7 Ups & 1 Down From WWE SmackDown (14 Feb - Results & Review)

1. Chaos Ensues And Priest Is In

Braun Strowman vs. Damian Priest vs. Jacob Fatu was always going to be chaotic as a SmackDown main event, and it didn’t disappoint. If you’re in the mood to nitpick, you’d say some of the stuff between Cody Rhodes, Solo Sikoa, Tama Tonga and Fatu was a little busy outside the ring, but that only added to the lawless feel of the match in progress.

Priest qualified for the Chamber match, Fatu saw Solo accidentally level Tama with a Samoan Spike, and Rhodes got some measure of revenge for last week. Everything worked out, and Triple H's writing managed to hit several heavy plot points without coming across as forced. They even found the time to have Cody and Priest share a handshake before both stared up at the big neon WrestleMania 41 sign.

That's highly unlikely for Vegas, but there's nothing wrong with setting the scene for a match between the pair later this year.

Braun, like The Miz, knows what he's there for on Friday nights. He's a tool to help others look amazing, and he's smashing that role opposite Fatu. Their collisions always come across as must see. Throw Damian Priest into the mix and you had one hell of a scenario to close out the show.

The biggest takeaways from this are Priest's Chamber qualification, Solo giving Jacob answers then distracting him by levelling Tonga, Cody going after the ex-New Bloodline leader, and the lure of matches to come like Cody vs. Priest or Rhodes vs. Fatu. Things are looking good when it comes to Trips stacking up title bouts for the rest of 2025.

What did you think of this week's WWE SmackDown? For more like this, check out 12 Exact Moments WWE Titles Became Worthless and 10 WWE Wrestlers In Danger Of Missing Out On WrestleMania 41!