By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)
WWE Smackdown (Episode 1,344)
May 23, 2025, in Savannah, Georgia at EnMarket Arena
Simulcast live on USA Network and internationally on Netflix
[Hour One] A shot aired of the host city while Joe Tessitore checked in on commentary. Arrival/backstage shots aired of The Street Profits, Fraxiom, Jacob Fatu, Solo Sikoa, and JC Mateo, and Drew McIntyre. As McIntyre was walking in the backstage area, Damian Priest attacked him. McIntyre and Priest were pulled apart by referees, security, and producers…
WWE Women’s Champion Tiffany Stratton made her entrance while being introduced by ring announcer Mark Nash. Wade Barrett joined Tessitore on commentary, and they recapped Stratton’s win over Nia Jax from last week’s show.
Stratton said a year ago, she was walking into Money in the Bank with all the hype in the world, and now she’s the champion. Stratton recalled beating Charlotte Flair and Jax. She was about to warn the future MITB winner about attempting to cash in on her, but she was interrupted by entrance music.
Alexa Bliss headed to the ring. Bliss introduced herself to Stratton and said she’s had her eye on her. She said she felt bad for Charlotte when Stratton beat her at WrestleMania. Bliss recalled cashing in the MITB contract on Jax. She said she likes Jax and it wasn’t personal, but she doesn’t even know Stratton. Bliss said that if Stratton thinks her rise to the top was quick, just wait for the downfall.
Charlotte Flair made her entrance and started to speak as she headed to the ring. Flair was booed loudly as she congratulated Stratton for beating her at WrestleMania. Flair said Stratton is doing great, but it won’t last forever. Flair said she’s done everything there is to do in the business aside from winning MITB.
Flair entered the ring and said that when she wants something, she just takes it. Stratton recalled Flair saying that cashing in the MITB contract was taking the easy way out, yet here she was trying to cash in. Stratton said Bliss and Flair were too vintage for her, and she’s the upgrade. Stratton said it will always be Tiffy Time and then exited the ring.
Giulia made her entrance and crossed paths with Stratton before heading to the ring. A graphic listed Flair vs. Giulia vs. Zelina Vega in an MITB ladder match qualifier, and then the show cut to commercial… [C]
Powell’s POV: A solid showcase of the women’s title picture. There were no hints as to what’s happening between Bliss and Flair aside from the two of them sharing the ring.
Zelina Vega made her entrance…
1. Women’s U.S. Champion Zelina Vega vs. Charlotte Flair vs. Giulia in a women’s Money in the Bank qualifying match. Barrett said Vega winning means she could go for more gold and also prevent someone from using the briefcase to cash in on her. Vega performed a moonsault from the middle rope onto both opponents, heading into a picture-in-picture break. [C]
Flair got Vega in the Electric Chair position. Giulia missile dropkicked Flair, causing Flair and Vega to fall to the mat. Giulia made covers on both women and got two counts. A short time later, Flair hit a top rope moonsault on both opponents simultaneously and covered them both for a two count.
Giulia caught Flair in the Rings of Saturn and rolled her into a pin for a two count. Flair came back and speared Giulia for a two count. Flair went for a Figure Eight, but Giulia countered into an inside cradle for a two count. Flair caught Giulia going for a dropkick and put her in the Figure Four. Vega broke it up before Flair could turn it into a Figure Eight.
Vega hit Giulia with a Code Red and had her beat, but Giulia broke up the pin. A “this is awesome” chant broke out. Flair put Vega in the Figure 8. Giulia jumped off the top rope and double stomped Flair’s knee. Giulia followed up with a Northern Lights Bomb on Vega and then pinned her.
Giulia defeated Zelina Vega and Charlotte Flair in a Triple Threat in 13:30 to qualify for the Money in the Bank ladder match.
The updated graphic showed Giulia, Roxanne Perez, Alexa Bliss, and Rhea Ripley as MITB qualifiers with two spots open in the women’s match…
Powell’s POV: A good match. Was Vega in this match just to take the pin, or will Giulia eventually go after the Women’s U.S. Championship? I like that Barrett explained why Vega would attempt to qualify for MITB despite being a champion. But I can’t stand that they continue to play up the possibility fo MITB winners cashing in for secondary titles.
