WWE SmackDown Live Preview: January 30th, 2018

The road to WrestleMania has begun following the rather underwhelming but historic Royal Rumble on Saturday. The seeds have been sown for some epic rivalries which will culminate at the biggest show of them all.

Also check: Live Card and coverage for Smackdown Live

However, there is still room for the WWE creative team to come up with some new twists and stipulations, as they go all out in their attempts to make this year's WrestleMania better than the years gone by.

Tonight's SmackDown Live will be coming live from the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and here is our preview for the blue brand's show:

#1 A new Rowdy in town

After the culmination of the first-ever women's Royal Rumble match, which Asuka won after eliminating Nikki Bella, WWE gave the fans the biggest surprise of the night as Ronda Rousey returned to the hallowed squared circle of WWE.

The only other time that the former UFC Champion had stepped into a WWE ring was during WrestleMania 31 when she helped The Rock clear the ring of Triple H and Stephanie McMahon. However, at Royal Rumble, Ronda didn't make a one-off appearance, instead, she was there to make her intention clear as she confronted the Raw Women's Champion Alexa Bliss, the SmackDown Women's Champion Charlotte Flair and Royal Rumble winner Asuka.

Ronda has penned a full-time contract with WWE and is expected to be a part of the blue brand. The former UFC superstar tried to congratulate Asuka on her historic win, but her advances were no sold by the Empress of Tomorrow.

It will be interesting to see who comes up against the "Rowdy" one, or whether she will be feuding against the SmackDown Women's Champion Charlotte Flair. There is also unfinished business between Rousey and Raw commissioner Stephanie McMahon. It will be interesting how the WWE creative leverages Ronda in the storylines and tonight's episode should provide us with some answers