WWE Friday Night SmackDown Review: 26/12

A Joe Hendry Christmas Concert, Joe Hendry VS The Miz: Miracle on 34th Street Fight

After Nick Aldis warned Cody Rhodes of what would happen if he was to lay a single finger on Drew McIntyre, Joe Hendry kicked off a Christmas edition of Friday Night SmackDown by hosting his own concert! Joe sang “Jingle Bells”, but in a remixed version that featured lines to do with The Miz, whilst Otis, Akira Tozawa, and the Easter Bunny were also all in the ring dancing! This led to The Miz interrupting to end the song, but Nick Aldis then appeared to confirm that Hendry VS Miz would also now be in fact a Miracle on 34th Street Fight! This was as silly and stupid as you would expect, but I enjoyed it; the action was harmless! Eventually, after the Easter Bunny was revealed to be none other than R-Truth, Joe Hendry sent Miz crashing through a table with a Standing Ovation to get the win! I enjoyed Hendry’s song!

Credit: WWE

Grade: B-

Charlotte Flair VS Lash Legend, Ilja Dragunov VS Carmelo Hayes: United States Championship, The Green Regime VS Giulia and Kiana James

After Carmelo Hayes was chatting with FRAXIOM, Ilja Dragunov told Melo that he wants to face him for the United States Championship tonight! Drew McIntyre then arrived at the arena, before Aleister Black and Zelina stated that they’re still not finished with Damian Priest! Jade Cargill and Michin then shared their displeasure of one another, before Charlotte Flair headed down to the ring to go one-on-one with Lash Legend! This match wasn’t the best; it was a pre-recorded show again, which never helps, and it felt a bit sloppy at times! Both Nia Jax and Alexa Bliss caused issues at ringside, resulting in Charlotte taking advantage to beat Lash with a Code Red-style move! This was a very odd finish, and I feel like Legend should’ve won here!

Grade: C-

Trick Williams was hanging out in Nick Aldis’ office, and Trick listed his accolades off to Cody Rhodes to make a bit of a point to the Undisputed WWE Champion! Solo Sikoa then called The Wyatt Sick6 a “fake family” before Ilja Dragunov and Carmelo Hayes clashed for the United States Championship! If I could rewrite my Matches of the Year article, this would be right up there! Ilja and Carmelo are just so good together; they showcased that during their matches over the NXT Championship in 2023, and this was no exception! This was incredibly hard-hitting, it was fierce, and it actually got reactions from a rather quiet crowd (which is incredibly impressive)! After many different near-falls, a ridiculous First-48 followed by Nothin’ but Net was enough for Melo to finally become a Champion on the Main Roster! Carmelo Hayes deserves to be the United States Champion; I’m so happy for him, but Ilja Dragunov deserves a massive amount of praise and respect, because his run of US Title Open Challenges have easily been the best thing on SmackDown for months!

Credit: WWE

Grade: A-

Rhea Ripley and Iyo Sky once again reminded Alexa Bliss and Charlotte Flair that they’re going to win the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championships in the new year, before Nick Aldis booked an 8-Woman Tag Team match for next week after both Lash Legend, Nia Jax, and The Kabuki Warriors all arrived to cause chaos! It was then time for the Main Event match of the night as Giulia and Kiana James looked to get some revenge on The Green Regime! Chelsea Green and Alba Fyre are a good duo, whilst Giulia and Kiana are good in-ring workers! However, this felt pointless; the crowd didn’t care at all, and it felt very short! Eventually, Guilia was able to pin Green, meaning we’ll probably get a rematch for the Women’s United States Championship soon, but honestly, I’m not sure that will go down very well!

Grade: C

Cody Rhodes and Drew McIntyre Come Face-to-Face

After Nick Aldis told Kit Wilson that he will get a match on the first SmackDown of 2026, the final Friday Night SmackDown segment of 2025 saw Drew McIntyre return to the show to give his formal apology to referee Dan Engler! Drew did what he needed to do first, meaning he could then talk crap about Engler, before Cody Rhodes interrupted to come face-to-face with his rival! McIntyre then continued with his strong verbal words, taking multiple shots at the Rhodes Family, all whilst Nick Aldis was having to hold The American Nightmare back! Eventually, Cody would elbow Aldis in the face, before McIntyre floored Cody with a Claymore to end the show! Drew’s promo was fantastic; he deserves to be World Champion again, but I’m still not convinced that it’s going to happen!

Credit: WWE

Grade: B+