Tommaso Ciampa and Johnny Gargano had a promo video and spoke about their issues with the Motor City Machine Guns. Ciampa also talked about facing Chris Sabin and capped off the promo with his chair kick…
“The Motor City Machine Guns” Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin made their entrance… [C] Footage aired of Triple H’s appearance on Stephanie’s Places. They showed footage of Stephanie failing to do Triple H’s water spitting entrance…
Zelina Vega was walking gingerly backstage when she was confronted by Chelsea Green, who was accompanied by Piper Niven and Alba Fyre. Vega hit Green, which led to Niven and Fyre pulling them apart. Niven punched Vega. Michin and B-Fab showed up and brawled with the heels until they were pulled apart.
Smackdown general manager Nick Aldis showed up and called for the wrestlers to stop fighting. Aldis ended up booking Michin and B-Fab vs. Niven and Fyre for later in the show…
“DIY” Tommaso Ciampa and Johnny Gargano made their entrance…
2. Chris Sabin (w/Alex Shelley) vs. Tommaso Ciampa (w/Johnny Gargano). Ciampa threw a jacket at Sabin, who was on the apron, and then dropped him with Willow’s Bell. Ciampa ran Sabin into the barricade, and then he and Gargano sat on the apron and patted themselves on the back. [C]
Sabin stuffed the Fairytale Ending, and then hit a dragon screw leg whip. Sabin jumped from the middle rope and hit a DDT on the way down for a near fall. Sabin went up top and was distracted by Gargano, who climbed onto the apron. Shelley joined him. Sabin avoided a big boot from Ciampa, who hit (not really) Shelley, which knocked him off the apron. Sabin hit the DIY duo with a dive from the ring onto them on the floor.
Back in the ring, Sabin shoved Ciampa off the ropes and then stood on the top rope while setting up for a move. CIampa clutched his knee. As the referee checked on Ciampa, Sabin dropped off the ropes. Candice LeRae showed up and clotheslined Sabin over the top rope. Ciampa shot up, lowered his knee pad, and hit Sabin with a running knee strike before pinning him…
Tommaso Ciampa defeated Chris Sabin in 11:15.
Powell’s POV: This was better than most of the throwaway singles matches between tag team wrestlers. I like the idea of adding Candice LeRae to the DIY act. I liked what she was doing with Nia Jax a while back, but she could add some juice to DIY.
Backstage, Byron Saxton interviewed “Fraxiom” Nathan Frazer and Axiom about challenging The Street Profits for the WWE Tag Team Titles. Frazer said they heard DIY talking about them earlier in the show, but they were only focused on the Profits…
Shinsuke Nakamura was shown backstage, and then Tessitore hyped a look at John Cena’s actions since his return to WWE… [C] Tessitore hyped Saturday Night’s Main Event while the lineup was shown on the screen…
[Hour Two] The Cena video package aired…
Damian Priest started to make his entrance. Drew McIntyre ran out and attacked Priest, and they brawled until security showed up. As security was leading McIntyre to the back, Priest stood in the ring and asked if he was going to hide behind his phone. Priest said he was getting his pound of flesh. Priest clotheslined a couple of security guards and then went to ringside and fought with McIntyre until they were pulled apart again. A “let them fight” chant broke out…
Solo Sikoa was talking with JC Mateo backstage when Jacob Fatu showed up. Solo tried to talk about Fatu teaming with Mateo. Fatu asked if he could speak to Solo alone, but Solo said Mateo is family, and whatever he had to say to him, he could say in front of Mateo. Fatu said he doesn’t know or trust Mateo, and he’s damn sure not family.
Solo got between Fatu and Mateo and said they needed to take that anger and transfer it into their match. Solo said he knows Jimmy Uso is upset with Roman Reigns. Solo said he wants Jimmy to come back, but the only way that will happen is if Fatu and Mateo work together. Solo tried to deliver Fatu’s “You know what I mean?” line, but Fatu cut him off and said he’d see them out there, and then said the line himself…
Chelsea Green, Piver Niven, and Alba Fyre made their entrance… [C] Tessitore hyped Dominik Mysterio’s appearance on Stephanie McMahon’s podcast…
Charlotte Flair was walking backstage when she overheard Alexa Bliss saying That’s why it’s important to have friends. Bliss said if you don’t, there’s no one there when things fall apart. Flair asked Bliss what she said. Bliss said she wasn’t talking to Flair, then showed that she was speaking to the Lilly doll. Bliss said she’d see Flair at MITB, then said, “Oh, sorry”…
Powell’s POV: Oh joy, the stupid f’n doll is back.
