WWE SmackDown Results
January 2, 2026
Buffalo, New York (KeyBank Center)
Results by: Roy Nemer of Wrestleview.com
WWE SmackDown kicks off with clips of Cody Rhodes and Drew McIntyre from last week.
We see Cody Rhodes, Charlotte Flair, Alexa Bliss, Rhea Ripley, IYO SKY, Nia Jax, Lash Legend, the Kabuki Warriors, Damian Priest, Aleister Black and Zelina Black entering the arena.
Inside the arena, we cut to Michael Cole and Corey Graves. They welcome everyone to the show but we hear The Miz. He is at ringside and says that they are not moving on to 2026, he is sick of hearing happy new year. Miz gets in the ring and he says they are not moving on uintil he airs his problems of last year.
He says he asked for one match in John Cena’s retirement tour. He says he should have been the one to tap John Cena out, instead Cena is smiling, riding in the sunset and he is stuck in Buffalo. The second thing is he did something rare in this business, he offered his guidance to all the young, up and coming superstars. But they were ungrateful and entitled. He says respect is not requested, it’s expected. Not just from the rookies but from everyone.
Miz says he was passed over on a movie and the fourth thing is not only did he who shall not be named and his good time buddies ruin his SmackDown, he brought back a nick name. A very untrue nick name. The fans chant tiny balls. He says this will not become a thing again, there is a silver lining. We are in 2026 and John Cena is gone. Miz says there is a new face of WWE and unlike the city, he actually wins Championships. He says he is the most decorated WWE superstar and that means he is the face of WWE, he is the gateway for the company, he is the locker room leader and he is the adult in the room filled with spoiled little brats.
Randy Orton’s music hits and out he comes to the ring and Miz is smiling. The fans chant Randy and Miz tells the fans that Orton is back and to let him hear it. The fans chant RKO and Miz says not him. He tells Orton that it’s good to have him back and they fist bump. Miz says as he was saying, they are the adults in the room, they are the locker room leaders, they are the gateways to the company and they could be Miz KO.
Orton looks at Miz and the fans. Orton hits Miz with an RKO and he points his finger. Orton gets Miz up, tells him happy new year and hits him with an RKO. He climbs the top rope and his music hits.
We cut backstage and The Kabuki Warriors are together. In come Nia Jax and Lash Legend. Nia and Lash tell them that they will help them win tonight and after that, they can give them a title match. Asuka says they will be happy to owe them a beating. On Monday, they will keep the titles and after that, they can face them anytime. Asuka walks away and Kairi Sane tells them they should be ready for the Kabuki Warriors and she walks away.
-Commercial Break-
Back from commercial, we see Randy Orton and Cody Rhodes backstage. Orton says out of respect, now that he is back, once Cody beats Drew McIntyre, he is coming for the title. Orton walks away and in comes Nick Aldis. He tells Cody that Drew is there tonight and they both know that Drew will try to get under his skin but he cannot let that happen. If Cody touches him before their match in Berlin, he will forfeit the title. Cody tells him he doesn’t have to worry, that won’t happen.
Eight Woman Tag Team Match – Charlotte Flair, Alexa Bliss, Rhea Ripley and IYO SKY vs. The Kabuki Warriors, Nia Jax and Lash Legend
The bell rings and both teams begin to fight. Rhea and Asuka start the match. Asuka with kicks and she goes for another kick but Rhea stops her. Rhea with a kick and Asuka falls to the outside of the ring. In comes Kairi Sane but Rhea throws her to the outside of the ring. Alexa is tagged in and she lands a cannon ball onto Asuka and Sane.
