The Royal Rumble is a week away and you’d never know it. There hasn’t been any hype any real lead-up. Nothing. It is like the WWE creative team have already written it off and moved on already. Considering the incredibly poor creative that have going I don’t blame them. Not that AEW, TNA or NJPW are much better. Wrestling world-wide is in a massive, collective slump. There isn’t any BIG THING that’s exciting fans or getting them talking. If the others wanted to pull past WWE this is the time to back them into the ropes.
Could there be life in the WWE yet? They usually do their best work around WrestleMania. Let’s see if tonight’s SNME from Montreal, Quebec, Canada, can light a spark of some sort for the Rumble. Peut-être. Peut-être pas.
In their intro the WWE once again this is all-new, a new direction with new sights. Repeating something enough times doesn’t make it true WWE.
SNME January 24, 2026 Results
Cody Rhodes versus Jacob Fatu
Fatu heads to the ring spouting his garble. I love him but that repetitive rambling about “brakes” and being “locked in” is getting really, really old. He needs a new vocabulary.
Fatu attacks Cody as soon as he steps on the apron. The bell hasn’t rung yet and Cody is still getting out of his ring jacket. Security comes down to try and separate them. Cody leaps through the ropes. Fatu decks him. Fatu beats the snot out of security.
They battle back into the ring. Cody clotheslines Fatu over the top rope to the floor. He knocks him over the announce table. The fans cheer.
Cody! Cody!
They brawl into the crowd with security tailing them. Fatu spears Cody into a barricade. Cody throws a recycling bin at Fatu. Fatu backdrops Cody onto the concrete floor. Fatu’s head bounces off an equipment case. They fight up a stairway to the top of the arena and an entranceway. They arrive in a lobby with Cody belting Fatu and officials with recycling bins. Fatu slams security guard through a table.
Cody! Cody Rhodes! Cody! Cody Rhodes!
They heave a security guard off a barricade but…our World Champion Drew McIntyre arrives! He slams Fatu through a table by his hair, low-blows Cody and Jackknife Powerbombs Cody through another table. McIntyre heads to the ring as Cody and Fatu lay stunned.
Winner: N/A. The match never started.
On YouTube we are treated to a very long commercial break. WWE 2K is releasing a Monday Night Wars edition of WWE 2K 26.
Cathy Kelley catches up to Drew backstage. He says what just happened is what will happen to whomever steps to him.
Rhiyo (Rhea Ripley and Iyo Sky) (c) versus The Judgment Day (Liv Morgan and Roxanne Perez) – WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship Match
Sky attacks Liv right out of the block. Liv lays in some punches and then parades around Iyo. Iyo fights off Perez and Liv on her own.
Iyo! Iyo!
Liv chokes Iyo over the top rope. Perez haymakers Iyo on the mat. Liv gives Iyo The Three Amigos as she and Perez cut Iyo off from Ripley.
Iyo! Iyo!
Iyo looks like she will tag Ripley buy Perez drops an elbow on her. Iyo tags Rhea as Liv tags Perez. Rhea clotheslines Liv over and over before sending Liv across the ring with a fallaway slam. Liv escapes a Razor’s Edge. She tags in Perez. Rhea brings her in over the top rope. Perez flips Rhea across the ring. Liv nails the Code Breaker for a two count. Rhea slams Liv with a Razor’s Edge. Iyo lands a Missile Drop Kick. Perez has to save the match.
Iyo misses Bullet Train. Liv rolls her up for a two count. Liv leaps off the top rope. Iyo evades Pop Rox with a spinning kick. Iyo leaps off the top rope with Over the Moonsault. Perez puts her knee up to block it. Pop Rox off the ropes. The official has to pause his count to allow Rhea time to beak up the pinfall.
Rhea hits Riptide on Perez. Iyo finally lands her Over The Moonsault. As the official attempts to make the count, Raquel Rodriguez trips up Rhea causing her to fall and land on the official before being yanked out to the floor. Raquel throws Rhea into a barricade. Iyo dives at Raquel. Raquel catches her, slams her on the floor and pitches her back into the ring.
Stephanie Vaquer’s music plays. She comes running out. She super kicks her over the barricade and leaps off the barricade onto Raquel. Vaquer and Raquel slug it out to the backstage area.
Meanwhile, Perez, Iyo and the official are out in the middle of the ring. Perez tags in Liv. Liv takes out Iyo with Oblivion but…Rhea has tagged herself in. Rhea pins Liv with Riptide.
Winners: …and still WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions…Rhiyo (Rhea Ripley and Iyo Sky).
AJ Styles versus Shinsuke Nakamura
We get to see the Shinsuke of old in this match.