Michin and B-Fab made their entrances to flat crowd reactions…
3. Michin and B-Fab vs. Piper Niven and Alba Fyre (w/Chelsea Green). Michin was getting the better of Fyre when Green climbed on the apron and complained. Zelina Vega showed up and pulled Green down to the floor and hit her with a knee strike. Niven chased Vega until B-Fab jumped off the apron and clotheslined Niven. In the ring, Michin hit Fryre with Eat Defeat, and then B-Fab hit a modified neckbreaker and pinned Fyre…
Michin and B-Fab beat Piper Niven and Alba Fyre in 3:45.
Powell’s POV: Here’s what we know about B-Fab. She was in Hit Row, she was part of the Street Profits’ act going back to when they were aligned with Bobby Lashley, and now she’s friends with Michin. So we know who she’s friends with, but we don’t know anything about her actual character.
Byron Saxton interviewed “The Street Profits” Montez Ford and Angelo Dawkins in a backstage area. Ford started to talk about how they would retain the titles, but he was distracted by Jacob Fatu, Solo Sikoa, and JC Mateo walking by. Solo led his team to the ring… [C]
Tessitore hyped Worlds Collide and Money in the Bank for June 7…
A Legado Del Fantasma video aired with Santos Escobar sitting at a table with Angel and Berto. Escobar said he knows what they are all capable of when they come together. Berto said something that was hard to make out. Escobar said it’s business. He said they will come together at Worlds Collide against the best that “they” have to offer. Escobar said it’s a chance to stand victorious “in front of our people.” Angel was in, but Berto wasn’t pleased. Escobar asked Berto to trust him and then tried to lead a toast. Berto drank some wine and walked away…
Barrett announced Legado Del Fantasma vs. El Hijo De Dr. Wagner Jr., Psycho Clown, and Pagano for Worlds Collide. Tessitore said the show would be available on YouTube in English and Spanish…
Backstage, Jimmy Uso and Rey Fenix fired one another up before making their entrances…
4. U.S. Champion Jacob Fatu and JC Mateo (w/Solo Sikoa) vs. Jimmy Uso and Rey Fenix. Fatu was going to start the match, but Mateo tagged himself in, and then they glared at each other. Mateo got Jimmy down in the corner and was putting the boots to him when Fatu tagged himself in. A short time later, Fenix hit a springboard corkscrew dive onto both opponents on the floor. [C]
Fatu hit Jimmy with a senton. Solo told Jimmy that he still loves him and they should take over. Jimmy reached out to grab Solo, but Fatu hit Jimmy from behind. Fatu hit a good looking hip attack. Fatu tagged Mateo, who tried to suplex Jimmy from the ropes, but Jimmy knocked Meteo down and eventually made a hot tag.
Fenix hit a Poison Rana on Fatu for a nice near fall. Fatu came back briefly, but Fenix moved when Fatu charged him in the corner. Mateo tagged in and suplexed Fenix, who landed on his feet. Jimmy tagged in and hit a top rope crossbody block on Mateo and had the pin, but Fatu broke it up.
Fenix sent Fatu to the floor and then hit him with a suicide dive. Jimmy superkicked Mateo and then Fatu, who was back on the apron. Jimmy speared Mateo and then went up top. Solo climbed onto the apron and pleaded with Jimmy to join him. Mateo avoided Jimmy’s top rope double stomp and then hit him with a Tour of the Islands for the win…
Jacob Fatu and JC Mateo beat Jimmy Uso and Rey Fenix in 12:40.
Powell’s POV: Solo asking Jimmy to join him isn’t doing much for me, but I enjoy the tension between Fatu and Mateo.
Byron Saxton was about to talk about Fatu and Mateo backstage when he was interrupted by LA Knight, who talked about the odds being against him in the MITB qualifier. Knight said the odds have been against him since he arrived in WWE, and he’s still standing. Knight spoke about winning MITB in Los Angeles…
R-Truth was shown walking backstage when he stopped and looked at John Cena, who was on a cartoon mural. Truth saluted and then kept walking while Tessitore hyped his appearance for after a break… [C]
A graphic noted that John Cena and R-Truth’s match on SNME will be their first match against one another since 2011…
R-Truth made his entrance, but he did not sing his song. Truth slapped a couple of hands before going to the ring steps and then yelling the “What’s Up” chorus. Truth said everyone’s been asking him how he will handle fighting his childhood hero on SNME.
