Welcome to Wrestling Inc.’s live coverage for “WWE SmackDown” on January 16, 2026, coming to you from the OVO Arena Wembley in London, England!
Drew McIntyre shocked the world last week when he dethroned Cody Rhodes as Undisputed WWE Champion in a Three Stages of Hell Match thanks to interference from a returning Jacob Fatu who attacked both men during the Steel Cage portion of the match. Following such, McIntyre will be making an appearance on tonight’s show in front of his home United Kingdom crowd with something on his mind to share.
Speaking of McIntyre and the Undisputed WWE Championship, “SmackDown” General Manager Nick Aldis announce a series of four Undisputed WWE Championship Number One Contenders Qualifiers last Friday to determine who would advance to a Four-Way Match at WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event to determine McIntyre’s first challenger. Tonight will see all four qualifiers take place, as Randy Orton collides with The Miz while Damian Priest goes head-to-head with MFT leader Solo Sikoa. Sami Zayn will also be colliding with Ilja Dragunov, and Trick Williams will be facing Matt Cardona.
Former WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions Alexa Bliss and Charlotte Flair will be joining forces with one another once again tonight to take on reigning Women’s United States Champion Giulia and her ally Kiana James. Bliss unsuccessfully challenged Giulia for her championship during last Friday’s edition of the show, with Flair being absent from ringside due to an unspecified illness.
Additionally, United States Champion Carmelo Hayes will be hosting another US Open Challenge after successful defenses against Johnny Gargano and Shinsuke Nakamura on the January 2 and 9 episodes of “SmackDown” respectively.
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