WWE SmackDown results, grades: Raquel Rodriguez pushes Ronda Rousey to the limit

fans got a real taste of what Raquel Rodriguez is capable of on SmackDown as she battled Ronda Rousey.

The former Women’s Champion was recently called up to the blue brand and she had the chance of a lifetime on Friday night when she accepted Rousey’s open challenge.

The Baddest Woman On The Planet was in a confident mood after , and she was ready to take on anyone willing to step up to the plate.

Rodriguez answered the call and set the stage for a first-time match with the SmackDown Women’s Title on the line.

She put on a dominating display against Ronda, looking strong as she used her size and power to her advantage in a short but sweet clash, and she even seemed to be en route to a famous victory.

However, Rousey was able to reverse a powerbomb into a roll-up to get the pin to retain her gold – but Rodriguez looked every inch a star here.

She loses nothing in defeat with such a high profile match so soon into her SmackDown run, and she was able to showcase her skills against arguably the biggest name on the roster.

The fact she her loss can be portrayed as a fluke against the champion is a massive plus, and WWE would be wise to follow this up and take the opportunity to build its next big star.

Sami Zayn backs The Bloodline, Unification Match set for next week and Happy Corbin destroys Madcap Moss

The night kicked off with RK-Bro coming out to their typically amazing ovation before Randy Orton called out Roman Reigns and laid down – only to be met by Sami Zayn instead.

He was wearing a Bloodline shirt in a brilliant touch, he claimed to be there on the Tribal Chief’s behalf as a locker room leader.

Sami actually cracked up a bit when Riddle called him Rusty because of his hair, and the entertaining segment led to the pair of them facing off with suggesting that the Original Bro could earn the unification match if he won.

Adam Pearce couldn’t agree to the stipulation, but he did make the match, which was an absolute barnstormer of an opening contest between two incredibly talent stars, with Riddle getting the win with the Bro Derek.

In the main event segment of the evening, The Bloodline came out and Reigns suggested he had no one left to beat before Orton and Riddle came out.

The Apex Predator once again made a challenge for a tag titles unification match, which Jimmy Uso accepted while Jey said it’ll go down next week.

The show ended when Riddle blasted Reigns with a knee to stand tall and leave the Head of the Table rattled.

Earlier in the night, Madcap Moss and Kayla Braxton were in the ring to reflect on the former’s win over Happy Corbin and his next move, but it was interrupted by Corbin with a steel chair.

Thedecimated his rival, putting a chair around Moss’ neck and using the Andre The Giant trophy to inflict more damage before Madcap had to be stretchered out.

Sasha Banks and Naomi built some momentum with the Women’s Tag Team Titles as they beat Natalya and Shayna Baszler in a very entertaining match as they continue their attempt to .

There wasn’t really any risk of them losing the gold, but the action was strong with four talented stars doing their thing.

Backstage, Drew Gulak got some advice from Ricochet who urged him to persevere, and Gulak promised to put GUNTHER in his place – only to immediately meet the Ring General.

He got out a ‘Hi’ before GUNTHER shoved him into a door, ripped off his shirt and delivered an almighty chop – but there’s still hope this could be going somewhere for Gulak.

The storyline between The New Day and Sheamus, Ridge Holland and Butch may have run its course, but the latter picked up a big career win over Kofi Kingston in the last match of the night.

The looked strong as he worked his usual style and hit the Bitter End for the victory – albeit after some interference from his pals – before bolting through the crowd.

WWE SmackDown airs Friday nights at 1am on BT Sport 1.