WWE SmackDown live results: Women’s Tag Team title match

The WWE Women’s Tag Team titles will be on the line on WWE SmackDown tonight, taped last week in Hartford, Connecticut.

With Jade Cargill out due to an injury, Bianca Belair will now team with Naomi to defend the titles against reigning WWE Women’s Champion Nia Jax and Candice LeRae. Naomi filling in for Cargill was approved last week by general manager Nick Aldis.

Johnny Gargano, one half of WWE Tag Team Champions #DIY, will go one-on-one with Alex Shelley, part of former champs the Motor City Machine Guns. It will be their first singles match since 2016.

The show is expected to feature the fallout from last weekend’s Saturday Night’s Main Event when undisputed WWE World Champion Cody Rhodes defeated Kevin Owens and then was taken out with a package piledriver after the broadcast ended.

The new Bloodline are also expected to make their presence felt tonight in addition to a surprise rematch from a recent SmackDown bout.

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– A video recap of Saturday Night’s Main Event opened the show.

– Bianca Belair and Naomi were shown walking backstage. Ditto for Nia Jax, Candice LeRae, Motor City Machine Guns and #DIY. Solo Sikoa’s Bloodline then made their entrance.

The Bloodline segment

I really like the Drew McIntyre wrinkle here. Between him and Kevin Owens, the modern day Paul Levesque heel is one that actually appears to be smarter than everyone around them and is simply sick and tired of being sick and tired. Who can’t relate to that? As such, it’s hard not to at least empathize with people like McIntyre and Owens, which isn’t historically what a heel should be … but hell: Welcome to the Triple H Era. Anyway, a strong verbal exchange to open the show. Sikoa has improved so much on the mic between when he started leading his version of the Bloodline and the current day.

Sikoa stood in the ring and told SmackDown to acknowledge him. Everyone booed and chanted “OTC!” Sikoa said Roman Reigns sat on his boat and challenged Sikoa to a Tribal Combat match and the crowd gave Sikoa the “What?” treatment. Sikoa stopped and said instead of saying “What?” they need to acknowledge him. The crowd went back to booing and chanting “OTC!” Sikoa proceeded to accept Reigns’s challenge for the Jan. 6 Raw on Netflix. Sikoa said he will walk out as the Tribal Chief and the Head Of The Table. Sikoa looked into the camera and told Reigns that after Jan. 6, Roman could hop back on his boat and head back to the island of irrelevancy.

Drew McIntyre’s music hit and McIntyre slowly walked out of the entranceway. McIntyre took his time getting into the ring. McIntyre grabbed a microphone and stared at Sikoa. Sikoa said he was really happy when McIntyre kicked Jimmy in the face last week. Sikoa then said Drew better have a damn good reason for why he’s interrupting him. McIntyre said he wanted to beat Sikoa within an inch of his life. McIntyre wondered if Sikoa ever wondered when Drew would come for him. McIntyre noted how Sikoa cost McIntyre the world title at Clash At The Castle and caused his family pain and misery.

However, McIntyre said that Sikoa was the only one in his family who had the balls to stand up to Roman Reigns. McIntyre wondered what he should do. McIntyre told Sikoa needs to take Roman Reigns out for good. After Sikoa does that, McIntyre said he and Sikoa could finish their business. Jimmy Uso appeared with a crutch and attacked McIntyre out of nowhere. Those two fought into the crowd and LA Knight’s music hit. Apollo Crews, Andrade and Knight ran to the ring and attacked Sikoa, Fatu and Tonga. The show then went to a commercial break.

The Bloodline (Solo Sikoa, Tama Tonga & Jacob Fatu) defeated LA Knight, Andrade & Apollo Crews [16:39 of TV time]

Goodness, gracious. A SNME video package and all Bloodline business took up the first 35 minutes of the episode. And I don’t even think we saw the full match as there was some questionable editing that popped up here. I wonder how this played with the (presumably) tired live crowd last week. Now for the real question: Is it time to wonder who LA Knight pissed off yet? The guy somehow gets over, stays over for at least a couple years, finally gets a title run, loses that title a few months later, and is now … teaming with Andrade and Apollo Crews to lose to Solo Sikoa’s Bloodline? That a bit suspect. Anyway, the match here kind of dragged (even with the editing), but it got the job done in terms of getting Sikoa a win before heading into his showdown with Reigns in a couple weeks on Raw. Fatu felt less dominant here, which was a tiny bit disappointing. Maybe an off night? Maybe a conscious booking decision? Here’s hoping for a bounce back soon.

