The January 3rd, 2020 episode of WWE SmackDown aired live from the FedEx Forum in Memphis, TN. Here are 4 takeaways from the show:
Dana Brooke Pinned Sasha Banks
Sasha Banks & Bayley faced Dana Brooke & Lacey Evans and Alexa Bliss & Nikki Cross in a Triple Threat Tag Team match to begin this week’s show.
Nikki and Lacey start the match off and Evans whipped Cross to the corner. Dana Brooke tagged in and connected with a Body Slam for a two count. Nikki battled back and shoved Dana to the corner of the ring. Cross hit a Splash and tagged Alexa Bliss in.
Sasha tagged in and Bliss greeted her with a Dropkick. Bliss bounced Banks’ face off the turnbuckle and made her way to the top rope. Bayley shoved Bliss to the canvas and tagged into the match.
Banks hit Bliss with a cheap shot as the refereee was distracted. Bayley went for the cover but Alexa kicked out at two. Sasha tagged back in and applied a Headlock in the middle of the ring. Nikki hit a Crossbody onto Dana Brooke and Lacey Evans outside the ring. Sasha Banks then launched Nikki into the steel steps as SmackDown went to a commercial break.
When SmackDown returned, Dana Brooke planted Bayley with a Suplex and followed it up with another one to Sasha Banks. Brooke hit a Splash and went for the cover but Alexa broke it up at two. Nikki hit Lacey with the Swinging Neckbreaker but got tossed out of the ring.
Banks hit Dana with a knee to the face and tagged Bayley in. Banks and Bayley took turns beating down Dana for the next couple of minutes. Dana was eventually able to battle back and hit Sasha with a Suplex. Lacey Evans tagged in and leveled Bayley with a Clothesline.
The crowd got behind Evans as she connected with a Bronco Buster on Bayley in the corner. Evans climbed to the top rope and went for a Moonsault but Banks pulled Bayley out of the way. Bayley hit the Bayley to Belly and went for the cover but Bliss and Cross broke it up.
Bayley and Banks slammed Nikki to the mat and Banks tagged in. Evans hit Banks with the Woman’s Right and Dana tagged in. Dana Brooke hit a Senton off the top rope for the pinfall victory. This was an entertaining match and it was pretty shocking to see Dana Brooke pin Sasha Banks. Dana landed directly on Sasha’s ribs with the Senton as well, so hope Banks didn’t sustain an injury.
John Morrison Made An Appearance
The Miz wished Daniel Bryan luck in his match against The Fiend at Royal Rumble. Miz was still rattled about The Fiend “violating the sanctity of his home” and made that clear during the conversation. Later on SmackDown, The Miz stumbled upon New Day backstage.
Kofi congratulated Miz on a great decade and pointed out that they were tied for most titles in the 2010s. Miz got pissed off and brought up The Fiend once again and said that this wasn’t about titles. Miz then challenged Kofi to a fight and Kingston accepted.
Kingston controlled the bout early and hit the Boom Drop. Kofi went for Trouble in Paradise but Miz got out of the way. The Miz went for the Skull Crushing Finale but Kofi rolled up Miz for the pinfall victory. After the match, The Miz attacked Kingston from behind before Big E made the save. The Miz retreated up the entrance ramp as the crowd chanted “you suck!”. The Miz shouted at the crowd that he has given them everything. Cathy Kelly knocked on Miz’s locker room door but John Morrison answered. Morrison told Cathy that The Miz isn’t saying anything else tonight.
It as about damn time for The Miz to go back to being a heel. He is a natural at it and is simply not nearly as entertaining portraying a good guy. I like how WWE is playing up that The Fiend has changed both Daniel Bryan and The Miz as well. Miz and Morrison were a tag team from 07-09.
Sheamus Returned
Shorty G defeated Dash Wilder tonight on SmackDown. After the match, Scott Dawson jumped into in the ring and started beating Shorty G down.
The lights in the arena went out and Sheamus’ music hit. The Revival rolled out of the ring as Sheamus made his way down the entrance ramp.
Sheamus hopped in the ring and absolutely leveled Shorty G with a Brogrue Kick. Sheamus stood over Shorty G for a bit before posing on the apron to end the segment.
The Usos Returned To Help Roman Reigns
Daniel Bryan and Roman Reigns faced Dolph Ziggler and King Corbin in the main event of this week’s SmackDown. King Corbin went right after Roman Reigns and beat him down in the corner of the ring to start the match off. Roman knocked Corbin to the outside and hit him with the Drive-By.
Back in the ring, Dolph tagged in and Roman connected with a boot to the face. Daniel Bryan tagged in and sent Ziggler flying out of the ring. Daniel started a “yes!” chant but the lights in the ring started flickering. Bray Wyatt’s laughter echoed throughout the arena as SmackDown went to a break.
When SmackDown returned, Corbin and Reigns were battling in the ring. Corbin planted Roman with the Deep Six and went for the cover but Reigns kicked out at two. Corbin knocked Roman out of the ring and launched him into the steel steps.
Daniel Bryan and Ziggler tagged in. Bryan hit Ziggler with an elbow to the face and hit Dolph with a Dropkick in the corner. Daniel connected with a Hurricanrana and followed it up with the Running Knee but the lights in the arena went out again. The Fiend attacked Bryan and applied the Mandible Claw. Corbin and Dolph then went after Roman Reigns and brought dog food into the ring. The Usos returned and made the save to end this week’s SmackDown.
SmackDown was all about superstars making their returns tonight. Overall, it wasn’t a very entertaining show besides that. Hopefully, next week’s RAW and SmackDown will be better as WWE builds towards the Royal Rumble on January 26th.
