WWE SmackDown Results & Highlights (6/27/25): Cody Rhodes and Randy Orton faceoff before KOTR, Rey Fenix makes a surprise entry, John Cena and more

The night before the Night of Champions sees a star-studded Kingdom arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. From WWE Women’s Champion Tiffany Stratton, to the woman she will face tonight, Nia Jax, to WWE Tag Team Champions Montez Ford and Angelo Dawkins and Women’s U.S.

Champion Zelina Vega, Giulia, Jade Cargill, and Asuka, Riyadh is a myriad of wrestling superstars. The June 27th edition of WWE SmackDown is a preview to the big night, where the King and Queen of the Ring for 2025 will be decided. But not to fret, the night in itself has some pretty high profile matches to go through, and John Cena is also set to be featured alongside CM Punk, Cody Rhodes, Randy Orton, and LA Knight

Opening segment with Cody Rhodes and Randy Orton

Cody Rhodes makes his entrance after being introduced by ring announcer Mark Nash to the crowd cheering for him.

He was about to speak when he got interrupted by entrance music. Randy Orton walked to the ring, and the crowd continued to sing his theme song even after it stopped playing. The segment then got cut short for international viewers because of a feed issue with Netflix. The streaming company posted a graphic apologizing for the interruption, and then a “we’ll be right back” graphic appeared.

Jimmy Uso vs. JC Mateo (with Solo Sikoa)

The Bloodline members or whatever is left of it, are still fighting against each other.

And this time it was a match between JC Mateo and Jimmy Uso with an appearance from Solo Sikoa. Mateo looked to be the dominant one from the beginning, even though Jimmy Uso tried his best to overcome his opponent. At the end, Uso went up top and then jumped over and rolled, but Mateo was ready for him and defeated Uso by pinfall in about 6 minutes into the match.

In an after match segment, Solo Sikoa, who tried to distract Jimmy Uso during the match, helped him up and asked him if he was ready to come back.

In return, he got slapped by his cousin while fans booed. Jacob Fatu made an entrance to the crowd cheering for him, and dropped a Samoan Drop on Mateo after running into the ring, and then a double jump moonsault. Uso then pushed Fatu out of the way and superkicked Sikoa out of the ring, bringing an end to the segment.

In a backstage segment, #DIY and other tag teams are seen talking about The Wyatt Sicks when SmackDown General Manager Nick Aldis comes in. Listening to their chatter, Aldis calls in Andrade and asks him to find a partner to face a now furious #DIY

Zelina Vega vs. Giulia for the Women’s U.S. Championship

Both Giulia and Zelina Vega looked to be equally matched as the fight started.

When Giulia hit a double underhook superplex, Vega retaliated with a Code Red. The match seemed like it could be in anyone's favor, before Giulia kneed her opponent in the face before hitting Vega with a Northern Lights Bomb, defeating her in roughly 7:30 minutes to win the Women’s U.S. Championship by pinfall.

In another backstage segment, Charlotte Flair and Alexa Bliss are seen exchanging a few words before the latter walks off. Could this be the beginning of an unlikely partnership? Then Aksuka and Jade Cargill make their way into the ring before tomorrow night, where they will face off against each other for the Queen of the Ring title.

They exchange a few words before Money in the Bank winner Naomi cuts them off with her entrance. There is a strong chance she will cash in her MITB win during the Night of Champions event the next night.

In yet another backstage segment, Aleister Black walks in on Raw General Manager Adam Pearce and SmackDown General Manager Nick Aldis discussing the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship. But it all turns into chaos when R-Truth bursts in demanding to get a face-off against John Cena.

Aldis tells him that John Cena is in Riyadh to fight CM Punk, but R-Truth says he is here for Cena before walks off. All this while, Black is there watching everything happen.

At the end he walks off. Is another storyline brewing backstage?

“DIY” Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa vs. Andrade and Rey Fenix

Andrade bringing in Rey Fenix was a surprise for many, and the crowd are seen cheering for what is to come. The two tag teams go up against each other one after the other. At one time Fenix is seen running to the top rope and kicking Tommaso Ciampa in the face, while in the next moment fans can see #DIY hitting Andrade with the Shatter Machine for a near fall.

At the end Andrade and Rey Fenix defeated “DIY” Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa by pinfall in about 15 minutes into the match.

After the earlier backstage segment, R-Truth gets in the ring to a deafening crowd response. He is in his vibe, and calls out John Cena. But suddenly, Aleister Black comes from behind and hits him with Black Mass and a cryptic message, before walking off. The audience is left bewildered.

WWE Tag Team Championship

The Street Profits sees Angelo Dawkins and Montez Ford going against The Wyatt Sicks members, Joe Gacy and Dexter Lumis.

To make things interesting, Erik Rowan, Nikki Cross, and Uncle Howdy also make their appearance, as things go awry minutes into the match. Los Garza, The Motor City Machine Guns, and Fraxiom are all seen coming to ringside, and even the recent losers #DIY are there. A brawl breaks out, leading to the match being thrown out.

WWE Women’s Championship

The Last Woman Standing Match seesNia Jax going against the current title holder, Tiffany Stratton.

Before the bell can even ring, Nia Jax throws Tiffany Stratton into the ring post. Jax's physically imposing nature comes in handy against a lithe opponent like Stratton, but the latter manages to keep herself in the match over and over. Suddenly, Naomi runs into the ring with her Money in the Bank briefcase. But while she is talking to the referee, Stratton hits her before sending Jax on top of her.

In the end, Stratton picked up the MITB briefcase and knocked Jax off before taking the win for herself with a pinfall after 17 minutes in the ring.

The final segment of the night saw WWE Champion John Cena making his entrance with his title belt held high. He said, "This is what a winner looks like,” and called CM Punk a loser. CM Punk then made his entry wearing a Chicago Cubs jersey, a chain with a padlock on it, a Chicago Bulls hat on backwards, and jorts, mocking Cena's usual attire.

Punk also put on big rings resembling Cena, before saying, “Yo, check it, this is basic Punkanomics.

Don’t adjust your television set, your eyes are just right. This clown plagiarized my pipe bomb, so now I’m stealing WordLife.” John Cena looked completely shocked at the tune of events as Punk continued rapping and rhyming. The Best in the World then dropped the mic and did the infamous “you can’t see me” hand gesture in Cena’s face, bringing an end to the show.PS. From next week onwards, SmackDown will be back to its two-hour long format.Also Read: WWE Night of Champions 2025 preview and streaming details (06/28/25): Full match card, show highlights, how to watch, and more