The match was joined in progress and Crews was working over Tonga, complete with a press slam. Knight tagged in and hit a swinging beck-breaker on Tonga. Andrade tagged in and chopped Tonga. Crews then tagged back in and the two hit back elbows on Tonga for a two-count. Andrade tagged back in and kicked Tonga, but Tonga fought back a little until Andrade took Tonga down and Fatu ended up on the outside with Tonga. Crews tagged in and the two landed dual splashes on Fatu and Tonga. Knight went to the top rope and taunted Sikoa, who stayed away from the scene.

Back inside the ring, Crews attempted to keep the upper hand, but Tonga tagged in Fatu and Tafu took Crews out with a leaping elbow. The show then went to a commercial break. The show returned and Sikoa had control over Crews. Fatu tagged in and bodyslammed Crews. Fatu went for a running splash, but Crews got his knees up and and tagged in Andrade, who came in and took out Fatu. Andrade hit a Meteora on Fatu for a two-count. Andrade went to the top and landed the miss-then-not-miss a moonsault spot for a two-count.

Sikoa tagged in and Fatu fired up, lifting Andrade for a scary-looking spot as Sikoa helped Andrade over the top rope. At some point, Fatu tagged back in, but the program showed a replay of the scary spot, so nobody saw it. In any case, Fatu hit a pop-up Samoan Drop on Andrade inside the ring as the show went to another commercial break. The program returned and Fatu kept his dominance up over Andrade until Fatu went for a hip attack in a corner and Andrade moved. Ultimately, Andrade got the hot tag to Knight, who ran in and stomped on Tonga.

Knight clotheslined Fatu and hit a running knee on Tonga. Sikoa got involved, but Knight hit a neck-breaker on him. Crews tagged in and landed a splash from the top rope for a two-count on Tonga. Out of nowhere, Nakamura showed up and took Knight out while Crews worked a Crossface on Tonga. Sikoa broke that up and things broke down. Sikoa officially tagged in after dragging Tonga to their corner. Sikoa hit a hip attack, Spinning Solo and a Samoan Spike on Crews to get the win.

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– MCMG were interviewed backstage by Byron Saxton. Alex Shelley said he had one thought – payback. Chris Sabin chimed in and noted how Gargano showed them who he truly is. Shelley said he was going to make sure Gargano knows he made the biggest mistake of his life. Sabin looked like he was going to accompany Shelley to the ring, but Shelley told Sabin to hang back for the match.

– A video package chronicling Chelsea Green’s win on SNME aired. After that, Green was interviewed by Saxton after SNME on Saturday night. Green said she always knew she’d win and she’s worked her entire life to be an overnight success. Green said it was “red, white and green.” Saxton talked about the historical significance of the win. Green said she is in the history books, where she belongs. Green brought up being released be WWE and being passed up by WWE in the past. Green said she was going to go to Disney World to celebrate.

– Graves threw to a video package chronicling the Kevin Owens/Cody Rhodes developments from SNME.

– Owens was shown in a dark place somewhere in a building. He said what happened after SNME was not his fault. Owens said there were a lot of people to blame for it and he was screwed out of winning the championship. Owens said what happened to him was a tragedy and travesty. Owens said he should be standing there the Undisputed WWE Champion, but he’s not. Instead, he took Cody’s belt and he’s not going to give it back until he gets what he wants. Owens said he hasn’t snapped yet and it can all get a lot worse. Owens said nobody wants him to snap. Owens said what happens next is on WWE officials including Nick Aldis and Triple H.

