{"id":150952,"date":"2026-01-17T00:20:24","date_gmt":"2026-01-17T05:20:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/?p=150952"},"modified":"2026-01-20T18:13:13","modified_gmt":"2026-01-20T23:13:13","slug":"wwe-smackdown-preview-1-23-26-last-stop-before-wwe-saturday-nights-main-event-snme-xliii","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/2026\/01\/17\/wwe-smackdown-preview-1-23-26-last-stop-before-wwe-saturday-nights-main-event-snme-xliii\/","title":{"rendered":"WWE SmackDown Preview (1\/23\/26) \u2013 Last Stop before Saturday Night’s Main Event (SNME) XLIII"},"content":{"rendered":"

The first WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event of 2026 is just around the corner, and this week’s Friday Night Fight Night looks to start the party early with a loaded lineup of matches with title implications<\/a> and bouts reeking of personal beef. Let’s light this fire already as we provide a WWE SmackDown preview for January 23, 2026, the night before WWE SNME XLIII<\/a>. Let’s run it down.<\/p>\n

Light Running Out?<\/h2>\n

Solo Sikoa and his MFT have been trying so hard to extinguish the light, literally and figuratively, of The Wyatt Sicks. So much so, Sikoa would take the lantern once held by Bray Wyatt to play mind games with the destructive unit, even taking it to the ring on last week’s SmackDown. This tactic would end up costing Sikoa a huge match and a potential number-one contender’s spot at the Royal Rumble.<\/p>\n

Sikoa made it clear that the only way the Wyatts will get the lantern back is by putting up the WWE Tag Team Championships yet again, and it seems like Uncle Howdy and his followers aren’t too afraid of this rematch, as the gold will be on the line on this week’s SmackDown in Montreal.<\/p>\n

For months, these two groups have been wanting to wage and win this war, and we’re reaching a destructive ending as both units fight for the WWE Tag Team Titles one more time.<\/p>\n

Will The Wyatt Sicks retain once again? Or will MFT begin their quest to reclaim relevancy by wrestling away the richest tag team prize on SmackDown?<\/p>\n

Read More:\u00a0<\/strong>What Time is WWE SmackDown on Tonight? (1\/23\/26)<\/a><\/p>\n

A Trick Well-Played<\/h2>\n

Regardless of how anyone feels about Trick Williams, he has gone nose-to-nose, whether on the mic or in the ring, with some of the absolute best WWE has to offer in his first three weeks on the main roster. In his debut, Trick would lambast Sami Zayn, and the week after that, wage a war of words with Randy Orton.<\/p>\n

On last week’s SmackDown<\/a>, Trick whooped that, securing a spot in a number one contender’s Fatal 4-Way<\/a> at WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event, by defeating the recently returned Matt Cardona. Ladies and gentlemen, Trick was not done by a long shot. Fresh off winning their respective qualifying matches, Trick got in the face of Damian Priest, leading to the “Archer of Infamy” challenging Trick to a one-on-one, a day before their Fatal 4-Way.<\/p>\n

For the first time, it will be Trick Williams and Damian Priest going at it! Both men have been on a massive roll as of late, and securing a win on this upcoming SmackDown will allow them to gain momentum going into the biggest match of the weekend.<\/p>\n

Will Damian Priest silence SmackDown’s newest acquisition? Or will Trick Williams notch another big win less than a month after his SmackDown debut?<\/p>\n

Find out this coming Friday night on The USA Network and Netflix, the night before WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event XLIII!<\/p>\n

WWE SmackDown Preview and Match Card (1\/23\/26):<\/h2>\n
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Photo Credit: WWE<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n