A major championship change took place during WWE’s latest SmackDown tapings.
And that wasn’t all.
WWE taped the December 26 episode of SmackDown on December 19 from Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, Michigan. During the taping, a title switch occurred that fans will see when the episode airs next week.
The show featured the latest United States Championship Open Challenge, and yes, the title changed hands.
Carmelo Hayes captured the WWE United States Championship, defeating Ilja Dragunov to begin his first reign with the title.
The match came after Dragunov once again issued a United States Title Open Challenge, which was answered by Hayes. This marked the second time Hayes has stepped up to Dragunov’s open challenge, having previously answered it on the December 5 episode of SmackDown.
This victory officially gives Hayes his first run as United States Champion on the main roster.
Interestingly, Hayes and Dragunov had teamed together earlier that same night on the December 19 episode of SmackDown, picking up a win over DIY (Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa).
As we noted heading into the double taping in Grand Rapids, Trick Williams, the former NXT and TNA World Champion, was backstage at the arena and it was rumored that he could finally be getting called up from NXT to the WWE main roster on one of the shows.
He ultimately did appear on the SmackDown show for 12/26, taking part in a backstage segment alongside Cody Rhodes and SmackDown General Manager Nick Aldis.
Between a new U.S. Champion and Trick Williams officially entering the SmackDown scene, the December 26 episode is one worth checking out. The show also featured the announcement of a big “3 Stages of Hell” showdown between Cody Rhodes and Drew McIntyre for the Undisputed WWE Championship on the first three-hour episode of WWE SmackDown in January.
For those interested, you can check out complete WWE SmackDown Spoilers For December 26, 2025 right here at WrestlingHeadlines.com.
You can also read complete WWE Raw Spoilers For December 22, 2025 as well.
Make sure to join us here at WrestlingHeadlines.com every Friday night at 8/7c for live WWE SmackDown results coverage.
SMACKDOWN SPOILERS
it won’t air for a week but holy shit Ilja vs Carmelo was the best match i’ve seen in a LONG TIME#smackdown #wwe pic.twitter.com/AZs3tuVTAO
— Joey (@joeyeinberger) December 20, 2025