– Gargano and Ciampa were talking backstage. Ciampa said it surprised him that Shelley is dumb because MCMG can’t win the tag titles back in a singles match. Gargano said Shelley wants his revenge and Ciampa needs to stay in the back for his match against Shelley. Ciampa told Gargano to “go get him” and said he wouldn’t move a muscle.

The Grayson Waller Effect with Braun Strowman

Close your eyes. Picture this segment. Whatever you see or whatever you think you’d see – that’s exactly what it was.

Waller welcomed everyone in and Theory made his presence known as well. Waller said his guest is the first transfer to Friday nights on SmackDown: Braun Strowman, who walked out dressed as Santa Claus. Stowman threw gifts into the crowd on his way to the ring. Once in the ring, Strowman faked going to give Waller a gift, but instead, he didn’t. Waller said Strowman helped “all the poor people in Hartford,” and Strowman responded in anger before sitting down.

Waller talked about how he invested a lot of money into his new talkshow set. Waller said he was surprised Strowman would come on the show, but the more he thought about it, the more it made sense because he realized how much he’d want to be around A-Town Down Under. Strowman appeared agitated. Waller offered up the ultimate alliance – Strowman and A-Town Down. Strowman slammed his hand on the GWE desk and Carmelo Hayes’s music hit. Melo walked out with a microphone.

Melo said everyone knows his match against Strowman last week wasn’t fair. Melo said nobody can humble greatness and told Strowman he wanted to run it back “right here, right now.” Strowman said he’s show Melo what The Braun Effect is. Strowman threw some fake palm trees at Melo and a referee walked to the ring for a presumed match between Strowman and Melo – after a commercial break.

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Carmelo Hayes defeated Braun Strowman via count out [3:32]

Eh. I can’t say I’m a fan. Melo just can’t help but find himself in series of matches against people. At the very least, this will be a best of three with Strowman, but who knows – maybe they’ll get to best of seven and LA Knight will be the special guest referee for that seventh match. Back to this match. Strowman just came back. He was obviously protected here because a fluke count out loss is almost meaningless, but the whole thing just felt unnecessary and boring (in terms of booking, at least). Bah humbug.

Hayes started the match by kicking Strowman’s leg. Braun no-sold it. Hayes punched Strowman, but that just seemed to make Strowman angry. Hayes slid to the outside and Strowman chased Hayes around the ring. When the two got back into the ring, Melo cut Strowman off, but Strowman shoved Hayes off. Strowman threw Melo back into the ring, but Melo kicked Strowman’s leg again. Melo then jumped into an attempted chokeslam, but Melo countered by planting Strowman. Strowman got up and ran at Hayes, but Hayes pulled the top rope down and Strowman went to the outside.

Hayes ran around the ring, but Strowman took Melo down once Melo ran into Strowman. Melo leapt at Strowman, but Strowman caught Melo. Strowman threw Melo back into the ring, but nobody noticed the count was at nine. So, with Melo back in the ring, Strowman was on the outside as the referee counted to 10. So, Hayes got the win via count out. Hayes then ran through the crowd and Strowman chased Hayes.

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– Nia Jax and Candice LeRae were talking backstage and Tiffany Stratton walked into the frame. LeRae told Stratton to stay away from ringside during their tag match later. Stratton walked away looking dejected.

– Melo was shown walking backstage and ran into Legado Del Fantasma. Strowman showed up and asked Santos Escobar where Melo was. Angel pointed Strowman in a direction and Strowman ran into Pretty Deadly. Hayes then attacked Strowman with a chair and took Strowman out, but Strowman got up and kept walking with his mad face on.

Johnny Gargano defeated Alex Shelley [10:03 of TV time]

As I write this, we are about 20 minutes from this episode of SmackDown concluding and this has to be the most uninspired WWE television show of 2024, tape delay or not. My goodness. This match was weirdly uninteresting. Two very good wrestlers combining for a cold-as-ice bout that never clicked into any gear – not just the often-referenced “next gear,” but any gear at all. The whole thing was disappointing at best. The #DIY/MCMG thing just isn’t working and someone somewhere needs to figure out how to get both teams in a different direction.

