What To Expect From Tonight’s SmackDown Live

TLC: Tables, Ladders, and Chairs this past Sunday was a solid show that brought us two new champions and a very strange new wrinkle to a championship feud. Tonight we expect the fallout of Sunday’s show as the roster resets for the Royal Rumble and the road to WrestleMania. We’ve already got a title match booked for tonight, but what else is WWE advertising for the show?

That title match will feature James Ellsworth challenging AJ Styles for the WWE World Championship. Ellsworth cost Dean Ambrose his title opportunity at TLC, reasoning that if AJ was still champion he could easily win the title. After all, Ellsworth holds three victories over the champ. That’s not exactly watertight reasoning, but you can hear it from the Man With Two Hands himself.

At TLC, Carmella revealed the attacker who cost Nikki Bella her spot at Survivor Series, shocking the world with the claim it was Natalya. And by “shock” I mean “caused the world to shrug and say ‘we figured.'” In any case, it looks like Nikki’s next feud is with the Queen of Harts, so expect that to begin tonight.

The New Wyatt Family captured the Tag Team Championships at Survivor Series, bring Bray his (long-overdue) first title. Slater and Rhyno might be in line for a rematch, but will they want one after their one-sided defeat at TLC? Becky Lynch will be far more confident in her attempt to reclaim the Women’s Championship from Alexa Bliss, who resorted to an (admittedly legal) eye rake to win the title.

Are you ready for a celebrity guest? Nikki Bella has invited “pop culture sensation” Sophia Grace to SmackDown, and I’m so far out of the demographic for this I can’t even begin to tell you. Look forward to it? I guess? Oh, god, I hope it’s short.