No, they don’t want none
No, they don’t want none
They looking scared no they don’t really want none…
Styles comes to the ring wearing the same mask that he did during his last match in NJPW which was against…Shinsuke Nakamura.
The announcers go over Styles leading Bullet Club in NJPW and Shinsuke guiding Chaos, their feuds there.
AJ Styles! Nakamura! AJ Styles! Nakamura!
Styles tries to leap frog Nakamura. Nakamura kicks him in the chest. Styles lays on the mat holding the middle of his chest as the official checks in on him.
Nakamura backs Styles into a corner. He waves his arms loosely as he has done before which angers Styles. Barrett says Styles looks tense during this match perhaps because he is worrying about his match against Guther at Royal Rumble.
Styles does the Bullet Club taunt firing a bullet at Shinsuke. Shinsuke catches the imaginary bullet and places it in his heart. He dares Styles to “Come on!”.
Styles drop kicks Shinsuke down hard and gives him a back breaker. Shinsuke ducks out after taking an elbow to the face. Styles leaps over the top rope onto Shinsuke on the floor. Styles charges into a corner. Shinsuke ducks and catches him with a kick to the back of the head. He places Styles on the top rope and hits him with a running knee to the chest.
High knee to Styles’ throat and knees to the head. Styles suffers Good Vibrations in a corner. Style fires back with a sliding forearm to the face and a neckbreaker. Shinsuke unleashes a series of kicks that echo around the arena.
Styles suffers a sliding German Suplex off the ropes and a flying knee from the top rope to the head. Shinsuke gets a two count. Style blocks the Kinshasa with a Dragon Screw Leg Whip. The Calf Crusher is locked in. Shinsuke reaches the ropes.
Styles and Shinsuke trade kicks and forearms to the body. Styles blocks an arm bar attempt. Shinsuke stuns Styles with a Rewind Kick. Styles blocks another Kinshasa turning that into a Styles Clash but Shinsuke rolls through kneeing Styles in the face.
Shinsuke missed a kick. Styles catches his leg and yanks it over the top rope hard. Phenomenal Forearm and Styles Clash for the win.
Winner: AJ Styles
Randy Orton versus Trick Williams versus Damian Priest versus Sami Zayn – Fatal Four-Way Match to determine the #1 contender for the Undisputed WWE Championship at Royal Rumble
There is too much action to report on so here are the highlights.
Trick Williams gets a massive welcome from the Montreal crowd. It pumps Williams up for sure.
…but the bigger welcome is for hometown boy, Sami Zayn.
Ole! Ole-Ole-Ole! Ole! Ole!
Williams steps out to the floor as the match begins. Williams pulls Zayne out of the ring. Orton hits the floor and Williams with roundhouse uppercuts. The crowd boos him. Priest jumps off the stairs onto Williams and Orton. Damian Priest has stitches in his mouth from his match with Williams last night.
The crowd counts along with Zayn as he nails Orton with haymakers in a corner. Williams dominates the ring beating on Zayn inside it and stopping Priest and Orton from entering back in. Priest puts a stop to it with a chokeslam though.
Priest is booed as he takes over delivering punishment to Zayn. Orton takes over with a spinning powerslam on Zayn and a draping DDT on Priest and Williams. Zayn gets a two count with a Blue Thunder Bomb on Orton. Orton is lined up for the Helluva Kick but Williams stops him dead with a leg lariat.
Williams gives Priest a Bookend on a security barricade. Zayn dives over the ropes landing on Williams. Zayn slams Orton on the announce desk. Zayn gives Priest an exploder Suplex in a corner.
Zayn hits the Helluva Kick on Priest but Williams pulls the official out of the ring before he can make the count. Orton slams Williams on the announce table and then Zayn and Priest. Williams gets a second slam before being thrown back into the ring by Orton.
Orton charges across the ring. Zayn dodges. Orton hits a steel ring post shoulder-first. Zayn blocks the RKO. He readies for the Helluva Kick. Orton catches him with an RKO coming in. Williams throws Orton out of the ring trying to steal the pin. Priest breaks things up.
Orton executes a double draping DDT on Williams and Priest. Orton ponders which to RKO? Williams or Priest? Williams shoves off Orton to Priest who South of Heaven chokeslams Orton. Williams shoves Priest off getting the two count himself.
Williams nails Priest with the Trick Shot but Zayn gives him an Exploder Suplex in a corner. Zayn goes for the Helluva Kick. Williams moves out of the way.
Williams and Zayn battle on the top rope. Priest rushes in. He Razor Edges Zayne. Priest kicks Williams off the apron. Zayn Helluva Kicks Priest. Orton tries to break the count but he doesn’t make it in time. Zayn wins.
Winner: Sami Zayn
