Our WWE SmackDown results for tonight include men’s and women’s Money in the Bank triple threat qualifying matches featuring Aleister Black battling LA Knight and Shinsuke Nakamura, and Giulia taking on Charlotte Flair and Zelina Vega, The Street Profits defending the WWE Tag Team Championships against Fraxiom. Here’s our review and grades for tonight’s show, live from the EnMarket Arena in Savannah, Georgia.
WWE SmackDown Card:
- Men’s Money in the Bank Qualifying Match: Aleister Black vs. LA Knight vs. Shinsuke Nakamura
- Women’s Money in the Bank Qualifying Match: Giulia vs. Charlotte Flair vs. Zelina Vega
- WWE Tag Team Championship Match: Street Profits (Angelo Dawkins & Montez Ford) (c) vs. Fraxiom (Nathan Frazer & Axiom)
WWE SmackDown Results:
While Drew McIntyre is walking backstage, Damian Priest attacks him. Security pulls McIntyre and Priest apart.
What Time is it?
WWE Women’s Champion Tiffany Stratton asks the crowd what time it is. The crowd yells, “Tiffy Time!” Stratton recalls her Money in the Bank victory last year and beating Charlotte Flair at WrestleMania. Last week, she kicked Nia Jax‘s face off. If the Money in the Bank winner tries to cash in on her… Stratton can’t finish her thought because she is interrupted by Alexa Bliss. Bliss tells Stratton that it’s business and not personal. Bliss cashed in on Nia Jax years ago, and she liked Jax; Bliss doesn’t know Stratton. As fast as Stratton rose, she could fall. Charlotte Flair’s music hits. Flair gets drowned out by boos.
Flair says the one thing she is known for is humility. She wants to congratulate Stratton. Flair says the one thing she hasn’t done is win Money in the Bank, so she will. Stratton notes that Flair said cashing in MITB was the easy way out, so why is she trying to qualify now? Stratton says Flair and Bliss are too “vintage” for her. Bliss and Flair are the past; Stratton is the upgrade. Stratton laughs and walks away. As Stratton walks up the ramp, Giulia makes her way to the ring for the MITB qualifier match. Stratton and Giulia have a staredown on the ramp.
Grade: B
Stratton’s promo skills improve every week. Getting run over by Flair in the back and forth before WrestleMania has forced her to step up her game with great results. Bliss is Bliss; there isn’t much new or interesting there (at least currently- she’s been in a weird holding pattern since returning), but having her finally interact with some of the newer talent is long overdue. Flair managed to power through her promo, which is a good sign. Seeing her stumble was odd. She’s better than that.
Women’s Money in the Bank Qualifying Match: Giulia vs. Charlotte Flair vs. Zelina Vega
Vega sends Flair flying with a rana. Giulia boots Vega in the face. Flair and Giulia lock up. Vega charges in and gets sent flying with a fallaway slam. Flair and Giulia take turns chopping Vega. Giulia escapes a German suplex and lands a Super Dragon-esque curb stomp. Giulia and Flair try to double-suplex Vega. Vega counters with a double DDT. Vega can’t hold either woman down. The fight spills out of the ring. Vega lands a moonsault out to the floor. After the break, Flair lifts Vega in an electric chair. Giulia dives off the top and dropkicks Flair in the face.
WHAT A DEBUT! ??@giulia0221g advances to #MITB! ??#SmackDown pic.twitter.com/SytX8gTdJy
— WWE (@WWE) May 24, 2025
Flair lands a moonsault on Vega and Giulia at the same time. Both women kick out. Giulia rolls Flair into the rings of Saturn. Flair struggles. Giulia turns it into a pin. Flair kicks out. Flair tosses Vega out of the ring and Spears Giulia. Giulia kicks out. Flair locks Giulia in the figure-four. Vega breaks it up with a Meteoroa. Vega blasts Giulia with the Code Red. Flair breaks up the pin. Flair traps Vega in the Figure-Eight. Giulia breaks it up with a diving foot stomp off the top to Flair’s injured knee! Flair rolls out of the ring, screaming in pain. Giulia hits the Snow Plow on Vega for the win.
Winner- Giulia
Grade: B
This match was fun. Giulia looked the best she has since joining the main roster. Vega played the underdog role well; she did just enough to make this writer and the entire crowd bite on every near fall she was involved in. Though it’s still odd that a reigning champion was in the qualifying match, this contest delivered despite the weird lineup.