Shelley backed Gargano into a corner and pounded on him until Gargano worked his way out and chopped Shelley. Gargano ran towards Shelley, but Shelley moved and gained control. It didn’t last for long because Gargano came right back and stomped on Shelley. The pace, early on at least, was slower than expected. With Gargano on the apron, Shelley hit a neck-breaker and then kicked Gargano in the head. Shelley followed that up with a running knee outside the ring. The show then went to a commercial break.

Back from the break, Gargano had control back inside the ring. Gargano went for a slingshot spear, but Shelley got his leg up and kicked Gargano. The two then traded chops. Shelley went for an arm bar, but Gargano countered into a roll-up for a two-count. Shelley planted Gargano and went back to work on Gargano’s arm. Shelley then chopped Gargano repeatedly. Gargano came back and kicked Shelley twice before running Shelley’s head into the second turnbuckle for a two-count.

Gargano went for a Gargano Escape, but Shelley got to his feet and before long, planted Gargano face-first into the second turnbuckle. Shelley went to the top, but Ciampa showed up and distracted Shelley. Sabin walked out and chased Ciampa away. In the meantime, Shelley hit a cross-body from the top, but Gargano rolled through and held Shelley’s tights to get the win.

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– Saxton interviewed Belair and Naomi guerrilla position. Naomi said she has Belair’s back forever and she said she knows how important the tag belts are to Belair and Cargill and she’d do everything in her power to make sure they win. Naomi then made her entrance for the main event.

Naomi & Bianca Belair defeated Nia Jax & Candice LeRae to retain the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship [11:05]

I don’t know what was up with Jax appearing to be busted all types of open near the end of the match because right before the show ended, we saw Jax again and there was barely any blood to be found, but that looked nasty for a second. Either way, this was a pedestrian main event on a less-than-pedestrian SmackDown. I don’t mind taped shows, but this felt so much like everyone was mailing it in on the basis of the holidays that these two hours were a hard watch. I guess this means Naomi is officially a world tag team champion now, so it should be interesting to see what happens when Cargill rejoins the conversation. For now, this was a completely missable episode of SmackDown. Driving around to look at Christmas lights never felt more appealing.

Belair and LeRae began the match and Belair threw LeRae across the ring. Belair then lifted LeRae, but LeRae got out of it and tagged in Jax. Belair worked a headlock and then kicked Jax. Naomi tagged in and Naomi landed the split splash on Jax while Belair hit her moonsault on Jax. That was good enough for a two-count. Jax almost instantly got up and took Naomi out. From there, the show went to a commercial break.

The show returned and Belair had control until Jax tagged in and hit a Samoan Drop on Belair for a two-count. Jax went to work on Belair’s back. Belair ran at Jax, but Jax moved and Belair hit the ring post. Jax worked on Belair’s neck, but Belair fought out of it, but Jax kept Belair cut off from Naomi. LeRae tagged in and hit a missile dropkick on Belair before following that up with a Senton off Jax’s back. All of that earned LeRae a two-count.

Jax tagged back in and grabbed Belair’s braid. Belair somehow wiggled away from Jax and LeRae after there was some miscommunication amongst the heels and Naomi received the hot tag. Naomi hit an X-Factor on Jax for a two-count. Jax ran at Naomi, but Naomi moved and Jax hit the ring post. Naomi tried a split-legged moonsault, but Jax moved and set up for her finisher, but Naomi got up and hit a powerbomb on Jax, whose head was super busted open. Belair landed a 360 splash on Jax, but only got a two-count.

Stratton appeared and walked down to ringside. LeRae hit a Tornado DDT on Belair, but Naomi saved a pin attempt. Jax jawed at the referee, so the ref didn’t see the tag between Naomi and Belair. Jax grabbed the MITB briefcase from Stratton, but the ref stopped Jax from using it. Back in the ring, Naomi hit the split-legged moonsault on LeRae to get the win. After the match, Belair officially handed Naomi her tag title and the babyfaces posed in the middle of the ring. They then posed on the second rope with their belts as the show went off the air.