WWE SmackDown Results: New champion crowned; Cody Rhodes opens up about brutal attack; returning star gets revenge (3/7/25)

We saw Drew McIntyre attack and wipe out Damian Priest before the WWE SmackDown kicked off with Randy Orton in the ring. Randy called out John Cena for selling out to The Rock and said he had lost all respect for his old friend.

However, despite everything, he hadn't lost respect for Kevin Owens but called him jealous. He recalled KO trying to end his career with the Piledriver. Then he recapped Sami Zayn's feud with Owens before remembering that KO has had more achievements than most, even getting a WrestleMania match against Stone Cold Steve Austin.

Orton said that he had promised he wouldn't let anything piss him off, but Kevin Owens managed to make him very pissed off. He said the voices were back, and they wanted him to kick KO's head off at Elimination Chamber. He promised to punt-kick KO before SmackDown moved on.

WWE SmackDown Results (March 7, 2025) :

Tiffany Stratton def. Piper Niven
Pretty Deadly def. Motor City Machine Guns & Los Garza
Braun Strowman def. Solo Sikoa via DQ
Chelsea Green def. Michin to retain the Women's United States Championship
Drew McIntyre def. Jimmy Uso
LA Knight def. Shinsuke Nakamura to become the new United States Champion

WWE SmackDown Results: Piper Niven vs. Tiffany Stratton

Niven got the early advantage with a takedown and got some strikes in before Stratton got a side headlock in. After a break on SmackDown, Stratton got a big takedown off the ropes, a back elbow, and a dropkick for near fall.

Piper sent Stratton into the corner before taking a big slam after the latter sidestepped her running move. Stratton headed up the ropes and hit a senton before dodging the Vader Bomb and getting the moonsault for the win.

Result: Tiffany Stratton def. Piper Niven

After the match, Charlotte Flair ran out and hit Stratton with a chop block before locking her in the Figure Eight.

Grade: B-

WWE SmackDown Results: Los Garza vs. Motor City Machine Guns vs. Pretty Deadly

Garza and Wilson were in the ring early on, and Shelley was tagged in. The match developed into a full-on brawl before they took each other and cleared the ring.

Motor City Machine Guns were in control when we got back from a break, and Sabin got a big dive and a tornado DDT before wiping out Los Garza and Elton Prince with a big dive. Kit Wilson came back and wiped Sabin out before Elton tagged in and got the backslide on Chris for the win.

Result: Pretty Deadly def. Motor City Machine Guns & Los Garza

Grade: B

Bianca Belair was out next on SmackDown and called out Naomi to ask her about the mess with Jade Cargill. Belair asked Naomi if she had attacked Cargill, but the latter made excuses and tried to remind Bianca of their successful partnership.

Belair insisted that she answer the question before Naomi tearfully confessed that she did attack Cargill and then snapped and said that she should have attacked her sooner and taken her out.

Bianca walked out while Naomi tried apologizing and explaining herself. Jade Cargill came in and took Naomi out with Jaded before SmackDown moved on.

Charlotte was backstage, and B-Fab came in and told her that no one wanted to bow to her. Flair challenged her to a match next week before we headed back to the ring on SmackDown.

WWE SmackDown Results: Braun Strowman vs. Solo Sikoa

Solo took some big hits early but managed to take Strowman down in the ring and get a headlock in. Braun fought back with elbows and got to his feet before taking a big boot. Solo hit the Samoan Drop on Braun before the latter came back with a crossbody.

Strowman got the running tackle outside the ring before tossing Solo back inside for some splashes in the corner. Solo dodged the powerslam and got some kicks but took the powerslam before the Tama Tonga ran in and attacked Braun, getting the match called off.

Result: Braun Strowman def. Solo Sikoa via DQ

Braun wiped Tama Tonga out before Jacob Fatu showed up and had a stare-down with Strowman across the ring. The two started a brawl, and Fatu hit some superkicks before sending Braun out for a big dive.

Strowman tossed Fatu over the announce desk, and the latter tossed him over the barricades and hit an elbow from the top. They fought their way into the production/tech area and Strowman hit a chokeslam from on top of a few road cases and through some tables below.

Grade: B+

Chelsea Green was backstage, and Zelina Vega came in to make fun of her while trying to get Piper Niven back in shape to help in the following streetfight match.

WWE SmackDown Result: Chelsea Green (c) vs. Michin - Women's United States Championship match

Chelsea attacked Michin during her entrance, and the match started after the two brawled their way into the ring. Michin dropped Chelsea on a steel chair before the champ hit her with a trash can. Michin tried to bite Green's fingers before bringing out a table, but Green took her out with a neckbreaker and put the table back under the ring.

Green tied Michin's arms together with a rope before using it to drag her around the ring. Michin was sent into the barricades outside before she sprayed Green in the face with a fire extinguisher. Piper Niven wiped Michin out at ringside before Green got the coast-to-coast with a trashcan in the ring.

B-Fab came out and attacked Niven, sending her running before Michin fought back with a kendo stick and took control of the match. Michin got a cannonball using a trashcan before getting a top-rope move through a table.

A woman in a black hoodie attacked Michin and hit the Canadian Destroyer on her. It turned out to be Alba Fyre, who sent Green back into the ring so she could win.

Result: Chelsea Green def. Michin to retain the Women's United States Championship

Grade: B+

Santos Escobar yelled at Los Garza backstage, and after he left, Andrade came in to tell Berto that they deserved better.

Cody Rhodes was out next, and the crowd chanted, "Cena sucks," before talking about how he had to lie to his children about the bruises on his face, telling them that he ran into the wall.

Cody talked about how he used to drive John Cena around to absorb whatever he could from show to show. He asked why Cena did it and then said that if John were there, he would give a big speech to justify his actions.

Rhodes continued and said that this was where his dad, Dusty Rhodes, was afraid to perform. However, the fans cheered for Cody whenever he was in the ring, and he didn't know why. He called Cena out and told him to "Come and get some" before SmackDown moved on.

WWE SmackDown Results: Jimmy Uso vs. Drew McIntyre

McIntyre was sent outside early on and sent over the announce desk with a huge crossbody. Drew was in control after a break on SmackDown but took a big superkick for a near fall. Uso went for the splash and missed before Drew came in with the Claymore and got the quick victory.

Result: Drew McIntyre def. Jimmy Uso

After the match, Damian Priest hit Drew with a kick to the face. Officials tried to hold him back, but Priest broke free and wiped McIntyre out for good.

Grade: C

DIY was backstage, and they said that there was no way Pretty Deadly could beat them. They wanted a moment of silence to mourn their careers.

WWE SmackDown Results: Shinsuke Nakamura (c) vs. LA Knight - United States Championship match

Nakamura was in control early on but took a big baseball slide before things headed outside the ring. Back in the ring, Nakamura got some quick kicks and a knee drop for a near fall.

Knight came back with a big takedown but missed the superplex before Shinsuke got a top-rope suplex of his own. Knight came back with a big superplex and got the elbow drop before the BFT was reversed.

Nakamura got a steel chair, but Knight blocked the attack before the referee warned them and took it away. The distraction saw Nakamura try for the poison mist, but he hit the referee instead. Nakamura got the Scorpio Rising, but Knight came back with the BFT on the chair. A new official rushed out to get the count, and Knight picked up the big win!

Result: LA Knight def. Shinsuke Nakamura to become the new United States Champion

Grade: B+

The show went off the air as LA celebrated his win.