happened, the ringside brawl spilled into the ring and onto the competing duos, causing the referee to call off the fight. It wasn’t because they scored a pin or a submission, but #DIY kept hold of their belts and can certainly thank Pretty Deadly.

In the locker room, Nia Jax asked Candice LeRae where Tiffany Stratton was. LeRae told her not to worry since she was there. “I just need you to make sure Bianca [Belair] stays out of my way,” Jax said.

Sami Zayn was stopped by Carmelo Hayes backstage. “You know I had you beat, bro,” Hayes said about their match on last week’s Smackdown. “If your boy Braun Strowman didn’t get his nose involved in our business, it would have been…”

Zayn interrupted: “Hang on a second, the last thing I remember is you were about two seconds away from catching a kick to the face and you ran away.”

Hayes said Zayn or Strowman can “get this work” any time. As he said this, The Usos appeared on-screen to back Zayn up. Hayes then left. As The Usos walked away, they bumped into Kevin Owens. “I think you need to watch where you’re going,” Jey said. “I think you need to watch your back,” Owens replied.

One more backstage segment for now: Nick Aldis approached Cody Rhodes and stressed that he could get hurt and his future would be in danger if he kept appearing on TV before his Royal Rumble match against Owens. Rhodes pushed back: “I have the right to call my shot … If I see Kevin Owens or anybody that looks like Kevin Owens, I drop them on sight.”

Nia Jax overcomes Naomi but loses following Tiffany Stratton’s cash-in

WWE Women’s Champion Nia Jax put her title up against Naomi in the fourth match of the night, looking to defend her title for the fifth time since capturing the belt at Summerslam. Jax had a quite dominant start to the match, throwing Naomi around and headbutting her to the outside of the ring at one point.

Naomi continued to fight from behind after a commercial break, kicking out after taking a hard Ura nage. Naomi was thrown into a ring post, then had her head run into the post after Jax scored a running hip attack on the apron.

Jax went for a powerbomb, but Naomi reversed into a roll-up pin attempt. Jax kicked out, then landed a hard clothesline. Jax went into the corner for an Annihilator, but Naomi stopped her with a kick then landed a double stomp to a suspended Jax, and a split-legged leg drop for a two count. Jax was thrown into the ring post. Naomi then did a suicide dive to the outside, sending Jax crashing into the barricade.

Jax was tossed back into the ring, where Naomi came flying off the second rope for a kick to the head. Naomi dodged a clothesline then hit a Samoan Drop for a two-count kickout. Naomi, seemingly closing in on a finish, was stopped from a move off the ropes by Jax, who clubbed her in the back. Jax suspended Naomi upside-down in the corner, then did a hip attack to her midsection. Jax came off the second rope for a leg drop, but it didn’t put away Naomi.

Jax climbed to the second rope but was thrown to the mat by Naomi. The challenger then came off the ropes with a tornado DDT, but Jax kicked out at two. The match went to a second break as Naomi continued to find success.

Naomi was given yet another near fall as the broadcast returned, scoring a blockbuster off the middle rope. Jax avoided a move off the ropes from Naomi and then tried for a Samoan Drop. Naomi reversed the move into a slam of her own then put Jax in a submission.

Candice LeRae looked to interfere, but Bianca Belair took her off the apron and tossed her into the ringside barricade. The brawl came to an end after Jax attacked Belair, throwing a title at her and then putting her into steel stairs at ringside.

Jax climbed the ropes for an Annihilator but was stopped by Naomi. Jax looked for a Powerbomb, but Naomi reversed while on the way down. At this point, the crowd became unglued as Ms. Money In The Bank Tiffany Stratton came charging down to the ring.

Stratton told a referee she wanted to cash in, but then attacked the referee and stopped him from confirming her decision. She then approached the ring and struck Naomi in the head with her briefcase. Jax then climbed the ropes and hit an Annihilator for the win.

Stratton celebrated with Jax and LeRae, but not for long. Just after Jax started to attack Belair in a post-match celebratory beatdown, Stratton struck the champ over the back with her Money In The Bank briefcase. After taking out Jax, LeRae and Belair, Stratton cashed in her briefcase officially and hit the Prettiest Moonsault Ever to beat Jax in eight seconds and become the new WWE Women’s Champion. It’s officially Tiffy Time.

The Bloodline earn tag win before Solo vs. Roman goes down

Before the main event, it was announced that LA Knight was scheduled to meet WWE United States Champion Shinsuke Nakamura at the January 10 episode of Smackdown in Portland, Oregon.

The final match of the night saw The Bloodline’s Solo Sikoa, Jacob Fatu and Tama Tonga face off against Sami Zayn, Jimmy and Jey Uso in a six-man tag bout. The contest worked as somewhat of a preview for Monday’s matchup between Sikoa and Roman Reigns, which they aired a video package regarding before the match.

After a lengthy entrance by The Usos and Zayn, Jimmy and Tonga kicked off the match. At least, for a second it looked like that was the plan. Moments later, all the illegal wrestlers also got into the ring, turning the match into a brawl. Order was restored by the time the broadcast returned from a commercial break minutes later.

The broadcast noted that this was Jimmy Uso’s first TV match since suffering a toe injury in the men’s WarGames match. Jimmy had started wrestling last week, returning on December 26 as part of a house show tour.

Business picked up around the 15-minute mark of the match, as Zayn scored a Blue Thunder Bomb on Sikoa and lined Jey up for a hot tag. Jey put together a combo of punches against Tonga, who also tagged in. He tried for a Samoan Drop, but Tonga escaped. Jimmy got quietly tagged in by Jey, allowing the Usos to team up against Tonga.

Jey tagged back into the match. Fatu was taken out by Jimmy, who went flying out of the ring with him after a clothesline. Jey hit a neckbreaker on Tonga for a two-count. As they continued to fight, the four other wrestlers in the match fought at ringside. Sikoa climbed up to the ring apron, which distracted Jey and allowed Tonga to take back control of the match. Tonga got a near fall after a flashy DDT.

Tonga tagged in Fatu, who mocked Jey for not acknowledging Solo. Jey hit Fatu with a thrust kick, then brought his teammates Jimmy and Zayn into the ring. All three of them did hip attacks on Fatu in the corner. Jey and Zayn did dives to the outside, leaving legal Jimmy to do a frogsplash onto Fatu. The big splash didn’t do enough to put away Fatu, who kicked out at two.

Fatu sprung up and hit a thrust kick and a frogsplash of his own, then a moonsault off the top. He went for a pin, but Zayn got into the ring to break the attempt up. As Jey got tagged in and hoped to take out Fatu, Drew McIntyre appeared at ringside. Jey took out McIntyre with a suicide dive, then came back into the ring to try and get back into the match. Fatu avoided a dive off the top from Jey, then scored a Samoan Drop for a near fall.

Fatu dragged Jey into the corner, where he tagged in Sikoa. “I love you Solo!” said Fatu before he tried for a hip attack in the corner to Jey, but Jey avoided the move. Jey took Solo out with a thrust kick, then hit Fatu with a spear. He went to the top with a frogsplash onto Fatu and tried for a pin, but didn’t realize Fatu wasn’t the legal man. Sikoa, who was legal, came into the ring and delivered a Samoan Spike to earn a win for The Bloodline.

About Jack Wannan 475 Articles
Jack Wannan is a journalist from Toronto, Ontario, Canada. He writes and reports on professional wrestling, along with other topics like MMA, boxing, music, local news, and more. He graduated from Toronto Metropolitan University in 2023 with a bachelor's degree in journalism. He can be reached at [email protected]
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