5 Ups & 5 Downs From WWE SmackDown (2 Jan - Results & Review)

4. Ambulance Match Underwhelms

Many had high hopes for the blow off between Damian Priest and Aleister Black, but this was underwhelming. Admittedly (and being fair about it), the ‘Ambulance Match’ gimmick is a tough nut to crack, because it’s effectively ‘put dude in vehicle and shut doors’, so there isn’t that much drama. They also really tried here, but nothing other than the final few minutes was worth seeing.

Even the fireball revenge spot felt tame and inconsequential. That same blast put Priest on the shelf and gave him visible injuries. On this occasion, it did nothing but stop Black for 30 seconds. So, what was the point? You've also got to question the wisdom of the result - Priest has felt ice cold for a while, and this was Aleister’s chance to properly ascend to main event status. He’ll seemingly be stuck in the midcard glut for life, and has become a new version of Bray Wyatt in terms of making grandiose promises without coming through on them in the end.

Yes, this guy wishes he could be more positive and gush about the main event, but it just didn’t hit personally. Maybe some fans reading this piece will feel different, and that’s totally cool. This is just one person's opinion, after all. It doesn't make yours truly right. Everybody sees things their own way.

Throughout, there was a sense that everyone was killing time until Rhea Ripley emerged from the ambulance and they could sprint to the finish. That left the opening 20 minutes or so rather flat. This might be viewed as one that got away for WWE come the end of 2026.