Truth said he’s not fighting his childhood hero. He said he doesn’t recognize Cena now. Truth said he couldn’t figure out where things went wrong with Cena or how he could have prevented this. Truth got the “What?” treatment and seemed to encourage it. Truth said he realized that problem is power. He said it’s always power.
Truth said the more power and fame Cena got, the more disconnected he felt. Truth said Cena’s text messages were shorter, the replies were slower, and the phone calls stopped. Truth said he felt like Cena was always annoyed by him because whatever he did was wrong. Truth said he spoke with others and they felt the same way about Cena.
Truth compared Cena to Gollum from Lord of the Rings. He said he doesn’t believe Cena is happy. Truth said Cena is the greatest of all time. There were some boos. Truth said Cena would not take his joy away from him. Truth said Cena wants to ruin wrestling. “If I want to save wrestling, I’ve gotta save you,” Truth said.
Truth said he doesn’t want to have to put his hands on Cena, but if he has to he will beat “the ever loving hustle, loyalty, and respect right back in your ass.” Fans cheered. Truth said he misses his hero. “So Saturday, we say it again, if Cena wins, we riot,” said Truth to close…
Powell’s POV: The crowd cheered at points, but this was not a well-received promo. While it wasn’t great by any means, I also didn’t think it was as bad as the live crowd’s flat reaction might seem to suggest it was. I wonder if the fans looked at the time and had the same reaction that I did. There’s another hour left?!? This hasn’t been a bad episode, but I hope they are really going back to two-hour Smackdown shows soon.
Tessitore hyped the CM Punk and Sami Zayn vs. Seth Rollins and Bron Breakker match for SNME…
Aleister Black made his entrance for the men’s MITB qualifier… [C]
[Hour Three] A Naomi, Jade Cargill, and Nia Jax promo video aired. The three women will meet in a MITB qualifier on next week’s Smackdown…
Powell’s POV: That’s a loaded match for a MITB qualifier.
Shinsuke Nakamura and LA Knight made their entrances…
5. Aleister Black vs. LA Knight vs. Shinsuke Nakamura in a men’s Money in the Bank qualifying match. The broadcast team put over Knight’s workload over the last year. Barrett pointed out that Knight lost a couple of recent matches and played up that fatigue may be setting in. Tessitore said Knight has had 23 matches this year, which is the most of anyone in WWE. Nakamura caught Knight with a knee strike before a break. [C]
Nakamura ran Knight into the ring steps and then returned to the ring. Black and Nakamura traded strikes in the middle of the ring. Nakamura hit Black with a kick. Knight returned and tossed Nakamura to the floor. Black caught Knight with a knee strike that sent Knight to the floor. Black went for a moonsault onto both men, but they failed to brace his fall. Knight held his knee. Knight regrouped and hit a flip dive onto Knight. Black clutched his hamstring (his thigh may have struck Knight’s head).
Back in the ring, Black stuffed a Kinshasa, but Nakamura caught him with a kick and ran him through the ropes and into the ring post casing. Nakamura charged Black, who dropped him with a Black Mass Kick. Knight returned to the ring, tossed Black out of the ring, and stole the pin…
LA Knight defeated Shinsuke Nakamura and Aleister Black in 11:00 to qualify for the men’s Money in the Bank ladder match.
The updated bracket showed Knight and Solo Sikoa as the men’s MITB entrants with four spots open…
Powell’s POV: I was hoping to see Black qualify, but I’m fine with Knight going over. Knight felt like a potential favorite to win MITB in the past. We’ll see which wrestlers qualify, but maybe this will be Knight’s year to win the briefcase.
Backstage, Carmelo Hayes told Miz that it felt good to see Black drop the ball. Miz said it would have been even better had Hayes listened to him and then he would have beaten Black. Hayes said he’s in next week’s MITB qualifier and took credit for it. Miz said he actually did it. Miz said Nick Aldis gave him the option, and he opted to have Hayes take the qualifier. Miz spoke about how much he believes in Hayes. Miz spoke about how he would help Hayes, and got him to say that he will execute the plays exactly as Miz designs them…
Tessitore hyped the WWE Tag Team Title match… [C] The signs of the night segment took place… A video package aired on the Jey Uso vs. Logan Paul match for the World Heavyweight Championship at SNME…
The broadcast team added Zelina Vega vs. Chelsea Green for the Women’s U.S. Championship to the SNME lineup…
Backstage, Nick Aldis informed Jacob Fatu, Solo Sikoa, and JC Mateo that Fatu would be in the final Triple Threat qualifier for the men’s MITB ladder match. Solo acted happy for Fatu and said it means they’re both going to win. “I love you, Solo,” Fatu said before walking away. Solo told Mateo that Fatu hadn’t said that to him in six months… [C]
Powell’s POV: That’s fun. It will be interesting to see if Solo does his best to stop Fatu from qualifying without outright revealing that he’s working against him.
