Friday Night SmackDown Review - May 16, 2025

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Tensions Rose Between Solo Sikoa and United States Champion Jacob Fatu Before LA Knight Attacked JC​ Mateo

As was believed to be the case when it was reported that WWE had trademarked the name JC Mateo, that will be what Jeff Cobb will be known as going forward. I suppose it could be worse. Meanwhile, Sikoa and Fatu continued to tease tension. Hopefully their split isn't as drawn out as A-Town Down Under's. Knight going after Mateo was logical after Mateo playing a part in him failing to win the United States Championship at Backlash.

Alexa Bliss def. Chelsea Green and Michin in a Triple Threat Match to Qualify for the Women's Money in the Bank Ladder Match

It's hard to go wrong with a Triple Threat that has something at stake, so it wasn't much of a surprise that the crowd was into this, especially with Bliss being as over with the audience as she is. I thought Green might steal the win after the breakout performance she had at last year's Money in the Bank, but I understand going with the hot hand in Bliss instead. Maybe Green qualifies in a possible Last Chance match before the pay-per-view?

Fraxiom def. #DIY

This was Fraxiom's fourth consecutive match on SmackDown and their fourth consecutive win. I'm all for building them up and I'm happy to see them getting a strong push out of the gate, but WWE needs to be careful to not have them run through the entire tag team division on the blue brand so quickly as there won't be much left for them to do. With all of that said, this was another enjoyable outing from them. Fraxiom will get their WWE Tag Team Championship opportunity against The Street Profits next Friday night.

Aleister Black def. Carmelo Hayes by Disqualification

I wish WWE waited to deliver the first one-on-one encounter between these two instead of rushing into it last week, and then they rushed into the rematch this week. It's one of the many issues SmackDown faces being three hours long. They once again worked well together and were on their way toward having a great match before The Miz interfered. Black has a Money in the Bank qualifier with Knight and Shinsuke Nakamura next week, so we'll see if Hayes and/or Miz get involved in that, too.

Drew McIntyre Addressed Damian Priest

Priest previously challenged McIntyre to a Steel Cage match at Saturday Night's Main Event and this was McIntyre's confirmation. He cut a serious, straightforward promo recapping their rivalry and promising that it will end inside the cage. This was exactly what it needed to be and I liked how Priest didn't come out to interrupt or brawl with him. That's an excellent addition to an already stacked Saturday Night's Main Event card.

Solo Sikoa def. Rey Fenix and Jimmy Uso in a Triple Threat Match to Qualify for the Men's Money in the Bank Ladder Match

It sucks Fenix apparently won't be competing in Money in the Bank this year (unless he wins a Last Chance qualifier). It also sucks that Sikoa pinned him to qualify and not Uso. Otherwise, this was good stuff. It was the better of the two Triple Threat matches on this show and was nicely paced. I have less than zero interest in seeing Sikoa as Mr. Money in the Bank, so fingers crossed that doesn't happen.

JC Mateo def. LA Knight

This was an impromptu match after Knight again showed up at ringside to attack Mateo, so neither of them had their usual ring gear on. I don't know why this was so long if they weren't going to do much for a majority of it. It was a very boring bout up until the final few minutes. Mateo showed off impressive offense, but that's about it. At least Mateo won his debut match.

WWE Women's Champion Tiffany Stratton def. Nia Jax

I was concerned with this started without much time left in the show, but they ended up making the most of the time they had and producing an entertaining main event. That chaotic closing stretch proved Jax and Stratton have strong chemistry together. It's worth noting that Naomi attempted to interfere right before the finish, but she was thwarted by Jade Cargill, so that feud was furthered as well.

Overall Show

There was also a pre-taped sit-down interview with Wade Barrett and R-Truth, where it was made official that Truth and Cena will have a (non-title) match at Saturday Night's Main Event. I don't believe Cena is advertised for next week's episode, so they won't face off again until the event itself. Nonetheless, this was a slight-thumbs-up show thanks to the quality action, Money in the Bank stakes and fun main event. I still feel every bit of the three hours, but thankfully, the return to two hours is imminent.

SEE MORE: SmackDown Reviews