You heard, @RealNickAldis!
We’re getting @MiaYim and @TheVibeBri vs. @wwe_alba and @PiperNivenWWE TONIGHT!#SmackDown pic.twitter.com/lyz3uLb2uD
— WWE (@WWE) May 24, 2025
Chris Sabin w/Alex Shelley vs. Tommaso Ciampa w/Johnny Gargano
Sabin is in control early. Ciampa tosses his jacket at Sabin for a distraction. Willow’s Bell by Ciampa. After the break, Sabin and Ciampa brawl. The fight spills out on the apron. Air raid crash on the apron by Ciampa. Sabin manages to kick out. Diving tornado DDT by Sabin. Gargano gets on the apron. Sabin takes out Ciampa and Gargano with a dive. Ciampa cuts Sabin off as he goes up top. Sabin pushes Ciampa off the top. Ciampa’s knee buckles. The referee checks on Sabin. Candice LeRae appears and stuns Sabin on the top rope while the referee is distracted. Ciampa lands a running knee for the win.
Winner- Tommaso Ciampa
Grade: B-
Solid match. We haven’t seen much of either of these guys in singles action, so it’s nice to see them one-on-one. They tore into each other like two guys in a grudge match, which is odd for a SmackDown match these days. Considering what happened with Zoey Stark on Raw, it’s strange that they would run a fake injury angle, but here we are.
While Damian Priest is making his way to the ring, Drew McIntyre attacks Priest. McIntyre and Priest fight down to the ring and are separated by security and officials. Priest grabs a mic and says he’s getting his pound of flesh tonight. Priest goes after McIntyre again.
That was cold, @AlexaBliss_WWE ?@MsCharlotteWWE #SmackDown pic.twitter.com/HdB5pHZVCB
— WWE (@WWE) May 24, 2025
Backstage, Jacob Fatu tells Solo Sikoa he didn’t need Sikoa or JC Mateo‘s help to retain his title. Sikoa says they need to focus on bringing Jimmy Uso back into the fold. Fatu says he doesn’t want anything to do with Mateo, since he isn’t family, Fatu doesn’t trust him, and he doesn’t like him.
The Secret Hervice vs. Michin and B-Fab
Fyre and Niven are in control early, working over B-Fab. B-Fab manages to tag in Michin. Michin clears the ring. Chelsea Green hops on the apron. Zelina Vega pulls Green off the apron and lands a knee strike. Niven chases Vega away. Michin hits Eat d’feet. Frye falls into B-Fab’s facebuster finish for the win.
Winners- Michin and B-Fab
Grade: C+
This one was quick, which was probably for the best. B-Fab is improving, and it was nice to see her not be the one to eat the pin here and actually get the win. They are building a nice women’s mid-card on SmackDown, and this tag match weirdly featured all of the key players, but this was the best use of everyone involved.
United States Champion Jacob Fatu and JC Mateo w/Solo Sikoa vs. Jimmy Uso and Rey Fenix
Before the match starts, Sikoa tries to reason with Jimmy. Mateo tags himself in, much to Fatu’s chagrin. Fatu tags himself but Jimmy tosses Fenix into a dropkick to Fatu. Jimmy and Fenix clear the ring. Jimmy assists Fenix as he springboards off the top into a corkscrew splash.
After the break, Mateo lands a standing moonsault on Jimmy. Running hip attack by Fatu. Fatu and Mateo work over Jimmy. Jimmy manages to tag in Fenix. Fenix clears the ring. Poison rana by Fenix. Fatu kicks out. Pop up Samoan drop by Fatu. Fenix lands on his feet after a German suplex and tags in Jimmy. Fenix tries a dive, but Fatu catches him and slams him on the commentary desk. After a distraction from Sikoa, Mateo lands the Tour of the Islands on Jimmy for the win.
Winners- Jacob Fatu and JC Mateo
Grade: B
Solid match. Fenix and Jimmy started this one hot with a quick but hard-hitting offense. Fatu and Mateo took control and dominated, tossing Fenix and Jimmy all over the ring. It was evident this match wouldn’t come to a close without Sikoa getting involved, but even with the unclean finish, this one banged.