A Bianca Belair video package aired. She spoke about how difficult things have been and how she wasn’t going to give up…
Tessitore hyped that Belair will return to Smackdown next week in her hometown of Knoxville. Jacob Fatu vs. Andrade vs. Carmelo Hayes in a MITB qualifier, Naomi vs. Jade Cargill vs. Nia Jax in a MITB qualifier, and WWE Champion John Cena returns…
Fraxiom made their entrance for the main event to a flat crowd reaction. and then The Street Profits’ entrance followed to a better reaction…
6. “The Street Profits” Montez Ford and Angelo Dawkins vs. “Fraxiom” Nathan Frazer and Axiom for the WWE Tag Team Titles. Mark Nash delivered in-ring introductions for the championship match. Frazer and Axiom hit a couple of suicide dives. Frazer followed up with a flip dive, and then Axiom hit a top rope moonsault onto the Profits on the floor. [C]
The Profits rallied and dominated the bulk of the action heading into the final break. [C] Frazer hit a superplex on Ford. Frazer picked up Ford and held him while Axiom kicked him, and then Frazer hit a brainbuster for a near fall. Dawkins caught Frazer with a punch from ringside and then ran him into the steps.
The Profits hit a Doomsday Blockbuster on Axiom and had him beat, but Frazer returned to break up the pin. The crowd finally came to life with a “this is awesome” chant. Dawkins went up top and was cut off by Axiom, who joined him on the ropes. Frazer tagged himself in, and then Axiom hit a Spanish Fly. Frazer hit a Phoenix Splash and had the pin, but Ford ran across him to break up the pin and ate a kick from Axiom.
“DIY” Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa ran out with Candice LeRae. “The Motor City Machine Guns” Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin ran out and fought DIY. Ford hit a flip dive over the ring post onto both teams. Dawkins put Frazer down inside the ring. Ford tagged in and went up top.
[Overrun] The lights went out. When the lights turned on, “The Wyatt Sicks” Uncle Howdy, Dexter Lumis, Erick Rowan, Joe Gacy, and Nikki Cross were in the ring. Ford made the sign of the cross while standing on the ropes. Lumis ran up the ropes and threw Ford to the mat. Rowan tackled a couple of wrestlers at ringside.
Cross stood on the apron and stared at LeRae before diving onto her. In the ring, Gacy put Dawkins down with a clothesline, and then powerbombed Lumis onto him. There were censored “holy shit” chants. Howdy put Frazer in a Mandible Claw. Howdy hit Sister Abigail on Gargano. Howdy held his arms open and his crew surrounded him while their entrance music played and the producer credits were shown…
“The Street Profits” Montez Ford and Angelo Dawkins fought “Fraxiom” Nathan Frazer and Axiom to an apparent no-contest in a WWE Tag Team Title match.
Powell’s POV: No, that’s okay, WWE, we didn’t need a finish to a match that we invested roughly twenty minutes into. To be fair, the live crowd seemed more excited about the Wyatt Sicks than the tag team title match and likely went home happy, but this company continues to deliver too many cheap finishes to its television main events. Putting that aside, what possible reason could the Wyatts have for targeting the Smackdown tag team division?
Overall, the third hour seemed to be an issue this week, as the live crowd was pretty tame for the final hour of the show. I will have a lot more to say about Smackdown and the return of the Wyatt Sicks during my weekly same night audio review of Smackdown for Dot Net Members (including our Patreon patrons). Let me know what you thought of the show by grading it below.
Make ProWrestling.net your home for live reviews of WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event, NXT Battleground, and AEW Double or Nothing this weekend.
Wyatt sicks came out mainly due to it being Bray’s b-day.
What the hell was Charlotte wearing? Yikes?
Tessitore after MCMG kept DIY from interfering “good, we didn’t need this match to end that way”.
2 minutes later the match ended that way.
Smh