-Commercial Break-
Back from commercial, Alexa with a tornado DDT onto Nia. Flair is tagged in and she climbs the top rope. Flair with a cross body onto Nia and Lash Legend. Flair with chops to the chest onto both Nia and Lash. Flair with a kick to the face onto Nia followed by the Natural Selection. She climbs the top rope and she lands the moon sault. She goes for the cover but Nia kicks out. Flair hits Asuka with a big boot. Flair grabs Nia but Nia throws her into the corner and Flair flips onto the ring apron. Flair with a big boot. She goes for a spear through the ropes but Flair falls onto the mat and Nia with a leg drop. She goes for the cover but Flair kicks out. Asuka is tagged in and she goes for a right hand but Flair ducks. Flair goes for the cover but Asuka kicks out. Flair goes for the Figure Four but Sane climbs the top rope and she lands the Insane Elbow. Alexa gets in the ring but Sane throws her to the outside. IYO is tagged in and she snaps Sane’s arm onto the top rope. IYO climbs the top rope and lands a drop kick onto Sane and Asuka. IYO goes to tag Rhea but Nia pulls Rhea to the outside and throws her into the barricade. Asuka with a kick onto IYO. Lash is tagged in. IYO gets on the ring apron and jumps towards Asuka but she ducks and Lash with a big boot. She goes for the cover but IYO kicks out.
-Commercial Break-
Back from commercial, Asuka and IYO are n the ring. Asuka tags Sane into the ring and they double team IYO. Sane goes for an elbow but IYO moves and Sane elbows Asuka. IYO goes for the tag, Asuka grabs IYO by the legs but IYO kicks her away. Rhea is tagged in and she hits Asuka and Sane with right hands. Rhea goes for the RipTide but in comes Nia who hits her with a big boot. All eight women get in the ring. Sane jumps off the top rope but Rhea grabs her and she headbuts Sane. Rhea with the RipTide. IYO is tagged in and she climbs the top rope. IYO with the moon sault. She goes for the cover and gets the pin.
Winners: Rhea Ripley, IYO SKY, Charlotte Flair and Alexa Bliss
We cut to Nick Aldis and Jordynne Grace. He tells her he wants her on SmackDown. In comes Chelsea Green and Alba Fyre. She tells him that it’s too cold for her to go to the ring. Aldis tells her that she is interrupting. Grace tells Aldis that her decision will be easy. Chelsea tells Aldis that emotionally, she cannot go to the ring and asks him if he has seen the ending of Stranger Things. Aldis tells her that she can be a fighting Champion or he can impeach her and strip her of the title. Chelsea storms out.
-Commercial Break-
Kit Wilson walks down to the ring and he says he is redefining masculinity. And he is in Buffalo, home of the most toxic sports fans in all of America. Zack Ryder’s music hits and out comes Matt Cardona.
Kit Wilson vs. Matt Cardona
The bell rings and we are under way. Wilson with a running back elbow. Michael Cole says that Nick Aldis told him in his earpiece that Matt Cardona is now on SmackDown. Wilson with right hands but Cardona with right hands followed by a flap jack. He clotheslines Wilson to the outside of the ring. He throws Wilson back into the ring and in the corner. Cardona climbs the second rope and hits Wilson with right hands but Wilson slides under him and trips him up. Wilson with elbow drops. He goes for the cover but Cardona kicks out. Wilson places Cardona on the top rope but Cardona pushes him away. Cardona with a drop kick followed by a clothesline. Cardona with right hands and he gets Wilson in the corner. Cardona with a running kick to the face. Cardona with a double underhook suplex. He goes for the cover but Wilson kicks out. Cardona grabs Wilson but Wilson kicks him away. Wilson with the Turn-A-Kit. He goes for the cover but Cardona kicks out. Wilson runs towards Cardona but Cardona kicks him away. Cardona with the Rough Rider. He goes for the cover and gets the pin.
Winner: Matt Cardona
We cut backstage and Cathy Kelley is with Damian Priest. He tells her that he has been going to war with Aleister for six months. He says enough is enough and one way or another, this ends tonight. He tells Black that for half a year, Black tried to change him and break him. He is not his creator. The only thing Black has done is wake something up that even his crazy mind wouldn’t understand. He says he will stuff him in an ambulance and send him to the ER because tonight, Black is going to fade to black.