The Truth Speaks
An uncharacteristically sullen R-Truth makes his way to the ring. Truth says everyone keeps asking him how he will handle fighting his childhood hero tomorrow night. They don’t get it. Truth isn’t fighting his hero tomorrow night. The man who attacked him isn’t the man he used to know. Truth says he realized the problem. The problem is power. Cena used to call Truth his friend; his brother. The more power Cena got, the more disconnected he got.
Cena eventually ghosted Truth. Truth likens Cena to Gollum from “Lord of the Rings.” The championship is Cena’s precious. It’s not about the title; it’s about Cena’s ego. Truth says Cena is the greatest of all time, but he doesn’t know if he can bring Cena back. Truth is going to try. If Cena wants to ruin wrestling, Truth will have to save Cena to save wrestling. Truth doesn’t want to put his hands on Cena, but if Truth has to, he’ll beat the hustle, loyalty, and respect back into Cena. If Cena wins, we riot!
Grade B
R-Truth is a national treasure, and this was a good promo despite the crowd whating Truth to death. Truth showed legitimate passion here and eventually got the crowd on his side. Truth has a snowball’s chance in hell of beating Cena at SNME, but after this promo everyone will be pulling for him.
Men’s Money in the Bank Qualifying Match: Aleister Black vs. LA Knight vs. Shinsuke Nakamura
Knight and Black immediately attack Nakamura. Black and Knight drops Nakamura with a high/low attack. Nakamura is launched out of the ring by Black and Knight. Black and Knight trade shots. Leaping neckbreaker by Knight. Nakamura trips Knight as he charges in for a knee strike. Black and Nakamura face off. Nakamura and Black trade strikes. Black sends Nakamura out of the ring. Black sets up the triangle moonsault but is cut off by Knight, who leaps up to the top rope. Megaplex by Knight.
Nakamura surprises Knight with a diving knee strike. Black and Nakamura face off. Nakamura and Black trade strikes. Black sends Nakamura out of the ring. Black sets up the triangle moonsault but is cut off by Knight, who leaps up to the top rope. Megaplex by Knight. Nakamura surprises Knight with a diving knee strike. After the break, Black tweaks his knee during a dive. Black counters Kinshasa with Black Mass. Knight tosses Black out of the ring and steals the pin.
Winner- LA Knight
Grade: C+
This was the worst of what we see in triple that matches- one of the competitors disappears for minutes at a time while the other two work each other over. In some cases, you don’t notice it as much. Here it was egregious. As they paired off during different parts of the match, it became evident that singles matches between either of these men would have been way more interesting. Knight winning may have been telegraphed, but how he won was fitting. Some may quibble that it was a heel finish. This writer would say that it was a SMART one. For one, the good guy didn’t act like an idiot and not take advantage of this type of situation. Knight is officially the smartest good guy on the roster.
WWE Tag Team Championship Match: Street Profits (Angelo Dawkins & Montez Ford) (c) vs. Fraxiom (Nathan Frazer & Axiom)
Dawkins and Axiom kick off the match. Dawkins works an armbar. Frazer gets the tag and grabs a side headlock. After a leapfrog spot, Dawkins floors Frazer with a shoulder block. Ford tags in and floors Frazer with a dropkick. Frazer and Axiom clear the ring. Frazer and Axiom both land a series of dives. After the break, Frazer catches Ford with a springboard dropkick. Dawkins pounces Frazer into a side suplex from Ford. After the break, both teams trade big moves.
The Street Profits hit the doomsday blockbuster. Frazer breaks it up with a springboard elbow. Axiom and Frazer hit their finish on Dawkins. Ford breaks up the pin with a double stomp but gets caught with a kick from Axiom. #DIY run down to ringside. Motor City Machine Guns hit the ring and attack #DIY. Ford lands a dive that takes out the field. Dawkins drops Frazer with a spinebuster. Ford goes up top. The lights go out, and the Wyatt Sicks are in the ring. The Wyatt Sicks leave everyone laid out.
Grade: C+
This writer wasn’t a fan of this title match happening this soon. There were only two possible outcomes: Fraxiom actually wins, or there is a non-finish. Neither of those options are good, and the inclusion of the Wyatt Sicks here made little to no sense. So, do the Sicks want the tag titles? Why would they care about titles? What was the point of this?
WWE SmackDown Review:
The show had a few bright spots, particularly in the women’s division MITB match and storytelling. However, multiple odd finishes and a lack of clear direction in some angles prevent this from being a higher-rated show.
Rating: B-
This event is ongoing. This information will be updated as the event progresses.
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