-Commercial Break-
A Wyatt Sicks promo video airs. Uncle Howdy says that Solo mocks what he does not understand. He says his family is not made up of just them, their family is filled with millions of fireflies around the world that will always remember. He tells Solo that it’s time for them to chop down their family tree at the root. He says when the dust settles, they will be the one’s.
Sami Zayn’s music hits and out he comes to the ring. He says he hasn’t been around the last couple of weeks, it feels good to be back. He says he got to do something recently that was pretty profound, he got to sit and enjoy the show like everyone. He got to sit in the front row and watch John Cena’s last match with his son. Zayn says it hit him in a way that he didn’t expect. Zayn says they introduced Cena, the match starts and his son turns to him and asked him why they call Cena the last seen 17. Zayn explains that it’s because Cena won the title 17 times and his son asks him how many times he won it. Zayn had to tell him zero and his son asked him why. Zayn says he didn’t really have an answer and he understands why it would be confusing for his son. He says his son has watched him in the ring every week with Drew McIntyre, Seth Rollins, Drew McIntyre, John Cena. They all have Championships. Zayn says he has brought Championships but his son does not understand why the Championship is missing.
Zayn says he is not here to talk about it, he is here to do it. He says 2026 is here and he is coming for the WWE Championship. Out comes Trick Williams.
The fans chant Whoop that Trick. He introduces himself and says he has finally arrived. He says they have not been formally introduced. Some call him Tricky Two Times, some call him Whoop that but Zayn can call him Trick Willy. He is what happens when you get Michael Jordan, Michael Jackson and Mike Tyson in the ring at the same time. He says Aldis called him and said he needs him on SmackDown. Aldis told him he wants someone that is tall, dark and handsome. Zayn begins to talk but Trick tells him he is not done talking.
Trick says he can take off his coat, his shades, his lemon pepper steppers and he is still 6 foot 5, 250 pounds and in other words, Trick Williams is a grown ass man. And that is what Aldis is trying to say. They need someone who can challenge for the Champion. Trick tells him they are nothing alike, it won’t take him 20 years to get an opportunity. He is not someone that will almost get the job done like Zayn.
They look at each other and Trick says he is done talking. Zayn says all this is right, the problem is Trick has yet to be humbled. He asks Trick if he is the first guy to look good, be good, go through the ropes and say they will skip the line and be Champion. He is not the first person to get in his face. Zayn says he has no problem teaching Trick a lesson and teaching him a thing or two about what it means to be humbled. Zayn drops the microphone and leaves the ring.
We see clips of Carmelo Hayes winning the United States Championship last week.
Carmelo Hayes is backstage and in comes Ilja Dragunov. He wishes him a happy new year. Ilja says last week, he wanted to fight the best and the best version of the best. He says Hayes gave him that and while the outcome is not what he expected, there are worst things in life than losing to him. But it wasn’t a last time. Ilja asks him if he plans on continuing the open challenge and Hayes tells him he will keep it going. And when they plan to run it back, he will keep the lights on for him.
Ilja walks away and Hayes sees Miz. He asks Miz what’s up. Hayes tells him that this would not have been possible without him and he thanks Miz for it. Miz says he has come to his senses. Hayes thanks him for finally leaving him alone because he has been better ever since.
-Commercial Break-
Nick Aldis is backstage with Rey Fenix. In comes Trick Williams who tells Aldis that Zayn disrespected him. Fenix says Trick needs to learn respect. Trick tells him that he is twice his size and Aldis breaks it up. Aldis makes a match for next week, Rey Fenix against Trick Williams.
United States Open Challenge – Carmelo Hayes (c) vs. Johnny Gargano with Candice LeRae
Refresh for live results
Quick Match results:
— Rhea Ripley, IYO SKY, Charlotte Flair and Alexa Bliss def. The Kabuki Warriors, Nia Jax and Lash Legend
— Matt Cardona def. Kit Wilson